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We are delighted to confirm that our traditional Christmas Carol Service will be held around the Christmas Tree on Saturday 9th December at 4.30pm. This will be followed by mulled wine, mince pies and a wonderful festive acoustic set by the Peasemore Ukulele Group in the church.
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Parish Plan
How time has flown – the Parish Plan is due for update again! The Parish Plan is designed to represent the views of Brightwalton parishioners on how the village and surrounding area develops. There are 3 reasons why we should invest the time to keep our Parish Plan current: Œ Having a Parish Plan gives us access to grants for projects that are designed to improve various aspects of the village. Last time when the plan was updated in 2010, it gave us access to over £25K of grant money. The Parish Plan is a useful reference point when responding to West Berkshire Planners on various planning applications. Ž The Parish Plan provides a mandate from the Parishioners for the Parish Council on where the Parish Council should focus their time and attentions. The Parish Council is looking for volunteers to run the next Parish Plan update. This will involve setting up the questionnaires, delivering these and encouraging responses, collating the information and writing the plan, reviewing actions against the last plan. We would really like to see volunteers from each area of the village, this really helps with ensuring the questions cover all aspects and helps with the delivery and collection of questionnaires. IF you would be interested please email brightwaltonpc@btinternet.com Village Working Party – Sunday 15th October
We need your help! Please spare a couple of hours on Sunday 15th morning to take part in the annual village clear up. We need help with:
Many thanks – Brightwalton Parish Council – brightwaltonpc@btinternet.com We have a few dates coming up in September which are going to be lots of fun!
Saturday 2nd Sept - Music Concert, village hall 4pm organised by Bella Tryon Monday 4th Sept - Youth Club Summer BBQ, village field & hall 5 - 7pm Monday 25th Sept - Church Mouse Kitchen Soup Lunch, Church 12 - 2pm special guest talk from Barrie Hedges, Reliance Motor Services Saturday 30th Sept - September Social, village hall, doors open at 7.15pm, live music from the PUGS from 7.30pm, Bar & Snacks available Monday 30th Oct - Kids Halloween Party, village hall 4 - 6pm more details to follow. I'm looking for a few people to help me run the bar on 30th Sept, if you'd like to help let me know! Katherine Moore Brightwalton Community Coordinator Councillor Clive Hooker has sent out the August WBC update,. Please download here: 
The July West Berkshire Council update from Councilor Clive Hooker can be downloaded here:
July WBC Update
The July Brickleton News can be downloaded here.
Join us on the playing field on the 4th August for a family brunch, bring what you are eating, activities and games will be out for the kids. All welcome 9.30 till 11.30
Youth Club Summer Party BBQ On the playing field Monday 4th September at 5pm. For more information please contact Katherine - brightwaltoncommunity@gmail.com Katherine, our Community Coordinator has booked the PUGS (Peasemore Ukelele Group) for the September Social in the village hall. Bar and snacks will be available.
30th September 7pm Please be aware a property in Butts Furlong will be advertised through the West Berkshire Choice Based Lettings Scheme, Homechoice, on Thursday 25th May 2023. This is a social rent property being advertised in accordance with a section 106 agreement.
The details are as follows: Butts Furlong, Brightwalton, Berkshire, The property is a 2 bed house and is suitable for a maximum of 4 people. Only households who are registered on the Common Housing Register will be eligible to bid on this property. If you are not already on the Common Housing Register and you are interested in the above property, you will need to be registered with us by Wednesday 8th February 2023. To register before this date, please complete an application form online at www.homechoicewestberks.org.uk and then call the Housing Allocations Team on 01635 519530 option 1 to discuss your application. We will then assess your eligibility and application, allocating a banding according to your housing circumstances. In allocating this particular property West Berkshire Council have to adhere to a strict criteria. This criteria gives households ordinarily resident in Brightwalton, or an adjoining parish, highest priority. Please feel free to contact the Housing Allocations Team on 01635 519530 option 1 if you require further information on any of the above. Further information on Home Choice West Berks can be found at www.homechoicewestberks.org.uk Due to drop through your door any day, the May edition of the Brickleton News
Welcome to... West Berkshire
A menu of exciting activities for families in West Berkshire with young children, giving them great suggestions for how to have fun and learn at the same time. Brightwalton Parish Council
VACANCY FOR A COUNCILLOR Brightwalton Parish Council now has Casual Vacancy and wishes to recruit someone onto the council. Could this be you? Are you interested in serving your local community? · Do you want to serve your Community? · Do you have time or expertise which could benefit your Community? · Do you want to make a difference to all those around you? · Do you want to represent the views of local people? If you would like to make a difference, and be involved in shaping the future of your local Community, why not step forward and apply to fulfil this role? Parish Council meetings are every other month, usually on the 2nd Monday of the Month at 7.30pm If you are interested and would like to find out more please speak to one of the Parish Councillors or the Parish Clerk: brightwaltonpc@btinternet.com / 07811 322994 Eligibility Criteria · You are registered as a local government elector for the parish; · You have occupied as owner or tenant any land or other premises in the parish during the whole of the 12 months before the day of appointment; · Your main or only place of work during the 12 months prior to the day of appointment has been in the parish; or · You have lived in the parish or within three miles of it during the whole of the 12 months before the day of appointment. Closing date for applications to be with the Clerk No later than 12th July 2023. Update 9th July - For Clarity, as stated in the May Minutes - This vacancy follows the local elections, therefore each application will be considered and the seat will be filled by co-option at the 17th July Parish Council Meeting. If I look back over the 10 years that I have been Chairman of the Parish Council, I feel proud of the great team of Councillors we have, what they have achieved and the sense of Community Spirit they bring to the role. This is my last year that I will be reporting back to you. As always it has been a busy year for the village. The highlights of the year have been : The appointment of Katherine Moore into the new role of Brightwalton Village Co-ordinator. Having raised the funding for a 2 year project as part of the ASPIRE programme, we were delighted to welcome Katherine into this new role. Within her first three months she has launched a Youth Club drawing in 18 primary school aged children. The Church Mouse Soup Kitchen is live and being run by Diane Widborne and Sue Sayers. So far 3 Soup lunches have been hosted. There is lots more being planned including several concerts, craft activities and sales, most of which are making good use of the new kitchen and area at the back of the church. We had a wonderful turnout for the Jubilee picnic on the playing field and the Coronation picnic more recently.  his picture of the pre-fete party sums up the strength of the community in Brightwalton. This was a lovely informal evening that marked the start of another very successful village fete – all run by volunteers from the village.
The fabric of the village has been well maintained this year with updates to the playground, highway improvements on Common Lane, and new Cricket nets in place. The one project that is proving challenging, which we feel is a vital asset for the village longer term is to continue to push forward on extending the reach of higher-speed Broadband coverage. At the time of writing the project is on hold whilst we wait to find out if we are included in the next phase of central government funding. We hope for more progress next year. Finally in terms of finances for the year. Against a total income of £11,900 which included grants for the play equipment, we have managed to stay within £20 of our budget thanks to the excellent stewardship of Sarah our Parish Clerk. We were also able to make good use of the £1,700 of Community Infrastructure Levy funds carried over from last year to help complete the projects and avoid using further Parish Council savings. Invariably costs are expected to rise again in the coming year, however we have managed to keep the precept increase to 4%. As we look forward, I am delighted to hand over the reins of the Chairman’s post to Tim Wyatt. Tim has been an active member of the Parish Council since 2017 and for the last 6 months has been Vice Chair. A significant feather in the cap of Brightwalton is that West Berkshire Council Community Team have already been in touch with us to use the Village Co-ordinator model as best practice to potentially be rolled out to other parishes. This together with a review of the Parish Plan is a good place for Tim to take over and start a new phase. Shaun Orpen  Brightwalton Parish Council is pleased to announce that Brightwalton Youth Club will be restarting at Brightwalton Village Hall from Monday 17th April 2023 5.30pm to 6.30pm. The Youth Club will be run by a team of volunteers and is affiliated with Berkshire Youth. Open to all primary school aged children, each week we will have games and activities as well as a craft table available. We have also booked in some activity sessions through Berkshire Youth. During the summer months we hope to make use of the field and play a range of outdoor games. There will be lots to do and a chance for the children to relax and enjoy spending time with friends and making new ones. There will be free fruit available at each session as well as a tuck shop where the children can purchase a snack. We will run term time on the following dates: 17/04/23, 24/04/23, 15/05/23, 22/05/23, 05/06/23, 12/06/23, 19/06/23, 26/06/23, 03/07/23, 10/07/23, 17/07/23. To book your child/ren into youth club please use this form: or you can contact brightwaltoncommunity@gmail.com for further information. A separate payment request will be sent once you have completed the form with either a termly donation, weekly donation or pay it forward option (if requested). You can also pay by cash. All forms must be completed by 15/04/23 All regular volunteers are DBS checked and have received safeguarding training. If you’d like to volunteer to help at a session please contact us on the above email Wednesday morning 8.30 till 10am drop in for tea and coffee and the church. Every Wednesday during term time.
Monday 6th March & Monday 27th March lunch at Brightwalton Church
17th April & 15th May All welcome to drop in for a soup lunch anytime between 12 & 2pm Cake donations for afters can be dropped off on the day There is no charge for lunch but donations are welcomed For further info please see Diana Whidborne or Sue Sayers or contact Katherine on brightwaltoncommunity@gmail.com Geoff Grayer has signed up to the Downland Practice Patient Participation Group to represent Brightwalton. He has fed back as follows from the February 2023 meeting, here are the matters effecting patients:
1) I raised the matter why phlebotomy was no longer done at the Practice. Dr. Cave gave a convincing answer, which was basically staffing problems. It is recognised that it is not easy to make an appointment via telephone to WBH, and this is being addressed. 2) Patient Survey in November 2022. We were not presented with details, which I was told could be found on the NHS Web Site. But to summarise, the medical staff were highly commended, but there was dissatisfaction with the reception and on-phone staff. This was of high concern, and the management was considering how this could be addressed. 3) Pharmacy. I raised the question of why it now closed at lunchtime. Dr. Cave explained; basically it is a staff and money problem. However, an automatic dispensing machine is being considered for prescriptions, which would be available 24hrs/day. This is obviously quite expensive, and a survey might be held on how useful this would be. Early days yet, but the Manager is looking into this. The next meeting is scheduled for mid-June. Geoff. If you have any matters you would like to raise or questions your would like to ask at the next Patient Participation Group meeting, please email brightwaltonpc@btinternet.com and we will ensure these are passed on.
I am delighted to welcome Katherine Moore as the newly appointed and first Brightwalton Community Co-ordinator.
This is a very exciting and new part time role for the village. We have been raising funds to launch this new initiative as a 2 year pilot project. Katherine’s role is to put together events and activities to help us bring the village together, encouraging the provision of mutual support and friendship. The role will specifically provide opportunities to get together, meet people, learn new things, share skills and information and where required opportunities to seek additional support. I am delighted that Katherine has agreed to take on this challenge. Many of you will know Katherine for her already very active participation in the village as part of the Village Hall Team, Friends of the Brightwalton School or for the Dance lessons she regularly provides. I know Katherine will welcome ideas from people in the village. We have already had several people come forward to offer support for some of the initiatives being planned. If you feel you can add something and can spare a bit of time to help others in the village, I am sure Katherine would welcome you getting in touch with her at : brightwaltoncommunity@gmail.com Shaun Orpen, ASPIRE Project & Brightwalton Parish Council Chair The Berkshire Digital Infrastructure Group (DIG), comprising all six Berkshire local authorities, are working with market providers and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’s Barrier Busting Task Force to minimise barriers to Digital Infrastructure investments, reducing rollout costs and delays and leading to further investment into the county.
Last year, DiG ran their first Digital Survey, which was designed to help them identify where there may be gaps in the digital infrastructure by asking how residents and businesses across Berkshire access and use the internet. The responses from the survey are being used to inform our Digital Strategy, and you can view the analysis of the results online. Improving access to broadband, public access WiFi and mobile services is a key element of the Berkshire DIG work, and they are working with mobile operators and platform providers to provide better access in all Berkshire regions. Why we want your views As more and more services move online we need to understand why some residents aren't accessing them this way, whether that's because it's a struggle to afford internet access, data or a device, such as a laptop or phone, they aren't confident or they don't feel safe online. We also want to understand what people can do online, whether that's ordering food and gifts, online learning and job searching, or contacting friends and family or a healthcare professional. Sharing your views and experiences with us, or helping someone who may not usually go online to do so, will help us understand where and how we need to focus resources to improve services and provide solutions. We'd also like to know if your habits have changed since the pandemic e.g., has the amount of time you spend on the internet or streaming TV shows increased, or you have become more confident using online services such as banking or booking travel or holidays? What people can, and can't, do online is important to us and we want to hear about it. How to take part If you'd like to share your experiences with them, please complete online their survey, which should only take about 5-10 minutes. Complete our survey You can download a version of the survey for someone who doesn't go online here [394KB] . Please send the completed survey to Berkshire DIG Digital Inclusion Survey, Ground Floor (ICT Area), Council Offices, Market Street, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5LD. Alternatively, call 01635 503894 to request a paper copy. The closing date is midnight on Sunday, 19 February 2023 The Brickleton News January edition will soon arrive on your doorstep, a copy to download is available here:
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AuthorThis is written by the Parish Clerk with input from the village. Planning ApplicationsClick here to find out more about the planning process and to view all the current planning applications in Brightwalton. Archives
September 2023
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