I was appointed as Rye Town Council’s first town steward in January 2015. Armed with only some basic hand tools and some hi-vis clothing, I was tasked with improving the physical appearance of Rye, making places safer for people to access and repairing / improving anything that I was allowed to. This also included (and still does) filling any gaps in the services provided by other authorities. I threw myself at any task that I could – I cut back hedges, I strimmed vegetation along footpaths, I litter picked, I cleared dog waste and I reported as much as I could to whoever was responsible. I also set up volunteer litter picking groups to tackle what was quite a bad litter problem in Rye at the time.
As more time went by, I learned which areas or problems needed to be taken on as regular tasks and which ones we needed to push for the responsible authorities to do themselves. As the scale of what needed to be done really dawned on me and the town council, more resources were put in to the role to allow for more appropriate tools and equipment – and for new staff to join me.
Fast forward to the current day and we now have two more town stewards, Kate Smith and Steve Lippross, and a solid grasp of the areas that cause people problems as well as the places that need to be kept looking their best for the people of Rye and its tourists.
We carry out a wide range of tasks. Things like mowing grass verges, painting street furniture, weeding, litter picking, planting flowers or sowing seed, maintaining garden spaces, fixing benches or fencing, cutting back hedges and brambles as well as many other things they we can help with to keep the town looking good and safe for people. Rye Town Council has also recently taken over ownership of the town’s two allotment sites which we help to maintain and we’re currently keeping two of the town’s public toilets (The Strand and Gun Gardens) open and maintained. We also maintain the old water cistern and land in Wish Ward, and what is known locally as the Baptist Gardens on Watchbell Street on behalf of the Baptist Church.
We inspect the town regularly as well as take reports from the public and that information is then used to help us keep track of the jobs that need doing and which ones take priority, as well as just learning over the years what will need to be done and when.
One of the main challenges that we’ve faced with the job is the increase in wet weather over the last few years which can really slow us down and affect how much we can do around the town. As for the changes, the areas / properties that we now maintain and control has increased and looks as though it could increase again soon, which brings with it more work to be done for us as stewards, as well as the other responsibilities that come with it – like more paperwork! Just as much work goes on in the background to ensure we can keep doing what we do as the physical work people see us out doing.
Overall, the reactions we get from the public are hugely supportive and grateful which really helps to keep our morale up.
This is a role with many challenges and restrictions, but I can honestly say that I have thoroughly enjoyed doing what I do for the last 10 years. The overall feedback I’ve had over the years (and that we still get now) from the people of Rye and those visiting is just so lovely. People are so thankful for the smallest of things that we help with. I’d really like to give everyone who has engaged with me and shown their support over the last 10 years my heartfelt thanks.
Image Credits: Rye town steward , Nicky Ledger, Rye town steward .