Dear All
First and foremost, Happy New Year to you.
Planning for the next financial year, the Parish Council have set the Precept which shows a 0.6% saving on a Band D property against this year’s figures. This forms part of the overall Council Tax charges which will be implemented by the Borough Council from April 2022. We are working hard to ensure improvements to the village continue, to this end we have agreed Paul Goodall will remain with us for another year undertaking the grounds maintenance and grass cutting works.
Cllr Hurst has planted another 1,000 Crocus in the village, this time on the wild green. This is the continuation of Stone Rotary Club’s participation to raise awareness of the fight to free the world of polio. The continuation of the planting will see increasing pockets of purple flowers appearing around the village, well done Chris.
We note the concern of villagers regarding the future of the Wedgwood College Arboretum, the PC are monitoring the situation closely and are liaising with the Borough Council and the representatives of the owners. Borough Councillor Gareth Jones is also aware of the situation and is making representations to the Borough. We will endeavour to keep the village up to date on this issue.
We have also noted the yarn bombing on the green, the creativeness of our residents knows no bounds. It’s lovely to see the children are also using their imagination to create their own play experiences. We are still waiting to hear from the Borough with regards to releasing the land off Meadow Road for a Play Area, we will keep you updated on this.
Cllr Julia Dando and Cllr Dan Bentley have been working hard on resolving the pothole issue on Lakewood Drive. The County Council believe they have located documentation which may prove useful. Hopefully we’ll see a resolution to this issue sooner rather than later.
Volunteers continue to work with the Canal & River Trust to make improvements to the towpath, they are hoping to secure funding to reinstate trees along part of the hedge line. The Clerk publishes the volunteer dates on the Parish Council Facebook page if you are interested in taking part.
The Parish Council are working hard on putting together the programme for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee weekend. The marquee has been booked and events have started to be scheduled. The main events will be on the 4th and 5th June on the Village Green. There is a great opportunity for all organisations and volunteers within the village to get involved, please contact Karen, the Parish Clerk to register your interest barlastonparishclerk@gmail.com.
The School have deferred the walking bus scheme until March 2022 due to COVID-19 and bad weather conditions, as soon as we have an update on when this will commence we will let you know. It is noted that they have installed a new fence along the hedge line at the back of the Village Hall car park which blocks off the access to the School.
It is with sad news that we hear the coffee morning is closing its doors at the Methodist Church, it has been in existence for 21 years in various guises. The Parish Council would like to thank all those who have volunteered over the years, they provided a vital service in offering refreshments and a chance to chat and get to know your neighbours, they also raised much needed funds for local charities. It will be sadly missed by many.
Paul Fisher
Chairman, Barlaston Parish Council