Here's to another succesful year

As 2012 draws to a close it's time to reflect and consider what was good about 2012 and what we can do to make 2013 even better.

The past year was our fourth full year of running and and a year where we were able to start giving money to our community, this will continue next year when our goal will be to grant even more money than 2012 - the way the weather has been recently and the amount of rain in our rivers that is definitely achievable.

The year was also our most productive from a renewable energy point of view and surprisingly one of our wettest months in that time was July when the Hydro is normally stationary with the rivers Sett and Goyt being much drier.

'Archie' couldn't do any of this without the fantastic support we get from our share holders, volunteers and the local community.

The Directors and volunteers at Torrs Hydro hope you have all had a wonderful Christmas holiday and look forward to seeing everyone in the New year at our next open day.

Torrs Hydro - Tripadvisor

I'm sure many of you out there have used Tripadvisor to find out the best places to stay or eat or visit, well now 'Archie' has got his own little spot on there.

So if you have ever visited Archie or been on an open day and would like to give some feedback please feel free.

Also thank you to those that have fed back relating to any noises heard in the Torrs Riverside park

What's that noise?

We are currently helping with some investigations relating to 'noise' heard from the Torrs Riverside Park area around Archie.

Our investigations have been ongoing on and off for a couple of years and have resulted in changes in the way the Hydro is operated and noise surveys with HPBC to determine not only if it could be from Archie but also looking at any other things that may be causing noises in the area - other than pub closing times!

The noises when reported do not appear to have a pattern and can often be when the Hydro is switched off.

If you do hear anything or have any thoughts please drop an email to secretary@torrshydro.org 

Community funding requests

Early in the New year Torrs Hydro will be discussing the next round of Community funding, this is where we review requests for funding from local groups - whilst we currently have a few requests to review we would like to see more, so if you are part of a local group that would benefit from some additional funding please email sean@torrshydro.org explaining what you would do with the funding and how your group/activity benefits our community.

Torrs Hydro Director Sean Whewell handing over
much needed funding to Ed Mountifield
at New Mills Volunteer Centre 

Earlier today Torrs Hydro were able to give the New Mills Volunteer Centre £100 to help them maintain the fantastic service they provide to New Mills and the surrounding area

New Mills and District Volunteer Centre has been successfully operating since 1983. The organisation was originally registered as a charity in August 1985 and became a Company by guarantee in February 2003. We directly promote the welfare and community involvement of people who have needs arising from being elderly, disabled, physically or mentally ill, house-bound, isolated, visually or hearing impaired, or from learning difficulties. This is accomplished through the actions of our 130 volunteers. New Mills is a semi-rural area and social isolation is a major problem.

The services we provide, and the social groups we run, are predominantly aimed at older people, although not exclusively so. Our transport scheme is for local residents who have difficulty attending hospital or doctor's appointments. They are accompanied door-to-door by a volunteer driver. We undertook almost 4000 trips this year and have over 900 clients. Our shopping service - where volunteers collect a shopping list and deliver groceries to the client’s home – is also aimed at those who are unable to shop for themselves due to age or infirmity. We deliver shopping to clients about 500 times a year and need to expand this service to meet demand. 

These are essential services in helping local people retain an independent life in their own homes. Our weekly shopping trips to local towns and markets are also for the elderly and infirm. The minibus we hire picks up clients at their home and is equipped to take 16 passengers which can include four wheelchairs. Again, volunteers act as escorts door-to-door.  Volunteers are integral for our befriending, gardening and simple DIY repair services we provide. One of the most important aspects of the centre is to get socially isolated people back into the community by using our existing social groups to create new friendships - '60 Not Out', stroke support group, handicraft group and Hayfield Over 60s give clients a support network and the opportunity to form friendships with their peers. 

December 30 - Open Day

Archie is going to have an open day from 1-3pm on Sunday 30 December.

Normally we don't have open days during the 'winter' months but because of the growing number of people that go out walking through New Mills and surrounding areas during Christmas and New Year we thought we would give it a try.

We may have hot drinks available - watch this space !

United Utilities

Torrs Hydro met with United Utilities yesterday to better understand the work that is currently taking place in New Mills and the benefits that it will give to the whole area.

We will post some pictures and a summary later in the week. 

Some amazing facts came to light and just shows how much water New Mills uses - on average during a normal dry day (not raining) the pumping station dealing with New Mills waste (sewage, industry, baths, sinks) deal with 45 litres per second - that's roughly one bath full every second, in wet weather conditions this can then increase to over 200 litres per second and it all has to be processed the same way.

Fix my street - please...

We live in a great town (New Mills) but sometimes you see things that need 'fixing' and you don't know who is responsible : Town Council, County Council or any of the other governing bodies that make up our society.

I've started using a service called 'Fix My Street' which takes all the guess work out of that - you put in your postcode, it comes up with a map where you can pinpoint where a [problem is and even add a photograph - the service covers absolutely everything from road problems, street lighting, graffiti, wheely bin issues - you name it you can put it on there.

My experience so far of it has been good, with email responses and street lights being fixed and even drains being unblocked - see if it works for you.