Community Info

Out and about in Golborne we met and talked with some of the locals. The people who became a part of www.golborne.org expressed a real sense of community involvement, happily revealing to us their own, personal Golborne. Walking up the Golborne Road and around the Golborne area we naturally gravitated to the cafes, pubs, community centres and hangouts, where people welcomed our curiosity of the area. Over the year we began to develop favourite eating places such as Makan, for its tasty, more-ish, no fuss, cheap lunch time food cooked by Ani and Fatiha, mother and daughter.

We discovered comfortable, unpretentious pubs, where we mixed with the regulars. It was in the old Irish pub Angie's, where we sat next to Jimmy Quinn, who was out for a quiet, lunch time Guinness, whilst just 100 yards away carnival was at its peak. Angie's was an oasis of calm, transporting us from the mayhem of carnival into an unexpectedly normal Sunday afternoon in a pub, in Ireland. Jimmy has lived in Golborne for 40 years: he moved here because his brother was living in London.

The Open Age community group welcomed our interest in their canal walks and enthusiastically showed interest in www.golborne.org especially as they run a computer project based in their computer suit at 1 Thorpe Close. Open Age has more than 40 activity groups for people over 50. Phone 0208 964 1900 for more information.

We were drawn to Kensal Library and Meanwhile Wildlife Gardens for their unique, homely, friendly environments. Kensal library may be small, but it's a thriving communal space for the Golborne area, well used by a diverse mix of the community. The friendly staff Liz, Val and Nahid encouraged and supported our interest in the library as a community space. In May 2003 we held drawing and animation drop-ins, which attracted a variety of young people to contribute to the website. During the two days we spent in Kensal Library, we began a dialogue with many library users and residents about the possibility of a Golborne website and discovered that many people would welcome a website for people in the area. Some people saw it as a potential platform for the community, show casing the creativity in the area. Others saw it as an information centre: a place to share and exchange stories or discuss common interests, a meeting place to find out something about their neighbours. For information about Kensal Library call 020 8969 7736.

Meanwhile Wildlife Gardens is another haven within Golborne, situated beside the Grand Union Canal at the end of Golborne Road. We immediately warmed to David and Loretta who run the gardens. We were invited along to take part in setting up the Meanwhile Wildlife Garden's stall at the Friday morning Organic Market in Thorpe Close. We met David early in the morning under the Westway, where we collected his van full of wild plants from the gardens. Arriving at the market we started to unload the plants and set up the stall. David talked about the gardens and his hope for Meanwhile Wildlife Gardens to flourish in the future with a café and greater involvement with the canal. All the money made on the stall is put back into realising the Gardens' future plans and the general running of the Gardens. Meanwhile is a wonderful place, a MIND organisation, supportive to those who volunteer, a breath of fresh air, reminding you to slow down and appreciate the natural world on your door step. For more information about Meanwhile Wildlife Gardens call 020 8960 6336.