Hosting twin towns forum (From Herald Series)

Hosting twin towns forum

9:00am Thursday 29th November 2007

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ANOTHER link is being forged between Abingdon and its European twin towns this week as the town council hosts an annual twin towns conference.

For more than 30 years, Abingdon has been part of a five-town twinning group, with each of the towns twinned with each other and each town hosting a conference every five years.

This year's conference, which concludes today, has the theme 'Equal Opportunities for All' and has focused on an exchange of views and practice on equal opportunities, as 2007 is the European Year of Equality. The conference was funded by the European Union.

Abingdon welcomed 11 delegates from Colmar, in France, Lucca ( Italy), Schongau (Germany) and the Belgian town of Sint Niklaas. The French town of Argentan was unable to send delegates because of prior commitments.

Outside the conference, delegates visited the Charter Day Centre for the elderly, the Abingdon Foyer project for young people, and County Hall at Oxford, where they heard a talk about plans for disabled access.

For last night's Christmas Extravaganza and Christmas lights switch-on, delegates dressed up in their country's traditional costumes and paraded through Abingdon with town councillors.

Abingdon mayor, Lorraine Oates, said: "We are delighted to host the conference and to meet friends from our twin towns.

"Twinning links with these towns go back many years and it is an honour for the town to have hosted the event once again. Our links help create a greater understanding of people and communities in Europe."

Abingdon's oldest twinning link, going back to 1956, is with Argentan, in Normandy, birthplace of William the Conqueror.

Abingdon was twinned with Sint Niklaas, Belgium, in 1967 and a treaty of friendship was signed with the Vale of White Horse District Council in 1981.

In 1972, links were forged with Schongau and the ancient walled city of Lucca, and in 1978, Abingdon twinned with Colmar.

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