The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Tenants’ group blooming proud of new garden
Dedicated community tell of their pride after amazing turnaround gives communal ground fresh new look after years of neglect gave incentive for change
Members of a Fife community group have spoken of their pride ahead of the formal opening of a new community garden next month.
Locals gathered two years ago to form the Robert Smith Court group in Lumphinnans after the area started looking run down.
Now, through hard work and collaboration between residents, tenants, Kingdom Housing Association and Ore Valley Housing Association, the group is planning to hold a special event on August 15 to mark the unveiling of the new garden which was created after around £16,000 was obtained in grant funding.
Group chairman Mark Davies said everyone involved was “immensely proud” of what the group had done and they had adopted the phrase “Making Robert Smith Court a great place to live” for their logo.
He said no one had responsibility for the areas of communal grounds, courtyards, gardens and stairwells until they got involved and this was what had led them to became so overgrown.
“By coming together as a group we have secured funding from owners and housing associations – as well as grants
– to improve the area and ensure there is now regular maintenance and upkeep,” he said.
Danielle Marshall, a resident and member of the community group committee, said: “I’m a single mum and always believed in making the most of what you have, although, it can be challenging when you don’t have too many resources.
“I moved to Robert Smith Court four years ago and, although it was run down back then, with a bit of TLC from the community, it really brought the place to life.”
Shona Hay, another long-standing resident, has lived in the area for 18 years and brought her son and daughter up there.
“When I first moved in there were issues with neighbours – and over the years we have had to deal with rubbish, damage, dirty needles and anti-social behaviour which actually made me scared on occasion to leave the house,” she said.
“But what our community group has done is bring us all together. Robert Smith Court now feels more like a community. And a real bonus is our area has never looked so good in all the time I have lived here.”