Opinion: A shared love of Peterborough

He moved to Peterborough as a young man, first owning a cycle shop in Park Road and later working at Perkins Engines as a cost accountant.

The day he retired, in 1966, he moved from Peterborough to Clevedon in Somerset.

When my father died in 1971, my mother soon remarried and, with her new husband, decided to move to Bristol.

I was born at Thorpe Hall, was educated in Peterborough and spent my entire working life in schools and education in Peterborough. When we retired, my wife and I had a discussion and decided to stay, to show faith in Peterborough, to contribute to the city and to enjoy city life. Peterborough is easy to get round, has a variety of attractions, has plenty of countryside nearby and is only just over an hour away from sunny Hunny!

What could be better? We love walking in and around the city, enjoying a coffee or beer in the centre, supporting dear old Posh, meeting friends, being involved in various groups, and of course, in my case, volunteering with the Civic Society.

When it comes to living in Peterborough I have a simple mantra – I want to open my front door in the morning and see that the world has improved or, at the very least, not got any worse.

Our city, along with any other town, city or village, can be judged by the quality of its cultural life. Civic life isn’t all about keeping streets clean and emptying bins, vital (and indeed statutory) though they are. It’s about celebrating our history, sense of place, diversity and individual and collective imagination. It’s about promoting the good and planning for a bright future.

To this end it has been widely publicised that there is to be a new Culture hub called The Vine, located in the old Woolworths/TK Maxx building in Bridge Street. This certainly sounds exciting. According to the Towns Fund website The Vine “will be a thriving hub, blending space for artists’ studios, galleries and exhibitions with a library and community café”. Sounds great!

One of our most recently successful assets has been the Museum in Priestgate. Whenever I visit I find the place bright, welcoming and well used. The recent ‘Proud to be Posh’ exhibition was brilliant and brought people into the Museum who hitherto had never been.

Apparently 2023 will see an exhibition about Peterborough and its railways. I’m sure this will prove very popular with old and new Peterborians as well as railway buffs. Well done to all concerned.

The Museum is one of our organisations that goes from strength to strength. I’m sure that, despite all the current financial pressures, its future is assured.

Last Monday the speaker at the Civic Society’s monthly meeting was Matt Gladstone, the City Council’s chief executive. Mr Gladstone was very upfront about the Council’s financial woes but was also most reassuring about not selling off assets. Not only did he speak positively about the future of the Museum but he also assured us about the Central Library in Broadway – certainly good news for that part of town. What struck me most was that everyone in the room - Matt Gladstone, Adrian Chapman and those who asked questions from the floor – all have a shared love of Peterborough. We all know the destination, it’s just the potential routes that differ.

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On Monday, December 12, the Civic Society’s monthly talk is ‘Cromwell did not cancel Christmas” by Stuart Orme, a speaker with huge local appeal and a very large following!

This is our December meeting so expect food and drink! All are welcome at this event which starts at 7.30pm at St Marks’ Church Hall PE1 2SN. The talk is free to members and costs a £5.00 suggested donation for non-members.