Just as I was mourning the imminent
closure of the coach house gallery (the news of which came hot on the heels of my
discovery that the excellent Wedge Hall team rooms and cakery is no more :-( ) I happened upon the Coniston Honest Shop
and was immediately cheered.
Housed
in part of the Coniston Institute Building (the Institute was founded sometime
in the 1800s to "curb
drinking, idle minds and a general hanging about" and also sought to offer
"an education in the arts, science and humanities that would lead to
productive employment and social reform") the honest shop is a
community run enterprise that gives
local craftspeople, bakers, chutney makers and growers an outlet for their work/produce
and embodies and celebrates all that is
best about local communities working and growing together. The shop is
attractively laid out and unstaffed. Goods (which, when I visited ranged from
baked goods and chutneys, home grown veg, knitted goods and cards through to
handmade walking sticks, chopping boards, pottery and wall hangings, and in
price from c £1 - £50) are all marked with a price and maker’s code – to buy,
you simply pop the requisite amount of cash in a cash box, log your purchase in
the shop’s register and voila! Purchase complete.
As I came away with my jar of rhubarb and ginger jam I felt curiously reassured that, despite the loss of two much loved small businesses, enterprise and community spirit is alive and well in the South Lakes.
