LITTLE MILTON NEWSLETTER

www.littlemilton.org.uk

FEBRUARY, 2006

PARISH COUNCIL

The Council meeting held on Wednesday 11th January was attended by all Councillors, the Clerk, the District Councillor and four members of the public.

Triangle of land adjacent to Wells Farmhouse

The Clerk informed the meeting that the application to register the land as a Village Green had been submitted to OCC and that he had received an acknowledgment. This matter will be kept under review.

Hedgerow at the top of the Wheatley Road. (Windmill Hill)

The Clerk reported that he had been informed by OCC Highways that they would white lining the side of the road as an initial step to reduce the speed on the sharp bend. The Highway authority considers that line marking the centre of the road encourages drivers to increase their speed. The Chairman read out a letter from Mr Charles Peers that expressed his concern on the dangers of the road. This matter will be kept under review.

Invite to Punch Taverns re the Lamb

The Clerk informed the meeting that Punch Tavern hope to attend the February meeting to share their plans for the re-development of the Lamb. This matter will be kept under review. 

The Orchard Pre School

Miss Yvonne Brammer presented a schematic plan of the proposed area for a fenced hard standing surface adjoining the Orchard Pre-School. She stated that the Village Hall committee had no objections to the proposal. However she stated that the Pre-School would liaise with the Village Hall Committee to ensure that its use did not adversely affect any specific hiring of the hall. The Council agreed that the Pre-School could proceed with the implementation of the plans. The clerk emphasised the need to have the lease document amended to reflect the amended designated area. He proposed that the amended drawing could be done at the same time as the one to reflect the actual area of the village hall as that lease document also required an amendment. In both cases there was no need to draw up a new lease but only a need for an amended site plan.

Recreation Ground

Mr Mark Willis reported that the Millennium bench in the Recreation Ground had been vandalised as well as damage to the gate leading into the Play Area. Although we have relatively little vandalism within the village he asked that villagers report any that they witness to the Recreation Ground Committee. An article will be placed in the February Newsletter.

Mr Willis also reported on the meeting between Mr Steve Foster of the LEA and the Recreation Ground Committee. The recommendation is that the Parish Council should consider using a more suitable mower. This likely to be contracted out and the cost of mowing is likely to be around £130-£140 a cut for the total recreation ground. There is an option to maintain a higher level of maintenance for the area used by the school. There was also a discussion of the possibility of re-seeding the recreation ground as the quality of the surface was such that better quality cutting would not address the underlying quality of the surface. The chairman thanked Mr Willis for the information and said that Council would consider it when setting the precept for 2006-07.

Finance

The clerk outlined the structure that the Council required to consider in setting the precept. The Council accepted the underlying revenue and expenditure of a net £8,307 but agreed to make a further investment of £2,500 in respect of the Recreation Ground as result of the earlier discussions under the Recreation Ground agenda item. They also agreed to maintain the precept at £10,000 for 2006-07 and as result the Council reserves were budgeted to reduce by £807.

Village Shop/Post Office

The Chairman reported that a Planning Application for the new facilities had been submitted to SODC and that there was now a need to carry out an evaluation of the full costing in order to seek sources of funding. There is also a need to develop a business plan.

The Parish Council will meet on Wednesday 8th February 2006 at 8.00 p.m. in The Pine Lodge Little Milton unless there is a need to convene any planning or other meetings.

R. Fergusson Parish Clerk

Please note that the complete minutes of the Council are now included on the Council website www.littlemilton.org.uk  after they have been approved by the Council.

Freedom of Information Act – Parish Council Publication Scheme

Residents can see the records of the policies and practices of the Parish Council including minutes, financial information and responses to planning consultations, on request from the Parish Clerk (Raymond Fergusson –279150). Current Council member are:

            Mr Stuart McGill          Chairman                      Mr Simon Oddie          Vice Chairman

             Mrs Mabel Wood                                              Mrs Isabel Fox                           

             Mrs Alison Shelton                                           Mr Barry Coward

OXFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL

The authority is likely to set a Council Tax rise of 4.375% but has budgeted carefully to deliver a long list of services so that important schemes in roads and transport, education and youth services, community safety and many other areas can be completed without an adverse impact on taxpayers.

PRECEPT 2006/7

As most of you will know, Little Milton Parish Council is required to set a precept each year, which becomes part of your Council Tax bill. The amount for Little Milton is currently £10,000 for 2005/6, or about £45 for each house in the village. The precept is set every January for the coming year, and I would like to share with you the deliberations of the council and how it reached its decision at our January meeting.

When the last precept was set, in January 2005, we had allowed for a loan of £50,000 (£39,000 + £11,000 contingency) from the Public Works Loans Board, to help build the Pine Lodge. In the event, the Village Hall Committee achieved the impossible (by Public works standards!)-it came in at only £150 above budget, so the loan required was only £35,000. As a result of this, our repayments of the loan are reduced by about £1,100 per year. Not only that, but bookings for the Pine Lodge since it opened have far exceeded expectations, so it is unlikely to be a drain on Parish Council funds for the future.

I am also pleased to say that the MUGA (Multi Use Games Area) is becoming increasingly popular, with 5 regular bookings per week for 5 a side football and this is bringing in revenue to the council of up to £1500 per year.

Another success story is the Newsletter, with record receipts from advertising, thanks solely to Raymond Fergusson, so the Newsletter not only pays for itself but actually makes a “profit” for the Village. So far, so good. The next question is-what more needs to be done which requires Parish Council funding?

There are two further projects which the Parish Council believes we should be prepared to invest in, and they are as follows:

1)      Post Office Relocation

 By October 2007, we must move the Post Office from its current location up to its new much larger and more suitable home next to the Pine Lodge. The Parish Council is required to restore Wall Street Cottage (where it is now) back to how it was before it became a Post Office in 2000. Please see my separate article on progress to date.

2)      Restoration of the Recreation Ground

Those of you who have lived in the village for 20+ years will know that our recreation ground used to be a mecca for football teams across South Oxfordshire, but over the years it fell into disuse, and disrepair. The main user of the recreation ground is now our own Primary School, and despite attempts to maintain it using our own mower, it has become clear that we are not achieving the desired result, either for the school or the Village. It is vitally important for the Primary School to have high quality sports provision.

The Parish Council are very proud of the fact that we now have facilities which are the envy of many larger villages (including Wheatley and Chalgrove !) and users who come even from Thame!

We are therefore determined to continue this progress, so we agreed unanimously to invest in restoring the Recreation ground by ploughing it up, re-seeding with a high quality sports durable grass, and mowing it regularly using professional contractors.

We expect the restoration of the ground to cost £1500 as a one off payment, and regular mowing to cost c£1,000 per annum.

Our final decision to make was the level of reserves, which we agreed to keep at c£10,000, and the result is that your Parish Council has decided to keep the Precept at £10,000-the same as last year. We hope you agree!

Stuart McGill (Chairman, Little Milton Parish Council)

SOUTH OXFORDSHIRE DISTRICT COUNCIL -REFUSE SKIPS FOR FEBRUARY

Our nearest Rural Community Waste Sites are at Chalgrove Village Car Park and Wheatley Primary School, Littleworth Road.

Please note that the following items have now been classified as hazardous household wastes and will no longer be accepted in the community waste vehicles.

TV’s, Monitors, Fluorescent tubes, Air conditioning units, Fridges/Freezers, Asbestos, Tins of paint (even if empty), Oil or Oil tins (even if empty), Car batteries, Gas cylinders.

The Oxfordshire County Council Waste Recycling Centres at Redbridge and Oakley Wood are open Monday to Saturday 8.30 a.m. – 4.00 p.m. and Sunday 9.00 a.m. – 4.00 p.m.

SODC: WASTE MANAGEMENT CONTRACT

For a charge of £35 residents can arrange for their unwanted vehicle to be collected from within the District and a charge of £7 per bulky item e.g. fridge furniture etc. To arrange this service residents can call the Public Amenities Team on 01491 823416 or print a copy of the form from the Council’s website www.southoxon.gov.uk .

CHURCH CLEANING ROTA FOR FEBRUARY

Week ending 4th February 2006                                               -          Mrs E. Summers/Mrs Isabel Fox

Week ending 11th February, 2006                                            -          Mrs. G. Taylor/Mrs H Ridley

Week ending 18th February, 2006                                            -          Mrs A. Hawkins/Mrs. S. Jones

Week ending 25th February, 2006                                            -           Mrs. M. Davies/Mrs S A Dennis

Week ending 4th March, 2006                                                   -          Mrs L. Lovegrove/ Mrs C Coward

Sally Ann Dennis 278029

CHURCH FLOWER ROTA FOR FEBRUARY    

Week ending 5th February                                            -                                             

Week ending 13th February                                          -                                 

Week ending 20th February                                          -                     

Week ending 27th February                                          -                     

Donations of flowers would be most welcome. If you can help in any way please give me a ring on 01844 278922        

Teresa Quested

BELL RINGING PRACTICE DURING FEBRUARY

Just to let Villagers know that the Bell Ringers will be ringing in St. James’ Church, Little Milton on 

Tuesday 7th February                                                                           7.30 p.m. to 9.00 p.m.

Sunday 12th February                                                                           10.30 a.m. to 11.00 a.m.

Tuesday 14th February                                                                         7.30 p.m. to 9.00 p.m.

Tuesday 21st February                                                                          7.30 p.m. to 9.00 p.m.

Sunday 25th February                                                                            9.30 a.m. to 10.00 a.m.

Tuesday 28th February                                                                         7.30 p.m. to 9.00 p.m.

A quarter peal was rung on Tuesday 17^th January 2006 to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the Oxford Diocesan Guild of Church Bellringers. Mrs Sarah Jones (Treble) and Mr Raymond Fergusson (Tenor) were part of the team that also included Mr Gordon Smith of Fletchers Farmhouse.

Raymond Fergusson (279150)

FROM THE RECTORY.

THE STAGE OF LIFE.

Not too many years ago, one of the villages in my former Benefice held a lovely pantomime. It had all the necessary ingredients, lots of characters, colour, comedy and costumes, dames and dancing., fun and laughter, love and pathos, not to mention the music, and of course a happy ending. A lot of hard work had been put on to make it a wonderful production, and all those who took part deserved and got our congratulations.

But in the pantomime, people from all over the village came together to play parts other than themselves, and when we saw them on stage we knew it. It’s all part and parcel of a pantomime. It was a lovely cry of delight from a child in the audience which went, “That’s my granddad!” The child had seen through the costume to the real person underneath.

How we all love to play parts, in our everyday lives? We even put on faces, adopt attitudes and ways of living of someone other than we really are. It was Shakespeare who wrote, “All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players: They have their exists and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts….” It rather punctures our pride and we might get upset, when someone says to us, “O come off it and be yourself!”, which is a way of saying, that that someone has seen through us, because they know us as we truly are.

There is, in most things and in most persons, more than meets the eye and Jesus was a man of extraordinary perception. Think what Jesus saw in, for instance, mustard seed and wine skins, in a hold up on the Jerusalem-Jericho road and in bridesmaids late for a wedding; in an unjust steward and in a good shepherd, or a censorious elder brother at a party. Even more so did Jesus look through his loving eyes at men and into men, so that he could see what others did not see, and know what others did not know even about themselves. He saw, for example, in Peter, a man who would deny him, but also the ideal man on whom to build the Church.

But we Christian people believe that that self same Jesus looks with his searching but loving eyes at us and into in still. He sees us as we truly are. He knows the secrets of all our hearts; nothing is hid from his eyes.

Within a few weeks, Lent will be here, that special time of testing when we expose ourselves afresh to the cleansing and forgiving love of God. And as we do, we know we will have to drop the disguise, throw away the mask and be the real true self he made us meant us to be, the true self he knows us to be. There could be pain for us here, since none of us likes to know the truth about ourselves. But the Love of God makes that pain bearable, and enables us to grow through it. When that begins to happen we know we are on the way to wholeness.

But our Lord won’t leave it there. He will go on to insist that we help others to be their true selves, to bring them together in trust, one with another; to be the lovely self that he made them, with us, to be.

That pantomime was a wonderful show of costume, colour, fun and laughter, performed together as a company. Let us pray that we, as God’s company, will come together to be with him, and to see him in his beauty, and come to see our true selves in that beauty.

Lord, teach me my darkness and my light, so that I may be whole. Amen.

Victor Story

FROM THE REGISTERS.

DORIS MAY STRINGER

Doris died on the 27^th December at the age of 95. For many many years she had lived in Little Milton, and was known always as Mrs. Stringer. Such was the respect in which she was held. She epitomized the age in which she lived, cherishing values such as home, family and friends. She loved Little Milton and hardly went far from it. People like Doris made our village what it still is- A COMMUNITY. Please do remember her Son and the family at this special time.

LENT 2006.

Ash Wednesday falls on the 1st March this year. The forty days of Lent are the days in the Church’s year when we especially remember the time of Jesus’ withdrawal to the wilderness, and by tradition it has become for us a time when we are called to think anew about ourselves, our priorities and our relationships with God and one another. During Lent there will be services on each Wednesday evening of Compline, and on certain Mondays we shall be holding Lent Lunches.

The programme of Lent Lunches is as follows:-

March 6^th                                                                           March 13^th

Lunch will be held at Simeons, Little Milton                    Lunch will be held at Harrington Farm, Great Milton

By kind permission of Mrs Helena Lawrence                 By kind permission of Miss Marygold Nixey        

From 12.noon – 1.30pm                                                    From 12.noon – 1.30pm

March 20^th                                                                              March 27^th

Lunch will be held at The Dell, Great Milton                     Lunch will be held at Church Farm, Church Hill

By kind permission of Miss Thelma Blake                       Great Haseley

From 12.noon – 1.30pm                                                   By kind permission of Mrs Judy Alexander

                                                                                             From 12.noon  - 1.30pm

Victor Story

 (01844 279498)

SUNDAY SCHOOL

Our year began with a packed Brunch meeting at Spring Cottage to which 16 children came and at which we welcomed one of our original Sunday School children back as a helper. A much need helper indeed! We discussed our Christmases, shaped, baked and decorated biscuits, watched a PowerPoint slide show emailed from Texas and sang accompanied by two of the resident musicians on violin and recorder…! Several families are planning to go along to the “Walk with a Child” day in March organised by the Diocesan Children’s Adviser Jenny Hyson.  Do ask any of the Teachers or Victor if you want further details of this event which is on March 11th.

In February our dates are:

Sunday 5th   – 11.00 Godly Play IV in Church

Sunday 19th – 10.30 Brunch meeting at 3 Chiltern View

We welcome any child from 4 years upwards to come along and find out more! Alternatively, telephone the number below.

Sally Ann Dennis (278029)

on behalf of all the Teachers

GREAT MILTON METHODIST CHURCH

Minister:  Revd. Derick Chambers Tel: 212019

SUNDAY SERVICES IN FEBRUARY

For further information please ring me.

Evelyn Holme 278938

BENEFICE SERVICES FOR FEBRUARY

NEWS FROM LITTLE MILTON SCHOOL

 We are pleased to welcome five new children to our Infant Class this term.  Stephen Jacobs, Charlotte Jones, Rhodri McLaren, Joseph Parkhouse and Nathan Reeves joined our Reception Class at the beginning of January, and appear to be enjoying their new roles as school children!

We are all looking forward to welcoming Bishop Colin, the Bishop of Dorchester, to a Candlemas Assembly at St James Church on 1^st February 2006.  Bishop Colin joined us in school during the Autumn Term, and we are delighted that he is making a return visit.

Eve Hunter

POST OFFICE/VILLAGE SHOP RELOCATION

As many of you will know, the current lease on the Post Office where it is now in Haseley Road runs out in September 2007. The Parish Council are committed to relocating the Post Office up to the new site next to The Pine Lodge, in a building of 37 sq metres, giving far more space for merchandise and the possibility of a coffee shop area.

Planning Permission has already been applied for, and the next stage is to put together costings for the fully equipped new building so that we can approach possible funding bodies.

Is it Viable?

With every business venture, there is an element of risk, so Annie Rogers and I visited a newly opened village shop in Tackley late last year. The shop is the same size as our proposed facility, and part of Tackley village Hall, and while their village is larger than ours, they have no through traffic. We have the A329, which is a curse to many, but should be a significant source of passing trade for the new shop. The Tackley shop has a number of interesting facilities, including a coffee shop,  a bakery, a video store, newspapers and magazines, and a selection of interesting merchandise. The shop had been open for 18 months, turnover was rising, and prospects were good.

We both believe that with the new, larger premises, with space to display far more merchandise, additional services, and the passing traffic from the A 329, we can create a facility which is far more viable than our current shop/PO.

What should it sell?

You may remember filling in a questionnaire earlier this year, the results of which will be used to create the new shop.

The questionnaire was completed by 100 households, representing half the village, and the range of merchandise and services requested, in order of popularity, were:

                                                         Votes                                                                Votes

Post Office                                          94                       Fresh Meat & Fish           40

Newspapers/Magazines                   85                       Off Licence                       38

Local Produce                                    74                       Prescription Collection    38

Fresh Bread/Cakes                           72                       Photocopying                   33

Fresh Fruit & Vegetables                 72                       Photo Processing             24

Home Made Produce                        62                       Pet Food                          21

Dry Cleaning                                       60                       Shoe Repairs                   21

Delicatessen                                       48

Video/DVD Rental                             47  

Additional comments were cards, confectionery, stationery, milk, butter, eggs etc

Not Another Tesco’s?

In our view, the last thing this village needs is a Tesco Express-nothing against Tesco’s, but we cannot hope to compete on price with the major supermarkets. We think that the results of the survey give a strong clue where we should focus-namely high quality, fresh, local produce, probably organic, which you cannot buy in Tesco’s or ASDA, supporting local, small scale producers, similar to the farmers market type of product.

The survey also suggests providing a number of time saving services-Dry Cleaning, Video/DVD Rental, Prescription Collection, Photocopying, Photo Processing, and Shoe Repairs, for residents who do not have the time to make a special trip into Thame or elsewhere for these.

We also believe that a bakery, producing hot bread and pastries each morning and during the day, would be attractive, as would the smell of freshly brewed coffee for the busy mums dropping their children off at school or the Pre School

Opening Hours

The survey’s results into opening hours were also illuminating. The following were the votes on when villagers would be most likely to use the shop:

                                        Monday-Friday            Saturday          Sunday

6-8 am                                     6                                3                        2

8 am-12,00 Noon                   50                             55                      41

12,00-3pm                              24                             21                      14

3-6pm                                     36                             11                        4

6-7pm                                     18                              5                         2

7-9pm                                     10                              8                         3                                     

Obviously, the hours of opening will be determined by the availability of staff and helpers during these hours. We will be contacting those who made offers of help in the near future.

Does the Village want a Post Office or Village Shop?

Finally, the survey asked residents if they felt it was important to have either a Post Office or Village Shop in Little Milton

The results were:

POST OFFICE-    85% of the residents who returned their questionnaires felt it was very important  that we retain a Post Office in the Village, with only 2% feeling it was relatively unimportant.

VILLAGE SHOP-   68%  of the residents who returned their questionnaires felt it was very important to have a village shop, with only 3% feeling it was unimportant.

Stuart McGill

BBOWT

Keep up to date with all the news, Trust walks, latest press releases, Trust Wildlife Fact sheets by visiting our website at www.wildlifetrust.org.uk/berksbucksoxon

FRIENDS OF WELLS FARM

We plan to meet on Sunday 5^th February, when we intend to continue thinning out some of the trees in the newly planted woodland area, as well as tidying up that area in general.  The stronger growing trees are smothering the weaker ones and their growth is being stunted. This will be an ongoing task through the winter months.

We welcome anyone who would like to come along and get some fresh air. We meet in the Farmyard at 10.30a.m.

Phil Jones 278120

WALK FOR WILDLIFE

Calling all walkers! It’s time to sign up for a great day out with friends and family.

The Berks, Bucks and Oxon Wildlife Trust sponsored walk is taking place in Oxfordshire in 2006 and for the first time this year it will be held in partnership with the Friends of Wychwood Forest. Funds raised will go towards the important local conservation work carried out by both charities. The date for your diary is Sunday 14 May.

The start and finish point for the walk will be the stately Blenheim Palace near Woodstock. A variety of routes have been planned to suit all abilities, starting with a short three-mile amble suitable for pushchairs and wheelchairs and going up to a major 37-mile hike along the entire Wychwood Way. In between there are routes of around five, eight and 17 miles.  So whatever your level there is a walk for you.

All of the routes take in at least some of the grounds of the palace and there is plenty to see along the way. Pretty villages, meadows and woodland are dotted along the route and walkers should be able to enjoy all the sights, smells and signs of spring. To help children and the young at heart get more from their walk there will be special quizzes and activities.

It’s a great way to get out and about and enjoy the countryside, and you will be raising money for local charities at the same time.

Contact the Wildlife Trust on 01865 775476 for a registration pack. As an additional bonus, everyone who raises £50 or more in sponsorship monies will receive a free copy of the national 'Wildlife Walks' book, worth £12.99.

FRIENDS OF LITTLE MILTON SCHOOL 200 CLUB

The prize wining numbers, for January 2006, were drawn by the Little Milton School Children at their Good Work Assembly and were as follows:

1^st Prize                                    No 14                          Jill Hoban                                             £20.00

2^nd Prize                                   No 78         &nb