Change is a sign of the times
An ornate sign that caused controversy when it was put up in a conservation area will be changed to make it more appropriate for Southwell.
The sign, put up outside the Church Street carpark in November, features a central panel with a picture of Robin Hood fighting Guy of Gisborne.
It was put up by Experience Nottinghamshire as part of a county-wide trail marking the legend of the outlaw. It was given permission by Newark and Sherwood District Council, who owns the carpark.
Southwell town councillors branded the sign ugly and irrelevant and said it was put up without consultation with local people.
The sign, in the form of two long bows, links the carvings of the green men in Southwell Minster to Robin Hood.
The link will now be made more obvious by using a picture of the green men instead of a fight between the two outlaws.
The introductory text on the panel will also be amended to reflect the heritage of the minster.
Three oak leaf carvings around the outside of the sign will also be replaced by carvings of the green men.
The changes will be confirmed by the end of the month and the panel will be amended in July.
There are ten green men in the minster’s 13th Century Chapter House which are included in the famous Leaves Of Southwell carvings.
The green men have branches of leaves growing from their mouths or have heads formed of leaves.
Their origins are obscure but are found in mythology long before Christianity came to Britain and are linked to rites of fertility, spring and new birth.
The Dean of Southwell, the Very Rev John Guille, said: “Initially the chapter at the cathedral were very disappointed about the lack of consultation concerning the erection of a new sign in the Church Street carpark.
“However, arising from a face-to-face meeting with Experience Nottinghamshire and members of the local town council, the image on the sign is to be changed and the text amended.
“The information given on the board will now refer more explicitly to the minster and its heritage.
“We value our close links with Experience Nottinghamshire and look forward to the development of this close working relationship for the benefit of all in the town.”
Experience Nottinghamshire’s tourism leader, Miss Helen Sisson, said it went through a full consultation with the district council before putting up the sign.
She said the changes were being made to be more in keeping with the minster while still promoting the link with Robin Hood.
“We want to have something that the minster and the town are happy with,” said Miss Sisson.
“We want to bring more visitors to Southwell and that is what the trail is all about.”
The chairman of the town council’s planning committee, Mr Brendan Haigh, said: “While I am not at all keen on the sign in the first place, at least some consideration has been made by making the picture and the wording more appropriate to the town.”
