Author: LocHist

Edburton and Fulking in the 1922 Kelly’s Directory for Sussex

Title page of Kelly's Directory Sussex 1922
Title page of Kelly’s 1922 Directory for Sussex.

Frederic Festus Kelly was a senior Post Office official who purchased the rights to a London trade directory in 1835 and went on to become the most important 19th century publisher of commercial directories. A University of Leicester digital library project devoted to such directories observes that “Kelly’s success was based on the innovative content and formats of his publications. He championed the production of county and provincial directories covering all settlements in a given area. These provided a wealth of information about each place, often including a commercial, street and classified trades section. He also retained the title of Post Office Directory for some time, giving his publications an aura of officialdom.” There is an informative 1893 interview, “The Baedeker of Babylon” [PDF], with Kelly’s grandson about how the directories were compiled.

EDBURTON (anciently Eadburga’s Town) is a parish 4 miles east from Bramber Station on the Horsham and Shoreham section of the London, Brighton and South Coast railway, 10 north-west from Brighton and 53 from London, in the Horsham and Worthing division of the county, hundred of Atherington and Poynings, rape of Bramber, union and petty sessional division of Steyning, county court district of Brighton, and in the rural deanery of Hurst, archdeaconry of Lewes and diocese of Chichester.

The church of St. Andrew is of flint and stone, in the Early English style, and has a tower containing 3 bells: nine of the windows are stained: the font is of lead, and dates from 1180: the church was restored in 1878, at a cost of £1,573, and has 225 sittings. The register dates from the year 1559. The living is a rectory, net yearly value £320, with residence, in the gift of the Archbishop of Canterbury, and held since 1913 by the Rev. Edward Griffith Evans M.A. of Clare College, Cambridge, hon. O.F.

Lord Leconfield, who is lord of the manor, and the Crown are the principal landowners. The soil is green sand, clay and part gravel; subsoil, chalk and clay. The chief crops are wheat, barley, oats and potatoes. The area is 1,094 acres; rateable value, £735; population in 1911 was 114 in the civil and 302 in the ecclesiastical parish.

Letters through Small Dole. Upper Beeding is the nearest telegraph office. Poynings is the nearest money order office, 2 miles distant. Wall Letter Box near the church.

Public Elementary School (mixed), rebuilt in 1873, enlarged in 1883, for 75 children; Miss Averil Haigh, mistress.

  • J. Clayton J, M.I.O.E. Clappers Lane
  • Rev. Edward Griffith Evans M.A. (Hon. C.F.), Rectory
  • Henry Harris, farmer, Perching Manor
  • John Radcliffe Passmore, farmer, Edburton Farm
  • John Powell, market gardener
  • Walter Augustus Powell M.R.C.S., L.R.C.P.Lond. physician & surgeon
The Street, Fulking, c1910
The Street, Fulking, circa 1910.

FULKING, Folking or Faulking (in Domesday Fochinges), in the ecclesiastical parish of Edburton, was constituted a separate civil parish under the “Local Government Act of 1894.” It is about 4 miles east from Bramber station on the Horsham and Shoreham section of the London, Brighton and South Coast railway and 8 north-west from Brighton, in the Lewes division of the county, Steyning union and petty sessional division and Brighton county court district. The Crown is lord of the manor. The soil is green sand, clay and part gravel; subsoil, chalk and clay. The chief crops are wheat, barley, oats and potatoes. The area is 1,552 acres; rateable value, £1,546; the population in 1911 was 188.

Post Office: Percival Lucas, sub-postmaster. Letters through Small Dole, Sussex. Poynings is the nearest money order office, 1 mile distant. Pyecombe is the nearest telegraph office, 3 miles distant.

  • Major Albert Adams, Old Farm House
  • Robert Atkins, The Croft
  • Mrs. Black
  • Charles E. Clayton, Holmbush Lodge
  • Laurence Clayton, Badger Wood
  • Samuel Payne, Fulking House
  • Duncan Sinclair, Hall Farm

COMMERCIAL

  • Mrs. Maria Baldey, Shepherd & Dog Public House
  • Thomas S. Hills, farmer and assistant overseer, Fulking Farm
  • Percival Lucas, grocer, Post Office
  • Arthur Pinker, farmer
  • Joseph Robinson, farmer, Perching Sands
  • Henry William Uridge, farmer

[All material transcribed, with minor formatting and punctuation changes, from pages 359, 360 and 373 of the 1922 edition of Kelly’s Directory for Sussex, published by Kelly’s Directories Ltd., London.]

GJMG

John Ruskin, the pump house, and the fountain

"John Ruskin in 1873 photographed by Frank Sutcliffe"
John Ruskin in 1873 photographed by Frank Sutcliffe

Artist, botanist, geologist, poet, polymath, proto-socialist, writer (39 volumes), and much else besides, John Ruskin (1819-1900) was a cultural colossus of Victorian England. He gave his first sermon when he was five years old and published his first journal article when he was fifteen. Today he is primarily remembered as the greatest art historian of his era. Residents of Fulking, however, have another reason to remember him — as a civil engineer: “He smiled a little at himself in later years when .. he said that civil engineering was his true bent and that his devotion to literature and art had all been a mistake, and that England had lost in him a second Telford.” [E.T. Cook (1912) The Life of John Ruskin, London: George Allen, Volume II, pages 163-164]

“The inhabitants of Fulking .. had for a long time a great difficulty in obtaining an adequate supply of drinking water. A hilly gathering ground was near, but nature seemed to have intended the water for other localities. All sorts of expedients were adopted, but all proved a failure. It happened that Ruskin occasionally visited the district, and the idea occurred to somebody that he might be able to help. The request was a strange one, but Ruskin began to think what could be done and, in the end, devised a scheme which has given Fulking as much water as it can ever hope to consume. Works have of course been required, but they did not cost very much, and they certainly do not disfigure the locality. The people have not been slow to show their gratitude for the boon thus conferred, and near the well which gives the inhabitants a constant service they have erected a beautiful marble memorial.” [Pall Mall Gazette, August 26, 1891, from the Manchester Examiner, reproduced in The Works of John Ruskin, London: George Allen, Volume 34, page 719. PDF]

"The pump house door, Fulking"
The pump house door

“John Ruskin .. had the idea of harnessing the waters of the Fulking stream to power an hydraulic ram which would pump the supply around the parish. The little Gothic pump house is still there and on it is a plaque bearing an inscription from Psalms 104, 10 and 107, 8.” [Brigid Chapman (1988) West Sussex Inns, Newbury: Countryside Books.]:

Inscription from Psalms displayed on the side of the Fulking pump house
Pump house inscription

“The various structures associated with the village’s ingenious nineteenth century water supply are a unique feature of Fulking. Around 1886, water from the spring (located close to the Shepherd and Dog Public House) was harnessed to provide the village with its own piped water supply. Two men are credited with devising and instigating this scheme. One was John Ruskin .. and the other was Henry Willett from Brighton. The system supplied the village with piped water until mains water eventually arrived in 1951. The arrangement consisted of an hydraulic ram driven by water from a brick lined reservoir/balancing tank (located in the garden of the Shepherd and Dog) pumping water up to a reservoir close to Old Thatch on the north side of The Street. Although no longer working, the system remains largely intact today.” [Ed Lancaster (2008) Fulking Conservation Area, Haywards Heath: MSDC, page 9. PDF]

Tony Brooks reports that Ruskin used to stay at The Old Bakehouse (next door to the Shepherd and Dog) and that the new water supply involved “four reservoirs: one under each of the hand pumps in The Street, one for the drinking fountain by the entrance to the North Town Field and one at Perching Manor. The villagers maintained the system and the last person known to have been in charge of it was the local builder, Charlie Franks, who lived in Fulking all his life”. [Anthony R. Brooks (2008) The Changing Times of Fulking and Edburton 1900 to 2007, Chichester: RPM, page 29.]

The key component of the Ruskin/Willett scheme was the hydraulic ram pump. It was invented by Joseph Michel Montgolfier in 1796 and modern versions are still in use today. Its key advantage is that it requires no external source of energy beyond that supplied by an existing water flow.

Easton and Amos ram pump, 1851
Easton and Amos ram pump, 1851

“The pumphouse by the roadside was part of the supply arrangements which continued until a new supply was provided in 1953. There is a small fountain in the village which [bears] the following inscription: ‘To the glory of God and in honour of John Ruskin Psalm LXXVIII that they might set their hope in God and not forget but keep his commandments who brought streams also out of the rock’.” [“A Ram Pump at Fulking”,Sussex Industrial Archaeology Society Newsletter 5, January 1975].

In honour of John Ruskin: inscription on the Fulking water fountain
The inscription on the Fulking water fountain

Ruskin’s water supply collaborator, Henry Willett, a wealthy local brewer, was responsible for erecting the fountain with its inscription. Ruskin, however, was less than enthusiastic, writing to Willett in June 1887, with “sincere thanks for your kind note .., but I am too sad and weary just now to see anything; and I was grieved by your inscription on the fountain, for it made my name far too conspicuous, nor did I feel that the slightest honour was owing to me in the matter” [The Works of John Ruskin, London: George Allen, Volume 37, page 591.].

GJMG

For more information on the local water supply, see Anthony R. Brooks (2008) The Changing Times of Fulking and Edburton 1900 to 2007, Chichester: RPM, pages 28-30. Interested readers may also wish to try and track down the following items: (i) Paul Dawson “John Ruskin, Fulking and the water supply”, Friends of Ruskin’s Brantwood Newsletter, Spring 1996; and (ii) Joyce Donoghue “Looking into Ruskin’s Sussex connection”, Friends of Ruskin’s Brantwood Newsletter, Spring 1995.

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2012 07 12 PC Minutes

Minutes of Ordinary Parish Council Meeting at 7.30pm on 12 July held at the Village Hall

Present: Chairman Ms K. Watson, Vice Chairman Mr M Trist Councillors Ms L. Dyos, Mrs P. Rowland and Clerk to the Council Mrs Andrea Dickson. MSDC Councillor Colin Trumble and 6 members of the public

1. Apologies: None

2. Declaration of Interest: None

3. The minutes of the previous meeting held 12 April 2012 having been previously circulated, were taken as read and approved and signed by the Chairman. The minutes of the Extraordinary meeting of the Parish Council to Accept Internal Audit and Annual accounts were read out, approved and signed by the Chairman.

Report from Councillor MSDC:

District Plan Will need to be agreed by Autumn. This is planned from the bottom up,with all local areas having a say in the amount of housing that can be sustained in their area. Local areas need to agree to the District plan if no ideas are put forward then new housing will be forced on the District.
National Park is separate planning should meet stringent conditions that compliment the South Downs National Park. (SDNP)
This led on to questions about Market Garden — Councillor Trumble stated that he should be kept informed about the situation. It was agreed that Councillor Trumble would put some points in writing and attend the proposed meeting with MSDC to discuss the policies and procedures with regard to Market Garden planning application.
Council Tax — April 2013 will see a change in the way Council Tax will be distributed. Councils will only be reimbursed 90p for every 1 collected. This is to encourage people to return to work. PC should comment on information that will be provided in August (who will benefit and by how much).
Polling Stations — Fulking Village Hall was assessed and it was felt it did not reach the criteria to be a Polling Station. Poynings will be the area Polling Station. Councillor Colin Trumble left the meeting 8.00pm

4. Matters Arising
Planning: Just to reiterate, approval of Market Garden was not unanimous. It was approved with conditions. The Parish Council (PC) is currently trying to arrange a meeting with Mid Sussex planning department regarding policy/procedures mid August onwards. (Clerk)
Old Pump House: An enforcement order was placed Oct 2011 for unauthorised development on the land. The applicant appealed against the enforcement order. A site visit has been carried out and a decision will be made in around 6 weeks.
Preston Nomads Work has started to improve the entrance and provide 6 parking spaces for villagers. The PC has approached the villagers and 6 people have expressed an interest. (subject to terms & conditions)
Planning applications now need to be lodged with SDNP not MSDC.
Highways: Speeding — It was agreed to take no further action would be taken as all the 20mph signs may be put at risk. Vegetation around the sign on Clappers Lane would be cut back (this is the responsibility of the residents) Lee Holden
Flooding on the corner by the Shepherd and Dog has been cured by West Sussex highways. West Sussex will monitor the situation over the next few months, any problems in this area, please let the Highways Department at Chichester and the PC know. PC agreed to get a quote to lay turf to prevent further erosion (Clerk to contact Mark Stepney) A work order has been submitted to fence the inlet on the opposite side of the road.
The Parish Council met with Tim Boxall and residents immediately affected by the flooding on Four Acres corner. Highways submitted a work order to increase the size of the sump at the top corner of the bridleway and also to clear the water and clean the existing pipe which runs under the road. After this has been carried out residents will further increase the size of this sump, which hopefully will allow a free run from the pipe outlet and will disperse the water more easily.
Banking on Clappers Lane is the responsibility of the adjoining property owners. Highways have written to the landowner asking to respond within 28 days (Clerk to chase response at end of July).
Footpath 4f — The proposed is currently with legal services to make the order. Prior to that there will be a consultation period with notices displayed on site and the PC will be notified.
Chalk run off from the Bostal — David Ellin, farm manager, has done loads of work digging drain off points, diverting chalk run so problem virtually fixed many thanks to David for this.

APM: The Annual Parish Meeting took place on 3 May. SDNP attended and gave a presentation on neighbourhood planning. Following on from this, the Parish Council called a meeting to discuss whether or not the village wished to submit a neighbourhood plan. After discussion, it was unanimously agreed that a neighbourhood plan was not needed, due to the likely (unbudgeted) large expense, the time it would take and Fulking’s situation within a national park (hopefully protected)

Ram Pump House: National Trust have visited the property and have agreed to carry out the work on the door and lock, hopefully within the next month. When the work is completed the PC will be given a key to the lock.

North Town Field: The annual inspection with ROSPA has been carried out and we are awaiting the report.

5. Councillor Vacancy: Nobody has come forward to fill the vacancy . Please ask anybody you think may be interested to come forward and speak to a member of the PC. (Everybody)

6. Financial Matters: Financial Regulations having been previously circulated, were agreed and adopted. They will be placed on the website. (Clerk) The cheque list and cheque counterfoils were checked and signed. Clerk’s timesheet having previously been circulated was agreed, cheque raised and signed.

7. Insurance Policy/Fixed Asset List: A weekly inspection of the playground will be carried out by Councillors to conform with the insurance policy. A notice will be placed in Pigeon Post and on the Parish notice board asking Villagers to report any damage to the Clerk. (Councillors & Clerk) The fixed assets list was passed around to see if anybody had anything to add. As this differs from the information the insurance company has, they will be asked to re evaluate the assets. (Clerk)

8. Acceptance of Standing Orders: Standing orders having been previously circulated, were agreed andadopted. They will be placed on the website .(Clerk) The following procedures having been previously circulated, were agreed and adopted as part of the Standing Orders: A. Complaints Procedure B. Sickness Procedure C. Disciplinary Procedure D. Grievance Procedure

9. Acceptance of New Code of Conduct: 1. New Code of Conduct having been previously circulated , was agreed and adopted. It will be placed on the Website. (Clerk) 2. New Register of Interest Forms were distributed to Councillors. They need to be returned to the Clerk by 2 August 2012 to enable them to be placed on the website within 28 days of acceptance of the New Code. (Councillors & Clerk) 3. The Chairman & Clerk were thanked for the work that they had put into the documents prior to the meeting.

10. Training Courses: A brief report was given on the training courses attended by The Chairman Councillor Dyos and Clerk. The Clerk reported on Society Of Local Council Clerks (SLCC) with regards to joining and studying by distance learning for the course Working With Your Council Course. The PC agreed to cover this cost. (Clerk) The PC agreed to the Clerk attending and covering the cost of Sussex Association Of Local Councils (SALC) Networking Day in November 2012 and covering the cost. (Clerk)

11. Joint Parish Meeting: These meetings have proved very useful in the past, Councillors and Clerks to attend. Details of the meeting to be chased up (Clerk)

12. Website: Thanks to James Lightfoot for running the website in the past. Thanks to John Hazard for taking over the running of the website. All Parish Council information is to be published on the website . (Clerk) PC would like a permanent section in Pigeon Post to help create interest and give access to all. (Clerk)

13. Comments from the Floor: The fair is cancelled due to bad weather.
A Planning meeting will be held on 18 July short notice due to the change over to SDNP.
A discussion took place with regards to the Bridleway, who is responsible for keeping the path way clear of brambles Tim Boxall or Public Rights of Way. (Clerk)
Kissing gate at end of Lee Holden s property is in need of repair/replacement . Peter Griffiths was looking into this, it needs to be followed up. (Clerk)
Road surface in Clappers Lane is bald email Tim Boxall (Clerk)
A member of the public would like to have a vote of no confidence in MSDC planning, but will wait to see what happens at the meeting August.

14. Dates of the next meetings: The next Parish Council meetings will be held on 11 October 2012 and 10 January 2013

Meeting closed at 8.50pm

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Domesday Book entries for Fulking

“Domesday is our most famous and earliest surviving public record. It is a highly detailed survey and valuation of all the land held by the King and his chief tenants, along with all the resources that went with the land in late 11th century England. The survey was a massive enterprise, and the record of that survey, Domesday Book, was a remarkable achievement. There is nothing like it in England until the censuses of the 19th century.” [National Archives: Discover Domesday]

"Photograph of Great Domesday from the National Archives"

Each entry was intended to record, inter alia, the name of the manor; the identity of the owner(s) in 1066 and 1086; the tax assessment (‘hides’); the number of ploughing teams employed; the population of villagers, smallholders, slaves, etc.; the acreage of various types of land use; and the value of the manor and its components. Local readers will notice that there has been a certain amount of land and property price inflation since 1086 and that Edburton does not appear in the Domesday Book, either by that name or by its Saxon name, Abberton.

  • Lewes Rape XII.26: Leofnoth holds Pawthorne from William. He held it from King Edward; he could go wherever [he would]. Then it answered for 4 hides; now for 1.5 hides because the others are in the Rape of William of Braose. Land for 1 plough. It is there in lordship, with 2 smallholders. 3 sites in Lewes at 18d. The value is and was 30s.
  • Lewes Rape XII.27: Osward holds Perching from William. He held it before 1066; he could go where he would. Then and now it answered for 3 hides. Land for 2.5 ploughs. In lordship 1; 2 villages and 4 smallholders with 1 plough. 0.5 mill at 40d; meadow, 7 acres; woodland, 2 pigs; 1.5 sites in Lewes at 9d. The value is and was 40s.
  • Lewes Rape XII.28: In the same village Tesselin holds 2 hides from William. It answers for as much. It lay in (the lands of) Truleigh, which William of Braose holds. Belling held it from Earl Godwin. In lordship 1 plough; 3 villagers and 2 smallholders with 0.5 plough. 0.5 mill at 13s 4d; meadow, 3 acres; woodland 2 pigs; 0.5 site in Lewes at 2d.
  • Lewes Rape XII.29: Tesselin also holds Fulking from William. It lay in (the lands of) Shipley, which William of Braose holds. Harold held it before 1066. Then and now it answered for 3 hides and 1 virgate. 6 villagers with 2 ploughs. These two lands of Tesselin are together. The value is and always was 50s.
  • Lewes Rape XII.35: William of Watteville holds Perching. Azor held it from King Edward, and 2 men from Azor. Then and now it answered for 5.5 hides. Then there were 2 halls; now it is in 1 manor. Land for 5.5 ploughs. In lordship 1; 4 villagers and 3 smallholders with 1 plough. 2 slaves; meadow, 3 acres; woodland, 3 pigs; from asture 6d. Value before 1066, 60; later 40s; now 50s.
  • Lewes Rape XIII.6: William, a man-at-arms, holds Truleigh from William. Belling [held] it from Earl Godwin before 1066. Then it answered for 4 hides; now for nothing. Land for 2.5 ploughs, In lordship 1 plough; 3 villagers and 6 smallholders with 0.5 plough. 2 mills at 65d. Ansfrid holds 0.5 hide of this land. He has 0.5 plough. Value of the whole manor before 1066 4 pounds; later 60s; now 70s.
  • Lewes Rape XIII.7: William himself holds Tottington, in lordship. It lay in (the lands of) Findon. An outlier. Harold held it before 1066. Then it answered for 6 hides; now for 1 hide. Land for 5 ploughs. In lordship 1; 3 villagers and 7 smallholders with 2 ploughs. Meadow, 4 acres. One William holds 2 hides of this land. He has 3 villagers with 1.5 ploughs. Total value before 1066, leter and now 6 pounds.

[Extracts taken from John Morris’s 1976 edition and translation, Domesday Book. Chichester: Phillimore.]

These entries are translations of the heavily abbreviated Latin in which the original manuscript was written. Even if you did Latin at school, you will probably have a hard time making sense of this:

"Entry for the royal manor of Earley (Herlei), near Reading in Berskhire, catalogue reference E 31/2/1 f.57"

If you want to learn more about the Domesday Book, then both the National Archives and the BBC have excellent reference pages. If they whet your appetite for more then David Roffe, the UK’s foremost Domesday historian, has plenty of material available at his website. And if you decide that you simply must have a facsimile, then a range is available from Addison Publications.

GJMG

Fulking Conservation Area

Fulking Conservation Area Appraisal 2008
In November 2007, Mid Sussex District Council (MSDC) held a public meeting and an exhibition to illustrate the work that had been carried out on Fulking Conservation Area Appraisal over the proceeding months. The public meeting was held in the Village Hall, the Street, Fulking on Thursday 12th November 2007. The exhibition was held in Hurstpierpoint Library, Trinity Road, Hurstpierpoint from Monday 26th November until Friday 7th December. At the time, exhibition panels were also made available on the MSDC website.

Fulking Conservation Area Appraisal DocumentThe exhibition included a detailed assessment of the character of the conservation area, suggested a number of changes to the boundary and provided some potential ideas for enhancement. Questionnaires relating to the draft management proposals were made available at all of the locations listed above. The deadline for the receipt of comments was Friday 14th December 2007.

In May 2008, as a result of local consultations, the MSDC Planning Policy Division issued the Fulking Conservation Area Appraisal Document (PDF).

Another document (PDF) summarised the comments the Council received to the questionnaire and set out responses prepared by officers on behalf of the Council to the main issues raised. Wherever possible suggestions made by the public were included in the appraisal document.

The existing Fulking Conservation Area
It should be noted that, although MSDC agreed in principle to the extended conservation area, it has not been been legally adopted. Thus the original conservation area still stands.

Updated and corrected, 5th & 9th December 2013.

2012 05 03 PC Minutes

Annual Meeting of Fulking Parish Council: Meeting held in the Fulking Village Hall on 3 May 2012 At 8pm

Present: Ms K Watson (Vice Chairman), Mrs P Rowland, Ms L Dyos, Mr M Trist and Clerk to the Council Andrea Dickson. 8 members of the public.

1. Meeting opened by Ms Kate Watson

2. Nomination for Chairman and Vice Chairman were received by the Clerk. Chairman Ms Kate Watson was nominated by Mrs P Rowland and seconded by Ms L Dyos Vice Chairman Mr M Trist was nominated by Ms K Watson and seconded by Ms L Dyos The Chairman and Vice Chairman signed the Declaration of Office forms.

3. Apologies: Dr D Slavin and Colin Trumble.

4. Minutes of Annual meeting of Fulking Parish Council on 2 June 2011 were amended and approved.

5. Chairman s Report Clerk The previous Clerk did not meet the Parish requirements,this resulted in her resignation . Sheena Trist thankfully stepped in to help out until a new clerk could be recruited. Andrea Dickson took up the post of Clerk in April, her details will be on the website soon.

Planning: In the past year Fulking Parish Council has received 11 applications. 3 have been approved. 1 refused. 6 pending consideration. 1 called in by South Downs National Park Authority. Market Garden site is included in the pending consideration list (the application is for permanent permission for the stationing of caravans and a dayroom on the site). This has been called to committee by Mid Sussex, the planned date for this is 31 May (this has yet to be confirmed). The National Planning Policy Network (NPPN) was introduced at the end of March, hopefully this should not alter things too much for Fulking. More information can be found about the NPPN on the internet.

Finances The annual precept has increased by 3.26% to 6344.

Thank you to Bob Rowland for acting as The Responsible Finance Officer and for looking after all financial matters. Thank you also to Nick Hughes for carrying out the Internal Audit of the annual accounts. This was accepted by the Parish Council last night.

Highways: Flooding is still an issue despite Tony Brooks’s best efforts to get this sorted. Please report any flooding to West Sussex Highways Department in Chichester. Speeding is still a problem, articles have been posted in the Pigeon Post highlighting this issue. Fullking was very prepared this year with a winter management plan, although it was not necessary to put this into action.

Village Hall: Parochial Church Council considered selling the Village Hall due to lack of funds. At a public meeting in December the Village Hall Action Group was formed.The action group has worked tirelessly over the past few months improving the facility, raising funds and encouraging people to use the hall. The current arrangement is still in a trial period, the future of the hall is still very uncertain and in the hands of the community.

Village Plan: The Village Plan published last summer has recently been updated. This will be found on the website in the near future.

Crime: There has been a sharp increase in crime in the area recently so please be vigilant. Anything suspicious should be reported on the direct number for non emergencies 101.

Village Fair: Please support the village fair on Sunday 29 July 12noon-5pm. Thank you to the Social Committee which does a great job raising funds and orgainising cleans ups around the village.

Finally thank you to David Slavin for his work as Chairman in the last few months. David will be stepping down as councillor due to work commitments. This will create a vacancy on the Parish Council which will be advertised on the Parish notice board in the near future.
Thank you to all of the councillors for the extremely hard work they have put in over the past year. Thank you also to Aidan Walker for his continued involvement in Pigeon Post and to James Lightfoot for running the website for the village. Final thank you for attending the meeting and for taking an interest in the local community.

6. Speakers: Councillor Peter Griffiths gave an overview of the services West Sussex provide. Andrew Trigg (SDNPA) Neighbourhood Planning Officer for the National Park gave an update for Fulking on Neighbourhood Planning. Tricia Robinson gave a review of the progress made by the Village Hall Action Group.

7. Comments from the floor.

8. Dates of next Ordinary Parish Council meetings July 12, October 11, January 10 2013.

Meeting closed at 9.30pm

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2012 05 02 PC Minutes

Extraordinary Meeting of the Parish Council to Accept Internal Audit and Annual Accounts

Meeting held in the FulkingVillage Hall on 2 May 2012 At 8pm

Present:- Ms K Watson (Vice Chairman), Mrs P Rowland, Ms L Dyos,Mr M Trist, Mr B Rowland (Temporary Responsible Finance Officer) and Clerk to the Council Andrea Dickson. Apologies:- Dr D Slavin.

The Annual Accounts were checked and accepted. They will be available for the public to inspect from 25/6/2012 until 20/7/2012, by arrangement with the Clerk or at the ordinary Parish Council meeting on 12 July 2012.

It was agreed that the Fixed Asset list would be an agenda item at the Ordinary Parish Council Meeting on 12 July 2012.

The External Audit form was completed and signed. The minute reference on the External Audit form is ONE 2/05/2012.

The accounts were handed over to the Clerk.

Meeting closed at 8.30pm

2012 04 12 PC Minutes

Minutes of the Fulking Parish Council Ordinary Meeting held in the Village Hall, Fulking on Thursday 12 April 2012 at 7.30pm.

Present: Vice Chairman Ms K. Watson, Councillors Ms L. Dyos, Mrs P. Rowland and Mr M. Trist and Temporary Clerk to the Council Mrs Sheena Trist. Nine members of the public were present. Apologies for Absence: Dr D. Slavin.

The minutes of the PC meeting held on 12 January 2012 were approved and signed off.

Lower Kents: Councillors Ms Watson and Mrs Rowland attended the south area planning committee meeting and Mrs Rowland spoke on behalf of the PC objecting to the application. It was approved by Mid Sussex, subject to certain conditions (storage only/no distribution from the site/no increase in hard standing area).

Market Garden: has not been called in by SDNP, but it has been called to committee by Mid Sussex, currently no date due to the introduction of the National Planning Policy Framework on 27 March, so certain things now have to be taken into account. The West Sussex Gypsy Liaison Officers were contacted to ask the availability of alternative traveller sites there are no spaces available anywhere in the area. As per correspondence relating to Market Garden, there are 50 traveller families waiting for vacancies in West Sussex and the Hearns are not on the current list. There are no vacancies in East Sussex, with a waiting list of 22 families.

Old Pump House: Mid Sussex are still waiting for a decision from the Planning Inspectorate. Councillors Ms Dyos, Ms Watson and Mrs Rowland, attended an informal meeting at the MSDC Planning offices. Although MSDC were unable to comment on any of the then current applications, they were able to give a general overview of their procedures.

Highways: Speeding in Clappers Lane. Tim Boxhall of WSCC advised that the legal procedures for the speeding signs had not been completed so, in effect, they were not legal. It was agreed to leave things as they are and for Mr Jason Holman to liaise with Mr Neil Cooper as this was part of the village action plan, in order to avoid duplication.

Tim Boxhall also asked the PC to bring to the attention of property owners in Clappers Lane that all verges and banks are the responsibility of the adjoining properties and tree damage is included in this.

Mr Brooks advised that the leak outside PNCC had been repaired by WSCC and the manhole cover outside Brook House had been repaired by BT. The kerb/double drain by the Shepherd and Dog was not scheduled to be done until 2013. The north end of Clappers Lane was due to be resurfaced once the problem of the leak/spring was solved. Mr Brooks had reported the flooding on the corner by Four Acres and was given a reference number of 767594, which should be quoted to Highways when reporting flooding. The PC thanked Mr Brooks for all of the time and work he had put into highway issues.

Chalk run-off from the Bostal had again become a problem during the recent wet weather, Mr Trist advised that he would have a look and see if he could rectify the problem.

Footpath 4df — One verbal objection to the re-routing of this path had been received by the PC. There would now be a consultation period during which time notices would be posted either end of the footpath.

Parish Clerk: Andrea Dickson had been appointed as new Clerk to the Council and Mrs Trist would be doing a handover to her shortly. She had been recruited through SALC and references taken up. The PC thanked Mrs Trist for her help during the intervening period.

Annual Parish Meeting: to be held on 3 May 2012. Representatives from SDNP were invited to attend but had not replied and MSDC Planning declined. The Clerk to ask Claire Tester, Head of MSDC Planning, to talk about the Local Bill and the new PCSO Anika Arnold officer to say a few words as well. A speaker from the EON offshore wind-farm proposal was suggested but it was thought that it would not have sufficient local interest.

Notice Board: The new notice board was now in place and the grant received. A letter of thanks had been sent to Peter Jones.

Ram Pump House: The National Trust had been chased to see when they would be looking at the door. It was on their list of items to do and they would be in touch shortly.

Financial Matters Interim Audit: cheque list and cheque stubs were signed off by Ms Watson and Ms Dyos and Mr Rowland advised that the VAT rebate had been received. The PC thanked Mr Rowland for his help with financial matters whilst a new Clerk was being recruited.

North Town Field: The contract with Foster Playscapes had been terminated and a letter sent to Mark Stepney to thank him for the mowing. Mrs Trist to hand over the RoSPA information to the new Clerk so that the annual inspection could be booked.

Local Plan: The PC were invited by MSDC to submit an outline plan showing potential building sites in the parish in order to help them attain the 10,000 sites they had to find to satisfy the numbers imposed on them by the Government (this was down from the 18,000 originally imposed). Mrs Rowland explained that this was a number crunching exercise and that 11 sites in Fulking had been identified and advised to MSDC. It was extremely unlikely that any of these sites would be built on in the future (being part of the SDNP and AONB) but that if the PC had not submitted sites then the MSDC would have identified their own which was not ideal.

Concessionary Fares: It was agreed that no fare subsidies would be offered by the PC, as in previous years.

AOB: There had been a spate of burglaries from sheds and outbuildings in the area and so Business people were advised to be aware and to warn neighbours.

Dates Next Meetings: 2012 12 July, 11 October. 2013 10 January. With a start time of 7.30pm. Note of new time to be put in Pigeon Post and on the website.

Members of the audience were invited to bring items to the attention of the PC. Work had commenced on the Village Hall and thanks were given to Mr Holden for refurbishing the surface of the floor and to Mrs Robinson for the curtains.

The meeting closed at 8.15pm.

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