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We are run by a committee of volunteers and a team of helpers who give their time free of charge in an effort to protect the environment that we all enjoy whilst living in this beautiful area
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Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression.
This right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
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If you can't see our logo above and at the end of the newsletter, make sure you have clicked the link to download pictures
Our Autumn meeting
CTC Neighbourhood plan
Stour Valley Park
Jumpers Recreation Ground
Events at the Hall on the Hill
Christchurch Harbour Watch
Post Office trial
Local bus services
Christchurch u3a events
Christchurch Living Advent Calendar
Christmas Lights Competition
BCP Council Update
Links and Contacts
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If you want to read the newsletter as a Word document, click here
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JSCHRA Autumn Meeting
This will be held on Wednesday 30th November 7pm at St Catherine's Hill Community Hall, Marlow drive, BH23 2RR.
Our Ward Councillors will be available for a question-and-answer session on topics of your choice.
CTC Councillor Viv Charrett will talk about the Neighbourhood plan - see below
CTC's representative on Christchurch BID, (Business Improvement District), will also be available to answer questions.
BID website
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What is a Neighbourhood Plan?
All planning applications are assessed against policies and criteria set out in both national and local policies, as well as legal matters.
Nationally the National Planning Policy Framework (“NPPF”) sets out the “high level” policies; with the local level plans being set by Local Planning Authorities (usually Unitary, Borough, District Councils). The local level plans are called “Local Plans”.
As a Town Council the law allows for the creation of a Neighbourhood Plan in consultation with the local community. Once a plan has been created and has passed a referendum and been adopted by the Local Planning Authority it shall become a factor to consider when planning applications are assessed.
This means that the Local Planning Authority are obliged by law to consider the Neighbourhood Plan. As a mechanism to influence the places and spaces we live in, Christchurch Town Council has set out on this journey.
Christchurch Town Council Neighbourhood Plan Consultations
Online consultations will be live from 5th to 30th November through Consultations | Christchurch Town Council (christchurchplan.uk)
Christchurch Town Council would like to invite all residents and businesses associated with the town to find out more about the progress of the Christchurch Town Neighbourhood Plan and to share their views on the ongoing plan.
Following the initial scoping survey in February/March 2021, the Christchurch Neighbourhood Plan Working Group has been busy gathering evidence, conducting site research and engaging with various stakeholders regarding the key themes identified through the scoping survey. The Working Group has also been working with consultants for the preparation of a Design Code and a Shopfront Guidance and planning to run car park and traffic management studies to effectively address the traffic and parking issues.
Hard copy surveys will be available on request, so please email townclerk@christchurch-tc.gov.uk or call 01202 022479 to request a hard copy.
Cllr Dr Robert Luscombe, the Chairman of the Christchurch Town Council Neighbourhood Plan Working Group, encourages all residents and businesses to have their say for the future of Christchurch.
“Following the previous residents' consultation that took place 18 months ago, a lot of work has been undertaken towards developing our draft Neighbourhood Plan. We would now like to consult again with residents to both share the work to date to and seek their views and opinions. The Christchurch Town Council Neighbourhood Plan will help us shape the future of Christchurch and input from residents is a key element of this work”.
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Future of the Stour Valley Park
We’re very pleased to announce the next stages of the Stour Valley Park, and details of the wider strategy that will shape the future of this ground-breaking project.
Many of you will have participated in one or more of our workshop events to map out the priorities, ambitions, and key concerns that have guided the vision of the SVP. We’d like to take this opportunity to once again extend a heartfelt thank you to everybody that has volunteered their time and effort towards developing this vision.
Out of these workshops and the research conducted by Landstory and our project partners has come a range of resources and documents which are now available to view on the Stour Valley Park website. On the site you will now be able to view a presentation of the Stour Valley Park project, two documents detailing the strategy and the business & governance case for the project, and an interactive web map.
The next stage of the Stour Valley Park will feature as one part of an ambitious regional strategy developed by the Parks Foundation and BCP Council. This strategy is comprised of three strands:
To learn more, you can read an in depth explanation on the BCP Projects website. On this site you can also view an animation created by Megaphone Creative explaining the overall project, along with videos and documents.
Click on the image for more details
The Parks Foundation is a charity that raises funds and awareness to support Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole’s parks, gardens and open spaces for now and future generations.
Building on our work in 2021 in three Pilot Parks as part of our Future Parks project, eight more parks were selected for our Nature Recovery project with the aim to help to create a nature recovery network across our local area. The aim is to increase habitat for wildlife to give animals, insects, and birds more options for homes and food and make it easier for wildlife to find places they can thrive. We will be making physical improvements in the parks, delivering inspiring activities for residents to connect with nature on their doorstep, and empowering communities with opportunities to get involved. Our plans for Jumpers Common were shared with the community in Spring/Summer this year and feedback was invited. The plan shows our initial ideas which have been amended with the community feedback received.
At Jumpers Common this year so far, we have created wildflower/grass meadow areas, planted wildflower plugs and spring bulbs, put up bird and bat boxes and run 25 nature activity sessions with our community involving 422 people. A new seating area has just been installed and we are inviting our community to help plant some new trees and native hedging whips around the park. This will take place on Friday 18th November 10am-3pm and Saturday 19th Nov 10am-3pm. To sign up for this activity please visit www.parksfoundation.org.uk/events/ or phone Parks Activator Melinda on 07458 039399.
There is more information on our project here https://parksfoundation.org.uk/nature-recovery/
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 St Catherine's Community Hall
17 Marlow Drive
Christchurch
BH23 2RR
Annual General Meeting
Year Ending 31st March 2022
Monday 28th November 2022
7.30pm
In the Main Hall
Light Refreshments available
Registered Charity No 1088266
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Christchurch Harbour Watch re-launched.
At a recent meeting at the Captain’s Club, over 60 people met for the relaunch of Christchurch Harbour Watch. Representatives from a number of organisations including local sailing clubs, marinas, boatyards, boaters and organisations such as National Coastwatch Institution (NCI) and Maritime Volunteer Service (MVS) as well as representatives from BCP, Dorset Police and Dorset Marine Police.
At the meeting, attendees included the Police and Crime Commissioner David Sidwick and The Mayor of Christchurch, Councillor Avril Coulton, met to discuss how to reduce criminal activities and Anti Social Behaviour instances within both Christchurch Harbour and associated Rivers Stour and Avon. Also in attendance were a number of police cadets who were present to help register property for free with special marking so improving the chances of getting items back if either lost or stolen as well as signing attendees up to an internet App called ‘Portwatch' which enables users to have direct communication to report concerns and other incidents, alongside 101 email, with both Dorset Police and Dorset Marine Engagement Police.
There was widespread support for the initiative expressed by all the attendees and a small Steering Group is now taking the initiative forward with a recent follow up equipment marking session at Mayors Media slipway.
Early in the new year, further events will take place in advance of the new boating season. Boat stickers and other material will be produced to support efforts to help make Christchurch Harbour a safer place.
Further information can be obtained by contacting at harbourwatch@dorset.pnn.police.uk
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I’m pleased to let you know that in collaboration with Payzone, we will be trialling a new type of Post Office branch in your area at Town Common News, 2 St Catherines Parade, Fairmile Road, Christchurch, BH23 2LQ, commencing on Monday 7 November 2022 at 13:00.
At Post Office we are committed to ensuring our network continues to develop to meet evolving customer demand. One of the ways we’re doing this is to trial an additional branch format on a small scale before we look at any wider introduction in the network.
Drop & Collect is a new, lighter branch format that offers our postmasters and retail partners greater opportunity to adapt their business to suit their needs and the needs of their local customers. This new format has been developed to increase customer access to key services they require and to simplify the customer experience - including reducing transaction times.
The new format at Town Common News will offer Post Office services from a handheld device, providing convenient access for customers to bill payments and prepaid parcel collections and returns. To maximise accessibility to these services that our customers are increasingly seeking, more complex services like personal and business banking will not be available at this branch. Details of the opening hours and the products and services available are provided overleaf. If there are any unforeseen circumstances which mean the opening date changes, posters will be displayed in store to let customers know.
A wider range of Post Office services are available from the nearby branches at Town Common Post Office, 1 Marlow Drive, St Catherines Hill, Christchurch BH23 2RR and Stourvale Post Office, 125 Barrack Road, Christchurch BH23 2AW. The latest available branch information can be found on our website, www.postoffice.co.uk/branch-finder
Full details of this Post Office notification
Know where your old stamps are?
Use them up by 31 January 2023 or swap them out.
- If you have a printer, you can swap out up to £200 worth of non-barcoded stamps by printing out and completing this Stamp Swap Out PDF
- You can send this back to us free of charge, along with your stamps, by writing on the envelope Freepost SWAP OUT. No other address details or postcode are needed.
Read more
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Try our local Buses!
Residents should recently have received a copy of the new bus timetable that combines blue bus and yellow bus routes It is worth reading especially the routes serving our local area, the 24, X1, X2 and 1A.
Why not try a trip on a warm, generally on time modern bus with a friendly driver, no parking problems and free to bus pass holders. You will be helping the environment and maybe make new friends!
No longer able to drive I have found the local buses to be invaluable for getting into Christchurch and if needed, from there on to Somerford (Stewart's and Sainsbury) to the hospital, to Boscombe, Bournemouth and Poole. More Adventures trips can be made to Ringwood, Lymington and Salisbury. All that is needed is a few minutes study of the timetable.
Route 24 is especially useful for St Catherine's Hill residents with a main stop on Marlow drive and links to the higher end of Hillside Drive, Marsh Lane, Bronte Avenue and River Way. There are four buses in and four buses out of Christchurch to Marlow Drive each day (not weekends) and two of the services go to Somerford. Most important, the 24 allows connection in Christchurch to Southbourne (via the 1A) to Boscombe and Bournemouth (the 1A) or the hospital (X1 or X2).
Route 1A is very good as a fast and frequent route along Barrack Road and Christchurch Road into Bournemouth from where frequent M1 or M2 buses go on to Poole.
The X1 or X2 buses are every half hour along the Grove and Fairmile and offer a direct link to Bournemouth hospital and Bournemouth Square, or Highcliffe and Lymington in the other direction.
It is prudent to get to the bus stop a few minutes early but there are often shelters with seats and sometimes display screens showing when the bus is due. Morebus also have an App that shows bus locations in real time.
All in all, a realistic alternative to driving that is flexible, comfortable and free for many. Well worth spending a little time checking the timetable and then let the bus take the strain! Use it or lose it! Especially the 24 which tends to be underused.
Article kindly submitted by one of our readers
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Click here for more information about Christchurch u3a
Upcoming events
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Sat, Dec 3rd 7:00 pm
Vintage Brass Christmas Concert
St. Christophers Church, Arnewood Road, Southbourne Tickets: £8.00 |
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Wed, Dec 7th 10:00 am
Vintage Brass Carolling - 10:00 to 11:30
Tesco Kinson - Free event |
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Sat, Dec 10th 11:00 am
Vintage Brass Carolling - 11:00 to 12:00
Sovereign Centre - Boscombe - Free event |
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Mon, Dec 12th 2.00 pm
Rosemary Legrand - My Japanese Journey
Christchurch Baptist Church
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Wed, Dec 14th 10:00 am
Vintage Brass Carolling - 10:00 to 13:00
Saxon Square - Free event |
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Sat, Dec 24th 1:45 pm
Vintage Brass Carolling 13:45 to 14:30 - Closing ceremony of Christchurch Living Advent Calendar Project
Saxon Square - Free event |
A free Christchurch Rotary fundraising event for the town.
Raising money for local charities
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COUNCILLORS MARGARET PHIPPS AND VANESSA RICKETTS
BCP COUNCIL UPDATE
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We have both been contacted by many residents about the planning application for a large digital advertisement sign on the corner of Hillside Drive and Hurn Road – application 8/22/0784/ADV. We are both of the opinion that this is completely inappropriate for this location for many reasons, and are aware of the local groundswell of opposition. We are liaising with planning officers as this application progresses, and please feel free to contact either of us if you have any queries.
There is an ongoing “Nature Recovery Project” at Jumpers Common being run by the Parks Foundation. So far this year they have created some wild flower areas, planted spring bulbs, and erected bird and bat boxes. The next project is the planting of some trees and installing benches. The tree planting is taking place on 18th and 19th November 10am-3pm with the Guides and Rangers taking part. A really nice community event. (See above in the newsletter for more information on this event)
Many of you may be aware of the parlous state of BCP, so we thought we would give you a flavour of the most recent full Council meeting on 8th November, a recording of which is on the BCP website. BCP Council – Democracy
Due to the death of Her Majesty, the September Council meeting had been postponed but unfortunately not rescheduled. Therefore, it was a double length agenda for November. Predictably, due to time constraints all items could not be dealt with even though we were all there from 7pm to 11.30pm. The meeting was adjourned and another meeting is being arranged before Christmas to deal with the remaining issues.
Of those items discussed there were a couple of high importance. One was a Petition of over 2000 signatures brought by a BCP resident asking for a debate on a Vote of No Confidence in the Leader and Deputy Leader. Councillors from across BCP spoke on this item for over an hour. Many pointed out what they saw as the failure of the administration to run the Council in a financially prudent manner; the rebuke from Government about the “dodgy” beach hut sale proposal; the application to Government for a £20m bail out for 2022/23; the resulting Council Tax and service cost rises which are inevitable in the coming year; and much more. Others defended the leadership as forward thinking. The Leader and the Deputy leader did not speak at all during the debate.
Another item of importance was a proposal to increase the borrowing threshold limit for BCP Council from its current level of £847 million up to £1,384 billion. In the light of the current financial predicament of the Council, both Vanessa and I voted against this proposal. However, it was passed by a small margin. Incidentally, when this loan threshold increase of £479m was first considered in July, the 10 year fixed interest rate from the lender -The Public Works Loan Board - was 3.25% (£15.6m p.a.). That rate is currently 4.33% (£20.7m p.a.). It could of course increase further.
To contact us on Ward or BCP issues:
Cllr. Margaret Phipps – margaret.phipps@bcpcouncil.gov.uk - Tel: 01202 478266
Cllr. Vanessa Ricketts – vanessa.ricketts@bcpcouncil.gov.uk – Tel: 07760 391467
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Links and Contact Details
Planning Applications
You can find the Planning Applications and Decisions for the Christchurch area of BCP on our website which will be updated weekly.
Appeals can be viewed on the Appeals Casework Portal
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GENERAL DATA PROTECTION REGULATIONS: MAY 2018
You are receiving this e-mail because you have previously asked to be included as a newsletter subscriber and gave us your e-mail address for that purpose
The personal information we hold for you is your e-mail address plus your name and address which is held on a Mailchimp data base. The data base is password protected and is maintained by our Webmaster.
You can opt out of the e-newsletter system at any time by using the link provided at the foot of every newsletter.
We hold your information purely for keeping you in touch with local events and news and not for marketing or any other purpose whatsoever.
We will not pass your information on to any other person or organization.
We will retain your personal information until you either request us in writing to remove it or you use the opt-out link previously mentioned
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Community Matters is produced and edited by a team of local residents who try to present you with the facts that will both keep you informed and enable you to make up your own mind on local issues
Jumpers and St Catherine's Hill RA
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