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| IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM PC COREGAN,
Neighbourhood Team, Watling Ward, Hertfordshire Police
There has been ongoing issues of sheds and
outbuildings being broken into within the Watling ward.
If you see anything suspicious, vehicles and persons parked up/ walking
in the rural lanes at different times of the day and night please inform
Hertfordshire Police immediately. They seem to be targeting farms or
larger homes with access across fields.
PC 1353 Maurice Coregan Tel: 01707
354192 PCSO 6596 Marie Taylor Tel: 01707 354192 |
| DACORUM MOBILE POLICE STATION IN
MARKYATE Is being held at the fire
station on: 18 February 2010 10:00am to
11:00am.
(This time and location can be subject to change) |
A SITE TOO FAR
We are all very protective of our Green Belt
surroundings, feeling that too much has encroached on it already in
the last 60 years. Well, consider this: a new private development
has been proposed to “fill in” the land between Chaul End, Caddington,
Slip End and the M1. The developers of the 800 acres (327 Ha.) site
(plans available at
www.bushwood.info
) promise to protect
the local villages’ privacy and independence by hedges and trees.
The promise of having a village 4.5 times bigger than Markyate at
the end of the garden is producing fury in the villages of
Caddington, Woodside, Aley Green and Slip End. Find out more
at
www.case4.org.uk. CaSE4 stands for ‘Caddington and Slip End
fighting for our communities’. On the CaSE4 website you can find
out how to make your voices heard and download a pre-printed card to
send in to register your opinion. The proposed small town of Bushwood
has housing for 13,000 people. It is not linked directly to any
major road and there is little employment available locally (in the
villages, Dunstable or Luton). Therefore it is likely that every
working day 6,000 men, women and children will be on the move to
work, drop off at schools, attend hospitals, shop at supermarkets
and deliver by lorry to shopping centres. At weekends the relocated
Luton Rugby Football Ground, the new Sports Village, the Olympic
swimming pool and the Leisure Centre will attract hundreds of cars.
On what roads will at least half that traffic be travelling? The
vehicles will travel via the M1, the A5 and the A505. And then they
will come and go via our Church End on Luton Road (B4540); the other
roads are too small. The gridlock for all of us in Markyate will be
indescribable. Your Parish Council therefore is sending our support
to the CaSE4 campaign. We encourage you to read the material and
make your own minds up. This is a speculative development that is
not welcome; we must protest most strongly.
|
| REGISTERING OF PEGGY'S FIELD AS A
VILLAGE GREN We have received the
Notice of application to Voluntarily Register land as a Town or Village
Green from Hertfordshire County Council. This Notice will appear
in the local press and notice boards in the village until the end of the
advertising period, 10 March 2010. |
| VACANCY FOR COUNCILLOR
We have a vacancy on Markyate Parish Council caused by
the resignation of James Gower. A bye-election to fill the vacancy
will be held if within 14 days (not counting Saturdays and Sundays) from
1 December 2009, ten electors for the ward/parish give notice in writing
claiming such an election to the Returning Officer. The address of
the Returning Officer is:
Dacorum Borough Council, Civic Centre, Hemel
Hempstead, Herts, HP1 1HH.
If no such notice is given by the Parish Council
will fill the vacancy by co-option. |
| NOTICE OF CONCLUSION OF AUDIT
Audit Commission Act 1998 Accounts
and Audit (Amendment) Regulations 2006) for
Markyate Parish Council
Notice is herby given that the
audit for the years ended 31 March 2008 and 31 March 2009
were completed on 16 November 2009 and the accounts are now available
for inspection by local electors in accordance with Section 14 of the
Audit Commission Act 1998. To arrange a viewing please contact the
Clerk at the Parish Office, Cavendish Road, Markyate, tel: 01582 840110,
alternatively copies are available from the
Parish Office between 9:30am and 2:00pm Mondays to Friday inclusive |
| RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT TO PROVIDE FORTY
DWELLINGS WITH ASSOCIATED PARKING, MAJOR RETAINING STRUCTURES ON A5
BOUNDARY AND LANDSCAPING. EXTENSION TO EXISTING CEMETERY WITH
ASSOCIATED PARKING.
The
development of 40 houses has now been allowed, with the Inspector
overriding Dacorum’s objections. This has been a long-running struggle
to balance the demand for new homes with concerns on traffic, noise and
a further strain on local resources. The Inspector wrote a 24-page
report and found that Dacorum had not provided enough evidence to
justify halting the development. The architects for the developers had
provided counter-arguments: they had proved that some Dacorum estimates
were exaggerated and had modified their plans sufficiently to satisfy
the Inspector. Details are available on the Dacorum Borough
Council website: www.dacorum.gov.uk |
|
LEARNING MORE ABOUT MARKYATE
We live in a
remarkably diverse village: and we sometimes overlook traditions that
started 60 years ago. As part of the Parish Survey, all businesses have
been surveyed and asked for their opinions. Some companies in Hicks
Road were established in the fifties and are specialised precision
engineering firms. Their equipment is stabilised for maximum accuracy
and quality performance by being anchored into massive concrete slabs.
This maybe changes the feasibility of the idea of moving the machines
South of Dammersey Close. It also limits what housing or buildings can
be built nearby, but it doesn’t stop plans to rethink the way that the
Industrial estate is used. All these findings and more are being fed
back to Dacorum Borough Council. |
|
BEDFORDSHIRE POLICE CHOIR
The concert is being held in the Village Hall at 7.30pm
on Saturday, 23 January 2010. It is highly recommended to anyone who
appreciates beautiful tenor voices singing a wide range of musical
pieces. Make it a night out and bring your friends. Tickets are
available from the Parish Office. |
|
SPECIAL SKIP
The skip will be in Hicks Road on Saturday, 20 March
2010, from 9am to 1pm. Please see our notice boards and
Markyate Monthly for a list of items which can not be placed in the
skip |
|
THE
GATHERING OF THE MARKYATE RESIDENTS
 The Annual
Parish Gathering was held on 21 April in the Village Hall.
The Parish Council is 10 members strong, with just one leaver and one
joiner in the Year: Mrs Joy Patel retired and Mr Carey Bennett was
co-opted. Our Police team has changed with PCSO Deborah Dawson joining
the Met Police service. Her replacement was warmly welcomed: PCSO Marie
Taylor. She and PC Mo Corrigan gave an update on our low levels of crime
and how they have planned Police Open Door Clinics at the Fire Station
every other month. The winners of the Parish Plan lucky draw were
announced.
The Chairman's Report for
2008/09 is available here please click on link below
Markyate Parish Council Chairman's Annual Report
2008/09 |
|
CARE OF THE VILLAGE
This is always
a busy agenda item at every alternative Parish Council meeting. The
councillors live, work and play in the village, so their eyes are always
open for ways to improve or set right aspects of village life. They are
also glad to receive your comments. Trees dominated the discussion at
this meeting: lopping and crowning them can produce unwanted results.
Each situation demands careful consideration: the trees that provide
such a pleasant shaded walk around Peggy’s Field need to be crowned
upwards so that the path is kept light and in rainy weather the branches
don’t droop down into one’s face. Ash trees shed many seeds and grow so
quickly that sometimes the best recourse is to replace them with a
smaller tree altogether. Ownership of the trees is sometimes a difficult
issue. The Parish Council cannot order lopping and felling unless it
has the power to do so.Other topics included making the many road signs
visible: if you didn’t live here would you know that there was free
parking near the surgery? The sign is obscured by an old hedge and
nowhere else is the facility advertised! Parking is a major headache for
all of us. Please be considerate and try not to block yard entrances,
garages and gates, sometimes it is very difficult for residents to get
out of their own front entrances. We need to be good neighbours as we
live in a village with very little spare living room!
Fly-tipping is a disgrace: phone Dacorum’s helpline
when you see one: 01442 867858. Lines are open from 8.00 am to 6.00 pm,
Monday to Friday. You can leave a message on the answering service
outside of office hours. Dacorum are dedicated to keeping the
environment clean: phone them for special collections and disposal of
bulkier items |
|
HOW
CLEAN, SAFE AND GREEN IS OUR VALLEY?
Posters
are appearing around Dacorum encouraging us to celebrate community
groups and individuals that are working beyond their normal paid work to
make their community a cleaner, safer and a greener place to live and
work. Look out for posters and nomination forms: do you know someone who
is extra-diligent?
Do you think the Village could be Cleaner, Safer and
Greener? Walking along the A5 or the High Street, we can be in no doubt
that substantial improvements could be made. We are subject to a lot of
passing trade and our shop-keepers rely on many people from outside of
the Village for their livelihood. Do they cause the litter? What could
you or I do to make a difference?
The Parish Survey has asked us questions on these matters
and our returns are now being analysed. The Parish Council is looking
forward to publishing the findings in the next few months. We have drawn
on as wide a group of people as possible, with no limits imposed on who
can respond, whether on paper or on-line. |
|
MAKE HAY WHILE THE SUN
SHINES
A hundred years ago this invocation was important to many
small businesses in the Village and was part of the freight carried by
the Nicky Line. Today, the focus is being prepared for a
mini-Buncefield, a pile-up on the A5 or a mishap over our heads. In the
next three months, we are compiling a registry of people who have the
skills and the resources to help out in such and emergency. The Register
would be held securely by the Parish Council and would be called upon by
Hertfordshire Resilience partnership whose responsibility it is to
facilitate the combined response to emergencies and major incidents in
Hertfordshire.
Just think of who could help. In the event of an
emergency, local expertise would be called upon: are you qualified
medically, a police officer, a Head teacher, a member of the clergy, a
qualified engineer, a recovery vehicle driver, a printer, an
electrician, a plumber, a cook or refreshment maker or even a
Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinator?
While we live in a peaceful Valley (and may the sun
shine this spring and summer), we should prepare for that once in a
lifetime event; just-in-case! Perhaps the actors, make-up artists and
scriptwriters amongst us could help us stage a mock disaster, with
emergency services in attendance: just a thought. |
|
BUS SERVICES
Bus services are
important to many of us, although they do not seem to go directly to the
places we most want to visit (L+D Hospital and the rail stations at
Harpenden, Hemel Hempstead, Luton and St. Albans).
A recent change to another service from Redbourn to Hemel, resulted in
its replacement with more 46 buses; this has worked to our advantage and
there is a more frequent service for Markyate passengers. But the
complications remained, we have been served by more than one Bus Company,
with Arriva and Centrebus sharing the 46 service between Hemel Hempstead
/and Luton.
At the end of June there is another change: Arriva are withdrawing and
CentreBus
are taking over the whole weekday service. We have displayed the new
timetable, effective from the end of June on our notice boards. The
times are very different from the existing ones, so passengers need to
check how the changes will affect them. The new timetable will be
available on the bus stops and on Intalink at www.intalink.org.uk (
click on timetables, area 3), but these will not be updated until the
end of the month. We are attempting to obtain pocket timetables giving
the new service, which will be made available through local shops. |
|
AGE CONCERN
We are pleased to announce Mrs Sue Tobin, who is well known
in Markyate, has agreed to become Age Concerns’ Liaison registered
Befriender in Markyate.
We are particularly pleased with this news as in the past it
has been difficult to find a volunteer to help the over 55 year age group in
the village.
Sue Tobin has also been trained by CRUSE Bereavement Care in
Hertfordshire to provide support for the bereaved.
Please contact the Parish Office in the first instance if you
would like to make contact with her. |
|
PARISH COUNCIL
RESPONSIBILITIES
There is so much to do at a Parish level that the Parish
Councillors take on extra responsibilities to address important issues.
These areas of interest are monitored by the Councillors and key points
are discussed as agenda items at our monthly meetings.
The Councillors have volunteered to provide oversight on
the following committees and topics for the coming year (in alphabetical
order):
Airport Developments:
C. Bennett and J. Gower
Elderly Welfare: S Pilkinton
Emergency Services: C Bennett
Emergency Disaster Plan: C Bennett
Environment: C Dullea
Health:
P Bunyan
Newsletter Articles: C
Bennett and J Gower
Newsletter Editorial: R
Peterson
Planning: I
Crawford
Schools: P Bunyan, I Crawford
and S Pilkinton
Village Green Registration: E King |
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NO THANK YOU - NO COLD CALLING
The Parish Council is investigating the introduction of
making Markyate a No Cold Calling area. Caddington and Studham are both
now cold calling-free. We should follow suit and deter itinerant callers
who may make use of their bogus badges to carry out theft by distracting
the villagers. The Police and Trading Standards Officers support these
zones as they are known to have a positive effect. Poppy Day collections
and friendly calling on villagers for charitable work is still
encouraged. In a village with so many listed buildings, it is difficult
to understand why some salesmen continue to try and sell us
double-glazing. |
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INTERNAL
AUDIT
We are very pleased to report our Internal Audit has just been
completed by Dacorum Borough Council. A copy of this
audit certificate is as follows:-
REPORT ON INTERNAL AUDITOR FOR 2008/09
A
Appropriate books of account have been properly kept through the year.
Agreed: Yes.
B
The Council’s financial regulations have been met, payments were
supported by invoices, expenditure was approved and VAT was
appropriately accounted for. Agreed: Yes
C
The council assessed the significant risks to achieving its objectives
and had adequate arrangements to manage these. Agreed: Yes.
D
The annual precept requirement resulted from an adequate budgetary
process; progress against the budget was regularly monitored; and
reserves where appropriate. Agreed: Yes.
E
Expected income was fully received; based on correct prices, properly
recorded and promptly banked; and VAT was appropriately accounted for.
Agreed: Yes
F
Petty cash payments were properly supported by receipts; expenditure was
approved and VAT appropriately accounted for. Agreed: Yes
G
Salaries to employees and allowances to members were paid in accordance
with council approvals, and PAYE and NI requirements were properly
applied. Agreed: Yes.
H
Asset and investments registers were complete and accurate and properly
maintained. Agreed: Yes
I
Periodic and year-end bank account reconciliations were properly carried
out. Agreed: Yes.
J
Year-end accounts were prepared on the correct accounting basis
(receipts and payments/income and expenditure), agreed with cash book,
were supported by an adequate audit trail from underlying records, and,
where appropriate debtors and creditors were properly recorded.
Agreed: Yes.
1)
K The council has met its
responsibilities as a trustee. Agreed:
For any other risk areas identified by the council (list any other risk
areas below or on separate sheets if needed) adequate controls existed:
IT system controls to cover data security and integrity: Yes
Our external audit for 2004/05, 2005/06 and 2006/07 still remains
unclosed due to concerns expressed by a parishioner. We have
just submitted our external audit for 2008/09 to BDO Stoy
Hayward. |
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FAULTY
ROAD SURFACE?
To help up keep
Hertfordshire's roads up to scratch we need YOU to let Hertfordshire Highways
know when things are not right. So whether it's a pothole, pavement problem, faulty streetlight, icy road or any other highway fault, call:
01438 737320 or 01923 471320 or go to
www.hertsdirect.org/highwayfaults, thank
you.
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Disclaimer
Please be aware that copies of correspondence received by this Council
including letters, emails and memos, will be held as part of an Agenda Pack
as information for the following meeting, which may be discussed at Parish
Council Meetings and as such will be placed with in the public domain.
This information will be held for viewing for a period of four weeks and
correspondence received by this Council will be held for minimum 6 years.
If you have any further queries about how we hold and process your
correspondence, in the first instance please contact Jenny Bissmire at the
Parish Office on 01582 840110. |
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