Eldon Community Centre will be hosting multi-sports training provided by Shildon AFC Community Fund during the School holidays in 2015. The sessions for children aged 4 years upwards will be held on Tuesday afternoons from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. each week during the holidays.

Eldon Village Fete was held on 18th July 2015. The Parish Council funded a bouncy castle and slide, fairground rides and a face-painter for children in the village, together with a balloon modeller and fire eater aptly named “Charlie Burns”. The weather was kind and there was a good turnout on the day. The community centre provided refreshments and there was a cake stall, tombola and table top sales.

The Parish Council has been concerned over a number of years about the accident record at Eldon crossroads and has met with both the County Council and the police on a number of occasions to express its fears about further accidents at the junction.

Sadly, early in 2015 a young man was killed at the crossroads and more recently there has been a further serious accident when another young man lost his leg.

The Parish Council and County Councillors met with officers from the County Council and the police following the fatality in January and the County Council has promised a road scheme to attempt to improve safety at the junction. This is programmed for August 2015. Part of the scheme will involve a radar controlled speed warning sign on Eldon Bank as traffic speeding down the bank has been a factor in some of the accidents at the junction.

The Parish Council was represented at the 2014 Remembrance Day Service at St. Mark’s Church by Councillor Rose Scaife (Vice-Chair of the Council) who laid the poppy wreath; and also by Councillor Diane Pennington.

The Parish Council has recently commissioned Durham County Council to undertake planting and future maintenance of the flower beds at Eldon Crossroads. The Parish Council also intends to purchase a number of flower tubs to be placed at various locations throughout Eldon.

The Parish Council was recently offered a football training taster session by Phil Clarkson of Shildon AFC. If there is sufficient interest, the Council will be considering whether to introduce a similar course in 2014 for young people based at the Community Centre.

The Parish Council has recently approved an application for a grant from Eldon Community Partnership to purchase a salt bin for the car park behind Eldon Community Centre. The Partnership has made its own arrangements for a supply of salt which should help to ensure that the car park and walkways within the Community Centre grounds are safe during periods of wintry weather.

Eldon Community Centre is a fantastic resource for people living in and around Eldon. The Centre is open on Wednesdays and Fridays for breakfasts and lunches and can also be hired for events such as weddings and birthday parties. The Centre is fully licensed for music and dancing and has a bar. On Monday and Tuesday nights the Centre hosts activities for young people and on Wednesday nights there is a weekly Bingo session.

Please support your local community centre and get involved. The Centre is always looking for volunteers who can devote a couple of hours each week to supporting the activities at the Centre.

If there’s anything you would like to see happening at the Community Centre which is currently not catered for, or if you want to book the Centre for an event, please contact the Centre on 01388 775955, or the Treasurer, Diane Pennington on 01388 773309.

The annual Christmas party for older people resident in Eldon will be held on 19th December 2013 in the Community Centre.