Based in Newstead Village, Newstead Enterprise, has been awarded a grant of £433,140 from the Big Lottery Fund in partnership with the BBC. The community plan is to transform the site of the former pit tips into a thriving Country Park.
A music festival - Headstock - will be held in the new park on September 11th 2010 and will be put together by the community who has run a successful free festival Treefest for the last 10 years.
A sustainable eco-build visitor centre complete with classrooms and workshop space will be created on the site with the community getting involved in the building work. The original finishing and polishing ponds will be transformed into angling lakes, working closely with the CAST project which uses angling as a way to engage with disadvantaged young people.
London-based husband and wife team Anthony and Julia Thistleton-Smith will act as the Village Champions for Future Newstead and will offer their experience of environmentally sustainable architecture, marketing, and running successful small companies.
The BBC will be following the progress and village's story will be featured on a BBC1 programme next year.
