Grant to be set up to pay for young person from Cirencester to travel to Australia

The grant aims to give someone from the Cirencester area the opportunity to travel abroad for work, study, sports or involvement in the voluntary sector.

The decision to set up a new grant fund and trust within Cirencester Community Development Trust was announced on the evening of Wednesday, October 18 at Cirencester Parish Church.

More than 250 and 170 organisations packed into the parish church to hear the plans for the friendship initiative between Cirencester and the City of Bathurst.

The Australian High Commissioner, The Hon Alexander Downer AC, was in attendance as the guest of honour and was greeted at the door to the church by the Lord and Lady Bathurst as well as town councillor Mark Harris.

He was then introduced to Revd Katie Richardson, the chair and vice chair of Cotswold District Council, and the deputy mayor of Cirencester.

The community evening saw Cirencester’s voluntary organisations, sports clubs, the Royal Agricultural University, schools and colleges come together to hear from their Australian counterparts by way of a video, which included the Mayor of Bathurst - Graeme Hanger.

CCDT Ltd chair Shirley Alexander said: “It was a wonderful evening and it was lovely to be joined by such esteemed company as the High Commissioner.

"We are now urging community groups, clubs, organisations and businesses to get involved and come up with ways to get in touch and involved with their Australian counterparts."

Cllr Mark Harris said: “We have thrown down the gauntlet to Cirencester and the City of Bathurst to say, come on, let’s work together to develop commercial and friendship opportunities, despite the distance, we really do have so much in common.”

To contact with the Bathurst Cirencester Friendship, email info@cirencesterbathurst.org or tweet @CirenBathurstFr.

Alternatively, visit: www.cirencesterbathurst.org.