HS2 – Keep The Promise Campaign

The Langdale Trust established Spencer’s Retreat Farm in Berkswell in 2018 to provide a fun, safe and understanding environment for children with special needs and their families. It provides a safe space to unwind, explore and learn, reducing anxiety and creating positive experiences.

Although it is a small, local charity, its work supports children and families across the UK. As HS2 commenced work in the local Berkswell and Balsall Common area, the charity approached them for support and HS2 undertook to provide extensive support and improvement work to the facilities at Spencer’s Retreatso that it could better cater for the needs of families that visit in Summer 2021.

But the promises that HS2 made have not been kept – and Spencer’s Retreat is now left in the unfair financial position, where it is entirely reliant on the generosity of the local community’s skills and resources and a plea for fundraising to pay for the materials that will enable the promised facilities to be created.

We are asking for HS2 to provide the significant resources that they promised to Spencer’s Retreat, enabling the charity to continue supporting children with special needs and creating a destination that will be a positive legacy for HS2 and their supply chain in the Berkswell and Balsall Common areas.

 

About Spencer’s Retreat and HS2’s Unfulfilled Commitment

Due to the therapeutic benefits that its uniquely tailored approach has for visitors, Spencer’s Retreat has achieved high profile regional media and national television coverage and receives children and families from around the country – some travelling from as far as the south coast of England, Wales and the Lake District.

The trustees of the charity have built up a great network of local volunteers and company partnerships,providing donations and resources to help develop the facilities at Spencer’s Retreat, and the farm sought to engage HS2 back in 2018, initially seeking help in resurfacing the track that leads to the farm.

A brief timeline of events:

2018 - HS2’s enabling works contractor for this region, LM (a joint venture between Laing O’Rourke and Murphy) undertook to resurface the track leading to the farm in July 2018 but despite repeated chasing by the charity’s chairman, Simon Morris, the start date advised by LM slipped each month for 20 months. In March 2020 COVID-19 hit and at that point LM advised that the work would have to wait until the first lockdown finished. Meetings continued with LM during lockdown, with LM confirming the project would go ahead.

June 2020 – As lockdown ended LM advised that they would no longer be doing the project. No explanation was given and they refused to respond to calls, e-mail or texts from the charity. Simon contacted Mark Thurston, the CEO of HS2 to complain about LM’s behaviour and he was shortly afterwards contacted by Steven Paskins, a construction manager from LM.

With renewed enthusiasm, LM met at Spencer’s Retreat and brought their supply chain with them. Understandably keen to support the charity, LM and their partners offered to not only repair the track leading down to the farm but also to resurface the carpark, renovate the stables, install a kitchen, sitting area, sensory room, replace the doors and windows and install a canopy to shelter from sun and rain. A further meeting with LM had their fencing sub-contractor offering to renew all the fencing down the track to the farm, around the site perimeter and splitting the fields. LM visited again, this time offering to revamp the natural play area with plans to landscape it, supply and install play equipment, tunnels and hills for the childrenand install a bird hide and nature area. Additionally, they proposed to create a small, decked area for parents to be able to sit on and watch their children playing, a wheelchair path around the farm, re-surfacing and enhancing the main entrance off Spencer’s Lane and adding animal signage along the length of the track leading down to the farm.

If that wasn’t enough, LM also proposed to install mains power to the farm – bringing it onto the grid.

The completion of the work was to be marked by a full opening ceremony this summer – with the families that use the farm being first to see the transformation.

The proposals from HS2/LM were to be transformational for Spencer’s Retreat – securing its future as a community asset and making it the best special needs / disabled children’s farm in the UK; something Berkswell, Balsall Common, Solihull and the West Midlands would be proud to shout aboutand a positive legacy for LM and HS2. This was clearly a project that HS2/LM wanted to claim as their own, they recognised that this would have positive feedback not just locally but also nationally.

On the basis of LM’s proposed commitments and in line with LM’s direct requests, the charity stood down its funding applications for the works that it was planning to do and also the proposed resources from existing corporate benefactors locally. A decision made based on LM’s written commitments to the charity.

November 2020 - LM finally completed the track over a two day period, resurfaced the car park and undertook part of the fencing work that they had committed to. LM then left site with an agreement to return early this year.

February 2021 – With no response from LM regarding a site recommencement date, it was clear that immediate remedial work was needed to repair groundthat had been churned up from LM’s visit, infill gaps in incomplete fencing and gate openings.

Finally, a Teams call at the end of February with LM brought the worst news: LM were no longer proposing to do all of the remaining work that they had promised. They advised that they would do some work to the stable and complete the fencing.

Mach 2021 – LM have not returned to site. They have not come back to complete the fencing or do the remedial work to the stable. With just a week to go until Spencer’s Retreat Easter Events the farm is desperately seeking support from volunteers who can donate skills and time to progress the projects LM had promised to the charity. The charity is also in need of financial donations to purchase (kindly discounted) building materials that would have been donated by HS2’s supply chain if they had kept their promise.

 

What Can You Do to Help?

1) Click on our GoFundMe page and donate what you can afford: https://gofund.me/6047d2a6
2) Sign our petition to ask HS2/LM to make good on their commitments to Spencer’s Retreat www.change.org/tbc
3) Offer your time and skills to the charity: Contact the charity through Facebook Messenger orenquiries@spencersretreat.com
4) Go to https://www.facebook.com/berkswellretreatand ‘Like’ our page
5) Share our story on Facebook and social media – we need your support
 

Thank you.

 

Simon Morris

 

Chairman of The Langdale Trust

Spencer’s Retreat