Parish Council News January 2012
by Don Parker
Many of you will have noticed that the
village sign on the lower green is in a tatty state. The cost of a complete renovation would be in the region of £3,000.
Until such time as we have the funds to have this work done, we intend to do a temporary repair and replace the warped Perspex
windows with reinforced glass and also make the case weatherproof.
You may also have noticed (or perhaps you haven’t!)
that there are now ‘no entry’ signs at each end of the slip road past the shops. This has been done in an attempt
to slow traffic down and thus make the whole area safer. I have no doubt that some villagers will have doubts about this change
and that there will be some initial problems until everyone gets used to it. I have spoken with some of the residents who
live along the road and they tell me that they have already noticed an improvement. Incidentally, we were not satisfied with
the positioning of the new signs and they are going to be moved.
You will have read from another notice in the
magazine that the old cart on the lower green has to be moved. We intend to replace it with a permanent raised flower border
which will be part of the Jubilee celebrations in the village. Planning is in the early stage and, as usual, raising funds
is one of the main issues. It may be that some events have to be held for this purpose and I hope that you will support us.
Repairs to the Village Hall are continuing. Two new front doors have been provided and an attractive new back door
has been installed in the kitchen. Work will start soon on repairs to the front porch area. Money for this has
been raised by the Village Hall Management Committee who continues to work tirelessly to improve and modernise our wonderful
Hall.
The speed watch scheme for the Village drags on! We apologise for delays in getting this sorted but we always seem
to be waiting for other people to do their bit. Please bear with us.
There is better news regarding problems with various
village signs. It is now possible to move the Cavendish sign at the Melford end of the Village. The footpath sign opposite
the Bull has been reinstated and the bent Colts Hall sign at the Nether Road junction is now straight.
We receive
repeated warnings from our representative Borough and County Councillors that in the present climate money is scare and so
that is why we are ever grateful to those generous villagers who support all our clubs and societies by dipping into their
pockets and also to the Community Council whose efforts raise money for our community projects.
The orchard beside
the new development off Nether Road has been planted and we are hoping that the enthusiastic Wassailing on New Year’s
Day will ensure that it develops successfully.
The Parish Council wish you all a happy and prosperous new year.