Weardale AAP

Find out about the work of Weardale Area Action Partnership (AAP), including details of upcoming events and our priorities.

Our board

The AAP board has 21 members - seven public and seven partner representatives, two county councillors and five parish council representatives.

Weardale AAP annual report 2018-19 (PDF, 4.7mb)

Board meetings

Find details of Weardale Area Action Partnership's (AAP) board meeting dates and the most recent meeting minutes.

Meeting dates

Please contact us for more information about our next meetings.

Minutes and summaries of previous meetings

Board members

Find details of Weardale Area Action Partnership (AAP) board members.

Weardale AAP is made up of seven public representatives, seven partner representatives, one county councillors and six parish councillors. They are:

Public representatives

Chris Powell
Ian Hirst
Joan Warriner
Phil Chatfield
Tom Nattrass
Tony Griffin
vacancy

Partner representatives

Inspector Ed Turner (Police)
Adam Hall / Peter Maddison (Fire and Rescue)
Damian Pearson (Believe Housing)
Julian Haynes (Voluntary Sector)
Catherine Findlay (North Durham CCG)
Stuart Timmiss (Durham County Council)
Paul Smissen (Business Sector)

Elected representatives

Cllr Anita Savory
Cllr David Ellwood, County Durham Association of Local Councils (CDALC)
Cllr David Sugden
Cllr Dennis Craig/Cllr Brian Thompson
Cllr Helen Barrass
Cllr Olive Wilson
Trish Chapman

Our forum

The forum meets once a year and is open to local people, businesses and organisations. It sets the AAP's priorities which it seeks to address through its projects and monitors the progress of these.

Forum members

Get involved with your local community!

Forum members can share their opinions and ideas with the AAP team and take part in task and finish groups to help achieve the priorities. Please contact us for the latest meeting dates and let us know beforehand if you'd like to attend so that we can make sure there's enough paperwork and seating available.

Joining the AAP

Get involved with your local community!

If you would like to have a say and influence decisions that affect your area join your local AAP. As a local forum member you'll be invited to meetings and events to discuss community issues.

Our area

The Icon for pdf Weardale AAP Map (PDF, 2.2mb) shows the area covered by the partnership. Or you can find Weardale AAP - profile on the Durham Insight website.

Our priorities

Task and finish groups meet on a regular basis to discuss relevant issues and develop projects to address the AAP's priorities. Each task group is made up of forum members, board members, and representatives of those organisations whose co-operation is needed to get the job done.

Support to groups in Weardale

For the last 10 years, the Weardale Area Action Partnership (AAP) has been supporting local groups in Weardale through a Small Grants Fund.

A wide variety of local groups have benefitted from funding through this project including toddler groups, luncheon clubs, craft groups, exercise groups, and community gardens. Please see map below for details of the groups we have supported in the last twelve months.

Icon for pdf Weardale Action Partnership Small Grants Fund 2018-19 Map (PDF, 655.0kb)

Children, Young People and Families

This group will meet to discuss the ways in which we can address issues experienced by children, young people and families.

The Weardale Action Partnership has been working hard to address the issues faced by younger residents of Weardale. In recent years we have supported the local community to:

construct a skate park in Wolsingham
provide new equipment for older children in a Stanhope play area
deliver youth provision at Witton-le-Wear
create a project to help children in the transition between primary and secondary schools
provide training opportunities to members of the farming community through our Rural Skills training programme

Meeting dates

For more information on our next meeting, please contact us.

Culture, Tourism and Heritage

This group will be looking at ways in which to promote the rich and varied heritage and culture of the Weardale area as well as continue to promote Weardale as an exciting Tourist destination.

The Weardale Action Partnership continues to work with local attractions to improve the offer to visitors and residents alike. Over the last few years we have run two successful projects designed to explore and celebrate the rich culture and heritage of the area - 'We are Weardale' and the 'Weardale Tub. The Weardale Tub is now on display at Killhope Museum.

In Summer 2019, Low Barns Visitor Centre at Witton-le-Wear underwent a comprehensive refurbishment with support and funding from the Weardale Action Partnership. This refurbishment will help to draw visitors to Low Barns and increase the range of activities they are able to offer.

In 2019-20, the group are looking at ways to improve the experience of walkers in the Dale and are looking at The Weardale Way. To find out more please come along to one of our meetings.