On Thursday 16th May, Frampton Cotterell Parish Council hosted the 2024 Annual Parish Assembly.
Those in attendance received reports and updates from the parish council chair, parish council committee representatives, and representatives from other local groups including Beesmoor Road, Frampton Cotterell RFC, The Floral Friends, FACE youth group, and Rev. Sharon Lovelock of Zion Church, among others.
This parish meeting also provided parishioners an opportunity to ask questions, share concerns and raise topics for discussion. Many useful conversations were started, including sharing ideas for local environmental work, and discussing the importance of volunteers and improving community engagement.
We would like to thank all who attended this year’s annual parish assembly.
You can read this year’s Frampton Cotterell Parish Council Chair’s Report, from Councillor Linda Williams, below.
2024 Chair’s Report
Report delivered by parish council Chair, Linda Williams at the 2024 Frampton Cotterell Annual Parish Assembly.
Good evening, and a very warm welcome to this year’s Annual Parish Meeting. It is lovely to see so many gathered here tonight. I am looking forward to hearing about the groups you represent and their activities from over the last 12 months.
As usual, we will have individual reports from the various chairs of the Council’s committees. There will be opportunity to ask questions or offer any other comments and suggestions at the end of each report.
It has been a busy year for Frampton Cotterell Parish Council, including the completion of several major projects begun last year.
One of these projects was the replacement of equipment at Ridings Road Play Area. This play area officially reopened during the February half term. I am delighted to say that the refurbished play area has attracted many positive and appreciative comments, and local children seem to like it!
Our tennis courts project was also completed a few weeks ago, just in time for the lovely bank holiday weather. The official opening for the refurbished courts will take place on the 8th of June.
Other enhancements to the Park have also been completed: the potholes in the carpark have been repaired, and new lighting has been installed.
We have also recently consulted the village about proposals for a pathway at The Park The parish council will be working closely with stakeholders at the Park to move this project forward, which may well involve a more detailed consultation at a later date.
The parish council has continued to act upon climate change and the environment by declaring a ‘Climate Emergency’. We have produced a document which influences everything that we do as Council and pledges to support change in the community through education and other means.
The Council also completed the consultation on South Gloucester Council’s Local Plan. This is a very important document, as it will influence the building of more housing, plans for jobs and the local economy and reducing environmental impact.
The alterations to the entrance of the Centenary Field have been completed so that, all being well the Frampton Festival can resume this year. We have also continued excavations in Centenary Field to establish a pond for wildlife, which will have a highly beneficial impact upon biodiversity.
The parish council’s joint “Annual Community Awards” and “Volunteers Cream Tea” events were held in the Spring. This was a great success – so much so we had to move to a bigger venue at the Miners club in Coalpit Heath! In this year’s awards, we saw a strong showing from sports related groups and individuals, with the Cricket Club taking the Group Achievement Award in what will be their Centenary year, and the President of FC RFC, Nick Knight, taking the Lifetime Achievement Award. All winners and pictures of the event are to found on our website.
Through the Council’s Youth provider, FACE, we continue to run Youth Clubs and Out Reach sessions. These are partially funded by Westerleigh & Coalpit Heath and Winterbourne Parish Councils, so a big thank you to them! The Youth Café also currently operates out of the Pavilion, and we now have closer links to other youth organisations due to this. The Explorer Scouts also relocated to the pavilion during the refurbishment of the Mafeking Hall.
Going forward, we are looking at improving other play areas in the parish and, now that the covenants have been altered at the Park, we can also make plans for improving the pavilion – but always in consultation with stakeholders and parishioners.
You may have seen that we will be marking the 80th anniversary of the D Day landings on Thursday 6th June from 7.45pm onwards culminating in the lighting of the beacon.
We will of course continue with our usual activities and events throughout the coming year, from an anti dog poo campaign to Carols around the Christmas tree together with working closely with our community partners.
Many thanks to the local groups, volunteers, and community leaders for your much-appreciated hard work, as well as to our staff and Councillors. Thank you all.
