Battery Storage application – Parish Council response

Slimbridge Parish Council (SPC) have objected to the recent Battery Storage application being proposed for Kingston Road. (S.23/1593/FUL Land North East Of, Kingston Road, Slimbridge)
SPC have requested to call it in to the Development Control Committee (DCC) at Stroud District Council if the delegated officer does not refuse it. This will only be considered for DCC if there is public interest, therefore if you have comments on this application, please submit them to Stroud District Council on their planning page for their consideration. Planning and building control | Stroud District Council

The Parish Council response is available on the SDC website, and also in the link below:
Slimbridge Parish Council objection to S.23/1593/FUL Land North East Of, Kingston Road, Slimbridge

Kind regards
Helen Dunn, Parish Clerk
07943 894637

Parish News 26th September 2023

The Parish Council have been asked by the Neighbourhood Planning Group if the Parish Council could have a logo – most Parish and Town Council’s seem to have one and it was thought a good idea for Slimbridge to have one too. Something simple but something that shows it is the parish of Slimbridge. Are you an artist or have some ideas what could be designed? Please send in any designs to the Parish Clerk and these will be looked at in the coming meetings by Cllrs.
Don’t forget that all applications for the Solar Farm fund need to be submitted by October 20^th, the Community Advice Panel will meet early November to give recommendations for the Parish Council to decide in their November meeting.
The Parish Council has received e-mails about dog fouling and dogs chasing sheep – please remember to pick up after your dog, stay on the footpaths and keep dogs on leads when in fields with livestock.
With the recent weather many footpaths have become overgrown quite quickly, the footpath working group are meeting again to look at what they can do or if some just need to be reported to Public Rights of Way to deal with. If you know of a footpath that needs looking at, please do report back.
There is a separate piece on the Neighbourhood Plan in the newsletter, please do take the time to look at the draft plan which is in a number of places around the parish, and available on the Parish Council website too.
As a reminder, whilst it may seem like a while away, next May is the Parish Council elections, if anyone wishes to find out about the role of a Cllr and would like to represent their community, please contact the Clerk or other Cllrs if you wish to speak about what is involved, or come along to some Parish Council meetings to hear what is discussed and what the Council do.
The next meetings of the Parish Council are Monday 2nd October for a planning meeting where a new application for the battery storage on Kingston Road has been submitted, and then full council will meet on Monday 16th October.

Events:
Slimbridge Church Harvest Festival
Sunday 1st October at 6.00pm followed by Harvest Supper 7.00pm in the Village Hall
Supper Tickets  £15
Book your ticket 01453 890517 or 07836505113 and Slimbridge Post Office

Slimbridge Church Coffee Morning
Produce Stall & Chutney Fest on Saturday 7th October
Slimbridge Village Hall 10.30- 12.00
Raising funds for The Cotswolds Dogs & Cats Home.
Plus Slimbridge Neighbourhood Development Plan will be available for consultation.

Parish News

The Slimbridge Gardening Club Show is on 19 August from 2 pm to 4 pm at Slimbridge Village Hall. Don’t forget to submit your entry form no later than 16 August by phone, email or in person. You do not need to be a member to enter. 50p per entry for non members, 20p for members payable on the morning of the show. Children’s classes are free to enter. Please see entry form and schedule for full details http://www.slimbridgegc.plus.com/  Classes include fruit, vegetables, flowers, photography, flower arranging, cookery and children’s classes.
Entry £1 on the day is for Adults. Refreshments and plants will be on sale. Let’s make this a bumper show!

Gloucestershire Police Trial of app to report inappropriate behaviour of commercial vehicles
Police article:
Are you fed up of commercial vehicles such as vans and lorries driving or parking inappropriately?
·  Gloucestershire Constabulary is currently delivering a project called Commercial Vehicle Watch as part of the Department for Transport’s National Roads Policing Review.
·  The work includes developing an App that will enable people to report commercial vehicle drivers who push the boundaries, on a mobile phone – and the force is calling on the public to help trial the technology over the next few months.
·  The Constabulary’s Director of Specialist Operations, Superintendent Paul Keasey, said: “We know there is a problem with this sort of anti-social behaviour but first we need to prove the concept of the App is right and for that we need the public’s help to establish what the issues are”.
·  Police and Crime Commissioner Chris Nelson said, “There seems to be an App for almost everything so why not one that might help prevent bad behaviour on the road. I hope the public will get behind it as their feedback will be invaluable”.
Parked lorries blocking the way; vans speeding-by on the inside. Just the sort of inconsiderate behaviour that leads to tension on the streets and anger in communities.
To try and diffuse potential flashpoints, Gloucestershire Constabulary is developing an App that will enable people to report commercial vehicle drivers who push the boundaries, on a mobile phone.
Still early days in the project, the force is calling on the public to help trial the technology over the next few months. By offending, or acting inconsiderately, it means things such as:
·  Speeding.
·  Inconsiderate parking (e.g. blocking pavements or road access).
·  Vehicles contravening height, width, or weight restrictions.
·  ‘Fly tipping’.
·  Dangerous, careless or inconsiderate driving.
The Constabulary’s Director of Specialist Operations, Superintendent Paul Keasey, said: “By commercial vehicles, we mean lorries and vans who are clearly making deliveries or providing services with little or no regard for other road users. It’s not about privately-owned vehicles.
Commercial Vehicle Watch, to give the project its full name, is scheduled to run from now until December. It is part of the Department for Transport’s National Roads Policing Review that is designed to make road use safer, more efficient and more secure through the Gloucestershire Road Safety Partnership. Information will be gathered to show how useful participants found the App, and help inform members of the Gloucestershire Road Safety Partnership what concerns people the most and where the biggest problems are.
To take part in the pilot, you just need to have a mobile phone (Apple or Android), understand what the pilot is seeking to achieve and be willing to participate.
The App is free and available in the App Store to anyone who lives in Gloucestershire. Just search for the Community Matters App with the Commercial Vehicle Watch logo.
The information provided will be regularly reviewed and discussed by the Project Team. It will help them pinpoint where resources are needed to tackle the problems raised and whether communities are keen for the App to be expanded to cater for other road related issues.

Parish Council meeting
The next full council meeting is due on Monday 21st August. The agenda and meeting papers are available on the Parish Council website for the public to view. The public have a 10 minute time slot to give any views, comments or bring anything to the Parish Cllrs at the beginning of the meeting. Everyone welcome.

Parish News – Slimbridge Shuttle Bus

It has been confirmed that the Slimbridge shuttle will be running over the August bank holiday weekend (Saturday 26^th and Sunday 27th) but that this will be the last working date for the pilot initiative.
Over the next month, the organisers, would like to get as much feedback as possible from both users and those who have engaged with the pilot, including partners, to help with demonstrating its value but, most importantly, to build the business case for a sustainable operation longer term.

Please complete the survey link below to help with this information

https://forms.microsoft.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=o16YNgATqUuY4gt84WpQzubrWXuppM9KmewQe9g50oJUNFNWRTlaMU1GOFZJTDY3MkY5OVVDTThVNi4u

Parish News

Slimbridge Parish Council continue to monitor the effects of the double yellow lines and there are still remaining tweaks that Gloucestershire County Council Highways have to complete before they can send enforcement to do checks on cars parking in the wrong areas. The Parish Council will be looking at the issues surrounding parking at the Patch how the lines has impacted on the area too.
At a recent meeting someone enquired about the Parish Council livestreaming their meetings, would this be of interest to people, would you feel more involved if you could watch the Parish Council meetings from your own home?
The Neighbourhood Development Plan have almost got the final draft complete and will soon be sent off to Stroud District Council for the next consultation phase. The steering group will publicise this once we have dates, but this will now be in the hands of SDC to move it forward.
The Local Plan hearings have now been completed and we now wait for the Inspectors to come back with their opinions, this could be September / October time. August is when the Solar farm applications open, if you are a local community group and have a project you may be able to apply. The application form and rules, along with deadline dates are available on the Parish Council website.

Slimbridge Shuttle Bus
The Slimbridge Shuttle bus has been in use now for a short while, running at weekends from Slimbridge WWT to Cam and Dursley, including the train station. Fares are between £1-£2. Have you used the shuttle bus, would you want it to continue and expand. Please let the Parish Clerk know and this can be fed back to the company currently running it.

Slimbridge Gardening Show 19 August
Show schedules are now available at the Post Office and online (link to
http://www.slimbridgegc.plus.com/)  Classes include: vegetables, flowers, flower arranging, cookery, preserves, photography and more.
Something for everyone and all welcome! Remember children’s entries are free. Entry forms should be submitted by 16 August.

Fairies at the Dursley Sculpture Trail 
Local artist Jackie Lantelli has created 10 wonderful fairies which are now installed at the Dursley Sculpture trail https://www.dursleytowncouncil.gov.uk/dursley-sculpture-and-play-trail.html.
Do look up when you visit as they might be hiding! Many of the sculptures have been refurbished recently, so well worth visiting especially if you’ve not been there recently.

Parish / District Council Elections
Next May is Parish and District Council elections and Stroud District Council are running a Be A Councillor event on 6th September at 6pm at Ebley Mill, see below for information:
Do you have an interest in your local community and want to make a difference to the residents in the Stroud District? If the answer is yes, have you thought about standing for election as a Councillor?
Stroud District Council are holding a ‘Be a Councillor’ event on Wednesday 6 September 2023 in the Council Chamber at Ebley Mill for prospective candidates at both District and Parish/Town to learn more about what being a Councillor entails and hearing first hand from current Councillors on their experiences.
Local elections in Stroud are due to take place on Thursday 2 May 2024, therefore now is the perfect time to consider whether standing for election and becoming a Councillor is right for you. You do not have to belong or represent a political party to stand for election. We hope that the event will attract people who have different background and experiences that they can bring to their role of a Councillor to make a difference to the residents they could represent.
The ’Be a Councillor’ event will begin at 6pm for anyone who is interested in becoming a Parish/Town Councillor and 7pm for anyone who is interested in becoming a District Councillor.
The event promises to be a great opportunity for members of the public to understand and discover the role of a Councillor, what support can be provided to Councillor and have the opportunity to speak to current standing District and Parish/Town Councillors.
Please email democratic.services@stroud.gov.uk to register your interest for the event, or more information, please call 01453 766321.

Parish News

Coffee morning
Saturday 1st July there will be the monthly coffee morning in the village hall from 10.30 – 12 raising money for the Slimbridge Scouts. PCSO Mike Trebble will also be there from 11am carrying out a bike marking session, so do drop by and get your bike marked too whilst having a cake and a cuppa.

Road closures
Please be advised of the following closure:
•           Dursley Road, Cambridge
This road will be closed (as per the below plan) from 10/07/2023 to 21/07/2023 to allow for network installation works by Gigaclear.
Emergency and pedestrian access will be maintained.
If you should require further information please email streetworks@gloucestershire.gov.uk
Closure plan

Bus shelters
The bus shelters continued to get revamped, thanks to all our volunteers involved in this.

Kind regards
Helen Dunn, Parish Clerk
07943 894637

Parish News

Affordable housing 
You may not be aware of the recent merger that took place between Gloucestershire Rural Housing Association and English Rural Housing Association. The properties previously owned by Gloucestershire Rural have now transferred to English Rural Housing Association, which included the development at Berkley Court in Slimbridge.
We have two bedroom house that have become available on this development. The homes were built to meet the needs of local people. There is a local connection criteria in place for the allocation of these homes with priority for applicants with a connection to the village of Slimbridge, and then to the surrounding Parishes of Frampton on Severn, Coaley, Cam, Hamfallow or Hinton as the second priority.
Applicants must also be registered for housing with Stroud District Council on their housing register. The properties will be advertised on Homeseekers plus from 31^st May – 4^th June 2023.
Information poster

Slimbridge shuttle bus service
Gloucestershire Community Rail Partnership and WWT Slimbridge are excited to announce the launch of the Slimbridge Shuttle, a new local minibus service that will connect the communities of Cam, Dursley and Slimbridge with the railway station at Cam & Dursley and the famous WWT Slimbridge Wetland Centre on Saturdays and Sundays over summer 2023.
The service is the first of its kind in Gloucestershire, and starts on Saturday 20 May. It has been commissioned by Gloucester Community Rail Partnership and will be run by Community Connexions, with support from Cross Country trains and GWR.
As well as taking passengers from the station to Cam, Dursley and Slimbridge, it will give  local residents access to main line trains to and from Bristol, Cheltenham and Gloucester using public transport, and link up communities along its route. The Slimbridge Shuttle has also been designed with visitors to the area in mind, and will stop at Shepherd’s Patch on the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal, near the Tudor Arms pub, Black Shed café and Tudor Caravan Park.
The 16-seater bus service will run hourly, from around 8 am to 6 pm, on Saturdays and Sundays during summer 2023. The route starts from the south end of Dursley town and stops at Dursley bus station, Cam village, Cam & Dursley Station, Slimbridge village, Shepherd’s Patch and Slimbridge  Wetland Centre. It will call in at Cam & Dursley station on the way to and from Slimbridge, taking rail passengers to Cam & Dursley villages as well as dropping off Slimbridge visitors at the station.
Fares are £1 for a single journey or £2 for a return, with contactless payment and cash accepted. Bus pass holders and WWT volunteers travel free, and there are concessions for under 18s.
There is one wheelchair space which can be booked in advance by phoning Community Connexions on 0345 680 5029.
Mobile tickets can also be purchased using the MyTrip by Passenger app. Just download from the Apple or Android store and search for Community Connexions in the operator list.
WWT Head of Sustainability Lucy Smith has helped to develop the new service, and is looking forward to it starting:
“WWT Slimbridge Wetland Centre is really pleased to be part of this service which will enable our existing and new visitors to come to the site without needing to bring a car.  We hope it gets good levels of uptake during the trial to make the case to retain and expand the service in the future. I’ll be using it to visit the site and go to the station at the weekends!”
For more information including a full timetable and, see https://www.gloucestershirecommunityrail.org/slimbridge-shuttle.

Slimbridge newsletter article
At the recent Annual Parish Council meeting Cllr Philip Garrett was voted Chairman and Cllr John Cullimore continues as Vice Chairman. All Cllrs remain in their roles representing areas such as Planning, Highways, Green spaces etc. This can all be seen on the website. The Solar Farm Community Advice Panel is on the lookout for a new member of the public to join the team this year. If you are interested in being involved with this, please e-mail the Clerk for your name to be drawn ‘out of the hat’ at the next meeting. The Road Safety Group continue their work moving round the speed signs and looking toward the 20mph scheme. The Parish Council supports the 20mph scheme but this will take time to firstly put together and then go through the legal process which involves consultation with statutory bodies and the public. The double yellow lines are now in the process of going down by the school and Patch and the legal order is in force. The Neighbourhood Development Plan also continues moving forward and will be soon out for the next consultation stage, so please look out for that as your continued support for this document is valued. Councillors meet regularly with the local PCSO and we look forward to dates when the police vehicle may be able to visit the parish and be available if anyone wishes to chat.

Parish News

A weekend of activities in the parish to take part in coming up:

Slimbridge Gardening Club Annual Plant Sale
Slimbridge Village Hall
Saturday 13th May 10 am to 1 pm
Come along and stock up with plants raised by our members. It’s free entry and refreshments will on sale. All very welcome
*New! Especially for Kids* – Come and plant some vegetable or flower seeds to grow yourself.
https://www.facebook.com/SlimbridgeGardeningClub/

Rogation Ramble on Sunday 14^th.  May
For the old custom of beating the bounds the inhabitants of the village would turn out to walk the boundaries of the parish. Beating the Slimbridge boundaries today would require quite a bit of trespass, a wade in the River Cam and a stint on the central reservation of the M5.
So instead, celebrate Rogation Sunday with us on a ramble on the parish footpaths. And to make sure that no one faints from hunger en route, we’ll be starting off with a spot of breakfast at the Village Hall at 11.00 am. At 11.30 am we will head off to walk the parish paths (long or short routes available). All are welcome to join us, together with well-behaved dogs on leads. For more information or to book a breakfast email storeysell@gmail.com or Tel 07481018988.

Kind regards
Helen Dunn, Parish Clerk
07943 894637

Parish News

Good morning,

The double yellow lines Traffic Road Order has now been made and in force from 4th May 2023. The lines will be going down as close to this date as possible. Documents on this order are available on the Parish Council website at Patch Parking Project – Slimbridge Parish Council (slimbridge-pc.gov.uk), and more information on the consultation results and documents can be found at Gloucestershire County Council https://www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/highways/traffic-regulation-orders-tro-and-traffic-schemes/

The planning application for the battery storage on Kingston Road went to Development Control Committee on Tuesday evening, and it was a tied vote with the Chairman’s casting vote permitting the development.

The new bus service at weekends is due to start towards the end of May, with the aim being the 20th. Please see the attached leaflet with times and stop points. This will be from Dursley, Cam, the railway station and all the way down to the WWT. Slimbridge Shuttle Bus

The Local Plan Inspectors review continues next week, with the Wisloe (PS37) and Sharpness developments being discussed. WAG and Slimbridge Parish Council will be represented and this can be viewed live on the SDC YouTube channel

Parish News

Good afternoon,

The planning application of the Battery Storage at Kingston Road is to be discussed at Stroud District Council’s Development Control Committee on Tuesday 25th April from 6pm. Cllr Mike Stayte will be attending to put forward the objection from Slimbridge Parish Council. More information on the meeting can be seen at Modern Gov template | Stroud District Council
There is an opportunity for others to speak, but this is very limited to 4 minute time slot, please read the information on the website as to how this works.
The draft Local Plan continues to go through the Inspection and the next part, on May 3rd, will be discussing Wisloe and Sharpness potential developments. These can be watched on the Stroud District Council’s You tube channel.
The damage from the leak in the pavilion has now been repaired and the areas repainted; and the stolen speed sign has also been re-ordered. Both were done through insurance claims.
The footpath working group have also started to get out and about, so please do let us know about any issues, and if the group can’t deal with it, it will be reported to Public Rights of Way.

Helen Dunn, Slimbridge Parish Clerk
07943 894637