Noticeboard

August

Thu 1st, 10.40-11.10 mobile library at Ash Tree Grove

Tue 6th, 19.15 extraordinary parish council meeting in village hall

Sat 10th, 10.0-13.00 community market in village hall

Thu 29th 14.00-16.00 parish café in village hall (tbc)

September

Thu 5, 19.00 Circle of Friends in village hall

Fri 6th 10.40-11.10 mobile library at Ash Tree Grove

Sat 7th, 10.00-13.00 community market in village hall

Sat 7th, 14.00  Garden society flower show Hazel Paddock (opposite Enborne Sch)

Thu 19th, 19.30 parish council meeting in village hall

Thu 26th, 14.00-16.00 parish café in village hall (tbc)

Sat 28th, 09.00-12.30 First aid course in village hall

October

Thu 3rd, 19.00 Circle of Friends in village hall

Sat 12th, 10.00-13.00 community market in village hall

Thu 24th, 10.40-11.10 mobile library Ash Tree Grove

Thu 31st, 14.00-16.00 parish café in village hall (tbc)

November

Thu 3rd, 19.00  Circle of Friends in village hall

Thu 10th, 10.00-13.00 community market in village hall

Thu 21st, 19.30 parish council meeting village hall

Thu 28th, 14.00-16.00 parish café in village hall (tbc)

More info:

Community market/Lanie Allen 07775 804143.

Ladies who Brunch/Lanie Allen 07775 804143.

Circle of Friends/Sue Watts 07884 004418.

Mobile library/Sandra Edwards 01635 519827.

Parish café/Anne Budd 01488 657022.

 

The 2024 annual parish assembly, followed by a regular parish council meeting, was held in the village hall on Thursday 16th May. The draft minutes have been posted on the new parish council website, but a few points of interest from both meetings are summarised here:

• Anne Budd was appointed chair of the parish council for 2024-25, with Steve Masters as vice-chair.
• The village Speedwatch programme has reported 119 speeding motorists since it began. It was noted that the purpose is educational rather than punitive, but it was also noted that there were a number of regular offenders. More sessions are planned.
• Holtwood Road (patched ineffectively last year) continues to give cause for concern. A brief closure some weeks ago appeared to be abandoned without remedy. The road is not listed in WBC's roadworks programme for the coming year, but there may be some flexibility. Steve Masters will take the lead in pushing for this.
• WBC's habit of freely using the term "un-named road" can lead to confusion with regard to pot-holes and closures. Most roads do have locally recognised names, and Tony Vickers promised to bring this to WBC's attention.
• Anne Budd is obtaining copies of the village hall deeds from the Land Registry. This was prompted by a parishioner's suggestion that the hall and field be sold to raise money to buy the White Hart, with a replacement hall being created in one of its outbuildings. The plan was not thought likely to be locally popular or commercially feasible, and would require the consent of the Charity Commissioners. Copies of the deeds will be circulated to parish councillors, and stored securely in the hall.
• Parish council agendas and minutes are currently posted on the PC website and noticeboards. Circulation to all parishioners was mooted, but thought likely to breach GDPR if consent had not been obtained first.
• The bus shelter/village information centre is now finished, thanks to Paul Hansen's and Chris Moss's hard work (assisted by a £4,200 grant from WBC). When the noticeboards have been posted (including a footpath map which Liz Copas is obtaining) an official opening is planned. Chris Moss has also nearly finished the new parish council website.
• The Craven Quarry appears dormant and will no longer be on the PC agenda until the situation changes.

The June issue of the Hamstead Hornet can be seen here.

As of 31st July, WBC has still not ruled on either the application to turn the White Hart (24/00582/FUL) into housing nor the proposal to build new residential premises across the road at Elm Farm (23/02550/FULMAJ).

Following around 18 months of closure, the proposal is to convert the former inn into four residential units.

Details of the application, including letters submitted for and against the proposal by the public, can be seen here. Hamstead Marshall Parish Council decided not to object to the application.

The White Hart (pictured here both in the 1950s and showing the bar after the 2011 renovation) had served the village for centuries, until the business entered a rocky patch in the twenty-first century, shutting and reopening several times. A similar planning application in 2015/16 for change to residential use gave rise to a campaign ("Save the White Hart"), and WBC refused the application. It was rejected on appeal in 2018, and the pub intermittently reopened. However, local support was not widely evident.

The White Hart closed its doors finally in the autumn of 2022, and a board has since been advertising the business for sale, freehold (guide price £895,000) or leasehold.

 

 

The Elm Farm application has seen a flurry of amendments to the original scheme.

Extensive alterations transformed the former faryard and research institute buildings into family residential property in 2019-20, with the former farmhouse remaining as separate accommodation. The current proposal would add a third, standalone residential unit.