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Long-lost traditional trade to be resurrected
Feb 8, 2010
A TRADITIONAL trade that has long since disappeared will be resurrected in a local village, thanks to an innovative grant scheme.
The role of the lengthsman is said to date back to medieval times. The job involved walking a measured length of road to ensure ditches, drains, paths and verges were clear.
Eppleby Parish Council has been given a significant grant by the Yorkshire Dales Leader scheme to pay for the parish caretaker role to be revived.
However, the job will be given a modern twist.
Highway maintenance will still be done by North Yorkshire County Council, but the village’s lengthsman will be employed to maintain and improve public rights of way, deal with litter, mend benches, clear vegetation, plant trees and carry out landscaping.
He or she will also get modern tools rather than an old-fashioned sickle or a scythe.
Several other villages in North Yorkshire have also received grants after the lengthsman initiative was a success in other areas of the UK.
Rima Berry, from the Leader programme, said: “Lengthsmen faded away a long time ago and many villages adopted an ad-hoc system where volunteers do the work.
“By reviving the role, it will mean places like Eppleby will have a more formal arrangement.
“It’s about the community taking care of itself and fostering community spirit. The modern role will also include things like repairing old cobbles and putting up nest boxes.”
Ms Berry said the funding would allow Eppleby Parish Council to employ a worker –possibly self-employed – to do the job for three years.
After that time, villagers must find another cash source if they want the scheme to continue.
Ms Berry said: “People living in Eppleby have waited a long time for this and have been very keen on the idea. It’s a very pro-active community and their determination to get a lengthsman shows that.”
Eppleby’s scheme is expected to begin in April, Ms Berry said.
The Yorkshire Dales Leader programme was set up to allocate to community schemes.
The money is being used to kick-start schemes and to get a share of the cash, residents must show their scheme has a long-term future and that it creates a benefit for the local economy and community.
A similar scheme operates in the North Pennines area.