HALESWORTH TOWN COUNCIL CHERRY-PICKS NAME FOR TOWN’S NEWEST ROAD

Life is a bowl of cherries for one Halesworth schoolgirl – after she came up with the name for the town’s newest road.

Eight-year-old Keira Saunders was guest of honour at the street naming ceremony at Cherry Close, off Bramfield Road, after she won a competition to come up with a name of the new road, which is home to 15 new affordable homes which have been developed jointly by Orwell Housing Association and Lowestoft-based developer Wellington.

Keira joined Halesworth Town Council Chair Annette Dunning at the site to plant a cherry tree donated by Wellington to mark the new name, which was chosen in a contest organised by the Town Council with Edgar Sewter School in the town.

Pupils put forward many suggestions, with ‘Cherry Close’ – inspired simply by Keira’s love of cherries.

“The children at the school were very excited to have the opportunity to influence the history of their town,” said Cllr Dunning.  “Once we had chosen Cherry Close as the winner, we approached Wellington to see if we could plant a new cherry tree to mark the occasion, and they were delighted to donate the tree.”

The new homes represent a £1.7 million investment, which was made following a meeting between Orwell Housing and Halesworth Town Council, who expressed concern about the lack of affordable homes in the town.

Working with Orwell, Wellington identified the site, and the land was purchased from a local family in 2013.  Planning permission was granted as an ‘Exceptions Site’, which means that priority can be given to local people when it comes to allocating the homes.  Built on land which was formerly a paddock, the new homes have been widely welcomed by the local community.