In more than 75 years Tilling Green has never had a welcome sign. That changed this week when a brand new sign was unveiled on Monday, July 28 by long term resident Margaret Tiltman. 92-year-old Margaret moved to Tilling Green on April 1 1960.
The ceremony on Mason Field included speeches from Tilling Green Residents Association (TGRA) chair Dan Lake and Rye mayor Andy Stuart.
A year ago, members of TGRA began the journey to create something special for the 1,500 or more residents of the estate. Dan Lake and Graham Ellis spearheaded the vision, created a basic design and started sharing the dream with potential supporters. Tilling Green residents were surveyed inviting them to vote on the kind of sign and the fonts to be used.
The first step forward came with a grant award from the Rye Fund via the Sussex Community Foundation. It was followed soon after with a donation of oak timber from Graham’s cousin Sean Quinn. Kevin and son Josh from Udimore Road’s Mermaid Joinery were hired to create the sign while Dustin at Care Signs offered to donate the lettering work. Kevin went to school at Tilling Green and Dustin lives with his family on the estate so this was established as a very local project.
Si McGurk, our Rye councillor on Rother District Council, then stepped in to get permission for the location of the sign on Rother land at Mason’s Field. He also arranged and helped fund Rother’s maintenance team to install the sign which meant TGRA could cover all the costs and avoid pointless paperwork.
The significance of the Tilling Green welcome sign process is important because it demonstrates how community groups like TGRA can bring about improvements to the quality of life in their communities and also impact how they are represented and perceived.
Image Credits: Si McGurk , James Stewart , Dena Smith-Ellis .