RAVENSHEAD PARISH COUNCIL NEWS

Gedling Borough Council Local Development Plan

As residents will mostly be aware, Borough Council (GBC), along with City Council and Broxtowe Borough Council, agreed an Aligned Core Strategy (ACS) in 2014, to provide sufficient additional housing across those local authority areas, to meet anticipated need up to 2028. Gedling Borough Council’s share of that requirement was up to 7,250 homes across the Borough, including 330 new builds within Ravenshead. Whilst the bulk of the Borough figure was to be met by the provision of ‘strategic sites’ i.e. large developments such as Top Wighay on the border and the former Gedling Colliery site off Mapperley Plains, the total included many smaller ‘infill sites’ such as those in Ravenshead. The second phase of the process was for each of the three local authorities to produce their own ‘Local Development Plan’ to show exactly how the agreed targets in the ACS could be accommodated. Gedling produced such a plan in 2016, which following lobbying from Ravenshead Parish Council and our local Borough Councillors, initially reduced the Ravenshead allocation to 244 new homes. During the early part of 2017 a Government appointed Planning Inspector held several public hearings to examine the plan in detail. At these hearings local land-owners, developers, Parish Councils and residents have been able to have their say on the possible impact of the proposals on their communities. Unfortunately as a result of those deliberations the Inspector has provisionally concluded that, in her opinion, one of the ‘strategic sites’ in Arnold is potentially undeliverable thereby causing a shortfall of some 230 homes within the overall Gedling allocation. The result of this is that Ravenshead is again being looked at to provide an additional 75 new homes, taking our total allocation back up to 319. The Parish Council are to meet shortly with Gedling Planning Officers to discuss their revised proposals and we are hopeful that GBC will agree to hold a full public consultation in the village before moving forward with their plans. I will keep you updated as matters progress.

Recycling Facilities at Milton Court

I reported back in June that the recycling facilities at the Milton Court Shopping Precinct were to be removed and I have had several residents contact me to express their disappointment at that action. To reiterate, this decision was totally that of the precinct owner’s agents, without any consultation with the Parish Council and against the wishes of Gedling Borough Council (GBC), who supplied the recycling facilities. However, once so instructed, GBC had no option but to comply and to remove the recycling pods and despite our best efforts, working together with GBC, we have not as yet been able to identify and agree an alternative site. So I would urge residents to make the best use of their green bins and bottle boxes to recycle at home and to support the limited recycling facilities at the Ravens Lodge Scout Headquarters. For larger quantities of items, the Household Waste Recycling Sites at Hucknall and Calverton are easily accessible for those with access to their own transport.

Petanque Piste

Work on our petanque piste is progressing well and those of you regularly frequenting the Leisure Centre site will have seen Parish Councillors and resident supporters beavering away on the former bowls green site, spreading over 40 tons of grit and ‘whacking’ it into place to produce the correct surface for play. Paul, our handyman, is currently securing our timber edgings and we have had the whole area pressure washed and spruced up ready for the launch. We have already had some 50 plus expressions of interest in trying out the sport and club members from Nottingham, Newark and have been dropping in to examine our facility and to offer support to our fledgling venture. The whole process has been overseen by experienced members of the Mercian Petanque League and it is fair to say that they are very excited at the prospect of us forming our own club and perhaps joining the league, and of them having the opportunity on playing on what they believe will be one of the best facilities in the area.

We are holding an Open Day on Saturday 30th September 2017 from 12 md – 4.00 pm where anyone, of any age, can come up and be shown how to play the game by experienced league players. Equipment will be provided and the day will be a free event. In this way we hope to further develop an interest in a game that can literally be played by people of any age or level of fitness and at any level. For those more competitively minded, we are hoping to form a club to play in the league, for those who just want to play with children, grand-children or friends, there will be ad-hoc availability. So please give us a call on 01623 490035 ad register an interest with Emma or Belinda or just turn up on 30th September and try your hand. Experienced players will be there to assist with the rules and technique and refreshments will be provided.

I would just like to take this opportunity to thank all those Parish Councillors and residents who have leant their backs into helping us to produce our site, barrowing and raking tons of grit and so keeping the cost down. I would particularly like to mention the indefatigable Phil Brown, who has never missed a session and who not only leads the Ravenshead Commoners on developing and maintaining the ‘Ravenshead Common’ on the Leisure Centre Site, but also leads on the development and maintenance of the Ridgewood Grove Open Area. It is this type of community spirit that makes Ravenshead the wonderful place that it is, to live in and bring up a family.

Chris Barnfather