Regional Winners

Shelley - Regional Winner 2004

Yorkshire village Shelley is situated south of Huddersfield and has a population of approximately 4,000. Although a relatively large village where a great deal of activity is on offer, Shelley is also a very close-knit and interactive community that successfully serves the needs of all its residents.

The vibrancy of Shelley’s residents is extremely impressive. Committed and forward-looking volunteers promote the village’s clubs and organisations and willing support is given from all sectors of the community. Following the construction of a large estate in the village, efforts were made by existing residents to welcome and fully integrate newcomers into the fabric of its community life. Not only has this been achieved, but the efforts have brought a renewed sense of energy to the village, in turn further developing its richness and diversity.

This harmony and sense of everyone working together continues into Shelley’s business community, which, although small, is very supportive of the village and vice versa. The general store’s plans to expand into larger premises were fully backed by the community association in Shelley (of which every resident is a member) and a letter of support was sent from the association to the planning authority. The two largest businesses in the village are a garden centre and a working dairy farm and both of these provide employment and activities for local people as well as attracting visitors from a wide area.

Maintaining and enhancing the village’s environment is also an important issue for the community. Shelley is surrounded by the splendid scenery of the Pennines and local residents make full use of the countryside. A number of community walks take place throughout the year and the community association monitors the state of all the footpaths in the village. A conservation group was established in 1999 with the aim of managing landscape and nature conservation in Shelley, improving public access and promoting sites as community resources.