BROCKHILL RESIDENTS’ ASSOCIATION

Minutes of the Committee Meeting held on Monday March 21^st 2022 at Batchley Community Centre

Those Present

David Dallaway                              DD

Lynn Dallaway                                LD

Stephen Siddle                               SS

Mike Vincent                                  MV

Julie Vincent                                   JV

Mark Whitworth                           MW

Redditch North Worcestershire County Councillor: Brandon Clayton (BC)

Guest: Huw Moseley – Arts Advisor RBC & BDC (left after agenda item 2.)

The Agenda

1. Apologies
2. Subway Art Project
3. Actions arising from previous meeting on June 30^th 2021
4. Notice Board for Pointers Way/Meadow View
5. Wildlife Project
6. Finances
7. Holyoakes Field First School
8. Speeding on Pointers Way/Meadow View/Salters Lane
9. Salters Lane ‘Slow Down’ sign
10. Membership List
11. Dog Poo Bins
12. Litter Pick, AGM & Quiz Night
13. A.O.B.

1. Apologies

Apologies were received from Sylvia Collinson and Councillors Gemma Monaco (GM), Lucy Harrison (LH), Nyear Nazir (NN) and Salman Akbar (SA).

Nyear’s and Salman’s absence was due their attending a Licensing meeting.

Gemma and Phil Moore have tendered their resignations due to work commitments.  However, Mike Vincent has now been co-opted on to the Committee. 

2. Subway Art: Project

The idea of having a mural painted on the subway wall adjacent to Brockhill Park/Wetlands was first conceived by MW several years ago, when he discussed it with Pattie Hill.  Recently a member suggested the same idea, so it was decided to hold a competition for the best design and thus gain ideas from the community as to what they would like to see painted on the subway wall.

We invited Huw Moseley, Arts Development Officer for Bromsgrove District and Redditch Borough Council, to the meeting for advice on how to go about organising the project.  He said he would email us with details of artists he could recommend.  Huw had already had a tentative conversation with Peter Rose, a director of the Redditch based company Tiller Research Ltd., who would be able to advise us.  SS asked if there would be funding available for the project and Huw replied that grants could be made available if local communities were involved.  There is a charity, Arts in Redditch, who we could contact via their Secretary Philip Roberts.  JV said she would make contact with him shortly for his advice also.

Before departing Huw was thanked for his attendance, advice and contribution to date.

3. Actions arising from previous meeting on 30^th June 2021

The invoice for the Pointers Way notice board had now been sent to DD.  This would be discussed further in agenda item 4.

NN had emailed committee members to confirm that unfortunately a gentleman called Bill, the Community Champion, was unable to make us a bench.

SA had agreed to investigate the installation of a more effective barrier at the end of pathway in Brockhill Park, where it meets Salters Lane.  In the absence of SA we were unaware if this has been carried out.  We will be contacting SA for an update.

BC had added the repair of the wooden posts around Brockhill Park to Persimmon’s pre-adoption ‘snag list’.

JV had contacted Richard Aldington of RBC regarding the spraying of gutters on Brockhill Drive with weed killer. This was carried out a few weeks later.

NN had emailed committee members with contact details of the Police’s new Safer Neighbourhood Teams including those for Batchley and Central.

4. Notice Board for Pointers Way/Meadow View

GM has been in touch with Matthew Mead at RBC, to ask what was causing the delay in the installation of the new notice board.  Following receipt of an invoice from RBC, the balancing payment of £2,000 had been paid by DD on 1^st September last year.  The funds had originally been obtained from Fortis Housing by former committee member Claire Ivins.  On 9^th March Matthew emailed DD to confirm they were preparing to install the notice board and sought confirmation of the location.  Matthew advised that the minor works team would carry out installation, but they might have to alter the location if underground services were found to be present.  However it was suggested that a David Shipley could meet DD on site to confirm the location.  DD provided Matthew with his ‘phone number in order that David Shipley could arrange a meet up.  DD still awaits contact.

On 21^st March GM emailed Peter Liddington and Richard Aldington of Bromsgrove & Redditch District Council confirming the location of the board.  She copied in an email from Persimmon Homes indicating where it should be sited so that it did not impede the s38 works or affect the visibility splays.

 (Post-meeting update – on 29^th March DD received a message on his answerphone from Neil Hunt of Bromsgrove & Redditch District Council wishing to discuss installation.  He said he would ring back shortly but despite DD having tried to return his call, no further contact has been made.)

5. Wildlife Project

MW gave an update of his work on the public open space at the end of Appletree Lane, where he and his team of volunteers have been planting fruit and birch trees together with native flowers.  He has put his wood working skills to good use by making bird boxes, a bat house and a bug hotel.  These were installed in surrounding trees a few weeks ago and another fruit tree has also been planted.  He is holding a plants sale on Monday May 2^nd to raise funds for an oak tree in celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.  Our local MP Rachel Maclean will be invited to attend the planting.

MW has also been given a bench to renovate by Richard Aldington that was previously owned by Richard’s late mother Margaret.  MW asked if RBC would be able to help with its installation.  BC suggested we should ask if this could possibly be done on the same day that the new notice board is concreted in.  MW added that he would like to obtain a plaque for the bench to commemorate Margaret.

MW expressed his concern regarding public liability if there were, for example, an accident following somebody falling off the bench.   BC said the installers would in effect be liable and doubted whether the Council would take on this responsibility.

6. Finances

DD produced the accounts for the year ended February 28^th 2022 which will be available on our website shortly.  There were only three items of expenditure, being the annual webhosting and domain name charges of £148, the Wildlife Project of £690 and the notice board contribution of £2,000.  Covid restrictions had prevented our normal fund raising Quiz Night and the only income in the year was the second Wildlife Project donation of £1,000.  Consequently expenditure exceeded income by £1,838 thus reducing our funds to £1,763.

The Wildlife Project, granted a total of £2,000 by WCC Councillors BC and SA, has a balance remaining of £668.  MW is hoping to boost the funds at the plants sale on May 2^nd.

7. Holyoakes Field First School

The opening of the new school has been delayed yet again, the latest forecast now being September 2022.  BC told us that the school’s interior is complete but a problem had been found with the exterior footings.  It is hoped that this will be put right in time for the teaching staff to get the school ready for opening in the summer holidays and that it will finally open for the new school year in September.

8. Speeding on Pointers Way/Meadow View/Salters Lane

LH had recently emailed the committee to say she was waiting for the police to carry out an assessment and share the results as to whether this could be added to the Community Speedwatch scheme.  LH added she was chasing this regularly.  However it does take a little while as each time a new road is added to the scheme, the police need to risk assess it and put insurance in place on the site etc.  BC said he would investigate whether this has now been completed.

9. Salters Lane ‘Slow Down’ sign:

The ‘Slow Down’ sign on a bend in Salters Lane on the left hand side when driving from the Lily Green Lane end, has been knocked down on several occasions.  We are not sure of the cause but asked BC if he could check how it was erected originally and if it could be concreted in with more strength to avoid a reoccurrence.

10. Membership List:            

DD informed us that there has been a small rise in membership since the last meeting.  SC continues to deliver leaflets to Meadow View whenever she notices that residents have moved in to a newly completed house.  Not surprisingly the number of new members each month now tends to be small as the development reaches its final stages.  We currently have 510 members.

11. Dog Poo Bins

Members who live on the new Pointers Way and Meadow View estates are still complaining that the dog poo bins in the area are not emptied often enough.  This results in dog poo bags being left on the floor next to the bins because there is no room for them inside.  This is becoming an environmental issue, particularly as one of the bins is situated close to the newly opened children’s playground.  Mainstay, the property management agents for the area, are responsible for the emptying of the bins.  They receive an annual fee from the majority of householders on the two new estates to cover maintenance costs.  JV will contact Mainstay and seek details of the frequency with which the bins are emptied.  It will be made clear that that unless a satisfactory response is obtained, the matter will be referred to the environmental health department.

12. Litter Pick, AGM & Quiz Night

We decided to hold this year’s Litter Pick in May, when hopefully the weather is warmer.  A date of Saturday May 14^ty was agreed upon.  JV will organise borrowing the necessary equipment from Richard Aldington at RBC.  Advertising posters will be placed on our notice boards, together with postings on our website and Facebook page.

Now that Covid restrictions are considerably eased, the possibility of holding an AGM and Quiz Night in the latter half of the year was discussed.  MW suggested another way to get the community together was to maybe hold a ‘Beer and Skittles’ night.  The Committee will look into whether members would be keen to support this idea.

13. A.O.B

MV told us that a sink hole had appeared on grassland on the public open space near the entrance to the sheep field by Parklands Close/Appletree Lane.   BC agreed to meet with MV the following Friday to inspect it.  MV also raised the issue of the flooding around the gate into the field.  He asked whether a drainage ditch could be dug to divert the rain water into the nearby brook.  BC said that he would look at this at the same time.

DD read out a letter that our past chairman, Peter Merricks, had emailed to the Redditch Standard.   It concerned the recent news that RBC might be facing financial difficulties.   Peter’s letter highlighted the long running saga concerning Persimmon Homes’ continuing failure to pay over a considerable amount of money under the Section 106 agreement.  He pointed out that payment of the sum owing, some £411k, might help fill a few holes in one of RBC’s department’s budgets.  BC said he thought the overall sum due was actually closer to £800k.

MW said a neighbour of his had told him of an area near to her house that had originally been a pathway.  It had been grassed over when the bund was put back in a couple of years ago.  She wondered who was responsible for mowing it.   BC said that she should contact Mainstay, the aforementioned contractors mentioned in item 11 above.  They do all the grounds work in Redditch, not only on the new estates.  It was most likely that they were unaware of the alteration to the pathway.

Actions arising from this meeting:

JV to contact Philip Roberts, of Arts in Redditch, for his advice on the Subway Art Project.

SA to be contacted for an update on the possibility of installing a stronger barrier at the end of the pathway leading from Brockhill Park onto Salters Lane.

BC to check whether the police have conducted their safety checks on Salters Lane, Pointers Way and Meadow View ahead of the introduction of speed restrictions.

BC to arrange the re-erection and strengthening of the ‘Slow Down’ sign in Salters Way.

JV to write to Mainstay to complain about their lack of dog litter bins’ emptying on the Pointers Way and Meadow View estates.

BC to meet with MV to inspect the sink hole and flooding near the field gate on the public open space close to the Brockhill Park subway.

JV to book the Litter Pick with Richard Aldington and arrange the borrowing of equipment.

MW to write to Mainstay to tell them about the area of grass in Appletree Lane which needs to be returned to its original state of a pathway.

BROCKHILL RESIDENTS’ ASSOCIATION

Minutes of the Committee Meeting 2021 held in the back garden of 5 Parklands Close

Wednesday June 30^th 

Those Present:

Sylvia Collinson          SC
David Dallaway            DD
Lynn Dallaway            LD
Gemma Moore            GM2

Julie Vincent            JV           

Mark Whitworth        MW

Redditch North Worcestershire County Councillors: Salman Akbar (SA) & Brandon Clayton (BC)

Brockhill & Batchley Borough Councillor: Nyear Nazir (NN)

The Agenda:

1. Apologies
2. Actions arising from previous meeting on March 2^nd 2020
3. Notice Board for Pointers Way/Meadow View
4. Gardening Project
5. Finances
6. Holyoakes Field First School
7. SmartWater kits
8. Persimmon Homes:-
   • Section 106 payments and maintenance of open spaces
   • Brockhill East – Phase 3

9. Speeding on Pointers Way/Meadow View 
10. Membership List
11. Facebook
12. Wooden posts in Wetlands/Brockhill Park
13. Banister on Staircase from Brockhill Park to Kite Lane
14. Dog poo bins
15. Sewage pumping station
16. A.O.B.

1. Apologies:

Apologies were received from Stephen Siddle, Gemma Monaco RBC (GM1), Lucy Harrison RBC (LH) and Phil Moore.

Gemma Monaco and Lucy Harrison were attending an RBC Planning Committee meeting.  Gemma had submitted a written report on several agenda topics for use at the meeting.

Lucy had been elected as a Brockhill & Batchley Councillor in May and had met most of the Committee Members at the Litter Pick in June.

Brandon introduced us to the recently elected WCC Salman Akbar.

DD expressed our deep sorrow that since the last meeting Councillor Pattie Hill had passed away on 26^th December and Committee Member Malcolm Gilks on 18^th January.

2. Actions arising from previous meeting on March 2^nd 2020:

BC told us that he had been in touch with traffic police regarding the traffic calming measures in Carthorse Lane that had been requested at previous Committee meetings.  They informed him that the road was unsuitable because it was a straight and that speed bumps often encourage cars to go faster!

DD had emailed Gemma Monaco on March 3^rd 2020 with a map detailing all the repairs and maintenance work required to be carried out in the Nature Reserve by Persimmon Homes.  To date none of the work has been done but this may be due to the impact of COVID 19 on normal working practices.

A message had been posted on our Facebook page encouraging followers to register as Association members via the official website.  DD commented that despite this we continue to receive a considerable number of Facebook postings from non-members. 

Following the easing of Coronavirus restrictions, JV had arranged a Litter Pick for the morning of Saturday June 5^th 2021.  Approximately fourteen bags of litter were collected together with an abandoned supermarket trolley.  It was a nice opportunity for committee members to meet some new residents who have since joined the Association.  Also it was our first chance to meet new RBC Lucy Harrison who, together with our other Councillors, helped with the litter picking.

No report back on any changes to the operating times of the Gun Club had been received.  However all agreed that there did not appear to be any noise issues these days.

BC had expedited repairs to the pot holes in Hewell Lane immediately after our last meeting.  BC had also arranged for the lights along Brockhill Drive to be repaired by Western Power. 

3. Notice Board for Pointers Way/Meadow View

Robin Lunn had been in contact with Matthew Mead of RBC last year and again at the beginning of this year, to find out why the new notice board had still not been installed. Robin had confirmed to DD that the total cost was £2,528, towards which the Association would contribute £2,000.  Robin had submitted a form to the County Council on 19^th March 2021 authorising the payment of the difference from his Divisional Fund.  Following Robin’s failure to be re-elected, BC was asked to follow up the situation.  He has since been informed by RBC that they are still awaiting the Association’s payment.  However, our Treasurer DD pointed out that no payment could be made unless an invoice or BACS payment details were sent to him.  BC will now request that an invoice is sent to DD to avoid further delay. 

4. Gardening Project:

MW, along with Shirley Jobson who is a member from Dairy Lane, is in charge of this project concerning the public open space abutting Appletree Lane.  BC had kindly donated money from his discretionary fund enabling the purchase of fruit trees, daffodils and bluebells that were planted in this area last November.  Native bulbs and seeds have also been planted along the bund and in the small rockery area.  Some members have volunteered to help with the maintenance of the area.  MW said that several residents have asked him if a bench could be placed near to the new fruit trees, which would be a welcome resting place for some of our elderly dog walking members.  NN informed us of a man in Batchley called Bill, who had previously made a bench for the Batchley area.  The wood for it had been provided by RBC and NN said she would find out more details.

MW said that he would like to purchase three red hawthorn trees.  DD said there was £374 remaining in the Gardening Fund out of the £1,000 donated by BC.  It is also planned to plant native daffodils at the end of August.

(Post meeting note: After the end of the meeting BC and SA invited DD and MW to submit an official request for further funding – this was duly done on 9^th July)

5. Finances:

The accounts for the years ended 29.2.20 and 28.2.21 were posted on our website in March this year.  Other than the Gardening Project funding, no other income had been received due to the inability to hold our annual Quiz Night because of the pandemic.  Web hosting and domain name registration costs were around £140 p.a.  We are hoping to hold an AGM and Quiz Night towards the end of this year.

6. Holyoakes Field First School:

The opening date provided ahead of our last meeting was March 2021.  The most up-to-date estimate we now have is October this year.  BC and GM1 are scheduled to visit residents of Elrington, Fairweather and Gretton Closes in the very near future, as they have requested that Persimmon replace the grass verges with footpaths as originally planned.  Persimmon Homes are prepared to do this provided residents are in agreement.  This is critical work that needs to be done, before the school opens, as currently there is no safe route up Fairweather Close without ending up on the carriageway.

SC said that the field at the old school is being dug up already!  (Post meeting note:  BC has ascertained that this work is being carried out to make room for a temporary class room)

7. SmartWater kits:

BC told us that WCC had provided funds for SmartWater kits to be bought and given out, free of charge, to residents of Worcestershire.  The kits, which residents then register on the appropriate SmartWater website, contain a security pen for marking valuables.  Posters are also provided for display by one’s front door as a deterrent to burglars.  They have been approved for use by the Police Authority.  BC enlisted the help of DD, LD and SC in delivering the kits to houses on Pointers Way/Meadow View, in the Wheelers Lane area and also Butlers Hill Lane and a few houses in Carthorse Lane.  BC will be getting some more shortly for delivery to other roads in Brockhill.   Residents are free to accept or decline the offer.

Following a query by DD, BC confirmed that once a sufficient number of households had registered, the police would provide notices to indicate that the area was SmartWater protected. 

8. Persimmon Homes:-

• Section 106 payments and maintenance of open spaces

GM1 had sent us a report on this as she was unable able to attend the meeting.  Over the last three weeks, she and Rachel Maclean MP had been confronting Persimmon over the lack of progress on the issue.  Persimmon North Midlands have now said that due to a change of personnel (standard excuse!) things had slowed.  The new Technical Director is now dealing with matters and RBC’s solicitor has said that there has been some movement over the last couple of weeks.  No date has been set for completion, although the Council’s solicitor says that the next step should be relatively straightforward.  GM1 said that she is anticipating the matter should be resolved within the next three months.

• Brockhill East – Phase 3

The play area being erected in Owlham Close is due for completion at the end of July.  GM1 said that she expected this to creep into August/September, as she knows that they have been unable to secure some of the materials needed to complete it.  There have also been some reports of children breaking into the area.  Persimmon has ordered new fencing for the time being, but it is likely that the issue of it being broken into will be something that may continue until it is fully opened.

GM1 reported that the secondary balancing pond along the spine path in Burrington Close needs to be fenced off, like the primary one was.  This is mainly to prevent people from getting into the ponds.  Persimmon did carry out a clean- up of the ponds not long ago, but there are still some items that need to be removed.

9. Speeding on Pointers Way/Meadow View:

There have been a few reports recently from residents about cars being damaged near to the speed bumps in Burrington Close.  There is no evidence of the speed bumps being out of specification.  GM1 said in her report that she firmly believes this is likely to be caused by people driving over the speed bumps too quickly.  DD said he was aware of speeding along several other roads on the new estate.

NN told us that LH is running a Speed Watch Project and will hopefully be able to help us with speeding issues in the future.

SA mentioned that the traffic calming measures, installed in Salters Lane near to the entrance into Brockhill Park, were not very efficient.  He said that he would look into getting a stronger barrier at the end of the pathway, to make it safer for children crossing to go to the playground in Oaktree Lane.

10. Membership list:

DD said we now have 481 registered members.  BC asked us how we promote membership and was informed that we continue to leaflet drop to new homes on Meadow View and also to any houses in the older parts of Brockhill where we notice new residents moving in.  DD keeps the membership list up to date following monthly updates communicated by our website administrator, Ben Moseley.  JV sends a welcoming email to all new members.

As mentioned earlier, we are encouraging all those who post messages on our Facebook page to join the Association by registering via our website.

11. Facebook:

In May a member posted a comment on Facebook decrying the display of a poster on our notice boards promoting the Covid 19 vaccination programme.  He and his partner subsequently accused SC of removing the post – a factually incorrect statement as the post still remains on our Facebook page (see posting on 3.5.21 at 10.03am under More/Community).  He subsequently insulted SC by referring to her as a hypocrite and fascist.  We are looking into ways of making our Facebook page more protected as advised by MW, to avoid unnecessary confrontation.  Clearly the two people involved are not welcome as members of our Association.     

12. Wooden posts in the Wetlands/Brockhill Park:

The metal barrier around the pools in this area is joined by wooden posts. They are in a very poor state of repair having rotted down and hardly doing the job for which they were made.  This repair was not on the list compiled by GM1 and BC, for submission to Persimmon, of work required prior to the area being adopted.  BC told us that the pathways are the Council’s responsibility but everything else is still Persimmon’s.  BC said that he will get this added to the list of repairs.  

13. Banister on staircase from Brockhill Park/Wetlands to Kite Lane:

This staircase is on the dog walking route of many of our resident members, some of whom have asked if it would be possible to erect a central banister.  This would assist both ascending and descending, a particular help to our ever increasing ageing population!  BC said that he will put in a request to the Public Open Spaces Management team at RBC.

14. Dog poo bins:

There have been several complaints from residents living on Pointers Way/Meadow View about the dog poo bins not being emptied regularly.  DD believed that the bins were currently not the Council’s responsibility but those of Persimmon or Mainstay.  He had noted that the Council’s bins were green but those on the new estates were red.   DD also found it strange that there were two bins within 100 yards of one another on the path below the derelict farmhouse but none along the popular dog walking path around the Jacob Close lake.  BC said that Persimmon are buying fifteen new bins to place around the dog walking routes and hopefully the Council will empty these more regularly.  BC said GM1 has already contacted those concerned and we should have the new bins in place before too long.

15. Sewage pumping station:

The pumping station, situated at the end of the path running parallel to Mettis Aerospace and Burrington Close, experienced a major seepage of sewage water in February 2021.  This had recently re-occurred and subsequently reported to GM1 by DD.   Persimmon has blamed the issue (no pun intended!) on wet wipes being flushed down toilets but GM1 said in her report, that she blames the lack of maintenance to the pumping station.  The issue has been reported to the Environment Agency as the seepage also leaked into the balancing ponds.  GM said that she has told Persimmon that this is wholly unacceptable and has made it very clear to them that she will be closely monitoring the clean- up of this area.  She has also asked them to conduct engineering reports as to whether this station is going to be able to cope with the extra sewage from all the new houses still to be built on the estate.

16. A.O.B.

MW said that he had recently noticed a lot of weeds in the gutters around Appletree Lane and Brockhill Drive and wondered if they are sprayed with a weed killer by the landscapers when they cut the grass.  JV will contact Richard Adlington to find this out.

GM2 asked if anybody had the contact details for the farmer whose sheep are in the field at the back of Lily Green Lane.  Her house backs on to the field and she has noticed a few sheep in distress.  MW said that he would provide her with the farmer’s ‘phone number.

JV wondered if it would be possible to have a police officer attend our meetings as there haven’t been any PACT meetings in the area for some time, most likely due to the pandemic.  With Brockhill still growing, it would make sense she thought, to build up a relationship with the local police, in order to be able to voice any of our members’ concerns.

NN said that there is a new police team for Brockhill and that she will send us their details shortly.

JV asked if the Councillors thought it would be possible to have the bench in Brockhill Park turned around as it currently faces bushes.  Better still, could it be moved to the area in Appletree Lane’s Public Open Space where MW has requested a bench (see section 4. above)?  We will await the decision as to whether a wooden bench will be made for that area, and if so, just have the park bench turned around.

Actions from this meeting:

BC to request the sending of an invoice by RBC to DD for the Association’s contribution to the Pointers Way notice board.

NN to find out from Bill, the ‘Community Champion’, if he could make us a bench.

SA to investigate whether a stronger barrier can be installed at the end of the pathway leading from Brockhill Park onto Salters Lane.

BC to add the repair of wooden posts around the pools in Brockhill Park to Persimmon’s pre-adoption ‘snags list’.

BC to request the addition of a banister for the staircase leading from Kite Lane to Brockhill Park.

JV to contact Richard Adlington about the spraying of gutters with weed killer.

NN to provide the new police team’s contact details.

The meeting ended at 9.30 p.m.