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Hook Parish Council: Monthly Bulletins 2004
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December 2004
At their full Council meeting in October, Hart District Council considered a proposal
which would have removed the ability of Elected Parish Councils effectively
to represent their Electors on Planning Applications. The current system is that if
there is a difference of opinion between the Case Officer at Hart and the Parish
Council concerned, the application is decided by Hart’s Planning Committee. This
provides an essential safety valve, ensures that Electors’ views are properly
represented and allows applications to be decided in an open and transparent fashion.
The proposed change would have removed this procedure, taken away the right of Electors
to speak at Committee and have meant that, even in cases of disagreement, applications
would be decided by Officers. Twelve Parish Councils strongly objected to this proposal,
which we all regarded as an attack on democracy. Following an emergency meeting, a number
of Parish Councils, including our own, asked questions at the Hart full Council meeting.
The result was that the proposal was deferred without a review date. We have been promised
that there will be proper advance consultation if a new proposal emerges, in which case
we aim to make sure that effective consultation does actually happen. As an example of the
way the changed process would work, it seems clear that the recent series of applications
for a new development next to The Holt would have been approved by Officers alone at a
higher number of units than was eventually approved, as the application would not have
been put to Committee.
The new dentists’ surgery is now open and inevitably there have been a number of comments
to us, both favourable and unfavourable, about the new building. Design, after all, can
be a very subjective topic! The site of the old Woodland Café had remained an empty
piece of derelict waste-ground for some twenty years, largely because all those who
considered developing it decided the site would be difficult to develop economically and
so went off to look for an easier site elsewhere. Their main reason was that the restricted
and triangular shape of the site made it very difficult for them to design a building that
would meet their commercial needs and fit in reasonably with the surroundings. So the
planning application process for the new dentists’ surgery was far from an easy one.
The new building certainly dominates the 1960’s building next door and perhaps that can’t
be a bad thing! It’s certainly prominent but as the site had been empty since 1984 it
would take us time to become accustomed to any new building. However Hook has an essential
local service, provided by an existing local business, available now!
The Parish Council Office will be closed from 1pm on Friday 24th December until 9am on
Tuesday 4th January for the Christmas and New Year break. In case of emergency there will be
a contact telephone number on the answering machine.
Formal notice of an election to fill the vacant seat on the Parish Council will be posted
on Thursday 9th December and candidates need to return their nomination forms to Hart by
Friday 17th December. If the seat is contested, the election will be on Thursday 20th January.
If you are considering standing do please drop into the Parish Council office or give one of
us a ring for a chat.
Antony Hunter
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November 2004
As a result of many complaints we discussed with Highways at our October meeting
the increasing clutter of commercial advertising material attached to
"street furniture", such as road signs, railings and telegraph poles and
the display of freestanding advertising boards. All advertising material attached to
"street furniture" should be licensed, which means that almost all the ever
increasing advertisements that appear are illegal!
Highways clear these away from time to time.
A more serious practical problem is free standing boards on pavements outside shops
which are often a hazard to pedestrians, the elderly and to pushchairs and these
boards are a particular cause of complaint. Boards can also obstruct the visibility
of those entering or leaving parking spaces. The local Highways supervisor has visited
a number of shops that regularly place boards on Highway property such as London Road
to ask them for their cooperation. In extreme cases Highways do have the right to
permanently remove boards if they are obstructing the pavement.
A number of residents have commented on the very poor condition of the road alongside
Fairholme Parade next to the Dragon Inn. However this road and the car park behind
the shops are privately owned by the shops and are not a public highway. Although
maintenance is entirely the responsibility of the owners of the shops it follows that
no one else has the right to use or park on those areas.
Both as part of our policy of openness as regards information and to comply with new
legislation we are increasing the amount of information we publish on our website.
The same information can be viewed at the Parish Office at the Community Centre in
Ravenscroft between 9am and 12 noon Monday to Friday. Councillors’ attendances at
Parish Council and Committee meetings between May and October 2004 are now posted on
the web. These attendance records will be updated every six months. We have also
posted our publication scheme as required by law.
Pedestrian entrances to Hartletts Park will be closed from midday on Saturday 6th November
until midday on Sunday 7th November which coincides with the schools fireworks display on
6th November. Hartletts Park is the firework fallout area. The car park at the Community
Centre will be closed at 4pm so please remove cars by that time! Marshals will escort
pedestrians from the Community Centre to the schools prior to the fireworks.
A tribute to John Morris who collapsed and died suddenly on 2nd October appears elsewhere
in Focus. John was a former Head of Hook Primary and Junior Schools as well as being a
Parish Councillor. Many thanks to all those who contributed ideas for the article.
John has to be at the top of the list of those in Hook who worked extremely hard for the
Community in the 1980’s at a time of substantial change and threat of further development.
The sympathy of us all is with Sue and all of John’s family. A Memorial Service will be
held on Saturday 13th November at St
John's at 2.30 pm.
As a result of the resignation of Michael Clark there is a vacancy for a Parish Councillor.
If you would like to talk about standing for the vacant seat please give one of us a ring
or talk to Anne Atkins or Christine Randall on the office numbers shown below.
Antony Hunter
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October 2004
Twelve months ago Hampshire County Council introduced a new bus service intended
mainly to provide transport for elderly and disabled people. The yellow
"Cango Bus" operates to Basingstoke Hospital and in rural areas between
Fleet and Basingstoke. Providing subsidised transport is not normally a Parish
Council role but Parishes were asked to help support the service and we agreed to do
so as a trial. Despite publicity usage of the service is below target and only a
small number of people in Hook use it at all. We would welcome feedback from those
who use it or their carers and any comments from those who have considered using the
service but decided not to do so.
The road closure to through traffic on the B3349 continues and the section near the
Leather Bottle is currently being reconstructed. The road between Hook and the Hook
Road turning to Rotherwick is now completely finished.
Areas of management that used to be governed purely by common sense and initiative
are increasingly being regulated by central Government. Parish Councils, like all
businesses, are not just required to comply with the Disability Discrimination Act
but also to formally document the extent to which disabled people can access the
various facilities the Parish provides and to prepare a short, medium and long
term action plan. Our documentation is now complete and the chief short term
action involves lowering kerbs in certain places to improve wheelchair access.
We have also needed to prepare a formal Risk Assessment of all aspects of our
business categorising each hazard according to the likely risk and the impact on
the Parish Council.
Final designs of the new Varndell Road Play Area have now been agreed and
installation of the equipment will take place before the end of the year.
The consultations we have held so far with Hook retailers have shown that whilst
most would like the successful Christmas Cracker event to continue and would be happy
to support it, none feel able to contribute the substantial amount of time needed to
organise and coordinate the evening; consequently it seems unlikely that there will be
a Christmas Cracker this year. As a Parish Council we do not have resource available
to take on the work which is heavily concentrated into the months of September to
December. Depending on retailer and public opinion we will consider employing someone
on a short term basis to handle the organisation of an event in 2005.
Antony Hunter
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September 2004
We recently had a very useful meeting with Hampshire Wildlife Trust to discuss
the pond in Newnham Road. They point out that many ponds, like this one, are
seasonal and dry out in summer. As a consequence they develop a plant and animal
community that adapts to these particular conditions. HWT tell us that this pond
is a valuable habitat in its own right. A sign will shortly be installed to deter
the dumping of garden waste and raise public awareness whilst a detailed survey
will be carried out in the spring to identify the wildlife interest.
Regrettably, vandals have caused £1,000 of damage in Hartletts Park in the last
month.Young trees have been destroyed and it will cost £600 to provide sturdier
replacements whilst damage has been done to the play area which will cost £400
to repair.
The road works on the B3349 are now in their second phase. The through route is
completely closed but local access to Rotherwick via Hook Road has been restored.
No straightening of bends or widening of the road is involved but a number of
sections are being excavated down to half a metre and rebuilt. The road is likely
to remain closed until the end of November with through traffic being diverted
via Hartley Wintney.
The Parish Council and some thirty residents objected to the Planning Application to
demolish The Bungalow in London Road and build thirteen dwellings on the site.
Objections included excessive density, lack of parking, a development that would be
totally out of character with the surrounding area and access difficulties. The
proposal has now been refused by Hart District Council.
Following a suggestion from a resident we are investigating the feasibility of a bike
park where 3 to 11 year olds could safely ride bikes. This would take the form of a
small tarmac roadway area with typical road markings and roundabouts. A section of
Wellworth or Hartletts Park are possible locations. We are currently seeking
information on similar facilities elsewhere. Residents’ views would be most welcome.
The New Covenant Church in Elms Road has appealed against refusal of Planning Permission
for a new building. In line with usual procedures the Government appointed Inspector is
likely to take four to six months to reach a decision.
The Hook Christmas Cracker, organised by retailers in central Hook with some Parish Council
support, was a very successful event in 2002 and 2003. Unfortunately two of the key
retailer organisers have moved away so we are currently talking to retailers in the hope of
finding a couple of businesses that would be willing to take a leading role in running a
2004 event.
Nominations for the one vacant seat on the Parish Council closed on Thursday 19th August.
One candidate, David Ridley, has stood for the seat and has therefore been elected unopposed.
We welcome David who joins us in September.
The Parish Council Office is now permanently established on the ground floor of the
Community Centre. The change from a number of people working from home to a permanent
office will eliminate duplication, and allow us to work more flexibly. Our aim is that
the office will always be staffed from 9 am to 12 noon on weekdays. Afternoon staffing
will vary depending on the need for site visits and meetings at other locations.
Antony Hunter
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July / August 2004
Comment was made at the Annual Village Meeting that the significant number of cars
regularly parked by dog walkers near the bend in Great Sheldons Coppice causes a road
safety hazard. In our view possible solutions would include a lay-by or double
yellow lines, though the first would be expensive and the second would require legal
procedures to install and be hard to enforce. We have now been able to discuss the
situation with Highways, who take the view that a combination of sensible parking and
sensible driving are sufficient to deal with the topic. They point out that the road
is relatively wide and is subject to a 30mph speed limit. As far as spending
priorities are concerned they believe there is no case for any action.
The second phase of the Newnham Road traffic calming has now been in place for some
months. Feedback from residents leads us to believe that the speeds have reduced but
probably not as much as we had hoped. Following discussion with Highways arrangements
are being made for the Police to conduct speed checks on the road.
Two teenagers were recently caught spraying graffiti near Elizabeth Hall and the Police
were alerted. We understand that they intend to prosecute. Hopefully the news will
spread that this pair have been caught and others will learn that this antisocial
behaviour is totally unacceptable.
We have agreed a plan with Highways to overcome the damage vehicles have caused to the
planting at the entrance to Grand Parade car park. The cobbled area will be removed and
the entrance widened so that two cars can pass. A high kerb will then be installed to
protect the remaining planting at the entrance.
As mentioned in the local press work has stopped completely on the Police House in London
Road. We understand that the original contractor is unable to complete the work which
means that the Police will have to obtain fresh tenders from new contractors. A delay is
inevitable particularly as it is always hard to find a contractor prepared to complete
work started by another builder.
New signs have recently been installed by Hart in their Car Parks. Hart agree that some
of the wording could be misinterpreted so arrangements are being made to change the sentence
concerned. Free evening parking is still allowed.
The recent warm weather has encouraged hedges to grow faster and earlier than normal. Please
bear in mind that if you own a hedge it is your responsibility to make sure it does not
obstruct the footpath.
Antony Hunter
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June 2004
Around 65 Parishioners attended the Annual Village Meeting on 27th April along with
nine Parish Councillors, two District / County Councillors and representatives from the
Police, Highways, and Neighbourhood Watch.
The Elizabeth Hall Development Committee described the plans to build a new Hall.
Unless action is taken the existing dilapidated building, which does not meet the
requirements of the disability act and struggles to meet the needs of the Community,
will collapse. The project, which is likely to cost around £1million, will be funded by a
mix of Elizabeth Hall funds, developer contributions, grants, Parish Council
precept and borrowing. The meeting overwhelmingly endorsed the project, there being two
abstentions and no votes against. The reason for the increase in the Parish Council
precept for 2004 / 2005 is to permit £60,000 to be put aside towards the project.
Similar provisions will be needed in each of the next few years.
Two parishioners asked at the meeting about the road safety hazard in Great Sheldons
Coppice at the point where dog walkers park their cars close to a bend. We understand
that accidents have occurred at this point. We will discuss the topic with Highways at our
next meeting with them which is in June. A lay-by would be expensive and double yellow lines
hard to enforce but there may be other ways forward. In the meantime it would help if dog walkers
would park further away from the bend. Following an enquiry from a dog walker we confirm that
the only public footpath in the field across the stream and through the kissing gate is the one
that goes straight ahead and up the hill in line with the signpost. The two routes to the right
across the field and along the hedge are private.
Many thanks to those who returned the questionnaire that we included with the Annual Report.
We received almost 400 replies which is a very good response rate. Leading market research
company N. O. P. are generously analysing the replies free of charge as a community
contribution and we will provide information on the results as soon as we have them,
along with a public presentation in the autumn.
A number of instances of graffiti have occurred recently and we condemn this antisocial
behaviour, which will be one of the topics discussed at our new Community Safety
Committee, which will have its first meeting shortly. The Parish Council cannot
undertake to clean private property and indeed the cleaning responsibility in all cases
lies with the owner of the property that has been defaced. We believe a number of
community minded individuals may be considering running an informal clean up working
party but it is crucial that they take professional advice on cleaning techniques and
essential that they obtain the specific permission of the owners of the property concerned,
as incorrect cleaning can easily make the damage worse.
May marks the start of the new Parish Council year and a few changes in our internal roles.
Our grateful thanks to Tony Taylor for chairing the Parish Council for the last three years.
He is succeeded by Antony Hunter, whilst Angus Ogilvy takes over as Chairman of Planning.
Martin Whittaker continues as Chair of the Amenities Committee. We recently completed
interviewing for the post of Deputy Clerk and are delighted to welcome Christine Randall,
who joins us during June having previously been Parish Clerk at Odiham. Christine’s
particular areas of responsibility will be Planning and a number of Amenity issues
including Parks and Gardens.
Hart’s green bag scheme for garden waste continues to attract adverse comments relating
to the small size of the bags, the difficulty in moving them when full and the lengthy
queues at the Hartley Wintney recycling depot. As a Parish Council, we support the aim
of recycling garden waste but believe that the method Hart has adopted is simply not
practical. We are continuing to provide feedback to our District Councillors.
Thursday 10th June is Hart District Council and European Election Day. Don’t forget
to use your vote!
Antony Hunter
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May 2004
A very last reminder that
the Annual Village meeting is on Tuesday 27th April at the Elizabeth
Hall at 8pm. The key item on the agenda is the building of a new
Elizabeth Hall, fit to provide facilities for the current century.
Funding for this project, which will cost in excess of £900,000, will
need to come from a combination of developer contributions and the
Parish Council precept.
All homes should now have received a copy of the Parish Council Annual
report and a questionnaire for return to our freepost address. Extra
copies can be obtained from the Parish Council Office or from our web
site. These were both printed for us by I. C. Printing of Murrell Green
and we apologise to them for our error in that the name of the printer
from last year was incorrectly mentioned.
We have received a number of interesting applications for the post of
Deputy Clerk and will commence interviewing shortly. It is still not too
late too apply and we are particularly interested in applications from
people who have Planning experience.
The use of CCTV, its advantages and challenges, has been an issue that
we have tackled over the last eighteen months. Our CCTV Working Party is
about to be expanded into a Community Safety Working Party with a wider
brief. We could not have taken these ideas forward without the help of
John Kay who provided invaluable advice to the Parish as a contribution
to Hook. John’s tragic and sudden death is a great loss to the
Community. Our deep sympathy is with his family.
The Grand Parade car park is not public property but is owned by the
Grand Parade Association. They recognise that their initial clamping
scheme was poorly managed but are introducing a new scheme from 1st May
using a different contractor.
We have received a number of adverse comments about Hart’s new garden
waste collection scheme. The sacks, provided for a fee, are generally
regarded as much too small, but elderly residents in particular find
them hard to move when full. Concern has been expressed that Hart’s
refusal to collect garden waste from black bins may lead to fly tipping
and an increase in bonfires. We feel that a green wheeled bin would be a
more realistic solution. We have discussed the issue with our District
Councillors who are likely to suggest that the effectiveness of the
scheme is reviewed in six months.
The Surgery application for a fence, which also proposed that Elms Road
become the vehicle access, has been refused by Hart as detrimental to
the street scene. We attended a useful meeting with the Surgery, along
with Hart. They are now reconsidering the design of the fence and the
access and will then submit a fresh application.
The revised New Covenant Church application in Elms Road has also been
refused as detrimental to the street scene and generally overbearing.
Following the refusal of the application for 7 houses next to The Holt a
fresh application has now been submitted for 5 houses. The Parish view
is that this application represents the best we can hope to achieve on
the site both in terms of number of houses and number of parking spaces
per house. The original application was for eleven houses and 1.5
parking spaces per house compared to the current one for 5 houses with 2
parking spaces per house and 2 visitor spaces.
The footpath between central Hook and Band Hall Place has been closed
for safety reasons while the new dentist surgery is being built. We
share the opinion of a number of residents that closure right through
until the building is completely finished is unnecessary and that
closure until the shell of the building is finished should be sufficient
but at present we have been unable to persuade the Hampshire Rights of
Way department to vary their closure order.
Antony Hunter
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April 2004
The
Annual Village Meeting will take place in the Elizabeth Hall at 8pm on
Tuesday 27th April. This
is your opportunity to ask questions on issues that impact on Hook.
The main agenda item will be the plan to build a new Elizabeth
Hall. It will be complex to
provide a modern building to cater for the future needs of Hook and the
project will, inevitably, cost a lot of money.
Please do come along to hear about the project and ask your
questions. The Parish
Council Annual Report will be distributed to every house in Hook by mid
April. This year, for the first time, the report will contain a
questionnaire.
The
responses are required to provide vital input to the Village Plan.
The plan is crucially important as it will become the main way in
which we can influence our own future destiny as a community.
Please return the questionnaire Freepost to the Parish Clerk so
that we can analyse your views.
It is also important that we gain the views of clubs, groups
and other organisations currently in the village.
Would Chairpersons please ask the Parish Clerk (tel: 768687)
for additional copies of the questionnaire to promote the views of your
organisation. Please state
clearly the organisation being represented on the questionnaire.
The higher the response rate the greater the credibility the
planning system will attach to our recommendations! Results will be
published at a public meeting later in the year.
Recent
road safety data shows that Hart is one of only two districts in the
entire country where child road casualties rose last year.
Over half of the child casualties in Hart were caused by children
inside the car not wearing seat belts when there was an accident.
Most of these were on the school run.
Typically the car stopped suddenly and the unbelted child was
propelled at high speed into the back of the front seat or the
windscreen with tragic consequences.
Please be sure to use your seat belts and make sure your children
do too!
We have recently received a number of complaints about the state of the
pond on the junction of Newnham Road and Carlton Close. Hook 2000, which
originally installed the pond, was a Millennium group that has now disbanded,
so the Parish will need to resolve the situation. It is our
understanding that the concept, as a wildlife pond, was intended to be
self sustaining (apart from rubbish removal!) so we are contacting the
Hampshire Wildlife Trust, which was involved in the design, to evaluate
the way forward.
As a result of continual vandalism, and the use of their car park for free
parking by drivers who are shopping and doing the school run so blocking
in medical cars that would be needed in an emergency, the surgery has
applied to install two metre high fencing along their East and West
boundaries. The proposal
includes a pedestrian only gate to the Reading Road Car Park, which
would be locked outside surgery hours, and a pedestrian gate and staff
only vehicle gate from Elms Road which would also be locked
when the surgery is closed. We
are concerned at this scheme to install industrial estate style fencing
in the relatively safe centre of central Hook and feel that the loss of
the ability to walk through, what is admittedly a private car park,
would be a disadvantage to the Community as a whole. We
will be talking to the surgery, in conjunction with Hart District
Council, in order to find a mutually satisfactory solution.
After considerable thought, we have decided to recruit a Deputy Clerk to take
key day to day responsibility for Planning issues and for the
administration of our Parks and open spaces. This will bring our salaried
support to two people : Anne Atkins
as Parish Clerk on a full time basis, Julie Ridley as Administrative
Assistant and our new team member both working half time.
All three will be based in the Parish Council Office giving us
much greater flexibility and allowing us to work more effectively than
was the case when our support was home based. A more detailed notice is
published in Focus magazine.
Antony Hunter
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March 2004
Police attendance at the Parish Council
meeting on a quarterly basis is proving to be helpful and we welcomed
Inspector Weston to our February meeting. He confirmed that Hart
continues to be one of the safest places to live in the UK. Violent
crime is minimal, but a third of the crimes reported in the last quarter
involved criminal damage and public order offences. No one has been
traced as responsible for the spate of egg throwing that has taken place
in recent months, for the extensive graffiti or the incidents of
antisocial behaviour. The police believe that a small number of regular
offenders are responsible.
However new powers will enable Police to confiscate aerosol spray paints
from teenagers. The Inspector stressed the importance of providing a
flow of information to our beat officers and through neighbourhood
watch. Every piece of the jigsaw really matters. Our existing CCTV
working party which regularly monitors reports gathered by Hart will now
take on a broader role and also cover Community Safety.
Sadly, people have been parking on and driving over the edge of the
landscaping at the entrance to Grand Parade and a metre of planting has
been completely destroyed. We are contacting other interested parties to
develop a way of protecting the area from further needless damage.
There have been complaints about use of scramble bikes on the open space
in the Hop Garden Road, Church Path and Varndell Road areas. Part of the
path is a Public Right of Way and it is an offence to use a motorised
vehicle on the footpath. The Rights of Way Officer and Hampshire Paths
Partnership have agreed to consider kissing gates and fencing to stop
this antisocial practice.
Speed bumps were recently installed outside the Community Centre to
overcome the problem of cars driving at excessive speeds and joyriding
in an area popular with parents and young children. The bumps meet
District Council standards and have been approved by two qualified
vehicle engineers. They are designed to be approached at 5mph which is
judged to be the safe speed for the area. 5mph speed limit signs will
shortly be installed.
The New Covenant Church in Elms Road has submitted a revised planning
application which has caused considerable concern to residents of
Lynwood, Nightingale and Ferndale Gardens. The revised proposal is set
further back at both the front and the rear but still represents a
substantial two storey building to the detriment of adjoining houses.
Access to the building is proposed to be from the rear which is likely
to lead to a significant increase in traffic and parking. The Parish
Council view is that the proposal is too big for the site and involves
unacceptable intensification of use.
The owners of two houses adjacent to the Hampshire County Council depot
near M3 junction five have applied to demolish the houses and construct
an industrial estate comprising eighteen letting units and sixty three
parking spaces. The Parish Council understands that the Highways Depot
is part of the motorway system and not an industrial estate and
therefore does not represent a precedent for industrial use in the area.
Furthermore the houses adjoin a site of Special Scientific Interest and
we believe that
part of the land involved is actually part of the SSSI. We have
therefore recommended to Hart District Council that the application is
refused.
Antony Hunter
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February 2004
The Annual Village Meeting will take
place at the Elizabeth Hall on Tuesday 27th April 2004. The main item
will be the presentation of a scheme to build a new Elizabeth Hall. The
current Hall was built fifty years ago at a time when building materials
were hard to come by, because most available materials were still needed
to replace homes that were destroyed in the 1939 to 1945 World War.
Building standards were much lower than they are today and it is only
because of superb effort by the Elizabeth Hall team over the years that
the building is still in use today. The Hall now urgently needs
replacing so the Parish Council and the Elizabeth Hall Committee have
been working together on a scheme during the last year. Although much of
the cost will be met by contributions from developers, a significant sum
will need to be set aside annually out of the Parish Precept for the
next few years. Do put the date in your diary and come to the Meeting!
By the time you read this work should have started on the new Police
Station on the site of the old Police House on the A30. The scheme is
not expected to be complete before July, but once the building is
finished Hook will have a more visible Police presence as officers come
and go from their new base.
We have now received the results of the traffic survey in the Four Acre
Coppice and Pantile Drive areas which was set up because of concern by
residents that it was being used as a "Rat Run" between the A30 and
Griffin Way, and that the traffic volumes would become worse as result
of the Holt Park development. Vehicles entering and leaving were
individually logged by number plate at the entrances to Four Acre
Coppice and Pantile Drive over a twelve hour period. 40 vehicles used
the area as a through route, but 35 of these took more than fifteen
minutes to make the journey, so clearly stopped for some purpose on the
way through. 220 vehicles entered and left from the same direction from
which they came in. 800 vehicles, clearly belonging to residents, either
left and did not return or entered and did not leave again. The overall
results of the survey show that although there is a substantial amount
of traffic the vast bulk of the journeys are by residents and that just
5 cars could genuinely be described as "Rat Running". A further
survey will be carried out on completion of phase one of Holt Park and
another when the entire development is complete.
Sadly there is no decline in the level of antisocial behaviour in Hook,
accompanied by a significant amount of broken glass which the Parish has
to clear regularly from Hartletts Park, Wellworth Park and the Play
Areas. We are starting discussions with the Police about the feasibility
of a local byelaw prohibiting the use of alcohol in these places, which
would in turn give the Police new powers of enforcement. If the Police
support the idea the order will be widely advertised before it is made.
We are in process of setting up the Parish Council Office which,
initially at least, is in the former Football Club Room in the Community
Centre in Ravenscroft. The telephone number is unchanged. It is our
intention that, once we are established, it will be possible to view
Planning Applications so avoiding the need to go to Hart, and to arrange
appointments to discuss other issues.
Antony Hunter
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January 2004
The Retailers’ Christmas Cracker was a
very successful event : congratulations to the organisers and all who
participated in so many ways. The Parish Council was delighted to
provide support and many people have already said how much they look
forward to 2004! The whole event strengthened the Community.
There have been many favourable comments about this years Christmas
lights. We have had a number of donations, but the bulk of the new
lighting was donated by Basingstoke and Deane, as it was equipment that
they no longer needed.
There has recently been a significant increase in teenage antisocial
behaviour, by both boys and girls, in Wellworth Park on weekday
evenings. Those involved seem to be in the 13 to 16 age group. Not only
has this caused inconvenience to nearby residents, but broken bottles
have regularly been found in the children’s play area on the following
morning. Parents of teenagers can help by asking their sons and
daughters if they might be able to identify the culprits?
Completion of the Newnham Road traffic calming scheme has been delayed
but the project is now expected to be completed in January.
The Barratt development on London Road continues and has, inevitably,
caused both Highway and Footpath disruption in London Road. We are
working with Hampshire Highways to tighten supervision of the overflow
of construction vehicles onto the A30, closures of the footpath, and the
use of metal plates to cover the access road as they produce an uneven
surface which is hazardous to pedestrians.
Our very many thanks to David Ridley who ceases to be Parish Clerk at
the end of December. He has done much for Hook during his term, which
has coincided with an increase in Government demand on Parishes and our
own determination, as members, to do more to meet the needs and concerns
of all who live in Hook. Julie Ridley has been providing very effective
secretarial support for years and we are so pleased that she is able to
continue to work with us. We are delighted that Anne Atkins is stepping
up to Parish Clerk. It is an appropriate time to reconsider the way that
we work as a Parish Council. The key to this change will be the setting
up of a Parish Council office to provide a key point of contact, both by
telephone and face to face, for all who have issues that they would like
to raise with the Parish.
Antony Hunter
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