THE ambitious Hatherleigh Rings project which its designer says will act as an ?icon for the town? will take the next step forward in the New Year with the submission of a full planning application. The aim of the project is to promote the arts and celebrate the local area through a huge labyrinth attraction containing a central auditorium which could be used to host theatre, live music and story-telling events. The unique project has been designed around the wants and needs of the people of the town, and has evolved over the past four years to reflect their aspirations. Project leader Yvette Martin-Fleming said it was ?fantastic news? that the designs were finally at the stage where planning permission for the unique community arts scheme could be sought. She said she expected to lodge the application in February, following a meeting with Hatherleigh Town Council. Yvette said the team behind the scheme was about to enter its fourth year of getting the Hatherleigh Rings project off the ground. ?The design has not changed all that much, but the project is evolving all the time,? she said. Yvette wanted to thank everyone who had shown faith in the project and thanked the Hatherleigh team and the professional team, which included Howard Jones, a mentor from the Eden Project, for their generosity of time and effort towards the cause. She said: ?This professional team is one to die for and they have easily put in £70,000 of work for our project for absolutely nothing.? Yvette said people were prepared to do this, because they believed the Rings project was ?unique and exciting?. ?It is designed totally around the desires and needs of local people who are the integral ingredient, it will be an environmentally sympathetic icon for the town, a genuine and fascinating community project that will set a precedent of how things should be done.? Yvette said following meetings with borough planning officers and the Highways Department, the team were ?incredibly confident? about their chances. As well as the main auditorium, there are smaller rooms, known as ?moon rooms? which would provide space for talks, lectures or classes. The team also hope to use the facility to enlighten people about the 3,000-year history of labyrinths and mazes. The labyrinth design would utilise traditional materials such as cob and thatch with a mix of open spaces and enclosed areas on fields on the outskirts of the town.
