The draft minutes have been published from the Annual Parish Meeting which took place on the 11th of May.
This was the first APM since 2019 and it was good to meet face to face and hear how many of the groups and organisations within the village have managed through the pandemic and to also hear about their plans for the future. We are very lucky here in Wickwar to have such a good community spirit and so many active groups. The minutes can be read here and below is an extract from the Chair’s report which was presented by the vice-chair Gareth Fielding.
Chairman’s Annual Report: May 2022
Every year seems busier than the one before, and this last year has certainly been no exception as we again had periods of Covid lockdown necessitating more Parish Council email than ever before, Council meetings on Zoom, and even outdoors, including one particularly memorable socially distanced Parish Council meeting at the King George Playing Fields.
As a brief overview, the pressure of development within the parish continues, although there are some early indications that the level of National push back to overdevelopment, and the increased resistance from our residents focused by WRAG, may lead to more sensible decisions from the County Planning committee going forward. Possibly. Preventing unnecessary mass development within our Parish boundary will no doubt continue to be the main focus of the Parish Council for the year ahead.
The increased number of houses we have now – and those nearby – is beginning to cause concern with the lack of infrastructure and increased traffic. Developers should simply not be allowed to build hundreds and hundreds of new houses in small Villages without providing more facilities such as schools, surgeries, public transport and improved road structure.
The challenge for the Council remains how best we can maintain what we have now, keep it in good condition, update the facilities when required and all at a cost which our Parishioners can afford. It requires a combination of measures including a continuous reviewing of contracts, and seeking grant funding whenever possible to supplement income from the precept, as well as utilizing unpaid help from our volunteers.
The improvement to our environment spearheaded by WEAG – litter picking, pond cleaning and footpath maintenance in recent months, provides an excellent example of what can be achieved by well organised volunteers and helped with a little grant funding from the Council.
In the last twelve months we have taken on two excellent new Councillors – Jason Jones and Rob Houghton – and managed to tempt long term Village resident Sarah Quick, away from South Gloucestershire Council to join us as our Parish Clerk. They are very welcome.
Achievements in 2021 – 2022.
Your Parish Council made meaningful grants to the Village Youth Club, the Village Hall to help with repairs, the Fireworks display in November, the Wickwar Environmental Action Group, the new Wickwar Entertainment committee which is organising the Jubilee celebrations, the Scouts and lots of others.
We supported our football club with reseeding, pitch maintenance, extra cuts to the grass and funding for Changing Room redecoration.
Published a book on the men from Wickwar who died in the Great War with copies available.
Refurbished our historic clock and clockface. And repaired it after it was damaged by Storm Eunice.
We have planted 13 new trees, in the play area, on King Georges Field and one in the Buthay.
We put up a new climbing frame, repainted the multi play unit, the igloo roundabout and slide. Had a new surface laid under swings.
We purchased a gas burner and ceramic logs for the beacon ready for Jubilee.
We have recently put a bench outside the Town Hall, 1 on the green opposite the youth club, 1 on Burleigh Green.. With more benches to come this year.
Organised a multi use litter bin as close to Bellway as we could get it for the residents until theirs are sorted out. Other new bins have been installed around the Village – and several dog bins.
Looking forward, we will be working with the Football Club to update the Pavilion and improve the facilities at King George V Playing Field. South Gloucestershire Council have told us they have no resources to help us with this project so if anyone local has any relevant expertise in Pavilion rebuilding or project managing something similar and has some time to help please contact our Clerk.
We have started the lengthy process of expanding the Cemetery into Park Field. So far we have started the survey and had trial holes dug and now awaiting results of the survey from Dept of Environment.
We will be renovating the Ground floor of the Town Hall to make it more accessible. And 21st Century Health and Safety compliant.
And we will now also be looking for funding to enable the Council to purchase a defibrillator for the south side of the Village.
Traffic remains a persistent problem. Both volume and speed. The traffic calming measures organised by South Gloucestershire Council but implemented by the Bellway and Linden Developers have slowed the traffic into the Village from the South, but are not universally popular. The Parish Council along with the Ward Councillor have been working to have the severity of the worst of the humps reduced.
The roads are increasingly potholed and this will also continue to be a main focus for the Council this year.
Our Ward Councillors have been very supportive during our meetings which they regularly attend – especially providing guidance relating to Planning and the development of the Village.
Website: The parish website continues to grow and contains a lot of information that we hope will be useful to residents. Pages includes all Parish Council documents plus a brief Parish History and a wealth of useful numbers and details for local organisations.
To ensure transparency of the work of the Parish Council, all minutes of all meetings are available to view on the Parish Council website as well as all accounts.
Although we have all seen rises in the County Council Tax, I am pleased to report that there is no rise in the Wickwar Precept – it has been maintained at the same level as last year.
Looking ahead to the rest of 2022: I’m sure we will be involved in more discussions with Developers. We will try to stop over development without any corresponding increase in facilities and infrastructure. We are committed to preserving the character of the Village and the quality of life for those who live here.
In conclusion, as a Parish Council we will continue to try to ensure our Parishioners views are taken into account, that we get value for money and our green and open spaces are maintained and protected as best we can.
Finally, I would like to say a very big “thank you” to everyone who has worked for the Council – and, therefore, for our Village community – over the past year or so. Thank you to my fellow Parish Councillors; especially to our Chair Stephen Isaac for providing such calm and thoughtful leadership through such an unprecedented period. Also our Ward Councillors Pat Trull and Adrian Rush for their help and advice over the last 12 months. Thank you to our hard-working and supportive Clerk, and thank you to all of those who have volunteered at different times to help our Community.
Now, as we begin the 2022 – 2023 Council Year, we look forward to the Village Jubilee Festival from June 2 to 5 to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. It will be a great opportunity for people to get together some for the first time in a while, and for all the community, and sports clubs and organisations in the village to further showcase what they do and what they offer for people in our community.
Gareth Fielding.
Vice Chair.