Is someone in your household lucky enough to be getting a bicycle or scooter for Christmas?
The parish council has a number of bicycle security marking stickers available, supplied by Thames Valley Police. Simply write your postcode in the box with a permanent marker and then wrap the sticker around your bicycle frame.
If you would like a sticker, please contact the parish clerk on parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk.
Keep your property safe this Christmas.
The parish council is currently working on a dedicated planning application section for the web site. In the meantime, following your feedback, we will post details of applications in this news section so that you can find them more easily.
Applications for consideration on 5/1/17:
The plans may be viewed online by going to http://eplanning.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk and searching using the planning reference number.
Any comments, representations or objections you may have should be submitted directly to AVDC as the planning authority, by the date shown on the yellow site notice, quoting the planning reference number. This can be done on-line or you can post comments to:
The Head of Development Control, Aylesbury Vale District Council, The Gateway,
Gatehouse Road, Aylesbury, Bucks, HP19 8FF
If you wish the parish council to take your comments into consideration when making our recommendation, please also supply the details to us before noon on the day of the meeting to allow sufficient time for the information to be circulated to all councillors.
Laurie Eagling, Clerk to Pitstone Parish Council
During the summer, the parish council investigated replacement fencing and new ball stop netting for its sports ground at Pitstone pavilion. We received a number of quotations on a variety of different bases, with differing recommendations. The parish council is extremely grateful for the professional opinions of those that quoted. We have now used these responses to formulate a precise specification for the new fencing and netting, so that all quotes received are on a consistent basis and can be easily compared.
We are now inviting quotations in line with our definitive requirements, which are set out in the attached document.
We look forward to hearing from you by 2 FEBRUARY 2017 (revised date) with your quotation and company information. If a site visit would help you to assess the nature of the work, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
You are now able to submit your nominations for the Pitstone Volunteer of the Year, so if you know of someone that it giving up their time and making a difference to the lives of the people in Pitstone, then please let us know. As well as being an opportunity for you and the parish council to thank them in public, they may win a £50.00 award, framed certificate and entry into the AVDC Volunteer of the Year award.
Please email or write to the parish clerk on: parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk or at 9 Warwick Road, Pitstone, Beds, LU7 9FE providing the full name of the person you wish to nominate and the reasons why you think they deserve to win. All submissions must be received by the end of January 2017.
We are advised that:
The airport is now up to 14 million passengers per annum, growth fuelled by the comparatively strong economy, business from Eastern Europe and attractive deals. Construction work to cope with increased numbers (up to 18mppa) is in its comparatively early stages. A revised flightpath was introduced in 2015 for some departures in westerly winds and does not affect Bucks. A combination of reducing the planes’ speeds and advances in new technology means changes could be made so that now the vast majority of the flights fly within 500m of the official centre line, which would be good news for many communities.
LADACAN – a community action group – explained that as well as significantly more flights, the fleet mix has altered and there are fewer quieter planes now at Luton. The planes are carrying more passengers and perhaps freight, so they are heavier and therefore noisier. Luton’s planes arrive and depart in bunches, and such bunches are lasting longer, and the planes are flying closer together. Remember that if you are disturbed by aircraft noise, you should report it to the airport via the following email address: noise@ltn.aero
What would help most communities (apart from those who really are at the ends of the runway) would be if the planes could fly higher for longer. However, interaction with other flightpaths for other airports and holding positions (stacks) make this impossible most of the time. Eventually they want to move the stacks further out and higher up, which would make a huge difference. Heathrow is trialling a later deployment of the undercarriage and we understand that Luton are going to meet with Heathrow with a view to reducing their own deployment. Some plane engines are being retro-fitted to reduce a whining/whistling noise.
Luton Borough Council are currently consulting on a Mass Passenger Transit System to move passengers to and from Luton Airport Parkway railway station and the airport terminal. It is anticipated that they will submit a planning application in 2017. The airport has asked Arriva to review its bus service from Aylesbury to the airport (which currently requires several changes of bus service).
As you are aware, the parish council offers grants to local community groups and charities each year. Applications are considered quarterly. The next grant review will take place on 26/1/17 so your fully completed application would need to be submitted no later than 12 January 2017.
Please see the grant policy information for further information:
Carriageway Surfacing Schemes – 2016/17 Pothole Action Fund Programme
A421 Buckingham Bypass, Buckingham (28/11/16 to 30/11/16)
Daytime targeted patching work using temporary traffic signals between 09:30 & 15:30.
Yardley Avenue (cul-de-sac), Pitstone (01/12/16)
Daytime targeted patching work using an informal road closure & localised traffic management between 08:00 & 16:00.
The Crescent (cul-de-sac), Pitstone (02/12/16)
Daytime targeted patching work using an informal road closure & localised traffic management between 08:00 & 16:00.
Church Road, Pitstone (5/12/16)
We understand that works are anticipated to take up to 8 days in each location.
The parish council is currently working on a dedicated planning application section for the web site. In the meantime, following your feedback, we will post details of applications in this news section so that you can find them more easily.
Applications for consideration on 12/12/16
The plans may be viewed online by going to http://eplanning.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk and searching using the planning reference number.
Any comments, representations or objections you may have should be submitted directly to AVDC as the planning authority, by the date shown on the yellow site notice, quoting the planning reference number. This can be done on-line or you can post comments to:
The Head of Development Control, Aylesbury Vale District Council, The Gateway,
Gatehouse Road, Aylesbury, Bucks, HP19 8FF
If you wish the parish council to take your comments into consideration when making our recommendation, please also supply the details to us before noon on the day of the meeting to allow sufficient time for the information to be circulated to all councillors.
Laurie Eagling, Clerk to Pitstone Parish Council
The parish council is currently working on a dedicated planning application section for the web site. In the meantime, following your feedback, we will post details of applications in this news section so that you can find them more easily.
Applications for consideration at the 24 November 2016 council meeting (7.30pm in the Millennium Room at Pitstone Memorial Hall) are:
The plans may be viewed online by going to http://eplanning.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk and searching using the planning reference number.
Any comments, representations or objections you may have should be submitted directly to AVDC as the planning authority, by the date shown on the yellow site notice, quoting the planning reference number. This can be done on-line or you can post comments to:
The Head of Development Control, Aylesbury Vale District Council, The Gateway,
Gatehouse Road, Aylesbury, Bucks, HP19 8FF
If you wish the parish council to take your comments into consideration when making our recommendation, please also supply the details to us before noon on the day of the meeting to allow sufficient time for the information to be circulated to all councillors.
Laurie Eagling, Clerk to Pitstone Parish Council
Attend youth cafe?
Between 14 and 19 years of age?
If you would be interested in taking part in the Young Leaders Award Scheme (see link below) please register your initial interest with Dave Rollins at Youth Cafe.
https://gallery.mailchimp.com/2db3a247ab0533223eb2ca2da/files/A4Y_YLAS_4pp_A5_Portrait_LR.pdf
Great to see so many people come to support the Bonfire and Fireworks event at the sports pavilion last night.
Remember that this annual event is organised by local volunteers on the Pitstone & Ivinghoe Entertainments committee, putting on events for our community to enjoy, and supplying the proceeds to local community groups that apply to them for grants. Our thanks to all the volunteers that enabled this event to take place.
The council has 5 items of lost property – 2 childrens hats, 1 childs scarf, 1 top & 1 pair trousers. Please contact us if you think any may belong to you. Unclaimed items of clothing are laundered and then placed in the textile recycling facility at Colbree, where it helps to raise funds for Brookmead School.
Further to our previous post, Aylesbury Vale District Council has confirmed that no election has been called and therefore the Parish Council will fill the present vacancy by co-option.
If you are interested in joining the Parish Council, please do send us a brief CV by Friday 11 November 2016.
For background information, you can find below a leaflet about the work of Pitstone Parish Council and a website link to further information about becoming a Parish Councillor.
http://www.cpalc.org.uk/becoming-a-parish-councillor#BeACllrApply
We look forward to hearing from you.
Please find below a copy of the Section 18 notice regarding the proposed naming of the two new roads at the end of Rushendon Furlong.
The parish council proposed ‘Williamson’ and ‘Treachers’ in honor of two local residents that contributed in major ways to our parish.
The name Williamson can be traced back over 200 years in Pitstone. Mark Williamson (1881-1979) was a local farmer who lived in Marsworth Road and owned land in Cheddington Road, part of which was used to build Crispin Field. Mr Williamson generously donated £10,000 to establish a charity to assist the elderly residents of Pitstone, called the Williamson Trust. The charity continues to this day and pays an annual annuity to all residents over retirement age.
Ron Treacher was a prominant local figure, Chairing the parish council for numerous years, as well as being Chairman of both the Town Lands Charity and the Williamson Trust (two local charities, dedicated to Pitstone residents) and was prominent in the local church. He passed away in 2008.
The names have been approved by Croudace, Aylesbury Vale District Council and Royal Mail.
We are migrating to a new Facebook page.
New posts will appear on the new page, rather than the old group or page, so please visit and ‘like’ the new page via the link below to keep up to date.
https://www.facebook.com/pitstoneparishcouncil/
The Pitstone Youth Facebook group remains unaffected.
Thank you.
We are delighted to confirm that a footpath along the B489 between Pitstone and Marsworth is now looking viable following our successful grant application for up to £200,000 from Aylesbury Vale District Council’s New Homes Bonus Scheme.
The B489 between Marsworth and Pitstone is a 1.3km, speed derestricted road carrying approximately 1 million vehicles per year of all sizes both ways. There is no pedestrian footway currently and the road travels over a blind summit making it dangerous for pedestrians, wheel and pushchair users, and other slow moving unprotected traffic. As a consequence many potential users are deterred from walking along the route and denied access to facilities at the other end.
The path will provide Pitstone residents with safe walkway to the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the reservoirs and canal around Marsworth, the College Lake wildlife centre (via the bridleway), two public houses, Marsworth primary and pre-schools and Marsworth church.
Marsworth residents will benefit from access to 2 shops, 2 doctors surgeries, the pharmacy, the Beacon Villages Community Library, the post office, the number 61 bus service, the sports and recreation facilities in Pitstone and Ivinghoe, 2 restaurants plus a take-away, both primary and pre-school facilities and employment opportunities at Pitstone Business Park.
Both Pitstone Parish Council and Marsworth Parish Council have been working on proposals for this scheme for a number of years in conjunction with Bucks County Council Local Area Forum. The first stage Road Safety Audit has been undertaken, and the subsequent Feasibility Study and Biodiversity Assessment.
Now that sufficient funding has been secured, the full Engineering Report will be commissioned and then Transport for Bucks will enter into a tender procurement phase for the works. We hope that actual construction may commence in September 2017 (post the closed season for hedgerow works to preserve biodiversity) and be completed by December 2017.
Both parish councils, the Bucks County Council Local Area Forum and County Councillor Avril Davies Community Leaders Grant are also contributing financially to the scheme. Our sincere thanks to all those bodies involved with bringing this project to fruition.
This project received a grant from Aylesbury Vale District Council’s New Homes Bonus Funding Scheme. If you would like more information about the grants available, please call the Grants Officer, Jan Roffe, on 01296 585186 or email jroffe@aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk
The parish council is seeking quotations for a number of tree works on Pitstone Recreation Ground. Quotations should be submitted by the end of October.
Please find attached a list of the works required and a tree location map. All trees are on public open space and freely accessible for contractors to view prior to submitting their quotations.
Please email parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk with any queries.
If anyone has misplaced a child’s waterproof coat or a hand warmer pack, please contact parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk
A vacancy has arisen on Pitstone Parish Council. Please see the notice attached for full details. Please also find attached an introductory leaflet about the work of a parish council. If you would be interested in joining the parish council, please contact the parish clerk on parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk or 01296 660791.
Like the idea of growing your own fruit and vegetables but not sure where to start? Want to get a bit more active? Join the new community allotment scheme. All tools, advice and plants provided. Completely free.
Community allotments provide those registered to the scheme with opportunities to learn, get fit and make friends as well as being able to reap the benefits of your work through sharing the harvest.
The parish council is currently working on a dedicated planning application section for the web site. In the meantime, following your feedback, we will post details of applications in this news section so that you can find them more easily.
Applications for consideration at the 17 October 2016 planning committee meeting (7.30pm in the Meeting Room at Pitstone Memorial Hall) are:
The plans may be viewed online by going to http://eplanning.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk and searching using the planning reference number.
Any comments, representations or objections you may have should be submitted directly to AVDC as the planning authority, by the date shown on the yellow site notice, quoting the planning reference number. This can be done on-line or you can post comments to:
The Head of Development Control, Aylesbury Vale District Council, The Gateway,
Gatehouse Road, Aylesbury, Bucks, HP19 8FF
If you wish the parish council to take your comments into consideration when making our recommendation, please also supply the details to us before noon on the day of the meeting to allow sufficient time for the information to be circulated to all councillors.
Laurie Eagling, Clerk to Pitstone Parish Council
September has arrived and the children are back at school. Soon the twilight hours will be upon us. Please remember that more children and young adults will be on the streets, trying to get to their school bus stops and the local school/pre-school, both in the mornings and the afternoons (particularly between 7-9am and 3-5pm) . It would be greatly appreciated if all drivers could moderate their speeds around the village, especially at these key times. Even the most capable youngster can be prone to momentary lapses of attention when engaged in conversation with their friends, and two years ago two young people suffered traffic accidents on their way to school. Let’s make sure that this school year is accident free.
Thank you.
|
||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||
|
||||||||||
Information provided by Transport for Bucks.
AVDC is aware that the brown garden refuse bins were not collected from Castlemead on Monday. The problem was caused by a crew being off the road. They are working over the next few days to try and catch up and collect from the missed roads. AVDC ask that you leave your brown garden refuse bin by your property boundary, and they will try and get it emptied by the end of Friday.
Please note that not all Castlemead roads may be collected on the same day this week.
If your bin has not been emptied by the weekend, please contact the AVDC waste team.
Please find below a link to the Arriva web site, where you can purchase bus passes for a variety of timescales. An annual pass, is approx £600 (vs approx £1000 for the school bus service into Aylesbury for the 16yrs+ age group).
The pass is valid on any bus, at any time, including weekends, evenings and school holidays. So may therefore help your 6th form student reach weekend work and leisure activities as well as school/college etc and provide a viable alternative to the dedicated school bus service. Do check bus times though.
Please direct any queries re the cost of school bus travel direct to Bucks County Council.
Anyone know Finley White? If so, please get him/his parents to contact the parish council regarding the property he left on Pitstone Recreation Ground. Also, seeking the owner of a black ladies size 10 cardigan, also left on the Recreation Ground.
Last week, we managed to successfully re-unite one child with his hoody and another with his baseball cap. There was also a child’s crutch left in one playground. Please make sure your children’s clothes etc are labelled, and then we have more chance of returning them.
Pitstone has been awarded a Certificate of Merit in the Buckinghamshire Best Kept Village Competition 2016 for achieving a highly commended grade in the Defraine Cup.
Our thanks go to the village litter pickers, grass cutters and ground keepers along with all the residents that contribute to keeping our village looking well kept, clean and tidy.
Laurie Eagling, Clerk to the Council
The parish council is currently working on a dedicated planning application section for the web site. In the meantime, following your feedback, we will post details of applications in this news section so that you can find them more easily.
Applications for consideration at the 26 September 2016 planning committee meeting (7.00pm in the Meeting Room at Pitstone Memorial Hall) are:
The plans may be viewed online by going to http://eplanning.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk and searching using the planning reference number.
Any comments, representations or objections you may have should be submitted directly to AVDC as the planning authority, by the date shown on the yellow site notice, quoting the planning reference number. This can be done on-line or you can post comments to:
The Head of Development Control, Aylesbury Vale District Council, The Gateway,
Gatehouse Road, Aylesbury, Bucks, HP19 8FF
If you wish the parish council to take your comments into consideration when making our recommendation, please also supply the details to us before noon on the day of the meeting to allow sufficient time for the information to be circulated to all councillors.
Laurie Eagling, Clerk to Pitstone Parish Council
PCSO Jackie Dodson of Thames Valley Police will be at Pitstone Youth Café from 7-8pm on 7, 14 and 21 September should there be any issues that you need to discuss with Thames Valley Police.
The young people are also able to speak to PCSO Dodson regarding any issues they may have.
The audit of accounts for the year ending 31 March 2016 has been concluded with no issues identified by Mazaars.
The annual return is available for inspection by any local government elector and is also available on the web site (see previous post).
The notice and the external auditors certificate is now attached.
The time has arrived to update the Pitstone Guide again. If you are a club, group or venue and wish to amend your entry, or add a new entry, please provide the details to the parish clerk by the end of September.
Pitstone Guide 2014/15, What to do in and around the village
The parish council is currently working on a dedicated planning application section for the web site. In the meantime, following your feedback, we will post details of applications in this news section so that you can find them more easily.
Applications for consideration at the 1 September 2016 planning committee meeting (7.00pm in the Millennium Room) are:
28 Crispin Field, Pitstone, 16/02860/APP, extend existing front porch with new roof
single storey front extension to 3 Morton Close (16/02901/APP)
approval of reserved matters pursuant to outline permission 13/02837/AOP relating to access, appearance, landscaping, layout and scale for the erection of one bungalow on land by 120 Vicarage Road (not 104 Vicarage Road as stated on form) (16/02789/ADP)
The plans may be viewed online by going to http://eplanning.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk and searching using the planning reference number.
Any comments, representations or objections you may have should be submitted directly to AVDC as the planning authority, by the date shown on the yellow site notice, quoting the planning reference number. This can be done on-line or you can post comments to:
The Head of Development Control, Aylesbury Vale District Council, The Gateway,
Gatehouse Road, Aylesbury, Bucks, HP19 8FF
If you wish the parish council to take your comments into consideration when making our recommendation, please also supply the details to us before noon on the day of the meeting to allow sufficient time for the information to be circulated to all councillors.
Laurie Eagling, Clerk to Pitstone Parish Council
Bucks County Council announced that there will be no routine weed spraying across Buckinghamshire during 2016-17 and hence the visible weed growth in the roadside gutters, roundabouts and islands.
They advise that while budget considerations have played a role in making this decision, there are 2 key influencing factors:
Transport for Bucks will continue to treat noxious and injurious weeds in line with its legal obligations. To report these concerns go to www.buckscc.gov.uk/telltfb.
In the meantime, the parish council is exploring other options. Residents are able, like in the old days, to remove the weeds from the curbside outside their properties by hand if they take sufficient care when working by the highway, however Transport for Bucks confirm that the widespread use of common domestic weed killers is not permitted so please do not apply weed killer.
If anyone lost a cardigan at today’s Play around the Parishes, please contact parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk
Just a reminder that the parish council has funded two visits from Play around the Parishes this summer holiday on 1/8/16 and 19/8/16. Details can be found in the events section of this web site.
Laurie Eagling, Clerk to the parish council
Please find attached the draft minutes of the meeting. These will be agreed as a true and correct record, or amended accordingly at the next committee meeting.
Everyone is welcome to attend any of our full council or committee meetings. If you are unable to attend in person, you can keep up to date by reading the minutes that are published to this web site.
Flytipping includes dumping garden waste anywhere, including in hedgerows, grass verges and woodlands. Just because it may eventually compost down, does not make dumping acceptable or permissible.
Now that the summer is here, there seems to be a growing problem in Pitstone with garden waste and grass cuttings being dumped in numerous places throughout the village including: all along the field side of Vicarage Road, through the Byway Open to All Traffic between Queen Street and Grange Road, in the woodland at the end of Church Road and all through the woodland walk that runs between Castlemead and Vicarage Road.
As well as causing problems for the landowners where the material has been dumped (for example preventing grass cutting and blocking drainage ditches), dumping your waste in this manner is illegal and you could be fined and ordered to pay costs.
Further information about the “Illegal Dumping Costs” campaign by Bucks County Council can be found here:
http://www.recycleforbuckinghamshire.co.uk/illegal-dumping-costs/
You can report flytipping here:
http://www.buckscc.gov.uk/environment/waste,-recycling-and-treatment/fly-tipping/report-fly-tipping
You can subscribe to the brown bin garden waste collection service here:
http://www.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk/garden-waste-service
Or you can take your garden waste to a recycling centre, contact details here:
http://www.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk/household-waste-and-recycling-centres
Please contact the parish clerk on parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk if you would be interested in this opportunity.
ball stop netting quotation invite
Please find attached details of replacement fencing currently being sought by the parish council for the western boundary of our pavilion site.
If you are interested in providing a quotation and would like to arrange a site visit, please contact the parish clerk on parisclerk@pitstone.co.uk.
The parish council would like to thank PRS Office Furniture, based in the Pitstone Green Business Park, for their kind donation of 5 metal benches to be installed at the pavilion sports ground off Marsworth Road. We are sure that all the football spectators will be very grateful to have somewhere to sit and watch the beautiful game.
To find more about PRS and the furniture/services they can provide, please visit their website: http://www.prs-officefurniture.com/
Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan – consultation by Aylesbury Vale District Council
From 7 July to 5 September, Aylesbury Vale District Council (AVDC) will be consulting on their latest draft of the Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan (VALP) and are inviting comments from local residents and other interested parties on any aspect of the draft.
Scroll down to read more about:
What is the VALP and why is it important?
The VALP is the district-level Local Plan which sets out AVDC’s vision for delivering growth in the District up to 2033. Most importantly it is the document which, in conjunction with Neighbourhood Plans such as ours, will be used to determine planning applications (and all other planning-related matters) throughout the Vale. The VALP replaces the ill-fated Vale of Aylesbury Plan (VAP) which was withdrawn by AVDC in February 2014 and will, once adopted, formally replaced the rather elderly Aylesbury Vale District Local Plan (AVDLP) which dates back to 2004 and only certain parts of which still apply.
AVDC’s consultation exercise
The consultation exercise runs from 7 July to 5 September and we would encourage all residents to take part in it.
To inform the process, AVDC are running a number of consultation drop-in sessions throughout the summer.
| Date | Location | Venue | Time |
| Monday 11 July | Haddenham | Village Hall Social Centre | 11am to 8pm |
| Wednesday 13 July | Buckingham | Community Centre | 11am to 8pm |
| Thursday 14 July | Aylesbury | Friars Square Shopping Centre | 10am to 5pm |
| Wednesday 27 July | Newton Longville | Village Hall 2 Paradise | 10.30am to 7.30pm |
| Thursday 4 August | Wendover | St Anne’s Hall | 11am to 8pm |
| Friday 5 August | Aylesbury | Friars Square Shopping Centre | 10am to 5pm |
| Monday 8 August | Whaddon | Jubilee Hall | 11am(*) to 8pm |
| Wednesday 10 August | Winslow | Public Hall Elmfields Gate | 11am to 8pm |
| Thursday 1 September | Weedon | Bucks County Showground | 8.30am to 4.30pm |
(*) planning officers present from 4pm onwards
Whether or not you are able to visit one of these sessions, you can find out more about the draft VALP – in particular the background to it, and its policies on housing, transport, and environment – on the AVDC website: http://www.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk/vale-aylesbury-local-plan-draft-plan.
AVDC’s website also explains how you can respond to the consultation exercise and comment on the latest draft of the VALP. This is your opportunity to influence any part of the Plan that is important to you, before it goes in front of the Government’s Planning Inspectorate during Spring 2017. The Parish Council will naturally, in due course, also be responding to the consultation.
Pitstone Parish Council’s views
During June an unapproved draft of the VALP, on which they were intending to consult, was made available by AVDC. They have now published the approved consultation draft. The Parish Council’s views are, similarly, now based on the version of the Plan upon which public consultation is taking place. There have been no material changes to the draft VALP (or to our views) since the pre-consultation version.
The VALP is positive for Pitstone
The Parish Council’s initial view is that the latest draft of the VALP is a positive one for Pitstone. This is particularly so given the high level of support within the village for our own Neighbourhood Plan that 97% of you voted in favour of adopting back in March. The policies of the emerging VALP remain closely aligned with those of our own Plan, which reflects well on both the VALP and the neighbourhood planning process that we recently went through.
In various ways the VALP expressly seeks to achieve the same objectives that you voted in favour of – objectives such as protecting the “areas of special landscape value” south of the immediate centre of our village, and ensuring that sites designated for employment purposes (such as the ‘data hub’ site on Westfield Road) are not given over to additional housing. In addition the VALP strongly resists development in open countryside that is not adjacent to an existing settlement; and it is based on a detailed “land availability assessment” which reaches the same conclusions as our Neighbourhood Plan steering group during 2015, namely that the various greenfield sites which adjoin our village are also unsuitable for housing.
In other respects the VALP supports the policies and objectives of our Neighbourhood Plan in an indirect manner, by leaving numerous detailed “non-strategic” local matters that are consistent with the VALP’s objectives to the neighbourhood plan itself. This means that our NP will continue to be the primary point of reference in respect of matters such as:
What about housing numbers?
The one area where the VALP has caused some confusion is the amount of new housing envisaged for villages such as Pitstone. The VALP as a whole contains lots of housing numbers that are connected with the esoteric objective of achieving a “five-year housing land supply” across the Vale – a complex mathematical process based primarily on statistical assumptions. The important number for any village to focus on is its “residual housing number” (the amount it is actually expected to provide) which, for Pitstone, is 149 new homes.
The Parish Council recognises that, as this target does not include the Rushendon Furlong expansion (c.40 houses) for which outline planning permission has already been granted, it could result in Pitstone having a slightly higher new homes target than the 170 that were envisaged in the Neighbourhood Plan. This increase can be attributed to two things.
Equally, the VALP makes it clear that any housing target it lays down for any particular village is on the assumption that sufficient land is available – and it expressly recognises that, in some cases, it won’t be. The Parish Council’s view is that our Neighbourhood Plan clearly demonstrates how, save for the land intended to take our 170 new homes, no other suitable sites exist; and this is something we will be conveying to AVDC when commenting on the current draft of the VALP.
Next steps
It is also important to remember that the VALP, and the requirements it lays down about housing numbers, are still in draft and subject to both consultation and further refinement. AVDC have already indicated that they will be robustly seeking to minimise the additional housing required across the Vale (and, in turn, in individual villages such as ours) as a consequence of other Districts failing to take their fair share. In its response the Parish Council will also be seeking to ensure, as best it can, that the interests of our village are protected to the maximum possible extent. The many positive aspects of the VALP for Pitstone and its environs should, of course, also not be forgotten as work progresses on turning it into a robust, sustainable Plan for the Vale as a whole.
13 July is the last youth café for this academic year.
We are delighted that the Ivinghoe & Pitstone United Cricket Club will be in attendance coaching in cricket skills.
We are also pleased to say that there will be a BBQ again this year. Please ensure that you/your child brings extra cash to pay for any food that they would like.
Have a wonderful summer holiday.
Please note that there will be no youth café on Wednesday 20 July as Brookmead are hosting a performance that evening.
The last youth café this term will be on Wednesday 13 July.
We hope that you all enjoy your summer holiday and look forward to seeing you next term.
From 7 July to 5 September, Aylesbury Vale District Council (AVDC) will be consulting on their latest draft of the Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan (VALP) and are inviting comments from local residents and other interested parties on any aspect of the draft.
Scroll down to read more about:
What is the VALP and why is it important?
The VALP is the district-level Local Plan which sets out AVDC’s vision for delivering growth in the District up to 2033. Most importantly it is the document which, in conjunction with Neighbourhood Plans such as ours, will be used to determine planning applications (and all other planning-related matters) throughout the Vale. The VALP replaces the ill-fated Vale of Aylesbury Plan (VAP) which was withdrawn by AVDC in February 2014 and will, once adopted, formally replaced the rather elderly Aylesbury Vale District Local Plan (AVDLP) which dates back to 2004 and only certain parts of which still apply.
AVDC’s consultation exercise
The consultation exercise runs from 7 July to 5 September and we would encourage all residents to take part in it.
To inform the process, AVDC are running a number of consultation drop-in sessions throughout the summer.
| Date | Location | Venue | Time |
| Monday 11 July | Haddenham | Village Hall Social Centre | 11am to 8pm |
| Wednesday 13 July | Buckingham | Community Centre | 11am to 8pm |
| Thursday 14 July | Aylesbury | Friars Square Shopping Centre | 10am to 5pm |
| Wednesday 27 July | Newton Longville | Village Hall 2 Paradise | 10.30am to 7.30pm |
| Thursday 4 August | Wendover | St Anne’s Hall | 11am to 8pm |
| Friday 5 August | Aylesbury | Friars Square Shopping Centre | 10am to 5pm |
| Wednesday 10 August | Winslow | Public Hall Elmfields Gate | 10am to 6pm |
| Thursday 1 September | Weedon | Bucks County Showground | 8.30am to 4.30pm |
Whether or not you are able to visit one of these sessions, you can find out more about the draft VALP – in particular the background to it, and its policies on housing, transport, and environment – on the AVDC website: http://www.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk/vale-aylesbury-local-plan-draft-plan.
AVDC’s website also explains how you can respond to the consultation exercise and comment on the latest draft of the VALP. This is your opportunity to influence any part of the Plan that is important to you, before it goes in front of the Government’s Planning Inspectorate during Spring 2017. The Parish Council will naturally, in due course, also be responding to the consultation.
Pitstone Parish Council’s views
(NB. The synopsis which follows is based on a version of the draft VALP that had still to be presented to various AVDC scrutiny committees for approval during late June. It is possible that the VALP ultimately published for consultation may differ from the version which existed at the time of writing. This article will be updated to the extent necessary when AVDC confirm the final draft.)
The VALP is positive for Pitstone
The Parish Council’s initial view is that the latest draft of the VALP is a positive one for Pitstone. This is particularly so given the high level of support within the village for our own Neighbourhood Plan that 97% of you voted in favour of adopting back in March. The policies of the emerging VALP remain closely aligned with those of our own Plan, which reflects well on both the VALP and the neighbourhood planning process that we recently went through.
In various ways the VALP expressly seeks to achieve the same objectives that you voted in favour of – objectives such as protecting the “areas of special landscape value” south of the immediate centre of our village, and ensuring that sites designated for employment purposes (such as the ‘data hub’ site on Westfield Road) are not given over to additional housing. In addition the VALP strongly resists development in open countryside that is not adjacent to an existing settlement; and it is based on a detailed “land availability assessment” which reaches the same conclusions as our Neighbourhood Plan steering group during 2015, namely that the various greenfield sites which adjoin our village are also unsuitable for housing.
In other respects the VALP supports the policies and objectives of our Neighbourhood Plan in an indirect manner, by leaving numerous detailed “non-strategic” local matters that are consistent with the VALP’s objectives to the neighbourhood plan itself. This means that our NP will continue to be the primary point of reference in respect of matters such as:
What about housing numbers?
The one area where the VALP has caused some confusion is the amount of new housing envisaged for villages such as Pitstone. The VALP as a whole contains lots of housing numbers that are connected with the esoteric objective of achieving a “five-year housing land supply” across the Vale – a complex mathematical process based primarily on statistical assumptions. The important number for any village to focus on is its “residual housing number” (the amount it is actually expected to provide) which, for Pitstone, is 166 new homes.
The Parish Council recognises that, as this target does not include the Rushendon Furlong expansion (c.40 houses) for which outline planning permission has already been granted, it could result in Pitstone having a slightly higher new homes target than the 170 that were envisaged in the Neighbourhood Plan. This increase can be attributed to two things.
Equally, the VALP makes it clear that any housing target it lays down for any particular village is on the assumption that sufficient land is available – and it expressly recognises that, in some cases, it won’t be. The Parish Council’s view is that our Neighbourhood Plan clearly demonstrates how, save for the land intended to take our 170 new homes, no other suitable sites exist; and this is something we will be conveying to AVDC when commenting on the current draft of the VALP.
Next steps
It is also important to remember that the VALP, and the requirements it lays down about housing numbers, are still in draft and subject to both consultation and further refinement. AVDC have already indicated that they will be robustly seeking to minimise the additional housing required across the Vale (and, in turn, in individual villages such as ours) as a consequence of other Districts failing to take their fair share. In its response the Parish Council will also be seeking to ensure, as best it can, that the interests of our village are protected to the maximum possible extent. The many positive aspects of the VALP for Pitstone and its environs should, of course, also not be forgotten as work progresses on turning it into a robust, sustainable Plan for the Vale as a whole.
The parish council is currently working on a dedicated planning application section for the web site. In the meantime, following your feedback, we will post details of applications in this news section so that you can find them more easily.
Applications for consideration at the 21 July 2016 Planning Committee meeting (7.30pm in the Millennium Room):
11 The Pightle, 16/02340/APP, change of use of adjoining land into residential garden to form part of curtilage of existing dwelling
The plans may be viewed online by going to http://eplanning.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk and searching using the planning reference number.
Any comments, representations or objections you may have should be submitted directly to AVDC as the planning authority, by the date shown on the yellow site notice, quoting the planning reference number. This can be done on-line or you can post comments to:
The Head of Development Control, Aylesbury Vale District Council, The Gateway,
Gatehouse Road, Aylesbury, Bucks, HP19 8FF
If you wish the parish council to take your comments into consideration when making our recommendation, please also supply the details to us before noon on the day of the meeting to allow sufficient time for the information to be circulated to all councillors.
Laurie Eagling, Clerk to Pitstone Parish Council
Pitstone parish council sets aside a small budget each year to help local groups with expenses for equipment or events. It is able to offer grants to community and voluntary bodies provided they meet our criteria.
Criteria:
The next quarterly grant review will take place at the July 2016 full council meeting. Any applications need to be received by noon on 18 July 2016 so that they can be included on the next agenda. The subsequent grant panel will be in October.
If you think your Pitstone based club or group may wish to apply, please ensure you read our attached “Grant Policy” for full application details.
Thank you to all the residents that submitted feedback to the highways proposals consultation.
We are delighted to confirm that the Bucks County Council Local Area Forum has agreed to provide £2,460 during the current financial year towards undertaking a Road Safety Audit to assess all the locations identified in the Ben Hamilton-Baillie report. Pitstone Parish Council will be supplying an equivalent amount of match funding so that the report can be commissioned. The same will be happening in Ivinghoe. Once the report is available, we will share this with the community.
Once the Road Safety Audit has been undertaken, and further discussions have taken place between all the parties, Area Scheme Delivery will be able to prepare a budget estimate for the completion of a feasibility design using both our Ben Hamilton-Baillie report and the Feasibility Stage Safety Audit.
| B488 Upper Icknield Way, Pitstone, Buckinghamshire | ||
| 10 June — 27 June | ||
| Delays likelyRoad closure | ||
| Works location: From Tring Road To Northfield Road | ||
| Works description: – | ||
| Responsibility for works: Buckinghamshire County Council | ||
| Current status: Advanced planning | ||
The orchids have started to come into flower, so please do come up to Westfield Road by the Warwick Road turning to see them.
