Month: <span>December 2015</span>

Freezer Fire in Garage

Shropshire Fire and Rescue ServiceShropshire Fire & Rescue Service were called out today to a freezer which had caught fire in the garage of a property on Drayton Road in Hodnet.
According to an incident report on SFRS website a call was received at 11:39am today (30 December, 2015) reporting a Property Fire in Hodnet. Fire appliances were mobilised from Hodnet and Wellington along with an Operations Officer. Two breathing apparatus and a hose reel jet was used used to extinguish the fire.
The incident was declared over at 11:57am.

Hodnet & District Garden Club

Hodnet & District Garden ClubThe first meeting of the new year will take place on Tuesday 19th January at 7.30 pm at the Lyon Hall, when Andrew Humphris, Head Gardener from Wollerton Old Hall Garden, will be our speaker. His topic will be: ‘Ultimate Plants‘ – plants that really earn their place in the garden. We have all no doubt spent money in garden centres only to be disappointed, so we’ll look forward to hearing his recommendations of ultimate plants.
Refreshments will be served at the end of the meeting, and guests or potential new members will be most welcome. Guest fee is £2/meeting, or £12 for club membership for the full year.
More details about the rest of the Garden Club’s programme for 2016 can be found here, and information about Wollerton Old Hall Garden is here.

Local Resident Upset by Request

Brian Wood BBC VideoToday (Wed. 9th Dec. 2012) the BBC has published a report on their website featuring a video of local resident Brian Wood complaining about a request from the Parish Council asking him to clear up after his pet dog Sophie when he takes her out for a walk.
Mr Wood says a letter from the Parish Council undermined his independence. It suggested a friend accompanied Mr Wood when he walked Sophie, who is not a guide dog. Blind people are not required to clear up after their guide dog, but the Parish Council said a by-law meant Mr Wood was not exempt.
In the video Mr Wood states he feels he has been “singled out”. “I’m a very independent person, and I like to walk my dog alone,” he says, “There are many others doing it and I’m the one who’s been targeted.”
Parish Council Chairman Derek Hodge is quoted by the BBC as saying that complaints had come from “the community around” Mr Wood, particularly over dog fouling problems on a recreation ground popular with children. Mr Hodge added, “We have every sympathy for Mr Wood and his visual problems and we know how much his pet dog means to him.”

The BBC report comes in the same week as Shropshire Council has announced an new initiative to combat dog fouling. Described as an ‘edgy and uncompromising’ campaign to tackle hotspots where dog owners/walkers do not clean up after their pets. The ‘We’re watching you’ signs are visible after dark because they use innovative cutting-edge materials. The Council started putting the signs up across Shropshire from Monday this week. The scheme is being run in conjunction with the environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy in an attempt to reduce dog fouling in locations throughout the county known to suffer problems in this respect.

Scoop-the-poop
Other links:
Local Dog Fouling Alert – March 2015
Shropshire Dog control orders
Report a dog fouling problem

Peplow Community Walk – Jan 2016

Due to forecasted heavy rain and wind this walk is likely to be postponed!
Unless the weather is dry please do not turn up for this walk.

Sunday 3rd January 1:45pm for prompt 2pm start.
Boy & Girl WalkingA circular walk following the route of Hodnet Walk Leaflet No.2.
From the Lyon Hall car park, where we will meet, the route goes up The Hearne, following the footpath across the fields to Long Lane. Here it turns right back down to Wollerton and past the Old Hall. From there it returns along the old railway line, Station Road and the footpath behind Shrewsbury Street.
Children welcome, also dogs on leads.

Due to forecasted heavy rain and wind this walk is likely to be postponed!
Unless the weather is dry please do not turn up for this walk.

Holiday Waste Collection Dates 2015/16

Shropshire Council LogoThis week local residents should have received cards informing them of Shropshire Council’s plans for waste collections over the Christmas and New Year holidays. If you haven’t received such a notice, or have misplaced your copy, details of revised collection dates can be found here on the Council’s website.
In brief collections in the week leading up to Christmas (Mon. 21 to Fri. 25th Dec.) will be a day earlier than usual. The following week, on the first 4 days (Mon. 28th to Thur. 31st Dec.) collections will be on their normal days, whilst for bins normally emptied on a Friday (i.e. 1st Jan.) the collection will be undertaken a day later on Sat. 2nd Jan.
Please remember to put your bins and collection boxes out on the appropriate day over the holidays.

Big Conversation Survey Update

big-conversation-logoShropshire Council has reported on its website that the initiative has already drawn a huge response from local residents and organisations, with more than 1,000 people taking part in the Big Conversation survey since it launched on 17 November 2015.
The Big Conversation survey is the first phase of a five-year conversation the council wants to have with Shropshire people to ask them which council services are most important to them. The survey, which runs until Monday 4 January 2016, will be followed by further consultations with local people, partners, community organisations and businesses across Shropshire in 2016. Residents are encouraged to set aside time to participate in the survey before it closes.
The above page explains the situation which has prompted the Big Conversation:

By 2020/21 the Government’s £44m revenue support grant – money that is paid to councils each year to help provide services – will end. By the time this grant ends, it is estimated that we will be a further £77m worse off, due to the combination of inflationary increases in costs, particularly in adult social care, and further cuts in Government grants.
The council’s forecast budget for 2020/21, recently published in its Financial Strategy, is estimated to be £188m. £163m (87%) of the budget will be allocated to core services such as adult services, children’s services, safeguarding, domestic waste disposal, concessionary travel and school transport.
This will leave just £25m (13% of the overall budget) of money to spend on the remaining 150 plus services the council currently provides. This is a reduction of 75% from the £100m the council currently spends on these services.
The Big Conversation has been set up to ask residents, businesses and organisations how the council can bridge a £77m funding gap over the course of the next five years.

For more information about the Big Conversation and to take part in the survey, residents are asked to:

Future of Hodnet Post Office Announced

Today the Post Office has emailed details of its decision on the future of Hodnet Post Office to those who participated in the consultation which closed on 12th Nov. 2015. The letter is also available on its website.
In brief Will Russell, the Regional Network Manager, has decided to go ahead with the transfer of Post Offices services to Hodnet Village Stores. The proposed transfer is planned to take place on 2 & 3 February 2016, though any unforeseen delays may cause the change-over to be postponed.
Details of the full decision can be downloaded from the “postofficeviews” website by clicking here.