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Council News

David Wilson Homes at Rooksdown Parish Council meeting 26 February 2024

Rooksdown Parish Council invited Ant Edgley, Technical Director at David Wilson Homes Southern to attend the Parish Council meeting 26 February to provide an update to the Parish Councillors, Borough & County Councillors and most importantly residents of Gillies Meadow, Rooksdown.

For a summary – please click here

If you have any comments or need further clarification, then please reach out to the Clerk,

Council Audit

Parish councils are audited every year to make sure the financial management is in order. 

There are two audits:

  • The internal audit, which checks all the meetings have been run properly, the accounts are in order and everything has been done as it should throughout the year
  • The external audit, which double checks all the financials and asks for corrections or changes to procedures if anything is out of order.

As part of the process, the council must open its books to any resident of the parish who wishes to inspect them. This is explained in the Notice of Public Rights. If you wish to inspect the accounts during this period, please make an appointment with the Chairman of the Parish Council.

The Annual Governance and Accountability Return includes the internal audit report and the financial statements. There is additional supporting information. At the moment the Annual Governance and Accountability Return is in its unaudited – provisional – form. When the external audit is complete it will be accompanied by an audit certificate

Rooksdown Parish Council response to Bewley Homes

Summary of the discussion regarding the Bewley Homes Public Exhibition on the proposed development on land at Weybrook Golf Course – Parish Council meeting 24 October 2022.

Parish Council meeting – Item 22/208
Consultations – To discuss the recent public exhibition by Bewley Homes on the proposed development on land at Weybrook Park Golf Course and agree Parish Council response.

Cllrs Knights and How confirmed they had attended the public exhibition by Bewley Homes on the proposed development at Weybrook Park Golf Course.  

The consultation team had been welcoming. The detail of the proposal including summaries are contained in the documents in Appendix 3.

Site Access
Permanent access would be from a roundabout located on the A340 towards Tadley past Gales Garage. Bewley confirmed they were also investigating with BDBC the possibility of providing a ‘right turn’ lane into Elm Lane at the bottom of the hill. No permanent access was planned through Rooksdown lane. One to watch.

Construction access.
Construction access via the permanent access was questionable. The consultation team spoke of early access during construction being via a road in the golf course site towards the old ‘green keeper’s’ hut. This could mean construction traffic entering the site via Rooksdown Lane up to the Golf Course entrance. One to watch.

Cycle Path access via Rooksdown Lane / The Spinney
The consultation team discussed the idea of providing walking and cycle path access via Rooksdown Lane/The Spinney. They said that as an offset to this, at a previous site with a similar layout, they provided financial support to ensure that the area had improved biodiversity alongside the walking/cycle access. They mentioned that they were in contact with the maintainer of the Spinney (Lands Trust?) about this issue. Further information required

Traffic surveys
The consultation team had ongoing traffic surveys especially on the A340 use. They estimated an average of 20 vehicles an hour entering/leaving the site once complete. Questions were raised around peak periods (7 till 9 & 4 till 6) but no estimates were available. The risk of ‘rat running’ through Rooksdown to access the A339 to Newbury was raised. One to watch.

Environment
The construction team set a good impression that they would be sympathetic to the local setting, retaining tree lines where possible and taking an understanding of the biodiversity of the area.

Parking
The construction team would meet local and national requirements in relation to parking and where possible raise above.

Amenities
The construction team were open to ideas about amenities but had no plans currently to add to this via this development. They seemed interested in gaining an insight in the recent community canvassing undertaken in Rooksdown

Freehold of the Golf Course
The construction team explained that the freehold of the golf course would be going to the golf course, with a pot of money to ensure that the golf course remains, rather than to the members individually.   The proposed Parish Council consultation response to Bewley Homes is available at Appendix 4.  

Action – Clerk to send the consultation response to Bewley Homes (copy below)

Action – Cllr Mahoney also took an action to link in the Chair at Sherborne St John to understand how they were responding to the consultation and to invite members of the Parish Council to attend any future meeting with the developers.

PARISH COUNCIL RESPONSE TO BEWLEY HOMES PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT ON LAND AT WEYBROOK PARK GOLF COURSE

Subject: RE: Weybrook Park – Engagement with Council Officers and Councillor – Rooksdown Parish Council

Good morning,

Thank you for the opportunity to attend your public exhibition on the proposed development at Weybrook Park Golf Course. The Rooksdown Parish Council attendees found the exhibition to be welcoming and informative.

Areas of interest for Rooksdown Parish Council fall into the following categories:

  • Site access (permanent and during construction)
  • Any usage of Rooksdown Lane / The Spinney
  • Environmental impact
  • Parking
  • Local infrastructure and amenities

As most of the items listed above are still at an early stage of consideration in your planning, it is difficult to provide more specific feedback, however, the Parish Council is very keen to have an ‘open’ dialogue with you as the developer in relation to these items so that we can achieve positive outcomes for all the residents near the development.

We are of the understanding that you will further engage with the Parish Council and the residents we represent, and we would welcome you attending a formal Parish Council meeting.

Our next meeting is on Monday 28th November 2022 at 7.30pm at Rooksdown Community Centre, Basingstoke RG24 9XA.  Can you please confirm you will be able to attend.

Regards,

Rooksdown is a 20mph Zone

Rooksdown Parish Council deployed a speedwatch camera on Park Prewett Road between 30th May & 17th June.

A summary of the data collected;

– On average 77% of vehicles daily were driving in excess of 21mph

– Highest speed registered 44mph.

We would request Rooksdown residents consider the following;

– To help make Rooksdown a safer place to live, take responsibility as a driver and adhere to the 20mph limit.

– If you have a view on the implementation and enforcement of 20mph limits, please complete the Hampshire County Council 20mph speed limit consultation. The consultation is open until Monday 12th September.

The survey is available at: https://www.hants.gov.uk/transport/transportschemes/20mph-speed-limits-consultation and should take just 15 minutes to complete

Vacancy – Parish Clerk and Responsible Financial Officer

Applications are invited for the post of

PARISH CLERK AND RESPONSIBLE FINANCIAL OFFICER

Working hours approximately 15 hours per week

We are looking for someone with strong organisational skills, including attention to detail. You must have excellent communication and interpersonal skills, work effectively under your own initiative, and experience in managing financial information such as accounts and budgets is strongly preferable.

The successful candidate does not need to have prior experience as a Parish Clerk; this role would be ideal for someone who would like to contribute to Rooksdown community, and develop their professional skills, working towards a Certificate in Local Council Administration (CiLCA).

Applicants should be open to developing their knowledge of the local government processes and procedures, in order to fully assist the Parish Council.

Attendance at evening meetings will be a requirement; the Parish Council has at least one evening meeting a month, usually the 4th Monday of the month. Reasonable notice will be given of any meeting to which you are required to attend.

  • Salary will depend on experience and qualifications.
  • Training will be offered where appropriate
  • You will be able to work flexibly, including at an office at the Rooksdown Community Centre, or at home, so long as the responsibilities of the role are performed satisfactorily.

If you are interested, please refer to the Person Specification and the Application Form on the website https://rooksdown.org.uk/ and send the completed Application Form by email to:

Applications should be received by Monday 11 July

Interviews will be held as soon as possible after the closing date.

For more information on the Parish Council please visit our website