Interview: Lesley Councill of Priorswood Community Centre

Over the past two decades, she has helped make vast improvements to the neighbourhood, making life better for so many residents.

It was in 2006 that Lesley was appointed manager of Priorswood Community Centre, situated in Priorswood Place, opposite Lyngford Park.

She was born in Wellington Maternity Hospital during a heavy snowstorm and lived with her parents and brother in Priorswood.

Her father was a printer with Barnicotts, while her mother worked as a tailoress.

The family later moved to North Pertherton, where she attended the primary school.

She went on to Kingsmead School after they had relocated to Wiveliscombe.

It was there that she had her first job in a hairdressing salon on Town Hill.

After her father died, Lesley, along with her mother and brother, returned to Taunton, where she was employed at General Accident Insurance, based in The Crescent.

She moved back to Priorswood after getting married in 1987.

She said: “I left to have my three sons between 1989 and 1995.

“One now lives in Scotland, another one on the Isle of Wight, and the third in Kingston St Mary.

“I have two grandchildren - a grandson who was sadly stillborn in 2024 and a granddaughter born a year ago.”

Bringing three young boys up was tough after Lesley’s husband sadly died aged just 43 in 2000.

“I had to go back to work part-time for an electrical contractor two days a week,” she added.

“They were hard times.”

Then in 2006, Lesley had her big break when she was offered the manager’s job at Priorswood Community Centre.

“When it started, I was employed for 12 hours a week, and it was run by some amazing volunteers,” said Lesley.

“The trustees running it decided they needed someone to build the centre up.

“Previously, there was a small team of volunteers who couldn’t guarantee it would be open.

“Until then, it had been a children’s centre, but then SureStart opened over the road, and the families went there.

“It had been called Priorswood Resource Centre, and I asked the trustees, ‘What does that mean?’

“So we changed the name to Priorswood Community Centre.

“It’s here for what anybody needs.

"People come in and ask for support or help, and it’s now a thriving centre.”

The growth in the number of people using the centre has been staggering - up from 2,589 in 2007, Lesley’s first full year there, to 13,380 last year.

She said: “We now open at 9.30am, five days a week as a café-style drop-in centre.

“In the afternoons, evenings, and weekends, there are social, fitness, and educational activities.

“It’s really built up over the years.”

Lesley engaged with young people in the area - after her second year at the helm, she approached a group of boys playing football in Lyngford Park and asked them if there was anything they would like to see or do in the centre.

The annual summer Pride in Priorswood event grew out of that conversation, offering several activities in the park, with a number of agencies in attendance.

A Christmas market is also staged each year in marquees outside the shops.

There are a number of classes, including circuits, a walking group, tai chi, a pregnant and new mums’ support group, and teas and coffees for people who just want to chat.

While Lesley is grateful for council funding, she has seen a big drop in the amount handed out since she started.

“We apply for grants, but it’s hard because we’re a small charity up against other big ones.

“But this is a really nice community, with all the shops, a library, a leisure centre, and a post office.

“How many other communities have got all that?

“We had 40 people here the other morning.

“The police, the RNID come here, the energy people offer advice and Wessex Water holds a surgery here, and we have a weekly drop-in for help with form filling.”

There is a staff of three and a cleaner, but the centre could not function without its 43 volunteers.

“The volunteers are amazing and stay with us,” added Lesley.

“We’ve given out five awards for volunteers who have been here for 15 years and 10 ten-year awards.

“The eldest volunteer will be 90 in June.

“Without them, we wouldn’t be here.”

Away from the centre, Lesley enjoys walking and is tackling the SW coast path with her cousin.

She grows her own vegetables in an allotment.

But her most precious moments are visiting her sons in Scotland and the Isle of Wight and spending time with her youngest son and granddaughter.