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In May 1990 Spelthorne formed a twinning partnership with Melun in France. Melun, the county town of the Seine et Marne region, has a population of 40,000 and lies on the banks of the River Seine, 35 miles south-east of Paris.
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It was chosen because it wished to twin with an English town, could be reached within a day, had similar features to Spelthorne and genuinely wanted to establish close links between all sections of our two communities.
Melun is a charming and attractive town with an excellent range of facilities including a sports complex, covered market, a University and indoor swimming pool. It has lovely old houses, plenty of shops and the churches of Notre Dame (11th Century) and St Aspais (15th Century). It is also close to the Barbizon, the charming village famous for its art galleries and the 17th Century Vaux le Vicomte Chateau.
The essence of twinning is learning about other people's way of life, learning to speak their language and sharing educational and business knowledge as well as participating in cultural, sporting and recreational activities. In recent years, the focus has been on civic and educational links, e.g. representatives of both communities are invited to important civic events such as Remembrance Day, commemoration and Mayor making.
The twinning scheme is administered by the Council. Their aim is to develop and promote the scheme to all sections of the community. The scheme has a small budget from the Borough Council and most of the funding is used to pay grants to help towards the cost of travel or hosting. If you think you might be eligible for a grant, or would like more information about any other aspects of the scheme, then please do not hesitate to contact the Twinning Secretary, Sue Hulme, on 01784 446275 who will be more than happy to assist.
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