Dear Parishioner
After just over a year as Chair of your Parish Council, I would like to talk to you as one of our Parishioners to impart some good news and to explain a little about the work of your Parish Council.
The work and responsibilities of your Parish Council are funded from part of the Council tax that you pay to the Borough Council. There is a useful short video on the Parish Council’s website that explains the work and responsibilities of each tier of local government including your Parish Council. Please be aware it is mounted on YouTube which means cookies must be enabled in order to watch it.
The Parish Council manages several aspects of your community which includes:
- Maintenance of the recreation grounds including woodlands
- Maintenance of the playgrounds and the Headley Pavilion
- Maintenance of footpaths & community areas
- Village litter collections
- Maintenance of the War Memorials
- Support of local clubs & organisations
Please do take the time and have a look at the website and the short video. The Parish Council costs each Parishioner less than 10 pence per day which I hope you would agree represents excellent value for money. The Parish Council costs so little to operate because the hard work and commitment by your Parish Councillors is all totally voluntary and we are so grateful to them and all our community volunteers who contribute so much of their time to help make our villages so enjoyable to live in.
Ever conscious of the fact that the Parish Council spends your money on the services it provides and the statutory responsibilities it has, I’m so pleased to be able to inform you that the Parish Council has ‘frozen’ the level of Council tax that you pay towards the costs of your Parish Council for next year – April 2025 to March 2026.
As the housing in both villages have expanded over the years, the Parish Council has been able to secure additional funding from the housing development companies which have funded several new facilities for Parishioners and their families to enjoy!
These new facilities have included the furnishing of the Headley Pavilion, improved secure fencing for the children’s playground at Headley, new tree planting and additional benches and picnic tables for both recreation grounds, new equipment for the Ashford Hill Cricket club as well as speed detection equipment to help with the speeding vehicles problem in both villages.
A major project being considered by the Parish Council has been the Multi Use Games Area (MUGA) on Headley recreation ground which would provide a variety of hard-court facilities including tennis and basketball. A facility which could be enjoyed by all family members throughout the year. Currently this is awaiting planning approval but before the Parish Council were to proceed with it we would wish to carry out further surveys to ensure a viable level of use.
On the subject of housing the Parish Council has recently been contacted by Sigma Strategic Land advising us of their proposal to develop 45 residential houses southwest of Ashford Hill Road. Full details can be found on the Parish council website, but you should be aware Sigma are holding a community drop-in session where interested parties can meet the project team. It will take place on Friday 2nd May 2025 from 3:30pm to 6:00pm at Ashford Hill Village Hall. Feedback from residents regarding the proposed housing development can be sent to Sigma until Sunday 11th May 2025 via ashfordhill.your-feedback.co.uk
I would ask you to support your Parish Council and your Councillors by providing us with your community improvement ideas and feedback on the work we are undertaking on behalf of our communities.
I’m aware there have been comments relating to improving communications. We are always happy to look at this but most of the Parish Councillors have a full time job, the meetings are not always well attended, there is a regular coffee session in the Headley community shop but it is not usually attended by people from Ashford Hill and the parish is quite widely spread so we would welcome suggestions on what suits people best.
In conclusion, please consider volunteering your time, expertise and ideas to one of the many volunteers’ groups and working parties by contacting the Parish Council Clerk for more information at clerk@ashfordhillheadleypc.org
Best wishes, Stephen Hoskins