Points of interest from the meetings held in March 2021.
New Councillor Co-opted
The Parish Council is pleased to welcome Jon Jackson as our newest Parish Councillor. Jon has lived in Badbury since 2018 with his wife and is interested in being able to help shape the future of the parish and community whilst maintaining its rural feel. We will be working with Jon to see where his expertise lie in order to get him on the relevant committees.
Talking Pirates installed at Castle View Play area.
Castle View Play area is now open and the current refurbishment is complete. Our plan for the new financial year starting 1st April is to work on replacing the old rubber matting.
10 year national Census.
Visit https://census.gov.uk/
The 10 year Census is due again in March 2021. Even with Covid restrictions in place, the Office for National Statistics are confident they can still roll out the Census successfully. Completing the Census form is mandatory but there is plenty of help available.
Tel 0800 141 2021. (Currently long queues, but quieter after 6pm) Other language support Tel 0800 587 2021
You can request new access codes or a paper census via their website.
Web Chat is available on their website.
Text message support is available by texting 86677 (response within 2 working days)
Outside Gym closed
The outside gym on the Rec field remains closed according to lockdown legislation. Please do not try to use this equipment. We will open the area once the Gov. Roadmap shows we are able to.
Fibre Broadband Update.
A further parish wide leaflet is expected later in March with an update.
Pledges are still required to get this scheme to target. The pledges are around 80% currently.
Openreach are proposing a scheme to lay high speed fibre for broadband within certain areas of the parish. Currently residents who wish to benefit and subscribe to any such new service are being asked to pledge their vouchers towards this scheme. A pledge means you commit to purchase this new service from one of the suppliers once it is installed. There are no other costs involved but you must be prepared to take up a new service once installation is complete for a minimum of 12 months.
You can visit http://www.openreach.com/connectmycommunity to find out more or read the threads on the Chiseldon Community Facebook page.
The Chiseldon Parish website also has a Q&A section which you can read, as well as being posted on the Chiseldon Community Facebook page. Please contact the Clerk for a copy of the document via email if you can’t access our website or don’t use social media. There will also be a resident’s leaflet from “Chiseldon Parish Residents for Better Broadband” appearing through doors shortly with a further update.
https://www.chiseldon-pc.gov.uk/news-and-events/current-issues/openreach-fibre-qas/
BMX Track Working Party update – new members still needed
Update from the group: At the February 2021 meeting, the group talked with Sustrans, the current leaseholder of the land adjacent to the Farm Shop, along the old railway path. Sustrans aim to provide & promote both cycling and walking on their land, they are in broad agreement with this site being the preferred location for the new track.
After investigating other suitable locations, the group and Sustrans agreed that this site is the most favoured option moving forward. Work will now be done to investigate whether this site is suitable for a track and altering the lease arrangements as appropriate. The Parish Council will be approached in March to broadly approve and support this plan.
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The Working Party are looking for adults and teenagers who can join the Working Party to investigate the installation of a BMX/pump track within the parish for everyone to enjoy. This group will be working independently of the council but will report back to the council as they will be the owner/leaseholder of the site and manage repairs, insurance and land use etc. This is a long term project and relies on public support to be successful. Anyone with Project Management, Fund raising, budgeting, design etc would be welcome. Please contact the Clerk on the details at the top of this article if you’d like to know more or help them and we can put you in touch.
We are currently Co-opting for 1 New Parish Councillor – Community Heroes wanted.
Chiseldon Parish Council needs you! We are calling for community heroes to put themselves forward for the remaining vacancy on our local Parish Council. We want people of all backgrounds and experience to represent the community and help #MakeAChange.
There are five simple steps to becoming a Chiseldon Parish Councillor:
- Contact the clerk to find out more information, whether there are any vacancies and register your interest
- Submit your nomination to the clerk — a brief summary of who you are and why you want to be a councillor
- Join a council meeting via MS Teams to meet the team and share your nomination with current members – don’t be daunted by this, we are a small very friendly bunch!
- Current members will vote on approval of your membership (called co-option)
- If accepted, you will sign the declaration of office of acceptance and become a Chiseldon Parish Councillor
Please email clerk@chiseldon-pc.gov.uk for more information or call (01793) 740744, leave a message with your name and number and we will call you back. Many thanks.
What is Co-option?
Co-option is a method whereby a Parish Council elect new Councillors by majority vote. This can happen after an election if not all seats are filled (an un-contested election), or upon the resignation or death of a Cllr between election periods.
Candidates would present themselves to the existing council members at an applicable council meeting who would then vote on the successful applicant.
Local grants and funds available
The Parish Council have set up a short term sub-committee to look into grants and funds that are available to benefit the parish. The committee will look to set up a “wish list” of what the parish needs and can then look at what funds are out there. There is the scope to add residents to this committee so please contact the Clerk in the first instance if you think you can spend some time to help investigate this.
Defibrillators – a reminder
A reminder that the Parish has 3 defibrillators – one outside Cameo Hairdressers on High Street, one outside the Pavilion on the Recreation Field and one outside the Calley Memorial Hall on Draycott Road. All units are accessed by calling 999 to gain the code for the box. You cannot use these defibrillators on someone who doesn’t need it as the machine will not work. It also provides audible instructions on how to use them
Update – there is also a defibrillator on the outside wall of the school in Ogbourne St George.
Parish Council Grants and Donations fund & Calley Memorial Hall fund
The Parish Council have an annual fund that we can donate to worthy causes within the Parish. If you are a group, charity or society that believe you could benefit from this fund then please contact the Parish Clerk for further details.
The trustees of the Calley Memorial Hall fund are also able to approve grants and donations to worthy causes within the Parish. (This doesn’t have to be connected to users of the Memorial Hall). Please contact the Parish Clerk in the first instance who can provide you with an application form.
(It should be noted that this fund is not connected to the Parish Council)
Home Library Service – check service as may currently be suspended.
There is a Home Library service for Chiseldon Parish. It is run by volunteers and covers all areas of the parish and can deliver books based on your preferences. Call 01793 465 495 for more details.
Next meetings
All Parish council meetings are currently on MS Teams. Please contact the Clerk for login details.
The next Full Council meeting of the Parish Council will be on Monday 12th April 2021. This will start at 7.30pm and will be held remotely. Residents are welcome to login and there is a public recess at the start of proceedings, after which residents can choose to leave the session.
PARISH COUNCIL OF CHISELDON (Chiseldon and Lawn WARD)
VACANCY FOR COUNCILLORS
Notice is hereby given that by reason of an uncontested election on 2nd May 2019, a number of vacancies has occurred among the members of the Parish Council.
Any person willing to fill this vacancy should apply to the Clerk in writing (email is acceptable) on or before Wed 7th April 2021.
Applicants should be free the evening of Monday 12th April 2021 to attend the Parish Council meeting at 7.30pm for the co-option voting procedure via MS Teams.
Being a Parish Councillor is an opportunity to provide time and knowledge to the area where you live in order to help make it a better place.
You will be working with like-minded people who come together as volunteers for the good of the parish.
The applicants name must appear on the current register of the Voters List or the applicant should during the whole of the 12 months preceding the relevant date have resided in or within 3 miles of the parish or the applicants only place of work during the whole of the 12 months preceding the relevant date is in the parish.
The applicant must not be disbarred from standing as a councillor. Applicants living in Badbury Ward meeting the above criteria are also welcome.
Candidates (if successful) should be able to attend Parish Council meetings which can be seen here: https://www.chiseldon-pc.gov.uk/committees/parish-council/
Dated 12th March 2021
Signed: Clair Wilkinson, Parish Clerk
The Old Chapel
Butts Road
Chiseldon Wilts SN4 0NW