Steventon Oxfordshire Village WebParish Council Monthly News
The Parish Council met on 3rd January when 4 members of the public, 9 councillors, Bill Jones & Mike Murray(District Councillors) and the clerk attended.
As is now usual we discussed the level crossings as we are very concerned with the work done to date. Regular users of the crossings will be aware that the new gates have left large gaps on each side which mean that children or dogs have easy access to the tracks. Network Rail have refused to let us see the risk assessment for these crossings and, as they are a private company, do not have to under the Freedom of Information Act. The roadways have also been narrowed making it impossible for two vehicles to cross at the same time without going into the pedestrian area. In addition ti these dangers they have damaged The Causeway (a listed monument) and have not provided the telephones to the control centre promised on several occasions. The Parish Council are continuing to liase with the District and County Councils about these issues As a result of these ongoing concerns a working group has been set up to co-ordinate local response. There has been some considerable correspondence since the public meetingon October 28th; if you would like to be kept informed of developments please contact either Robert Green on 831589, or Joe Bennett on 832912, emailjoe@thisistruck.com.
I must apologise that the picture of the proposed youth shelter did not appear in December as promised – hopefully it is there now and we look forward to getting your comments.
At the time of writing we have yet to receive any suggestions for jubilee celebrations or commemorations. Apart from the ‘big lunch’ being organised by the Church we are not aware of any other events being planned. Someone out there must have a brilliant and original idea – if it is you please let us know.
Following a request raised by a resident we have decided to remove the Leylandii near the brook in Mill Street and replace them with some native species.
During the recent safety check in the graveyard it was noted that there are a number of ornaments etc that could be dangerous, especially to children. Clearly this is a very delicate matter and no one wants to be too overbearing but please abide by the rules displayed at the graveyard.
The next meeting of the Parish Council is on 7th February in the Village Hall at 7pm. All members of the public are welcome to attend to express their views on village matters at the beginning of the meeting.
Dick Bosley – Chair