Rural Action Yorkshire is delighted that one of its Trustees has been appointed as Vice Chair of ACRE, the body which operates at national, regional and local level in support of rural communities across the country. Janet Thornton had only recently been elected to the Board of Action with Communities in Rural England and is now looking forward to her new role supporting ACRE’s Chair.
Janet Thornton has been involved with Rural Action Yorkshire for over ten years and is a great example of Big Society in action: Janet is a woman who makes sure things get done locally! Her story is similar to that of many ’community activists’: her involvement in her village grew from chairing a toddler group and then carried on into further projects which contributed to the success of the local community.
Having played key roles in the Beaver Scouts and Young Women’s groups, the village’s Design Statement and on the Parish Council, Janet led the village to the finals of the Yorkshire heat of Calor Village of the Year. The competition was organised by Rural Action Yorkshire (then YRCC) and so began Janet’s relationship with the charity. When the village won the Yorkshire and North of England rounds the following year, Janet was invited to join the judging committee at RAY and later, RAY’s Board.
Janet has continued to work on many projects in her local community including a campaign to save the doctor’s surgery, fundraising for the village hall, campaigning on carbon emissions, as well as being involved with the NSPCC, WRVS and Riding for the Disabled. So when it comes to representing communities and organisations at a wider level, it’s fair to say Janet knows what she’s talking about and has a very good idea about what works and what doesn’t work.
Speaking about her new role at ACRE, Janet said "I’m really looking forward to continuing working on behalf of rural communities and helping them to meet the challenges which the future presents. It’s exciting to be involved in policy-making, not just here in Yorkshire, but helping to shape national policy too."
She added "Rural Action Yorkshire and ACRE provide a voice for rural communities which is crucial in a time where budgets are being threatened. So if your village is struggling to save local services, keep the community hall running, or tackle lack of broadband, get in touch with us and we’ll do our best to help".
