One of the unforeseen consequences of moving Parish Council meetings to the third Thursday of the month is the proximity of the meeting to the deadline for copy of the magazine.  This month’s meeting took place after the deadline, and we have been given an extra 24 hours to submit this report – it may be quite short!

The Parish Council was pleased to hear that a new permissive footpath will soon be in place to link Jubilee Hill (close to the old rectory) with Lower Sandhurst Road.  Footpaths and bridleways are an important feature of life in Finchampstead, and there has been concern that bridleway 49 has direct access on to Lower Sandhurst Road, a situation which could be hazardous to horses and their riders, and to motorists.  It was agreed that the Parish Council would seek permission to put in a barrier.

The Gorse Ride Residents’ Association has made great progress during its relatively short existence in improving quality of life on the estate.  The Clerk and I were delighted when asked to judge the “Gorse Ride in Bloom” competition back in July.  There were many imaginative entries, including some from children, and some using recycled plants and materials – judging was difficult!  In the end we had two overall winners and several “best in road”.  It was a great idea and we look forward to even more entries next year.

Maybe some of the Gorse Ride gardeners would like to have an allotment in the future.  The Parish Council is currently investigating two areas which have been offered – we hope negotiations will soon bear fruit! (Sorry!).

The Parish Council was dismayed to learn that the Mobile Library Service is to cease at the end of the month.  Many of our residents, especially the elderly and those in more rural areas, rely on the mobile Library.  Councillor Geoff Markham is to make representations to Wokingham District Council to voice our concerns.

Older people in Finchampstead will soon have the opportunity to meet and discuss matters which are important to them at the Older People’s Forum, initiated jointly by Wokingham District Council and Age Concern. The next meeting will be at St. Mary and St. John’s Parish Centre on Tuesday 24^th October at 2.0pm, to co-incide with the Tea and Chat time. The Forum welcomes all residents over the age of 50 and plans to have discussions, visiting speakers etc in the future.

The Planning Committee reported on the Local Development Framework, which lists all the areas in the District on which developers would like to build.  The Finchampstead section has approximately 30 sites, some with proposals for only 4 or 5 houses, others for hundreds.

Needless to say, the Planning Committee was against most of the proposals.  The document is only a list of suggestions, but it is vital that everyone makes his or her views known.  Do it now, by going to the Wokingham District Council website and making your comments on-line!

Cllr Chris Driver

The date this page was last altered was March 11, 2007.

Copyright © 2003 Finchampstead Parish Council