Ashbourne set for new Shrovetide statue
A COMMUNITY garden complete with Shrovetide sculptures is set to be approved for disused land in Ashbourne.
The plans, submitted by Community Interest Company AshCom, are set to be approved by Derbyshire Dales District Council’s planning committee on Tuesday.
Council officials have recommended the proposal for Shrovetide Walk should be approved.
The project is said to cost more than £100,000 and will be partly funded by the district council itself.
Seating planned for the throughroute would be removable so it could be shifted during the Shrovetide football game each year. The sculptures would remain in place with AshCom saying they would be “robust” enough to withstand the trademark hug (giant scrum) and be positioned centrally so as to leave space for it to pass by.
The application says a spiral path will provide access to further sculpture “silhouettes” of people playing the game itself, along with seating.
New paving is proposed for the rest of the site, with a new “heart space” within the open part of the walkway including a dial representing elements of Shrovetide football.
The outer ring of the dial will contain the names of the opposing teams, the Up’ards and the Down’ards and the second ring will contain the handprints of previous goal scorers – with the Ashbourne emblem in the centre.
Each year the game of Shrovetide starts at a plinth in the Shaw Croft Car Park, just metres away from the proposed garden and sculptures site. The two teams are chosen depending on which side of the Henmore Brook that they live.
A document submitted with AshCom’s application says: “Our proposed scheme provides this town centre outdoor space with a beautiful garden which can be enjoyed by the local community.”