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 BMRA Newsletter -
October 2016
Autumn already, and the trees and bushes are changing colour nicely. Time
to clear up in the garden and get ready for the Winter.
NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH
Badgers Mount had for
many years enjoyed participating in the Neighbourhood
Watch Scheme. Fortunately we suffered little crime and of course the
inevitable happened and the scheme fell into disuse and faded away.
At
the 2014 AGM the issue was raised and some volunteers were cajoled into
becoming Road Stewards. Unfortunately I personally, failed to give this
matter the attention it deserved and so it never got off the ground. At
the 2015 AGM the subject was raised once again but we could not raise the
quantity of volunteers for Road Stewards we felt were needed.
I agreed to take the
matter away and with crime in our area definitely on the increase,
endeavour to raise both awareness but more importantly enthusiasm for
resurrecting The Neighbourhood Watch Scheme. The key ingredient is getting
some 10 residents to volunteer to become Road Stewards.
The role
can be summarised as follows:
• We need to find someone to
take on the role for overall coordination and he/she needs the active
support of say 10 Road Stewards who in turn, each would provide coverage
for around 20 homes in their area. The coordinator would attend BMRA
committee meetings for matters relating to the Scheme.
The Road
Stewards would have to undertake:
• Attendance at the odd meeting
or two in the village hall or if a particular incidence of crime warrants
specific or detailed attention.
• Keeping in personal contact with
our more vulnerable residents particularly when unscrupulous tradespeople
are known to be operating in our community.
• Conveying the
contents of the E-WATCH newsletter as appropriate and along with any
advice given by our local PCSO
• Keeping your eyes and ears open
and being ever watchful of suspicious activities which need to be conveyed
to the Chairman/PCSO.
Recently several high value crimes have taken
place in Badgers Mount involving vehicle theft / vehicle break in along
with other serious activities.
In the light of this recent increase
in crime the time may now be appropriate to reinstate The Neighbourhood
Watch Scheme. To do so depends totally upon you, the residents of Badgers
Mount. The task is not too time consuming but it does need a number of
volunteers who are willing to assist in the community.
All funding
will be provided by the BMRA and this will be absorbed from within its
existing budget. So knocking on doors for the purposes of collecting money
is NOT part of the job.
If you are interested and want to find out
more please let me know and it is clearly understood that any enquiries
will be without obligation.
Dave Woledge tel: 01959 534338
DEFIBRILLATOR
A defibrillator is a medical
device designed to restart the heart in case of a heart attack. Since this
aid is needed in the early part of a heart attack for best results, there
is an initiative to position simple-to-use, automatic defibrillators in
local communities. The BMRA has raised with the Badgers Mount Parish
Council (BMPC) the possibility of obtaining one to be situated in the
community, probably at the Memorial Hall. At a recent PC meeting,
questions were raised concerning the utility of such a device given the
spread-out nature of the community and the cost (around £1000 from Parish
funds). If you have any comments on this matter, please let the Parish
Clerk know (details in the BMPC Newsletter) or contact any of the Parish
Councillors (details also in the BMPC Newsletter.
ROADS
BMPC have discussed the road safety situation with Roger Gough, our
KCC Councillor, particularly the outstanding items from our Road Safety
appeal 4 years ago. We may be getting speed ‘roundels’ on the Old London
Road and Orpington Bypass in the current Financial Year but the proposed
footpath on the east side of the Orpington Bypass and pedestrian island
where footpath SR8 crosses this road were removed from this year’s works
for financial reasons. BMPC will request that these are included in next
year’s works, together with the automatic speed indication signs
previously promised.
PLANNING
There
have only been a few new planning applications for extensions recently.
The application for the care/nursing home at Elite Motors has still not
been determined, and there is no known date for a decision.
PARISH COUNCIL
Badgers Mount Parish Council meets
on the first Thursday of each month in the Memorial Hall from 7:30pm. for
the full Council meeting, and a planning committee meeting if there are
any applications to consider. There may also be a planning committee
meeting on the third Thursday if there are planning applications which
need to be commented on before the next full meeting date. Everyone is
welcome to attend the meetings, and there is always a time set aside for
questions from members of the public, either at a set time during the
meeting or, more usually at the end, when you can ask questions or comment
on appropriate matters. Do please go along and take an interest in the
work the Parish Council is doing.
The previous Parish Clerk has
recently resigned. Her replacement has been appointed but will need a
little time to get up to speed.
NEIGHBOURHOOD PLAN
The Government has recently encouraged Parishes to produce written
plans for local development. Unlike the old Local Plans, these
Neighbourhood plans will be assessed by a Planning Inspector; when
approved, they will become legal documents. District Councils and other
formal bodies will only be able to go against them after a Planning
Appeal. The Neighbourhood Plan will be led and co-ordinated by the Parish
Council and they will be holding an initial information meeting soon – see
the Parish Council Newsletter for details. BMRA heartily encourages all
residents to get involved, as this is our chance to influence the way our
community changes for the future. Typical areas might include the
environment – e.g. noise reduction measures? also local facilities and
infrastructure – e.g. recreation grounds, allotments, local road and verge
maintenance, and so on.
COMMUNITY PROTECTION FUND
Several years ago, an action group was set up to fight the proposed
use of the old ammunition dump site for aggregate processing by F M
Conway. Many contributions were received and used to pay for a Planning
Consultant and legal representation at the subsequent Planning Appeal.
Whilst we did not win the Appeal outright, we were able to keep the site
usage solely for storage and distribution. At the recent BMRA AGM, it was
agreed that the scope of the action group should be broadened to cover any
unwanted development in our community and that the remaining funds should
be used for this purpose. Contributors were asked if they were happy for
their contribution to be used for this broader purpose and offered a
refund if not. The deadline for replies has now passed and we are
currently processing refunds where relevant. We are aiming for maximum
transparency and full details will be in the accounts for the next AGM.
SOCIAL ACTIVITIES
CAROLS EVENING
Saturday 3rd December - A great social evening on Saturday 3rd December at
7.30pm. Come along to the Memorial Hall to start getting into the
Christmas spirit, meet up with friends old and new, and sing some
Christmas Carols to piano accompaniment. Light refreshments will be
provided. As last year, the cost will be £5 for adults and £2 for
children. Please let Gordon know if you are coming (01959 534279 or email
gplumb@tiscali.co.uk) so that the right quantity of refreshments can be
purchased, but you won't be turned away if you just turn up on the night!!
NEW YEAR’S EVE - over the past few years the
numbers at the New Year's Eve party have dropped considerably. There could
be many reasons for this. So before we start to plan this year’s New
Year's Eve party we need to check that we are putting on an event that
people want. If you would like to spend New Year's Eve with your friends
in Badgers Mount at the memorial hall we need to know what you want. We
will never please everyone but currently we don't appear to be pleasing
anyone!!! Please can you drop Zena an email (zbelton@live.com), a note
through her door (15 Johnsons Ave) or a phone call 01959 534566 and then
you can tell her what you would like. Following this if enough people show
an interest posters will go up around Badgers Mount with details of the
event - the date you obviously know! No posters will mean no interest so
no event.
FUTURE SOCIAL ACTIVITIES
Wine tasting with a difference
Do you know your Lidl
from your Laithwaites?
Saturday 12th November 2016
7.00pm to start
tasting at 7.30pm
Badgers Mount Memorial Hall £12 a ticket (over 18
only)
During the evening we will taste 12 different wines including
reds, whites, rose and sparkling.
Cheese and bread included.
Tickets
must be bought in advance a minimum of 24 people required to ensure the
evening will happen!
Please pay for tickets by 6th November.
For all social activities, please contact
Zena 01959 534566
zbelton@live.com
BMRA CONTACT DETAILS
Full contact details on the BMRA Committee
page.
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