An important meeting is being held to shape the future of Marsden.

The meeting on Tuesday, October 17 at 7pm will give the results of a major questionnaire in 2022 called What Matters To Marsden and reveal a new Marsden Masterplan.

This includes details of a funding pledge from Kirklees Council.

People will also hear about the Government’s pledge from its Levelling Up Fund to start redeveloping the former Crowther’s mill on Brougham Road.

The Government is investing £5.6 million into the scheme to kickstart restoring the derelict mill with the scheme eventually costing around £18 million. Click here to read more about this scheme.

The meeting will also relaunch a campaign called Positively Marsden. Anyone interested in Marsden’s future – including representatives from community groups and charities – are invited to attend.

Marsden Community Trust chair Tom Lonsdale said: “This is a really important meeting introducing the next chapter in the exciting story of how Marsden people are shaping their own place.

“People of Marsden have demonstrated remarkable capabilities in recent years by taking over a neglected Mechanics building from Kirklees Council and getting it into shape with a series of grants from the National Lottery and elsewhere.”

This was done by Marsden Community Trust, a registered charity and limited company run exclusively by local people.

But Tom added: “It’s now time to ‘go up a gear’ and think about the whole village. What Matters To Marsden provides evidence to guide ambitions for change, both physical and economic.

“The clarity of these results and the way that Marsden groups have worked together has given Kirklees Council the confidence to elevate Marsden in its programme of regenerating key settlements.”

Funds will be available early in 2024 for a Town Team led by Marsden Community Trust but comprising other groups, businesses and Kirklees councillors and officers and the meeting will talk about how this can be set up.

The meeting starts at 7pm at Marsden Mechanics and the doors open at 6.30pm.

Written by ANDY HIRST who runs his own Yorkshire freelance journalism agency AH! PR (https://ah-pr.com/) specialising in press releases, blogging, website content and copywriting.