A enduring commitment to village living is one of the reasons Peter Lee, Sustainable Transport Strategy Manager at Suffolk County Council and a resident of Sproughton near Ipswich, considers Ros Lavington to be a thoroughly deserving 'Suffolk Hero'.

A enduring commitment to village living is one of the reasons Peter Lee, Sustainable Transport Strategy Manager at Suffolk County Council and a resident of Sproughton near Ipswich, considers Ros Lavington to be a thoroughly deserving 'Suffolk Hero'.

Peter Lee is certainly unstinting in his praise. “Ros is a powerhouse of the green community in Sproughton, a village of about 1,200 households and 50 active groups on the western outskirts of Ipswich. She is a committed ambassador of the cause by practising what we preach about reducing consumption of resources and recycling.”Ros Lavington’s achievements certainly seem to live up to this impressive billing. She is a dedicated fundraiser and organiser for her community and has been instrumental in applying for and winning funds to insulate the Sproughton Tithe Barn, a grade II listed building which is available to hire by local groups, and renovate the old store room into a thriving and award-winning community shop.Lee has known her since early 2007 and feels that Ros Lavington exemplies a range of qualities “amongst others – commitment, dedication, tenacity, professionalism, respect and integrity.“But also there is the sheer passion in everything she does on behalf of Sproughton, her community. She really wants community members to enjoy the benefits of taking action to reduce our resource use (such as greatly reduced heating bills!) and making the most of what’s on our doorstep, from allotments to community woodlands. Neither the Tithe nor the community shop would be there without her tireless support, which she sees as an asset for the whole of the community to own and use. This gives us a local alternative to services that would otherwise be a car’s drive away.”In Lee’s opinion, Suffolk could do with more can-do residents. “People like Ros are few and far between and with a few more like her we could achieve anything we set our sights on! She is trying to preserve the heritage and rural feel of our community, because it’s such a lovely place to live.”How do his family and friends view her? Again the answer is unequivocal. “With a great deal of respect and admiration – she puts in so much time and dedication for no personal gain. Many people in the community are not fully aware of how much her efforts have been behind their local services – she’s made it all happen and is the glue that holds it all together.”It is especially fitting, therefore, that Ros Lavington’s efforts especially those relating to the Tithe Barn should have received a broader recognition. In March this year she was the joint winner in the Community Hero category in the Creating the Greenest County Awards As Lee concludes: “She is rightly hugely proud of the part communities like Sproughton play in helping make Suffolk the greenest county.” For more information on Sproughton’s Tithe Barn go to: http://web.me.com/greensproughton/Tithe_Barn/Welcome.htmland on Creating the Greenest County: http://www.greensuffolk.org/

By Paul Simon