Latest renovations
The latest village newsletter contains a detailed description of the work that went on during the last six months of 2025 to replace the roof of this famous Old Buckenham building. The Almshouses now stand out as a very attractive building on the edge of the village Green.
February minutes
The following notes were written by the blog editor from the draft minutes and so may contain information that is changed at a later date.
Old Buckenham Parish
Council met on Thursday 5 February at Old Buckenham Village Hall. Those present
were Councillors Naomi Bailey (Chair), Stan Burton, Lesley Evison, Steve Gowers,
Pete Twissell and Darren Butler. Apologies had been received from David Taylor and
Doug Irons who were unable to attend due to work commitments. Also in
attendance were Megan Elvin (Clerk) and District Councillor Steve Askew
together with three members of the public.
A minute silence was given
for Michael Bartlett who died in late January. He was an asset to the village
and will be greatly missed by all.
The minutes of the
meeting held on Thursday 8 January were agreed (5 in favour and 1 abstain)
Financial matters. The current bank accounts stood at Barclays Community Account £18,953.85, Lloyds Community Account £3,645.79 and Barclays Charity Account 4,117.90. Payments for approval included £112.95 to the community car drivers, £6048 to Broadland Trees for work on the Green, the Christmas Tree and allotment clearance, £882.02 on skip hire and £37.50 on hire of the Methodist Church. The total payments up to the end of January were £6,709.31 and this was approved (6 in favour).
Councillors and District
Councillors reports. Steve Askew said the pop up pantry is now going to be five-weekly
due to less people using it. Due to the new unitary Council, Breckland is
trying to pass on assets that are Breckland-owned such as the Attleborough car parks
to the area council. Norfolk County Council is trying to repair potholes as
quickly as they can. The preferred way to report them is to go on the NCC website
and report the issue through there. Postponement of the elections meant that
they were postponed last year to facilitate the new council and the mayor. Now
the mayor elections postponed to 2027 and the county elections have been
postponed as well to 2027.
Naomi Bailey has not
heard back from the contractor regarding Puddledock. Reported many pot-holes but
please report them as well if you see them. Welcome pack renewal is now in
process. The original is very outdated. Started work on new one and then all
the work was lost. Lesley Evison asked if the Welcome Pack is a necessity. The councillors
do not know who is moving in and who is moving out. Is it a priority to work
on? The groups in Old Buckenham have their own pages which people can utilise.
Once it’s finished, the information will become outdated again very quickly.
Perhaps something to add into the newsletter?
Steve Gower wanted to thank the Community Speed watch team for going out in January, completing two sessions a week and with good results. Pete Twissell reported that the bench around the tree at the top of Abbey Road to be replaced with a memorial plaque and he was asked to carry on with liaising with the family to get this sorted.
New planning applications.
Wash Farm, New Buckenham Road, NR17 1PW. Demolition of redundant adjoined
outbuildings to enable proposed single-story and two-story extension to
existing dwelling farmhouse (PL/2025/1022/HOU). There were no issues and
council voted to support (6 in favour).
3 Mill Cottages, Mill Road. Discharge of condition 4 on PL/2025/0167/FMIN. There were no issues and council voted to support (6 in favour).
Amended applications (for
information). Tree House, Fen Road. Discharge of condition 4 on
PL/2025/1627/HOU
Access on South-east side
of Abbey Road. 500m north-east of Chapel Green School Discharge of Conditions 4
& 5 on PP PL/2025/1053/FMIN
Albermarle House, The
Green. Pine Tree – Removal (PL/2026/0068/TCA)
E-Learning on planning
applications. Costs £17. If any councillors would like to carry out the
training, then this is okay. Breckland planning is not user friendly.
Green Working Committee. Woodchipper
is very useful bit of kit and there is a log book that people have to read and
complete before use. Risk assessments are required and this is non-negotiable. All
are required to do these for insurance purposes. It is stored by Stan Burton in
a locked area. Expenses for using woodchipper (fuel, oil, etc) to be reimbursed
by the Parish Council.
Stan Burton is to become
a member of the Committee as a Green Rights Holder and Darren Butler to
potentially step in as a Parish Council member. He will attend their next
meeting.
Ottomer Pond (ongoing).
The Clerk is still waiting for response from Water management team at NCC
regarding chasing the private land side of things.
Parking (ongoing). Have contacted
the High School and the Primary School regarding parking. High School has added
it into their weekly notice board but nothing received from Primary School.
Crown Road is full of pot holes as a result of the Green being eroded due to
school parking.
Solar Farm. Response
received from Solar Company answering questions that Doug Irons had and he is
currently looking through the response. Suggestions for ideas on what the
funding can be used towards are needed. The funding has to be solely for the community.
The Clerk to contact newsletter editor to ask villagers for suggestions to pass
on to the solar company. One potential use is for it to go toward the burial
ground.
Radar Tower update. Main contractor finished the construction of the tower and the installation of the communication cabin before Christmas. The activities associated with providing a net ecological benefit are now being progressed; this includes planting along the fence lines, bird-boxes, improvements to the existing pond on the Anglian Water site, etc. The project team are currently planning for the tower-top install of the radar parts and the associated radome which will protect the radar-parts from the elements. This will take around three weeks and expected to happen from mid-February. There will be a period of increased activity at the site during this time, including deliveries and crane operations. After the tower-top install the project will move into a testing a commissioning phase which is expected to take several months. This is mainly to check that the radar is functioning well and is able to deliver the higher quality rainfall data to feed into Met Office and Environment Agency products and services. The radar will be controlled and monitored remotely during this phase of the project, so no anticipated significant increased activity on and around the site. Will use this time to check noise levels to make sure that they are within the constraint stipulated in the planning permission and to discuss and progress visual screening with the occupants of Waterworks House. Expect to close the project in the summer once the testing and commissioning has been completed.
Community Car Scheme. Still
waiting for a councillor to take on this position. The councillor that has been
asked has not been present in the meeting to discuss. The Clerk and RFO to
organise applying for the funding this month. DBS checks need to be done for
everyone. Once new paperwork in place a plea for more volunteers will be made.
Drainage and embankment
on Hargham Road/Post Office Road. Clerk to compose a letter out to the owners. Posts
to go in to prevent cars from driving over the new drain.
Annual Parish Meeting.
This was fixed for Saturday 13 June from 10am to noon.
Assertion 10. The
Government have brought out the requirement for Council’s to conform to the new
Assertion 10. This requires the council to have one generic email address on a
council-owned domain. They will eventually require Councillors to have a
council-owned domain email as well. This is not currently a requirement. Gmail
accounts are not allowed as they are not secure. Same with the website. This
needs to be a council owned domain. They would prefer Gov.UK addresses but this
is not a requirement.
The Clerk email
(clerk@oldbuckpc.co.uk) and the website (https://oldbuckpc.co.uk/) are okay as
we own this domain. Should we wish to switch to a Gov.uk address, NALC offer
the following service: fully .gov.uk email service. The cost is £106+VAT per
year. This will provide a .gov.uk domain name and an unlimited number of 10GB
email accounts. No need to go for this yet if we conform to the current
guidelines. An IT policy will be issued in March’s meeting to conform to the
final part of Assertion 10.
Approve an Internal
Auditor. List of internal auditors have not yet been provided by NALC.
Costs for Fen Street speed limit change. The study lists TRO costs at £3000 and this will be legal fees from Nplaw and advert costs and design fee to carry out the consultation. The remaining £5500 will be the works costs, a bit of the designers’ fee to pull the contract documents together, so approx. £4000 in materials and labour and traffic management with the remaining £1500 being fees for the designer and contractor fee. Steve Askew would put 50% of the costs towards it out of his councillor funding. Old Buckenham Parish Council would need to fund the remaining 50%. Need to ask the residents how much they would be willing to put in and then decide.
Repairs
to the Green. David Tranmer has now been informed that the repairs will be
carried out by professionals and invoiced to him. The ground needs rotavating
and top-soiled along with the seeds. Still waiting for quotes for the repairs.
Volunteer Meet and Greet
Day. Sixteen organisations have expressed an interest to come. Parish Council
to attend with information about the Council and requests for volunteers. Event
will be on Saturday 25 April from 10am to 12.30pm.
Resurface outside Village
Shop. Steve Gower to provide details of some companies for Clerk to get quotes
from.
Footpaths around village.
Steve Gower still waiting for full quotes for March. There is funding that is
now being issued to contribute to footpaths and the Clerk to look into this
funding.
Bike ramps. Naomi Bailey
has been asked if some bike ramps can be installed in Prince Harry’s Wood. Not
had anything further about it with a plan from the resident. Should the Council
provide this – the maintenance costs would come down to the parish council, a
councillor would need to be responsible for the upkeep. Unless more information
comes to light it is not feasible at the moment.
Public participation. The
question was asked whether the website could have a page for useful links like
bus time tables, local doctors, etc? After the meeting in April the Council should
have an up-to-date list of village organisations.
Next agenda. This is
expected to include Crown Road parking and repairs, Ottomer Pond, parking in
general, Green Working Committee, repairs to the Green, volunteer Meet &
Greet day, Solar Farm and Community Cars.
Exclusion of the press
and public. The Council is invited to resolve that, in accordance with Section
1(2) of the Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings) Act 1960, the press and
public be excluded from the meeting for the discussion of a request regarding
village signage, on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of
sensitive information and relates to the personal circumstances of individuals.
[Closed Session] Discussion of Signage Sensitivity. The signs are the
responsibility of the Council. At the moment, one family wishing for the signs
to be removed is not a reason to remove the signs. The proposal was rejected (6
in favour).
The next Parish Council
meeting will be on Thursday 5 March in Old Buckenham Village Hall and starting at
7.30pm.
Mike Bartlett's life
The following post is based on the eulogy given by his daughter Julie at the celebration of his life.
The
apple of his parents’ eyes however he had a rebellious side (no surprise to
many of you) and decided to leave school before he should have done and got
himself a job without his parents knowing. This was not well received. He
applied for an auditors job at J. Sainsbury in London which he duly got and his
career with this company flourished. After a few years, a promotion was on the
cards but this meant a move to Norfolk. Mike didn’t hesitate, took the
opportunity and hit the jackpot as he met his future wife Pauline there and they
never looked back.
Mike
and Pauline were married in October 1963 and lived initially in Forncett End
followed by Fordham in Cambridgeshire. Here four years later his daughter Julie
was born. Pauline went into labour and Mike went off to referee a football
match with the midwife telling him that they could feel the football boots. So
off he went with a smile on his face only to return to find a bundle of pink
waiting for him. Never to be defeated, he brought Julie up to kick a ball and to
go to football matches with him. He never did get a boy but two granddaughters
and two great-granddaughters.
They
returned to Norfolk again with his job in 1970 and lived in Kenninghall, (a
house on the site of the Egg Packing Station where he worked) and then moved
into their own house in Old Buckenham.
Old
Buckenham was always a special village to Mike and he became instrumental in
building the village hall which was opened in 1978. He spent years fundraising,
organising village fetes, dances, bingo, etc. Julie fondly remembers his
suggestion that in the school summer holidays she should knock on every door in
the village and sell raffle tickets. For every book she sold he would give her
commission. This encouraged Julie and gave her the foundations to emulate his
work ethic. A Christian himself, he also worked tirelessly to raise money for
the village church overseeing the overhaul of the tower along with raising
significant monies for a new thatched roof and ensuring that every grant was
applied for. Mike was an instigator of the Candlelight Christmas Eve service in
All Saints and for many a year it was standing room only for those for this was
the beginning of their Christmas. He was also chairman of the trustees for the
Almshouses in the village and although not on the parish council he attended
many of their meetings and was not backwards in coming forward if he felt that
something should be said.
After
promotion with the then Sainsbury Spillers, the company was taken over by
Dalgety Foods which saw a move to the chicken division at Bury St Edmunds. This
factory was then acquired by the Padley Group and Mike was made redundant and
had to re-think his career path. The options were to re-locate to Aylesbury or
to work for himself which he duly did by buying the Fresh & Frozen Centre
in Attleborough. He turned this business around and after five years sold it and
just concentrated on his egg business which he had started with Pauline some
year’s previously. Mike continued to do this until semi-retirement came along
in 2000.
Never
being one for not doing something, Mike threw himself into raising money for the
St Martins Homeless Charity. He once said his grandfather could not walk past a
homeless person without giving them some money. It all started for him with
standing at a supermarket entrance with a collecting bucket over the Christmas
period whilst also visiting local business for donations and in return their
name would be in the Christmas Eve Service sheet at the village church. Always
one to spot an opportunity he then started to collect from supermarkets and garden
centres all year round, standing in both cold and hot weather. He did have his
favourites who in the depth of winter would bring him out a cup of coffee! His
tenacity clearly paid off and he raised tens of thousands of pounds for St
Martins. In 2025 a new building was opened and named after him, not that he
understood this as his illness had started to impact his ability to understand
what was going on around him.
One
of the most proud moments and memories that the family have of Mike is
receiving an MBE from the then Prince Charles in 2006. You could take three
guests so Pauline, Olivia and Julie proudly attended. When the official letter first
arrived from the Palace, Mike was completely taken aback and typically did not
want to accept it as he genuinely felt that there were others more deserving
than him. Along with those who had nominated him, family members persuaded him
otherwise.
Over
the last few years thing started to change for Mike and his ability to drive
his white egg van caused great concern. Reluctantly he went off for a driving
assessment and it was no surprise to others that he failed. Mike wanted to take
it again but others knew this would not be possible. Eventually Mike agreed and
Julie held his driving licence and van keys . It was about this time when sadly
he had to stop going to Carrow Road every other week. His memory and balance
were deteriorating and after many months of Pauline looking after him he went
into the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital where he spent many weeks
followed by three more weeks in Odgen Court in Wymondham. Returning home it was
clear that the care that he now needed far exceeded what could be offered at
home and with great trepidation from his family he went into The Beeches in
East Harling. He did not really know where he was but was happy and well cared
for which was a great comfort. Mike then had a chest infection and was taken to
West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds which was where he sadly passed away
on Wednesday 28 January this year. His family took enormous comfort in knowing
that he did not suffer and passed away peacefully.
An
incredible person, an incredible life and an inspiration not only to his family
but those who were lucky enough to know him and to those who didn’t know him
but have benefitted from his tireless work.
Another bin for you to use
The Village Hall car park now has a big new clothes bin. Because villagers used to often fill up the existing bin, there is now another one for you to fill up as well. There are still three recycling bins for your glass so please make use of all of them and make a little money to help the Village Hall.
