The NEWSLETTER BRlZE NORTON PARISH COUNCIL

BRIZE NORTON

September 2013  

Issue no. 138

Chairman's Report

Welcome to the September issue of the newsletter. Many organisations provide material for the magazine and this edition is no exception. We should all be grateful for the many individuals who spend so much of their time for the benefit of the village. From Pre-School to the Over 60's, and everything in between, there is something for everyone in this month?s newsletter. What is obvious, apart from those people who generously give of their time to organise events, is the financial support given, even in these times of austerity, by the support of many villagers. Featured in this Newsletter is a Calendar of Events we trust you will find this useful, should you wish to enter items in this section please contact the Clerk.

Flooding

Do you remember the flooding of July 2007? Remedial/preventive work is still on-going. Currently work is being carried out at the southern end of the village, on Station Road, to provide additional road drainage and replace collapsed drainage systems. It is anticipated this will alleviate some of the problems that have been experienced in this area.

Aircraft Noise

There appears to be no improvement to the amount of aircraft noise generated by the routine operation of the airfield. Much discussion has centred round the Ground Engine runs to check serviceability of aircraft. The parish of Brize Norton is suffering badly from the normal day to day (or should it be night to night) arrival and departure of aircraft. Whilst we are aware of some operating procedural changes to minimise aircraft noise that have already been made by the RAF, I firmly believe there has been no noticeable improvement. We have been informed that the Hercules aircraft will remain at RAF Brize Norton until 2022 and that the last VC10 will be leaving at the end of September 2013. A further round of noise monitoring has recently been completed by a Ministry of Defence contractor, the results of which will be displayed on the RAF Brize Norton website when available. Please continue to report all instances offensive/intrusive aircraft noise to RAF Brize Norton.

Village History

Something to treasure and something to save for your children? We hope you will enjoy reading the interesting material to be found in the village history which will reach you this month. As a village there is a long history to Brize Norton and some of our senior citizens will recall some of the events contained in this publication. History is being made daily and it is important to each of us to record and recall some of the events that are important to us and will be of interest to future generations.

Keith

www.brizenortonparishcouncil.co.uk

The Parish Council have established a website to record the activities and reports of the Parish Council (minutes, calendar of meetings, standing orders, contacts etc) together with useful links to related websites.  The website is 'work in progress' and will be added to over the next few months.  We are indebted to the work that has been undertaken by Kyle Snook in setting up the website and his continued ongoing work.

VILLAGE HISTORY ARCHIVE

Delivered with your newsletter you will have received a copy of the village history that has been collated for the Parish Council by Dr Phil Holmes.  The Parish Council are indebted to Phil for all his work in producing the booklet.  A free copy of the history has been delivered to each residence in the parish but further copies may be acquired for a minimum donation of £3 either by visiting the Church where they are on sale or contacting the clerk.  As is drawn to your attention in the article 'history in the making' we are reminded that keeping records, photos and other media today is the only way of ensuring an adequate record of our village history and the Parish Council is still keen to receive any further village history related material you have, in particular photos so that an online archive can be established.  Please contact Dr Holmes at Church Farmhouse (843856) or p.holmes@brizenorton.org.uk , alternatively contact the clerk.  Any material can be returned to you immediately after scanning.

WITNEY AND CARTERTON HEALTH WALKS

Witney We meet at Witney's Windrush Leisure Centre at 10 am on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.  There is no charge.  We do two walks; one is 1-2 miles long, the other 2-3 miles both ending up with a cup of coffee.  For more information ring Joy on 01993 842373. Carterton On Monday, Thursday and Saturday we meet at the Town Hall, Carterton at 10am. The walks are 1-2 miles long. For more information contact Barbara Goudal on 01993 845923

BRIZE NORTON VILLAGE PRESCHOOL

We had a lovely summer term and were very pleased to have good weather for our family BBQ event. We raised over £500, which is a fabulous effort and we are very grateful for the support of the community for events like these. We said goodbye to 13 children, who are moving onto primary school. This is always a sad time as some of them have been with us for 2 years, but we hope they have a fabulous time settling into primary school. We still have vacancies in most sessions for September, but we have a large number of children on our waiting list to start in January 2014, when some sessions may fill up.  If you want to sign your child up for our waiting list, or to come for a visit, please do not hesitate to contact us. We now have a website at www.brizenortonpreschool.co.uk with more information. Alex Skym

BRIZE NORTON SPORTS & SOCIAL CLUB

There is only one thing to mention at this time of the year...
THE ANNUAL 6-A-SIDE CRICKET COMPETITION AND FETE
AUGUST 26TH - AUGUST BANK HOLIDAY MONDAY

This annual village event has been running for well over 30 years now and has always been well supported by the village come rain, wind or heat wave (not often). So I ask that you all turn out again and help support the Sports & Social Club.

Have a couple of drinks, relax and chat with old friends, support the other village organisations, have a cup of tea and a slice of homemade cake. Go on you know you want to!

As well as the cricket this event is run along side the very popular Horticultural Show - see below. So don't forget Monday 26th August, cricket starting around 10.30am, stalls 1.00pm - bar open from 11.00am. Look forward to seeing you all. Tim Gush BNS&SC

BRIZE NORTON HORTICULTURAL SHOW

We are looking forward to our 40th Anniversary of the Brize Norton Horticultural Show held in the Elderbank Hall on August Bank Holiday Monday 2013, and to reflect this, our theme is based on the Ruby Anniversary.

This year the main cake entry is for a Red Velvet Cake and along with home made pickle, cordial, jam and other items to bake we hope to have a good selection of entries in this section.

For 'flower arrangers' we have three different flower arranging classes and in the handicrafts section there is jewellery, knitting, photography and other crafts. This year there is also a class for collecting as many items in a small matchbox. The children's section is split this year into 8 years and under and 9 years and over with each age group having different entries more applicable to their age.

And then we come to the hotly contended vegetable and flower classes. We have had a 'strange' year this year with the weather but we hope this won't affect our entries. We look forward to your polished onions, those lovely flowers, and numerous vegetables being entered.

For an entry form please call either Judy Gush on 846730 or Bev Tyrell on 843450 or collect a copy available from the Pavilion, A K Timms or The Chequers. We hope we can make this Anniversary year a bumper show. Staging of exhibits is from 10.30am to noon and public viewing from 2pm to 3.30pm.

Judy Gush and Bev Tyrell
 

SAVE BRIZE NORTON

In June we were able to arrange a face to face meeting with the senior WODC planners at which we highlighted our major objections to Carterton East. Whilst the planners made clear they would 'listen but not comment' it was felt that our points were duly noted.

Shortly thereafter - although not as a result of our meeting - WODC announced they were commissioning a new Strategic Housing Market Assessment (SHMA) to consider housing needs throughout the county. This is a major undertaking and the results will not be known until September/October.

This does NOT mean the threat of 700 houses on our doorstep has gone away. Indeed it has been suggested the SHMA could recommend even MORE homes in our immediate vicinity. You have been warned!

We have therefore continued our campaign with letters to HRH The Prince of Wales, David Cameron, Barry Norton etc and have had a letter published in The Daily Mail. We have maintained a constant flow of letters to the local press and one of our members gained valuable air-time on BBC Radio Oxford when Malcolm Boyden visited Carterton. We are currently challenging inaccuracies in promotional material on Carterton East issued by Bloor Homes and Christ Church.

Finally we all know that aircraft noise has increased in Brize Norton. It is therefore vital that you report all prolonged or especially intrusive noise levels to RAF Brize Norton and request your complaint is officially logged. We understand at least one other village has formed a 'noise action group' and unless we complain the RAF will wrongly assume that noise levels in our village are acceptable. The numbers of official complaints logged from villages surrounding the base are taken into account by the RAF when determining sites for engine testing etc. Telephone 895714 (daytime) and 896500 (evenings) and don't forget to insist your complaint is officially logged. Complaints˙registered from Brize Norton residents also helps towards endorsing one of our most important objections to Carterton East i.e. that purchasers of the new houses would suffer intolerable noise from the base.

The 'worst case scenario' is that we get 700 houses and increased aircraft noise. We have the chance NOW to mitigate the noise problem so GET ON THAT 'PHONE!!

The SBNAG urgently need more members prepared to take an active role in protecting and preserving the village we all love. We're a friendly bunch of 'locals' from all walks of life and we would welcome your help and inputs.

To find out the date of our next meeting at The Chequers 'phone me on
843608 or email me on wwwbeckingham@talktalk.net. We hope you will come along and join us.

Keith Beckingham - On behalf of the Save Brize Norton Action Group.
 

ST BRITIUS CHURCH

Thank you to everyone who took time to create the beautiful flower arrangements for viewing on the Open Gardens day and also to those who attended our Songs of Praise Celebration in June.

The work on the church refurbishment is almost complete apart from the building of steps by the North door, resurfacing of the church path and the inevitable snagging jobs. A condition of the English Heritage and WREN funding we received is that the Church is to be open for a minimum of 40 days a year at times other than during services. The church will be open each Sunday after the morning services until dusk or 6pm. You are welcome to visit to learn more of the church's fascinating history or just for quiet reflection. The Church is also open on repatriation days for quiet prayer and the office bell is rung as the cortege passes by.

Please come to support us in our fundraising activities by having a go at the bottle tombola stall on August Bank Holiday Monday and take time to enjoy a cup of tea and cake. Also, on Saturday 14 September, the annual Oxford Historic Churches Trust ?Ride and Stride? event is taking place. This is a sponsored event raising funds for St Britius and OHCT. If you would like to sponsor the team from St Britius or even join them as they visit churches in Oxfordshire please contact Jacquie Griffin - 841616.

After a summer break the Light Zone service held on the 1st and 3rd Sundays in the month at 11.00am will start back on Sunday 15 September. This is an informal worship with refreshments and activities arranged for the children attending.

We will be celebrating Harvest at our Festival Family Service in church on Sunday 6th October at 9.15 am. All harvest gifts (non perishable please) brought to church will be combined with the children's gifts at school and taken to The Porch Charity, Steppin' Stone Centre which helps the homeless in Oxford.  We will also be launching the Samaritan's Purse 'Operation Christmas Child' appeal at this service where we ask for donations of gifts that can be used to fill decorated medium sized shoe boxes that are then sent overseas to children in need. The deadline for the boxes to be made up is Sunday 10 November. Look out for further information on the notice boards or contact Carolyn on 01993 844102.

If you haven't been to church recently, why not join us on Sunday 3rd November for our "Back to Church" Sunday. It is a family service at 9.15 am to celebrate our Patronal Festival of Saint Britius. We will be inviting all couples who have recently married and families whose children have been baptised at St Britius to join us, and everyone else who would like to come. There will be refreshments afterwards.

The Service of Remembrance will take place on Sunday 10th November at 10 am with the wreath laying at the War Memorial at 11 am. For details of the church services refer to the notices on the church door or log onto the website www.brizenorton.org.uk

REPATRIATIONS

Details of repatriations are usually received on a Monday. Notices will be displayed on the village notice boards at the earliest opportunity. Further details may be found on the Oxfordshire County Council web site. Please note timings are always subject to change.

BRIZE NORTON WOMEN'S INSTITUTE

Our June speaker was Carol Bunyan, a distant relative of John Bunyan, who entertained us on how she got into writing. In July we had a very good speaker who spoke of the archaeology in Africa. We spent an enjoyable afternoon at Buscot Park and we provided teas for the Football Re-union in May and the Gardens Open Day in June.

Our outing this year was to Rodmarton House and gardens and despite the weather being overcast we enjoyed the beautiful gardens and interesting Arts and Crafts House.

Our next meetings and outings are:-

September 18	Robert Longstaff - a hands on attempt at corn dollies
September 19	A trip on the River Thames.
October 9	Two Young Doctors - "ABC of the Earth"
November 12	Air Ambulance

We meet on the second Tuesday of the month at 7.30pm in the Elderbank Hall and would love you to give us a try.

Sue Calcutt
 

OXFORDSHIRE COUNCILS CHALLENGE FLY TIPPERS TO CLEAN UP THEIR ACT

A toilet, several sofas and bags of raw meat are just some of the things councils across Oxfordshire have had to clear up from bring bank sites in the last few months, as fly tippers continue to blight community facilities. The bill for removing waste tipped at the sites, typically located on housing estates or in supermarket car parks, reached over a huge £100,000 last year, and councils are clamping down on this illegal practice. Enforcement Officers will be making regular visits to sites to ensure they are being used correctly and using covert CCTV cameras to catch offenders.

Councillor David Dodds, Chair of the Oxfordshire Waste Partnership said "we provide local bring banks to help residents recycle items that can't fit into their recycling boxes or bins at home. Unfortunately some people are abusing this service and leaving behind items which can't be recycled, costing us a huge amount to clear up every year. Often business waste is also tipped at the sites, which are provided for householders only."

District councils provide bulky waste collection services for large electrical items and furniture, and there are 7 Household Waste Recycling Centres across the county that accept a wide range of materials for recycling and disposal. For more information on these services and waste management in Oxfordshire visit www.oxfordshirewaste.gov.uk.

If the containers at a bring bank are full or if you witness fly tipping please report it to
West Oxfordshire District Council: 01993 861020

BRIZE NORTON RAINBOWS AND BROWNIES

Guiding is all about helping our members gain new skills, grow in confidence and learn how to be both team members and team leaders. We do all of this on trips, at parties, having fun whilst practicing and learning new skills, sports, games, cooking and crafts ? both indoors and out. The girls help to set the agenda so there is something for everyone.

It's not only girls that benefit; the leaders also have lots of fun and learn new skills. Help is needed either regularly once a week or occasionally once a month - all help is welcome.

We currently have a waiting list for Rainbows but could take new girls if we had another leader. We have spaces in the Brownie unit now.

If you or your daughter would like to join us then register either by logging on to the Girl Guiding UK website (www.girlguiding.org.uk) and 'get involved' or ring me, Barbie Thorne on 01993 842013 (for starting now or being put on the waiting list)

Rainbows is for girls aged 5 to 7 Brownies is for girls aged 7 to 10 Adult helpers must be aged 18+

Barbie Thorne

BRIZE NORTON OVER 60's CLUB

We are a small club for village residents. We meet on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays of the month with either a meeting at 4 Squires Close or an outing. At our meetings we usually have a speaker followed by a tea of sandwiches, home made cakes and a cup of tea which is served by Connie, June and Benita. Our future programme is as follows:

 If you are interested in joining us please contact Joy on 01993 842373

COFFEE MORNING Tuesday 15 October 10.30am at Joy's, 4 Squires Close Bring and buy and raffle EVERYONE WELCOME

BRIZE NORTON DANCE CLUB

We start back again on Thursday 5th September after our summer break. We meet every Thursday evening 7.30 'til 9.30 pm in the Elderbank Hall, only £2 per person. We dance ballroom, Latin American and sequence dances to CD's. We have tea and biscuits in the interval. For more information contact Joy on 01993 842373

SUPER-FAST BROADBAND

Recently there has been significant news coverage on the slow rollout of faster internet connections to village communities.  Fortunately our village has already received the upgrade to super-fast broadband. Super-fast broadband is an advance on ADSL Broadband which we have had in the village for the last 10 years or so. You have probably seen the TV ads for the BT Infinity service which uses super-fast broadband technology. This advancement features a super-fast fibre optic link between the telephone exchange and the green street telephone connection cabinets in the village with only the last section to your house relying on traditional copper wires. In contrast, ADSL Broadband uses traditional copper wires all the way from your home to the telephone exchange in Carterton. Having fibre in the heart of the village with only a short length of copper wire to your home allows much higher connection speeds compared to ADSL. With the super-fast broadband we have in the village, the distance from your nearest green street cabinet and the quality of the line between the cabinet and your property determine your connection speed. Unless the street cabinet is adjacent to your home you are unlikely to achieve the maximum speed possible with super-fast broadband, however, most homes should see a significant speed advantage over ADSL.

The fibre network isn't exclusive to BT, a number of other Internet Service Providers also provide fibre broadband including TalkTalk and Plusnet. If you are not benefiting from super-fast fibre broadband and would like a faster connection, visit your Internet Service Provider's web site to see if they provide fibre broadband. If they don't, please do not be put off switching providers particularly if your existing contract is about to expire. If you would like to check whether you can get fibre broadband as well as a connection speed estimate, visit www.bt.com and follow their links to Infinity Super-fast broadband packages. Within this section you'll find a 'Check available packages' option. If BT is your telephone provider, just enter your phone number in their on-line checker. If you are not with BT, select the 'I don't have a phone line' option and enter your post code and house name or number instead.  Their on-line availability checker shows whether super-fast fibre broadband (referred to as BT Infinity) is available, the estimated speed and the speed of ADSL (referred to as BT Broadband) for comparison.

At present, fibre-based broadband such as BT Infinity is installed by an engineer - there's no self-install option. The visit will normally last about three hours, and you'll need to be in while the engineer's there. This sounds expensive, but generally isn't. For example TalkTalk charge £30 for the visit, but often have a promotion which includes free installation. The competitive nature of the telecoms market has led to relatively inexpensive monthly charges for fibre broadband too.

Glen Pratley - Village broadband champion

BRIZE NORTON BADMINTON CLUB

We meet every Monday at The Elderbank Hall and play from 8 pm until 10 pm; all ages from teenage to active retired are most welcome. It costs just £2.50 per session. For more details ring Tina on 842268 or Liz on 843196 or just come along to the hall.

DOWNTON ABBEY COMES TO BAMPTON

Fans please note West OX Arts Gallery is exhibiting costumes from the popular television series from Saturday 31st August to Sunday 29th September. See website for ticket details, opening times and admission charges. Group parties and coaches by prior appointment only. www.westoxarts.com This exhibition is being put on to help raise money to keep the gallery open. West Ox Arts is a registered charity. Diana Homer Trustee West OxArts

BRIZE NORTON OPEN GARDENS

Brize Norton Gardens were open on behalf of the National Gardens Scheme and sadly this year the weather was against us. All of the gardens were looking amazing and I am sure that the visitors we did have thoroughly enjoyed wandering around the gardens and our village. We were still able to raise some money for the NGS Charities and our own village charities.

Looking forward, we will be opening again in 2014, and would like to invite any gardeners who would like to open their gardens to join us as well. This is a very worthwhile event; not only does it help raise funds for the NGS but is also an opportunity for you to meet other people in the village. We have a lovely day on the Saturday before opening wandering around all the gardens in the Brize Norton Group of Gardens, swapping garden stories and generally catching up. So if you would like to join us and open your garden please let me know on 01993 846730/846446 before the end of August.

Judy Gush

WEST OXON WOODTURNING ASSOCIATION (WOWA)

WOWA meets on the first Tuesday of every month at the Elderbank Hall, Brize Norton. We start at 7.30pm to about 10.00pm. Non members are very welcome but members and visitors must be over 16.

Our meetings comprise of demonstrations either by one of our members or by a professional turner or just hands on. All demonstrations are enhanced by the use of a video projection system that allows everyone to view the intricacies of the finer points of wood turning. Please come along and enjoy an evening - your first visit is free! For further information please contact Dave Spittles on 01993 776036 or visit our web site at www.WOWA.org.uk

LITTER

Please could you remember to bin any litter you have. In particular cigarette butts; the enjoyment of sitting on some of the village seats is blighted by the cigarette litter.

BRIZE NORTON PRIMARY SCHOOL

Another academic year has drawn to an end with so much to celebrate. For me, this is my last full year as head teacher at the school. From January 2014 I will be taking up the post of head teacher at St John the Evangelist Primary School on Shilton Park. Making the decision to leave our amazing school was a very difficult one. I love the school and enjoy coming to work every day because of the fantastic staff team I work with and the wonderful children we have at the school. After 6 years though, I felt it was the right time for new challenges professionally. Over the past twelve months there have been many exciting achievements to celebrate. Our 'outstanding' grading by Ofsted was confirmation of the quality of education provided at the school. This summer has seen the best Year 6 results to date. All of our children achieved the national expectation (Level 4) in reading, writing and maths this year and in maths 79%, reading 86%, writing 57% achieved Level 5. Last year the government introduced a higher level test paper and this year 14% achieved Level 6 in maths, 14% in spelling, grammar and punctuation and 7% in writing. These results are incredible and continue to reflect the outstanding teaching across the school. The attainment of our children is significantly above that expected by the age of 11 and the progress they make during their time at the school is outstanding.

At the end of term it was sad to say farewell to our Year 6 children. We know though that they are ready for the opportunities and challenges that secondary school will bring and look forward to hearing how they are getting on in the new term.

Many of you will know that the school was kindly gifted a piece of land at the front of Moat Close. You will have noticed that a great deal of work has been done to turn this piece of land into a learning garden for the children. Ideas generated by the children were used to design the garden which will, when complete, house a storytelling circle, work benches and a willow dome. Turf has been laid and seed sown and we hope to complete all of the work at the beginning of September. We would like to thank the family of Bev Tyrell for their kind donation which has allowed us to buy some lovely carved seats for the story telling circle.

I would like to thank everyone who supported the summer fete this year. We prayed for good weather and the rain held off. This event raised over £1,900 which will be used to provide additional opportunities for the children in school. As ever the School Association work tirelessly to provide events for children, families and the community. The next big event is the autumn term quiz night which is taking place on 4th October. Book now by phoning Jo Rushton on 01993 844726.

Supporting Easyfundraising.org.uk - shop at over 2000 well known retailers and every time you shop you can earn a donation for our school at no additional cost to you. To register, visit www.easyfundraising.org.uk/pta and search for our school. Registration is quick and simple and is absolutely free.

As always you can keep up to date with all the exciting things we have been doing by visiting our school website at, http://www.bnschool.org.

Mark Smith - Headteacher

ALLOTMENT NEWS

The half yearly meeting for allotment holders will be held on Monday 7th October at the Pavilion at 7.00pm. Presentation of the best kept allotment trophy will be made at the meeting. If you would like to be put on the waiting list for when allotments become available for rent then please contact the clerk.

WIDOWS FUEL ALLOTMENT CHARITY FIELD

We have a small charity in the village which pays out a small gift to Pensioners and Widows at Christmas. The money comes from rent from a field which was given to the village. If you haven't received a gift before and think you now qualify please let me know before 2 December 2013. This is available to Brize Norton residents only.

Fred Bellenger, 1 Daubigny Mead. Telephone 841189

JUDO CLUB

New comers would be welcome to join the Judo club which is run Saturday mornings in the Elderbank Hall ? 5 to 11 year olds 9.30am, 11 to 15 year olds 10.30am. The club starts back on Saturday 14 September after the summer break. For more details go online to www.oxfordshirejudoclubs.co.uk or contact Jonathan Gerrans by e-mail jonathan.gerrans@hotmail.co.uk

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

 - please refer to newsletter for further information`

 
CARTERTON NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICING TEAM

The Thames Valley Police Non Emergency number is 101 but always call 999 in an Emergency. The neighbourhood team e-mail is cartertonbamptonburford@thamesvalley.pnn.police.uk

All entries for inclusion in the December 2013 issue should be received by the clerk by
15 November 2013.