I am afraid that I cannot make this update any shorter as there are some essential items that I must bring to your notice and which cannot wait until our next parish meeting. I can only offer my apologies and follow that with a reminder that the next time the parish will meet will be on Wednesday 29th May. We have several new residents who may like to know that everybody is very welcome to attend, drink tea beforehand, contribute during the meeting or just be present, so please put the date in your diary and I will send out full details nearer the time.
Litter Pick. Last year our annual parish litter pick was cancelled because I was incapacitated but I am now recovered and have provisionally booked for us to borrow the litter picking equipment for the three days 15th, 16th and 17th March. Before firming that up however I need to know whether there is sufficient interest in taking part to make the deep cleaning of our villages on those dates possible. Could you therefore please let me know if you wish to participate and because it takes some time to organise I would be grateful if everybody could aim to reply before 25th February.
Those who have not been involved before may wish to know that as soon as I have the numbers involved I will allocate everybody taking part a section of road to clear and let them know the details. On 14th March I will drop off the instructions, safety advice and equipment (if you are out I will leave it near your door) and then it will be up to you to clear your section of road at a time to suit you on any of the three days. Once you have done that you just leave any bag(s) of litter you have collected at the roadside and your equipment near your door, let me know and I will pick things up. I hope the take up will be as strong as usual and look forward to hearing from everybody.
Whilst referring to this issue I will take the opportunity finally to thank Stuart Barnes for offering to approach a team initiative of his church to ask if they would take on our litter pick last year and to James Keith who also offered to provide a team. In the event however both my enforced absence and the extensive weight of other issues made both things impossible to discuss at our meeting . On behalf of the parish however I offer both Stuart and James our gratitude.
Local Plan. Our parish has discussed at considerable length and contributed to the various consultations on the proposals for Breckland’s Local Plan. The suggestions made by our parish were included in the final draft submitted for government inspection and covered in one policy relating to parishes without development boundaries (HOU 05) that I have circulated several times.
Principally the draft proposed that instead of the current blanket presumption against any new residential development in our villages, in future very limited construction of up to three dwellings could be considered if supported by the parish meeting, it represents sensitive infilling or rounding off an existing cluster of homes accessing an existing road, contributes to the historic nature and connectivity of the community, whist contributing to the character of the rural scene. The government inspector has now asked that there is a further consultation, having proposed that the policy be amended, with the limit of three homes and the approval of the parish meeting removed.
Having made absolutely certain that this matter was openly debated at every previous stage over years and that the unequivocal view of our parish was established and expressed to the planning authority, I can see nothing to be gained by holding yet another meeting. Of course I will if requested to do so but unless I am I will respond on behalf of our parish meeting that the draft local plan encompasses our unchanged collective view and we therefore oppose the amendments.
You can view the consultation documents on Breckland’s website www.breckland.gov.uk.
Highways. I have reported extensively over a considerable time that efforts made on behalf of residents and by the residents themselves, to secure councillor assistance with a road safety issue had continually failed and our correspondence has gone repeatedly unanswered. The urgency with this matter having increased, our parish recently decided that a demand would be made to our county councillor, expressed in a letter to the local press, that he should answer correspondence, visit to see the dangers involved, determine what he could do and campaign to support our residents who have discovered the daily threat to their safety may soon increase. This letter was published and copied to our councillor but also received no response. The residents concerned however wrote to indicate that they were prepared to take the matter further and have now received an undertaking to establish the current position.
Parish Posts. As both Margaret and I will be ending our terms as Treasurer and Chairman at the next parish meeting in May it is great news is that Jane Whitcher has offered to keep our accounts. I know everybody will want me to express our gratitude to Jane, who with her husband Harry also kindly donated the first prize at the last quiz: thank you both. Alas nobody has contacted me to indicate a wish to take over the chair. The single legal requirement to hold a parish meeting is that someone has to be elected to chair it and of course that person is also our authorised representative between meetings. Without a chairman the civil parish is unable to function but there is no job description for the post. Every person who has held the office has offered something unique and the parish is now looking for someone to bring their own style for the coming year.
Whoever is elected as the next chairman we will be seeking to support him or her by electing a small number of people to a new advisory committee, who will be available to offer their opinion or advice if needed on any issue that arises between meetings. We will also still need four people from each village to serve on the planning committee and as well as reporting on planning applications they too will be available for the new chairman to consult on planning issues.
Forthcoming dates.
Further full details will be circulated but here are some early notices for your diary…… I am afraid that the ever-popular quiz this Friday is full but on 1st March, Tom Williamson, a Landscape Archaeologist at the UEA will be visiting Hoe Common to talk about the history of commons and what can be deduced regarding their individual evolution on the ground.
There will be a ‘repair café’ on Sunday 14th April which will include demonstrations of how to sharpen all kinds of things, repairing clothes and upcycling. There will be a further café on 1st September. Over the weekend of 21st and 22nd September there will be an art and craft exhibition arranged by our resident (‘Snappy’) art and craft group which always attracts a crowd. The group meet on the first and third Monday of each month (10.00am 12.00noon) and everybody is welcome.
If you have any query, wish to discuss taking on a role in the parish or anything else then please get in touch. Trevor wood (parish meeting chairman) tel. 860326 or email woodumail@btinternet.com
