TAVISTOCK will soon be home to a new look rest room — seven years after the doors to the town’s original Old Folks’ Rest Room were closed and caused upset in the community far and wide.

The much wanted service will soon be opening to the over 55s, and will be run by the Tavistock Area Support Services (TASS) and supported by Tavistock Town Council, which owns the premises it will be occupying in the pannier market surround.

The new facility will replace the former rest room known as the Old Folks’ Rest Room, which was located on Duke Street and closed to the public in 2009, having been there for more than 50 years. The new rest room will be at the East Stores end of the town’s iconic market.

The facility could be up and running by the end of October.

It will provide a venue for those over 55 wishing to have a break and meet in the heart of the town — but the search is now on to find a name for the new rest room. Should it still be the Old Folks’ Rest Room or can someone come up with a new name?

Robin Felton, manager at TASS, said: ‘We would very much like to involve the people of Tavistock in coming up with a suitable name for this rest room, which is more in-keeping with today’s older population — so we will also be running a naming competition in the next few months.

‘This is an exciting development for the town and fits in well with the aims of TASS in providing support to older and disabled people living in Tavistock and surrounding areas. We feel that this makes good use of our limited funds for the benefit of older people we support.

‘TASS is pleased to be working in partnership with Tavistock Town Council and we look forward to a successful venture.’

Mayor of Tavistock, Cllr Mandy Ewings, said: ‘The town council is delighted to be able to work with TASS to provide a facility that supports and reinstates a valued community service contributing to the needs of the older person in the 21st century. This is a great example of what community organisations like TASS and the council can do when they work together for the community.’

Deputy mayor for Tavistock Town Council, Cllr Philip Sanders, said: ‘TASS provides a vital service to the residents of Tavistock and the surrounding countryside and it is wonderful to see them working with Tavistock Town Council to open the facility.

‘This is an excellent example of agencies working together for the benefit of the community.’

West Devon and Torridge MP Geoffrey Cox said: ‘We fought hard to keep the Tavistock rest room open and I am therefore extremely pleased to hear that is to reopen in the town.

‘I believe that centres such as this have been extremely important and effective over the years in terms of allowing the older generation to benefit from mutual support, particularly at times of distress.

‘It is an extremely valuable facility at which the town’s elderly population can meet and talk with each other in a friendly environment, and it is without doubt that Tavistock will benefit significantly from its reopening.’

The facility on Duke Street was built by public subscription for the use of the over 60s in the town and was leased by Tavistock Town Councill, which paid a peppercorn rent to the building’s owners Huntstrete Estates — until the lease ran out in 2009.

Robin Pike, who was town mayor at the time of the closing of the Old Folks’ Rest Room and a staunch supporter of it remaining open to the public, said: ‘This is good that a rest room will be in the centre of town and we welcome it coming back to a different site, it’s just a pity the other one is still there and nothing is being done to it.’

l Share your thoughts with us about this new venue for the rest room. Send your letters to timesletters@tindlenews. co.uk