News Letters

 

This hard copy version of the first issue of the Newsletter has been mailed to every household in the four parishes. The intention is to produce a Newsletter at quarterly intervals unless events dictate a shorter interval. To keep costs down the intention is that the next and subsequent issues will appear on the Parish's website: www.shrop.net/myndtown with a few hard copies available in Wentnor shop for visitors to the area and to those households without Internet access.

THIS ISSUE includes:

• Dates of Parish Council meetings
• News re the proposed new Village Hall
• News re the Upper Mill Farm music festival Licence Application
• Village Hall Plans & Model
• Business notes
• An update from the Onny Wildlife Group

PARISH COUNCIL:

Councillors for the four parishes are: Myndtown: Sally-Ann Jones, Philip Rogers-Coltman (Vice-Chairman) Norbury: Oliver Goode, (1 vacancy) Ratlinghope: Stuart Buxton, Keith Mansell (Chairman) Wentnor: Terry Betton, Paul Owen, Ann Parry, Andrew Semple

Clerk: Mrs Lesley Thomas, Green Cottage, Wentnor, Bishop's Castle, Shropshire, SY9 5EF.

Meetings are held at Norbury Village Hall at 7.30 pm. Dates for 2009 are: Mondays 9 March, 11 May (AGM), 6 July, 7 September and 9 November.
Annual Parish Meetings for the individual parishes of Myndtown, Norbury, Ratlinghope and Wentnor will be held at Norbury Village Hall on 6 April 2009 starting at 7.30 pm.

NEW VILLAGE HALL

One of the objectives of The Parish Plan published in 2006 was that the Combined parishes should seek to replace the current Village Hall with one that would meet the needs of parishioners as demonstrated in the consultation process. To begin this process the Village Hall Management committee established a Steering Group to carry out a feasibility study on the design, use and cost of a replacement Hall.

The Steering Group obtained funding to employ the services of a consultant to work through an application for funding of a New Hall through the National Lottery Fund. A fundamental part of the application was that a consultation process was put in place to test the reaction of the parishioners. The design of the proposed New Hall was presented on two separate occasions and the views of those who attended were taken on board and incorporated into the design of the New Hall. Unfortunately this application was rejected in the autumn of 2007.

Undaunted by this set back the Steering Group continued its task and was introduced to Mr Colin Richards, Conservation officer for South Shropshire District Council. Mr Richards explained that having spoken to the Chief Executive of the Lottery funds about our plight he was told that funds were still available for Village Hall projects BUT they needed to be innovative in their design, be constructed of materials which were environmentally conscious and could be held up as an exemplar to other communities seeking to improve their facilities. The construction of the building would use new technologies and as such would be used as a training ground to develop these new skills. In particular linkages with colleges and institutions involved in training would be an advantage in securing funding.

In the summer of 2008 the Steering Group chairman was successful in bidding for funds from the SSDC Village Hall fund to assist in the development of the project. The award was £5,000.

At this particular time it was announced that the Local Authority system was to be reconstituted into a Unitary Authority which meant that amongst other things the Planning system would undergo fundamental and radical change. Advice from planning advisers was that anyone wishing to submit a planning application should do so before April 2009 in order that it would be assessed under the existing planning regime which was understood. As planning consent is a pre- requisite of a lottery grant application the Steering Group decided to spend the £5000 on obtaining planning permission before April 2009 to enable it to apply for funding without delay when the opportunity arose.

The strategy was therefore to apply for planning permission for a New Hall which would embrace the concepts outlined by Mr Richards, meet the needs expressed in the consultation process, present the Combined Parishes with a New Hall appropriate to the 21st century and building on the foundations and vision of those who built the original Hall.

Environmental architects were appointed to design a building from the information the Steering Group gave them from the consultation process. Many hours were spent in discussion with the architects to arrive at the building as shown in the plans accompanying this report.

The design was presented at an open meeting of the Village Hall Management committee at which 60 plus people attended. The general consensus on the night was that the New Design of the Hall although perhaps of an unusual design, was exciting and acceptable. The Village Hall Management committee voted to accept the recommendations of the Steering Group and instructed the Group to proceed with a planning application.

The Steering Group is conscious that some Parishioners are uncomfortable with the innovative design and radical thinking that has resulted in the proposed design. However the Group felt that it has undertaken extensive consultation with parishioners, users and potential users of the New Hall to the extent that they felt they had produced a design that included the concepts which Lottery Funding bodies were seeking.

In arriving at their recommendations the Steering Group has always been aware that if it produced a New Village Hall that was built of traditional materials to a traditional design it would not attract any funding from the Lottery. They had therefore to be bold in their decision making in recommending a building that would have a "wow" factor which would enhance its attractiveness to existing and new users and in so doing provide a unique Village Hall of which all members of the community would be proud.

The Steering Group's architect has submitted a Planning Application (no. 1/08/21406/F). Although, for administrative reasons, the applicant is named as K Mansell (Chairman of the Parish Council) the application is the Steering Group's and not the Parish Council's. The application can be inspected at Ludlow at the South Shropshire District Council's Planning and Building Control Department. The Parish Clerk has a copy of the application. Representations or observations on the application should be made in writing and be received by the SSDC Planning and Building Control Department at Stone House, Corve Street, Ludlow, SY8 1DG by 10 March 2009.

*click here to see drawings* 

UPPER MILL FARM - Premises Licence Application

After the withdrawal of his first application for a premises licence for a music festival at Upper Mill Farm Mr David Morton, of Katie Fitzgerald Limited, submitted a second application. This second application was considered by South Shropshire District Council's Licensing Sub-Committee at its meeting at Norbury Village Hall on Friday 13 February. The Sub-Committee decided to refuse the application on the following grounds:
Public Safety
The Sub-Committee considered that, even after taking into account the recommendations made by the Highways Authority and the proposed amendments to the Traffic Management Plan, the access and egress to and from the proposed event site still presented an unacceptable level of risk to both those attending the event and passing traffic.
Public Nuisance
The Sub-Committee considered that, given the location and topography of the proposed event site, the imposition of additional conditions would not reduce the impact of public nuisance to an acceptable level for those persons living within the vicinity.

Until 7 March 2009 the applicant has the right to appeal the decision at the Magistrates Court.

BUSINESS

When the questionnaires completed for the Parish Plan were analysed it was found that 48% of the respondents ran their own business within the four parishes. These businesses range in size and cover many different areas but obviously are all important to the local economy in providing employment, often in sectors that are not directly linked to the traditional agriculture. With employment comes expenditure in the area.

There are various local initiatives to bring your business to a wider market. Enterprise House in Bishop's Castle runs a website www.bishopscastle.biz that will give your business an entree into the world of the Internet. At present there is no charge for this hosting service and I recommend that you post your details on this site. The Parish Council also has a website www.shrop.net/myndtown which, if requested, will post details of your business on the site.

It would make sense to have a directory of as many local businesses as possible on the Parish Council's website. The more the parishes can be put forward into the spotlight the better it must be for the entire local economy. There may be areas where one business may be able to assist another. Unless everyone knows what is going on in the next door parish, or indeed next door, then businesses are at a disadvantage.

The setting up of such a group may well be something that will be of advantage to many local businesses and if a directory can be set up then this may well be an area to explore. Please let us know via the parish website what you are up to in the locality and it will in due course be to everyone's advantage.
Philip Rogers-Coltman.

UPPER ONNY WILDLIFE GROUP

The Upper Onny Wildlife Group was formed in late 2003 by a group of local people who were concerned over a recent decline in some bird species that have always been associated with the Upper Onny area, specifically Lapwing, Curlew and Skylark. With an initial objective of finding out more about the existing populations of these species, the Group has undertaken major breeding bird surveys each year since 2004 to establish whether the decline was real, and if so, to identify measures that could be taken to assist in their conservation.

The surveys have covered an area of around 122 square kilometres between the Longmynd and the Welsh Border, including the parishes of Ratlinghope, Wentnor, Norbury, Myndtown, More and Lydham . Most of this area lies within the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and the Shropshire Hills Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA). The results of these surveys have shown that the decline in Lapwing and Curlew was real - indeed without some action to improve breeding success and to increase the area of suitable habitat, both species could become extinct in the area within 10 years.

In the short term the Group's objectives have been to stabilise the Lapwing and Curlew populations by initiating Action Programmes that involve not only farmers and landowners upon whose property the birds nest, but also those organisations and individuals who are concerned and charged with protecting this Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. When breeding sites are located, farmers upon whose land these occur are contacted, advised of their presence and encouraged to take appropriate conservation measures. The latter includes joining one of Natural England's farm payment schemes that carry financial reward for conservation. It is worth noting that as a result of the Group's actions, the decline in the Lapwing population may have been reversed - the population was 19 pairs in 2004, 18 in 2005 and down to only 13 in 2006, but has since increased to 17 pairs in 2007 and 26 pairs in 2008. Regrettably, over the same period, Curlew numbers have continued to decline - there are now only 35 breeding pairs compared with 39 in 2004.

The decline in Lapwing and Curlew populations can be attributed, in a large measure, to changes in the ecosystem brought about by changes in agricultural practices - 40 years ago the Upper Onny Valley was an area of mixed farming whereas today the valley is dominated by a virtual monoculture of livestock farming. Significant changes in methods of financial support for agriculture are now imminent which are likely to drive further changes in the farming systems with an effect upon the wildlife of the area (maybe positive, maybe negative). The monitoring of such changes by observation and by regular surveys is an important function of the Wildlife Group which is actively supported by the AONB Partnership, Natural England, RSPB, Shropshire Wildlife Trust, the National Trust and the Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group.

The Group's activities are not confined to birds. By conducting regular wildlife surveys, the longer term objective is to collect sufficient data to enable the identification and promotion of conservation priorities. It is hoped that future studies will include detailed examination of the river habitats, botanical studies of 16 plant species which are indicators of the health of important habitats, including the once common Mountain Pansy (Viola lutea), as well as key insect species such as the Small Pearl Bordered Fritillary butterfly and Glow-worms.

If the Group's objectives are to be achieved more local people need to become involved. Enthusiasm and an interest in wildlife are more important than expertise as the Group will provide training for anyone who feels the need. Wildlife conservation can only be successful if the interests of all parties are taken into account, be they farmers and landowners, field sports and outdoor activity enthusiasts, walkers and tourists, or simply local residents who appreciate quality of life in the Upper Onny Valley. To this end the Group will welcome any new members and participants in fieldwork or simply regular observations from interested individuals.

Detailed Annual Reports have been produced and that for 2008 will be presented at a Public Meeting on 3rd March 2009 to be held at Norbury Village Hall at 7.30pm. Everyone is welcome.

For further information about the Group, please contact John Muller on 01588 650574 or Leo Smith on 01588 638577

John Muller