Local Issues

20 Feb

BURRIDGE COMMUNITY ACTION TEAM MEETINGS

Two very lively CAT meetings were held in the 1st Sarisbury Scout Hut at Burridge on Friday. Over 150 people from Burridge and Swanwick attended the meetings to talk about the consultation by Fareham Borough Council on the 2036 draft Local Plan.

Most of the questions were centred on a possible allocation of 150 houses at Rookery Farm recycling centre proposed by Raymond Brown with access to Swanwick Lane and Botley Road. I am very unhappy at the thought of an access onto Swanwick Lane if any development does go ahead here. A roundabout on Botley Road opposite Rookery Avenue would be the best solution. Originally hundreds of houses were proposed however the site is very constrained by landfill and the orchard hence the limit to 150 on the existing industrial part of the site.

Comments need to be with the Council by 1st March. https://www.fareham.gov.uk/…/loc…/localplanconsultation.aspx

20 Feb

Staunton Farm

Hats off to staff at Staunton Farm, Countryside Service colleagues, partners, volunteers and local families, who braved the rain and mud to plant the first of the fruit trees in the new community orchard with Councillor Seán Woodward😊

27 out of 42 trees were planted, many of which are native to Hampshire or rare to find 🍏🍒

The orchard is located within a new community garden – the former Storey Garden dating back to the 1860s – at the popular family attraction near Havant, with the aim of people looking after the trees, harvesting the fruit and apple pressing in the future.

The orchard project has been a fantastic collaboration between Staunton staff, supporters and volunteers alongside the Beacon Community Partnership (Right to Work CIC and Havant Day Services).

Storey Garden was originally a kitchen garden and orchard to the Storey family home in the – the project intends to recreate this and open it to the public, ensuring that everyone can enjoy it, become actively involved, volunteer and take on a community group role.

The Storey Garden work compliments the National Lottery Heritage Fund work taking place at Staunton to transform visitor facilities and reimagine its special history and heritage.

11 Feb

NORTH OF WHITELEY MEDICAL SERVICES

A letter sent to Winchester City Council three months ago by the Fareham and Gosport Clinical Commissioning Group has at long last been made public. It is in response to questions I raised at the North of Whiteley Forum way back in July 2019 and at several previous meetings and contains the NHS rationale for not providing any extra built medical provision within Whiteley to cater for the additional 3,500 houses now under construction.

I have attached the letter for people to read. It claims that there is plenty of space at the existing Whiteley Surgery on Yew Tree Drive to accommodate all of the new patients by utilising the upstairs rooms. It already accommodates Whiteley and Locks Heath patients. All that is needed apparently is for the car park to be extended. What the NHS omits to say is that such a move would require planning permission and would involve the destruction of ancient woodland. Advice repeatedly given by the local planning authority (Fareham Borough Council) is that planning permission is unlikely to be granted.

This contrasts with the position in the Welborne (Fareham) development where a health and wellbeing building is required to be constructed by the developers.