A group of villagers have launched a campaign to transform Lavenham into a "transition village" – making it an eco-friendly community less reliant on fuel and food from outside the area.

Carroll Reeve, a long-term Lavenham resident backing the green proposal, has organised a meeting next month to gauge interest from villagers.

He said: "We are hoping there will be quite a few people at the meeting and there will be enough interest for us to go ahead.

"It is aspirational stuff. One idea is to grow fuel for heating. If a farmer is willing to use some of his land to grow willow and poplar it could be cropped regularly and used in wood burners.

"We could increase the number of allotments in the village, and there is potential demand for a market garden for people who are unable to garden."

Mr Reeve recognised that the planning constraints on such an historic village could make some of the changes difficult.

"Because of the age of the buildings, people have had trouble even installing secondary glazing," he added.

"We would have to talk to Babergh District Council and identify issues. Hopefully we could have solar panels. I don't think we could have wind turbines as there are not any exposed sites, and they are also very expensive," he said.

The Transition movement, set up in Ireland in 2005, describes itself as a social experiment on a massive scale. It aims to support communities taking action against the twin threats of peak oil production and climate change.

Ben Brangwyn, a co-founder of Transition Networks, said: "It is encouraging to know that Lavenham is joining the thousands of other communities, including Norwich and Bungay in East Anglia, aiming to become more self-sufficient.

"The planet is clearly facing a crisis but if we act quickly and with imagination, we can create something better than we have now."

The meeting in Lavenham is at the Guildhall on Wednesday, November 19, at 7.30pm. A presentation will be followed by an opportunity for villagers to ask questions.

Mr Reeve said: "This is an important issue. You can't just sit around waiting for others to sort problems out. This is not a panacea, but it's a start.

"If you make little improvements it all adds up."

A copy of the Transition Handbook is available at Lavenham library. For more information go to www.tran sitiontowns.org.

c.mcmillan@sudburytoday.co.uk