Baydon Village News

Annual Parish Assembly 2010

The Annual Parish Assembly meeting was held on Friday 30^th April 2010 in the BYPA Hall. Chairman Mr Tony Prior began by apologising for the lack of minutes from the previous meeting, but said that the previous Clerk had not written them up before she resigned.

Mr Prior reported that the Parish Council had had an eventful year with 13 meetings through the year. There had been a considerable workload for the four Councillors especially as there had been no Clerk for four months. He again emphasised the need to have seven councillors to make for the smooth running of the council and continuity if anyone should resign.

All activities were well supported, and Mr Prior thanked those people who helped to run such activities in the Village. There had been 27 planning applications, the majority of which concerned the development by Redcliffe Homes.

The Council had responded to issues raised in the Village Plan such as speeding through the village, and play areas. The Village vote, he added, showed that the Parish Field was preferred as a site for the play area and £23,000 was at present available towards that. The next step was a consultation with Baydon School Children.

The Traffic Calming Working Group (TCWG), under the leadership of Mrs Tamsin Witt, was addressing a number of speeding and road safety issues.

The Allotments were up and running smoothly, all rents had been paid and the water supply was intact. Mr Prior said that the Parish Council denounced the criminal damage done to the water supply, as the costs of the repair had to be borne by all residents. However, the allotments did exist and the water would be available to all allotment holders.

Mr Prior emphasised the need for villagers to support both the village shop and the Pub.

He thanked Mr Michael Edmonds for keeping the Parish accounts and said that the finances were in a healthy position. It was, he added, rewarding to put something back into the community.

County Councillor Chris Humphries congratulated the Council on its achievements this year. A report from the cabinet of the Unitary Authority was past around the meeting, plus it was available on the Baydon village website.

Mr Peter Chambers, head of Baydon School then gave his report. He said that there were 106 children on the roll, 19 of which joined in September last. Mrs Gilbert had also joined the school to teach the infants. There had been a boom in volunteers which was a great help, particularly with the after school clubs. The children had been involved in charity events, a road safety programme and various trips. The building work was well ahead of schedule, he added, with £20,000 having been raised since March 2009. The building does not mean that the school will take more pupils, he reassured the audience. It was hoped to finish the project in July, before the end of term.

Mrs Amanda Dore then reported on the Friends of Baydon School’s (FOBS) various activities, both social and fundraising. FOBS had raised £6,000 for the building fund and to finance the school children’s extra activities. Mrs Dore thanked the committee for their hard work and the community for its support.

Mrs Alison Tomkins reported that the LINK scheme had 29 volunteers. There had been an increase in the number of jobs requested, all of which had been matched. A total of 525 hours, 350 journeys (110 of which were social) and 6,000 miles travelled. Community First and donations funded the Aldbourne and Baydon Link Scheme. Although £2,500 had been spent the organisation was “still in the black”. New volunteers would always be welcome.

Mrs Jenny Gribble reported that the Allotment Association had had a pleasing year with a good yield of crops. They were pleased that the water had finally been installed. Thanks were extended to the local farmer who supplied the manure. The association now had 15 members with a common interest. One half plot is still vacant. Anyone interested should apply to the Parish Council.

A report was sent from the Brownie pack written by Wendy Appello. There were currently 15 girls in the group who had worked on various projects to gain their badges. Mrs Jane Dominy would soon become Brown Owl – a post left vacant when Mrs Pat Barnes left the village. The organisation celebrated its 100^th anniversary this year and the Baydon pack joined in various events to help celebrate. In October there will be a “Soup and Sandwich” kitchen run by the girls, Village support was requested.

Mrs Penny Stephens, president of the Baydon Women’s Institute, said that there were now 16 members who met in the school hall once a month. Various excellent speakers had been enjoyed, as were the 2 outings. Members had also supported Membury Fort Group meetings and County events. Now however, due to difficulty in finding committee members, the Institute, which was started in Baydon in 1927, may have to close. New members, who have to be over the age of 18 years, would be very welcome.

Mr Tony Topp gave a report for the Parochial Church Council (PCC). He said that they were pleased that on 19^th April a new rector Rev Simon Weeden had been appointed. Villagers were welcome to attend the rector’s first service on May 2^nd. Four children and three adults had been confirmed in Salisbury this month. Family services continue to be well attended. There had been a joint fund raise with the school by having a cream tea at Tubbs Farm. Two new wooden gates had been donated.  The PCC, he added, wished to thank all those who have helped in any way, particularly the Parish Council for maintaining the grass cutting. Mrs Enid Johnson is to retire as Church Warden and Miss Shirley Smith will replace her. The Church Fete will be held on 12^th June.

The Clerk Mrs Rowan Cockcroft read the Thursday Club report from Mrs Peggy Slater. It stated that the club had 22 members and is functioning well. There had been a variety of speakers and quizzes, 2 coach trips and 2 excellent fund raising events.

The Clerk also read the Toddlers Group report. It was reported that the group was small at present but stable financially, 9 families attended regularly. £588 had been fund raised, half of which had been sent to the school. The rest will pay for an outing for the toddlers.

Mrs Harriet Knowles sent a message to say that the Yoga group continued to meet on Wednesday’s at 8pm – and all were welcome.

Mrs Denise Dawson reported that the Little Crickets pre-school had 24 children on the roll and met on 4 days each week. 5 members of staff were a hard working team producing a varied programme of education and fun for the children. There had been several fund raising events, the last one being at “Rooks Nest” Open Gardens when the group had raised £360. All the monies raised are used to enhance the programme for the children.

Mrs Venice Marriott spoke for the Baydon Young People’s Association (BYPA). She emphasised the need to refurbish the hall. Mr Gordon Walker led the activities, she said, but as he had lost his helpers there was not enough adult support to keep the club going. There had usually been around 18 children aged 8 – 12 years on a Friday evening. It was now closed until more volunteers could be found. Mrs Marriott said that she had re-instated a building management committee but she is still waiting for the accounts to be submitted before she could call an AGM. The main doors were being replaced during the summer and it was hoped to replace the flooring and refurbish the toilet area. County Councillor Chris Humphries pointed out that the Marlborough Area Board (MAB) were the people to help with funds.

Mr Lee Hogan chairman of the Baydon Cricket Club said that last season had to be their best yet, with the youngest ever team of mainly under 18’s. The new season would begin in 2 weeks time and the fixtures can be seen on the website or the notice board. A big clean up of the field had been achieved and a request was made to dog owners to clean up after their dogs, and ensure a clean pitch. Mr Hogan also requested that no rubbish for the bonfire be dumped until after September. Mr Hogan said that new nets had been bought, but now the club needed to fundraise to pay for it’s insurance. Mr Chris Humphries again suggested applying for a grant from the Marlborough Area Board.

Mr Mark Austen then spoke on the Baydon village website, which he had now looked after for the last four years. The website had a page for each aspect of the village and local group. There were also pages for the pub, shop, school, Parish Council, local news and events, Wiltshire Council, the church, etc. It also has a webcam overlooking the Village Green towards the pub and the shop. He explained the benefits of @baydon.org e-mail addresses that were available to all local organisations, businesses and clubs. For this current month the website averaged 64 visitors every day. The total annual cost for the website was only £40 which was paid by the Parish Council, and Mr Austen thanked them for their contribution. Mr Prior stated that it was an excellent website.

Mr Martin Cook from Highways then agreed to answer any questions. Mr Mark Austen asked why the “Welcome to Wiltshire” sign had not been replaced since October 2007. Mr Cook said that thousands had been stolen throughout the country, but the more important road signs were being replaced first. Mr Cook suggested that Wiltshire Police Camera Partnership were contacted regarding the missing speed camera signs.

Mrs Tamsin Witt asked if it was possible to provide “chicanes” in the village. Mr Cook replied that as this part of Ermin Street had no history of collision(s) the request would have to fight schemes from other villages in the county. He advised the TCWG to contact Mr Spencer Brinkwater.

Mr Prior announced that “Beating the Bounds” would be on Monday 3^rd May leaving the Red Lion Pub car park at 10am.

There would be a litter pick on 22^nd May 2010 starting at 1.30pm.

There was a short discussion about planting a new tree on the Green instead of using a Christmas tree each year. There did not appear to a strong desire from the floor to support this.

It was noted, from the Clerk, that Wiltshire Council were trialling a new recycling collection. A dustcart would collect cardboard and plastic together every month from the garages at the end of Downsmead.

Mr Tony Stephens requested a gate rather than a style in the lay-by near the Cricket Field, although the walk was beautiful he was unable to walk it, as he was unable to climb the style. Mr Prior agreed to look into the matter.

Mr Prior thanked all those attending and observed that 15 groups had reported their activities and that some shared the same problem of getting other people involved.

He also congratulated the editor of the Scene in Baydon, Brydgette Byron-Edmond for the excellent village magazine, which, he said, was highly appreciated.

The meeting closed at 9.30pm, villagers were then able to chat and enjoy the last of the wine.

By Barbara Furber

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