Piddinghoe Parish Council Update, 23 June 2022
Hello, I’d like to draw your attention to two important matters arising from last week’s meeting
of the parish council:
To cut or not to cut – Let us have your views!
In order to support biodiversity and bee habitats the council has agreed to underwrite matchfunding of £100 towards the planting of wildflower areas on the far side of The Hoe. Seeds and plant plugs to the value of £500 from Beelines will also be part-matched by volunteer labour. A planting day is planned for Saturday 24 September – everyone welcome! But this commitment to biodiversity has prompted questions about the frequency with which green spaces in the village are mowed. Being a recreation ground The Hoe is mowed about twice a month, but opinions within and beyond the council differ on the merits of cutting other verges and green spaces, such as the Church Bank. Many people value the biodiversity promoted by long grasses and wildflowers, others feel leaving such a prominent site to grow makes the village look unkempt.
What do you think?! Should we let the Church Bank area grow all summer each year, or should be have it cut periodically as has been the case until now? Wildness or neatness?! Please let us have your views by email to the Parish Clerk by the end of August. We want a sense of the balance of opinion before we take a decision at our meeting in September. For the moment we have asked Barcombe Landscapes not to cut the Church Bank until the autumn.
Co-option vacancy – Volunteer as a councillor!
Thanks to Debbie Mills’ recent retirement from the council we have a further opportunity to coopt a further public-spirited parishioner. We should have five councillors altogether but at present we only have four – John Scaife, Bev Traylen and Noel West are my fellow volunteers. So please consider joining us, and having a direct voice in the democratic life of the village and parish. It’s interesting, convivial, and not terribly time-consuming – there are just five council meetings a year. The next is 13 September, so we will need your expression of interest before then. For more information do contact Alison, our Parish Clerk, on piddinghoepc@gmail.com
A few other key points from last week’s meeting:
• Tree-planting on the Hoe for the Platinum Jubilee is planned for November.
• Councillors Bev Traylen and Noel West will convene a group to review past proposals and look at new initiatives to manage parking in the village.
• We took a number of steps to discourage traffic speeding through the village. At the same time we are progressing a feasibility study with ESCC Highways to see how traffic can be slowed at the north and south junctions with the C7.
The draft minutes of the meeting are on the website, and will be published in The Villager. They have also been circulated to the parish email list; to join that list please email the Parish Clerk. Meanwhile have a lovely summer!
Paul Bevan
