The Grapevine MagazineJuly 2010 Issue No 23X |
Red Kite Park
We had a beautiful sunny day for the Grand Opening of Red Kite Park on 23 May. Thank you to everyone who came along to help us celebrate.
The grass is finally growing in, and so are the weeds. We’re trying to tackle them but if you happen to have some spare time while your children are playing feel free to pull a few!
Unfortunately we have experienced a bit of vandalism with a snapped tree and graffiti on the nest swing. This is a real shame and we are taking action to try to combat any further vandalism. If anyone has any information about this please do let us know. The play area was built with much support from the community and it will take that same support to protect it from harm. Thank you to Simon Smith for sanding off the graffiti.
Finally, it would be nice to be able to keep the car park gate open during the day for users of the play area. However, this would mean that responsible individual(s) within the parish would need to volunteer to lock the gate each evening. If this is something you would be willing to help out with, please let us know.
Thank you,
Shannon Heiberg Heather Weston Victoria Balls
01844 355 904 01844 350 040 01844 354 277
Obituary
Barbara Mullins
Barbara very sadly passed away on July 1st.
Before she was so cruelly affected by a degenerative palsy that took her too soon, Barbara was one of the fittest senior ladies I ever met. She and Doris were a familiar sight in all parts of the village and fields around as they took their twice daily constitutional, always stopping to check the notice board on the way round; village news and events were very important to Barbara, and always keeping Mick’s grave decorated with flowers from her garden. I miss seeing them both in the distance, striding across at her remarkably fast pace; she was impossible to catch up, or keep up with, so why Barbara chose a dog with the shortest legs was an enigma. But she and Doris were made for each other. We personified Doris and decided she was the Queen Mother with a beautiful diamond tiara and a velvet throne! I had the privilege of taking Her Majesty to the Principality for a seasonal break when Barbara was unable to exercise, and Doris loved Snowdonia and led the party up and down the mountain tracks just as Barbara would have done.
Barbara loved the Natural World. She knew an extraordinary amount about wild flowers and birds. Her garden, which she lovingly nurtured single handed, was a haven for them. There were shrubs, trees and climbers for them to nest in and a running buffet of the very best nuts, seeds and meal worms on the bird tables.
Barbara was always interested in village life and particularly the activities of Lewknor Primary School where she had worked. She had some wonderful stories to tell of her time there. Barbara, along with Marjorie and her great friend Joy, were a delight to be in the company of, especially after a brandy and lemonade or two! Joy and Barbara were the Thelma and Louise of Lewknor. They had some wonderful adventures together on their annual trips abroad; memories they shared with us, raucously recalling every detail.
I know I speak for all her friends in the village - and there are many - when I say that we will miss her dreadfully. Our lives were enriched by her. Barbara was one of God’s good souls; loyal, devout, compassionate, passionate and very funny; a wonderful mother, grandmother and great friend to many of us.
Penny is moving to new pastures
Penny Mc Culloch is leaving Lewknor in the very near future, and we all wish her and her family the very best and would like to thank her for delivering the Grapevine for us.
This does however leave a vacancy for a volunteer (or a few) to distribute the Grapevines in:
Lewknor Close, the A40, Lambert Cottage, Lambert Arms, Peal House, Blue X, The Lodge. Also, Nethercote, Moor Court, The Manor, and Moor court cottage.
Please phone editor Beatrice Ellis on 01844 353123
From the Trustees of the Village Hall
On Thursday 24th June, between midnight and 8am a large amount of oil was stolen from the oil tank. This is the second time in as many months, and is costing the hall (and ultimately the users) a lot of money.
The police have been informed. If anyone noticed anything untoward please contact the police on 0845 850 5505,or let one of the trustees know.
We shall not be replacing the oil until security measures are in place to stop any further theft.
The Bookclub at Lewknor.
In June we read ‘The Beacon’ by Susan Hill. It’s a short novel which deals with four children brought upon a remote farm, we decided in either Yorkshire or Wales because its exact location is not given, and the dialogue is not in any particular dialect.
The story is told from the viewpoint of May the elder daughter and later by Frank the second son. The action begins with the expected death of their mother and the story of the childhood of each is told; so we learn that May was the bright one and Frank the strange silent one who is only close to Bernice the youngest. May grows up and goes to University in London but is unable to cope because of panic attacks which are vividly described as disabling and verging on the psychotic.
She returns to the farm and stays, to see the place gradually go downhill after Colin, her elder brother leaves to work elsewhere and the later death of her father. Suddenly, the novel changes tack and tone. Frank now a successful journalist with a wealthy wife decides to write a book and the subject he takes is ‘The Cupboard under the Stairs’ which is to be an account of his childhood.
We are given hints of what has happened to him but no precise details of how, when and where Frank is shut in this cupboard but we are led by Frank to assume that all the family have collaborated in his mistreatment. He insists to the reader that what he has written is truthful although he admits he is no longer completely sure of this. The book is published and the reaction of the community in which the other members of the family live is to believe its contents and the family is ostracized. Frank however turns up at his mother’s funeral much to his siblings’ astonishment and displeasure. No neighbours or friends come. The mother’s will is read and against all expectations, Frank has been left the farm, there is little else to leave.
Frank now a rich man after his wife’s death decides he will stay and almost the last image we are left with is of him gazing at the cupboard under the stair. Like all of Susan Hill’s novels, very little seems to happen but although the tone of the book is sombre, she writes so sparing and with such telling prose that the reader’s attention is held and is left wanting more.
Elan Preston-Whyte
SCHOOL NEWS
School Celebrates Gold Award Success!
Pupils at Lewknor C of E Primary School have been celebrating being awarded a top Arts award this month. The award is for high standards across drama, music, dance and the creative arts
Our assessment was vigorous, with close questions about which of the Arts was more important than another. Our children represented the views of everyone here when they refused to select one subject over another, and declared that they were all equally important! We are all very proud of our success and have displayed our certificate in the hall of our school building.
Head for a day!
Mieke Hill (year 6) became Head for the Day, after her parents bid at our ‘Auction of Promises’. This was the first time such a “lot” has been up for auction and Mieke was delighted to have won!
Her mum laughingly explained that Mieke thought “you all sit in the staff room eating chocolate!”
During her stint as Head, Mieke answered some e-mails, introduced an assembly, made a decision on staff ID badges, met prospective parents and checked a letter for new parents. That was just part of one morning! Break time was (deliberately) chocolate biscuit time…
Mieke did a super job and other Year 6 girls were overheard asking when the next ‘Auction of Promises’ was……
Recycling Project
We are considering the needs of the community regarding recycling. We would like to set up a collection point for plastics, paper, tin etc but would like your input. If you feel this would be a beneficial project, please jot down your ideas/needs and post them through our door.
New Faces
As our Year 6 children prepare for their move to secondary schools in the area, a number of excited new children are joining the Foundation Stage and will shortly be making their transition visits. Some staff, too, are changing and we welcome Mrs Hill and Miss Graves to our Infant class and Mrs Payne to Year 6. It is always sad to see staff changes but we are very excited to be gained such high-calibre and personable new teachers! A further welcome new face is the Rev Peter Waterson, who joins St Margaret’s as vicar shortly.
School Diary Dates:
| 13 July | new children “visiting day” |
| 15 July | Summer Music Concert 6pm |
| 19 July | Sports Day 1pm |
| 22 July | End of Term 1.30pm |
News from Krakatoa
Exciting news!! Krakatoa had its visit from the Ofsted inspector and achieved an absolutely fabulous result. Out of a total 14 judgements, the pre-school was rated “Good” on 7 and “Outstanding” on 7 with an overall rating of “Good” (just bordering on “Outstanding”). Anyone familiar with the Ofsted rating system will know that this is something to be truly proud of! The committee already believes that Krakatoa provides a fun, nurturing, educational environment for our children but the fact that Ofsted have verified this great news for the pre-school. We would like to congratulate the staff for all of their hard work and dedication to Krakatoa.
At the end of this term we will be saying a fond farewell to nine children who will be leaving us for primary school as well as Esme who will be moving to Australia. We wish them all the best of luck!
Don’t forget to buy your tickets to the ever popular Safari Supper which takes place on Saturday 17 July. It always proves to be a great night. Tickets are going fast so please get in touch if you would like to attend.
Krakatoa Pre-school
www.krakatoa-preschool.ik.org
07919081088
News from your District and County Councillors
| County Councillor | Roger Belson | 01491 612091 |
| District Councillors | Rodney Mann | 01844 281426 |
| Rev'd Angie Paterson | 01491 614033 |
| Council | Council Website | Main Switchboard | |
| Oxfordshire County Council | www.oxfordshire.gov.uk | 01865 792422 | online@oxfordshire.gov.uk |
| South Oxfordshire District Council | www.southoxon.gov.uk | 01491 823000 | info@southoxon.gov.uk |
Thame, Chinnor & Watlington Area
Neighbourhood Action Group
An email address for NAG business has been created, persons wishing to contact the NAG regarding the identified priorities can do so using tcwnag@googlemail.com <mailto:tcwnag@googlemail.com>
Thame Priority 1 - Youths gathering/Anti Social Behaviour
Analysis of consultation feedback highlighted the town centre car parks, the Co-op car park and the Town’s park areas as hot spots. Concerns are raised regarding both the use of the cars congregating in these areas in evenings and weekends, and the manner of those persons gathered around them.
Responses proposed are to ensure targeted Police patrols in the area (Operation Night Safe already runs at weekends to increase Police presence in Town centre), additional operations to deal with vehicles and their drivers and approaches to Schools to continue education of young drivers in the risks of careless use of vehicles, in association with an already successful Fire & Rescue Service programme. Other responses are under review for next meeting.
Watlington Rural Priority 1 -Theft from cars/parking B4009
Parking in Hill Rd Lewknor has contributed to increased theft from cars, double yellow lines which were laid and enforced had improved the situation. Poor road conditions have left the yellow lines in poor condition, discussions commenced to arrange road repair to allow yellow lines to be reapplied. Use of buses from Watlington to get to Oxford Tube access point at M40 junction 6 to be re-publicised locally- all actions aiming to reduce the number of vehicles putting themselves at risk. Approaches made to OCC and Oxford tube regarding plans for junction 6, regarding vehicle security coverage.
Chinnor Rural Priority 1 - Parking
Results of consultation fed back to Parish Councils and to develop responses with their support- expected for next meeting.
Future working of NAG for Thame, Chinnor and Watlington
To improve the relevancy of the NAG to the three areas currently covered, a proposal has been developed and agreed by the NAG to split the current group, allowing a more local focus to be achieved by Thame, Chinnor and Watlington representatives.
In brief, the smaller NAG would meet monthly, two months out of three. The third month of the three would be a meeting for the Chairs of the three smaller NAGs, with invited representatives of the various Statutory bodies working in partnership with the NAG.
Subject to agreement with the Statutory bodies, this proposal will be adopted in the next two months- to make these groups more effective locally, a “recruitment drive” will be advertised to encourage local people to get involved in dealing with issues raised by their community.
M40 CHILTERNS ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP (M40CEG)
Three years ago, it was recognised that complaints and protests about the disturbance caused by the M40, however justified, would not achieve change in rural areas, because government processes and policies are biased in favour of urban populations. It would, therefore, be necessary to provide hard evidence to show that existing policies were wrong, and we had to bring that evidence to the attention of decision makers. Fortunately, we are not alone. In 2002, the EU published an Environmental Noise Directive (END). It required that member governments prepare National Noise Maps, including major highways.
When that Directive was issued, the M40CEG did not even exist. When Environmental Protection (UK) wrote to the Director General requesting a formal review of progress of the END in 2010, however, it was able to cite the M40CEG as a ‘proactive local group addressing its noise problems directly’. By implication, within the UK, the M40CEG is now seen to be a leading local environmental group campaigning for action on traffic noise.
A year ago, a major report, ‘Traffic Noise in Rural Areas’ by the Noise Association, exposed rural noise as a major issue. It was based on interviews with people who suffer from traffic noise around the country. The report drew heavily on the experience of M40CEG members. It concluded that: ‘Noise Policy should be ambitious. It should aim to ‘cleanup' country-side polluted by road noise, just as its rivers and estuaries have been successfully cleaned in recent decades.’ The study found that people living in otherwise quiet locations were much more annoyed by traffic noise than those living in areas where higher background noise was experienced.
The Sustainable Communities Act became law in 2007, making it possible for local communities to bring intractable issues directly to the attention of central government, through submissions made by their local authorities. Wycombe District Council, supported by SODC, undertook to raise the issue of ‘M40 Traffic Noise J3-J8’. The M40CEG accepted responsibility for providing the evidence to support the submission. This submission, the only one citing traffic noise, has been shortlisted.
To bring this effort to a successful conclusion, we need to demonstrate support at many levels. You can make a positive personal contribution simply by ensuring that your councillors and MPs know how you feel. All you have to do is write a letter.
Together we can make change happen!
Some thoughts on writing to your MP. A sympathetic Boris Johnson once advised the M40CEG that letters from individual constituents are important in helping MPs to gauge the real significance of local issues. Thirty independently drafted letters on a single subject would certainly be sufficient to get his attention. So - if the noise on the M40CEG disturbs you, why not write to John Howells, MP for Henley, House of Commons, London, SW1A OAA or email him at howelljm@parliament.uk (ideally with a copy to m40cc@btinternet.com ). BUT - if you use email you must include your name and postal address (to show that you are ‘a local’), otherwise it is likely to be ignored.
Your communication should be polite, brief and to the point (MPs get a lot of mail). The following template may be helpful. Tell him:
- Who you are and where you live, specifically in relation to the M40.
- What concerns you - noise, fumes, diverted traffic, etc
- How this affects you - keeps you awake, can’t open windows, dirt, etc
- That you are aware of the Sustainable Communities Act and that you support the initiative taken by Wycombe District Council in this context and the associated work being done by the M40CEG.
- That you would like him to promote your preferred option(s) - reduced speeds, restrictions on HGVs at night and/or week ends, provision of noise barriers, improved road surfaces to attenuate noise, etc. Before you write, you may find it helpful to have a look at our updated website at:
COMPOSTABLE CADDY BAGS UPDATE
The May edition of Grapevine (Issue 251) carried a story reflecting concerns raised by SODC over the sale of non-compostable plastic bags for use in food caddies. It stated, incorrectly, that a trader at Thame Market had been prosecuted in this context. It has since been learned that this was not the case. On investigation it was established that the trader concerned had bought the fake bags from a supplier in good faith and, once he had been made aware of the problem, the situation was resolved promptly and amicably; there was no prosecution and the trader is now on the District Council’s list of approved caddy bag suppliers. Any embarrassment caused is regretted.
Nevertheless, fake biodegradable bags may still be in circulation. The approved product carries the reference number, EN 13432, but this can, of course, be applied to illegal bags. The real test is in the texture (biodegradable bags are made of starch, not plastic) but you can be confident of your purchase if you obtain them from an approved stockist - see www.southoxon.gov.uk/foodwaste or call 03000 610 610 for further advice.
‘COME AND TALK HEALTH’ TO THE NHS
The NHS is launching a campaign under the slogan ‘Come and Talk Health’ which invites members of the public to participate in developing the health services that it wants. This may involve taking part in working groups, attending occasional workshops and generally becoming actively involved in an ongoing consultation process.
You can find out more at
www.oxfordshirepct.nhs.uk
or, if you have already decided that you would like to be involved, you can register your interest at https://consult.oxfordshirepct.nhs.uk or by ringing 01865 334641 or you can send an email to talking.health@oxfordshirepct.nhs.uk
RECENT LOCAL PLANNING APPLICATIONS
Entries in the LPC (Lewknor Parish Council) Comment column will normally be confined to one of four options: ‘Current’ (ie recommendation still pending), ‘Approve’, ‘Object’ or ‘NSV’ (No Strong Views); the latter is the most usual and is often amplified by specific observations and/or reservations. Entries in the SODC Status column will be ‘Current’, ‘Appeal’, ‘Withdrawn’, ‘Granted’ or ‘Refused’; all of which are self-explanatory. Further details of individual Planning Applications are available on-line, as follows. Open SODC’s Home Page here
In the box on the right, click on ‘Planning’. Then click on ‘view applications via the Planning Application Register’ and follow the instructions to find the specific application that you seek.
| Ref No | Remarks | LPC Comment | SODC Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| P09/E1296 | Oxford Lodge, London Rd II - extension and demolition | Appeal | Current |
| P10/E0085 | Moorcroft Barn, Weston Rd - extension & change of use. | Object | Refused |
| P10/E0439 | 27 Barley Close, Lewknor - erection of porch | NSV | Granted |
| P10/E0534 | Peel House, London Rd, Lewknor - replace extension & conservatory & erect garage. | NSV | Granted |
| P10/E0581/LB | Church Farm, Lewknor - demolition of cow shed | NSV | Current |
| P10/E0744 | Weston Rd Lewknor - newbuild 3-bed house | Object | Current |