Local youth group add Christmas cheer to Penarth Pier - 11/12/06

 

Penarth Pier will again be decorated with a difference this year thanks to an unusual seasonal project organised by the Vale of Glamorgan Council.

 

With the involvement of Penarth Youth Project for the first time, this will be the third 'Christmas Cheer for the Pier' where local groups use artistic flare and creativity to make eyecatching baubles and garlands from items destined for the bin.

 

Previous years have involved local primary schoolchildren at Albert, St Joseph's and Ysgol Pen y Garth schools, and clients from the charity, Scope. These are all being used again this Christmas, together with the items currently being produced at the Youth Project based in Stanwell Road.

 

The initiative was the idea of arts development and waste awareness officers at the Council, and aims to encourage creativity in all sections of the local community, and to raise awareness of how everyday materials can be reused.

 

Council Arts Development Officer Tracey Harding said: "The local response to this project has been really encouraging and positive. All the groups involved have had a lot of fun, and have also learned about the opportunities that can be created with imaginative artistic ideas. I'm really looking forward to seeing the decorations from the Youth Project."

 

PYP were delighted to get involved under the guidance of worker Julie Giles, who previously worked with the schools in 2004 to produce their decorations. "The Youth Project was happy to come on board as it furthers the type of messages we try to get across to the young people we work with, and also helps us put something back into our local community," said Julie.

 

Some of the decorations are already on the pier, with more to be added. The pop bottles, plastic containers and cardboard tubes have been transformed into fabulous Christmas garlands, baubles and bells, and, because plastic is the main material, the items are more tolerant of the weather.

 

Council Waste Awareness Officer Sam Harrison said: "A big thank you to all the groups who have been involved in this project. It's one of the more unusual ways we promote our 'What's in your bin?' project that aims to get us all thinking about reducing or, as with this project, reusing, and recycling. "

 

And, lastly, surely the unsung hero of the project must be Piermaster Peter Andrews, who braves the elements every year to put the decorations up – and tries to make sure they stay up!