Affordable Housing - A Guide for Parish Councils

The Rural Housing Alliance is updating its practical guide, first produced in 2010.


Affordable Homes in Wyndham Place, Tisbury

The guide has proved a great way to allow Parish Councils to begin to understand how they can get much needed affordable homes built in the places they want. The current guide has proved incredibly popular and, with the changes of recent years, the Alliance is keen to ensure that a simple and practical guide is in place to help Parish Councils deliver new homes.

The updated Guide will be published in the autumn of 2014. Register to receive an electronic copy of the guide by emailing Andy Dean at mailto:deanaj@sky.com

Community Shops demonstrate that buying local really does exist

Wren Shop East Knoyle

There were 309 community shops trading at the end of 2013 an increase of 6% over the year. Like for like sales growth was 1.9%. Most shops are in the south and southwest. 95% of shops which were open in 1992 are still in business. The majority of community shops have chosen to register as an Industrial and Provident Society (IPS) for the Benefit of the Community. Turnover ranged from £6,500 to £1,103, 653. Sales increased by 1.9% in 2013 - better than the supermarkets! 65% of shops were run both by paid staff and volunteers. 70% of shops had postal services.
The Plunkett Foundation

Discover Chalke Valley Business Website - Your chance to be involved

Following the success of the Sustainable Rural Tourism project for the www.discovernadder.org.uk website we have secured further funding to develop a sister site for the Chalke Valley which extends from Nunton to Berwick St John.

A new website is planned to promote the area as an outstanding destination for people to visit benefiting businesses like pubs, shops and accommodation providers, and provide ready made experiences for visitors who are interested in the outdoors and who wish to discover more about the history and wildlife of the area. Online you will find an interactive map of businesses in the area and be able to download informative walking and cycle routes for visitors to enjoy. Information packs containing all of this may also be made available.

If you run a pub, restaurant, B&B or local shop to name a few do come along to learn more about how your business can be involved so that together we can demonstrate to visitors how passionate we are about promoting this wonderful area and supporting each other in their business endeavors.  

Each business will receive a free website listing and an opportunity to network with like minded local organisations together with useful marketing tools to market your business.

To apply you are invited to apply online providing a description of your business together with a promotional image. Please forward to info@cranbornechase.org.uk 

We are also seeking volunteers to help design a number of walks and cycle routes so if this interests you do get in touch.

Join us for launch of Chalke Valley Business Initiative 27/02/14

Sell Tickets Online through Eventbrite

Help secure funding for rural communities

We need your help!

The recent 5 year RDPE  (Rural Development Programme for England) of which the Sowing SEEDS Local Action Group (LAG) funding was part, has now ended. A number of projects in the AONB benefited from this funding including Hindon Village Shop, Semley Shop, Chalke Valley Community Hub, Mere and Tisbury Chambers of Trade, Stourhead Kindling,  Kingston Lacey Glasshouse project  and the AONB Sustainable Tourism Project - Discover Nadder.

Every LAG in the UK is now in a period of transition (2014) where we have the opportunity to develop a bid for future funding from the next RDPE which is expected to start in January 2015. There is no guarantee of further funding! We need your help to secure funding to support new projects from 2015 to 2020.

The photo below shows when and where forthcoming meetings will be held.  We really do need to show that many, many people are involved in Local Action and most importantly that we want it to continue into the next programme period. This is your chance to say what the priorities are for your area and to put forward project suggestions.

Please forward to your friends, colleagues and contacts and encourage them to come along and support the LAG.

We very much appreciate your support in helping us to secure these vital funds and we look forward to seeing you at one of the upcoming meetings

Wiltshire Safari: Woodland to Woodfuel. Saturdays March 1st and 15th.

As the government’s domestic Renewable Heat Incentive is introduced, this free two day event, organised by Wiltshire Council, is a chance to find out more about the potential to supply and use wood to heat homes, businesses and community buildings. 

The first day is a mini-bus tour of examples of woodfuel heating of different types and scales, with the chance to talk to owners, as well as benefit from talks and expert advice. 

The second day will look at the production, processing and sale of local wood. 

For more information or to register, please email or see here. Advance booking essential.  

Would you like to help out with Wiltshire rivers?

Around England, rivers are under attack from invasive plants which are not native to these islands. Locally, rivers such as the Wylye, Nadder, Ebble and Avon suffer due to species such as Himalayan balsam, Japanese knotweed and giant hogweed.

The impact on our native plants and animals, such as water vole, can be devastating.

Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, in partnership with Dorset and Hampshire Wildlife Trusts, tackle the fight against invasive species with the Source to Sea project.  Funded by the Environment Agency, the team works with volunteers along the river Avon and its tributaries to eradicate these destructive species so that the wildlife that lives along our waterways can thrive.

This spring, the team will be coming to your area. Headed by project manager, Sam Stork, the team will work with local landowners, farmers, angling clubs and other interested parties to identify affected areas and, with the help of an army of volunteers, they will help to ensure that your part of the river is protected.

And that’s where you come in - Source to Sea needs your help:

Can you help identify areas where invasive species are threatening local wildlife? To find out what to look for visit www.wiltshirewildlife.org and click on What We Do – Protecting Wiltshire’s Rivers. Report your sightings using the feedback form.

Can you volunteer your time to help clean up the river?  Tackling invasive species along our rivers is a massive task and we need your help! We provide everything you need to participate in a volunteer day on the river.

Find out more by attending our Annual Event on the 13^th February in Salisbury Guildhall. Contact us by email at sourcetosea@wiltshirewildlife.org or telephone on 01380 736066 or contact the team on Twitter @wiltsrivers. 

HELP US ENSURE FUTURE FUNDING FOR AONB PROJECTS

The AONB and the Community Partnership Executive of North Dorset (CPEND) jointly prepared the ‘Sowing SEEDS’ bid to Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) in 2008. It was developed to support innovative activities and projects by rural communities, businesses (including farmers, growers and foresters) and community organisations within the area.

This funding was the first of its kind to cover the entire AONB area and offered new prospects to local communities of all ages, with innovative project ideas.

Between 2009 and 2013, the Local Action Group (LAG), made up of representatives from the local community, decided which community based initiatives or projects received funding from ‘Sowing SEEDS’. The contribution that the Sowing SEEDS LAG has made to the rural community has been significant. In total it has supported 35 initiatives and awarded grants worth over £1.28 million to grassroots focused, small-scale, innovative projects , generating an impressive range of benefits for the area.

Case Studies

A number of individual case studies which reflect the diversity and range of the projects the LAG has supported throughout this programme period will shortly be available on the Sowing SEEDS website, please visit: http://www.sowing-seeds.org.uk/projects.html

Successful Projects

The following projects received funding through Sowing SEEDS.  Those highlighted in bold are within the AONB. These come to a total of just under £500,000 but each project will have levered in significant amounts of additional match funding. Many of the other projects directly and indirectly benefit the AONB communities and environment.

Hindon Village Shop	£19,231.00
Blackmore Vale Butchery	£8,750.00
Shaftesbury Film Unit	£8,000.00
Dorset Farmers Market	£5,938.00
Blandford Allotments - Machinery Ring	£9,996.00
Feasibility Study, Training Unit	£10,000.00
CPEND Broadband	£9,500.00
Motcombe Community Shop	£29,556.00
Future Roots	£128,600.00
Food Mill Feasibility Study	£9,350.00
Kingston Lacy Growing Spaces	£30,914.00
Let's go H20	£9,200.00
Gillingham Town Design Statement	£4,800.00
Mere Chambers	£8,546.00
Wimborne BID	£10,000.00
Countryside Centre Phase 1	£6,378.50
Henry's Buttons	£10,000.00
Economic Spine	£9,950.00
Tisbury Chambers	£8,546.00
Leisure Credits	£113,525.68
Rural DORMEN	£22,500.00
Lordsmead Mill Micro Hydro	£34,347.55
Peggs Farm Micro Hydro	£21,807.00
Benjafield Farm Micro Hydro	£31,213.00
Employability Skills Base	£146,827.00
Semley Shop	£49,548.50
Driving Rural Business	£62,221.00
Sustainable Tourism	£58,285.00
Trailway Wood Fuels retort system	£11,654.40
CHAT Hub	£198,369.00
Chalke Valley Community Hub	£91,734.00
Bangers & Bacon	£10,000.00
Stourhead Kindling	£9,960.00
Blandford Car Club	£9,266.00
Kingston Lacy Glasshouses	£38,345.00

The next Rural Development Programme

The next Rural Development Programme is anticipated to start during 2015 and will run until 2020. The Sowing SEEDS Local Action Group has been awarded funding to cover the period of transition between the current and future Rural Development Programmes during 2014. The funding will allow the Sowing SEEDS programme staff to begin a thorough participatory consultation period with communities across the whole LAG area. The LAG will be seeking views from local communities and businesses to inform the content of the new strategy. Activity to gather these views will include:

• A series of public consultation meetings
• Recruitment of new LAG members and formation of a new LAG Executive Committee
• Gathering background information about the Sowing SEEDS LAG area
• Seeking views from previously funded LEADER projects

The information gathered from these meetings will inform the preparation of a new Local Development Strategy (LDS). This strategy will set development priorities for the next funding period.

How you can help ensure that local action continues in this area:

1.    Complete a very short on-line survey - The future success of Local Action relies entirely on the local community. Your input is needed to help shape the future of Local Action in this area, so even if you feel you have had little or nothing to do with this programme your response is very much appreciated.

All completed surveys will be anonymous and a summary of the results will be used to help prepare the final programme evaluation. Please follow the link below:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/M8ZP98Y  

2. Project ideas – Although currently there isn’t any funding available for the remainder of this programme period, we would still like to hear from you if you have a project idea that you would like to discuss. We are keeping a list of prospective projects so we can contact you when we know when future funding becomes available. Please contact the Sowing SEEDS office if you would like to be added to this list and receive further news of funding opportunities.

3. Take part in one of the of Consultation Workshops - The current LAG have organised six meetings that will take place across the LAG area throughout February and March 2014. The workshops will be an opportunity to share your views, opinions and ideas about the future of LAG activity in the area. As always light refreshments will be served on arrival.

Schedule of meetings: ·         Wednesday 19th February 2014.  6pm - Sturminster Newton ·         Wednesday 26th February 2014.  6pm - Broad Chalke ·         Wednesday 5th    March 2014.     6pm - Bourton ·         Wednesday 12th March 2014.      6pm - Sixpenny Handley ·         Wednesday 19th March 2014.      6pm - Maiden Bradley ·         Wednesday 26th March 2014.      6pm – Semley

4. For up-to-date information about the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) visit: http://rdpenetwork.defra.gov.uk/

Please contact Sarah Dyke-Bracher – Programme Manager on 07826 907361 for further details

Are you a community champion embarking on a renewable energy project? Then this for you.

PlanLoCaL is a programme of work from the Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE), which is designed to give communities embarking on a community energy project the confidence, knowledge and ambition to achieve a low-carbon future for their area.

It provides support on positively influencing strategic planning, as well as driving forward low-carbon initiatives in their area. The name PlanLoCaL derives from 'Planning for Low-Carbon Living'.

The website acts both as a resource bank and a tool to help empower communities. It acts as a way of bringing together a lot of information and resources which will support motivated, but not necessarily knowledgeable communities, groups and individuals to get a renewable energy project off the ground in their community.

A number of events are planned this July. The events will showcase the new PlanLoCaL toolkit on Energy Efficiency and the Green Deal, and help attendees to discover how the resources can be used to effectively plan and run a community project.

We have one-day events planned in Birmingham, Manchester, London and Bristol, aimed at community groups and organisations set up to support them. A flyer is attached giving more detail.

 If you’d like to attend please sign up by following the links to each individual event below:

 Friday  5^th July – The Priory Rooms, Birmingham http://planlocalbirmingham.eventbrite.co.uk/

Saturday 6^th July – Bridge 5 Mill, Manchester http://planlocalmanchester.eventbrite.co.uk/

Friday 12^th July – Roots and Shoots, London http://planlocallondon.eventbrite.co.uk/

Saturday 13^th July – The Create Centre, Bristol http://planlocalbristol.eventbrite.co.uk/

Spaces are filling up quickly so sign up now, and don’t forget to pass the information on to your community contacts!

AONB Management Plan Survey

We would like your help to ensure the Cranborne Chase & West Wiltshire Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) remains a special landscape.  Please take a few minutes to complete the short questionnaire below.

In addition to this questionnaire, we are holding a number of 'drop in' sessions across the AONB to hear your views. It would be great if you could come along to one of them. No need to let us know, just pop in! 

Monday 22nd April
Tarrant Hinton Village Hall, 6 Northfield, Blandford DT11 8JD 4pm-9pm

Tuesday 23rd April
Victoria Hall, High Street, Tisbury, Salisbury, Wiltshire, SP3 6LD 4pm-9pm

Wednesday 24th April
The George Inn (Wylye Suite), Longbridge Deverill, Warminster, Wiltshire BA12 7DG 4pm-9pm

Thursday 25th April
Sixpenny Handley Village Hall, Common Rd, Sixpenny  Handley, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP5 5NJ 4pm-9pm

The draft Management Plan is due to be produced for consultation in June 2013 and if you would like the opportunity to comment on this please provide an email address below or get in touch with the AONB office on 01722 517417 or info@cranbornechase.org.uk

Finally, if you would like to receive details about the AONB Annual Forum this year, please contact us. It will take place at Dinton Village Hall, Bratch Lane, Dinton, Salisbury SP3 5EB on May 16th.

Thank you for your help.

Survey Link: www.surveymonkey.com

Landscapes for Life - Conference 2013

Landscapes for Life - Conference 2013 will take place in Ipswich from 16-18th July 2013

 

The theme for this year’s Landscapes for Life conference is water.

 

Management of water is one of the most important challenges that the global economy will face over the next decade. Landscapes for Life – Conference 2013 will bring delegates together in Ipswich to discuss the part that the UK's Protected Landscape Family have in ensuring that our water systems are well managed and our environment is safeguarded for future generations.

 

This Friday (22nd March) is World Water Day - an annual event which focusses attention on the importance of freshwater and advocates the sustainable management of freshwater resources. In 2013, in reflection of the International Year of Water Cooperation, World Water Day is also dedicated to the theme of cooperation around water and is coordinated by UNESCO in collaboration with UNECE and UNDESA on behalf of UN-Water.

To book a place please contact: jill.smith@landscapesforlife.org.uk

Community Shops Awards

The Plunkett Foundation has embarked on a search for the best examples of community action by launching the first ever Community Shop Awards - click here to find out how to nominate one of the ever growing number of community shops in South West Wiltshire!

Free water saving devices for Wessex Water customers

Back in March 2012, local stakeholders at the South West Wiltshire Community Planning Event identified sustainable living as one of the priorities for the area.

Wessex Water are currently offering free water saving devices to customers. WaterSave packs are really easy to order and the devices can all be fitted simply, without the help of a plumber. The devices help customers to save both water and energy, providing savings on utility bills.

For more information and to order your pack click on ‘Find out more.’

Cranborne village becomes a Vodafone local “Champion”

The Dorset village of Cranborne is the latest rural community to receive a helping hand from technology giants Vodafone in an effort to improve 3G mobile phone coverage. Cranborne has become one of a cluster of local Champions to use the new Vodafone ‘open femto’ technology which provides vital connectivity in rural areas battling with poor broadband and 3G signal coverage. Low or no connectivity makes economic growth impossible given all the other problems that these areas share with urban communities.  

In 2011 Ofcom released a report highlighting the poor state of the UK’s communications infrastructure. Ofcom found 3G coverage was concentrated in urban areas and revealed that typically 2G signals reach only 66 percent of the country, with 3G signals reaching only an almost unbelievably low 13 percent.

In an effort to tackle these mobile not-spots, Vodafone has launched 12 trials for community-wide femtocells; the Dorset village of Cranborne being one of these to benefit. “These trials present a very real opportunity for rural communities to play a positive role in extending mobile coverage locally,” said the operator.

With the help of a Community Champion the Cranborne Chase & West Wiltshire Downs AONB, local MP Bob Walter and the local Parish Council, Cranborne village put together an application to be w trail community, fighting off some stiff competition which resulted in 170 initial applications that in turn were shortlisted to 20 from which the final 12 were chosen.  As a result Cranborne now hosts 5 village Metro Cells which generate a Vodafone mobile signal which will doubtless be of enormous benefit to those living and working in the area. This will help everyone from delivery drivers, the local vet or doctor out on their rounds, the local B&B helping its residents to the local teenager wishing to use their social media apps.

On the 15^th March a celebratory event launching the Cranborne village femto programme will be held.  Bob Walter MP and Cranborne Chase & West Wiltshire Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, together with members of the local Parish Council, and key local businesses and residents will meet to celebrate; almost certainly with mobile in hand. Bob Walter commented in his letter of support that, “bringing a mobile phone signal to the area will not only make the day-to-day lives of residents, considerably easier, but will also help to sustain the economy of this rural village and create jobs and growth at a time when many rural villages are stagnating.”

Sure Signal

Vodafone is one of the few operators in the UK to offer femtocells to customers in order to solve the vexing issue of poor mobile phone reception. Otherwise known as Vodafone Sure Signal this small device, about the size of a broadband router, is available relatively cheaply from the operator for householders or businesses suffering signal failure. Whilst it does completely transform the mobile phone signal within a building, its coverage is limited and it only works with Vodafone handsets.

This ground-breaking femtocell technology has now been extended to make a real difference to rural communities similarly suffering. The open femto boxes are slightly bigger in size, and are more robust for the outdoor environment. Boxes are mounted on the outside of buildings and enable a signal to be generated within 300 meters, although the signal can be weakened by trees, walls, or anything else that gets in the way, hence the need for this new pilot study.

In time Vodafone hope the process can be rolled out to many more communities although it does require a lot of community co-operation. Unfortunately though this new technology will not be a green light to solving connectivity issues across the UK as by its very nature, open femto technology is only suitable for small areas, so ideal for small communities, especially public meeting places or focal points which are being called 'community hubs'. For coverage over a wider area, the installation of mobile phone masts remains the best option. 

New networking website for rural professionals

An experimental new Landbridge networking website for rural professionals has just gone live.  Landbridge provides a platform for inter-professional learning and opportunities for knowledge exchange with the research community.  

The challenges facing farmers and land managers have been exacerbated by pressures such as climate change and food security, and improving the skills and knowledge of the people who provide them with specialist advice, such as land agents, vets, ecologists and agronomists, has become a key imperative for the UK Government and for the industry.  

A panel from the professions has assisted with planning and implementing the initiative and continues to advise on its development.  Landbridge is supported by the Economic and Social Research Council, Rural Economy and Land Use Programme and the Living With Environmental Change Partnership. 

Volunteer with the Source to the Sea Project

The Source to Sea project is a nationally important partnership project between the Wiltshire, Hampshire and Isle of Wight, and Dorset Wildlife Trusts. It is funded by the Environment Agency. The project aims to strategically remove and control priority Invasive Non Native Species (INNS) in the whole Hampshire Avon catchment. It will join and expand existing control projects, to enable the whole catchment, “source to sea”, to be addressed methodically for the first time, rather than a few sub catchments as is currently the case. Our Aims:

To deliver management, control and eradication of priority invasive non-native species in Avon catchment.

To work to establish a self-sustaining network of public and community support, leaving a legacy after the project.

To develop a reporting procedure for the early detection, surveillance and monitoring of new species.

To publicise and encourage biosecurity best practice.

To evaluate the effectiveness of the catchment scale approach and share lessons learned nationally.

To monitor and evaluate different removal methods and share lessons learned nationally
We run our volunteer tasks from mid-May to early September (dependant on conditions). We provide everything a volunteer needs in terms of equipment (gloves, waders, lifejacket, tea and biscuits etc.). It is a task that can be undertaken by people of any ability, you do not need to get into the river if you do not wish to.

Get in touch via the link to get involved.

Funding for Shops and Pubs - Act quickly

Rural communities across the UK are set to benefit from a new injection of funding to help them revive their villages through community enterprise.

The Plunkett Foundation has been awarded over £450,000 from long-term supporters the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation to create a new comprehensive support service for rural communities considering setting up or diversifying community-owned services – like shops and pubs – to help turn the tide on rural decline.

For more information go to the Plunkett Foundation website: http://www.plunkett.co.uk/newsandmedia/news-item.cfm/newsid/655

Dorset residents are being urged to register their interest in superfast broadband ahead of a planned roll-out next summer.

The plan to improve network speeds across rural areas of Dorset is being finalised at the moment with Dorset County Council apparently close to determining a supplier for the infrastructure.


Dorset residents can improve the chances of the new network reaching their area by filling out a short questionnaire on DCC's website.
Under the Superfast Dorset project, all areas of Dorset are to receive a minimum of 2megabits per second (Mbps) by the end of 2014. 90-95% of Dorset will be able to purchase packages from their supplier of at least 24Mbps (current average is 6Mbps).
Robert Gould, Dorset County Council Cabinet member for the environment, said: "We need to demonstrate to suppliers that people in Dorset want this. The more people who register their interest from a particular area, the more likely that area will be included. Please register now, at www.dorsetforyou.com/superfast or by ringing 01305 221048."

Dorset County Community Fund is open for applications

The current round of Dorset County Community Fund is open for applications from the 16th July and will close at 1:00 p.m. on the 19th October 2012

 

Dorset County Council recognises and values the potential of organisations of all sizes working across Dorset to deliver outcomes for the communities they serve.

 

The Dorset County Community Fund has been set up to build the capacity of the voluntary and community sector and parish and town councils in order to deliver stronger services and support for local communities.

 

Funding Principles

 

The fund will support new or distinct parcels of work, i.e. ‘projects', only. These must have a start and finish date, a budget, specific outcomes and outputs

 

1. Capital and revenue funding is eligible
2. Continuation funding will not be eligible
3. Funding to develop or enhance existing work is eligible if it improves chances of that work becoming more sustainable and less dependent on grant funding
4. Joint initiatives and projects enabling shared services are eligible
5. Funding for activity before a grant agreement has been confirmed is not eligible

 

The Fund will not support

 

1. Individuals
2. Animal Charities
3. Overseas organisations
4. Hospitals and Hospices
5. Rescue Services
6. Schools or colleges
7. Projects based outside Dorset

 

This fund has been set up to benefit rural Dorset.

We expect applicants to have completed their application within two weeks from applying online through part A to sending us part B and all supporting documents in the post, regardless of the closing date.

How much you can apply for?

Grants up to £7,500

For any further information call 01202 292255 or email: grants@cfbdp.org http://www.dorsetcommunityfoundation.org/apply-for-a-grant/dorset-county-community-fund/

Community Right to Bid comes into force

The Community Right to Bid, created in the Localism Act, came into force on the 21 September. The new right allows people to express an interest in acquiring property, such as buildings or land for the benefit of their community should they come up for sale.

The Community Right to Bid, created in the historic Localism Act, which has recently come into force across the country so communities can 'stop-the clock' on the sale of valuable local assets and amenities like post offices, village shops or community pubs, giving them time to put in a takeover bid of their own and protect it for the wider community's benefit.

The new right gives voluntary and community organisations and parish councils the opportunity to nominate an asset to be included on a list of 'assets of community value', pausing the sale of a successfully listed asset for six-months, giving communities the time to prepare a bid and get a business plan together. Previously the community had no opportunity or time to gather resources to bid to buy or take them over.

Communities are already showing their determination and appetite to get involved in saving and running local facilities and amenities and over 500 people are looking into using the Right to Bid in their community.

In Norden, local people formed a Trust to buy and refurbish the historic old library building and reopen it as a community facility. The group purchased the lease form the Local authority and since then the building has been transformed into a modern community hub and a doctor’s surgery.

In Cranleigh, the community is already planning to use the Community Right to Bid to return the first village hospital in the community back into the hands of the local people to provide support to the elderly in the community and ensure that the long history of the building as a community facility can continue.

The Community Right to Bid, is just one of the Community Rights measures brought in by the Localism Act. In June, the Government announced a £30million package of specialist support to help communities take advantage of their new rights.

Further information can be found on the following websites:

· A plain English guide to the Localism Act is available at: www.communities.gov.uk/publications/localgovernment/localismplainenglishupdate.
· A Community Rights website has been launched to give people more information about the new powers and opportunities available to them. The website will continue to grow and expand as more of the Rights come into force. The site can be viewed here: www.communityrights.communities.gov.uk

· Practical help and guidance for those wishing to use the Community Right to Challenge is also available on the My Community Rights website. The site can be viewed here: mycommunityrights.org.uk/community-right-to-challenge/