March 2000 PC Meeting Report

Updated on

REPORT ON THE MARCH MEETING
TUESDAY, 7 MARCH 2000, SHAWFORD PARISH HALL

Councillor Mr N Campbell-White was in the Chair and was pleased to welcome eight members of the public to the meeting.

District Councillor’s Report

City Councillor Mrs M Campbell-White reported that she has a copy of the Local Government Commission for England Draft Recommendations on electoral representation. The recommendations, as far as they affect our village, propose the creation of a joint ward, with two District Councillors, combining the existing wards of Compton & Shawford and Otterbourne and Hursley. This is in line with the report that was printed in the October 1999 Parish Magazine. The council, and individuals, have until April 17 to make representations to the Commission. The Parish Council views the proposal as the best we could have achieved given the Commission’s brief to equalise the number of electors per councillor, so will not be opposing it.

Mrs Campbell-White further reported that she had attended a meeting about the Hockley Viaduct. Winchester City Council owns the viaduct, and, as it has to be preserved, the Council is now looking at ways of raising money for maintenance. They are applying to have the structure listed in the hope of obtaining money from English Heritage. A Society of Friends is being formed to assist in fund raising.

Parish Project

As no other suggestions have been received for part-funded projects, the Council has decided to apply for part funding for three more parish notice boards, to complement the handsome new boards which have recently been installed outside the Post Office in Attwoods Drove and on the Memorial Playing Field. The new boards are locked and the council will post, on each of them, details of where to apply for a key if you want to put a notice on them.

Planning

The application for a stable block in that part of Shawford Park which lies in our parish is currently being processed by Winchester City Council, following objections by this Council and others. There has to be an assessment on environmental issues and this is being done by English Nature. The Highways Authority is also evaluating the increase in vehicle movements associated with the stable block.

Play Equipment

A number of parents have registered their ideas for improvements to the play equipment. The most common complaint was the lack of fencing around the play grounds thus allowing dogs to foul the area. A meeting has been arranged with Playground Services of Hungerford to discuss a programme of improvement. The initial proposal from the Council is:

  • Install a twin swing at Compton and at the Memorial Playing Field so that the cradle swing can be separated from the plain seat swing.
  • Install a slide at the Memorial Playing Field.
  • Install two items of “toddler” equipment at both sites.
  • Fence both areas allowing for any additional items at a latter date.

It is hoped to have a firm proposal for the next Parish Council meeting. If you have any further comments please pass them to the Parish Clerk on 01962 713143.

Cricket Square

The restoration work on the cricket square should commence soon as the finances are now in place. The Parish Council has agreed to pay £1,000, Open Space Funding will provide £1,099 with the Sports Club contributing the remaining £1,000.

New Pavilion Project

The sub-committee has co-opted two new members to help with the grant application and is currently meeting every ten days in order to produce a draft submission for Sport England. The target is to have the draft ready for the next Council meeting when councillors can comment. It is after this stage that the final document will be made available for public viewing.

Parish Hall

At the last CASCA meeting it was decided, in principle and subject to funding, to purchase a minimum amount of staging equipment for use at discos etc. Should there be a need for further staging at a later date CASCA would hope to add to the equipment. The lopping of the tree at the corner of the car park has been delayed while permission is sought from Winchester City Council to carry out the work.

Street Names

Winchester City Council, the only agency who can change road names within the Parish, has taken on the responsibility for the naming of Bridge/Hunts lane. They will be writing to residents on this matter.

Election Notices

Four official notices announcing the forthcoming Parish Council elections have been received from the City Council. They will be posted on the following notice boards on 24 March:

  • Village Hall
  • Southdown Road
  • Memorial Playing Field
  • Compton Post Office

Forms of nomination paper and forms of consent to nomination may be obtained from the Returning Officer at City Offices.

If you are thinking of standing for the Parish Council and would like to know what the job entails, any of the existing councillors would be happy to talk to you. If you don’t know who is your nearest councillor, ask the chairman or the clerk whose phone numbers you will find near the front of the magazine.

Mike Andrews, Clerk