Chairman’s update - October 2022
Each month, our Parish Council Chairman pens an update for The Courier, a local volunteer magazine. Now with our new website, we recognise the opportunity to share those updates with you here. We hope you enjoy and find these to be a useful bulletin.
Chairman John Wood writes:
The sad passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has dominated the news and provided a period of reflection for us all. News came to late to cancel the Parish Council meeting which was held in the Village Hall in Collingbourne Ducis. Elections for the Chairman and Vice Chairman were held with Cllr John Wood elected to the Chair and Cllr Steve Lyons as Vice Chair.
Cllr Lyons provided an upbeat report on the General Maintenance of the village, particularly the efforts of the new Parish Steward who has posted a number of before and after pictures of the work he has been conducting in the village. Steve intends to engage with the Sparkle Team in the Autumn to coincide with a Village Litter Pick scheduled for 30 Oct, all volunteers will be welcome.
The Village Fete and Tri-Village Tournament successfully took place on Saturday 3rd Sept. The weather Gods shined on the village green and Captained by Cllr Bell the Collingbourne Ducis team prevailed to retain the Cup. Well done Karen and her team of helpers and all of the athletes, participants, supporters and villagers who ventured out and entered into the fun and spirit of the event.
The next date for your calendar is the Halloween Community Clean-up on 30 October! Join us at 10am at the Village Hall for a spooky event, cleaning up our village before the festive season. Volunteers are welcome to join us at The Tipple Inn following the clean up for a free bacon bap! *Beware the clocks change that morning!
Following the next cleanup, the next date for calendars is the annual Xmas Big Brunch to be held on 11 Dec. If you wish to make a donation for the prize draw raffle held at the Big Brunch please contact Cllr Bell.
On the Speed Watch front, the good news is that Wiltshire Police have issued Collingbourne Ducis their own equipment, unfortunately the camera has had to be sent back for essential maintenance and is expected to be returned soon. In the interim we will continue to share the equipment issued to Collingbourne Kingston as before. Coordinated by Paul Hartley, the Speed Watch Team is always on the look out for willing volunteers, training is provided, and the bigger the team the greater the presence on the A338.
Thank you to all who responded to the flyer inviting ideas for future projects for the Parish. Cllr K Earle has taken the lead of a working group to review the results of the survey and collate the ideas into costed projects to be considered at the next Parish Council meeting.
Our next Parish Council Meeting is scheduled for Thursday 03 Nov 2022 at 7.00 pm at Collingbourne Village Hall. Parish Council Meetings are open events, which members of the public are more than welcome to attend.
If any parishioners wish to get involved in any of the activities, including Speed Watch or just want to contact with the Parish Council, do feel free to email the Parish Clerk, Mr Phil Gill, parishclerk@collingbourne-ducis.com.
