Local student councils unite at Heartlands

Student council groups from Pool, Camborne and Redruth secondary schools have joined forces to keep an eye on the progress of Heartlands.

The students were introduced to the project by having a guided tour of the site. Pool Business and Enterprise College, Redruth Technology College and Camborne Science and Community College are located within a short distance of the Heartlands project, therefore are keen to get to grips with the project and relay information on the scheme to their fellow students. In the future we hope that the student council can guide us on how they might use Heartlands when it is open.

Heartlands in the snow!

Taken Wednesday 6th January 2010

Lost Words Found Objects take to the Great Flat Lode

For the second part of the Lost Words Found Objects project, year 7 students led by artist Ben Cook, walked the Great Flat Lode trail. The young people navigated themselves using O.S maps and compasses from Wheal Basset to King Edward Mine. Along the way the students from Pool Business and Enterprise College recorded what they saw and found using sketchbooks and digital media, keping their eyes open for as many 'Lost Words' as they could find.

As the project progresses they will be encouraged to find ways in which they can manifest their 'Lost Words' in a physical form of their choosing. The words will be collated in to a book and used to inform and inspire artists working on the Heartlands project.

Architects impressions of the new builds at Heartlands

Above shows the view when walking from Pool Village into Heartlands, with Robinsons Shaft visible through the new community building.

A small playground will be located to the back of the community building, a Children's Centre occupies half of this building. In addition to this small play area there will be a large playground located in the park at Heartlands.

Aerial impression of the former tin mine buildings at Robinsons Shaft and also the complex of new builds which will include a community building, artist studios, apartments, market square, events space in the form of a plain an gwarry.

Above shows the plain an gwarry which will be at Heartlands, which is surrounded by artist studios with residential space above and a market square.

Work and community space for rent at Heartlands

Are you an artist looking for a new studio? A business who needs a place to work? A community group looking for somewhere to meet? A fitness instructor with no where to teach? Or a band who needs practise space?

Once open in 2011, Heartlands will have a range of flexible spaces in idyllic surroundings. Spaces include a large community hall, seminar rooms, artist studios, office spaces. If you are interested in renting space at Heartlands then please phone us on 01209 722323.

Pool pupils surf the waves on their eco boards

After months of preparation, students from Pool Business and Enterprise College have taken to the waves at Gwithian Beach on individually created belly boards inspired by life in Cornwall, and made out of recycled wood.

Panels of un-used wood, which were collected from Heartlands at Robinson's Shaft in Pool by the year nine students, have been transformed into eco-friendly belly boards. The boards have been illustrated with images chosen by the pupils, which depict stories they have gathered from their family members and local residents about life in Pool.

The project, named 'Lost Words, Found Objects', involves working with the local community to help develop the project and inspire the artists and designers working at Heartlands. This strand of the project was led by local artist Ben Cook.

Ben said the event at Gwithian Beach named 'Exhibition in the Sea' gave pupils the opportunity to showcase their boards both in and out of the water.

"After a professional surf lesson the pupils had a fantastic time trying out their boards. The belly boards are completely unique and the images that the pupils have chosen are all personal to their experiences of Pool's past and how they see the future of the area."

Ben added: "This has been an exciting project for the pupils to get involved with and they have learnt that sustainable living can be fun. Raw materials, which were no longer of use on the Heartlands site and have now been transformed into fantastic original belly boards for the pupils to surf on and will later be exhibited at Heartlands for all to see."

The pupils boards were judged by Debbie Luffman, designer from Finisterre, which sells surfinspired, environmentally-focused technical clothes. Members from the Cornwall Council’s west Cornwall outreach team also joined in the day’s event.

We were also very lucky to have myCornwall.tv film all the bellyboard action from start to finish .

Australian mining expert visits Heartlands

Heartlands has welcomed a mining expert from Australia to the site as part of a wider tour of the county.

Corrine Unger, who has a specialist interest in the use of former mining sites, spent an afternoon at Heartlands earlier this month, to learn about the £29.5 million project and how it is set to transform the area into a truly inspirational landscape.

The visit to Heartlands was arranged by the Post-Mining Alliance, which is an independent not-forprofit organisation with a mission to encourage and promote the regeneration of old mine sites for the sustainable benefit of the local community and natural environment.

Heartlands is planned to transform Cornwall’s most derelict urban area into a truly inspirational cultural landscape. Heartlands became a reality in 2007 after receiving a £22.3 million grant from the Big Lottery Fund’s Living Landmarks programme, the only project in England to be awarded this funding. Additional funding has been provided by the Homes and Communities Agency, the national housing and regeneration agency for England and from Cornwall Council. All funding for the project is secure and major works are planned to start in early 2010.

Carolyn Rule, Cornwall Council’s Cabinet Member for Economy and Regeneration, said:
"Heartlands is an exciting project and the former mining site is rich with history and of great interest to those in the industry. It is great for the Heartlands project team to welcome global visitors, such as Corrine to the site, and give them the opportunity to spread the word about this inspiring project.”

Scott James, Heartlands Programme Director, said: “We were delighted to welcome Corrine to Heartlands and give her a first hand account of what is planned for the site. Corrine was really interested about the scale of the project, with the community and sustainability elements, which are embedded within a physical regeneration scheme.

“We enjoy welcoming industry specialists to Heartlands as it gives us the opportunity to discuss with people how we intend to transform the site whilst understanding more on shared issues which affect their projects and ambitions in different regions of the world."