Cittaslow UK

Ludlow became the first Cittaslow in the UK, in 2003 and is the
lead town in the UK network. The second UK town to complete the Cittaslow
assessment was Aylsham. During the first annual board meeting of Cittaslow UK, held in the Corn Hall,
Diss, on Saturday 18th March 2006, Diss was welcomed into membership of
Cittaslow UK. Cittaslow has close links to Slow Food in the UK.
Cittaslow UK is poised for growth, now that the experiences of Ludlow, Aylsham
and Diss can be used to develop the UK network. Already, towns in Wales and
Scotland are on the verge of applying to Cittaslow, and the Cittaslow UK
organisation, headquartered in Ludlow, Shropshire, is finalising an information
pack that will shortly be available to enquiring towns.
=== The Diss experience ===
"It is a major achievement to become Cittaslow," said Diss Mayor Tony Palmer.
"The Town Council and the Diss and District Development Partnership have been
working hard behind the scenes to prepare Diss for membership of the Cittaslow
network for a while now. A wide range of different groups, from the District
Council to the Business Forum, have been involved in the project, which has
also led to the formation of a Slow Food Convivium in Diss."
"The Diss Town Guide explains the background. Being a member of
Cittaslow means that our town is recognised as being committed to living life
at a human scale, and has signed up to keep working to improve its performance
against a set of very sensible Goals that will help guide us on the right
course to improving Diss for its residents."
"The Town Council can now look forward to playing a part in the wider Cittaslow
movement, and will keep up the work towards improving quality of life for
everyone in Diss, for residents and for visitors. Working with a wide range of
local partners, the Town Council will keep making a difference for Diss. For
instance, the Diss and District Development Partnership has just appointed a
specialist fund-raiser to hunt down grants in the UK and Europe that will help
us move forward on Cittaslow-inspired projects in our town."
"It’s very pleasing to welcome Diss into the network," said Graeme Kidd,
President of Cittaslow UK and the Mayor of Ludlow. "Since Diss started on the journey to Cittaslow under the East of England
Development Agency’s ‘pilot project’ - there have been ups and downs for everyone
involved, but now Diss has arrived at the point where it’s a member of
Cittaslow UK."
"The journey, of course, never ends - Cittaslow is a continuous process of
self-improvement for a town. It’s not about bureaucrats ticking boxes, but
about people joining in and working together to have fun and to improve the
place where they live, celebrating its local traditions, culture and what makes
it different. The set of Cittaslow Goals is designed to provide sensible
objectives that any group in a town can subscribe to and help work towards."
*Local needs met locally, UK
* Towards Sustainable Economies
* Rural issues
* Urban focus
References
*Cittaslow UK press release, March 2006
Category:UK organisations
Category:Local sustainability
Category:Cittaslow