www.wiltshire.gov.uk
Parish Newsletter
Welcome to the ‘Wiltshire News’ – a parish newsletter which provides information for parish and town councils about the work of Wiltshire County Council. It contains brief summaries of key reports, consultations and news with links to further information on our website and it will replace the large amount of paper-based information we currently send to councils.
Parish Newsletter - May
One Council for Wiltshire
You will be aware the consultation about the One Council for Wiltshire bid is well underway. We have visited many parish and town councils to explain the reasons why one council would make sense for Wiltshire. If you would like us to attend, please contact us on 01225 757593. You should by now have received an information pack explaining the background to the bid and explaining how to take part in the consultation. For more details about the bid, please click onto our website at www.onecouncilforwiltshire.co.uk
Some parishes have asked about election costs under a unitary authority. Our understanding is that when drafting the order necessary to create unitary councils, the Secretary of State will amend electoral arrangements for parish and town councils within the unitary area and align them to the new council.
Costs will therefore be shared between the unitary council and the parish and town councils. Indeed, if there happens to be a general election on the same day, then costs will be shared with the government as well so this could lead to a reduction in costs for the parish and town councils.
Parish Stewards
The summer programme of visits will be sent out at the end of May. This programme covers the months of July to September and includes no programmed visits for August. This will enable stewards to move around rapidly attending to ragwort and other weeds, paint railings and other furniture and still allow some time for a few well-earned holidays. When stewards are on holiday, urgent matters can be attended to by their colleagues. Please notify the divisional office of any concerns so that the team can attend to them.
Avoid the queues and take a trip at six!
Two years ago, the household recycling centres in Wiltshire dealt with 47,000 tonnes of waste to be recycled. Last year it was 54,000 tonnes.
The ten centres are busier than ever so if you are thinking of using them, then think ahead. You can expect them to be particularly busy at weekends and on bank holidays during this summer. So why not take advantage of the fact that all the HRCs are open from 9.00 a.m. to 7.00 p.m. on Wednesdays and Thursdays and Warminster and Salisbury are open 9.00 a.m. to 8.00 p.m. Monday to Sunday. Hills Waste Solutions, which operates the sites on behalf of Wiltshire County Council, is also putting in extra resources to keep the sites operating efficiently.
Amalgamation of Margaret Stancomb and Parochial schools
Consultation about the possible amalgamation of both schools onto the Parochial site as a primary school will be undertaken over the coming months. The proposal also includes the development of a children’s centre on the site. Both proposals are dependant on getting planning permission for the new buildings that will be needed.
Verge Mowing
The summer programme begins on Tuesday, 8th May. Up to ten tractor-mowers will work on our rural roads for six weeks to cut areas of the verges. These areas are selected to permit the safe passage of all road users and include the wider visibility areas at bends and junctions. The first four weeks of the programme include the minor roads because they are less wide and are more adversely affected by growth. This is followed by two weeks cutting on our A and B class routes. In addition to this work, the county’s four Unimog machines and parish stewards will be responding to urgent visibility issues, notified through the CLARENCE call centre (0800 232323). Please pass such concerns through this channel so that we can act quickly.
The Mid Wilts Way - Wiltshire’s official long distances trail
A new 55 mile trans-Wiltshire route was officially opened on Saturday, 28th April in Mere where the trail starts/finishes.
Devised by James Alsop, the MWW traces the glorious downland of Wiltshire between Wootton Rivers (near Pewsey) and Mere taking in the Pewsey, Westbury and Deverill Downs, as well as other prominent hills and landmarks. Nine pretty villages are directly on route, provided walkers with an intimate experience of some of Wiltshire’s finest rural dwellings. Future revised editions of OS maps will feature the route which is fully waymarked. For more information, log onto www.visitwiltshire.co.uk where you will find the trail divided into 10, out and back, downloadable stages.
Restricted Byways
A new classification of public right of way has now been extensively signposted in south and west Wiltshire and the observant will have already noticed these roadside “Restricted Byway” signs popping up in their villages. So what is a restricted byway and who is legally entitled to use it? The county council’s rights of way manager confirmed that these routes are available to walkers, horse riders, pedal cyclists and horse drawn vehicles. However it is now an offence under the 1988 Road Traffic Act to drive a motorised vehicle on a restricted byway unless you are the landowner or householder wishing to access your land.
Wiltshire PPI Forum - members required
The Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health is looking for new volunteer members to join their Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) Forums in Wiltshire.
PPI Forums give you the chance to make your local community’s voice heard in how local health care services are delivered. It involves a few hours each month, expenses are paid, and there’s a PPI Forum near you. For more information (pdf 60Kb) 
.
News in Brief
Community Meetings
The community meetings are taking place throughout the county. These meetings have been better attended this year, despite an unavoidable conflict with the parish elections. Copies of the slides from the presentations will be available for each of the four divisional offices from the county council website from Monday 21 May. The Highways Team thank those who were able to attend and hope that the afternoon was both enjoyable and informative.
Do try this at home
A household recipe for the summer: a handful of potato peelings, shredded newspaper, grass cuttings, some egg shells and left over carrots.
Mix it well. Store in a bin outdoors and let it heat up for a few months adding similar items as often as you like. After a few months, you’ll have your own supply of compost ready to nourish your garden.
You can get a subsidised compost bin from Wiltshire Wildlife Trust (01380 725670) or you can buy high quality, peat-free compost from the household recycling centres.
Community Area Highway Information
The Environmental Services Department has refreshed the community area highway information data on the council’s website and details of proposed schemes for 2007/08 can be obtained.
Have you signed your bus shelters?
The new smokefree law that comes into effect in England on 1st July will apply to virtually all ‘enclosed’ and ‘substantially enclosed’ public places and workplaces. Bus shelters may fall into this category which leads to an obligation to provide the legally required signs. There are substantial financial penalties for not providing the required signage and for not enforcing the legislation.
Full details can be found on the Smokefree England website where you can also order, free of charge, the specific signs required.
Communications changes - divisional highways office
Following on from a successful pilot scheme where all telephone calls to the Chippenham area office were automatically re-routed to the Customer Care Unit (CCU) at County Hall, the scheme was extended to cover all external highway related calls for traffic, street works and highway support sections. During May, the scheme is being extended once again so that all highway-related calls into the divisional offices in Wilton, Melksham and Marlborough will be dealt with as far as possible by the CCU in County Hall. You can for the time being continue to dial any existing telephone numbers that you have but these calls will be seamlessly routed through the CCU.
Quick Links
Information about Wiltshire’s latest road works
Information about bridges currently under construction
Contact Details
By post
Communications Unit
County Hall
Bythsea Road
Trowbridge
Wiltshire
BA14 8JN
By email
