January 2017 Meeting
The Parish Council met on Thursday 12th January 2017 at the Drax Hall. The next meeting will be on Thursday 9th February at the Drax Hall, starting at 7pm.
All parishioners are very welcome to attend and to take the opportunity to raise any matters or concerns.
Village Forum Our Village Forum is now confirmed for Saturday 25th March at the Scout Hut, at 10am.
This is a great opportunity for everyone to come along, meet your Parish Council, and listen to updates on plans under discussion. Topics for this year’s forum are the proposed new Community Hall, the Purbeck Partial Review and the Unitary Council review and an update on the progress of the Neighbourhood Plan.
Wareham Hospital Consultation
The consultation on the proposed changes within the NHS in Dorset, including Wareham Hospital, continues until the 13th February. We would urge everybody who has used or benefited from any of the services at Wareham Hospital to complete the survey.
Hard copies of this can be found at the Doctors Surgery and Post Office, or it can be completed on-line here.
New Community Hall We had a very informative and well-structured presentation from members of the New Community Hall working group, who put forward the information they had collected and their suggested proposals of how we might benefit from with a new hall and how to take that forward.
The full report can be read on the Parish Council website here. In summary though, the report suggests that the parish does have a requirement for a new community facility, largely to replace the existing Drax Hall which is no longer fit for purpose.
The group proposes a venue with one larger function room and two smaller ones with catering facilities and ability to put on some sports and fitness as well.
Having looked at all available locations in the village, their first choice of site is on Soul’s Moor, just off the access road to the new school.
The Parish Council thanked the group for their hard work and efforts so far, and will be discussing the proposal in more detail at a forthcoming meeting after which we will put forward our proposals as to how we will proceed.
Nature Reserve Working Party
With the help of the wildlife group volunteers, the large pile of cuttings produced from previous work parties have now been removed. The work carried out here is providing more light to create a more attractive aspect to Bere Stream and also improve the quality of the stream itself. On Souls Moor a small pond will be dug shortly to provide permanent water for the ponies when they return.
New School
The Council were delighted to see the opening of the new School at the beginning of January and would like to send our congratulations to everybody involved with getting it completed and opened on time.
Initial monitoring of the traffic and parking in Manor Farm Road and Elder Road seemed to show very few issues or problems and we would just like to remind all road users who are in the area around pick-up and drop off times, to be cautious of an increased number of pedestrians crossing roads in that area.
Christmas Trees
Following the success of the Christmas Tree sales in 2016 and the decorations around the village, it was agreed to continue the scheme in 2017. Forms will shortly be available from the clerk and we will continue to offer trees at the reduced rate of £10 for outdoor display.
Bryan Benjafield
February 2017 Meeting
The Parish Council met on Thursday 9th February 2017 at the Drax Hall.
The next meeting will be on Thursday 9th March at the Drax Hall, starting at 7pm.
All parishioners are very welcome to attend and to take the opportunity to raise any matters or concerns.
Village Forum
Our Village Forum is now confirmed for Saturday 25th March at the Scout Hut, at 10am. This is a great opportunity for everyone to come along, meet your Parish Council, and listen to updates on plans under discussion.
Topics for this year’s forum are the proposed new Community Hall, the Purbeck Partial Review and the Unitary Council review and an update on the progress of the Neighbourhood Plan.
There will also be representatives from the Wildlife Working Party, School, NeighbourCar and Lunch Club and developers for the White Lovington New Housing Site.
Church Roof Fund
The Council had received a letter asking to support St John the Baptists Church’s application for grant funding towards the £200,000 that is being raised to carry out urgent repairs and restoration to the church roof.
The Council unanimously agreed to support the efforts of the Church Fundraising Committee.
There will be a series of events coming up over the next year.
New Community Hall Having heard last month from the working party tasked with investigating the need and feasibility for a new community hall, the Council this month voted on taking this project forward and appointing 2 new sub-committees, one to pursue the location and design of a new hall, and the second to undertake the fund raising needed to build such a project.
The Council all agreed to take this forward and were delighted that Mike Gee has agreed to continue heading up the project.
There will be opportunities coming up in due course for people with relevant experience and skill sets to be involved with these groups and we would welcome anybody who feels they could add something to the project to contact the Clerk, Amanda Crocker for more information.
Nature Reserve Working Party
The clearance work along the Bere Stream is nearly complete except for some willows which are leaning precariously into the stream. We hope to clear these during March.
The environment group is also planning to sow wild flowers on the banks just outside the new school. On Souls Moor we are planning to get the ponies back to do their grass grazing conservation work this month.
The grazing period last year was successful in clearing part of Souls Moor.
Jubilee Bridge
To make identification easier, the council heard a proposal to name the original wooden bridge which crosses Bere Stream just at the end of Stanbarrow Close, as “Jubilee Bridge”, as the Jubilee Trail crosses over it.
This was unanimously agreed and a sign will be made in due course.
We are also using the terms “Souls Moor Boardwalk” to refer to the new boardwalk, south of the stream and “Riverside Boardwalk” to refer to the original boardwalk north of the stream.
The bridge near the Scout Hut is, of course, already known as “Souls Bridge”.
This should make it easier for people to report any defects or faults with these areas, which you can do to any councillor or the clerk.
Notice Boards
The Council have recently funded the creation of 2 new large noticeboards, (beautifully hand-made by Bill Steggles), to be used for displaying information and notices of upcoming events.
These will be situated by the pinch point crossing to the new school, and near the garden of the Vicarage.
Bryan Benjafield
March 2017 Meeting
Awaiting Meeting!
April 2017 Meeting
The Parish Council met on Thursday 13th April 2017 at the Drax Hall.
The next meeting will be on Thursday 11th May at the Drax Hall, starting at 7pm.
All parishioners are very welcome to attend and to take the opportunity to raise any matters or concerns.
Village Forum
55 people were present, together with Steve Tapscott (Purbeck District Council), Wayne Roberts (Head Teacher, Bere Regis Primary School), Richard Henshaw (agent for the owners of the White Lovington land), Cllr Peter Wharf (County and District Councillor) and members of the Parish Council.
Cllr Ventham welcomed everyone to the meeting and introduced those councillors present before giving a brief outline of the format for the Forum.
He then ran through the work and achievements of the Parish Council over the last year, including the current position of the Neighbourhood Plan and an update on the new proposal for the White Lovington site.
Mike Gee outlined the work of the Community Hall Working Party to date and went on to explain the next phase of the work – looking into the various legal, planning and funding raising aspects of the scheme.
Cllr Peter Wharf gave a brief outline of the history of the Purbeck Local Plan and why the Review is now having to take place saying that, the Independent Inspector agreed to the Plan on the condition that the housing numbers are reviewed and increased.
This meant that, up until 2033, a further 3,000 houses were needed throughout Purbeck.
He then went on to explain the recent unitary consultation and the outcome that had been achieved, together with the representation to the Secretary of State.
There followed a question and answer session at which the concerns of the White Lovington residents over the wild life on the proposed development site was raised.
A full set of the notes, together with the presentation is available on the Parish Council web site.
Neighbourhood Plan Update
There have recently been positive developments in discussions with local landowners, meaning we are getting closer to bringing forward our Neighbourhood plan and putting this out for initial consultation, followed by a referendum on adopting it and moving forward.
Anybody wanting to catch up on the progress made with the Neighbourhood Plan so far can look at the dedicated area on the Parish Council website for it here.
From there you can find links to ecology reports on the proposed areas and all of the surveys that have been carried to date.
Parking
The number of vehicles around the Elder Road/Manor Farm Road/Old Barn Road area was discussed, particularly the effect this has on visibility at the junctions.
We acknowledge that on street parking is at a real shortage in many areas of the village, and as a council we are always looking for any ways we can improve the situation for both motorists and residents alike.
We are looking into the possibility of Dorset County Council putting white lines on all of the junctions leading onto Manor Farm Road as a reminder that there should be no parking within 10meters of a junction.
In addition, the PCSOs are going to increase their visits to the area and Parking Services will also be in attendance.
The council would urge all residents to park considerately wherever they are parking and to make use of available car parks where possible.
Litter
It was also noted that the level of litter around the village seems to be increasing.
Whilst we do benefit from conscientious residents who often collect litter, and our own Lengthsman spends time collecting it as well, it would be great if we could just reduce the amount which gets dropped and thrown into hedges etc.
We also discussed entering competitions in future such as Best Kept Village, and reducing the amount of litter on our streets would help considerably with our chances of that.
Ponies on Souls Moor
We now have semi permanent grazing on Souls Moor thanks to 2 Cobb ponies and there is a grazing agreement with the owner who specialises in providing pony grazing on nature reserves.
The grazing is necessary to reduce excessive vegetation growth and stimulate the growth of rarer plants that grow on wet meadows such as Souls Moor.
After some delay a pond has now been dug which will not only provide a water supply for the ponies, but also provide an additional wildlife habitat for plants and insects.
The ponies are called Nicky and Lucy and our picture shows Lucy inspecting the part dug pond.
Play Park Inspection
We have recently had the annual audit of our Play Park and were delighted to hear that it passed with flying colours, with only a few minor amendments and repairs needed.
A full copy of the report can be found on our website.
May 2017 Meeting
The Parish Council met on Thursday 11th May 2017 at the Drax Hall.
The next meeting will be on Thursday 8th June at the Drax Hall, starting at 7pm.
All parishioners are very welcome to attend and to take the opportunity to raise any matters or concerns.
Chairman’s Review of the Year
The year 2016/2017 has been as busy as any for the Parish Council and our clerk.
All our regular matters such as scrutinising planning applications, regularly inspecting the Play Park, the Lengths-man’s work of keeping the parish clean and tidy and the cemetery well mown and maintained, running the NeighbourCar Scheme and the Salt and Pepper Lunch Club have continued, whilst we have also taken on various new tasks and projects.
Earlier this year we were delighted to be involved in the opening of the new school, and to recall our very significant part in persuading DCC to buy the land, and our own purchase of Souls Moor which enabled the access drive to be built.
Last year we organised ‘Clean for the Queen’ in April so that the village was spruced up ready to celebrate Her Majesty’s 90th birthday with the lighting of our beacon on Souls Moor, followed by the Street Party in West Street in June.
We installed the upgraded footpath to the South of Souls Moor in time for it to provide another access route to the school, and a great extension to our accessible footpath network around our green spaces.
The green spaces themselves have been enhanced by the volunteers of the Open Spaces management team with their work on clearing the brush and letting light into the woodland areas by the stream, thus allowing the wild flowers to flourish.
The new Information Boards around the Souls Moor nature reserve, and the Parish Information boards in the car park will hopefully enable residents and visitors to better appreciate our beautiful, thriving, village and parish.
Work has continued on the Neighbourhood Plan this past year and, as we now have agreement in principle with the landowners, we hope to consult formally with residents in a few months’ time about 100 new homes on 4 new sites.
Finally, I am pleased to say that the New Community Hall project group made recommendations to the Parish Council about the pressing need for a new community hall, and a project team is just starting its work to turn this into a reality in the next few years.
Ian Ventham
Chairman
Election of Officers
The Council were delighted that Ian Ventham and Robin Pitcher both stood for re-election as Chairman and Vice-Chairman respectively, and both were unanimously voted in to continue their roles for another 12 months.
All other delegated responsibilities within the council remained the same.
White Lovington Proposed Development
Having heard at the Parish Forum from the developer who has been instructed by the landowner of the area South of White Lovington, some concerned residents spoke at the meeting to make clear their fears for development and about the reports which have been carried out so far.
It was stressed that all discussion of development so far are purely proposals and the council has no formal involvement until such plans are presented for planning approval.
It was noted that the Neighbourhood Plan was progressing now and this development as well as others, would be put to consultation and then to a Parish Referendum in due course.
Skate Park
A proposed Skate Park was again discussed and the Council agreed that we would investigate the resumption of a working party to investigate moving the project forward, but we do need volunteers to make this happen.
If you can spare any time for fundraising and planning of this, please contact the Clerk on the details above.
It was also recorded that the previous iteration of the Bere Regis Community Play Association group had raised a further £2,753.34 after the completion of the Play Park which was being held in a separate account for use towards the Skate Park project.
Ponies on Souls Moor
The owner of the ponies would like to assure all those who have expressed concern regarding the ponies’ welfare, that they are being checked daily. Lucy (the white pony) has had her hooves seen to and is currently receiving medication following her allergic reaction to the buttercups.
This will take some time to clear, but she is being attended to daily.
The RSPCA Inspector has also visited the ponies and is happy with their condition.
If you do have any concerns, please do contact the clerk.
Notice Boards
Two of our new noticeboards are now in place, outside of the Vicarage and at the pinch point crossing to the new school, with the third about to be installed at the entrance to Southmead shortly.
If you wish to display notices in these boards, keys can be obtained from the Clerk, the School Office or the Scouts.
Christmas Trees
Please note that the deadline for ordering your Christmas Tree for this year at the special rate of £10 is mid-June.
Order forms can be obtained in the Post Office or by contacting the Clerk on the details above.
Bryan Benjafield
June 2017
The Parish Council met on Thursday 8th June 2017 at the School.
The next meeting will be on Thursday 13th July at the Drax Hall, starting at 7pm.
All parishioners are very welcome to attend and to take the opportunity to raise any matters or concerns.
Neighbourhood Plan Update
Work is now continuing apace to finalise the Neighbourhood Plan, now that we have agreement in principle from all three landowners. We hope to consult formally in the Autumn, then go to referendum early in 2018.
We are looking to put forward 100 new homes in total, on four sites:
Back Lane 53 homes
North Street 10 homes
White Lovington 12 homes
The old school site 25 homes
If we can line up the various permissions, we also hope to be able to include the new Community Hall in the Neighbourhood Plan on one of the 3 preferred sites identified following the public consultation in July 2016.
Environment
Souls Moor is becoming well grazed by the two ponies who appear to be enjoying their stay.
It is inevitable that the close grazing will lead to less wet meadow wild flowers this year.
However, this will help them to come back well next year when we will have the ponies taken off the area during part of the growing season.
The recently dug pond is settling down well and has already attracted some important wildlife that require still water rather than the flowing water in the stream – more detail can be found in the wildlife group report.
The Scouts will be helping to plant some bog plants around the edge of the pond.
Annual wild flowers were sown on the Parish Council land along the edges of the field next to the school entrance and are now coming into flower. We plan to extend this area next year.
We are also considering sowing wild flowers on the A35 roundabout at the entrance to the village.
Similar sowing has been shown to be very successful on several roadside verges in Poole.
NeighbourCar
The NeighbourCar scheme is still short of drivers, meaning there is a serious risk that this hugely important scheme which helps transport people to vital appointments, shopping trips and similar needs, might not continue.
If you have a car, and some spare time in the week, please contact Brenda House on 01929 471255 or stockleyfarmpartners@gmail.com., so that we can hopefully get some new drivers signed up and maintain this valuable service.
Potholes and Road Defects
The quickest and easiest way to register any defects on our roads is through the Dorset For You website.
Simply go to https://www.dorsetforyou.gov.uk/travel-dorset/contact-dorset-highways and you can select exactly where and what the problem is and it will be attended to by the relevant authority as quickly as possible.
Antisocial Behaviour
There have been a couple of reports of some antisocial behaviour lately around the village, and whilst it’s important to recognise that we are lucky enough that these incidents are very infrequent, it does no harm to remind any children (or adults) who socialise in areas around the village to make sure they do treat all other village users (and animals) with the same respect they would like to be treated!
Bryan Benjafield
July 2017
The Parish Council met on Thursday 13th July 2017 at the Drax Hall.
The next meeting will be on Thursday 10th August at the Drax Hall, starting at 7pm.
All parishioners are very welcome to attend and to take the opportunity to raise any matters or concerns.
Community Hall Update
Preliminary work is well under-way on the new Community Hall, with initial plans being drawn up and the statutory bodies being consulted regarding the disposal of the old Drax Hall site and the various permissions required to develop on the preferred site in Souls’ Moor.
We hope to bring forward draft plans and artists impressions for public feedback in the next few months.
Camp Bestival
Although not actually within our parish, Camp Bestival which is being held between the 27th – 30th July, could have some adverse effects on traffic congestion in and around the area as the C6, Rye Hill is the designated route for all vehicles this year.
The organisers have set up a specific contact point for anyone with feedback, positive or negative, and if you wish to contact them you can at heretohelp@campbestival.net.
Distgen Grant
We were delighted to receive a further generous donation from Distgen of £5,553.41 this year as their contribution to the Parish for having the Wind Turbine on Rogers Hill Farm.
The Council unanimously decided to use that money towards the initial planning and legal costs for the New Community Hall.
New Skate Park
There will be a meeting at 7pm on the 11th September in the Drax Arms Skittle Alley with a view to forming a new working party to move the proposals and plans for a Skate Park in the village forward.
If you can spare any time and help to getting this project off the ground then please come to the meeting to offer your services.
Dog Fouling
The problem of residents not clearing up after their dogs in public areas continues to be a major issue.
The Parish Council will be inviting Dorset Dogs to attend a future meeting to give us some ideas of how this problem can be solved or, at the very least, reduced.
All villagers are welcome to attend as many have very strong feelings on the subject.
In the meantime, the Dog Warden will be asked to make more frequent visits to the key areas and will be issuing on the spot fines of up to £50.
Village Environment
We will be looking to hold another Village Tidy in the Spring of 2018 in preparation for submitting an application to the Best Kept Village Awards. In the meantime, with the reduction in the amount of maintenance work being carried out by the District and County Councils, we would ask residents to consider keeping the small area of pavement and gutter in front of their property tidy and clear of weeds.
We are really fortunate to live in a beautiful area and if everyone did just a little bit, it would make such a big difference.
Bryan Benjafield
August 2017
The Parish Council met on Thursday 10th August 2017 at the Drax Hall.
The next meeting will be on Thursday 14th September at the Drax Hall, starting at 7pm.
All parishioners are very welcome to attend and to take the opportunity to raise any matters or concerns at the start of the meeting.
Make sure you are eligible to register to vote
Purbeck residents are reminded to look out for the Household Enquiry Form which every household in Purbeck should have received this August in order to update the Electoral Register.
Residents are asked to check the details and update them if necessary.
The form will be addressed to "the occupier" and will contain the details of all those in the household currently on the voting register. Properties where no one is registered to vote will receive a blank form.
Every household is required by law to make sure the details on the form are correct and to add any missing details.
The form should be signed and returned in the pre-paid envelope provided.
Alternatively, you can call the Electoral Services Team on 01929 557219 to confirm your details or you can do it online at https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote.
If you’ve moved recently, you won’t have been registered automatically to vote at your new address, so please check the form as soon as it arrives and add any missing details.
If you do not respond promptly, the Council has to send reminders, so please respond to the first form to save unnecessary costs.
New Community Hall (image below)
The Council heard proposals from the Community Hall Working Party with a design concept for the proposed new Community Hall to be sited on the South-East corner of Souls’ Moor.
The Council agreed unanimously to approve the concept and the location.
This will enable the necessary permissions to be sought.
If we get a green light, the next vital step will be public consultation with residents in the Autumn when everyone will have an opportunity to give feedback on the project.
You can see here, an artist’s impression of the concept of the hall and its location.
Benches in May’s Plantation
The Parish Council would like to thank Tilhill for their recent installation of a number of benches around Dr Brian May’s plantation for the benefit of the numerous walkers in the area.
We hope everybody enjoys the view!
New Skate Park
Just a reminder, there will be a meeting at 7pm on the 11th September in the Drax Arms Skittle Alley with a view to forming a new working party to move the proposals and plans for a Skate Park in the village forward.
If you can spare any time and help to getting this project off the ground then please come to the meeting to offer your services.
Friends of Wareham Hospital Annual General Meeting
The Friends of Wareham Hospital are holding their Annual General Meeting on Monday 18th September in the hospital at 7pm. If you are a user or supporter of the hospital, please go along and find out how you can help, and hear an update on the hospital from Dr Alistair Ward.
Hyde Nature Reserve Talk
On 2nd September there will be a guided walk across the Dorset Wildlife Trust Higher Hyde nature reserve, led by Tony Bates, who through his involvement with DWT, has detailed knowledge of the fascinating wildlife on this reserve within our Parish.
They will meet at 2.00pm at the reserve entrance which is immediately before the road turning to the Golf Club, - or if you would like a lift meet on Elder Road near to the Scout Hut at 1.40pm.
The monthly work parties to tidy up the area alongside the stream will resume in the Autumn, with volunteers always needed for help, dates will be publicised nearer the time.
Bryan Benjafield
Click image to enlarge
September 2017
The Parish Council met on Thursday 14th September 2017 at the Drax Hall.
The next meeting will be on Thursday 12th October at the Drax Hall, starting at 7pm.
All parishioners are very welcome to attend and to take the opportunity to raise any matters or concerns at the start of the meeting.
Dorset Dogs
The council began the meeting with a talk from Dorset Dogs, detailing the work they do around Dorset to improve positive relationships and responsible ownership with all dog owners.
Although they don’t currently work in this area, they are looking to hold a couple of their events locally with the possibility of a guided walk for dog owners and a pop up information stand.
More information can be found at www.dorsetdogs.org.uk and we would continuously try any efforts we can to reduce the number of incidents of dog fouling being left on paths for others to tread in!
Ponies
We heard a couple of reports of the 2 ponies being overly friendly with people walking through their fenced area, probably in an attempt to obtain food from them.
We would like to remind people not to feed the ponies as this only encourages this behaviour.
If you are at all nervous around horses, it may be wise to avoid walking through the fenced area whilst the ponies are on site.
Community Hall
A brief update was provided.
Discussions regarding potential room sizes are on-going and, with this in mind, the group will be contacting all potential and current user groups in the area in order to obtain evidence relating to the size of facility required.
If you are part of a group who would potentially hire a room or the main hall, please contact the Clerk, Amanda Crocker, on the details above to express your interest and help the group to put together information on future usage for their proposal.
New Skate Park
There was a good turnout for the meeting in September to see if a new group can be formed to investigate and move forward the idea of building a skate park within the village, but more help is needed.
The next meeting will be held on 5th October at 7.30pm in the Drax Arms Skittle Alley, if you can spare any time to help get this project off the ground it will be appreciated.
There is also a Facebook group set up at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/
547108015620203/ which can be joined by anyone who has ideas or time to give to the project, even if you cannot make the meeting.
Play Park Equipment Replacement
Councillor Pitcher and the Lengthsman recently undertook a survey of all of the equipment within the play park with a view to replacing anything which is below standard or nearing the end of its useful life.
An on-going program of repairs is in place in order to keep the park at peak condition.
If you notice any defective equipment in the park, or anywhere else within the village, it can always be reported to the clerk and the Lengthsman will look at it and deal with it appropriately.
Souls Moor nature reserve meadow.
The ponies have done a great job in grazing a large section of the wet area of the meadow.
This is the Site of Nature Conservation Interest (SNCI), where marsh orchids used to thrive and, it is hoped, will return.
Some areas of rank vegetation, which the ponies have avoided, will be cut in order to open them up.
The ponies will be taken off these sections next spring in order to allow the rarer plants to grow.
The stream.
The work parties will be carrying out further coppicing of the over-stood hazel and willow that are shading the stream during the coming months.
Helpers would be most welcome. Keeping some of the areas open is necessary for the good management of the stream.
Bryan Benjafield
No October meeting received!
November 2017
BERE REGIS PARISH COUNCIL
Chairman: Ian Ventham 471480 ianrventham@gmail.com
Vice Chairman: Robin Pitcher 472151 robinpitcher@btinternet.co.uk
Parish Clerk: Amanda Crocker 472327 bereregispc@gmail.com
Websites:www.bereregisparishcouncil.co.uk
The Parish Council met on Thursday 9th November 2017 at the Drax Hall.
The next meeting will be on Thursday 14th December at the Drax Hall, starting at 7pm.
All parishioners are very welcome to attend and to take the opportunity to raise any matters or concerns at the start of the meeting.
Neighbourhood Plan Consultation
Saturday 11th November saw 160 people attending the consultation meeting in the School Hall.
Ian Ventham first gave a presentation about the key points in the plan, followed by a question and answer session.
Parishioners then had the opportunity to look at the various plans and engage with the parish councillors about some of the detail.
Inevitably, most interest was focused on the development sites and the numbers and mix of housing in the proposals.
Generally most parishioners appeared to be reasonably content with the proposals, sometimes with understandable concerns about the impact of construction traffic and increased traffic movements that any new development will bring.
Copies of the draft plan, which outline the 5 sites being proposed for about 105 new houses, can be obtained at http://www.bereregisparishcouncil.co.
uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/
Bere-Regis-NPlan-31.10.2017_A4_DRAFT.pdf
Copies of Ian Ventham’s presentation can be obtained at: http://www.bereregisparishcouncil.co.
uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/
NP-Forum-11-November-2017.pptx
The next steps are for the plan to be formally examined, then we hope to hold a final consultation and a referendum in the Spring of 2018.
Open Spaces Working Parties
The next Open Spaces working party meeting will be held on the 2nd December when the bird boxes that were recently made by the Cubs will be fitted, and also some trees that have been donated by the Woodland Trust, will be planted.
The ponies will shortly be removed by their owner for the winter, and then return next Spring for more important conservation of the SSSI area of Souls’ Moor.
If you would like to help with these work parties, please see their article separately in the magazine.
Foster Parents
The council heard from Councillor Wharf about the shortage of foster parents within the Dorset area. If you could help reduce this shortfall, please visit www.dorsetforyou.com/fostering for more information.
Volunteer of the Year
Each year we are asked to nominate a local resident who stands out for volunteering their time and efforts to help our local community as our nominee at the Purbeck Volunteer of the Year awards.
If you know anybody who you would like to nominate this year, please contact the clerk, Amanda Crocker on the details above.
Councillor Vacancy
Prior to the meeting, Tom Bennett stepped down from his role as Parish Councillor and we would like to extend our thanks for all of Tom’s efforts, particularly with his knowledge of wildlife and open spaces, over the last few years.
We now have a vacancy for one Parish Councillor.
The sort of matters we get involved with are:
New facilities for residents, and particularly for young people
Social provision for older or disabled people
Financial grants to parish organisations
Care of the environment in which we live
Planning and development matters
If you would like to discuss what’s involved on an informal basis please contact Ian Ventham or any of the councillors for a chat.
If you can spare a little of your time on a monthly basis to help the Parish then please contact the clerk, Amanda Crocker, on 01929 472327 to put your name forward.
The closing date is the 18th December.
Bryan Benjafield
No notes received for December!