'One part of the facility is now a medium secure unit. It houses young men who have been referred by the criminal justice system.' Photo: courtesy of Robert Ashton.
‘The village shop closed years ago, and there was nowhere for people to meet.’
Talking shop: Robert Ashton on a community venture
I recently visited a community-owned shop and café in Little Plumstead, on the day that it started trading. ‘The Walled Garden’ is a work in progress. A café and shop are already open where locals and visitors can enjoy coffee, cake and conversation. The business sits between a primary school and parish church; 300 new homes are being built in the grounds of the hall that once stood here.
The village shop here closed a few years ago and, although the housing development has open space, there was nowhere for people to meet. To visit a post office or buy anything meant a ten-mile round trip. When I first visited the place, more than thirty years ago, it was a facility where people with learning disabilities lived together, cultivated the walled garden, and engaged in a variety of activities with a team of occupational therapists. It closed in the late 1990s and was derelict for years. But one part of the facility is now a medium secure unit. It houses young men who have been referred by the criminal justice system. They need intensive psychiatric support rather than a spell in prison. This unit is the reason the community shop and café came into being.
I’ve long been fascinated by people who stand out from – or more often are pushed out from – the crowd. So when I found myself speaking at Norwich Cathedral alongside a forensic psychiatrist from the unit, I had to ask if he could arrange a tour for me.
I learned that the biggest challenge the unit faced was in finding meaningful opportunities for the young men to experience work and other life skills, such as shopping. There was nothing close by, and poor public transport made travel to nearby Norwich almost impossible.
As a social entrepreneur I knew about the Plunkett Foundation, which helps community groups set up shops. I suggested we set about building support for one right there. My reasoning was that this would provide meaningful opportunities for work experience, right on the unit’s doorstep. Equally important was the fact that it would help local people to see the unit’s service users more positively.
We recruited a steering group, made up of local residents and staff from the secure unit. Over three years they raised money and commissioned the building. Already three service users have applied to become volunteers. Later, more will be able to work in the Walled Garden.
I’ve suggested research to measure the positive impact of this new source of work experience. It has already given the service users hope. If it allows some to be released sooner than they might otherwise be, then there will be a significant cost saving to the state. If we can quantify that saving, then a case can be made for investment in similar projects, which can benefit service users and local people alike and that has to be good.
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