WILDFLOWERS
Bishopstoke Parish Council would like to help any local residents that wish to enhance their local area by planting wildflowers. Often, the areas best suited for planting are owned by either Eastleigh Borough Council or Hampshire County Council. The Parish Council can help you get in touch with the right people to gain permission for your planting.
The Council may be able to support in other ways too. Anyone interested should contact the Clerk by emailing the Clerk.
MEMORIAL HALL NEWS
Bishopstoke Parish Council is currently working on plans for a new community building to replace the beloved Bishopstoke Memorial Hall which has served the community so well for over 60 years.
To help with that we are asking anyone who has 5 minutes spare to complete a short survey online.
To get to the survey please just click on the link below.
Thank you.
OPEN SPACE CONTRACT FOR THE PARISH COUNCIL - INVITATION TO TENDER
Bids are invited for the contract to manage the grass cutting, hedge trimming and various other grounds maintenance jobs for Bishopstoke Parish Council. Full details of the work to be undertaken on behalf of the Council, the locations that are to be maintained, and the timetable for bidding can be found in the links below. The contract commences on 1st April 2022.
Please note that the deadline for applications to be received is December 8th 2021. Bids received after this date will not be considered.
The deadline has now been extended to January 5th - any bid received before this date will be considered, whether or not an initial bid was made before December 8th.
For further information, or to arrange site visits, please contact the clerk by emailing clerk@bishopstokepc.org.
Thank you.
FOOTPATH 780 (from the Toby Carvery to West Horton Farm)
Hampshire County Council has announced the temporary closure of footpath 780, which runs from the Toby Carvery down to West Horton Farm. The closure extends from Tuesday 12th October to Monday 4th April 2022 to allow for repair works on the boardwalk. To see the full extent of the footpath and the closure click here, or alternatively click to enlarge the image.
OTTER CLOSE PLAY AREA
Following requests from local residents, a quote has been obtained for a timber trail that would be appropriate for the Otter Close play area. If it were to be installed it would be within the grass strip that is within the fenced area, but does not currently have any play equipment or benches on it.
The trail being quoted for consists of stepping logs (20cm tall), a crawl net, a slalom rope walk, a rope weave, a 1.6m wobble board and a balance slalom. It would be 17.5m long in total and is pictured below.
The Council would love to hear from anyone who lives near Otter Close, or who uses the Otter Close play area, as to whether they think this is a good idea.
Please email your thoughts on the Timber Trail to clerk@bishopstokepc.org, or alternatively call 07368 487464.
BISHOPSTOKE PARISH COUNCIL MISSION STATEMENT
At the recent meeting of the Council, Bishopstoke Councillors agreed their Mission Statement and Aims for the remainder of this council session.
Mission Statement - To be the voice of the people of Bishopstoke to enhance our village as a great place to live, work and visit.
Aim 1 - To improve, and protect, our environment for residents and wildlife.
Aim 2 - To promote better health & well-being outcomes for all.
Aim 3 - To strengthen a sense of place.
Aim 4 - To encourage residents to become more involved in the life of the village.
The decisions the Council takes over the next 2-3 years will be guided by this Statement and these Aims.
HAMPSHIRE POLICE COMMISSIONER CONSULTATION
A message from Donna Jones, the Police & Crime Coordinator for Hampshire & Isle of Wight:
"The Government is giving Police and Crime Commissioners the flexibility to increase the policing element of the council tax in 2022 by £10 per year (for a Band D property) to fund the increasing demands on policing. With over 60% of council taxpayers in the Hampshire Constabulary policing area living in properties that are Band A-C the majority of people would see an increase of less than £10 a year.
I have now launched my annual police budget precept consultation and want to hear residents’ views. I am asking local residents to complete an online survey and/or to sign up to a focus group."
To take the survey please click here.
To join a focus group please click here.
TWO NEW PARISH COUNCILS IN EASTLEIGH
In February, Eastleigh Borough Council approved the creation of two new Parish Councils within Eastleigh. This means that everyone within Eastleigh Borough will now be represented by a local Parish or Town Council as well as the Borough Council. The first area is north of the railway line and to the east of Twyford Road (excluding Dutton Lane and Barton Road) and will be known as Boyatt Wood Parish Council. The second council encompasses all the remaining unparished area around the town centre and will be Eastleigh Parish Council.
Parish Councillors are locals who want to give something back and help improve their community. The Borough Council is inviting anyone within the two new Parish Council areas to consider standing as a Parish Councillor.
If you would like to take the opportunity to represent your local neighbourhood then please follow the link below to get more information:
ANNUAL MEMORIAL INSPECTIONS
The Parish Council carries out regular checks of the memorials at Bishopstoke Cemetery, St Mary's Church and Old St Mary's Churchyard to ensure the continued safety of the memorials themselves and anyone who may be visiting the sites.
The inspections will take place in the first half of April 2022.
For any memorial that has become unsound or unsafe since the last inspection the family will be contacted to advise them of what they need to do to secure their memorial. Notices will also be displayed on site to warn anyone nearby of any danger.
PARISH COUNCIL MEETINGS
Following the reintroduction of some measures to combat coronavirus and because of the increased risk of transmission from the Omicron variant, the Parish Council has decided it is currently not sensible to hold in-person meetings unless absolutely necessary.
A policy detailing how this will work was adopted and enacted at the recent emergency meeting on December 17th. To read the policy please click this link.
Meetings will now be held informally, online. It is intended that they will broadly follow the same schedule as the published timetable for Council and Committee meetings, and that the agenda will still be published in all the usual places. The agenda will include details of how members of the public can attend these virtual meetings.
No formal decision can be made at the virtual meetings, but the Committees and Council can agree to make informal recommendations to the Clerk and the Officers. Part of the Protocol passed by the Council on December 17th gives the Clerk the delegated powers to act upon these recommendations.
As always, information about each Committee, the agenda, the document packs and previous minutes are all available online. If you have any questions, or if you would like to speak on an agenda item, or would like a statement read on your behalf please contact the Clerk.
ONLINE APPLICATIONS FOR ALLOTMENTS AND TRAVEL TOKENS
As part of our efforts to improve the service we provide to the residents of Bishopstoke it is now possible to apply for either allotments or travel tokens online.
To apply for an allotment, please click here.
To apply for travel tokens, please click here.