For the last decade or so our media has been all about hype and dissent. We are constantly being told that catastrophe of some sort or other is coming for us and there is nothing we can do about it except accept that it is the fault of a) old people b) young people c) rich people d) poor people e) educated people f) uneducated people …. insert your own pairings here! This way of living has been show to raise cortisol levels, or to put it another way create stress. Constant stress where we feel we are helpless is bad for our mental health.
However, there are good things happening in Sidmouth as well as challenging things. So why do the good things get ignored? Good things lower our stress levels and make us feel we are not helpless, they show us that we can make positive change, they create hope.
This is just a quick list (in no order) of good things from the past year, if you have anything you’d like adding then get in touch through the contacts page.
EDDC and STC are working together with the Lifeboat Station and Jurassic Paddle to get a Blue Flag rating for Sidmouth beach.
The new bridge across the Sid is underway. Choose The Ham view on the webcam to see the progress.
FairTrade Sidmouth is still working to increase Fairtrade offerings in town.
Plastic Warriors have gone from strength to strength and are also doing amazing work keeping the place neat and tidy.
Sidmouth Festivals ( see our front page) are going strong and there have been proposals to have more. The Festival organisers are starting to work together with projects for the coming years.
The Neighbourhood Plan has been ‘made’, which means that things which we said were important to us now have legal weight.
The Drill Hall has been shown to have commercial viability, even if Rockfish should now pull out for some strange reason EDDC can not say no one has a use for it as there were 3 bidders.
Boris Johnson promised there would be more money for anti-flooding measures so we should be able to have a better Beach Management Plan (hopefully!)
The Government has promised help to reduce business rates for small businesses, including doubling the threshold for Small Business Rate Relief. which will help our shops.
The Visit Sidmouth website has been updated and is now much more attractive. They have also added a webcam on Jacob’s Ladder beach to go with the two already available.
Sid Valley Help is making a real difference in many areas, as are the many other support groups in Sidmouth. Support services are listed on the Help website.
Sidmouth in Bloom volunteers have again done a fantastic job, getting the Gold Medal and Sargent Cup in the Regional competition.
I realise that there are bad things also, but we hear about them all the time so they have no place here.