Didcot Garden Town Newsletter
Summer 2023

Didcot Garden Party

• 8 August - Environment Day at Cornerstone to help everyone learn about making changes that can help tackle climate change 
• 10 August - Keeping Active at Didcot Civic Hall for people to try out new sports and activities 
• 11 August - Food and Finances at Cornerstone to help provide support to households looking to make their money go further.
• 24 August - Independence Day of Ukraine, a chance for everyone to learn more about Ukraine and it’s rich and varied culture.

Pride Picnic

Image of the Northern Neighbourhood Community Centre

Everyone is welcome to come to our first-ever Didcot Pride Picnic at the Northern Neighbourhood Community Centre on 17 June. Our partners, Didcot TRAIN and Didcot Town Council, have helped us to put on this opportunity for residents to bring family and friends together along with their own picnic to join a friendly celebration taking place from midday to 3pm. No need to book, just come along with entry on a first come, first serve basis.

We’ve hired the Centre, on Dan Read Parade on Great Western Park, to host the event, which has a lovely garden, and weather permitting, we’ll be able to use. If it’s a wet day, we’ll head inside the hall. The venue only has a few car parking spaces, so if you can, please cycle or walk to the venue. 

Didcot Central Corridor consultation opens

• Saturday 10 June 2023 – 10am - 4pm 
• Thursday 15 June 2023 – 6pm - 8pm

Didcot Wildlife Garden Charter

We’ve partnered with Sustainable Didcot to help highlight a Didcot Wildlife Garden Charter to encourage everyone to pledge to help the wildlife thrive in their own garden.

With just a few simple steps you can help create green corridors to help enhance the biodiversity in the local read.

Find out more and sign up to the pledge on Sustainable Didcot’s website.

Let it Bee looking good

Image of a 'Let it Bee' area on Fleetmeadow

Didcot Garden Town has three sites; Fleet Meadow, Mowbray Field and Ladygrove that will not be mown this summer. There are also four sites on Ladygrove and an area at Cronshaw Close that has had some extra wildflower seeds sown to help bees, butterflies and other pollinators.

All locations have been chosen so that they do not impact pedestrians or sightlines for drivers.

You can find out more about how we can all help to tackle climate change on the council’s website.

Nourish and Flourish

We’ve been working with local partners to launch a new Nourish and Flourish programme to help improve health and wellbeing in primary school children in Didcot. This summer, Nourish and Flourish will be going into classrooms to teach Year 5 and 6 pupils the benefits of healthy eating and give them the skills that they can use at home to prepare nutritious meals.   

SOFEA, a charity that helps to transform people’s lives, and the Didcot Primary Care Network, a collaboration of three GP practices, will also work with parents to help support the programme and give tips on how to reduce household food waste. 

Renewable energy coming to Cornerstone

Cornerstone Arts Centre has received £370,000 of government funds towards the installation of solar panels and air source heat pumps to help replace the centre’s old gas boilers.

When all the work is complete, the council estimate that the centre’s utility bills will reduce by around £20,000 per year and support the council’s own target to become carbon neutral by 2025.

Everyone Active Grants available now 

South Oxfordshire District Council’s ‘Everyone Active’ Grant Scheme is now open.  The scheme aims to improve the health and wellbeing of residents in our area by supporting communities to become and stay more active. 

Organisations or individuals are invited to apply for grants up to a maximum of £1,000 for each application for projects that benefit more than one individual resident of South Oxfordshire.

To find out more information, head to the council’s grants page. 

Didcot Powerhouse Grants

Earlier this year, the district councils’ Community Wellbeing Manager and Cllr Mocky Khan, member of our Didcot Garden Advisory Board, got involved with helping to decide where funds from the Didcot Powerhouse Grant scheme should be allocated. 

Hosted by Didcot First and managed by Oxfordshire Community Foundation, our Community Wellbeing Manager and Cllr Khan were invited to be members of a panel that helps to deliver support to residents living in and around the garden town area.  

The fund is looking for more businesses to join to help provide vital funds for groups and charities that provide support to those who need it most in the community.  

Find out more about where the funds were allocated on The Didcot Powerhouse Fund website.