Category Archives: Parking

Parking in Clappers Lane

Posted on

Garages in Clappers Lane

Residents of Clappers Lane will hold a meeting in the Village Hall on Friday 7th July at 7.30pm to discuss parking at the southern end of Clappers Lane. All villagers are welcome to attend and contribute to the discussion. The aim of the meeting is to look for solutions to ease parking for those without off-road parking — specifically residents between 5 and 27 Clappers Lane.

Most of us are aware of a number of recent incidents because of too many cars parked along a very narrow stretch of Clappers Lane and very large vehicles travelling regularly along the lane causing obstructions and accidents. It has also had a knock-on effect for parking in The Street.

Do come along with comments and suggestions. If you can’t attend and want to contribute your ideas, please email Linda Dyos at linda.dyos@fulking.plus.com or pop a note through her letterbox at number 11 in advance of the meeting.

Miles Firth and Linda Dyos

Roy Plomley presents Horsham District Discs

Posted on

Henfield Steyning car parking
Horsham District is about to introduce car parking charges. We live in Mid-Sussex District so, obviously, we will be exempt from these charges. Er, no, apparently not. And both Henfield and Steyning are in Horsham District. You probably park briefly in one or the other on several occasions a week. Much the cheapest way to use these car parks on a regular basis will be by purchase of a disc*. Luckily, Horsham District is allowing Mid-Sussex residents to buy their discs so you will not need to bribe an acquaintance in Steyning to secure one for you. During March and April only, you can get two for £12. But the scheme goes live on Monday 3rd April so you will need to order your discs this month. Click the image above to reach the relevant website.

*The alternative is to buy a pay-and-display ticket each time you visit one of the car parks. This will cost you £39 a year assuming that you park just once a week.

Bobservation 21. Fulking Fair and Fun Day

Posted on

Purple Banner for Bobservation 21

We have had a good response to a plea for volunteers for Saturday 30th July but, as ever, there is still a need for various types of help:

The Teas Team are desperate for cakes!   Please ring Tricia (255) or Pam (271) with your promise of a donation (which can be homemade or shop bought, they won’t tell!) and to arrange delivery.  Even if you are bringing your cake on the day it is still important to let them know what you are bringing.  Teas will be served in and outside the village hall (weather permitting).

Tombola prizes of any type are much needed and can be delivered to Louise at 13 Clappers Lane or call her on 773.

Childrens’ Games.  Here Angela needs help in supervising the events which include Bouncy Castle, Stocks, Hook the Duck and Coconut Shy. Volunteers will have time to enjoy the other events but relief helpers would be very welcome. Please give Angela a call on 122.

Parking controllers are needed to direct the traffic to the parking in Downside Meadow, allocate spaces in the meadow and control traffic through the village. If you can help on this one give me a call on 271.
So, please:

  • Come to the fair on Saturday July 30th from 1pm till 5pm and make it a really successful day.
  • Come to Call my Bluff at the Shepherd & Dog at 7pm on Friday 29th July. Tickets from the pub are £15 each and include superior nibbles and ten, yes ten! wines to quandary over. Bring your own food and drink if you wish.
  • Be as helpful as you can to visitors from outside the village and remember this is a Fulking village and Shepherd & Dog combined event.
  • Be as cooperative as possible where traffic is concerned. There will almost certainly be some disruption in The Street due to pedestrians moving from Downside Meadow to the North Town Field. Nothing will be gained by getting upset or abusive.

Bobservation No. 18

Posted on

Mini_trafficTraffic Problems…

I understand that there have been recent occurrences of minor gridlock in the Street and that the parking problem has become of more and more concern to villagers. So the Parish Council, after discussions with Highways at West Sussex County Council, has agreed that the ’backway’ will be refurbished, asphalted and form the east to west section of a one-way system in Fulking.

The Street will form the west to east section. This will necessitate the compulsory purchase of land at the southern end of properties that abut the ‘backway’.

To obviate the need to negotiate the value of such land it has been mutually agreed that a standard sum in compensation of £50 be paid to the freeholder of each of the properties involved. It is expected that work will commence at the beginning of August and completion is anticipated by January 2017. Due to the Government Austerity Programme, the cost of the work involved will be shouldered by Council Tax bands D to F over a five-year period.

Residents’ car parking at Preston Nomads

Posted on

Residents parking at Preston Nomads
Readers are reminded that there are half a dozen car parking spaces at Preston Nomads which are reserved for Fulking residents. The grounds are normally locked but those with parking spaces get their own keys and there is a lift-and-lock pole on each space. For legal reasons, there is a small fee to pay. Full details can be obtained from the Head Groundsman, Brian Sandalls, at the grounds.

To judge from the state of the grass (see above), only one of the six spaces is in current regular use.

Road Closures

Posted on

Road_Closed_Sign

Carriageway Patching to_Clappers Lane. Fulking: ref#_9110137

West Sussex Highways will shortly be improving the surface of Clappers Lane. This work will commence on the 25th February 2013 and will last 2 days.

This process will involve removing the surface layer of tarmac, then replacing with new material.

Due to the large plant used to surface the carriageway a road closure will be in operation to enable us to safely carry out these works in a timely manner. This closure will be in place along the whole length of Clappers Lane, and will be in force between 0800 and 1700. A signed diversion via A281, Poynings Road will be in place.

Before the work starts ‘advance warning’ signs will be erected stating the start date, duration and marking the extent of the works. We shall do our utmost to minimise the impact of the works and you can help us by following this advice:-

  • On the day of the works please don’t park on the road unless you have off street parking.
  • Access to your properties will be maintained where possible: however during periods when materials are being laid access may be limited
  • For safety and cleanliness reasons please do your utmost to keep children and pets away from the area of work
  • When driving on the new surface please keep to the signed temporary speed limits and avoid heavy braking to allow the surface to stabilise

Whilst work is being carried out we would ask that you follow any instructions given by the expert personnel on site. If you have any concerns about access please speak to the site foreman who will be happy to help you.

Please note that the date of this work may change in exceptional circumstances.
Yours faithfully
West Sussex Highways

2012 10 11 PC Minutes

Posted on

Minutes of Ordinary Parish Council Meeting at 7.30pm on 11 October 2012 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. Chairman of Mid Sussex Council Mandy Thomas-Atkins, MSDC Councillor Colin Trumble, West Sussex District Councillor Peter Griffiths and 12 members of the public

1. Chairman welcomed the members of the public and introduced Chairman of Mid Sussex Council — Councillor Mandy Thomas-Atkins

2. Apologies: None

3. Declaration of Interest: None

4. The minutes of the previous meeting held 12 July 2012 having been previously circulated, were taken as read and approved and signed by the Chairman.

5. Matters Arising.
Planning: Old Pump House — In July 2012 enforcement order that was lodged in October 2011 was upheld by the planning inspector. A period of 9 months has been given to cease residential use and one extra month to remove the caravan and tidy up the land.

Market Garden — The PC met with Nick Rogers (Development Manager) and Steven King (Team Leader) planning investigation and enforcement, both Mid Sussex planning, at the end of August. Market Garden and other general planning queries were discussed. Progress with Mid Sussex planning will be monitored. The PC will be writing to MP Nick Herbert to ask for his help in addressing various issues relating to travellers. The PC was disappointed to hear that some residents did not feel that it had pulled its weight over the Market Garden issue. The councillors felt it needed to go on record that a large amount of work goes on behind the scenes and that they felt very frustrated over the issue. The public could comment on this matter at the end of the evening when comments are invited from the floor.

Preston Nomads — Only 4 (possibly 2) of the initial 6 people are still interested in the parking spaces. Residents who wish to take up the parking spaces need to collect padlock keys, those who do not intend taking up the spaces need to return the post keys. If anybody knows of anybody else that may be interested in a space please contact the Clerk. The car park area will be planted this month with indigenous plants. The possibility of filling in the potholes in the bridleway immediately outside the entrance is being looked into by Preston Nomads. The PC wish to thank Paul Hird for his work on this matter. (Clerk) A reminder that planning applications which fall within the SDNP are now posted on the South Downs website rather than Mid Sussex.

Highways: A meeting was held with highways on the 25 September to discuss ongoing problems.

Shepherd & Dog — A temporary cure is in place; however with autumn approaching it is felt that more work needs to be carried out. WSCC have investigated and will submit a request for further works, after which the PC will look at turfing the banks to complete the works. Stones have been washed down from the bridleway onto the highway by The Shepherd & Dog. Highways are going to discuss this with the bridleway owner and public rights of way.

Lady Brook Spring — A works order has been raised by WSCC to fence the spring. As a temporary solution the bollards will be replaced with a fibreglass plate over the entrance. A notice will be placed in Pigeon Post to gauge interest in making a feature of the spring. (Clerk)

Four Acres Corner — The drain & pipe have been flushed through. The size of the sump should have been increased at the same time — this was not done. Tim Boxall WSCC will chase this up. Once this work has completed the PC will monitor the situation.

Clappers Lane banking — The condition of the banking is the responsibility of the adjoining landowners. Highways have written to them but received no response. Highways suggested that the PC write to the Landowner & the person responsible for the damage Grange Farm and Badgerswood respectively. (Clerk).

Clappers Lane road surface — Highways will write to the landowner opposite The Sands to request that the ditches be cleared/kept clear. Highways were on site earlier today with Drainage Strategy team to look at the north end of the road. Contrary to what the PC had previously been told, it appears that no works order had been placed for the road surface to be repaired prior to that meeting. Highways suggested that all landowners be reminded to cut back hedges as winter approaches- this should be a request in Pigeon Post. A suggestion was made at the Village Plan meeting that signs could be placed at the north end of Clappers Lane saying something like “do not follow SatNav – unsuitable for large vehicles” Highways and PC will look for suitable signage for each end of the village.

Footpath 4f — This is still with the legal department; the order is expected to be made in the near future. The PC will be advised and then there will be a 28 day statutory objection period.

Stiles & Gates — The repair and maintenance of stiles and gate on public rights of way are the responsibility of the landowner over which the route crosses. This is also the case for trees, hedges, side vegetation and fences. The only exception are bridges which are the responsibility of Highways.

Ram Pump House — The National Trust have completed the work on the door and lock. Kate Watson and the National Trust are the key holders.

North Town Field — This will be addressed as a separate agenda item.

Councillor Vacancy — There is still a vacancy so please ask around.

PC Official documentation — The Standing orders, Financial Regulations, Code of Conduct and Declaration of Interest are all available via the Website, or as a hard copy from the Clerk.

Training Courses — The Clerk is half way through the first module of the Working with your Council Course. The clerk is also attending a networking day in November.

Joint Parish Meeting — This was held at Albourne in September. Councillors were present from Albourne, Poynings, Twineham and Woodmancote. Disappointingly nobody from MSDC planning attended the meeting, even though they were invited as a large part of the meeting revolved around planning. Councillor Sue Seward has asked to be copied in on any planning issues, and she will try and arrange a meeting with the planning dept to discuss concerns. All councils will review in six months and decide the way forward. Faster Broadband was discussed at the meeting; Fulking had a good response with 66 households expressing an interest in faster broadband. Please encourage anybody who has not already signed up to the scheme to do so. Suppliers are being invited to tender by the summer of 2013 with the faster broadband being in place by 2015.

Website — The new website is up and running and very easy to use. The new website address is fulking.net.

WSCC Councillor Peter Griffiths gave a brief report. He apologised for his absence from recent meeting; this is due to a clash of duties. In the future the two main costs to West Sussex will be care of the elderly and the cost of waste disposal. Providing these services will mean that other services will need to be reduced. It was suggested that an article be placed in the Pigeon Post with regards to the mobile library service. (Clerk)

6. Councillor Colin Trumble MSDC gave a brief report: Council Tax changes to benefits consultation will be completed by December. Auditing of single occupancy claims will be carried out to ensure it is fair. E-bills will be available to those who wish to pay that way, it is envisaged that this will save a lot of money. Grants to community groups that do not need matched funding. Money may still be available, but would have to be spent within the current financial year. Colin to provide more information on this. Budget Work has started on this for 2013/2014. Travellers were mentioned briefly and Councillor Linda Dyos said that he would be hearing from the PC shortly on the matter. Councillor Colin Trumble left the meeting 7.45pm for other commitments.

7. Financial Matters. The following payments were agreed and cheques signed: 100582 SALC Clerk’s networking day 60.00; 100583 Clerk’s salary & expenses 934.77; 100584 Councillor expenses 11.20. Cheque stubs were cross checked with the cheque list and both signed. The quarterly bank reconciliation was checked and signed. It was agreed that the Financial Regulations would be changed to state Internal audits would be carried out Annually rather than regularly as previously stated. (Clerk) It was agreed that the PC would look into setting up E banking (Chair)

8. Winter Management: The winter management plan is well underway. A meeting will be held in the next few weeks with WSCC to discuss the plan. Once it has been finalised a copy will be posted on the website and on the parish notice board. (Clerk) Farmer David Ellin still has an agreement with WSCC for the loan and use of the snow plough .(Michael Trist will contact the farmer when it is necessary to use the snow plough ). The clerk attended the Mid Sussex Emergency Planning liaison Group meeting in September and had nothing to report back from the meeting. It was felt that as Fulking is a small parish, the meeting would not have much relevance and therefore apologies would be sent for future meetings.

9. Risk Assessments: The Financial risk assessment and risk assessment having previously circulated were agreed and adopted. They will be placed on the website or hard copies available via the clerk. (Clerk)

10. Playground inspection review: The annual Rospa inspection was carried out in June; this highlighted a low risk of entrapment in the gate. The PC asked if anybody had any ideas how this risk could be eliminated? Mark Stepney will carry out the remedial work on the trip hazard and the moss which were also highlighted in the annual inspection. The weekly inspection rota needs to be updated. (Clerk). New inners for the bins in the playground need to be purchased (Clerk)

11. Community Bus: Has provided a service to Fulking for 20 years two days per week. It is free to bus pass holders, otherwise journeys will cost between 1-2 depending on the length of the journey. The PC agreed to give a contribution of 100 for this financial year. This will be reviewed annually. An article will be put in Pigeon Post to give details of the service provided. (Clerk) A thank you letter is to be sent to the providers (Clerk).

12. Fountain: The PC will arrange for the bollard in front of the fountain opposite Laurel House, to be fixed. Paula Hazard has the bollard. (Pam Rowland to contact Mark Stepney).

13. Crime Update: Crime in Fulking was low over the summer. Please stay vigilant. A notice about cheap shed alarms from MSDC will be placed in the noticeboard, website & Pigeon Post. (Clerk)

14. Comments from the floor: Card making day on 13 October. The Police Authority Elections were mentioned. Where is the Polling Station? This is to be looked into & published on website and noticeboard.The Polling Station is Playing Field Pavilion, Poynings BN45 7BH (Clerk)

15. Dates of the next meeting: The next Parish Council meeting will be held on 10 January 2013

Meeting closed at 9.05pm

[ BoilerPlate plate = “PC_Disclaimer” ]

Village Plan – Original Ideas from 2010

Posted on

Here are the original discussion notes from the Village Plan Working Party first published back in 2010. Things have moved on since then.

The Future Requirements of Fulking village?:-

Fulking is a unique and lovely rustic country village situated in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), of which there are not many left in Sussex, and now set in part of the South Down’s National Park.

Mid Sussex District Council (MSDC) is urging all towns and villages to prepare a development plan for their own area looking ahead up to 2026. If we do not present a plan then MSDC will prepare one for us based on what they think we require, and all future Parish Councils will be required to work towards it. The Parish Council therefore feel it is important that the village produces its own plan for the future, rather than have one imposed by MSDC.

1) Enhance the conservation area of the Village
This can be achieved by removing all telephone poles and putting the cables underground (see also item 6) and perhaps in 2012 with the much stronger signal of Digital T.V. the aerials could be placed in the loft where practical.

2) Limiting the continual enlargement of Dwellings
Within the conservation area, enlargement to properties is often carried out by developers who then sell the property on within some two to five years. With enlarged homes comes the problem of increased numbers of family and then more cars parked in The Street and Clappers Lane . If an extension is allowed within the Conservation Area then it should be to the rear of the property and should not alter the appearance as seen from the road.

3) Embrace the new MSDC and National Park policy
NO new housing development in the National Park, except in very exceptional circumstances.
Clappers Lane should be made a quite lane by WSCC as it is now within the National Park and will be used by a lot more walkers, horse riders and cyclist.

4) The Sewerage Plant:
Must be brought up to the latest EU standards. This would prevent all the lush weed growth which then chokes up the stream, and also bring the discharged water quality up to the standard required to stop pollution of the River Adur and to some small degree, the sea in which we bathe.

5) Village Car Park
We need a Village car park to cater for visitors to the village, customers of the pub and walkers access to the Downs. The Car park must be a green parking area suitably screened to blend with the surrounding area.

6) Telephone and Broad Band System
Due to the increased potential to work at home and to allow any business to function efficiently, the telephone and broadband system must be greatly improved. We all know of the system’s slowness even though it is supposed to operate at 8Mb. Even with a direct line from the exchange to Manor Farm businesses, they are still experiencing many problems. This improvement should be possible if the villages of Poynings, Fulking, and Pyecombe all group together and push for early installation of the new 100Mb fibre optic system for which the government has given permission and which is to be installed all over England within two years (if you can believe this is possible!).

7) Village/Church Hall
A new hall will soon be required as the present one is falling apart due to woodworm and rot. Insulation against heat loss is non-existent as it was built 1902. The new government standards require disabled access and car parking so perhaps a new village hall could be built in the village car park. It should be built to modern standards and fitted with solar panels to reduce the hot water bills.

8) Affordable Housing
A very difficult subject. The main considerations are young people who have lived in the village all their life cannot afford to buy houses here, so they move away leaving their parents who often become unable to manage on their own. The parents are then forced to move away to nearby towns, their house is then sold and the chance to help their parents in old age, and another chance to live in the village is also lost.

9) The Chapel
When the old village hall is demolished, the Chapel, a feature of the village which is still in reasonable condition, should remain and there are several possibilities for its future if let out by the church; it could become a village tea room and small village shop; suitable small business such a firm of accountants, computer sales and repairs, a secretarial service; it could even be converted to living accommodation with an extension at the back. Such options would not alter or spoil the look of the conservation area, whereas to demolish the two buildings and build a new cottage/ house would spoil the rustic charm of the village and would look out of place.

10) Children’s Play Area
This part of the village has been a constant expense for all previous Parish Councils and it is costing the P.C. a lot of extra money. One major expense is the repeated topping up of the bark in the enclosure around the climbing frame. This needs to be replaced by a modern permanent safety material that does not require any maintenance.

11) Allotments
This is a recent issue started by the organic movement and the credit squeeze. There are only a few people who think they want an allotment as most are too busy today with family activities. TV, computers and other modern technology.
The solution that the P.C. therefore suggested is that if anyone has more garden than they need, the P.C would introduce them to a person wanting an allotment and let things takes their course.

These are The Parish Council’s thoughts for the future of the village and the start of the Village Plan.

The Parish Council would like to hear from anyone who has ideas they think should be included in this suggested plan, or indeed comments on items they do not agree with. Please reply to Paula Hazard The Parish Clerk, or to one of the Parish Councillors. Please have your say!! Your views can be expressed at the Parish Council meeting on Thursday 9 September 2010, 7.30pm at the Preston Nomads Cricket Club House. If indifference is shown, then it will be adopted as the official plan for Fulking and lodged with the MSDC.