Denton Town Twinning

Activities During 2007

French buy into British Christmas Fayre

Once again a group of Twinning Association members have visited the Marché de Noël at the Ferme du Manet in Montigny, our twin town, where they manned a stall full of typical British seasonal products such as: Christmas crackers – these are very popular – fancy hats, mince pies, Christmas cake, Dundee cake and Christmas puddings. Originally, taking a stall to sell these products was merely looked upon as a way of meeting people from our twin town, while acting as ambassadors for Denton. Now, British Christmas fayre is seen not just as a British curiosity by our French friends but as products ‘with a difference’ that they buy with the intention of offering their friends something different over the festive period.

Thank you to Sainsbury’s

Amongst the team from Denton was Anne Fleming. Anne works as a cashier at Sainsbury’s in Denton and when she put in a request for leave, her manager was intrigued when he found out that she would be swapping serving customers at the supermarket in order, in her own time, to sell products to people in France. Once her interest was realised the supermarket very kindly gave the Twinning Association a donation via Anne to help with the preparation of products.

Denton and Tameside were also represented by the Civic Mayor and Mayoress Councillor Michael Smith and Terresa Smith. On Saturday evening, 1st December, at a thank you dinner for contributors to this popular event they joined official representatives from the other twin towns in Germany, Ireland, Italy and Romania.

Sad News

We regret to announce the death at the age of 79 of Fred Elms our former chairman. His funeral took place at St. Hilda’s, Audenshaw, on Monday 17th December, 2007. He was a former head master of Egerton Park School in Denton.

Fred was the motivating factor behind the creation of the Twinning Association and it was his signature that affirmed the twinning between Denton and Montigny-le-Bretonneux back in 1992.

In recent years, owing to ill health, he had not been able to contribute fully to the work of the Association and had recently accepted the title of Honorary Chairman.

As a caring man and a fine teacher, Fred saw the Twinning Association as a way of offering an opportunity to youngsters as well as people of all ages to expand their horizons and to learn to appreciate other peoples’ life styles and customs. He would be delighted to know that his work has spread beyond France and that Denton is now linked through various cultural activities with towns in Germany, Italy, Romania and Ireland.

Fred was very popular with our friends in Montigny-le-Bretonneux and the town was represented at the funeral by Michèle Parent, Deputy Mayor.

Marostica welcomes its Twinning Partners

In order to seal the twinning agreement, originally ratified at a ceremony in Montigny in June, a delegation led by Michel Laugier the Mayor of Montigny and representatives from the other associated twin towns visited Marostica at the invitation of its mayor Alcide Bertassa during the weekend of 28-30th September.

The visitors where made most welcome by their Italian hosts and, on the Saturday evening, they were entertained to a spectacle of music and dance that showed off the culture and talents of the region. It took place in the charming town square. The backcloth to the show comprised the ancient castle that overlooks the town and which was illuminated for the occasion.

Marostica is situated 80 kilometres from Venice.

An Enjoyable and Informative Evening

On 6th November, members of the Twinning Association were entertained by the Civic Mayor of Tameside, Councillor Michael Smith and the Mayoress Teresa Smith, in the mayor’s parlour at Ashton Town Hall. The reason for the meeting was that in June this year the mayor represented Denton and Tameside at a twinning ceremony that took place in the department of Yvelines near Paris between Montigny, Denton’s twin town, and Marostica in Italy. During the visit he invited members from Denton Twinning Association to meet him in order that he could learn more about its work.

The evening with the Mayor combined a tour of the council chamber and an explanation of the layout and the work of the chamber, and then the history of the council and a viewing of some of the memento’s that have been accumulated from various parts of the world. Then there was time for the Mayor to get to know the individual members of the Association and for him to understand better its aims and objectives.

(Photograph shows - left to right: Diane Roache, Cllr. Walter Downs, Alan Marrow, Brian Booth,Anne Flemming, Gavin Childs, Cllr. Margaret Downs, Teresa Smith - Mayoress, Sarah Bishop and Cllr. Michael Smith – Civic Mayor)

Denton Carnival

Members of the Twinning Association were out in force to pass on to the people of Denton the good wishes from their twin town citizens of Montigny-le-Bretonneux. On this occasion our French friends could not attend but they will be celebrating the day with us next year and we will also be taking part in their carnival next June.

Our French style hamper was won by a gentleman from Denton.

Italy joins the Association

Celebrations took place in Montigny during the weekend of 23rd to 24th June in order to celebrate the official twinning of Montigny-le-Bretonneux with the Italian town, Marostica. As there has always been a close link between Montigny and its twin towns: Denton in England, Kierspe in Germany, Lunca in Romania, and Wicklow in Ireland were invited to participate. Denton can in deed be said to be a partner in a mini European Community.

Presentations

Five members from Denton Twinning Association led by our chairman Gavin Childs in the company of the Civic Mayor of Tameside, Councillor Michael Smith, attended the twinning ceremony. On Saturday afternoon in the main hall of the Ferme du Manet, Montigny's oldest building, the guests were entertained to a presentation that described each of Montigny's twin towns. The official representatives from each of the twin towns made their speeches. The Civic Mayor of Tameside spoke on behalf of Denton.

Entertainment 'French Style'

In the evening our hosts entertained their visitors to a splendid seven course banquet which was accompanied later in the evening by entertainment in the style of the Paris Lido or the Moulin Rouge. And what more fitting end to the evening? Yes, of course, the Can-Can.

Tree Planting

On Sunday afternoon outside the Civic building in Montigny a tree was planted to mark the occasion. It was interesting to compare the young sapling with the mature tree that marks the twinning between Montigny and Denton back in 1993.

Solidarité

On Tuesday, 3rd July, Diane Roache from Denton Twinning Association set off for Montigny, our twin town, accompanied by a group of students from the department of Performing Arts at Ashton 6th Form College, the purpose of their visit being to participate in the creation of a theatrical production based on the theme 'solidarity'. At 9.00am on the following day David Byrne (18) Holly Roberts, Scott Nield, and Stacey Mather (17) met the other members of the cast. There were ten from France, four from Germany, seven from Ireland, three from Italy and four from Romania.

Under Professional Direction

The group rehearsed for 7½ days at the Jaques Brel Theatre under the professional direction provided by the company Deviation. Following a public dress rehearsal at the theatre on the evening of 12th July the final performance was given in the open air in the centre of Montigny on Friday the 13th. The show took place in front of a large and appreciative audience on a balmy evening. After the final curtain the audience were treated to a fireworks display to mark the eve of Bastille Day which is a public holiday in France.

Working Together, Playing Together

The director succeeded most skilfully in combining the different talents of the performers from the six participating nations. Outside the rehearsal room all the members of the production met up as a group, they went swimming and, during the middle weekend, they were treated to a conducted tour of the main landmarks and attractions in Paris. Nearly all the students were accommodated individually by families in our twin town although David Byrne found himself located close to the impressive Palace of Versailles.

Joining in the Bastille Day Celebrations

All the students stayed on in Montigny after the show to participate with their host families in the holiday celebrations. The group from Denton returned on Sunday 15th July after benefiting from the experience of making their contribution to the creation of an original production and of working and communicating with young people from vastly different backgrounds and cultures.

Many Thanks to My New Friends in Tameside

Hadrien Lausson (19) is the latest in a number of students from our twin town who have benefited from an exchange visit, i.e. by following a course of training here in Tameside.

Hadrien returns to France on 4th July after a period of five weeks. For the first two weeks he worked at Brother UK in Audenshaw and after that at P-n-P Motion Controls in Mossley. He is grateful to the management of both companies, to Alan Marrow from Denton Twinning Association (a member of Tameside's Economic Development Unit) for setting up this work experience opportunity, and for the supervision and assistance of David Kilpatrick from Tameside College.

Hadrien is a student at the Jules Ferry High School in Versailles, he in his first year of higher education for technicians in electronics.

For the duration of his stay he has been accommodated by Glenis Castle and her partner who live in Marsden. He has enjoyed his first visit to England; he has visited many places of interest in our region and he has made many new friends. His English, though quite good when he arrived, has improved considerably.

Denton Twinning Association is pleased to learn that Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council is now working with Tameside College, and Ashton 6th Form College, to develop a bid for funding to allow Tameside students to take up similar work experience placements in France. Members of the council in our twin of Montigny have indicated that they are more than willing to develop this two way exchange.

French Invasion

Anyone visiting the centre of Ashton-under-Lyne on Thursday 17th May would no doubt have noticed that the French language was dominating the rich cultural mix that one normally experiences in the town.

Recently students from Ashton 6th Form College visited Denton's Twin Town, Montigny-le-Bretonneux, near Paris.

Return Visit

On this occasion 33 students from the Lycée: Emilie de Breteuil in the centre of Montigny, were paying the students in Tameside a return visit. They were accompanied by their teachers: Florence Boutes,and Alexandra Rosetti.

On Thursday morning the students divided into two groups in order that some could visit Audenshaw School while the others went to Ashton 6th Form College. Later on in the day, after a visit by all the students to the Portland Basin Museum, they were greeted by the Civic Mayor of Tameside, Councillor Margaret Sidebottom in the council chamber at Ashton Town Hall. They were then taken on a brief tour of the Civic Building, including the museum, and afterwards they were offered refreshments by Madam Mayor in the Etherow suit. There she presented Madame Rosetti with a plaque bearing the Coat of Arms of the Metropolitan Borough.

On Friday the students visited Manchester's Museum of Science and Industry; the Lowry Centre and, much to the chagrin of Gavin the Twinning Association's chairman and life-time Manchester City supporter, later in the day they were given a conducted tour of Manchester United's Football Ground. On Saturday they visited Liverpool.

On Sunday the French students spent the day in the company of their friends from Ashton College and Audenshaw School, either sightseeing or being entertained at their homes. Meanwhile the teachers, happy to take a break from their duties, were entertained by members of Denton Twinning Association to a trip to Little Moreton Hall near Congleton in Cheshire.

A Change of Personnel

At our AGM on the 2nd April at Denton Town Hall the following changes to the committee of the Twinning Association were agreed:

Frederick Elms

Frederick Elms has been replaced as Chairman by Gavin Childs. Fred was instrumental in founding the Association back in 1990 and over the years, while visiting frequently Montigny-le-Bretonneux, he has often delighted our French friends with his eloquence as he regularly addressed them in their own language. Until his retirement in 1990 Fred was headteacher at Egerton Park School. Fred is not in the best of health so he has decided to take a back seat. In appreciation of his great contribution to the Association he takes the title of Founder Member.

Gavin Childs

Gavin teaches French and German at Two Trees Sports College in Denton, he has been a member of the Association for many years. He has now accepted the position of chairman.

Angela Taylor

After a break of a couple of years, Angela has again agreed to take on the role of Secretary. Brian Booth who has been assistant secretary will continue in a supporting role.

Dianne Roache is to continue as Treasurer while Ann Faulkner continues as Minute Secretary.

Farewell to Tameside

During January and February, Tameside played host to a group of students from Montigny-le-Bretonneux. They had each been working on a training course. Left to right: Charlotte Prejeant (21) spent her time working with Tameside Council at its offices in Ashton, Hélène Piguet (18) was engaged in a project that compared the library service here in Tameside with that in Montigny while Genaba Diaw (20) and Farida Ibrahim (22) worked for Tameside College. Another student, Emilie Baibled (19) worked for a company in Dukinfield until the end of February.

Of the four students that returned to France on Friday 9th February, all said without hesitation, that they had enjoyed their visit to this part of the northwest and, when asked what they had found most interesting outside working hours, shopping in Manchester, especially the Trafford Centre, a trip to Chester, to the Imperial War Museum and to Manchester United's Football Ground were high on the list. Ashton was considered to be a pleasant place to work.

All the students remarked on how much the visit had helped them to understand both our language and our culture.

Deputy Mayor of Montigny is impressed by British Ceremony

When the Mayor of Tameside, Councillor Margaret Sidebottom, heard that the Deputy Mayor of Montigny, Michèle Parent was due to visit Denton she quickly sent an invitation asking her to attend a ceremony which took place at St Mary's School, Denton, on Tuesday 16th January, to elect a junior mayor for a day. Here we see Aston Thatcher-Hall, a pupil at the school dressed in replica mayoral regalia. A few moments after the picture was taken Aston processed into the school hall accompanied by the two mayors and by the attendant to the Mayor of Tameside. Both mayors addressed the pupils of the school before Aston was presented as the candidate selected from amongst all the pupils to be junior mayor for the day.

Addressing the school, Michèle Parent said that she was impressed by the regalia and by the ceremony that serves to maintain the dignity and to emphasize the importance of mayoral office here in England. She pointed to her sash and explained that in France, all mayors wear the same simple badge of office which reflects France 's republican constitution.