Lingfield - Older People Award Winner

Lingfield is a large village community with good resources and a great community spirit. The Lingfield Marathon is a major village event which takes place annually in April or May and attracts many visitors from the surrounding areas as well as galvanising villagers. Launched 25 years ago this year, the marathon originated as a way of raising funds for a minibus to be used by local organisations. Today, some of the money raised is kept in a special fund for maintaining, and eventually replacing, the minibus, and the remainder is distributed between local organisations.

Many other events and activities are on offer to villagers throughout the year. Lingfield’s Community Centre is the hub for many of these, including dance, dog training and yoga to name but a few! The Community Centre building, a former adult education building, was purchased by the parish council and is managed by a separate committee. Residents are kept up to date with the latest news on local events and organisations by the Community News, which is distributed free of charge to every household in the village six times a year.

In particular, Lingfield is successful at providing and caring for its older residents. The Community Care Association is a voluntary organisation set up over 25 years ago with the aim of managing the Lingfield Day Centre for the benefit of the village and to organise and run the kitchen as a facility for the Meals on Wheels service and Lunch Club. The Day Centre is well used and relies on volunteers for all aspects of its management.

Lingfield is situated east of Guildford and has a population of about 4,200.

Visit the Lingfield web site at www.lingfieldparishcouncil.gov.uk