SAND martins and their cyclical pattern of returning home seemed like the perfect motif for a monument marking Waters Meet and its meaning to the young people of Acomb.

For whilst the name of the project Acomb Youth Group has enjoyed for the past couple of months might be Blast from the Past, it was the here and now that actually touched a chord.

Annie Charlton (15), who has been a member of the group since it was launched by Hexham Youth Initiative three years ago, said: “We all chipped in with ideas (for the carving).

“A lot of people go down to Waters Meet to play there – it’s quite special – so it was a popular suggestion.”

It was then over to Hexham sculptor David Edwick to come up with a design for the monument that will stand as a lasting record of the Blast from the Past project.

His own ambles along the riverside, albeit it on the other side between Hexham and Warden, and the birds that have to work so hard, digging their burrows in the sandy river banks, provided the inspiration.

“I have seen hundreds of sand martins there,” he said. “It made me think they must have to dig those nests every year, because the erosion is so bad along that stretch.

“I thought it was a nice symbol of attachment, because despite that they come back every year to the same place.”

Groundwork North-East, and in particular project officer Laura Waugh, ran the project designed to encourage young people to engage with their natural surroundings.

Last year they learned about woodlands and wood. This year it was all things stone.

She said: “They’ve been to look at the cup and ring marked stone at the church in St John Lee, been down the crypt in Hexham Abbey and had a visit from an archaeologist.

“They also learned about the carved stone that was found at Waters Meet in the 1970s. Thought to be a Roman gravestone, it’s now displayed by Acomb Pant.”

The project has provided weeks of fun for the youth club members, who range in age from eight to 13 in the ‘junior’ category and 13plus in the senior section.

During the trip to Hexham Abbey, they also climbed the bell tower to see the bell-ringers in action, and on another occasion they painted stones and put them round the village to get a feel for creating a monument.

It is all a far cry from the pre-youth club days when families felt the lack of activities for young people in Acomb.

One of the group’s leaders, Steph Brown, said: “Before we started up, there was nothing for young people in Acomb - that’s what came out of a survey I sent out to families across the village.”

Hexham Youth Initiative was able to remedy that, thanks to a grant from Awards for All and the help of Acomb Parish Council.

“Now, each week we generally have around 20 juniors coming along and each month there’s a youth club for the seniors,” said Steph.

“Then when this club closes for the school holidays, we’ve got the summer activities scheme running, which includes trips to places like Wet ‘n’ Wild, Beamish and camping out overnight.”

The new Waters Meet monument will be unveiled during a fundraising barbecue organised by The Buffs of Acomb in aid of the youth club.

It will take place on Bank Holiday Monday, August 28, at the Queens Arms pub in Acomb, beginning at 2pm.

Tickets are available either from the pub or from Acomb Youth Group leaders.