Chairman's Statement 2018/19

Achievements to date include a rolling programme of refurbishment for the play areas and following on from Hazlemere recreation ground and Rose Avenue, it is now time to concentrate on The Dell. The new play areas cater for most ages and abilities and we have concentrated on providing facilities for disabled users.  Thanks to Cllr David Thompson for all his hard work on this project and for sourcing funding.

We have also tried to make life easier for people with disabilities  and for pushchair users  with much awaited dropped kerbs along Rose Avenue, improving accessibility to the Community Centre, Youth Club and Sir William Ramsey School.  We must mention Cllr Alan Cecil for all his efforts on this.

Also worth a mention is the provision of new bus shelters in Rose Avenue and Park Parade (Cosy Corner), this was a project lead by Cllr John Hagan and thanks must go to him for his hard work.

We have now completed the changeover to LED street lighting which is proving much more economical in both usage and maintenance. Woodland maintenance is continuing on Holmer Green Road, we have increased the number of both dog litter and rubbish bins and refreshed leases with several community groups.

As parishioners will recall, we have taken over responsibility for various services devolved from both the County and District Councils and continue to keep on top of the resulting increase in maintenance which means more hedge trimming and footpath clearance when the seasons (and weather) permit. We have also undertaken a major clear-up of the Holy Trinity graveyard plus a planned clean of the War Memorial in readiness for the ceremony there in November to mark 100 years since the ending of the First World War.

We have erected a flag pole at Cedar Barn and planted an oak tree in Lower Lodge Lane in memory of David Cox, a pillar of the community and past Chairman and Councillor  who passed away recently, both funded by generous donations.  We have contributed to and facilitated the installation of defibrillators in several locations throughout the Parish, we hope there are more to come.

The Parish Council is committed to its interaction with community groups and members of the public in general and to this end, we have now established a good working relationship with the new Trustees of the Hazlemere Memorial Hall, which is now much more widely used by the community.   The same goes for increased usage of both Cedar Barn and The Stables.

Of course, none of the above would be possible without the hard work of both the Parish staff (the Clerk, her assistant and the Warden) and the team of voluntary elected councillors and grateful thanks must be expressed to them all for their time and effort.

We look forward to the future and will continue to work with our parishioners to provide an efficient and acceptable service to one and all.