Following Salford City Council's decision last December to spend £19million on the RHS `Bridgewater Garden' in Worsley (see here), it is now about to spend £26,841.40 on a five day garden shed exhibit at the RHS Flower Show at Tatton Park in July, where visitor tickets cost £32 on the gate.
"The exhibit consists of a shed which will be redesigned to reference the sights and experiences of the canal environment" states the Council "a custom made and
innovatively decorated haven that reflects the exhibitor's passions and interests."
The Council originally commissioned `maker' Tim Denton to design the 'Garden Hideaway' shed at a cost of £2,587.50, and later £6,842.40 "to develop the designs further, source materials and plan and deliver community engagement sessions".
It is now about to award the designer a further £17,411.50, to cover "the sourcing of
larger planting, creation of bespoke materials and decoration, finalising offsite
construction, on-site installation at Tatton in July and de-rig afterwards".
65% of the £17,411.50 will come from the Heritage Lottery Fund, with Salford
Council paying 35% of the costs. The Council doesn't state which budget the previous £9,429 came from.
The shed project is part of Blooming Bridgewater, which, the Council states "offers a unique opportunity for volunteers to take part in developing, constructing and
installing a high quality exhibit inspired by the canal."
Blooming Bridgewater, in turn, is part of a £3.6million Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) for the regeneration of the Bridgewater Canal, with £1.9million of match funding from Salford City Council, Peel Holdings and others.
"Blooming Bridgewater will be representing the work of the Council and its partners at a major visitor event" states a Council report into the £27,000 shed with a five day lifespan. Meanwhile the fate of the almost forty year old Ordsall Community Arts (OCA) is currently in the balance, as the Council is looking to prune its grant of £21,600...
"There continues to be significant pressure on the Council's budget due to current austerity measures" OCA was told in January...
*Main image shows a screenshot from the Tatton Flower Show website – for more details click here
* For further details of OCA and what is happening in Ordsall - click here
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