These notes incorporate some but not all of the matters discussed at the HTC meeting on 2 September 2024, the agenda for which can be found here. The official minutes of the meeting will in due course be found on the HTC site. Any references below to “the meeting” refer to this event unless specified otherwise. Any such issues are not necessarily covered here in the order in which they were discussed. This report may also include information about HTC’s activities which were not discussed at the meeting.
Full Council Meetings generally take place at 7pm in the Library on the first working Monday of every month, or on the first Tuesday if the first Monday is a bank holiday.
The agenda for the future meetings (as well as for the Council’s various committee meetings) can be found in this section of the HTC website.
See the foot of this post for more information.
HTC = Hungerford Town Council; WBC = West Berkshire Council; WAPC = WBC’s WBC’s Western Area Planning Committee. NDP = Neighbourhood Development Plan. H2036 = Hungerford’s NDP (so-called until October 2023). HNP = Hungerford’s NDP (from October 2023). DC = District Councillor; TVP = Thames Valley Police.
For HTC updates from previous months, please visit the archives here.
Police report
No report was produced by the local police team for the meeting. If this is provided, this post will be updated.
The local police team
The current set-up of the team is one Inspector, one Sergeant, three Police Constables and four PCSOs to cover the Hungerford and Downlands area. Please see below for how to contact them.
Local events
If you have any community events for which you would like representation from your local NHPT, please contact them via the email address below. While local TVP representatives cannot guarantee always to be able to attend, they will make every effort to do so.
General information (including contacts)
- Please report all incidents to the Police or otherwise they will not be officially recorded – news travels fast round a community but if no one reports incidents the police may not know about it. Mentioning an incident on social media does not count as reporting the crime.
- People are encouraged to sign up for Thames Valley Alerts. As well as local crime information, you can receive details of the latest scams.
- Thames Valley Police has a Facebook page.
- The local policing team also wants to draw attention to the ‘what three words’ app which is used to help with the prevention of rural crime by locating people. The app provides a three-word code for each grid which is mapped over the world. By ringing 999 and quoting it, the police can locate you.
- If you believe you have been a victim of fraud or cybercrime, please report it to Action Fraud by calling 0300 123 2040, or visiting www.actionfraud.police.uk.
- You can report incidents online but if it is urgent please continue to call on 101 (non-emergency) and 999 in an emergency.
- If you would like to report anonymously you can do so via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or online.
- The team’s email address is HungerfordandDownlandsNHPT@thamesvalley.pnn.police.uk This is not monitored 24/7 and should not be used in an emergency or to report a crime.
- The local police team is keen to promote the Herbert Protocol initiative which helps us all to try to keep vulnerable members of our community safe.
Open forum
Nick Wedgwood and Bruce Mayhew made a brief presentation about the proposed Hungerford Community Shed.
These can be described as a community place to pursue practical interests at leisure, to practice skills and enjoy making and mending. Each has a co-ordinator with both the technical and social skills to develop a safe and happy environment where people are welcome to work a project of their choice in their own time and where the only “must” is to observe safe working practices. Originating from the concept of the men’s sheds dating back to the early 1990s in Australia and in the UK (as the UKMSA) from 2013, they now welcome men and women. It’s on this assumption that the proposed Hungerford Community Shed would be based.
The purpose of the presentation to HTC was not only to explain the concept but also to see if HTC were able to assist in finding suitable premises. So far, Nick and Bruce had looked at 14 possible sites in Hungerford, all of which were for one reason or another less than ideal. One that they had identified as a possibility was the Croft Field centre, which HTC owns.
The Mayor said she was very supportive of the scheme but pointed out that were implications for using the Croft Field Centre in this way, including possible loss of revenue, impact on other users and loss of utility for other potential hirers. She said that HTC would need to reflect on the suggestion and would come back with a more considered reaction: this one, she stressed, definitely “not being a no.” She also said that HTC would welcome more details about what was proposed.
There will be a presentation to the Hungerford U3A at the Town Hall on Tuesday 10th September at 10:30am at which a representative of the UKMSA will be present to answer questions.
It was suggested at the meeting that the group should consider under-used industrial and commercial sites in the town which might provide at least a short-term solution to the location problem and so enable the group to start operating.
If anyone has any suggestion for a venue or wishes to find out more about this initiative, please email info@hungerford-shed.co.uk.
Councillor Mark Cusack
The Mayor said that Councillor Mark Cusack had resigned from HTC and thanked him for his contributions to the Council. This leaves a vacancy on HTC and, once discussions had been held with WBC, the method by which a replacement would be sought would be publicised.
The 2024 Freedom of the Town
The Mayor announced that Barbara Barr, Tim Crouter, Sandie Crouter and Susan Mayes had been awarded this honour and that a ceremony would be held in October to formalise this.
The Mayor’s report
Welcome back, everyone, I really hope you’ve all had a lovely summer break.
Parking
This topic has been filling my inbox for the past month.
In WBC’s last budget, it was agreed parking charges throughout the district would be increased. HTC felt parking increases are a normal part of budgeting and therefore did not see the need to strongly object. Instead, we suggested they consider the option of a free, first 30-minute stay for on street parking.
At some point, parking increases merged into major parking operational changes. HTC learnt that operational changes were going ahead without public consultation. WBC is now consulting. Unhappy with suggested changes, HTC drafted a list of objections and suggested alternative ideas for consideration.
The first consultation response for off-street parking was completely ignored and went through regardless. No further correspondence with us or indeed any explanation was forthcoming.
The second consultation is now live, this is for on-street parking. HTC will be submitting a response after agreement at the September Full Council (see section below for a report on the discussion about this). Hopefully, this time that it won’t be ignored.
I would urge all businesses in Hungerford to complete the live consultation if they are unhappy with the suggested changes.
I have contacted several retailers who were completely unaware of the changes and were extremely concerned at the impact these could have on their trade. Hungerford is a small market town; our pubs and restaurants need the evening business. Volunteers (including town councillors) use the off-street parking when attending meetings. I believe these charges could give another obstacle to volunteers.
Tesco Hungerford has also announced changes to its parking. After the store closes a 15-minute parking restriction will be active.
Hungerford will find it much harder to suck up these changes, as larger towns can. High streets have been a big focus for WBC, ensuring they continue to thrive and grow through a difficult post-Covid period. I urge our ward members to support the town and ensure Hungerford’s voice is heard.
I would also be interested in the associated costs required to implement the suggested changes. I am sure this will be a hot topic of conversation.
Croft Hall and Hungerford Tennis Club
I met with the trustees of the Croft Hall who are at the start of considerable renovations and looking to apply for CIL funding. I hope HTC will support them in their aims to renovate the building for continued community hire.
The tennis club is also looking to apply for CIL funding and has requested our support when it applies for funds for essential repairs to the courts.
Great West Way
Stella, Fiona Hobson, Claire Barnes, James Cole and I held a zoom meeting to discuss a way forward to ensure HTC is getting good value from our ambassador status and to look for ways to optimise our reach to new visitors. The meeting was useful. We will look to delve a bit deeper with key personnel from GWW in due course.
Traffic chaos
Most of you will have felt the frustration caused by the three-way traffic lights in the town whilst a water leak was attended to by Thames Water. I completely understand that these measures are necessary: however, in this case the area which needed the tarmac to finish the job was on the pavement, not on the road.
I hope that WBC will address this with Thames Water and fine them for their unacceptable overrun. This cannot be allowed to happen again. Thames Water’s should be ashamed by their poor planning and failure to address concerns immediately. I dread to think how badly Hungerford businesses suffered because of their inefficiency.
Hungerford in Bloom and Grant Awards ceremony
I’m really looking forward to the events being hosted this Saturday. I hope councillors will support the event if they can. Congratulations to everyone who entered our Hungerford in Bloom competition. I know from previous years the efforts made by residents; I’ve heard this year’s event was equally as spectacular.
I also love hearing from groups and charities on how HTC’s grant funding helps to expand and continue the work undertaken by volunteers within the community and beyond.
Hungerford Skate Park
I have received some lovely comments from residents who have witnessed how loved and used our skatepark is and how much use it’s had throughout the summer holidays. It’s always nice to hear good feedback. This was an important project for the council and I’m thrilled to see it used and appreciated by the local community.
Thanks
Thank you to Deputy Mayor James Cole for filling in for me in August whilst I was hosting visitors. Very much appreciated.
CIL bids
As well as the two possible funding opportunities mentioned above (the Hungerford Club and the Croft Hall), at the meeting it was suggested and agreed that HTC should make an application for funding for disabled play equipment in the latest round of WBC’s CIL bids (which allocate funds of community projects from developer contributions).
Parking changes in Hungerford
Concerns
There was much discussion at the meeting involving councillors, the ward member and members of the public about WBC’s proposals. The main concern was not with the increase of parking charges but the introduction of Sunday and overnight charges: and the considerable complexity of the multi-stage consultation process which all those present felt had not been drawn to their attention sufficiently well. The Mayor made the point that there was “no way” HTC would not have responded robustly to these proposals, were it to have known about them, when they were first made earlier this year as part of the parking strategy .
There was a general feeling that on this occasion Hungerford had been let down by the system. The result was that unwelcome changes might be introduced which would severely impact many aspects of the town’s economy and which might not even produce the hoped-for revenue for WBC.
Councillor James Cole made a number of remarks about the scheme. He described his first reaction as one of “rage” and said that while he understood (as a former WBC councillor) that the Council needs to raise money, it is “going too far in Hungerford.” He added that the “new one-size-fits-all approach is simply wrong for a small country town like Hungerford” and suggested that having reasonable parking regulations was an important part of keeping high streets healthy. He also pointed to organisations such as the West Berks Classic Vehicle Club which had recently told him that if Sunday parking charges were introduced it would probably to cancel its events in the town.
Moreover, he expressed concern about the way the consultations had been conducted and agreed with the Mayor’s view that the whole matter seemed to have been shrouded in secrecy. He added that “WBC has to get through the consultation period first but seems to have decided to go ahead whatever the result. This is not good for Hungerford.”
He ended his remarks with the observation that, such was his disenchantment with the way the centre of the district was turning into a conurbation and the needs of the rural communities were being lost, that he felt that the next time a local government reorganisation was proposed Hungerford would “look west”. The town would, he suggested, “fit much better into Wiltshire County Council than a possible Newbury City Council.”
Various members of the public, including two prominent members of the local antiques trade, were present at the meeting and made a number of points. These included drawing attention to some apparent confusions at WBC about information about parking permits and the extent to which many retailers (and not just antique shops) relied on reasonable parking arrangements. A straw poll of about 24 shops they conducted suggested that, for all but one, parking was considered the single most important factor to ensure commercial viability. The suggestion was also made that this series of consultations had been particularly complex and hard to understand.
All in all, there was a sense that something unwelcome had been sprung on the town, in pursuit of a “consistent” policy across the district which may not be desirable and which is arguably not even being accomplished: Hungerford, for example, has no 30-minute period of free parking whereas Lambourn does.
There was also a fear that restrictions on parking would cause people who needed to park on Sundays or overnight – which could include residents, visitors, shoppers and users of Hungerford’s hospitality venues – to park in residential streets, causing inconvenience and perhaps danger.
See also the Mayor’s report above.
Actions
- HTC resolved to ask WBC what the costs of any enforcement mentors were likely to be and what, after having taken these into account, the likely revenue would be.
- It was also resolved that HTC would ask WBC how much money it has received from the government for fixing potholes. (This arose from the suggestion that WBC’s recent decision to spend £200,000 on earlier investigations into potholes could in part be paid for from such revenues – this is indeed a permitted use for parking charges but the possible benefit had not been expressed before.)
- It was resolved that HTC would ask and portfolio holder DC Denise Gaines to check if what is shown on the WBC website is correct and why HTC had no feedback to its previous consultation response on the change to parking charges in the Station Road and Church Street car parks. It was also agreed that DC Gaines will look into a better way of consulting with traders as contacting the Chamber of Commerce is not sufficient.
- At the meeting, HTC agreed the following resolution: “Send in consultation response as previously drafted, to object to the operational changes (for on street parking) being the introduction of charging in the evenings and on Sundays and also to object to the reduction to three hours for disabled parking. In addition, send our objection to leaders of WBC, Stuart Gourley (portfolio holder for Highways), Jon Winstanley (director for Environment), Emma Jameson, (Transport and Parking Services Manager), district ward members, Lee Dillon MP and Minister of State of DfT. (Clerk to Circulate this list to the traders for their use).”
The consultation remains open until 11.59pm on Friday 13 September and you can take part in it here. Given the previous uncertainties about the process, it would be worth anyone expressing any concerns they had about any aspect of the proposed regulations and hope that that these will be accorded some weight. (You could answer Q2 with “I do not agree”: Q3 and Q4 will have free-text sections for you to express your views, for example if you’re concerned about Sunday and overnight regulations).
Play park in Ramsbury Drive
The August meeting was told by Councillor Fyfe that following a recent RoSPA inspection two pieces of equipment would be replaced very soon and two others in the near future. This left one which required “some serious TLC” and improvements would be pressed for as soon as possible.
The September meeting was told that the play park was in “a sad state” and that more work was needed to get it into a condition which HTC regarded as acceptable. The other play parks in the town are run by HTC (apart from the one at Lancaster Park, which will eventually be passed to the management company) and it was suggested at the meeting that this might be a route worth exploring for Ramsbury Drive. Councillor David Reeves suggested that WBC’s officer had expressed interest in the idea.
The problem would be that WBC would be unlikely to provide any financial support were this to happen but – as with the community asset transfer of the Library – could be compelled to bring it up to a satisfactory standard before it was handed over. HTC agreed to look into this idea further.
District Councillors’ reports
Only DC Gaines was present at the meeting. The points covered included the following:
- The uncertainties caused by the almost simultaneous announcements by the Planning Inspector and the new government in late July about the increase in housing numbers for West Berkshire and the changes to the National Planning Policy Framework, all of which might require a pause in the work on Hungerford;s NDP to ensure that it was aligned with the new requirement.
- The next Community forum will be on the subject of planning and will take place on Tuesday 10 September from 6pm at Henwick Rugby Club and online. More information can be found here.
- Delays in the planning system caused by staff shortages and the work on the local plan were gradually being reduced.
The Hungerford neighbourhood development plan (HNP)
Some steady progress in August:
- Highways and drainage comments have been submitted and we have an updated with a tracked changes version of the plan. There are quite a few small changes and the proposed housing allocations remain.
- Looking like a mid 2025 date for adoption.
- The draft WBC Local Plan is not proposing changes in Hungerford which is a relief as it could have meant going back quite a few steps again.
For more information on the HNP project, see this separate post.
Flower tubs
As mentioned at last month’s meeting, following WBC’s refusal to sanction the installation of bollards to protect various assets such as buildings and pavements in the town, HTC is considering the alternative approach of placing robust flower tubs on the pavement in places where bollards would have been positioned. These would then be added to the stock of the excellent tubs, planters and other floral displays that Smarten Up Hungerford currently maintains. A representative of the organisation was present at the meeting and pointed out that as the main issue was that of watering, their positioning would need to work for the contractors.
After some discussion about cost, size, location and numbers, Councillor Montgomery suggested that a feasibility group be set up to look at all the issues, short- and long-term, and report back to the Highways and Transport Committee. This proposal was accepted.
The September meeting was told that summer absences had thwarted attempts to address this matter and that a report should be available for the October meeting.
Conservation areas
Councillor Cole told the meeting that although WBC was still short of conservation officers to guide the project (important if this is to be done to a suitable standard for planning and other uses) there was still valuable work that could be done in the mean time and referred to Councillor Fyfe’s photographic record of many of Hungerford’s listed buildings. DC Gaines said the WBC would soon be recruiting another conservation officer.
HTC’s committees
The following committee meetings have recently taken place (“last meeting” refers to the last meeting for which minutes were available on the day this post was published). Environment & Planning generally meets once a month and the others every other month. See the separate section above for meetings relating to the Hungerford neighbourhood Plan and the Town-centre Strategy.
- Environment and Planning. (Last meeting 12 August – click here to see the minutes.) Items covered included: eight planning applications (seven “no objection” and one already determined); case officers’ reports; and a discussion regarding access route and consideration of a Byway Open to All Traffic (BOAT) which enables public right of way for vehicular and all other kinds of traffic at Eddington Mill House.
- Highways and Transport. (Last meeting 22 July – click here to read the minutes.) Items covered included: safety improvements at The Croft; parking on footways; pavement cleaning; speeding; WBC’s parking charges consultation; the third try-bin; Hungerford in Bloom; CCTV; and health and safety issues.
- Recreation, Amenities and War Memorials. (Last meeting 15 July – click here to read the minutes.) Items covered included: repairs and maintenance; RoSPA inspections; tree works; Ramsbury Playpark; and the Triangle Field inspection.
- Finance and General Purposes. (Last meeting 3 July – click here to read the minutes.) Items covered included: the Tennis Court lease; the lease on the Bridge Street War Memorial gardens; D-Day; grant applications; and a review of financial policies.
Note: if the links above don’t work, this may be because they were linked to unadopted (draft) minutes which have since been replaced by adopted ones. If so, please visit this page of HTC’s website for the most up-to-date information on meetings past and the agendas of those yet to come.
For details on HTC’s committees, including membership, agendas and minutes, please click here (and go to the “Town Council” tab).
Contacting HTC
HTC can be contacted in the following ways:
- By email to townclerk@hungerford-tc.gov.uk.
- By post to The Town Clerk, Hungerford Town Council, The Library, Church Street, Hungerford RG17 0JG.
- In person at the above address between 10am and 2pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
- By phone on 01488 686 195.
Any questions for an HTC meeting need to arrive by 2pm on the day (please allow more time if you have left this on the ansafone).
Members of the public are also welcome to attend any meetings.
Contacting WBC in an emergency
You can also contact West Berkshire Council out of office hours for emergencies. These are considered to include:
- Major incidents such as major accidents or significant flooding.
- Fallen trees and other debris blocking or restricting roads or causing potential danger to road users.
- Traffic lights not working (West Berkshire Council only manages fixed traffic lights, not temporary ones).
- Emergency repairs to council-owned temporary accommodation (tenants of properties should contact their housing association, landlord or agent).
The sections above cover the main issues with which HTC has recently been involved or concerned: it by no means describes all of HTC’s activities. Nor is this an official record of any meeting nor of any other aspect of HTC’s activities. Links to the official minutes of this and other meetings are provided in this post. For more information on HTC, please click here.
If there’s anything that you’d like to see addressed by HTC, and perhaps also covered in this way in future editions of Penny Post Hungerford, please email claire.barnes@hungerford-tc.gov.uk. Any such suggestions should be received at least four working days before the end of the month (and preferably sooner) if they are to be included in the corresponding post for the following month. That is not, of course, to say that HTC will not in any case give the matter its attention and respond personally if appropriate.
This information has been compiled by Penny Post from information supplied by HTC and others. Every reasonable effort has been made to provide a clear and dispassionate summary of the points covered but these may contain expressions of opinion which may not accord with HTC’s official view on the matter. Links have been provided to other posts, on the Penny Post site or elsewhere, to give additional information where this has been judged useful or necessary. The presence of such a link should not be taken to imply that HTC necessarily agrees with, endorses or supports any of the material contained therein.
