February News Update

February update

Could we please ask residents to review and comment on both the Hampshire County Council Future Services Consultation (Spending cuts) as well as the EHDC local plan (Housing.) Links to both can be found on our website and social media.

Artificial grass repair:

We are awaiting confirmation of a start date for the replacement artificial grass at the village hall.

Mimosa Swing:

The swing has been repaired by councillor Derek Barr.

Speed signs and speed watch:

We are awaiting confirmation at the financial year end that funds remain to purchase a replacement SLR (Speed limit reminder sign).

With traffic now moving through the Headley Road we will resume Speed Watch training with an aim to get out on site next month. There is regular training available, if you are interested in signing up please contact the parish office.

We also have the option of a fixed speed camera. We would require an approved location and a license. Council will be voting on whether we want this addition at next months meeting.

Funding:

Councilors are still seeking ideas and projects. Our original playground project was rejected for funding initially. No further ideas have been put forward so we will review next month whether we revise and pursue this project again.

Moss removal:

The village hall has a large amount of moss on the roof and after seeking a number of quotes we have selected a local company to undertake this work.

Council fees and charges:

Hire charges have been reviewed and we have decided to hold our prices for allotments and the village hall hire. There will however be an additional £5 charge for bouncy castles due to the large amount of energy used to keep these inflated. We hope hall users will understand this will help cover the extra cost.
We are also looking to bring in an online booking system.

Recruitment of councillor:

Michael Smith has stepped down and we are awaiting confirmation that we can proceed with a co-option of a new parish councillor. Anyone interested in finding out more information on what’s involved or applying should contact the parish office. Co-option will take place at our next meeting on 5th March.

Long standing councillor Derek Barr has confirmed he will be standing down at the end of the council year and therefore a further position will be available from May 2024. We thank Derek for his service and support.

January 2024 News Update

January update

Contact from residents:

We have had a higher volume of contact from residents than usual. These mostly relate to the SSEN roadworks and overflowing bins.

Information on all roadworks are available on the one network website:
one.network Map | uk.one.network

Lindford Parish Council are now involved in a monthly meeting with SSEN and HCC highways to be kept up to date with progress and changes. We unfortunately don’t have much say in what goes on but after our meeting with Damien Hinds it does look more likely that SSEN will pause the roadworks between Bordon and Alton during the exam period to allow those children to get to school on time without a long detour and added stress. We hope this will be agreed and will bring you more information if it is.

With regards to the overflowing bins we have been in contact with EHDC. Unfortunately, we received no response but it does look as though the bins have now been emptied. We will keep an eye on this.

District and County Councillor updates:

Full monthly updates from Penny Flux and Andy Tree are available with our official minutes but I would like to draw your attention to Hampshire County Councils £132 million shortfall. Cuts have to be made, but you can have your say via an online survey. Paper copies are also available in libraries. https://www.hants.gov.uk/News/08012024FutureServicesConsultation

If you are interested in where and how HCC funds have been spent, please take a look at the link below https://www.hants.gov.uk/aboutthecouncil/budgetspendingandperformance

Revised fruit tree planting:

EHDC “grow up” initiative provides funding for fruit trees and we have decided to go ahead with planting a replacement tree on the orchard and 2 on Mimosa Green.

Artificial grass repair:

A contractor has now been approved and we are seeking funding to replace the grass. However, if no funding options are available the Parish Council reserves (for unforeseen expenses and repairs) will be used for this now much needed repair.

Mimosa Swing:

The swing is still broken, a repair is unsuitable and we will purchase a new seat.

SLR (Speed Limit Reminder sign):

Our sign is beyond economical repair and we are currently seeking a replacement.

S106 funding (from new build properties):

Councilors are seeking ideas for a legacy project. All ideas welcome.

Christmas decorations:

Thank you to all of the businesses who donated; Tame The Taxman, Lindford Club, Woolmer Lions as well as individual contributions from councillors Ron Ruttle and Emma Keeling. A huge thank you to the council members who took the time to decorate the village and keep on top of changing the rechargeable batteries which was quite some task this year.  We have a small pot of funds left over and are looking to purchase some new lights in the January sales.

Summer fete:

Our working party have started summer fete preparations. If you are interested in having a stall or sponsoring an event or just helping out on the day, we would love to hear from you. Please contact admin@lindfordpc.co.uk

Council fees and charges:

Following advice from our recent audit and with increasing costs we have decided to review the hire charges of the hall and the allotments.

Annual Parish Meeting

This will be held on 7th May 2024 at the village hall. All are invited to attend.

We are currently looking for a speaker to present, if anyone would like to be involved or has any recommendations please get in touch.

 We will have an election of our chair and vise chair prior to the start of the meeting.

 

December News Update

December update

SSEN Roadworks:

SSEN signed off on the new location of the sub station, resulting in Lindford being dug up for cabling on 2nd November. They erected road signs on 3rd November and works began on 13th November. SSEN applied for the Lindford road closures back in August. They have now acknowledged that they did not consult with Lindford Parish Council, its residents or businesses.

Utility companies have free reign to dig up the roads and Hampshire County Council (HCC) hands are generally tied when it comes to approving their permits. The only requirement for SSEN before beginning works was to erect the road signs 2 weeks before commencing, and distribute letters 1 week before. We are aware that not everyone has received a letter notification and have suggested HCC issue a fine. Unfortunately, the maximum fine for noncompliance is £120.

Lindford Parish Council have now been included in a monthly zoom call held by SSEN but hosted by Ian Ackerman for HCC. Other Parishes have been involved in these calls for many months.

The Beehive Nursery invited our MP Damien Hinds along to discuss amongst other things, the impact of the SSEN roadworks on them. A number of Parish Councilors and local business owners attended this informal discussion. Although there may be very little he can do, we did feel heard. There would need to be an appetite at national level to change the current requirements for these utility companies so that they would have to consult with Parish Councils as well as potentially undertaking traffic surveys before any road closures can be agreed.

Damien Hinds is currently the Schools Minister. The impending road closure of the B3004 for 8 months next year will have a significant impact on travel to and from Alton. Part of the permit restrictions on this closure mean that all roadworks have to halt during the Jalsa Salana annual event in Kingsley. We raised concerns about the closure impacting children traveling from Lindford and surrounding villages to schools and colleges in Alton, potentially if traveling by bus having to follow the 35 mile diversion during their GCSEs and A levels. If the road can be opened for an event, then can it be opened during the summer exam period? This was supported by Damien Hinds and we are awaiting scheduling for a follow up meeting. All of our feedback will be passed on to the Department of Transport.

Councilor Ron Ruttle has spent a significant amount of time researching the detailed technical requirements for the works being undertaken and has come to the conclusion that the works do not need a full road closure and traffic management, such as stop/go boards or traffic lights would be sufficient and safe. It is felt that the closure has been requested to save time and money. MP Damien Hinds suggested we look at the possibility of an independent survey. District Councilor Andy Tree broached this with HCC. Unfortunately, there is no desire from them to enter into a battle with SSEN.

Please continue to support our local businesses during the road closures.

Everyone Active Leisure Centre:

Village residents use the leisure centre on a regular basis, there are ongoing problems with water leaks and the general maintenance and upkeep of a relatively new building is very poor. These are having a significant impact on all users but particularly the disabled who are unable to access toilets or showers. This has been taken up with East Hampshire Council who own the building and they are in discussions with Everyone Active. Although concerns have been raised in the past, they have not been followed up recently and the problem is only getting worse. We will endeavor to keep on top of this.

Norse Glass Collection:

The glass recycling bin on Chase Road had been full for some time. We are aware that Norse removed the full bin and left an empty one. However, they left a large number of carrier bags full of glass bottles littered around the site. One of our residents took it upon themselves to empty these into the new bin. We would like to thank them for their actions. If you notice the bin is full, please call the number on the side and ideally do not leave bags of glass by the bins if this can be avoided. We can not guarantee that Norse will empty it any sooner but at least we know they are aware that it needs to be done.

Swish Fiber:

There are rumours that despite extensive cabling works Swish Fiber will not be switching on in our area. This is being investigated to confirm if this is the case and we will bring you more information when we have it.

Tree Planting:

Council have been in discussions over replacing a number of trees in the village. Unfortunately, we lost a large number of trees previously and we had hoped to be able to replace some of these. The cost of more mature trees is significant and they must be planted at the correct time of year as well as correctly cared for. It was felt we didn’t have enough information to agree to planning at this time and that we may have left it too late in the planting season. We will review this again in the near future with our newly appointed tree warden to support us.

Christmas Lights:

A huge thank you to the councilors and their families who have given up their time to prepare for, and decorate Lindford for Christmas. We have attempted to use rechargeable batteries in all of our displays however we have experienced a few teething problems with the cold weather impacting the charge of the batteries. To change the batteries in the wreaths we need 2 people and a ladder. We are very grateful to Ron and Los who have been undertaking this task for us, however we have decided that these lights will work best with alkaline batteries. We will continue to use rechargeable batteries on all accessible lights and will be looking into other options for next year such as solar powered. We are very grateful to the businesses who have donated towards our Christmas lights this year. Thank you to Lindford Club, The Royal Exchange and Tame The Taxman as well as Altis who have provided equipment.

Citizens Advice Bureau:

Bordon CAB is open to Lindford residents to use if needed. We are therefore pleased to confirm we have been able to award a small amount of funding so that they can continue to support our residents.

We wish you all a lovely Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year. For those who may be alone on Christmas day there is a Christmas lunch at Whitehill Village Hall please contact pjbenson@btinternet.com 01420 475993

P.S Bin collections will be one day later than normal due to the bank holidays. Wednesday 27th December collection will be on Thursday 28th and Wed 3rd January 2024 will be collected on Thursday 4th January (hopefully)

 

 

 

November News Update

November update

Road closure:

We invited SSE to come along to our meeting to discuss the forthcoming road closures in Lindford. We were given a vast amount of information but the important facts relevant to residents are below:

  • The road closure is due to the relocation of the substation in Bordon. Initially the location meant works to Mill Chase Road and Challet Hill earlier in the year which were scrapped. The new location means the shortest route is via Lindford.
  • They will be resurfacing Mill Chase Road and Challet Hill during the Easter school holidays after poor repair work was reported.
  • It is not safe to close part of the road due to the width.
  • The initial road closure begins on 13th November and is due to end on 16th February 2024.
  • The road will be fully open from 8th December to 8th January 2024 for Christmas break.
  • The team will work on a 100 meter stretch of road closure at a time. They dig 20 meters per day starting from the Bordon crossroads.
  • The footpath will remain open to pedestrians and SSE will keep the path clear from any overgrowth during their works on the road.
  • Broxhead Farm Road will be open for the initial start of the works. Estimated that this section will likely be closed from the new year.
  • The right hand turn restriction at the top of Broxhead Farm Road will not be removed due to the safety concerns that resulted in its restriction initially.
  • The closure up to Frensham Lane is phase 1 only. The works will continue along the Liphook Road and into Standford.

Council have raised 2 very specific concerns.

1: The tankers that empty the water treatment site in Lindford up to 10 times per day are of such size that they will not be able to pass through the diversion route on the narrow double bend in Standford. No solution was given, we were advised that diversion routes have to be of the same road type or larger. E.g. a B road closure results in diversions through other B roads or A roads but not minor roads.

2: Statutory requirements were not fulfilled. Council, residents and businesses were not notified of the closure in the correct time frame or format. Discussions are underway as to why this occurred and whether we can request a consultation which originally did not take place, prior to works beginning.

Council fully take on board the complaints made by residents and businesses alike about alternative routes, particularly those of stagecoach buses and school buses which are not yet in place. These were all raised in the meeting. We will keep residents up to date with any changes and updates via our website and social media.

Woolmer Forest Lions:

John, president of Woolmer Forest Lions attended to keep us up to date with the work they do in the local community. They have kindly made a donation to our Christmas lights and we are hoping to work with them on our summer fete on 6th July 2024. They will be at The Royal Exchange on 19th December with Santas slay with small gifts for the children.

Social Media:

There have been some concerns over the councils use of social media, however the majority of councillors see an online interaction with the community as a positive thing. Councillors have all been invited to upcoming training sessions on the use of social media.

Grass repairs at the village hall:

These are still under review. There is no funding for this repair and we want to ensure that we make the right decision for the village hall users, particularly the nursery children who use this on a daily basis.

Storm Drain:

The drain on the footpath behind the village hall has caused concerns in recent months due to long term damage. The landowner was not clear and has fallen to us to make a significant repair to this which thankfully held during the recent storm. All signage should now have been removed and the pathway clear.

Washford Lane Bridge:

The river breached the bridge during the recent storm but we were able to review it the following morning and confirm the water level had subsided and no damage has been found.

S106 funding:

Developers funding is still available and we have been given further information on this. An application has been made for funding to improve our play areas. It may take time for this process to be approved and completed.

Outside Spaces funding:

We do have a small pot of funds available for outside space. Discussions have begun as to how this might be used with a suggestion of a boules area. We hope to have Headley Boules club in attendance at our summer fete and will use this to gage interest.

Speed Watch:

Training is underway but more volunteers are always needed. Please contact us if you would like to get involved. The process takes time and unfortunately the road closure may delay regular monitoring initially.

SLR:

The digital speed limit sign needs significant repairs, council will need to decide whether to repair or replace. There is strong feeling that we would like to use the sign regularly to monitor volume and speed of traffic through the village. Again the road closures will impact this.

Christmas:

The village Christmas lights will be going up on 25th November.

Summer Fete:

Our summer fete will be held on 6th July 2024. We are already looking for stall holders, please get in contact if you would like to be involved either with a stall or sponsoring an activity. The summer fete will bring the community together and aims to raise money for the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Are Ambulance. Committee meet again on 9th January to organise the next stages.

 

October News Update

October 2023 update

Tree Warden:

We are delighted that Valerie Thornton has agreed to officially be our tree warden. We are drafting a tree strategy and new policies at present.

Budgets:

Tanya our finance officer has requested a budget review as we are at our half way point in our financial year. This will take place next week.

Artificial grass:

We have been advised the moles are here to stay and the best way to ensure the artificial grass at the village hall is safe for use we will require mole mesh to be installed under a new grass. We are searching for quotes based on a detailed specification and will be looking closely at samples of mole mesh.

S106 funding update:

The 2 popular requests for spending have been an update to the children’s play areas in the village and an extension to the village hall to allow more storage for all its users. In particular this will allow the nursery who use the hall on a daily basis to have more equipment available for the children. The nursery provides the largest source of income to help cover the costs of running the hall; which is available for hire by local clubs and for private parties. We intend to put initial applications for both in imminently.

Speed watch:

Headley Road has now been approved as a speed watch location. Volunteers have begun online health and safety training and will then be trained on site on the equipment. At present we will be sharing resources with Bordon and Whitehill. We are still in need of further volunteers, please get in touch if you are interested. Sadly, our Speed Limit Reminder digital sign is broken and at present this will not be replaced.

Lindford Web Shop:

Our online shop is up and running selling polo shirts, t-shirts, jumpers, hoodies, caps, beanies and bags. These currently feature our new goose motif however we will review whether the traditional Lindford logo can be made available also. www.lindfordpc.ogv.uk/shop

Badges:

A big thank you to councillor Mike Smith who has donated a number of Lindford Goose badges to us for distribution.

Beer Mats:

We will be distributing these to the pub and club with our goose motif and a reminder of our web shop address.

Christmas decorations:

Last years decorations will be removed from the loft and checked over in the next few weeks. We intend to buy reusable batteries and chargers for the lights. The next working group meeting will be on 1st November. Christmas decorations will be installed across the village on the weekend of 23rd/24th November.

Summer Fete 2024:

Working party will conduct its first meeting on 1st November after Christmas discussions.

Facebook:

Our use of Facebook has proved controversial with longer standing members of council and we will vote next month on whether we continue its use. Our engagement with residents is increasing with social media use and at present attendance to our monthly meetings is low.

Repairs and maintenance:

Broken Drain
The storm drain on the footpath behind the village hall has broken. East Hampshire district council have denied responsibility for its repair. Investigations are ongoing.

Broken water meter
The water bills for the village hall have been creeping up and a meter reading was requested. It appears on inspection that the company who went to read the meter have damaged it and no reading has been made. We have been quoted a call out fee to have this looked at. Council agreed this was not acceptable and will be challenged.

Rubbish on Chase Road
A large collection of rubbish has been growing to the side of the flats. Abri Housing are aware but the problem is escalating and could be a fire risk or attract rats. We are continuing to chase for this to be removed.

Broken swing and waste bag dispenser
Both located on Mimosa green, we have requested our contractors to make the swing safe and are reviewing repairs options and costs.

 

September 2023 News Update

 

Newsletter:

The parish councilors have been busy distributing our summer newsletter which should now have reached you all. If you haven’t received a copy we have spares at the parish office and it is also available on the website. Our next addition will be March 2024 but in the mean time we will be adding a monthly update to our website after each Parish Council meeting. Just a reminder we meet on the first Tuesday of the month at 7pm in the village hall, all are welcome to attend.

The Village Hall:

Redecoration of the main hall took place during the summer with work on other areas due to be completed this week. Maintenance was also undertaken on the disabled toilet facilities.

We now have an action plan to resolve the issue of mole damage and replace the grass. The artificial grass is needed for the nursery who use the hall 5 days a week. It allows the children to have use of the garden all year round.

The plants at the hall are becoming a bit unruly and we will be looking to tidy this up also.

Allotments:

We are aware of flooding concerns at the allotments and are reviewing options as 1 plot has sadly become unusable.

Village benches:

A huge thank you to our councilors Derek and Ron who took time out of their day to replace the wooden slats on the village benches. Some of the benches in the village do not belong to us but we are in communication with the owner to try and get these replaced.

Defibrillators:

Our AED heated cabinet is ready to be installed and we just need to instruct an electrician to do this. All defibrillators are registered on the circuit. We hope you never need to use one but if you do the 999 call handler can direct you to your nearest and instruct you on how to use it.

S.106 funding:

This is a specific pot of money which has come from developers contributions. Lindford and other local villages directly impacted by the growing town have access to these funds. There are restrictions on what it can be used on and applications with quotes must be put forward to Hampshire District Councilor Andy Tree for approval. We have been asked by members of the public recently to make improvements to the childrens play parks in the village. This is currently our area of discussion but we are open to other ideas and councilors have been asked to put their thinking caps on and come back next month to discuss further what improvements may benefit the village. We are open to all suggestions.

Headley Road Safety and Speed Watch:

After a recent accident on the Headley Road, which unfortunately has happened on a number of occasions we contacted Highways at Hampshire County Council who have confirmed they will be reviewing the traffic signs and road marketing’s to see if any improvements can be made.

We will be siting our SLR (this is an electronic speed limit reminder sign) on the Headley Road shortly. Data will be collected from this to back up any future action that may be needed.

We have started to sign up volunteers for a Lindford Speed Watch scheme, training will be provided by Hampshire Police. At present we are awaiting approval to monitor the Headley Road but we intend to expand the scheme across the village to include various sections of the Liphook Road as well as Windsor Road.

Christmas 2023:

A working party has been set up and are due to meet later this week to begin making plans.

Summer Fete 2024:

Volunteers have come forward and we will be setting up a working party for the fete in due course. Anyone who would like to be involved in any way, please do contact us.

Council Elections

Please see the below notice of council elections. Please remember that you need to bring photo ID to vote.
No ID? You can apply for free voter ID. Find out more at https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/voter/voter-id

Parish NOE
Acceptable ID
Voter ID Resource_A3 Poster Print Ready 1_May 2023 (1)

 

More tree planting in Lindford

We are delighted with the help of an environmental grant from Cllr Neville Taylor it has been possible to obtain a further 32 trees to enhance the saplings planted last year on Pear Tree Green.

Last year we planted over 130 saplings as part of the Queens Green Canopy initiative. Unfortunately the extreme summer heat took its toll and we have lost some trees.  The new ones shall be interplanted and help the wooded area develop quicker.