MISSION STATEMENT & AIMS
Bishopstoke Parish Council Mission Statement
To work on behalf of the people of Bishopstoke to enhance our village as a great place to live, work and visit.
Aims
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.
COUNCIL MEETINGS
WILDFLOWERS
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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.
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The Council may be able to support in other ways too. Anyone interested should contact the Clerk by emailing the Clerk.
ONLINE APPLICATIONS FOR ALLOTMENTS AND TRAVEL TOKENS​
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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.
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To apply for an allotment, please click here.
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To apply for travel tokens, please click here.
PHOTO SEARCH​
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Bishopstoke Parish Council is looking for photographs of the scenery around Bishopstoke. This could include landscapes, parks, iconic buildings, river settings or anything else beautiful within Bishopstoke.
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The photos would potentially be used on our Facebook or website, or in Council newsletters and leaflets, and would be credited to the person who took them.
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If you are interested in letting us use your photos please contact the Clerk, David Wheal, by emailing clerk@bishopstokepc.org.
POTHOLE REPORTING​
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Hampshire County Council have provided a direct link to their website for reporting potholes in roads. We have been told that some potholes on Sandy Lane are about to be fixed as a direct result of being reported through this link. Please use this link to report any potholes you encounter in the road.
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https://www.hants.gov.uk/transport/roadmaintenance/roadproblems
BURIAL FEES FOR 2024-25
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The Council is pleased to announce that cemetery fees and charges will remain unchanged for the year 2024 - 2025. Details of the current fees are available below and on the Cemetery pages.
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AUDITED ACCOUNTS FOR 2023 - 2024
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The Council has just approved its audited accounts for the year 2023-2024. As usual there was an interim audit conducted by an internal auditor appointed by the Council which took place in January 2024. followed by the final internal audit in April. There were a few minor issues for the Council to update from the January audit which were successfully completed and the final audit found no further problems.
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Full details of these reports can be found by heading to the Audit page.
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Following the approval of the accounts at the Full Council meeting on 30th April 2024, the accounts and other relevant information are sent to the external auditor, BDO LLP. We will not hear the results of this process until late summer but are expecting to again come back with a clean bill of financial health.
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There is a period known as "electors' rights" which this year runs from 3rd June to 12th July. During that period any resident wishing to view the accounts for 2023 - 24 can do so by emailing the Clerk at clerk@bishopstokepc.org to make an appointment.
Asset Transfer Update - As at June 2024
Sewall Drive Allotments & Open Space
The allotments at Sewall Drive remain in the hands of the developers. There have been several occasions over the past few years when the Parish Council has been assured by the Borough Council that the handover of the allotments was coming soon, but this has never actually been the case. Until the developer satisfies the Borough Council that it has fulfilled all of its obligations in preparing the site then the land cannot be handed over. This includes providing specifications for the buildings, drainage and so on.
Once the Borough Council has the land it has committed to putting in sufficient standpipes to serve the allotment properly and to joining with the Parish Council is converting part of the on site building for use as a temporary Parish Office.
The Parish Council has planned to provide free rent for the first year for those on the waiting list, as well as free skips for removal of stones from allotments and a substantial quantity of soil improver for the use of the allotment holders as we anticipate problems with the quality of the soil.
The most recent expectation is that the site could be transferred to the Parish Council over the summer.
Stoke Common Cemetery
This is owned by the same developer that still has the allotments at Sewall Drive. Again, the Borough Council has committed to providing the necessary standpipes. Once the land is transferred to the Parish Council, some of the funds that come with it will be used to provide bins, benches, a noticeboard and any necessary paths, before the Cemetery is opened for use. This is also expected to be transferred in the summer although as history has shown, these expectations are often not realised.
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Bow Lake Gardens Allotments
This land was assessed for beginning its 12 month countdown to being passed to the Borough Council in 2021. This transfer has not been completed although the Borough Council has taken on the maintenance of the site. It has not yet been offered to the Parish Council. The Parish Council employed a specialist to assess the site for its intended use as an allotment and the report found a number of problems. Some of the problems were: the land sloping rather than being tiered as originally planned; no safe ramps or steps with handrails to travel between elevations as had been planned; insufficient standpipes; a fence that whilst it meets the planned specifications does nothing to keep out deer, badgers or rabbits and poor soil quality.
When the Parish Council raised these concerns with the Borough Council the response was that the developer had met their obligations.
One additional problem is that although it is usual for any site being transferred to come with a pot of money for the maintenance of that site over the next few years, the allotment site has NO money attached, and so if the Parish Council wanted to make the site useable then it would have to find an estimated £10k - £20k just for the initial works, and would also have to immediately fund the maintenance of the site.
Bow Lake Gardens Community Orchard
The Orchard is situated lower down the slope than the allotments and is not easily accessible without going through the allotments. There are very few actual fruit trees there and the site is overgrown.
In summary: there have been many delays since the original projects were announced, none of which have been caused by the Parish Council. The Parish Council has no role in setting the agreements between the developers and the Planning Authority (Eastleigh Borough Council) and has no role in enforcing what actually happens. The Parish is the very last body in the chain of transfer and has the least control over every aspect of it. As such the Parish Council is at the mercy of both the developers and the Borough Council when it comes to the planned transfer of sites.
BISHOPSTOKE NEWS
Clerk &
Finance Officer
David Wheal
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07368 487464
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Allotments &
Cemeteries Officer
TBC
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07368 487464
COUNCIL STAFF