A guest article by the Friends of Old Shoreham about the progress they have made in the two years since they were founded.
Two years ago the Shoreham Society published an introduction to a new community group, The Friends of Old Shoreham. That article, Taking a Fresh Perspective, can still be read here.
At the time we set ourselves a simple challenge: to protect and improve Old Shoreham’s heritage and environment through community action. We also committed ourselves to providing a forum for the social, economic and environmental well-being of Old Shoreham.
The obvious question is: what happened? The short answer is that people responded.
Over the past two years hundreds of residents have become involved in projects ranging from nature recovery on Mill Hill to the Capturing Old Shoreham exhibition, community mapping, local history, schools, arts and heritage. Thousands of volunteer hours have been given. Partnerships continue to grow with local organisations, public bodies, charities and landowners. Most importantly, new conversations continue to develop between people who might never otherwise have worked together.
Along the way, practical projects have demonstrated something that was there from the beginning. Old Shoreham is not simply an historic village. It is part of a connected landscape stretching from the Downs to the coast, linked by the River Adur and shaped by centuries of movement, farming, settlement and wildlife. Looking after one part means understanding how it connects with everything else.
The same is true of the people and organisations that care about this place. Residents, volunteers, councils, the National Park, conservation bodies, schools, landowners, museums and community groups all have different responsibilities and perspectives. None can achieve very much alone.
Community action remains at the heart of FOldS. Increasingly, though, more of that action is taking place alongside others. As those relationships grow, so does the opportunity to share knowledge, understand different perspectives and explore the future of Old Shoreham together.
Our recent Forum reflected on what has been achieved and asked an even more important question: what should happen next?
The Forum reaffirmed the importance of continuing practical projects while building understanding, strengthening partnerships and helping more people discover and care for the place where they live.
FOldS remains a small volunteer organisation. We do not own land or make planning decisions. Our role is much simpler than that. We bring people together, help ideas become action and encourage cooperation across Old Shoreham.
Everyday lives in the landscape
The Capturing Old Shoreham exhibition which was at the Marlipins Museum will move to the Skyway Gallery at the Shoreham Centre, initially for two weeks in September as part of this year’s Heritage Open Days, whose theme is Everyday Histories. We will also begin exploring What Next? for the project.
The Capturing Old Shoreham exhibition which was at the Marlipins Museum will move to the Skyway Gallery at the Shoreham Centre, initially for two weeks in September as part of this year’s Heritage Open Days, whose theme is Everyday Histories. We will also begin exploring What Next? for the project. Come along, discover Old Shoreham and join the conversation. Become part of the story.
Community Stewardship
Community stewardship is one way of describing what is unfolding across Old Shoreham: local people taking active, responsible care of the place where they live and work.
It is not a formal title or a top-down designation. It is a practical way of working: learning about our area, restoring habitats, recording wildlife, sharing knowledge, organising events, improving paths, creating maps and building partnerships.
The idea is simple. People understand a place better by getting involved. That understanding leads to care, and care leads to practical action. The Friends of Old Shoreham did not set out to become a stewardship group, but community stewardship is a good description of the growing network of projects and partnerships through which local people work alongside one another to care for and improve their own landscape.
In the UK, the word stewardship is often associated with formal land management and farming schemes. That is not what we mean here.
We are using it in its wider international sense, where stewardship means active, responsible care of a human-influenced landscape, with communities recognised as thoughtful participants in ecological processes.
