We are pleased to advise that the 1st phase of the project has been completed - this consisted of enlarging the kitchen and installing new kitchen units and appliances. This has been financed following success in achieving a grant via the National Lottery Community Grants.

The Parish Council are pleased to advise that a contractor has now been appointed to undertake the refurbishment and extension works of the pavilion at Springfields. Work will commence on the 2nd October 2023.  

We wish to apologise in advance for any noise or inconvenience caused to our neighbours.

The Parish Council have been notified that EWR & their respective contractors will be carrying out the works to Ox Lane and Lenborough Road. The roads will be closed while the works are being carried out and a diversionary route in place, unfortunately through Padbury (see additional documents).

For any queries please contact Network Rail Helpline on 03457 11 41 41 or via their website: https://www.networkrail.co.uk/communities/contact-us

Ox Lane - 16th to 27th October 2023

Lenborough Road - 30th October to 6th November 2023

Thank you for donating your blue tokens to Padbury Parish Council when shopping at Tesco. We came third and will be receiving a grant of £500 which will be used to help with the costs to replace a section of fencing for the MUGA (multi use games area) at the playing fields. 

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT

Our insurance claim for the speed sign has now been settled and a replacement sign has now been fitted. 

Following the ongoing issues with Anglian Water, the Parish Council requested a meeting, which was held on the 18th July. Councillors, some residents and three representatives from Anglian Water attended. Following that meeting, Anglian Water have provided an update of their planned works:

Colleagues visited the area around Arnolds Close and Amblers Way on the 26th July to carry out a CCTV investigation of the network. In addition, network colleagues have been investigating the possibility of fitting Non Return Valves in properties affected by internal flooding.

We have an action plan to increase the capacity of the network and improve monitoring to reduce the likelihood of flooding and improve the situation for residents, we will:

• Conduct a CCTV review of the sewer network (ongoing).
• Clean the sewerline along Lower Way (up to the WRC) using CCTV assisted jetting to clear debris, deposited sediment and Fats, Oils and Grease (FOG).
• Increase monitoring of screens at the Water Recycling Centre.
• Install two flow level monitors on the network, these should be installed by the end of the month.
• Review whether we have previously carried out a misconnections survey in the area.
• Investigate the possibility of fitting Non Return Valves.

In addition, please see the attached information briefing on FOG, unflushables and sewer blockages (see additional documents below).

With regards to the growth and planning point, we are still looking into this with our Pre-Development team and hope to provide some more information on this soon.

Anglian Water are happy to attend another meeting in 3 or 6 months, and we will, as an acknowledgement of Padbury being a priority, bring a senior manager too. Within 3 months our plans will have been put in place, but by 6 months we will have data from the flow monitors which will provide more insight into the network. So if you are happy to provide some available dates in either 3 or 6 months, we can arrange this follow up meeting.

The Parish Council will arrange another meeting in 3 months time.

The results are in – the winner for 2023 in our category is Castlethorpe. Joint runners up are Cuddington and Great Brickhill.

Padbury scored 196 out of 200. If you wish to see the judges comments, see additional documents below.

https://bucksbkv.co.uk/

Can we please remind residents who have hedges or trees on their boundary to keep them maintained. Please ensure that they are not overhanging the footpaths or roads as this can cause an obstruction for both pedestrian and road users. THANK YOU

Did you know that it is an offence for a hedge, tree or shrub to overhang a highway, public road or footpath under Section 154 of the Highways Act 1980?

Contact Information / EWR Summer Newsletter:

EWR: Tel: 24/7 helpline 03457 114141 or email - publicinformation@ewralliance.co.uk

HS2: Tel: 24/7 helpdesk 08081 434434 (Freephone) or email - hs2enquiries@hs2.org.uk

EWR website address is eastwestrail.co.uk. In addition, they publish newsletters which can be viewed at eastwestrail.co.uk/library/newsletters. It is possible to receive your own copy by signing up at the same page. A copy of the Summer 2023 Newsletter is attached (see below).

Please follow the link below which will take you to Buckinghamshire Councils website and shows all the road works / diversions. You can also report any issues via this website:

https://www.buckscc.gov.uk/services/transport-and-roads/road-maintenance-and-repairs/planned-roadworks-and-diversions/

EWR route update can be found via this link: https://eastwestrail.co.uk/routeupdate  

MAKE A CHANGE - BECOME A COUNCILLOR

There is a casual vacancy for a parish councillor

The process for filling a casual vacancy starts with advertising the vacancy for a period of time during which at least 10 electors can request an election by writing to Buckinghamshire Council. That opportunity was advertised but no request was received by Buckinghamshire Council. The next step is that the existing councillors can co-opt a resident to become a councillor. If you are eligible (see below) and would like to be considered, please contact the parish clerk:

Email: padburyparishcouncil@gmail.com or Tel: 07961 827302

BECOMING A LOCAL COUNCILLOR - As a local councillor you can become a voice for your community and make real change. Councillors are community leaders and represent the interests of the communities they serve. Local councillors have three main responsibilities:

• Decision-making;
• Monitoring;
• Getting involved locally

TO BE A COUNCILLOR -You must be:

• A UK or Commonwealth citizen; or be a citizen of the Republic of Ireland; or be a citizen of another Member State of the European Union;
• At least 18 years old;
• An elector of the local council; or in the past 12 months occupied land or other premises in the area the local council serves (as owner or tenant); or work in the area local council serves (as your principal or only place of work); or live within three miles of the local council boundary.

The Parish Council wish to advise that we have received notification of an updated planning application, 22/03695/AOP for the Land North of the A413 for up to 81 dwellings. Additional documents have been added to the website. Comments to be made by 21st June 2023. 

The master plan has been updated and is attached below.

Comments can be made via the Buckinghamshire Council website, see link - Buckinghamshire Council - Planning Application Summary. The application reference number is: 22/03695/AOP.

If you know someone without internet access but who wants to comment, you could submit a comment on their behalf or they can write to:
Sarah Odu, Buckinghamshire Council, Planning Department, Walton Street Offices, Walton Street, Aylesbury HP20 1UA, quoting reference 22/03695/AOP.

Information provided by Gigaclear regarding upcoming works in and around Padbury (subject to change):

Main Street - 17th to 19th April 2023

Please be assured all road closures are handled with the upmost priority as we know how much disruptions these would cause residents. Contractors and Contract Supervisors will always be on hand, accessing properties will be no issue and as regards to emergency service again please be assured all necessary plans have been put in place in case of any emergencies. All permits granted go through a thorough check to minimise disruption and then are granted by local authorities including the highway agencies.

We have been advised that their working hours are: Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm and half day on Saturday.

If residents need to contact Gigaclear, please contact their dedicated customer operations team on:
Email: networkbuildqueries@gigaclear.com or Tel: 01865 591131

Please continue to report all damage to the highway, pavements and fly tipping online at

https://fixmystreet.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/

Please note the new website address

Padbury Parish Council would like to thank Chris Hill for transforming one of the picnic benches in the playground. A great job, THANK YOU


If you would like to volunteer to help with jobs around the village, please get in touch:-
Email: padburyparishcouncil@gmail.com or Telephone: 07961 827302
THANK YOU

PADBURY COMMUNITY SPEEDWATCH GROUP

· DO YOU HAVE A COUPLE OF SPARE HOURS A MONTH?

· WOULD YOU LIKE TO HELP TACKLE THE PROBLEM OF SPEEDING WITHIN PADBURY?

If you have answered YES to the above, then please get in touch and join the existing volunteers of the Padbury Community Speedwatch Group.

Please contact Pam (Parish Clerk) via: Tel: 07961 827302 or

Email: padburyparishcouncil@gmail.com

THANK YOU

All volunteers will need to complete online training, followed by a test which in total takes approximately 40 minutes. There is then some further onsite training in the use of the equipment. A minimum of three volunteers is required per group to operate a handheld device. If you wish to volunteer, please contact Pam (Parish Clerk) via: Email:padburyparishcouncil@gmail.com or Tel: 07961 827302.

Although the status of the application is now marked as 'decided' no final decison has been made. Buckinghamshire Council had until 6th January 2023 to 'determine' this application. As that did not happen, the applicant appealed against this 'non-determination' the following day. The application will now be examined by a Planning Inspector. No date has been set for the appeal.

The Parish Council objected to this application, as did many residents. To see the planning application click here

The application is for 'permission in principle' for the building of between five to nine houses on land opposite Amblers Way and adjacent to West Bourn, Main Street. In such an application what is decided, assuming permission is granted, is the location of the development site and the amount of development permitted. Everything else, the size of the houses, location on the site etc is decided later.

Buckinghamshire Council has a scheme of grants and support to help residents with home energy efficiency improvements, such as insulation, low carbon heating and solar panels. In addition to reducing carbon emissions, making improvements can also cut fuel bills. Grants are available to households with an energy rating of D, E, F or G, with a gross annual income of less than £30,000 or who are receiving eligible benefits. It is available to homeowners and also those who rent privately. To find out more or apply for funding visit: buckinghamshire-applications.co.uk

Traffic Calming Measures

The Parish Council have applied for funding via the Buckinghamshire Council Community Boards for a feasibility study / traffic calming measures. We provided a wish list which consisted of:

· Traffic signs: Pedestrians in Road and 30mph repeater signs
· Gateway signage: We already have gates – price for new signs
· Coloured road surfacing with the word SLOW
· Chicane / Priority systems
· Road narrowing
· Footpath from Amblers Way to Station Road junction

What can be achieved depends on a number of factors, one of which is funding as costs for traffic calming measures have to be paid by the Parish Council. To give you an idea of costs, you can view the Buckinghamshire Council Traffic Calming Guide which gives indicative costs for different measures - Please see additional documents at bottom of page. When reading this please note that it was published in July 2020 and the costs quoted will have increased.

Although our application was submitted in February, we have just been informed by Buckinghamshire Council that it will not be considered until the financial year 2023/24 at the earliest. 

Updated 1st August:

To assist with funding, an application was completed in May for the HS2 Road Safety Fund.

Unfortunately we have just been advised that our application has been unsuccessful.

Speed Indication Displays

The three speed indication displays now fitted at the entrances to the village belong to the Parish Council. The signs themselves can be relocated to pre-approved positions along Main Street – you may have spotted the pole fitted outside the playground. Data collected from these signs are forwarded to Thames Valley Police which has resulted in a police speed van being placed on the A413 on several occasions. We are chasing Thames Valley Police to see if it’s possible for a speed van to be placed on Main Street.