Volunteers support Hopwood Hall Estate restoration

Volunteers meet to support Hopwood Hall Estate restoration

Sixty people from all over Greater Manchester attended Saturday’s, (18 November) gathering of volunteers to support the restoration effort of The Hopwood Hall Estate.

The group ranged from primary school students and scouts to retired professionals with diverse backgrounds and skills.

Hopwood DePree, who led the meeting, said: “It was an incredibly positive meeting and the enthusiasm was great.

“Some people had very specific suggestions of how they could help, while others arrived looking to figure out where they could best fit in.

“This is really a team effort and I am honoured to be part of it.

“A very successful community brainstorming session.”

Also in attendance were Nick Barton, representing Rochdale Borough Council, and Dawn Chipchase, from Hopwood Hall College.

The newly formed ‘Friends of Hopwood Hall Estate’ was recently awarded a £5,000 grant from Architectural Heritage Fund and match-funded with £5,000 from Rochdale Council to encourage community engagement as part of the grant.

Volunteer organiser Karen Humphreys said: “We are thrilled with the amazing turn-out and the offer of even more help from larger groups that were represented by their leaders at the meeting.

“We also had some very inspiring conversations with staff members from Greater Manchester-based primary schools who are interested in collaborating to involve students.”

The group divided into several sub-groups to target activities launching in early 2018:

• General volunteering.
• Facilities: Construction, general maintenance and gardening.
• Community outreach and education.
• Administration: Organisation, research, grants, general office.
• Media, marketing, fundraising and sponsorships.

Anyone interested in becoming involved email:

Office@HopwoodHallEstate.co.uk