Growing Kirkcaldy

President Brian opened the meeting with his usual warm welcome to  28 all  Rotarians and no. Guests this week.  We discussed the previous night’s Council Meetings items and again it was emphasised that we needed to push The Rotary Big Day Out on the 31^st May 2015 at Cluny Clays everyone welcome as this is a family day and we want as many people from our local community to come along £10 per ticket for adults which includes a barbecue full details on the Rotary Family Fun Day page.  We are also having a sponsorship day on 21^st June to raise money for Prostate Cancer Scotland, again we are encouraging under 18’s to do various laps of The Beveridge Park and help us raise money this ties in with the Father’s Day theme and better awareness for Prostate Cancer. Further details available on the Get on yer bike with Kirkcaldy Rotary page. 

Lunch was followed by an interesting talk from our speaker and fellow  Rotarian Alice Soper, talking about Kirkcaldy In Bloom and Growing Kirkcaldy the town has been selected from more than 1,000 entrants to take part in the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Britain in Bloom UK Finals 2015, the pinnacle of the community gardening world. Growing Kirkcaldy will be representing Fife in the small city category.   

Beautiful Scotland nominated Kirkcaldy to the national finals of the competition following the regional stage of judging in 2014. Growing Kirkcaldy was selected for engaging every element of the community, for demonstrating an exceptional commitment to helping the environment and for top horticultural achievement.

Although the campaign runs all year round, the run-up to the judges’ August tour is a time when communities throughout the UK unite and redouble their efforts.   Kirkcaldy will be visited by two RHS judges who will meet community representatives and go on a tour of local projects. Judges will assess everything from local recycling initiatives to areas of natural habitat and conservation. They’ll also be looking at the management of street furniture and public parks, and will be assessing how well the group is responding to climate change and how they are engaging the community in their local Bloom activities.

This is the first time Kirkcaldy has been a finalist. Growing Kirkcaldy started three years ago and involves volunteers of all ages. Particular success stories have included over twenty businesses and the majority of schools signing up to our wheelbarrow/planter project last year – businesses were able to display the wheelbarrows and bring them inside each evening, while schools decorated and planted their own barrows/planters. This year, Growing Kirkcaldy aims to develop additional projects – preventing litter, clearing and improving a derelict space, maintaining an EATS bed and helping to further enhance floral displays across the town.   These can be seen at various sites Nicol Street, Rosslyn School and the Garden at the Train Station, many of the baskets and barrier baskets around the tpwn centre, Torbain Primary School have some very brightly coloured planters and are doing a great job.  Alice thanked local businesses for their support in providing materials and plants and also thanked the Rotary Club of Kirkcaldy for their kind donation of 90 HI Vis Vests embroidered with the ‘Growing Kirkcaldy’ logo. 

President Brian closed the meeting and thanked and wished Alice and her team all the very best of luck.