The EARL of Pembroke celebrated the fund-raising achievement of the Barford St Martin Community Fund committee as they raised £80,000 for a new village playground. 

The Earl cut the ribbon and declared the playground to be officially open.

Salisbury Journal: Image: Peter ThompsonImage: Peter Thompson (Image: Peter Thompson)

Chair of the committee, Morag Walker said: “For a small village like Barford to have raised nearly £80,000 in just under eight months has been recognised as an extraordinary achievement and demonstrates that our village has a tremendous depth of character and a strong beating heart.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank the many people, businesses, Barford Parish Council and the fantastic village community who came together to support our vision to raise funds to install a new playground in the village.”

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The fundraising amount could not have been achieved without the support of many grant-giving organisations including Barford’s own grant-giving charity, the Nicholson Trust, the Wiltshire Community Foundation, the Special Educational Needs Development fund and others.

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Attending the opening ceremony, the Wiltshire councillor for the Chalke Valley, Nabil Najjar said: "I am delighted that Wiltshire Council was able to provide over £8,000 to help make this playground a reality. I’m so proud of the community in Barford St Martin and the amazing volunteers who put in so much time and effort over the last year.”

The next fundraising challenge has already been allocated to the committee and that is to make space in an existing building to create a flexible community area. 

It requires toilet facilities, a kitchen, and versatile seating.

Eventually, the community space will be available for playgroups, talks, yoga classes and film shows.