Community

Glossop is a small market town within the Borough of High Peak in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the Glossop Brook, a tributary of the River Etherow, about 16 miles (26 km) east of the city of Manchester, 24 miles (39 km) west of the city of Sheffield and 30 miles (48 km) from Matlock, the county town. Glossop is situated near Derbyshire’s county borders with Cheshire, Greater Manchester, South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire. It is between 150 and 300 metres (492 and 984 ft) above mean sea level, and uses the tagline “the gateway to the Peak District National Park”. Like Buxton, it differs from other areas of the borough in that it is an unparished area, and this distinction defines its boundaries. It has a total resident population of 32,428 according to the 2001 census^.

Glossop is the smallest town in England to have had a team in the Football League First Division. During the turn of the 20th century, Glossop played in Division One, bankrolled by Sir Samuel Hill-Wood, who was later to become chairman of Arsenal, with whom the club retains connections to this day.[36]
[edit] Community events

The Glossop Victorian Weekend, Glossop Carnival and Bank Holiday Markets are held annually in the town. The Victorian Weekend is the biggest weekend event in Glossop and was featured on the BBC’s Songs of Praise. The weekend includes many activities, including a Grand Victorian Costume Competition and a Shop Window Competition.[37]

Running parallel with the Victorian Weekend is Glossop Beer Festival, run by The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) and featuring over 30 beers and a barbecue in Glossop’s Labour Club.[38]

In recent years, Glossop has become quite well known musically for staging jazz and world music festivals.

Glossop has a range of other cultural activities including Peak Film Society, an innovative new film club.

Glossop North End, the town’s then professional football club, was the first football side in the world to play in, and register its strip as, all-white in colour, well before Real Madrid. The club were members of the Football league between 1898 and 1915. Glossop is one of the smallest towns in England to have had a Football League club. On 4th April 2009 Glossop North End beat Chalfont St. Peter to reach the final of the FA Vase at Wembley Stadium. The final took place on 10th May when Whitley Bay beat Glossop North End 2-1.

Bad Vilbel is a spa town in the Wetteraukreis district of Hesse, Germany, 8 km northeast of Frankfurt.

In 1985 The Glossop-Bad Vilbel Twinning Association was established. Its aims are:

To promote and foster friendship and understanding between the people of Glossop and district and those of Bad Vilbel and district in Germany. To encourage visits by individuals and groups to and from the linked towns, particularly by children and young people, and the development of personal contacts, and by doing so to broaden the mutual understanding of the cultural, recreational, educational and commercial activities of the linked towns.
Source: The Glossop-Bad Vilbel Twinning Association

In 1987 formal twinning ceremonies were held in both towns, with a tree being planted in Norfolk Square. The Twinning Association arranges for visitors to stay with families^. The two signatories of the charter were Cllr Catherine Holtom, the Mayor of High Peak and Herr Gunther Biwer , Bürgermeister of Bad Vilbel.