THE Lumphinnans community group that have turned around the fortunes of Robert Smith Court deserve a lot of praise.

The relatively new estate in the village, bearing the name of one of the area's most prominent councillors of the past, had taken a turn for the worse and it took residents to get involved to take a grip of the situation.

Inside two years the Robert Smith Court Community Group was up and running and making a difference to an estate which had hit difficult times.

But the upshot is that a strong committee has been set up which have set about bringing a whole new community spirit to the area and the most striking feature is the new community garden.

This will be officially opened on Saturday, August 15, and it is very fitting that the convener of the Cowdenbeath Area Committee, Councillor Linda Erskine, is to perform the ceremony.

The thing is that the Community Group have worked hard together at attracting various grants to allow them to do so much to improve the look of the estate, and the lovely community garden is a key element of that.

Also the lovely countryside, behind Robert Smith Court, has become a place where residents have been encouraged to go picturesque walks which has been improving personal fitness.

A key element of the event on August 15 is the small social day, which will happen after the official opening of the garden and where people can learn about how everything has been achieved and maybe think about getting involved in the Group.

With support from Kingdom Housing Association and Ore Valley HA, there is a solid base for the Group to build on for the future.

They will also aim to work hard to stop things like fly-tipping, dog fouling and other very 'local' issues which may need tackling from time to time.

So things are really looking up for the residents of Robert Smith Court.