Playtime is about to get better!
This month we are very much looking forward to the installation of new play equipment at the Gainsborough playpark! This will be the culmination of many months of research and planning on the part of the Parish Council, especially Cllrs. Rob Lockey and Lucy MacArthur, who have spent many hours on site visits, meetings with each other, meetings with the Planning and Environment Committee, meetings with representatives from South Somerset District Council and meetings with the providers of play equipment (that’s a lot of meetings!) in order to ensure the best value and best quality outcomes for the parish’s young people. We are so excited to be able to take advantage of the Section 106 monies that have been provided by SSDC for infrastructure developments, funded by income from Bovis Homes and the Gainsborough housing development.
Watch Your Speed!
Members of the Planning and Environment Committee resolved at their June meeting to reinstate the Speed Indicator Device (SID) at key locations in the village where speeding is an issue and have created a Speed Watch Working Group, headed up by Cllr. Tim Carty and Cllr. Rob Lockey, to manage this activity. The group would like to invite any interested members of the public to volunteer to join this group and help to monitor speeding in the village. Training in mounting the SID would be provided to someone willing to commit to this initiative. Please contact Nathalie Hetherington by email if you are interested in volunteering.
Clean-up at the Gainsborough Play Park
The Parish Ranger, Martin, has been busy in the Gainsborough Play Park and he has managed to haul his high-powered jet wash up into the park and spend a day power washing all the bird muck and other substances off of the play equipment. Before this, Martin had spent half a day in the park removing weeds from the bushes and strimming back all the nettles from the sides.
If you are aware of any areas around the Parish that could do with a bit of attention from the Ranger, do let the Clerk know by sending an e-mail. Martin can sweep, unblock drains, strim and hack back overgrown bushes but please note that he is not able to undertake any work on private land.
Parish Council requires more Members
The Parish Council’s membership is now a little low and so over the next month or so the Council will be trying to drum up some interest and encourage some new people to put themselves forward to become Members.
Maybe you are new to the Parish and want to become involved with local matters, or maybe you have lived in the village all of your life and you are now looking to give something back. To qualify, you must be 18 or over and on the electoral register. The Council would benefit from a membership representing various backgrounds and various ages.
The Parish Council is involved in many different activities, from local planning matters, to managing the open spaces and working with our community groups, to delivering projects.
The Council will be looking to appoint some new members at its September meeting. If you are interested or want to know more, do send the Parish Clerk an e-mail and we will arrange to have an informal chat.
Playday is coming!
Playday is a South Somerset District Council initiative where for half a day some play equipment is set up for kids to enjoy. The Parish Council has made a contribution of £450 towards the hiring of equipment this year. The Playday itself is planned for Sunday 22nd August 10am – 1pm @Springfield. Put that date in your diaries now!
Town Hall Office Reopening
In common with everyone else, we would like to start working our way back to a new normal and start to open the Parish Office once again to allow residents to just drop in and see the office staff but the postponement of the end of Covid restrictions has put this on ice for another month. However, next month we hope to be able to confirm the days and times that the Parish Office will once again be open to the Public. In the meantime, there has been a mobile number available to call since March 2020 published both on the noticeboard and on the Parish Council’s website, or simply send an email and we will get back to you.
Laptops4Learners Drop Point
The Parish Office has become a drop point for Laptops4Learners; please see the community website for more details. For now, you will need to email for an appointment to drop off your old bit of equipment:
www.milborneport.org.uk/2021/02/07/laptops4learners/
Town Hall Roof
I am sure that you will have noticed that the Town Hall continues to be surrounded by scaffolding but with not much going on! The Town Hall roof developed a leak just before Christmas and by early new year it had become rather severe; the Council needed to install the scaffolding to allow a full inspection of the problem and a specialist surveyor was required as the Town Hall is a listed building. Many months later and the problem has been identified, a tender document drawn up and a contractor appointed to fix the issue. However, the contractor cannot start until late July. In the meantime, it would cost more to have the scaffolding taken away and then re-erected than just leaving it in place. All repairs should be complete by mid-August, and we will finally be able to wave goodbye to the scaffolding.
