Whatfield, Suffolk Village of the year 2014

The cheque from Babergh

Whatfield recently won the Suffolk Village of the Year competition.  Yesterday evening I went along to Whatfield Village Hall for the awards ceremony and celebration in the village hall.

Well over 100 people crowded in to see representatives from Babergh District Council, The Suffolk Association of Local Councils, BBC Radio Suffolk and the East Anglian Daily Times commend the village for beating off strong competition from elsewhere to carry off the top prize. To qualify for the Suffolk finals Whatfield had also won the Babergh Village of the year award.  The picture above shows the cheque for £500 which was the prize for this competition, which was presented by Babergh Chairman, James Long.

The proposed affordable housing, the strength of the Amateur Dramatics and other village organisations, and the care taken over keeping the footpaths both functional and sustainable were all cited as reasons for why Whatfield had won the award. The strong links between the school and the village were also cited.  The community was praised for the fact that enthusiasm had not just been communicated by a few of the ‘usual people’, but that everyone the judging panel met had been keen to come out to express the fact that they believe that their village is a good place to live. The panel felt that Whatfield both has a keen sense of its own history, and also enthusiasm for where it is going in the future.

An excellent spread was laid out in the village hall, which is itself a cause for celebration since this year marks the 40^th year of its existence. Whatfield Parish Council has always made me most welcome since I became its elected representative, and we have had some constructive discussion at Parish Council meetings.   It was good to see so many friendly faces at the event and also to meet some new residents.