THE FIRST steps have been taken to create a community garden in the centre of Dursley for the whole town to enjoy.

Spearheaded by sustainability group Transition Cam and Dursley, scores of organisations have helped clear an 8,000sqm of overgrown land at the back of the Chantry Centre on Long Street.

They hope to transform it into a sustainable “secret garden”, with ideas being put forward including raised beds, horizontal growing, a cob oven and an outdoor seating area.

Members of Explorer Scouts, community group World Jungle, Dursley in Bloom and Dursley Lions were just some of the people who came on Saturday to start the first stage of clearing the ground.

A barbecue was held after the day’s hardwork and Transition member Rachel Savage said she was pleased with how many people turned up to help.

“It really felt like a community scheme and for me that was a fairly new experience,” she said.

“People were really excited and it felt like the start of something really special.”

Transition Cam and Dursley will now be holding an open day, with a date to be confirmed, for the public to come4 along and suggest ideas of what they would like to see there.

The initiative is seeking gardeners, crafts people, permaculture and no-dig experts as well as carpenters and fundraisers.

For more information, email transitioncamanddursley@gmail.com or visit www.transitioncamdursley.org.uk