On high ground overlooking the lower field of Ashburton Park stands the Pavilion. In it’s early existence in the 1940’s it functioned as a busy café serving teas and cakes where the local community would gather to chat and children to play.

The Pavilion of 2015 is in a sorry state after years of neglect by the local authority. The original red tiled roof was replaced with felt tiles, a poor substitute. The café closed a few years ago and since then the structure has been locked up. The roof has succumbed to the elements and a number of the timbers are rotten. Hoarding now surrounds the structure.

The Pavilion is much loved and locals often reminisce about the café and the good times, times when the park was alive and so much more than just a green space.

The Friends aspiration is to renovate and open up the structure so that it can become a hub for a number of outdoor activities such as music and dance performances, a backdrop for an outdoor cinema, farmers and craft markets and of course the ever important shelter from the rain!

You may ask what about a café? Well, the intention is to have a café in the refurbished Library so that it may serve customers all year round rather than just in fine weather.

The Pavilion project is already under way with contributions from various interested parties, without whom the aspiration cannot be realised. A big thank you to the following who are offering of their services without cost to the project

Structural Survey
Dr Sinead Smith, Structural Engineer, www.SESmithEngineering.com

Asbestos Survey
Kershaw Contracting Services Ltd, www.kershaw-grp.co.uk , contact Jim Grant, Asbestos Divisional Manager

If you can and want to contribute to the renovation of this much loved structure then please email the pavilion team at FOAP