Welcome to the Summer edition of the Reporter for 2006.

The Chairman has continued his duty as Editor. So all comments should be sent in that direction or to the Clerk.

In the previous issue, we mentioned that your Parish Council has been facilitating a survey of transport needs, following the demise of the service to Malvern, Cllr Christopher Lowder has been leading this, with other Councillors.

The survey has been completed and Christopher’s report is in this issue.

The Parish Council has been campaigning for improved road safety on roads through the village. There has been a particular focus on the road past the school and Buryfields at one end and the B4220 between the A4103 junction and The Farleys at the other.

Our efforts have brought a positive reaction from Herefordshire Council.

Firstly, they plan to have a 30mph limit from Millbank (Pontic), past the school, over Kingsbridge and joining with the existing limit area. Whilst this is a significant advance, we would still like to see further measures to reduce speeds past the school.

Secondly, following persistent pressure from the Parish Council and some residents about the dangers of the B4220 from Stony Cross to the Farleys, there will be a meeting between Herefordshire Council officers, the Police and Councillors. We expect a positive outcome from these discussions.

There have been some changes to the membership of the Parish Council, following the departure to Devon of Sally Ramsden and the resignation of Pat Fairfax due to work pressures.

In their places, Ken Nason and Dick Harris have been co-opted. Ken is already well known to many in the village for his involvement in youth activities, the North Cradley Residents Association and the Village Hall (famously, its licensee). Dick has retired recently from a senior position at QinetiQ. He continues to work at the cutting edge of his field as a consultant in satellite communication and surveillance systems.

David Creed-Newton

In general pollsters' survey terms, any 'tick-box' questionnaire that drops through the letter-box or has to be clipped from a newspaper or a magazine usually gets a disappointingly low turn-round. A 3% return is considered good. So we were pleased that Council's 'Community Transport' questionnaire, sent out with the February Reporter, received a 12% return, and thanks to all those who took the time to fill it in.

Just over 86% of those who returned the questionnaire said 'yes', they would certainly use a community bus service to Malvern and back. We had only nine respondents who ticked the 'no' box.

Of that 86%, just under 76% were in the 51-65 and 66-plus age-groups, a little over 15% came from the 25-50 bracket, while around 13% were in the 14-17 and 18-24 groupings.

The question 'What would you be likely to use such a service for?' brought forth some interesting replies. The highest percentage ticked the 'Shopping' box (27%), while 'Entertainment' and 'Evening Meal' came in at over 19% and 11.8% respectively. Just over 12% voted for 'Trains' and 9%. for 'Health' (we're assuming mainly dental appointments and the like). 9.6% ticked 'Other', listing such diverse activities as 'Walking on the Hills', 'Visiting friends', 'Keep-Fit classes' and so on. There were even one or two optimists who actually ticked the 'Wild Night Out' box, although someone did note 'in Malvern??!!'

Unexpectedly and hearteningly on the question 'How much would you be prepared to pay for a return bus-fare?', the highest percentage of respondents did not go for the lowest figure (£2.50) but plumped for £3.00, with significant numbers saying they'd be perfectly prepared to pay £3.50, and even £4.00.

Not all comments were favourable -- in an exercise such as this you don't expect them to be -- but there were remarkably few negative responses.

One parishioner did point out that you can still get to Malvern, and this is perfectly true -- so long as you're prepared to go 8 miles to Ledbury on the 417 then a further 5 or 6 miles back to Malvern in a dog's leg, and the same on the return journey, adding up to something like an hour's journey there and another hour back. Always providing you don't miss the linking bus in Ledbury, which would add yet more time to the journey. The kind of service Council envisages, however, would take just half an hour to Malvern, stop-over of around two hours in town, and half an hour back to Cradley.

As we expected, the bulk of the respondents came from those parishioners who are nearing or over retirement age, and it seems clear that in the latter group most still miss that regular two hours or so a week in Malvern, every Friday (later Thursday) morning. And there is certainly anecdotal evidence to show that people enjoyed the freedom of going in on the bus to browse in the WI market next to the Abbey, say, or see friends in Malvern Link, or just have a cup of coffee at Lyttelton Well or the Bluebird Tea Rooms.

And while Eileen Vockins's support group service is excellent for 'targeted' journeys, for appointments and so on, there is a. feeling, certainly in the post-retired group (some of whom, for whatever reason, see themselves as stuck at home, week in week out), that going in to Malvern on the bus on a regular basis fulfils an essentially 'social' need.

There is also evidence from the Survey as well as from talking to parishioners that not only would a certain proportion of people like their old 'Friday morning' service back, but also the further possibility of going out in the evening to the theatre or cinema, without being forced to use the car.

Even so, though we may have bucked the trend for very low percentage returns, 12% is still disappointing, since it means that less than 100 households (out of a possible 600) were sufficiently exercised on the subject to put pen to paper.

Nevertheless Council decided (at our June meeting) to investigate costings further, provided that subsidy, where possible, should come from the kind of non-governmental organisations which provide funding for rural-based ventures.

Christopher Lowder

In 1997, the newly formed North Cradley Residents’ Association (NCRA) identified some land for use as a play area. The Parish Council took ownership (including insurance) of the land, using grant money, and agreed to maintain it, provided that its use was managed by a Management Committee of the Residents’ Association. The Parish Council specifically excluded the provision of equipment from its own remit.

The NCRA had a new and impressive lease of life this year and is both active and committed to improving life in the area. One of its key projects is to provide equipment and facilities to enhance the playing field.

In order to be able to access funds from grant bodies, the title to the property must be reassigned from the Parish Council. Unsurprisingly, the legalities are complex and include the setting up of an appropriate constitution for the NCRA. Already the issue has been on the table for a frustrating length of time and the Parish Council recognises that it needs to work harder to assist with a resolution.

In the course of discussions with Herefordshire Council, the Parish Council (in response to an overwhelming vote in the consultation phase of the Village Design Statement) has made strong representations about the protection from development of the land opposite St Katherine’s.

Herefordshire Council Forward Planners (who have been most helpful throughout), agreed with us and, in the draft stages of the plan and suggested a protective clause that could be used (HBA9). This was incorporated in to the Parish Plan/Village Design Statement.

Herefordshire Council has now accepted the external Planning Inspector’s recommendation that, in the final form, the Unitary Development Plan will exclude any protection for this sensitive area that helps to define the rural character of the area.

The Parish Council submitted a written question to Herefordshire Council on the matter, questioning the value placed on democratic consultation. Their reply was unsatisfactory and the decision stands.

However, the Inspector did suggest that there could well be other reasons why this area should not be developed and the Parish Council voted to explore the matter further with Herefordshire Forward Planning.

Safety on the B4220 has become of increasing concern in recent months.

Bringing matters to a head, there have been accidents involving pedestrians and motorists.

There is a long trail of correspondence between the Parish Council and Herefordshire Council over recent years, with the view from Herefordshire being coloured by the large number of requests and the limits on funding.

But now, we are starting to see some action. There will be a site meeting in August between Traffic Engineers, the Police and representatives of the Parish Council to list problems and agree solutions.

Following the resignation of Pat Fairfax from the Council because of pressure of work, Jane Pilling has kindly offered to keep records of all accidents on Cradley roads. Please phone her or contact any Councillor.

Cradley was invited to enter an additional competition to mark the 10th anniversary of the Calor awards.

The Parish Council made its contribution to the bid and presentation that took place in April. All who were involved agreed that it was the best presentation that we had made. Feedback from the judges was most encouraging.

However, we have not been selected as one of the few that will go through to the final. Nevertheless, we can all be proud of our successes in the competition. It confirms that we live in a caring and vibrant community, thanks to the contribution of many, many people.

We have yet to allocate the remaining £2,250 of prize money to assist Cradley projects. Applications have been received from several organisations.

Applications are outstanding from the new Sports Club, the Royal British Legion Club (to help fund roof repairs) and the Heritage Group (on behalf of village hall users - to repair the lane surface).

Tuesday 12 September: Parish Council Meeting at 7.30pm Cradley Village Hall

Tuesday 10 October Parish Council Meeting at 7.30pm Storridge Village Hall

Tuesday 14 November Parish Council Meeting 7.30pm Storridge Village Hall

December No meeting scheduled

Planning meetings

The Parish Council meetings are most usually preceded by a planning meeting at 7.00 pm.

Additional planning meetings may be called to suit Herefordshire Planning deadlines.

Check the notice boards for details.

Attendance

Visitors are most welcome to attend. At a point in the meeting, the Chairman will call an adjournment for about ten minutes to give time for questions and comments from the floor.

Involvement

The Parish Council has a policy of acting as a facilitator and, in some cases, a source of funds for community projects. If you have any ideas that could lead to an improvement in our community spirit or environment, please let us know via the Clerk, Chairman or Vice-Chairman.

Names and Telephone Numbers

(All numbers prefixed 01886)

Chairman

Mr David Creed-Newton 880534

Vice Chairman

Mr Roger Gill 880325

Councillors

Mr Michael Allfrey 880224

Mr Fred Beard 880371

Mrs Rosie Berry 880638

Mr Geoff Cooper 880797

Mr John Edgar 880529

Mr Richard Harris 880699

Mr Chris Lowder 880282

Mr Ken Nason 880952

Miss Jane Pilling 884302

Mr John Rowe 880547

Mr Geoff Thomas 880686

Mr Jerry Thomas 880868

Ms Katrina Turnbull 880788

Just a reminder that the Agenda for Parish Council meetings is displayed at Finchers Corner, the Butchers, the Post Office and on the notice board at Storridge Village Hall at least 3 clear days before each meeting. Copies of the minutes for the last 2 years are held at Cradley Post Office and summaries are on the Cradley Web site www.cradley.org.uk

Over to You:

Previous issues can be viewed on the Cradley website at www.cradley.org.uk