Parish and District Council News

We have now added two new pages to the website for Parish Council Matters.

These are monthly Parish Council Update and Planning Matters - both will be updated monthly as updates are received from the Parish Council Clerk, Jacqui Cuff.

Your Parish Councillors are: Trevor Marpole (Chair), Nicki Barker (Vice Chair), Alan Foot, Andy Foot, Doug Morse, Mark Needham, Chris Osmond, Andrew Stone, Stephen White

Your District Councillor (Piddle Valley) is Nicki Barker 01300 345238

Council Changes - 2007
We are delighted to welcome our two new Councillors, Mr Doug Morse and Mr Andrew Stone. Cllr Morse has agreed to be our Flood Warden for the coming year and Cllr Stone will prove to be most useful when helping us decipher drawings by his fellow professional Architects as part of the planning application process. Sadly, we have to say a fond goodbye to John Hillman who has dedicated more than 40 years of service to this community both as Councillor and the last fourteen years as Chairman. Roy Hardy decided not to stand again due to a substantial increase in his work commitments and has also made an invaluable contribution to the Parish over many years. John and Roy will be much missed and we wish them all the very best for the future.

Trevor Marpole was elected and agreed to take on the role as our new Chairman. As former Landlord of The Gaggle of Geese, I am sure that Cllr Marpole has more than the necessary skills to maintain 'order' at future Parish Council Meetings. We would also like to congratulate Nicki Barker, for her successful re-election as District Councillor for West Dorset Piddle Valley Ward. We are grateful for Cllr Barker's significant work on our behalf in the past and fortunate that the Parish will continue to benefit from her commitment, knowledge and genuine interest in the welfare and development of this area. Cllr Barker was also re-elected to act as Vice Chair for the Parish Council.

Cllrs Andy Foot and Chris Osmond will continue to deal with issues relating to the Recreation Area whilst Cllr Stephen White has kindly agreed to maintain his role as Footpath Officer for the Parish.
Democratic Half Hour
At Parish Council meetings, we include a 'Democratic Half Hour' to allow members of the Parish to make representations at the meeting. This will be added to the Agenda, before the main body of the meeting takes place, allowing Parishioners to leave if they wish. If you would like to take advantage of this opportunity, or would prefer to write or email your concerns or potential resolutions, please can you advise the Chair or myself at least five days before the meeting, if possible.

Help Required!
Mrs Noreen Darbourne kindly donated, to the Parish, a number of maps of the area, which if the Village Hall Committee were in agreement, could be displayed in the Committee Room. So that more can appreciate these maps, we need to find someone in the area who would be willing to frame them... any ideas? Also if you have a genuine interest and/or knowledge of local history and have some time to spare, we would be interested in hearing from you.

Jacqui Cuff
Parish Clerk, Buckland Newton Parish Council
01300345405 or jacuff@talk21.com

Junk Mail
This can be a real nuisance. It only adds to the volume of recycling and at the end of the day our Council Tax to dispose of it. So unless you enjoy browsing through free mail, it IS easy to cut down on 90% of it by removing your name from direct mail lists. The best way to do this is: Write with your name and address to Mail Preference Service, Freepost 29 (LON20771), London W1E OZT (you can pick up a form for this at the District Council's Office in High West St in Dorchester). Or phone the Mail Preference Service on 0845 703 4599 or go to their website on www.mcsonline.org.uk or e-mail  mps@dma.org.uk

AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN BUCKLAND NEWTON

Our planned start date in May has eluded us as we were unable to complete the contract for the build in April. We had been working on the proposals with our chosen building firm for the last eight months but at the last minute they decided that they wished to concentrate on consultancy and training and pulled out.

We have now revised our approach and hope to have new contract arrangements in place so that we can start construction by late summer. The houses have to be affordable to meet our objectives of housing local village people and this means ensuring every aspect of the costs are scrupulously examined and controlled. This takes time. During the last few months several examples of Ecofab straw and wool buildings have been put up, giving great confidence in the concept. Also, with the present state of the construction industry, we can be assured of very keen prices from local contractors.

We continue to be supported by West Dorset District Council who are and have been exceptionally helpful and look forward to making progress soon.


Daily Telegraph 25 March 2006

I would welcome all feedback on 01300 345238
Nicki Barker (District Councillor Piddle Valley Ward)

District Council News

JUST 60 OR A BIT OLDER? BUS PASS?

Wot at 60? I am sure you don't feel old, but the Government thinks you are! Upside is, as of April 2006, pensioners
(which they take to be anyone over 60) and disabled will be allowed FREE off-peak travel on local buses. Next
question is What BUSES? I know we don't have a frequent local service in Buckland Newton, but think more broadly
- it could be a shopping trip to Salisbury from Dorchester or a trip to Weymouth to catch the wonderful Coast
LINX53 Jurassic Coast bus, hopping off somewhere along the Heritage coast such as Abbotsbury or Lyme Regis for
a walk or wander. Consultation is ongoing with the Bus Companies over journeys that extend cross County borders.
The pass is being funded from Central Government not thankfully out of our Council Tax. The whole principle is to
encourage more people to use the buses we have and begin the turn -around to a more viable public transport
system. WDDC's March Community Link will tell you more and how you get your pass.

PIDDLEHINTON GYM
Are you aware that this vast indoor community and sports space exists only a few miles away down the Piddle Valley?
It is a huge indoor space that could be a fabulous local venue for all sorts of things beyond its current limited
sporting use. But it is run by a small group - The Piddlehinton Gymnasium Users Association - who because of
falling membership are in danger of having to hand the lease back to the County Council. They need to make
everyone local aware of its existence and its potential for all sorts of uses that might need a large indoor space.
There are lots of free slots in its current usage and the Users Association are looking for interested local groups
or individuals to hire it on a one off or regular basis. It has huge potential for indoor sports such as badminton/
netball/volleyball or an indoor venue when our village hall is not big enough, or you needed a huge space for an
indoor children's party, or to house the village fete if the weather is horrid, or noisy band practice as it has no
near neighbours and has excellent parking. Contact Collette McKenney asap on 01305 265434 if you have any good
ideas for its use, even if you might not want it until some time in the future. It would be sad to lose it as a local asset.

Your Bin Collection - what the Council will and will not collect free of charge in West Dorset

Now that recycling has started, we are increasingly aware of the volume of waste that we individually produce and
just how much (79%) ends up in landfill sites.  From 6th December, the Council are enforcing their existing Waste
Collection Policy to try and reduce landfill waste still further.  In the past, this policy should have charged for
Garden Waste and Commercial collections but has not always done so.

Ordinary Household Waste and Recycled paper, tin and glass: Uncharged collection continues.

Garden Waste: If you wish to still have this collected with your normal household waste, it must be in a blue
prepaid sack or have a prepaid label* attached.  But it is a recyclable material, the free alternative is to compost it
in the garden or take it to the Household Waste Recycling Centre at Louds Mill in Dorchester for onward composting.

Commercial Waste:  That generated by business premises such as pubs, shops or business units, has to be in a
WDCC wheeled bin or prepaid blue "Trade" sack if you want it collected by the Council.

Domestic properties offering  Bed & Breakfast accommodation:  Uncharged collection as this is treated as ordinary
household waste.

Commercially-run Holiday Cottages:  These should pay to have their waste collected using either prepaid blue Trade*
sacks or a WDCC wheeled bin.  As each situation is unique, it may help to phone 01305 262117 to discuss which is
the most economic route to collect this waste.

* Garden and Trade sacks cost £1 each and can be purchased from the District Council offices in High West Street
in Dorchester or by post, sending a cheque to West Dorset Services, Poundbury Road, Dorchester DT1 2PG.

Recycling Plastic Bottles

Although it is unlikely there will ever be doorstep recycling available for plastic milk-type bottles, because of their
bulk, you can recycle them at the main Waste Collection Centres in Sherborne and Dorchester.  The plastic
content of these packages is very varied which makes them uneconomic to recycle in the UK, but a contract
has been entered into where they are bulked up and sold to China, where no doubt they are sorted by hand before
being returned to us as an alternative consumer item!

Viewing Planning Applications on the West Dorset Website

Anyone with access to the internet can not only view all current and past applications, but from November you can
also view all third party letters of objection/support relating to those applications.  They will appear under the tabs
"Consults" and "Representations".  To visit the website, click on "West Dorset DC Planning Application Search"
on our main menu.

Nicki Barker (Piddle Valley Ward Councillor) 345238