Celebrating 50 years of the Pocklington Trust
12th September 2008
Thomas Pocklington, a 19th century self made industrialist, left most of the fortune he amassed in his lifetime for the establishment of a trust to support blind and partially sighted people. Pocklington himself lost his vision temporarily as a young man.
We are very fortunate to have such strong representation from the Trust in and around the Black Country. The Black Country Talking Newspaper and Magazine, now part of the Pocklington Trust and based in Stourbridge, despatches a tape to 700 homes in our area. They are in the process of digitizing this service and I look forward to being able to play their output in my car, I never heard my interview earlier in the year as I no longer possess a tape player.
Chief Executive of the Trust, Ron Bramley, said we were fortunate to have "an enlightened council with a pro-active can do attitude approach towards the voluntary sector". This is good to hear. Since the Conservatives took control of Dudley Council sound financial management has been restored, services, particularly in the important area of Adult and Social Care, have been put on a professional footing and deliver a four star service despite the Government's cutbacks in this and other areas of local government finance.
The next initiative I propose to help the Pocklington Trust with is the establishment of a 'sensory garden'. The plans for gardens geared to the needs of blind and partially sighted people are well advanced and look fabulous. The plans were turned down for funding by Stourbridge councillors a few months ago on the grounds that they would be a magnet for vandalism and abuse.
This is typical of the defeatist culture when it comes to the freedom of yobs to ruin our environment. We have to change this on many levels. Alun Nicholas, the Chartered Architect behind the plans for the garden, has good ideas regarding how to design out the threat of crime. I'm sure a growing number of our councillors will support the re-submission of these plans by the Pocklington Trust at a later date.
Photo: Photos from top: Margot with volunteers: Joyce Lander and Brian Saunders, Deputy Mayor Cllr. Pat Martin with Margot and 50th Anniversary celebrations
