Noticeboard

At the Enborne and Hamstead Marshall Garden Society flower show on Saturday 7 September, Dawn Taylor presented cups to the various winners, but then dropped a bombshell by announcing that 2024  would be the last show. The committee is no longer willing or able to take on the strenuous work involved in organising an annual show unless more people are willing to come forward and help.

Penelope Lake (the society secretary) has issued an urgent appeal to members to attend the AGM on Wednesday 6th November, at which the future of the society will be discussed.

On 18 September Anne Budd, as chair of the parish council, will be addressing the WBC Planning Committee in the matter of the Elm Farm planning application Elm Farm (23/02550/FULMAJ, at the request of Maryn Oppenheim.

WBC has still not ruled on the application to turn the White Hart (24/00582/FUL) into housing.

The 2024 annual parish assembly, followed by a regular parish council meeting, was held in the village hall on Thursday 16th May. The draft minutes have been posted on the new parish council website, but a few points of interest from both meetings are summarised here:

• Anne Budd was appointed chair of the parish council for 2024-25, with Steve Masters as vice-chair.
• The village Speedwatch programme has reported 119 speeding motorists since it began. It was noted that the purpose is educational rather than punitive, but it was also noted that there were a number of regular offenders. More sessions are planned.
• Holtwood Road (patched ineffectively last year) continues to give cause for concern. A brief closure some weeks ago appeared to be abandoned without remedy. The road is not listed in WBC's roadworks programme for the coming year, but there may be some flexibility. Steve Masters will take the lead in pushing for this.
• WBC's habit of freely using the term "un-named road" can lead to confusion with regard to pot-holes and closures. Most roads do have locally recognised names, and Tony Vickers promised to bring this to WBC's attention.
• Anne Budd is obtaining copies of the village hall deeds from the Land Registry. This was prompted by a parishioner's suggestion that the hall and field be sold to raise money to buy the White Hart, with a replacement hall being created in one of its outbuildings. The plan was not thought likely to be locally popular or commercially feasible, and would require the consent of the Charity Commissioners. Copies of the deeds will be circulated to parish councillors, and stored securely in the hall.
• Parish council agendas and minutes are currently posted on the PC website and noticeboards. Circulation to all parishioners was mooted, but thought likely to breach GDPR if consent had not been obtained first.
• The bus shelter/village information centre is now finished, thanks to Paul Hansen's and Chris Moss's hard work (assisted by a £4,200 grant from WBC). When the noticeboards have been posted (including a footpath map which Liz Copas is obtaining) an official opening is planned. Chris Moss has also nearly finished the new parish council website.
• The Craven Quarry appears dormant and will no longer be on the PC agenda until the situation changes.