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The sudden change in location of the speed limit signs was discussed at the parish council meeting on 28 January 2021, extract from the draft minutes below:

It was noted that as part of the adoptions process between Buckinghamshire Council and Taylor Wimpey that the 30/60mph commencement point had been moved from the white gates to the junction of Warwick Road.   It has been raised to both BC Highways Development Management (adoptions) and the Community Board as being unacceptable to double the speed limit, especially without consultation, and to locate the new point so close to the Warwick Road junction.

Having initially stated that no changes could be made, it was noted that Highways DM were now reviewing what measures they could put into place, that would be DfT compliant and that would enable the 30/60mph start point to move back closer to the gates.  The details of this, and the timescale, were as yet unknown as Highways DM continued to negotiate with Taylor Wimpey and explore options with contractors.

It was noted that the parish council had asked for additional speed mitigation measures to be considered as part of the review process, such as 30mph paint markings in the highway at the point of change in speed limit and countdown markers painted in the road on the approach to the gates.  To provide as many visual prompts for traffic to slow as were permitted.

It was also noted that the parish council had requested a full breakdown of potential speed mitigation measures for Westfield Road that may either be considered as part of the adoptions process or possibly able to be taken forward through the Community Board.  A brief response to this from Highways DM was shared at the meeting.  It was RESOLVED to seek permission to publish this information on the website, along with the anticipated statement from Highways DM on what remedial works they plan to reverse the 30/60mph relocation.

The 4 residents in attendance with an interest in this issue spoke about their concerns relating to the change in location and their desire for the signs to be returned to the original location whilst the remedial works were considered.   The parish council has been told on numerous occasions by Highways DM that TVP will not approve their relocation back to the original position, nor for them to be covered over in their current location.

Buckinghamshire Councillor Town confirmed that he was also opposed to the sudden change in location.

It was RESOLVED that the parish council would continue to push Highways DM for a resolution via the adoptions process.   It was RESOLVED to seek further information relating to a TRO.  It was also noted that the parish council had requested this be tabled on the Community Board Transport Subgroup meeting (supported by BC Derek Town and Co-ordinator Peter Brazier) and noted that Highways DM had been asked to attend that meeting next week.  Cllr Saintey is in attendance on behalf of Pitstone Parish Council.  Residents are welcome to attend.

Buckinghamshire Council (BC) and Thames Valley Police (TVP) have now conducted a thorough review of the speed changes that were implemented at end of Westfield Road. We are pleased that they have now put into place some remedial works which will see the 30/60mph zone moved a further 70m back towards the original position at the white gates and further away from the Warwick Road junction (now 80-85m from the junction). Full details are available in the transcript of the email issued by Buckinghamshire Council below. A copy of this communication will also be issued by BC direct to residents that wrote to Buckinghamshire Council.

Dear All,

Thank you for your emails concerning the above. I received a number of similar emails and I am providing you all with the same response, now that we have been able to establish the details of the background of this issue, and confirmation of the proposed action that was agreed by Thames Valley Police (TVP) and Buckinghamshire Council (BC) at a site meeting held at Westfield Road on 25th January.

Description of the issue;

The 30mph speed limit on Westfield Road was placed some 18-19 years ago and commenced at a point that coincided with the white village gates at the very edge of the development. The area outside of this being a National Speed Limit (60mph) past the Local Wildlife Site.

However, as part of the adoption process that Taylor Wimpey (TW) are going through, that will facilitate the adoption of Westfield Road (along with the remainder of the whole estate) by BC, it was noted that the absence of any street lighting in the vicinity of the gateway feature identified that the speed limit did not comply with regulations and was not compliant with current legislation and therefore, unenforceable.

To ensure compliance, the speed limit signs were moved, over the weekend of 16-17th January, to a point that coincided with the last street lamp positioned on Westfield Road. This places them 10 to 15 metres from the centreline of the Warwick Road junction. No consultation was required to effect this change, even though the speed limit was effectively ‘doubled on this stretch of road from 30mph to 60mph’, as the change was required to address the anomaly on what is currently an ‘unadopted’ road, albeit that the adoption Agreement with TW enables a speed limit to be applied to this road.

The distance from the current last column, which now has the 30/National Speed Limit signs affixed to it, to the ‘gateway’ feature is approximately 132 metres. There is also a ‘badger’ warning sign positioned around 75 metres from the current last column.

Considerations and agreed action;

An initial discussion concerning the issue took place between Taylor Wimpey (TW) and the Council (BC), where it was agreed to seek the views of TVP and the BC Road Safety Team – who have a significant input into the assessment of proposed speed limit changes in the County – which resulted in the following;

Notwithstanding the 30mph limit that is in place along the residential section of Westfield Road, national speed limit guidance suggests that; having no ‘frontage development’ (that has direct access on to Westfield Road), the limit that should be applied is 40mph, which would then allow the side roads to be signed as 30mph.

However, in the prevailing circumstances, it was agreed that the existing 30mph limit should remain in place, with the following amendment being applied to the signage at the southern end of the entrance to the village and the BC Street Lighting team, provided the following as a guide as to how the issue could be taken forward;

“Current guidance suggests that a road should be lit, 5 seconds of travelling time before a ‘hazard’ is encountered.

And that the distance travelled in 5 seconds at 30mph is 67m, with the maximum permitted column spacing in these conditions being 37m with a standard maintenance LED lantern”.

Therefore, from this (taking the Warwick Road junction as being the hazard), it was decided that the recommended course of action was that 2 new columns, at 35 metre spacing, should be installed, so enabling the start of the 30mph limit to be moved a distance of 70m from the current last existing column, giving an overall distance of approximately 80 to 85 metres from the start of the repositioned 30mph limit to the centreline of the Warwick Road junction.

This outcome has been discussed and agreed between BC and TVP and now all possible avenues are being explored that will allow the necessary works to take place in the earliest possible timescale.

A final point to note and in lieu of the decisions/ impending action being taken, is that the Parish Council (along with a number of residents) made a request for the currently relocated 30mph signs to either be removed or put back to their original position, until the above could be enacted, to which the answer given was ‘no’, because, as a result of comments made by TVP, whilst the development remained unadopted, the roads and footways forming the estate were open to use by the travelling public and therefore, the signs provided must comply with all legislative requirements.

We hope this information is useful and helps to provide an understanding of the situation and intended course of action.

Kind regards,

Nick

Cllr. Nick Naylor

Cabinet Member for Transport

Buckinghamshire Council

Whilst it is disappointing that the location has not been able to be moved back to the original location, highways must legally comply with the Department for Transport regulations.

As part of the review process, the parish council asked BC to consider what speed mitigation measures were permissible to ensure that vehicles did slow down to the 30mph, and remain at that speed for the duration of the residential section. BC has agreed to investigate the possibility of countdown markers in the carriageway on the approach to the gates and a 30mph painted sign in the road as part of the adoption process with Taylor Wimpey. Originally, there was just the single prompt of the gate/sign point to advise drivers to reduce from 60mph to 30mph. The new proposals would provide the countdown road markings, then gate, then 30mph road markings, then signs, so may be more effective at warning vehicles to slow to the appropriate speed.

BC have also provided initial information about a range of speed mitigation & safety measures that may/may not be appropriate for Westfield Road in the longer term, not as part of the adoptions process, but which might be able to be raised through the Community Board Transport Sub-Group. Previously it has not been possible to consider any of these options, as the highway was not adopted, so the legal adoption as a public highway will enable a range of options to be considered as necessary. It should be noted that any changes to the public highway have to go through a lengthy process with Buckinghamshire Council / Transport for Bucks and will require local funding for any measures that are approved. This document was initially shared at the parish council meeting and is available here:

The above document includes a number of measures that were suggested by residents in their correspondence to Buckinghamshire Council, so we hope that this information will be of interest.

Ensuring vehicles remain at the designated 30mph until they pass the derestriction sign, as they travel towards Tring, will remain a challenge.

In addition, we have made enquiries about a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO). A TRO can take 12-18 months to put into place and includes an extensive consultation with statutory bodies, one of which is TVP. As TVP have been fully involved in the recent review exercise, we are advised that they are unlikely to support a TRO application for the short remaining section (approximately 60m) of Westfield Road where the change in speed limit now applies. However it may be possible, in due course, to apply for a TRO to provide a 40mph buffer zone between the 60mph and the 30mph, if the initial measures do not prove effective.

The next Buckinghamshire Council Wing and Ivinghoe Community Board Transport Sub-Group meeting is taking place on Thursday 4 February 2021 18.30-19.30 and Westfield Road is on the agenda. Members of the parish council, along with Buckinghamshire Councillor Derek Town, will be in attendance. BC Highways Development Management has been asked to attend and supply information. Members of the public are welcome to attend. Information about the meeting and how you can register to attend can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/events/2501876303441962/

We will post an update following the meeting to keep residents informed.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank the residents that took the time to write to Buckinghamshire Council about this issue, as it has helped the parish council to demonstrate the strength of local concern regarding the initial changes and helped to secure the proposed amendments.

Following the Community Board meeting, once we are in full receipt of information from Buckinghamshire Council, the parish council will be able to review what next steps we can take. Westfield Road will appear on the next full parish council agenda for 25 February 2021 and we will keep residents advised of any further information we receive in the meantime.

We are seeking a replacement asset checker.

The asset inspector will need to check our playground equipment, gates, benches, trees and other assets around the parish are sound. You’ll need to attend training sessions for basic playground equipment inspection and basic tree inspection.

You’ll need to be happy to work outside in all weathers and work on your own. Work patterns can be flexible, to be discussed at interview.

For full details of this role, please see the attachment below.

If this is the role(s) for you, please apply in writing to: Mrs Laurie Eagling, Clerk to Pitstone Parish Council at email: parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk or via mail at 9 Warwick Road, Pitstone, LU7 9FE, providing brief written details about yourself, your experience and your suitability for the post, or a cv if you have one. Please remember to include your contact details.

Deadline: Friday 19 February 2020.

We are delighted that the construction work at the pavilion is now complete, with just the re-laying of the car park to follow in the spring.  Football matches briefly re-started, before the covid restrictions were tightened further, allowing teams to take advantage of the new changing village facilities including home & away changing rooms, 2 officials rooms and medical room.

Once the lockdown eases and covid regulations allow, the youth cafe will be re-located to this site for the time being (as Brookmead is currently unavailable to us), the parish office is located here and council meetings & drop-in surgeries will take place at this venue once we are able to meet in person again.  We have an exercise class for the elderly due to start as soon as restrictions are lifted and we look forward to welcoming more classes and groups as 2021 progresses.  We are also exploring options to use the facility to further support our community during lockdown.  Our community facilities (lovely light meeting room, kitchen and toilet facilities) are available for hire by community groups and individuals, within the permitted Coronavirus guidelines at the time (so sorry – we are not able to accept bookings for parties etc at present).  We have parking for 42 vehicles and 8 bicycles in our illuminated car park.  For your safety and security, both the building and grounds are protected with CCTV and alarms. 

Please look out for more forthcoming events at the site which will be publicised on our website, Facebook page and Twitter feed.  Please visit this weblink for more information: https://pitstone.co.uk/ppcinfo/sport-and-recreation/

This is an amazing facility for our community which we know you will be proud off for years to come.  We’d like to thank all our grant funders including:

• £540,000 from the Section 106 Sports and Leisure Contributions held by Buckinghamshire Council for Pitstone.
• £370,000 from AVDC (now Buckinghamshire Council) New Homes Bonus.  If you would like more information about the AVDC grant funding available, please contact the grants officer, helen.white@buckinghamshire.gov.uk
• Approximately £32,000 from the Football Foundation Football Stadia Improvement Fund.  Funded with £6.5m each year from the Premier League, the FSIF – the sister organisation of the Football Foundation – is the country’s largest provider of grants towards projects that help improve the comfort and safety of lower league football grounds in both the professional and amateur game. These improvements range from new football stands and turnstiles to floodlighting and improved provision for disabled supporters.
• £10,000 funding from the  Thriving Communities Fund, a grants scheme for community projects run by Vale of Aylesbury Housing Trust.  If you would like more information about the grants available, please call the Grants Officer, on 01296 732600.
• £4,000 from P&IUFC
• £1,500 from P&IJFC
• As well as approximately £14k of capital funds accrued by Pitstone Parish Council over a number of recent years.

We’d also like to thank our professional team for their support and assistance, in particular PEP Ltd, Civil and Structural Engineers, who provided all of their expertise and time free-of-charge to support their local community.

The old pavilion was only really a changing block and toilets suitable for use by the football teams.  It didn’t even have kitchen facilities.  We now look forward to a greater number of our residents being able to benefit from the newly expanded facilities and to welcoming you all to the pavilion very soon.

I hope you were able to find some pleasure and relaxation during an unusual and difficult Christmas/New Year, and that a brighter future awaits.

In my last report I talked about the issue of increasing litter in the village and mentioned residents who were taking it upon themselves to supplement the Parish Council’s litter picking to deal with the issue.

Sadly, the litter problem hasn’t gone away but the council is heartened to note that even more people have joined the litter picking ranks. We thank everyone who is helping with the problem but their efforts should not be required. Please put your litter in the bin or take it home, and make sure that your family members do the same.

Looking back at my report from this time last year it’s clear that, in a difficult year, the council had some successes.

We managed to complete two of our three major projects, the new play equipment on the Rec, and the Pavilion, but we are still working on the Skate Park.

Skate park tender documents should have gone out during last year, but delays in getting the play equipment installed and other lockdown restrictions halted the progress. The skate park will be located in the space between the new play equipment and the end of the hall car park (soon to be the site of the new Multi-use games area). That space needed to be available for site visits from suppliers So they can measure and plan. Now that it is we are able to restart the process.

Provision of the skate park has been on the councils agenda for over 20 years. With many council projects raising the money is the most difficult part, for the skate park this wasn’t the case. We have had money available the whole time, the issue has always been finding a site.

Thankfully we are now at the end of the long process required to obtain and free up the space. Most of the young people who helped us with designs in the past are now adults, with some probably having children of their own. I believe that this year will be the one where the village finally gets this much anticipated facility.

Also in my previous January report mentioned that we had elections coming up. They also didn’t happen but, at this point, we expect them to go ahead in May. If you are interested in becoming a councillor please speak to the clerk, or any councillor, to find out more. Details of our meetings are posted on the website and are a great way to get to know more about how we work.

Les Graves retired from the Parish Council after many years of service both as an asset inspector and litter picker.  We wish Les well.  Our thanks to David Witherden for expanding his previous litter picking duties to encompass Les’s previous routes. We also extend a warm welcome to Iwona Lipa, who joins the council team as a cleaner at the new pavilion.   Please do make everyone feel very welcome when you see them out and about.

‘Keep clear’ markings are put there for very good reasons.  They signify to you, as a driver, that access is required and that you shouldn’t park there.  Sadly, some people think that the rules don’t apply to them, or don’t apply if they are only going to be gone from their vehicle for 10-15 minutes while they pop into the shop or collect their child from school.  Orchard Way in particular, opposite Brookmead school, has a number of elderly residents who frequently need ambulance services and their access is often blocked at school pick up and drop off times.  This is not a car park or layby – it is the only vehicular access for this cul-de-sac.  You wouldn’t park right across the junction of Rushendon Furlong & shouldn’t park across this junction either.  Just think how frustrating it would be if your grandparents needed an ambulance and unknown people had completely blocked off the access to your road with parked cars.  Those extra wasted minutes trying to get through could be fatal.  Please be considerate, leave home a few minutes earlier and park a little further away. 

We also receive complaints about vehicles blocking dropped curbs, parking on footpaths and cycle paths, causing obstructions in residential roads and blocking visibility at junctions.  You can report nuisance parking issues to Buckinghamshire Councils Traffic Wardens.  You can report illegal parking and abandoned vehicles, to Thames Valley Police.  Further information on both can be found on their websites. 

Thank you.

We are aware that the dog bin by The Crescent suffered a post failure and has been removed. A replacement bin is on order and will be installed as soon as possible. In the meantime, please visit an alternative dog bin or take your bags home with you.

We apologise for any inconvenience.

https://pitstone.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Pitstone-A5-flyer.pdf

Due to our expanding population, the number of seats on the parish council will be increasing from 10 to 11 at the next election in May.  At election time, the term of office for all current councillors terminates, and a new council is elected.  Existing members may choose to stand for re-election or may choose to stand down.  Other residents may also choose to stand for election. All members are volunteers and receive no renumeration or financial allowances for their work.

If you are passionate about helping our community, and have plenty of spare time to volunteer, please do consider standing for election.

You are welcome to talk to the clerk or any serving councillor to get more information and members of the public are welcome to attend all our council and committee meetings where you would gain an understanding of all the current affairs being managed.  You may also like to read the documents below, which provide a little more information about what is involved and who is qualified to stand:

about council booklet

Become a councillor

You can also find out lots of information, whether you are eligible to stand and download forms at https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/

The corporate body of the parish council also acts as Sole Trustee to two local charities, so you may also like to read:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-essential-trustee-what-you-need-to-know-cc3

The Parish Council was pleased to support the Pitstone Memorial Hall Charity with a grant of £6,000 (accrued over 2 years) towards the necessary repairs to fix the hall roof.

For those of you that may be unaware, the Memorial Hall is owned and managed by a local charity (not the parish council). The Hall is a fantastic asset for the Village and is well used by old and young alike. Following their AGM in November, the Charity’s trustees are now on the lookout for more trustees to join their team. The Trustees generally meet between 4 and 6 times a year with regular email communication in between. We are looking for people who can spare the odd evening to attend meetings and who are interested in keeping the hall running as a valuable asset. Whilst no special qualifications are required, we do need someone to fill the role of treasurer and also anyone who would enjoy managing social media for the charity.

If you are interested, please contact hallmanager@pitstone.co.uk for further details.

All your nominations for the Pitstone Volunteer of the Year 2021 need to be sent to the parish council by Friday 15 January 2021, so if you know of someone that is giving up their time and making a difference to the lives of the people in Pitstone, then please let us know.

A huge army of volunteers make our village special.  Did you know that volunteers manage the Memorial Hall; the Pitstone Heritage Park/museum; staff the Pitstone Windmill open days; are parish councillors; form the governing body of Brookmead school; deliver and edit Pitstone Parish Post; operate Pitstone Youth Café; form the management committee for Windmill pre-school; drive for the Community Car scheme; run mums & toddlers; run Brownies/Rainbows/Cubs/Scouts; are trustees for The Williamson Trust and Pitstone Town Lands Charity; run sporting groups such as I&PUCC, P&IUFC and P&IJFC; check street lights; provide ground-keeping on the cricket square; manage our allotment site; help at the Beacon Villages Community Library; organise community events and form the Friends of St Mary’s church in Pitstone, manning open days and organising events. Just think what our village would be like without all these facilities!

As well as being an opportunity for you, and the parish council, to thank our Volunteer of the Year in public, the winner receives £50.00 and a framed certificate.

Previous winners include: Gill Arney, Rob Spiller, Margaret Cole, Klaus Ginda, Dave Clifford, Mary Saintey, Joe Marling, Michelle Lee, David Hawkins, John Groom and Elaine Thorogood.

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.

If you have some spare time and would like join this volunteer army and start enjoying the benefits that volunteering brings, please do get in touch.

We are pleased to say that the two new sets of swings (flat seat swings and cradle seat swings) have passed their post installation inspection and the playground has been reopened this afternoon.

We hope that you enjoy the new equipment.

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Thames Valley Police are aware of an increase in thefts and attempted thefts from vehicles in the area. The suspect appears to be an opportunist, trying a series of door handles and taking anything of value.

The advice from TVP is:

• Ensure you lock your cars
• Do not leave valuables inside, even if you think you’ve put them out of sight in the glove box or under the seat

They also urge residents to monitor your CCTV or Ring Doorbell and contact your local neighbourhood policing team or call 101 to report footage of any suspicious activity or incidents.

Please find attached:

• A briefing document outlining our procurement requirements
• The site layout
• The ground floor plan
• The geotechnical report

Link to the grant of planning permission here: https://publicaccess.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk/online-applications/centralDistribution.do?keyVal=QEHPUWCLGKV00&caseType=Application

Interested parties are invited to submit their quotations by noon on 23 December 2020.

Please raise any queries via parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk. Clarifications and responses will be circulated to all parties who have expressed an interest and will be published on this website.

Updated 9/12/20:

• Senior pitch will be reduced to 67m and junior pitch will be reduced by 1m, to enable required gap of 5m from floodlight columns to junior pitch (which does not have barriers)
• Underground pitch drainage plan added – see below

We are seeking a replacement litter picker and asset checker. At the moment these roles are undertaken by the same person. Ideally, we’d like to replicate this and have one person undertaking both roles, but we would be open to splitting the duties between 2 candidates if required to accommodate the most suitable candidates.

The litter picker will collect dropped litter and empty the bins from our open spaces and the roadside, as well as removing flyposting or graffiti and dealing with vandalism (eg smashed glass). You need to be relatively fit as there is lots of walking involved and you’ll need to be able to lift sacks of litter from the bins and take everything to the wheelie bins.

The asset inspector will need to check our playground equipment, gates, benches, trees and other assets around the parish are sound. You’ll need to attend training sessions for basic playground equipment inspection and basic tree inspection.

For both roles, you’ll need to be happy to work outside in all weathers and work on your own. Work patterns can be flexible, to be discussed at interview.

For full details of both roles, please see the attachments below.

If this is the role(s) for you, please apply in writing to: Mrs Laurie Eagling, Clerk to Pitstone Parish Council at email: parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk or via mail at 9 Warwick Road, Pitstone, LU7 9FE, providing brief written details about yourself, your experience and your suitability for the post, or a cv if you have one. Please remember to include your contact details.

Deadline: 13 November 2020.

As you will be aware, the newly extended and refurbished pavilion should be open in November.

We are seeking a new cleaner / caretaker for the new facility.

Estimated minimum of 4 hours per week.  Must be able to work weekends and evenings.  Must be flexible and able to adapt to meet the needs of our hirers (both those hiring the community room and those holding outdoor sporting events), especially during the Coronavirus pandemic, and able to attend at short notice if anyone is taken ill with suspected Covid symptoms to initiate additional cleaning.

Duties will include:

• cleaning the pavilion including the changing village,
• litter picking the grounds,
• carry out regular activities to ensure compliance to all necessary fire, health & safety, defibrillator and water safety regulations etc,
• minor maintenance works,
• completion of accurate records of work undertaken.

The applicant must be reasonably fit (as the cleaning work after muddy footballers can sometimes be strenuous), self-motivated and trustworthy.   Must be happy to work alone.   Experience of cleaning similar premises or caretaking an advantage, but training can be provided.

Please note that the precise duties may vary from the attached. As the new building has yet to be handed back to the parish council and we are currently unaware of all the new maintenance duties associated with the new fit-out.

For full details, please see the attachment below.

If this is the role for you, please apply in writing to: Mrs Laurie Eagling, Clerk to Pitstone Parish Council at email: parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk or via mail at 9 Warwick Road, Pitstone, LU7 9FE, enclosing a curriculum vitae or providing brief written details about yourself, your experience and your suitability for the post.    

Deadline: 6 November 2020.

If you have not yet been able to visit the new Huck Teck play space by the Recreation Ground, here is a taster of the amazing new equipment:

Despite the lack of annual assembly due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic restrictions, the parish council was delighted to present Mrs Gillian Arney with her Volunteer of the Year certificate at a socially distanced presentation event.  Gill has provided numerous years of voluntary service at St Mary’s Church in Pitstone, the Festival of Art & Flowers, Beacon Villages Community Library, the Heritage Park (Pitstone Green Museum), Mums & Toddlers Committee and Pitstone Parish Council.  She was nominated by several residents whom we thank for taking the time to submit their nominations.

Very many congratulations Gill!

If you know someone who goes above and beyond to volunteer in a way that helps the residents of Pitstone, please do write to the parish council by email to parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk or by letter to 9 Warwick Road, Pitstone, Beds, LU7 9FE so that they can be considered for the 2021 Volunteer of the Year award.   Each recipient receives a framed certificate, card and £50 cheque.

Our thanks to Taylor Wimpey for attending and clearing all the garden waste that had been fly tipped along the woodland walk public open space at the edge of Castlemead, as part of their site maintenance prior to handover to Buckinghamshire Council. Residents are reminded that public open spaces are just that, open areas for all to enjoy, and not waste ground.

Fly Tipping of garden waste is a criminal offence, just like the fly tipping of other materials. The term describes any illegal disposal of waste without an environmental permit and is a wide-ranging offence. Fly-tipping can be dangerous, pollutes land and waterways and costs the council tax payer significant amounts of money to clear away. The legislation is contained in Section 33 of the Environmental Protection Act
1990.

The penalties for fly-tipping set out in the Environmental Protection Act 1990 were increased through the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005. It is now a criminal offence punishable by :-

• An unlimited fine or 6 months’ imprisonment if convicted in a Magistrates’ Court.

• The offence can attract an unlimited fine and/or up to 5 years imprisonment if convicted in a Crown Court.

• In addition to fines, those found guilty of fly-tipping may also have to pay legal costs and compensation, which can greatly increase the financial implications of illegal dumping.

Please ensure you preserve and care for the woodland walk and other open space. Dispose of garden waste in your brown bin, garden compost bin or take it to the household waste site. If you use a contractor to take away your garden waste, make sure they have a permit. If you spot any one fly tipping, garden or other waste, please report it to https://www.buckscc.gov.uk/services/waste-and-recycling/fly-tipping/

Sadly, after Christmas we typically see an increase in dumped waste in our woodland and open spaces, including discarded Christmas trees, wreaths and table decorations. Please make sure that this Christmas, if you choose real decorations, that you dispose of them correctly.

The parish council operates a community car scheme to help get residents to their hospital appointments as there often isn’t any suitably timed public transport or the health of the patient would make use of public transport difficult.  Many of our customers are elderly and have been isolating or shielding.  Many of their hospital appointments have been postponed and are now very important.

We also operate the youth café for children aged between 11-16 years to provide them with constructive activities & opportunities to meet friends in a safe environment, as well as providing important access to youth services.

We have ways to help both operate in a covid-secure environment to help protect our volunteers and users.

In both instances, many of the local volunteers that normally make these schemes possible, are over retirement age or have underlying health conditions which mean they are unable to return to volunteering at the moment due to the ongoing pandemic.   We are therefore struggling to fulfil customer bookings.

We desperately need to hear from you, if you are willing and able to help, even if only for the next 6 months, so we can help these 2 groups of residents access the services they need. To express interest in helping the car scheme, please contact communitytransport@pitstone.co.uk and for the youth café please contact youth.cafe@me.com or parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk.

Further details of both schemes can be found on www.pitstone.co.uk

Thank you.

• The exciting new play space by the Recreation Ground opened on 10 September and we hope that you are all enjoying all the new equipment.   It has certainly been very busy. This area has been designed as an inclusive play space so that everyone can play together, regardless of their age or ability.  You will find a range of play features suitable for toddlers through to teenagers, incorporating a significant number of items that are suitable for a range of disabled use including swings, sunken trampoline, springers and wide slides to allow carers and children to travel down together.  It also incorporates visual and textual surfaces and colours to stimulate and assist those with visionary difficulties.  We would love to know what you and your children think of all the new equipment, so do let us know via email, Facebook or Twitter.
• If your children are old enough to be out playing by themselves, please remind them to socially distance when using our playgrounds and to sanitise their hands before and after using the equipment.  It has also been sad to see the huge volume of litter dropped in the new play space, including used nappies as well as food & drink.  Due to the ongoing pandemic it is particularly important to ensure that you and your children make use of the bins provided, for the health and safety of all users and staff.  You should also note that the government guidelines advise that you do not eat or drink whilst using playgrounds as this increases the risk of putting the virus straight into your body.  Signage on all our playground gates advises users of this & the need to use bins for tissues etc.  Your amazing new play space has cost over £120k, so please take a pride in it so it can be a fun & safe place for our children.
• The smaller playground in Tun Furlong at the far end of Vicarage Road is also now open.  This features a range of equipment particularly suitable for the younger to mid aged groups.  Bellway are arranging for this to be maintained for a period of 24-months by a maintenance company before transferring to the parish council at the end of that period.
• The flat seat swings at the Windsor Road playground suffered a frame failure and have been removed for safety. New sets of swings for this playground are being procured so that full play can resume as soon as possible.
• Nicholas King Homes are providing a multi-use ball court as part of their planning permission.  This will be located on the parish council owned land at the end of the car park by the Recreation Ground.  They currently anticipate that this will be complete by spring 2021. 
• A concrete skate park is still planned for the area between the multi-use ball court and the new play space.  Tendering will commence shortly and we hope that this will be installed during the summer of 2021.  We will keep residents updated.
• Between the four play spaces in Pitstone, we feel that there are lots of experiences and opportunities for the less able children in our community, however if you have a disabled child with a special need that is not currently being addressed, please do let us know.

The parish council offers grants to local community groups and local charities that specifically benefit Pitstone residents.  Applications are considered quarterly.   The next opportunity for grants to be considered is coming up on 22 October 2020.

Please see the grant policy on this web site (http://pitstone.co.uk/ppcinfo/grant-policy/ ) for further information or contact the parish clerk.

Applications must be received at least 10 days ahead of the meeting date so that the information can be circulated to all members ahead of the meeting and your application can be advertised on our agenda.

The parish council is seeking quotations for a reputable, established playground equipment supplier to:

• Remove the remaining frame elements from the flat seat swings
• Remove the entire baby seat swing unit
• Dispose of all removals
• Supply and install 1 x new flat seat swing set and 1 x new baby seat swing set (frames, chains and seats)
• Make good the tarmac/wet pour etc

at our Windsor Road, Pitstone, Beds, LU7 9GG play space site.

Please supply :

• your broken down quotation
• details of your proposed swing units (including dimensions, colourways, photographs, construction, materials, product guarantees, BS standards, maintenance requirements)
• details of your company (including accreditation, experience, workmanship guarantees)
• terms and conditions
• your anticipated leadtime and installation date

To assist your quotation work, please find above photographs of the two swing set locations. Each wet pour pad measures approx 3m across. Each set of frames measures approximately 3.2m across (into the tarmac). Update: the green wet pour by the cradle swings measures approx 271 x 116″ and is approx 1.5″ thick. The green wet pour by the flat seat swings measures 270 x 116″ and is approx 1.5″ thick. Please ensure you have considered fall heights and safety surface requirements within your quotation.

The site is open if contractors wish to visit.

Should you have any queries, please contact the parish council on parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk or 01296 767261 as soon as possible. We will keep this webpage updated with additional information provided so that all potential contractors have access to the full information.

Please email your quotation and information to Pitstone Parish Council via parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk by Thursday 24 September 2020 at the latest.

Thank you.

Whilst we hope to be able to re-open the Pitstone Youth Cafe once it is covid-safe to do so, this is unlikely to be in place for the start of the autumn term.

The current government restrictions mean that our cafe would have to operate in a very different way.

Please bear with us a little while longer and we hope to bring you positive news towards the end of September.

In the meantime, we hope that all the young people that attend cafe enjoy their return to full time education and we look forward to seeing you all again in due course.

The parish council is a consultee for all planning applications submitted to Buckinghamshire Council.  We have received notice of consultations on the following applications:

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 Buckinghamshire Council 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, Buckinghamshire 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 by noon on 17 September 2020.  A zoom meeting will be held online at 7.30pm that evening.  Members of the public will be able to join the meeting via their computer, laptop, smartphone, tablet or landline.  Details will be posted, alongside the agenda, in due course.

Background

Pitstone Parish Council is currently upgrading the facilities at the Pavilion site on Marsworth Road. Building work is ongoing and is planned to complete in early October. As part of the build some provision has been included for technology requirements, such a wifi, but not the supply of the necessary equipment.

We are therefore seeking proposals for the supply, fitting, and configuration of these elements.

As per the attached plan, the new facilities include:

• A changing village with separate areas for teams and officials
• Toilets for other users of the facility
• A community social/function room with kitchen
• A parish office
• Storage facilities

At the point of handover the building will be equipped with:

• 3 ceiling mounted data outlets
• 1 6U Data Cabinet (including patch panel)
  • The cabinet will contain CCTV equipment but it is expected that at least 2U will be available for networking equipment
• Cat 5e structured cabling from data outlets to the patch panel

The site has an existing phone line, but it has never been connected. The termination point will be located in the plant room, where it is required for the intruder alarm system. Cabling had been included from that point to the parish office.

Timing

As stated above we expect the building works to be complete in early October and want to be in a position to open the building as soon as possible. The successful supplier will be expected to work with the council and our contractors to meet that goal, which may require some flexibility with regard to when work can occur.

Requirements

The basic requirements are as follows:

• Wifi to all areas
  • This should include service for users of the site and separate, secure, service for the parish council
• Wired connectivity for the parish office to support printer(s), laptop(s) etc

Please supply a proposal that includes:

• Your solution design
• The rationale behind the design
• A list of all equipment to be supplied
• Costs broken down as:
  • Equipment costs
  • Labour costs
  • Any ongoing costs (for example a support contract)

The council does not currently have a telephone/broadband contract in place. If you have a relationship with an internet provider that you would recommend please include details.

If you wish, please also include, as a separate item, details and costs for managing the ordering, supply, and connection of the telephone and broadband by your preferred provider.

Process

In the first instance, potential suppliers must indicate their intention to provide a proposal by Monday 31st August. Please email any correspondence to parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk.

We will engage with suppliers from the point of contact and will deal with any questions or clarifications. It is parish council practice to share questions, and our responses, anonymously with all other suppliers.

Formal proposals must be delivered by 7th September.

It is our intention to award the contract by 14th September.

The successful supplier must confirm that they have the capacity to work with us within the timescales above.

We are aware that the possible lead time on delivery of the telephone/broadband service creates a risk to the timescales. We, therefore, reserve the right to treat this separately and may proceed with procurement ahead of awarding the main contract. This may be done by ourselves, or we may accept an option supplied as part of a full proposal. If we do accept a supplier proposal for this it will carry no weight in the evaluations of the other parts of the proposal.

The parish council owns and manages the sports pavilion on Marsworth Road which provides the home ground for 2 x senior football teams and 7 x junior football teams for both training and matches.  To comply with the regulations of the Spartan South Midland Football League the parish council has applied for planning permission to erect illumination to the senior football pitch to be utilised if the teams are allocated an evening match.  The project will also see the installation of back lighting on the same columns to provide an area of illumination on the junior football pitch which all the clubs can utilise for year round evening training (at present they need to relocate to alternative sites once the clocks change in October).  Both sets of lights will be controlled separately, so each will only be utilised when bookings require.  All lights are angled towards the pitch, to reduce light pollution and dissipation outside the grounds – full details of the lux levels can be found in the planning application if you wish to view them.  It is anticipated that the lights would only be operational between the hours of 16.00 and 21.45 on days during the week when booked by the clubs.  This enables after school sessions for the junior football teams and allows for extra-time during cup matches.  No late-night operation would be permitted.

Full details can be found here: https://publicaccess.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=documents&keyVal=QEHPUWCLGKV00

Please submit your comments to the planning authority via the above link by 7 September 2020, and email a copy to the parish council via parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk by noon on 20 August 2020 so that we can also take your feedback into consideration.

Please also note that the actual procurement and installation can only progress once grant applications and fundraising events generate sufficient funds to enable the project.   However, many grant providers require planning permission to be in place before they will consider applications, hence the current application.

Council information from PPP that hasn’t previously appeared on the website:

Coronavirus
We continue to update our website page with all the latest details about how you can get help and support, and provide details relating to any of our services that may currently be affected.  The local volunteer help group are still ready and waiting to assist you, should you be contacted by Track & Trace or become unwell.  Please visit www.pitstone.co.uk.

 

Election
The May elections were postponed by central government due to the Coronavirus outbreak, so your existing ten members will continue to serve the community for a further 12 months.

 

Thank you to all our amazing volunteers

Over 80 individuals volunteer for the parish council in some capacity on a regular basis.  This includes helping at youth café, driving for the car scheme, monitoring streetlights, delivering and producing Pitstone Parish Post, sitting on one of our committees, running our allotment site, helping with one of our projects and keeping our grounds in great condition.  This doesn’t include your parish councillors themselves who are also volunteers.  We were delighted that almost half of these individuals were able to attend the annual volunteer thank you event this January.  It was lovely to see everybody and be able to thank them in person for the contribution they all make to our community.  Thank you to each and every one of you.  If you are inspired to get involved in our community, please do get in touch (parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk) as we always have vacancies for volunteers.

 

Annual Assembly
For the safety of our residents, the annual assembly was postponed due to the Coronavirus outbreak, which also means that the presentation of our Annual Volunteer of the Year Award had to be postponed.  We hope that coronavirus restrictions may ease sufficiently to permit this meeting to take place later in the year and will keep residents updated. 

Pitstone Development Area & Replacement Woodland

Residents will have noticed that Nicholas King Homes have undertaken site clearance and commenced works at their site off Marsworth Road and we are aware that a few people have expressed sadness at the tree felling.  Buckinghamshire Council (BC) (previously ‘Aylesbury Vale District Council’) is our local Planning Authority and they determine any tree requirements as part of planning applications.  Both the tree officer and environmental officers at BC were fully involved in the plans submitted by Nicholas King Homes for the development site off Marsworth Road/Vicarage Road and as well as trees within the new development, a whole replacement woodland is being planted in the village.

 

A full tree report was commissioned which assessed the quality of the trees in the private plantation (there never has been public access to this area).  Many of the trees were determined to be of poor quality and nearing the end of their natural life.  No trees were subject to a Tree Protection Order.  A full ecological report was commissioned which identified no protected species in the woodland.   As part of their development, Nicholas King Homes are planting a replacement woodland in the parish, which the tree officer has been fully involved in specifying.  We understand that the replacement woodland will be richer in biodiversity than that which is being removed.  There is also a management plan in place for the ongoing care of the new woodland.  AVDC were satisfied that there will actually be a net gain to biodiversity and ecology as a result of the development proposals.

 

The full reports regarding both the replacement woodland and the trees to be planted within the development site remain available on the AVDC planning portal and can be accessed via the link below, or by searching the portal using the application reference and details listed.  https://publicaccess.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=documents&keyVal=OQ3EFECL0JC00

17/01871/APP | Residential development comprising 74 dwellings, creation of two new accesses, car parking, leisure facilities, landscaping and associated works. on Land Adjacent to Allotment Gardens Marsworth Road Pitstone Buckinghamshire

 

This particular site was approved for development back in 2005 with the publication of the Pitstone Comprehensive Development Plan and has taken 15 years to bring to fruition.  Biodiversity is very important to the parish council and the Pitstone Neighbourhood Development Plan both protects our village from further large-scale residential developments until 2033 and contains environmental policies.  Both these documents remain available on our website, link below:

http://pitstone.co.uk/

 

If you are wondering about the day nursery and restaurant/pub/café for which Nicholas King Homes (NKH) obtained outline planning permission, then NKH are in the process of appointing an agent.  Once the tendering process is complete, the two parcels of land will be advertised on the open market to see if buyers can be secured.  Once we are passed the selling details, we will publish these onto our website etc so that any local operators who are interested in purchasing the sites can contact the relevant body.

 

The two roads within the new development will be named as follows:

 

• The main road, from the Lower Icknield Way to Vicarage Road, will be named “Poultons Meadow” to commemorate the previous name by which the meadow was known, which this site now occupies.
• The smaller road facing the Recreation Ground, will be known as “Icknield Gardens” to commemorate the fact that it sits upon the site of the old Allotment Gardens and is adjacent to the Lower Icknield Way.

AVDC has conducted a public consultation and residents were invited to submit any objections.

 

Community Bus and possible alternatives in the meantime

 

Thank you to all the residents from the four parishes who took the time to respond to the Community Bus survey.  We are working to determine if there would be enough demand to make such a service viable and will update you in due course.

 

In the meantime, you may find the following information useful when our country gets moving again:

 

• Many residents responded that they would like to use the service to access healthcare appointments. Both Pitstone (whose scheme covers both Pitstone & Ivinghoe) and Cheddington have Community Car Schemes which are operated by volunteers specifically to help residents to access medical appointments.  Pitstone residents should call our coordinator on 01296 767116, who will provide further information.
• Residents also expressed an interest in journeys to Tring station. A lift-share scheme is operational for this station which may be able to assist you, please visit liftshare.com for more information, or email accessibility@wmtrains.co.uk or call 07970447880.  You can register as a driver or passenger, for a single journey or regular trips.  This service may currently be affected by the Coronavirus regulations, but you should still be able to register your interest.
• Attending the cinema was of interest to some residents. You may not be aware that the Pitstone Film Club operates from the Memorial Hall on the last Friday of every month.  Soundproofing and black out blinds have been installed.  The cinema has a professional projector and screen.  Drinks and snacks are available from the bar.  You can follow them on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PitstoneFilmClub/     or email them at: filmclub@pitstone.co.uk and ask to be included on the regular mailing list.
• There was also some interest in attending day trips and excursions. Local firm, Masons Coaches, offer a comprehensive range of day trips, lunch club outings and holidays, all with local pick up points in Pitstone.  You can find full details via this website page:  https://www.masonscoachhire.co.uk/days-out-and-holidays or you can ask for a brochure to be posted out to you by phoning 01296 661604 or emailing info@masonscoachhire.co.uk.  As examples, trips that had previously been arranged for May included a Stratford Upon Avon River Cruise, the Malvern Spring Flower Show, a lunch club visit to The Anchor in Great Barford and a Market Day in Litchfield.

 

 

 

The parish council is a consultee for all planning applications submitted to Buckinghamshire Council.  We have received notice of consultations on the following applications:

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 Buckinghamshire Council 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, Buckinghamshire 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 by noon on 20 August 2020.  A full Parish Council meeting will be held online at 7.30pm that evening.  Members of the public will be able to join the meeting via their computer, laptop, smartphone, tablet or landline.  Details will be posted, alongside the agenda, in due course.

 

Pitstone Parish Council has applied to Buckinghamshire Council to provide the following licensable activities at Pitstone Pavilion:

The sale of alcohol, by hirers of Pitstone Pavilion, where this is ancillary to their main use of the community room eg to provide after match refreshments or cater for small wedding receptions.  No late-night sale of alcohol (must terminate by 23:00).  No permanent bar nor alcohol to be stored at the site.  A Personal Licence Holder to be on site throughout any hire period where alcohol sales are planned.

Provision for hirers to arrange plays, films, live music, recorded music or performance of dance at their booking to be carried out during the hours of 08:30 – 23:00 only, and meet all other required conditions associated with regulated entertainment.

Full details of the consultation period and how to respond can be found in the attached notice which is provided in pdf, word and rtf formats for your convenience.  Notices are also displayed at each entrance to the site, and the advert has appeared in the Bucks Herald on 29/7/2020.

pdf: Buckinghamshire District CouncilForm LA18 Notice of Application for Premises Licence

word: Buckinghamshire District CouncilForm LA18 Notice of Application for Premises Licence

rtf: Buckinghamshire District CouncilForm LA18 Notice of Application for Premises Licence

 

ANNUAL NOTICE OF FEES FOR 2020/21

 

The cost of your allotment is divided into two parts, the first being the tenancy fee charged by the parish council and the second being a membership fee charged by Pitstone Allotment Association.

 

Pitstone Parish Council resolved that, for the first time in 8-years, a small increase of 50p per quarter plot was required to the tenancy fee (from £8.50 to £9.00).   This fee covers the cost of water, hedge cutting, tree surveys and maintenance, postage to issue the tenancy documents and remedial works to the car park/gate etc that may be necessary.   The council does not include a charge to tenants for their administration of the allotment site, liaison with National Trust, nor the public liability insurance which covers the communal areas.  Any funds collected by the parish council which are surplus to the running costs are ring-fenced for future maintenance and development work at the allotment site.   The council may also contribute to capital development, like the recent track works, from other public funding within our remit.

 

There will be no increase in your membership fee to Pitstone Allotment Association for the 2020/21 season, remaining static at £6.50.  For the convenience of plot holders, this fee is collected by the Parish Council at the same time as your tenancy fee and passed direct to PAA who use these funds to pay for NSALG membership which also provides tenants with ‘on plot’ insurance, insurance for PAA members and the cutting of internal hedges/communal grass.

 

The total cost per quarter plot will therefore be £15.50 for the 2020/21 season.

 

However, PAA have resolved to subsidise the 50p increase for plot holders for the forthcoming season utilising donations they received in the previous year.   Therefore, your invoice will show this 50p deduction and the outstanding charge will be £15.00 per quarter plot.

 

Last year, at PAAs request, you will recall that we operated an 18-month tenancy so that the renewal date could move to September, which better suits the allotment growing calendar.   Fees last year were therefore £22.50 per quarter plot.  This year, we will be reverting to the standard 12-month tenancy.

 

As per the terms and conditions of your Allotment Garden Tenancy Agreement, the renewal rental will be payable in full on or before 25 September 2020.   New paperwork, for your signature, will be issued during August.

 

We hope that you continue to enjoy your allotment garden in this beautiful location and reap the benefits for your families.

 

If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact me at parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mrs Laurie Eagling

Clerk to Pitstone Parish Council

Pitstone Parish Council and Pitstone & Ivinghoe United Football Club are delighted to announce that the Football Stadia Improvement Fund (FSIF) are to provide grant funding of up to £35,924 towards the refurbishment and extension of their pavilion in Pitstone.

 

The development includes new changing and community facilities, covered walkway and viewing area, turnstile access, outdoor equipment stores, office and car park improvements.  These elements will meet the requirements of the football league and bring the club one step further down the road of being able to realise their ambitions of promotion.

 

The club and parish council are most grateful for all the support received from both the FSIF and all their other grant funders.

 

Funded with £6.5m each year from the Premier League, the FSIF – the sister organisation of the Football Foundation – is the country’s largest provider of grants towards projects that help improve the comfort and safety of lower league football grounds in both the professional and amateur game. These improvements range from new football stands and turnstiles to floodlighting and improved provision for disabled supporters.

 

Both the Parish Council and Pitstone & Ivinghoe United Football Club, along with their other partners and site users, look forward to inviting members of the public to view the new facilities once the work is complete.

 

Please find attached a briefing document regarding our wish to appoint an independent fire risk assessment for the extended/refurbished Pavilion/community building.

If your firm is capable of carrying out this work, and has suitable capacity, please provide the full information required to parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk by Tuesday 28 July 2020.

See document for full details:

Brief re Independent Fire Risk Assessment

The government permits children’s outdoor playgrounds to re-open from Saturday 4 July 2020.  The latest studies show that the coronavirus germs do not live for as long outside where they are exposed to UV light and/or rain, however they can still survive for several hours.  It is not possible to clean equipment between users in a freely accessible outdoor play space environment.  Any germs left behind by the last users may remain active.  Therefore it is important that all users maintain social distancing and good hygiene, for the safety of your family and other users.  Be prepared that playground use may not look the same as it did before Coronavirus.

The Hever Close and Windsor Road playgrounds have been fully safety checked and prepared for re-opening.  They will be re-opened on Saturday 4 July 2020.  Please give us a little time to get around and carry out our final checks.

You will find important safety signs on each gate.  These help you to follow the government’s guidelines for safe use of the play space.

Do bring anti-bacterial wipes and hand sanitiser with you.  Don’t bring any food or drink as consumption in the play space is not currently permitted.  Make sure young children are supervised to help them play safely.  Both play areas are small, so to reduce the number of people inside the playground please limit your group to 1 supervising adult and no more than 3 family groups where possible.  If it is busy, please come back later, or wait well away from gates and footpaths.  Be considerate of children that might be waiting, and limit your play time to 20 minutes if the play space is busy.

The playgrounds may be particularly busy in the first few weeks.  Please prepare your child, before you leave home, that you may have to wait or come back later so they are not too disappointed.

Please do not visit the playground if you, or your child, have symptoms of Coronavirus.

See the sign for further details.

The Recreation Ground playground will remain closed.  We have contractors arriving on Monday 6 July 2020 to remove all the old playground equipment and install the new play space.  The old site has not been safety checked, no maintenance has been carried out and the site has not been made covid secure.  For the safety of our users and of the contractors arriving on Monday, this play space will not be open on 4 or 5 July.   Please respect the signage and remain out of this play area.

The contractors site compound will be situated at the end of the Recreation Ground car park.  Please be aware that parking will be limited for the next 8 weeks and that there will be increased vehicle movements up and down the car park.

A reminder of the new play equipment that is being installed is below.   We look forward to inviting you to try out the new space once it is complete.

Nicholas King Homes (NKH) will be installing multi-use ball court on the land that is currently the bottom of the Recreation Ground car park, and providing replacement adjacent parking, as part of their new development.  Once NKH provide us with any visibility of dates, we will let you know.

 

It is with regret that the play around the parish sessions that the parish council hoped to host later this month will not be happening this year.

The safety of you and your children is of our primary concern during the ongoing Coronavirus outbreak.

We hope that they will return again next summer.

We are delighted to advise residents that Huck Teck have been able to return to work, and will commence on the recreation ground site to remove all the old play equipment and install the exciting new play space from Monday 6 July 2020.

During the 8-week period, the rear end of the car park will be unavailable as this will be utilised as a site compound and vehicles will be accessing the site via the car park entrance.   Therefore if you are visiting the recreation ground, please allow some extra time and take extra care.  Please be extra vigilant with young children.

Due to the imminent works, the existing playground at the recreation ground will NOT be re-opening on Saturday 4 July.   The play equipment has not been safety checked and the site is not covid compliant.

We look forward to welcoming residents to the new play space once installed, but in the meantime, from 4/7/2020, if you wish to visit a playground, please visit an alternative playground that has been able to meet requirements and re-open.

 

The parish council is a consultee for all planning applications submitted to Buckinghamshire Council.  We have received notice of consultations on the following applications:

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 Buckinghamshire Council 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, Buckinghamshire 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 by noon on 30 July 2020.  A full Parish Council meeting will be held online at 7.30pm that evening.  Members of the public will be able to join the meeting via their computer, laptop, smartphone, tablet or landline.  Details will be posted, alongside the agenda, in due course.

 

The parish council offers grants to local community groups and local charities that specifically benefit Pitstone residents.  Applications are considered quarterly.   The next opportunity for grants to be considered is coming up on 30 July 2020.

Please see the grant policy on this web site (http://pitstone.co.uk/ppcinfo/grant-policy/ ) for further information or contact the parish clerk.

Applications must be received at least 10 days ahead of the meeting date so that the information can be circulated to all members ahead of the meeting and your application can be advertised on our agenda.

The work to extend and refurbish the pavilion site commenced on 1 June 2020 and will run through until at least the middle of October.

We would like to thank Pitstone & Ivinghoe United Football Club for their donation of £4,000, and Pitstone & Ivinghoe Junior Football Club for their donation of £1,500 towards this redevelopment.

As you will recall from the planning application consultations that the new building will encompass new changing facilities, community room, office, kitchen, groundkeeping and general stores, turnstile with pay box, increased & illuminated car parking and improved security/CCTV.

This is a live construction site.  There is no admittance, to any part of the site, during this period of works.

The parish council is a consultee for all planning applications submitted to AVDC.  We have received notice of consultations on the following applications:

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 by noon on 25 June 2020.  A full Parish Council meeting will be held online at 7.30pm on 25 June 2020.  Members of the public will be able to join the meeting via their computer, laptop, smartphone, tablet or landline.  Details will be posted, alongside the agenda, in due course.

 

Please click the link below to take you to our webpage with full details of our annual accounting statements and your exercise of electors rights:

Exercise of Electors’ Rights and unaudited accounts for year ended 31/3/2020

The parish council is a consultee for all planning applications submitted to AVDC.  We have received notice of consultations on the following applications:

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 by noon on 21 May 2020.  A full Parish Council meeting will be held online at 7.30pm on 21 May 2020.  Members of the public will be able to join the meeting via their computer, laptop, smartphone, tablet or landline.  Details will be posted, alongside the agenda, in due course.

 

The parish council was pleased to support Windmill Pre-School with a donation of £150 to enable the production and distribution of resource packs to assist parents during the coronavirus outbreak.

For more information about the preschool, please click here: https://www.windmillpreschool.co.uk/

The parish council was delighted to award a grant of £2,000 to South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust to provide a dedicated kit to be used by a second Community First Responder from Pitstone.

Community First Responders are volunteers and play a vital part in our local emergency healthcare provision as an ambulance will take 20 minutes to reach Pitstone from Stoke Mandeville.  If a 1st Responder is on duty, and can reach you before the ambulance, the 999 service will notify the 1st Responder and they will provide vital immediate first level care.

You can find out more information about becoming a First Responder, or making a donation to the service, here: https://www.scas.nhs.uk/our-services/community-and-co-responders/

 

Whilst the Pitstone lunch and the church service at St Mary’s have needed to be cancelled, there are still plenty of ways that you can mark the occasion:

• The silent soldiers will be on display at Pitstone Memorial Hall and outside the Local Green Space between Marsworth Road and The Crescent.  The Women’s Institute will be creating a display of knitted poppies around the feet of the soldiers.  Why not take a moment of reflection on your daily exercise walk and ‘plant’ your own poppies or crosses at the foot of the soldiers?
• Buckinghamshire Council have a dedicated web page where they would love to hear your memories and have ideas of how you can celebrate at home: https://www.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/events/commemorating-veday75-across-buckinghamshire/
• English Heritage have a downloadable party pack which includes lots of ideas that can be adapted for a stay at home party, including lyrics for 1940s songs and 1940s inspired recipes: https://veday75.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/English-Heritage-Party-Pack.pdf
• Royal British Legion website includes details of the 2 minutes silence at 11am, the sing-a-long at 9pm and the BBC coverage: https://www.britishlegion.org.uk/get-involved/remembrance/remembrance-events/ve-day-75
• Bletchley Park are encouraging everyone to have a stay-at-home party with bunting and flags outside the front of your house and having a socially distanced garden party or picnic in your own garden.  They have more ideas, recipies,music and downloadable activities at www.bletchleypark.org.uk
• Details of the BBC coverage are available here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2020/75-anniversary-ve-day
• The National Army Museum have a whole virtual VE day festival available including concert, educational materials, webinars, dance lessons etc.  Click for further information: https://www.nam.ac.uk/

The parish council is a consultee for all planning applications submitted to AVDC.  We have received notice of consultations on the following applications:

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 by noon on 30 April 2020.  It is our intention to convene an on-line Full Parish Council meeting at 7.30pm on 30 April 2020.  Members of the public will be able to join the meeting via their computer, laptop, smartphone, tablet or landline.  Details will be posted, alongside the agenda, in due course.

 

The parish council received an enquiry about the extent of support being provided by the parish council to the local voluntary Coronavirus support group for residents.  As we felt that this information may be of interest to other members of the public, please find below details of the support that has been provided:

As background, the Covid-19 Mutual Support Group was set up by a group of local volunteers as a closed Facebook group to cover Pitstone, Ivinghoe and Cheddington. Initially, they operated by dropping notes door-to-door providing their personal telephone numbers for residents to call if they required assistance.  The Group can provide a variety of assistance from shopping, prescription collection and telephone calls to the isolated etc.  Ivinghoe & Cheddington have since dropped out, so the group now focuses on Pitstone.

Making the service accessible

The parish council received calls from residents who were keen to volunteer to help but didn’t know about the Facebook group as they don’t use Facebook.  Neither did they use WhatsApp.  They wanted a simple telephone number they could call, or email address.

We also received telephone calls from vulnerable residents, who were also trying to access a service.  These residents also don’t use Facebook or WhatsApp, some don’t have smartphones or internet access.  They needed a land line telephone number.  This request was echoed by other organisations that were trying to access help on behalf of vulnerable residents such as Age UK and VAHT.

The new Unitary Buckinghamshire Council are working with central government to co-ordinate the support network for vulnerable residents, they need a single local point to co-ordinate with.  As do the local primary healthcare trusts etc that send through advice and guidance for local community support groups.  None of these groups can communicate via a Facebook Group.  It is not practical to try and co-ordinate with a multitude of informal groups around the village, most of which the council is probably unaware of.

Safeguarding people and the service

Unfortunately, some unscrupulous individuals are trying to take advantage of the current situation to scam the vulnerable.  Vulnerable residents need a service they can trust as being genuine and are discouraged by the police to just reply to notes through doors from individuals.  Providing a personal telephone number also generates a potential risk to the vulnerable in that if that helper becomes unwell and can’t assist for a period, the vulnerable resident is left not knowing who to contact to access help.

Providing personal telephone numbers to large quantities of unknown people also opens the volunteers to potential safeguarding issues and residents are advised not to operate in this manner.  Some residents expressed concern about signing up as volunteers if it meant that they had to do this.  Some volunteers may only be able to help with certain aspects eg if they are isolating themselves, they may like to help with calls but not shopping.  Some volunteers can only help at certain times, as they are still working etc.  Therefore, it may be that no one individual can cater for all the needs of a specific vulnerable resident.

The council receives safeguarding advice and tips from a variety of external bodies to send on to community groups helping during the Covid-19 crisis, along with links to further sources of potential assistance, and we need a central point to issue these to, so that any dissemination can be co-ordinated.

It is impractical to assume that any one administrator/co-ordinator of a Covid-19 group can respond to requests for assistance from thousands of residents, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for 3-6 months; plus co-ordinate lists of volunteers that can help with various aspects (who may also drop in and out of being able to help if they become unwell or need to isolate); and co-ordinate with all the external partners; via their own personal home telephone.  Operating in this manner would also create safeguarding issues for the service if/when that one individual was unavailable or unwell.

Solution

It is imperative that there is a community wide service that is accessible to all potential volunteers and all potential vulnerable or isolating residents, and that this service is sustainable for at least 3-6 months.  It is important that this group can work with outside bodies and agencies, adapting as the outbreak progresses, and that all those involved are safeguarded.  The parish council is most grateful to the Covid-19 Mutual Support Group volunteers for their assistance and all the hard work they are putting into operating this service.

The group administrators are:

• Setting up a database of volunteers, so they can co-ordinate who may be able to assist with what, and when.
• Setting up a database of vulnerable residents, what their needs are likely to be and for how long. This will mean that no individual vulnerable resident is left in the lurch if a regular helper is unavailable.
• Keeping track of who has assisted which resident, with what and when, so that they can ensure continuity of service.
• Calls to the helpline generate an email recording which can be accessed by the small group of administrators, which means no one individual must shoulder all the load and the service can be sustained.
• Liaising with all the external bodies to ensure the service adapts to the changing needs of the community and government etc.
• Providing a distribution point for information and safeguarding advice.
• Keeping everyone’s data and personal information safe (volunteers and those needing help).
• All the above is completely voluntary.

To support the group, the parish council has/is:

• Set up a page on our website for volunteers to register through.
• Set up a page on our website for vulnerable and/or isolating residents to request help through (which will become available shortly, once a viable number of volunteers had been recruited).
• Set up a dedicated Coronavirus advice page on our website for residents to obtain local advice.
• Provided a dedicated email address to allow all helper signups and requests to be handled by the group administrators away from their personal email addresses.
• Linking third party agencies and other tiers of government to the Covid-19 group so that they can co-ordinate the relief efforts on behalf of our community whilst keeping all the individuals, service and data safeguarded.
• There are no costs attached to the above.

We have also:

• Provided the group with access to the same type of service we operate for the community car scheme, which has been proven to work well. Calls for help come into a central landline telephone number & generate an emailed recording of the call (so can be accessed by more than one administrator).  The administrator(s) can then put out a text (or email if the volunteer doesn’t have a mobile) via their computer to either an individual volunteer (eg the one that lives nearest, or the one that provides that type of help) or to all volunteers, asking if they can help.   They note who has agreed to fulfil that request.  They can also send out a message to volunteers to say that the request has been fulfilled, if necessary.   In an environment where administrators must operate from their own individual homes, but have access to the same information, this ensures continuity of care for those most vulnerable.
• This entails:
  • £10 per month (inclusive of calls to landlines and mobiles) to rent a new landline telephone number for those requiring assistance to call.
  • £2.50 per month to rent a mobile telephone number for the text system to operate through.
  • £0.0225 per text message sent.
  • All the above are billed monthly and cancellable at any time, so there is no long-term commitment and only need to operate until the National Emergency is over.
  • £75 for a VOIP box and phone, which can be returned to the parish council following the pandemic.

The parish council believes that it is right and proper to provide a central voluntary group with the services they require to effectively operate a sustainable service to support our 4,000 residents over the coming months.   It is vital that barriers to signing-up as a volunteer were reduced to encourage more people to get involved, and imperative that barriers to vulnerable residents accessing the help that they needed were removed.   There is no profit being made by any individual or group.  The costs are very low and can be terminated once no longer needed.  It is impractical to expect voluntary administrators to have to meet these costs, which they would not have anticipated incurring, when they set up the Pitstone Facebook Group as part of the Nationwide Covid-19 Mutual Support Group initiative.

We are grateful to all residents who have signed-up to the group and would encourage residents who may already belong to informal WhatsApp/Facebook Groups etc to do the same, so that as many homes as possible can access they assistance they need.  It is also not possible for us, or the Buckinghamshire Council, to liaise with every individual group (many of which we are not even aware of), so updates/advice for volunteers etc need to be channelled through this central point.

The parish council is very grateful to everyone involved in the relief operation to support residents during this difficult time.

On 7/3/2020 it was our pleasure to present the prizes to the children who won our Design a Sign Competition.  Each child was awarded with a certificate and copy of their artwork made up into a sign.  Six copies of each sign have been erected around the village to encourage motorists to slow down.  Very many congratulations to our six winners for their bright, colourful and eye catching designs.

 

The parish council is a consultee for all planning applications submitted to AVDC.  We have received notice of consultations on the following applications:

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 by noon on 16 April 2020.

It is currently our intention to convene an on-line Planning Committee meeting at 7.30pm on 16 April 2020.  Members of the public will be able to join the meeting via their computer, laptop, smartphone, tablet or landline.  Details will be posted, alongside the agenda, in due course.

 

Please note that there will be no youth cafe for the time being, until the Government advisory guidelines on Coronavirus have been lifted.

The safety and health of our volunteers, staff and attendees is our primary concern.  We will continue to monitor the government advice and review the situation.

Please follow our website, Facebook pages and Twitter feed for updates.