It has been a year with quite a few changes……………
Peter Quarendon decided to resign as a Councillor but has joined the Neighbourhood Plan group. We welcomed Cllr Michael Stubbs who was co-opted during the year. After 4 years of serving on the Council, Cllr Sally Yalden did not seek re-election and neither did Carole Renvoize who has served for 17 years. I would like to thank all the Councillors for their work this year especially Carole for her huge contribution to our village over so many years. Sally was successful in the election as Borough Councillor for Ampfield and Braishfield taking over from Cllr Martin Hatley who after 25 years of service did not seek re-election. We thank Martin for his significant contribution to the Council and our village, and we wish Sally every success. Cllr Alan Dowden continues to represent Valley Park and Hampshire County Council and is a great help when we need a contact point.
Special thanks to Jane as Clerk who is a real asset to the Council. She has obtained her CILCA qualification and now works 10 hours a week.
The Council and the Village
We have many volunteers who support and have contributed to the success of working groups and social occasions.
Royal events
For our late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June, I represented the Council at the TVBC Civic Service in Romsey Abbey. Braishfield celebrated by having a service in All Saints’ Church, and a party on the Recreation Ground on Sunday 5 June 2022 organised by the BVA, Social Contact Chair and the Parish Council.
On 15 March 2023, pupils from Braishfield School and Councillor Renvoize took part in the nationwide initiative to plant trees as part of the Queen’s Green Canopy in honour of the late Queen, and a field maple donated by Hillier Nurseries was planted in the Recreation Ground.
Sadly, Queen Elizabeth II died on 8 September. A letter of condolence was sent to King Charles III which was acknowledged by him from Buckingham Palace.
As a village we celebrated the King’s Coronation on 7 May with a Service in the Village Hall followed by The Coronation Big Lunch.
Remembrance commemorations
In November we joined again with All Saints’ Church and the United Reformed Church for the Service of Remembrance at the War Memorial with the event being organised by All Saints and the Council. We were pleased to have the Scouts, Guides, and Brownies represented.
The Remembrance Day commemorations were led by the Parish Council.
Carols on the Rec
In December, we organised Carols on the Rec with All Saints’ church and the support of the Village Hall and The Pantry. We were pleased to have over 150 people attending with the Chandlers Ford BB Brass Band playing and the Happy Fryer serving fish and chips.
The sum of £307 was donated to Action for Children.
Flags
We are very grateful to Tim Howkins and Mike Knowles for raising and lowering the flags as agreed by the Council.
Communications
The Council website is the main communication point where all the latest information can be found. This not only includes meeting agendas and minutes but links to news, emergency numbers, policies and the Village Design Statement (VDS).
We work together with the Braishfield Village Association to share information in the Braishfield Village News and the Network, and at times Facebook.
Grants/ Contributions
We were very pleased to receive grants from:
Braishfield Village Association Noticeboards £1000.00
HCC Play area £500.00
TVBC Play area £22500.00
SSE Resilience £9687.80
Cllr Martin Hatley VDS Printing £200.00
In addition, we received £1500.53 from those who donated to the Play Area through Crowdfunding.
The Parish Council awarded grants/ contributions to:
Romsey Festival £50
HCC for church directional sign £250 (shared cost with All Saints’ Church)
All Saints’ Church £1200 – church clock – approved in the year; paid 2023/24 (other church grant for Burial Ground of £619.02 was not approved till April)
Planning
The Council continues to have a planning committee under the chairmanship of Cllr Richard Brazier who also continues to lead on the allocation of s106/ CIL money. We continue with site visits and review applications for both current and retrospective applications in line with the revised VDS which was adopted by TVBC in March 2022. In the last year we reviewed circa 50 applications.
The VDS is online and for the benefit of all villagers we are arranging for copies to be delivered to every household.
We again thank Jimmy Chestnutt and his team for all the work they have done for the benefit of the village.
In November 2021, a Neighbourhood Plan presentation was given by Sarah Hughes, TVBC to the Council and parishioners.
In June, we invited all residents to say whether or not they wished the Council to proceed with a Neighbourhood Plan. The consensus was that we should proceed and we are pleased to have Mark Sennitt as the Chairman of this group together with other volunteers. They are now at a stage where they require the views of parishioners to help inform the next steps in developing this Plan.
Roads, Highways, Footpaths and Notice Boards
We have ongoing concerns regarding the state of the roads and we ask that all residents report these problems to HCC. We are trying to establish what plans are in place for resurfacing, dealing with potholes and footpath finger posts which need to be repaired. We have recently made contact with the right people and will apply for funding for three gates on the Monarch’s Way and the Malthouse.
As a result of the data collected during the traffic speed monitoring exercise, it was decided to invest in a movable speed signage system that is located at strategic points in the Village. This has been in place since August/ October 2022 and the results will be used to inform future action.
The Parish Council’s large footpath map and flyers have encouraged walkers and in addition there are two groups set up by TVBC who regularly walk in Braishfield.
The refurbished Notice Boards are being regularly inspected and maintained.
Lengthsman Scheme
This scheme provides us with access to a handyman who can undertake minor tasks under our direction. This scheme continues to work well.
Climate Change
The group was set up working alongside the Council with regular meetings being held with other groups in the village and community.
The group continues to take forward litter picks, wildflower planting and the need for more dog bins.
Community Resilience
The emergency planning group includes the Parish Council and other volunteers from the wider community. Its focus is to respond to any emergency in the village whether caused by extreme weather or by failures of infrastructure. We have been attending Resilience meetings organised by TVBC which provide for excellent up to date information from various sources including SSE. We have been awarded another grant which we are ensuring meets the requirements of the village in the event of any incident which requires the plan to be invoked.
Recreation Ground
The Recreation Ground is one of the major responsibilities of the Council as sole trustee. We have continued to ensure that the trees, equipment and the car park are kept to a high standard thus satisfying health and safety regulations.
On 16 July we officially opened the Play Area after having received a grant from the Community Asset Fund and other contributions for the replacement of equipment and matting.
A new safety sign for the play area and three new signs for the Recreation Ground provide a reminder of guidelines for use of the Recreation Ground and also emphasise the Parish Council’s role as sole trustee.
The Football Lease has been finalised and the income is now on stream; £827.00 has been paid for earlier years’ dues.
The car park repairs are ongoing with the Council’s aim of resurfacing the car park and replacing the fencing in the near future.
War Memorial
The Council is also sole trustee for the War Memorial and at the present time we have a surveyor regularly monitoring the movement of the memorial.
To sum up, there has been a lot going on in Braishfield and I would again like to express my thanks to everyone who has given of their time and support.
Cllr Jane Bennett
Chairman, Braishfield Parish Council