Old Buckenham village newsletter for June

More village stuff to read
The latest village newsletter has been put around in all the normal places and it looks like this:

Resolutions at Old Buckenham

Busy times ahead for Women's Institute
At their May meeting Old Buckenham WI discuss and vote on the resolutions being put forward at the national Annual Meeting to be held in Liverpool in June. Two members, Rosemary Pratt and Kate Lloyd, had thoroughly researched their subjects and gave members much information to consider before voting took place.
Rosemary dealt with the resolution about alleviating loneliness. The resolution calls on every Womens Institute to work alongside health and social care providers and their local community to raise awareness of the causes and impact of loneliness. Chronic loneliness affects people from all social groups but some are more prone to it than others, such as ethnic minorities, carers, new mums and those over 65 years of age. Those who are lonely are more likely to suffer from depression and to develop dementia. There is potential for WIs to work locally or within their WI to tackle loneliness and remove the stigma attached to it.
The second resolution was presented by Kate Lloyd and this concerns keeping microplastic out of our oceans. These include fibres that are shed from synthetic clothing with every wash and are major contributors to microplastic contamination of the oceans. The WI are calling on the Government and industry to research and develop innovative solutions to this problem. Plastic fragments end up in the sea and in the wider environment and then of course into the food chain. This resolution is in keeping with the WI’s long standing concern for sustainable marine environments. Members voted in favour of both resolutions and all will be looking forward to the local delegate’s report back next month.
After the seriousness of the discussions, members were pleased to welcome Heather Ormerod and one of her pupils who came to talk about and demonstrate the benefits of Pilates.
There is a busy summer ahead  – there is Old Buckenham WI's 50th Anniversary Garden Party at 1 Mill Cottages on Saturday 1 July from 3pm (this is an open event – so why not come along and join in that afternoon?) and then the following Saturday 8 July it is the Village Fete. They are also busy preparing for the Village Produce Show on Sunday 10 September (copies of the schedule are included with the June village newsletter).
At the meeting on Thursday 22 June, Dan Bradbury will be talking on "Saving Habitats -  Saving Species.
Their July meeting is on Thursday 27 July when the speaker will be Frances Middleton who will talk about Fairtrade Holidays.

Sun shines on Old Buckenham

Good for the pubs
With a lovely sunny afternoon there were plenty of people sitting having a drink outside the Ox & Plough while over the other side of the Green at the Gamekeeper 'Tone' was kept busy at the barbecue and Phin enjoyed his ribs with special sauce.

Old Buckenham Parish Council meeting

Annual Parish Council meeting

These notes have been written from the draft minutes by the blog editor and so may contain information that is amended at a later date.
The meeting was held on Thursday 4 May in the Church Rooms, Old Buckenham.
Councillors present were Adrian Joel, Rona Boggia, Terry Cracknell, Ben Devlin, Sarah Hornbrook, Steve Milner and Andy Nicholls as well as the parish clerk Hilary Clutten. Ten members of the public also attended.
Election of Chairman. Nominations were requested for the chairmanship of the Parish Council for 2017/18. Members of the Parish Council proposed and seconded the appointment of Adrian Joel as Chairman and as there were no other nominations he was duly appointed Chairman.
Election of Vice Chairman. Jonathan Kemp had been unable to attend the meeting and it was agreed to elect someone to this position at the next Parish Council meeting.
Co-opting new parish councillors. Four candidates had put themselves forward for the three vacancies. They were asked to say a few words about themselves and the Parish Council then held a secret ballot in accordance with the resolution passed at last month’s meeting. The voting papers were verified and Old Buckenham residents Phil Little, Susan Brown and Jonathan Hicks were duly elected as parish councillors and each was given an information pack which included the Register of Interest form and the latest edition of the Good Councillor Guide.
Minutes of the April Council meeting. These were agreed as a true and accurate record of the meeting.
Matters arising from these minutes. Doe Lane speeding has not been progressed due to public views on this matter. It was suggested the subject was added to the next agenda for further consideration. The Parochial Church Council has launched a ‘Raise the Roof’ campaign to repair its thatched roof. There has been no response from NCC on the Alston Freedom of Information request.
Public participation in relation to agenda items.
The state of sign on Abbey Road to be reported to NCC Highways.The trees on the Green are being surveyed free of charge. It was noted that the school buses were parking on Abbey Road and not on the school site – agreed to put this on next agenda for discussion.

Probation Service Community Work also to be put on the agenda next month.

There  had been a complaint about a planning application for a part one-storey and two-storey house that was now all two-storey.
The Head of Chapel Road School is to reply to a letter from George Freeman MP and will email a copy to all those involved with the safety crossing issue. The PCC did not get a letter of support from the Head of Chapel Road School for its Lottery Grant proposal.
 The Clerk has found version 9 of the agreement for the Village Hall lease of the land that the Parish Council rents.but has not yet been able to track down a signed copy. It was reported that the lease contained a repairing clause; this needs to be checked as the fencing needs repair.

The owner of the Homestead explained the reason why he wanted to move into a single storey dwelling and reported that he had contacted his neighbours about his planning application and had received two letters of support.
Sarah Dye reported on the Green Working Party’s five year plan and John Fernihough reported on some of the work that was being requested as shown on the evening’s agenda. A member of the public commented that the 5 Year Plan made no reference to income from the Green but at the present time it is not possible to quantify any fixed income other than what the Green Right Proprietors will hand over. A replacement resident is needed on the Working Party due to the resignation of Ray Bayfield. The mowing of the Green will be carried out free of charge by a local farmer. The mole catching had not been successful due in part to delays by the company appointed. No further work will be carried out and no costs will be invoiced to the Parish Council. There had also been opposition from some residents.
A licence is required to site the new bins on the Green so that they can be emptied by Breckland Council, the Clerk has this in hand. Two bins are being sponsored for their full cost by Ray Bayfield and Marina Beadnell. The Six Villages Newsletter has offered to sponsor another two bins for their full cost.
The sale of slices of the fallen walnut tree raised £105 and this has been donated to the Parish Council for the Green. Andy Nicholls has obtained sponsorship for tidying up another pond.
It has not been possible to obtain any signs about keeping dogs on leads and in any case this could not be enforced unless the Green was designated a Public Space Protection Area. There was consideration of having signs that said ‘dogs should be kept under control’. Dogs walking to heel is ok but not dogs being 'turfed’ out of cars and left to run around on their own. A resident criticised the Parish Council for, in his view, not being supportive enough financially to the Village Hall. Sarah Dye and John Fernihough were thanked for their work on the Green.
Planning applications. Homestead, The Green. Erection of a new single storey dwelling and parking for existing dwelling. Sarah Hornbrook exhibited the application drawings and the Council, with one abstention ,resolved to support this application.
Planning decisions. 25 Hargham Road. Erection of single storey rear extension. This had been approved by Breckland Council.
Anonymous planning communications. An anonymous letter had been sent to all the parish councillors and the Clerk relating to past planning applications of one of the parish councillors. It was proposed that the Parish Council spends no time discussing the anonymous letter, this was seconded and agreed. The Parish Council agreed that the parish councillor in question did not need to justify the decisions made by Breckland Council in a parish council meeting and also agreed to send a copy of the letter to Breckland Planning Department.
Financial matters. The Clerk had distributed a financial report. The Santander account had finally been closed and the balance paid into the Barclays account. The Parish Council’s current insurers, Zurich, had provided a renewal quote of £1,181.08 for a single year, and £1,068.57 per year for a three year renewal. The Clerk had obtained another insurance quotation from brokers Norris and Fisher for £569.77 for Aegis Insurance. Cover is virtually identical on both policies although the Aegis policy requires that the play equipment is checked weekly for which records will need to be kept. The Council resolved to accept the quotation from Norris and Fisher for £569.77.
District Councillor’s report. The Chairman and Sarah Hornbrook had attended the Town and Parish Council meeting held at Attleborough Town Hall in April. The Chairman reported that the presentation was very informative and he had obtained a copy information pack for distribution copies to the other councillors. He also suggested that a talk on planning was organised for the parish councillors, perhaps later in the year at a separate meeting?
Parish Councillors’ reports. Steve Milner reported that ‘Lion’ was the next film to be shown at the Village Hall. Jonathan Hicks reported that lorries had been seen breaking the weight limit on Hargham Road and that he has taken down some licence plate numbers and will forward the information he has so that the parish council can write to Highways Department with proof of the weight limit violations and also contact the police. It is hoped that Morgan Sindall will flatten the old BMX track and the Scouts seem to have given up with their plan for placing a container behind the Village Hall on land leased by the Parish Council. Terry Cracknell announced that he would be resigning from the Parish Council on the following day and he was thanked for his contributions to the Parish Council’s work and the village. There is a query about who actually owns the footpath at the Village Hall that Norfolk County Council wants to upgrade for the use of the new school. The County Council would like the Parish Council to arrange to have the work done for which it will give a grant; this is to save Norfolk County Council applying for planning permission which the Parish Council already has. It was agreed to discuss this at the next Parish Council meeting as wanting the help of the Parish Council in this way could be a good bargaining position in relation to getting a safety crossing.
Ron Brewer would like to arrange for the planting of spring bulbs where the 30mph sign has been relocated at the entrance to the village; agreed to discuss this next month as permission is required from Norfolk County Council to plant the bulbs in the highway verge and there is a request for the Parish Council to pay for the bulbs.
The broadband provider is trying to find a new source of power to the new box. The next box will be located at Ragmere and there will be other boxes too, hopefully before 2020 as that is when the funding ends.
The son of a village resident has carried out some litter picking on the Recreation Area with the Chairman as part of a school community project. They removed nearly four bags of rubbish from the area and the Clerk was asked to write a letter of thanks to the Eduardo Morrelli.
Old Buckenham Neighbourhood Plan. Adrian Joel and Sarah Hornbrook intend to visit Susan Heinrich at Breckland Council to obtain further advice on the Neighbourhood Plan production. The Parish Council needs to consider whether or not it wants to pursue this project in the short or long term. Village resident Tim Bornett has organised his own Neighbourhood Plan meeting but this is not being funded by the Parish Council. The production of a Neighbourhood Plan is a lot of work but it is an important project and needs large resources, there are grants available from Breckland Council and others of potentially £13,500. Sarah Hornbrook explained the significance of Local Plans for the benefit of the new parish councillors and how an Old Buckenham Plan would specifically relate to planning and associated issues in Old Buckenham. Also, that they are legal documents that have to go through a special process. The Parish Council needs to consider if it wants to register its interest with Breckland Council in producing a Neighbourhood Plan as it hasn’t yet registered a plan area. The Council resolved to proceed to registering the plan area with Breckland Council and agreed to seek more volunteers from the village.
Play Area. The grant application to the Norfolk Communities Foundation should go to the Breckland Cabinet for consideration at the end of May so there is hope that the work might be done by the school summer holidays. Jonathan Hicks agreed to carry out a weekly inspection of the play area which is part of the terms of the Council’s new insurance provider. He also requested that the cutting equipment be serviced and it was agreed to discuss this at the next Parish Council meeting.
Recreation Area. Stuart Barker has provided a quotation for cutting the grass on the Recreation Area. The charge is £90 per cut and £12 per hour for clearing litter from the grass before cutting. There was also a quote for levelling out and seeding the old BMX track but this was not discussed as Morgan Sindall have agreed to do most of this work. The Council agreed to accept the quotation from Stuart Barker. It was agreed to ask him for a quote to remove the old litter bin. The Council agreed to return the picnic tables to the Recreation Area after the grass had been cut.
Highway matters. Steve Milner needs a copy of the Highways Application Form for planting in the roadside verge for the replacement walnut tree.
The Green.The Council resolved to purchase of multi-use green bins
at a maximum cost of £168.57 each plus VAT. The Council also resolved to repair the potholes in front of the Gamekeeper at a maximum cost of £600 plus VAT. It has only been possible to obtain one quotation for the work, £600 plus VAT. The new tenant of the Gamekeeper is willing to donate a third of the cost and says that Enterprise Inns will probably contribute a third of the cost too. The Council resolved to repair the land in front of the village shop at a maximum cost of £680 excluding VAT subject to receiving two written quotations in the Parish Council’s name and a final invoice in the Parish Council’s name. Steve Milner offered a donation to the Parish Council of £105 for this work being the money received from selling slices of the walnut tree that had fallen down at Stacksford during the storm earlier this year. The Council resolved to carry out work grading of the edges of the pond opposite the shop and to dig it out at a maximum cost of £1,150 plus VAT subject to the Clerk receiving two written quotations. The Council also agreed to approve voluntary work on the Green by Terry Cracknell and Ray Bayfield at the volunteers’ own expense.
Ben Devlin is still willing to cut the grass in front of the Ox and Plough where the picnic tables are placed and the bikes parked once a week, free of charge. The Council would charge the Ox and Plough £80 per annum for the placing of the picnic benches on the Green in front of the Ox and Plough during the summer months and accept donations from the Ox and Plough for bike parking on the Green.
The tenant of the Ox and Plough has a booking for a wedding on the Green on Saturday 29 July. The couple do not live in Old Buckenham so the Council resolved to charge £150 for the placing of any marquee on the Green with the proviso that should the hirer be an Old Buckenham resident then he/she could apply to the Parish Council to have the charge reduced.
The repairs to the village noticeboard outside the village shop are anticipated to cost £500 and the Council agreed to pay up to £250 towards the cost of repairing the noticeboard. Ben Devlin said that he could give Alison Frank details of some cheaper noticeboards in which case it may not be necessary to use the whole £250 granted for the work.
There was no further news on the telephone box or the consideration of a mobile phone mast in the village:
Next meeting. Items for discussion at the June Parish Council meeting are expected to include the Green, the telephone box, Chapel Green School, the Neighbourhood Plan, bulb planting, the Recreation Area, the Village Hall footpath, servicing of grass cutting equipment, formation of Parish Council Working Parties and committee appointments, Doe Lane speeding, election of the Vice Chair, the village noticeboard, bus parking on Abbey Road, the Probation Service community work and dog signs for the Green.
The next Parish Council meeting will be on Thursday 1 June in the Village Hall, Old Buckenham.

Old Buckenham road works

Restricted access to Harlingwood Lane
There is work going on near the junction of Harlingwood Lane and the B1077 during most of the coming week. Details are on the sign but the official notice says access to properties is still possible.

See the work of Old Buckenham photographers

Photos by local people
During next weekend, why not take the opportunity to go along to the village next door to enjoy the visual stimulation of photographs on a wide range of subjects. Some will even have been taken by people from Old Buckenham.
Entrance is free and refreshments are available too.

Old Buckenham pub reopens its doors

A not very dry run?
Tony and Jennie Mann decided to have a quiet opening of their pub in Old Buckenham. They are still trying to get everything fixed in the kitchen so the 'dry run' was organised this evening so that the locals could come in and say hallo.
The opening time was advertised as 5.30pm and at least one couple were anxiously waiting outside as the last seconds ticked away. They were keen to be first across the threshold  so that they could claim their favourite seats alongside the bar.

Soon the bar area filled up and Tony was kept very busy dispensing drinks of all kinds to a crowd that expanded into the other rooms and even into the pub garden as the rain had finally stopped.

They should be open again at 11am tomorrow if you want to pop in for a drink of some kind and to say hallo to our new publicans.

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Arrangements in Old Buckenham

Breckland Flower and Garden Club
The demonstrator at the May meeting was Vicki Hurse with a set of arrangements with the title “That's not what it’s for” as she included various containers and everyday household objects.
Vicki talked of her family background with a grandfather who was a gardener at a hall and her mother who was also a keen gardener. She went to work at a town hall and was arranging flowers for events and in the Register Office. Then, when she had been to college and trained as a florist, she had a florist shop with her husband.

Her designs included one with a garden fork and spade using red roses, foliage and also red peppers and red apples. Another used a toilet roll holder which had been given a face lift with kitchen colanders. A modern line design was made using a cardigan from a charity shop that had been cut up and placed over two upturned black flower buckets. The fourth was a lime green plaited shopping bag inside a raised container and including variegated hosta, purple spray carnations and pink stocks. The next design involved a vegetable rack with rosemary, fatsia and lilac foliage. The final design was a homemade container using wire, gaffer tape and glued on jigsaw pieces using various flowers including lonicerea, bergenia, eleagnus, gold roses and two stems of cymbidiam orchid.
The Club competition was for 'Using an unusual container' and had entries including a china bed pan, a pork pie mould, a garden sieve and a brass pan. The winner was Jean Carnwell with her pork pie mould all done with garden flowers including scented roses and foliage.
At the June meeting Moira Neville will be the demonstrator with her title of 'Secondhand rose'. Contact the chairman Christine on 01953 454528 for further details.

Latest from Old Buckenham WI

Royalty and fashion

Old Buckenham WI enjoyed two meetings recently. The first was the Group Meeting when members meet with other WIs in the area. The speaker was David Reeves and his subject was “Protecting the Royals”. Now retired, he had been responsible for the security and well being of the Royal Family at Sandringham for twelve years and he regaled us with some amusing tales.
At the regular monthly meeting the speaker was Kathy Denton who told members of her with time a London fashion house. She joined Lachasse at the age of 16 at a wage of £5.10.0 per week. She was trained to tailor high-class jackets and she demonstrated the intricacies involved in her work. Lachasse was a top London Fashion House and made clothes for the rich and the famous, including Barbara Cartland who loved her pink outfits. Many of the outfits to be seen in the Royal Enclosure at Ascot and other race courses were made by this company. The premises were situated in Berkely Square and the company finally closed its doors in 2007.
On Thursday 25 May their meeting will discus the national resolutions and the following meeting will be held on Thursday 22 June when the speaker will be Dan Bradbury talking about “Saving Habitats – Saving Species”.
Old Buckenham WI are looking forward to celebrating their 50th anniversary in 2017. As part of the celebrations, they are holding a Garden Party at the home of Barbara and John Frost, 1 Mill Road, Old Buckenham on Saturday 1 July from 3pm to 5pm. Entrance is £5 to include a special afternoon tea. All are welcome – this event is open to all.

Re-awakening in Old Buckenham

Gamekeeper to come out of hibernation
Friday should be a busy day in Old Buckenham.

Latest news from Facebook
Well our friends we are nearly there and we have to say not without it's challenges. This is just to apologizes for the lack of communication but this is the first time we have had any internet since we have been here. This is in part an issue with BT and some in house wiring but all is well now. We will be going ahead with our soft opening on Friday as promised, and we have some remarkable ales from you to try. Things will be very much experimental as this old building (wonderful old building) has thrown up some issues most of which have been added in recent years. One of these is the lack of hot water which has resulted in us getting the kitchen ready for service, so our opening will just have to be a wet one for the time being. We will have some nibbles for you to try but sorry to say we are not ready to take bookings just yet.

Lucilla came to Old Buckenham

Story of the Battle Area
There were more people than usual at the May meeting of the Old Buckenham Social and Wine Circle who had come to hear about the life of Lucilla Reeve. Last year members of the group had been on a tour of the Stanford Battle Area and were keen to learn more about what had happened there.
Lucilla was one of the 800 people evicted from some 18,000 acres of south Norfolk to provide space for the armed forces to do their training. Despite promises that all the villagers would be allowed back into their homes, this has never happened. The story of Lucilla's life as a land agent, farmer and dowser was played in character in a most moving way which gave the audience an insight into the things that went on during and after the last war. 

The next Social and Wine Circle meeting will be on Thursday 8 June when the subject will be 'What am I?' and members have been asked to bring along many little but strange items for other members to identify. All welcome to come along to the Church Rooms at 7.30pm and take part in the meeting.

Interesting talk in Old Buckenham

The life of Lucilla Reeve
Why not come along to the Church Rooms in Old Buckenham on Thursday 11 May to hear about the lady who tried to save several local villages when they were taken over to provide training areas for the troops during the second world war. The villagers were evicted at very short notice and promised they could return when the war was over.
This promise was not kept and the huge area of countryside alongside the A11 and stretching north towards Swaffham is still in use today for all sorts of military purposes.
Don't worry if you have not been to a Social and Wine Circle meeting before - there is no need to bring along any wine and you'll find it a pleasant social event.
Just turn up at the Church Rooms by 7.30pm. You'll be asked to pay £1 and may even feel like buying some raffle tickets too. 

Old Buckenham WI do well

Third in county-wide competition
Old Buckenham Women's Institute came third this year in the Centenary Salver which is competed for by WIs from throughout Norfolk. It requires institutes to produce a display on a particular theme and showcasing various skills from a team of members.
This year the theme was Beatrice Potter and five items to be included had to come from chutney, ribbon embroidery, sugar craft, parchment craft, a stuffed toy, bread rolls, a fabric container and a flower arrangement.
Old Buckenham had chosen 'Ginger and Pickles' as their title.

Old Buckenham school statistics

Site report and chance to comment
If you like looking at figures and trying to work out what they show, there is now information on the fence at Old Buckenham village hall car park about the Chapel Green School site. Perhaps you could be the first workman to travel to work by bike...
And if you want to make your own complaint, comment or compliment on what is happening on this site then all the facilities have been provided for you.

Remember you can enlarge these images just by clicking on them

Old Buckenham cricketers to play at Lords

Girls in great form

Old Buckenham High School U15 Girls cricket team, coached by Head of PE Andy Dwight and Mike Banham of the Old Buckenham Cricket Club, have had an amazing start to 2017. They won the County Indoor Cricket Finals at the University of East Anglia last month and followed this up by winning the Regional Finals in Leicester this week. Their exceptional performance at Leicester saw them winning all four games on the day and has secured them a place in the National Finals being held at Lords Cricket Ground in London sometime next month. PE Teacher Jo Cook commented "It was amazing - we were shaking at the thought that these fantastic girls in our modest little school could actually become the best in the country".
It is hoped that a BBC film crew will be at the school tomorrow and that an item on the team and their success will be on BBC Look East later in the day.

This month's Old Buckenham newsletter

May's issue has been put out and about
It looks like this: