From The Mayor

I was invited to attend the formal opening for Phase 2 of Frome’s Missing Links project, which is creating a family-friendly, traffic free path to Radstock and beyond. 

It’s been a huge amount of work from a dedicated group of volunteers, not least the Friday group, who have done so much of the back-breaking and time-consuming work.

Brambles had to be cleared, the old rail tracks lifted, and a completely new surface laid. The end result is superb, and I’m sure many generations of walkers and cyclists will enjoy the new track.

I also got to meet Councillor Chris Dando, who is currently serving as mayor of Radstock, and it got me to thinking about ‘missing links’ in a much wider context. Our neighbouring towns are on parallel paths, trying to secure and develop our assets for the benefit of the community, and yet this was the first time I’d had a chat with Chris.

Making connections has always been a big part of what I do, whether that’s facilitating meetings or solving Sodoku puzzles! At the national level, it was great to hear that we’re close to agreeing on a European Youth Mobility programme, providing opportunities for our young people to experience the life and culture of European neighbours. Here in Frome, we’re looking to refresh relationships with our twin towns of Château-Gontier in France,  Murrhardt in Germany and Rabka-Zdròj in Poland, along with a new twin town partnership with Pieve di Soligo in northern Italy, expanding the town’s international connections to make them more relevant for today’s Frome.

On a more local level, I work with Frome’s Neighbourhood Network to encourage people living near each other to get to know each other, whether that’s with a street party, a community share box, or just supporting each other on a day-to-day basis. There are more details on the Frome Town Council website – search for ‘Neighbourhood Network.’

As I write this, it seems summer may be just around the corner, partly because we’ve had a spell of warm, dry weather, but also because the programme for Frome Festival has just been launched! I’ve been a trustee of the festival for a few years now and it just seems to get bigger and better. Those of you who know me will know that I help to organise Hidden Gardens, and as we’ve just sent the programme to print, I can tell you we have a great event for 2025!

Frome Festival runs from 4th to 13th July, with Hidden Gardens running from Friday 11th to Sunday 13th July. Tickets are on sale to Friends of Frome Festival on 16th May, with general booking open from Sunday 18th May either at the Cheese & Grain Box Office or at fromefestival.co.uk.

Cllr Andy Jones

Picture: Cllr Chris Dando and Cllr Andy Jones  Credit: Sergio Pepe