Dear villagers,

I think I need to explain why this newsletter is so overdue and why I have not been very visible these past four weeks. The reason is our house move which has been pretty close to catastrophic. To help you appreciate why I am not easy to contact just now, here are just a few of our challenges, which all began when we moved to KingswoodFirs on 21^st. July;

1. Over 130 packing cases and 25 wardrobe units were mislabelled because sundry items had been put in them to fill them up. On one occasion I spent half a day looking for a pair of socks – any socks!
2. On arrival the sole ‘phone line did not work.
3. Worse than that the line I need for business and council work could not be installed by BT because there is only one line to the house and the capacity in the road is full. Unfortunately some very old techniques have been used to lay the lines underground which is going to cause disruption to remedy and great cost to me and my family. This ‘phone line, the one you know as 609858, will not be connected until mid September at the earliest. Part of Kingswood Firs is going to be dug up to sort this out. Sorry.
4. AOL failed to reconnect our email service. This was finally connected after three weeks.
5. On taking up occupancy we found one new upstairs bathroom was fitted with a pump and macerator to remove fluids from the bathroom to the drains. I’m not a fan of that solution at the best of times. Two nights ago this failed in the middle of the night. It blew the trip which ensured we had no alarm, overslept and missed our meetings but worse than that the pump seems to have exploded and emptied its contents through the floorboards and down the internal walls of the ground floor ruining carpets, decorations and soaking everywhere in our dining room and under stairs area. Having just about got the house straight having recovered from 1 to 4 above, to be hit by 5 was soul destroying.

How to get in Touch With Me or Solve Your Queries.

Until the ‘phones are sorted out, here are my suggestions;

1. Email, now that I am reconnected.
2. Letter.
3. Messages left with my PA at Penns Place. If you call 01730-266551 and ask for Heather Sharman, she will ensure I receive your messages when I attend Penns Place, which is almost every day.
4. Deal direct with the Council’s officers.

Policing Matters

I met with Chief Inspector Phil Kedge the other day to discuss District matters and also Grayshott matters. CI Kedge is in charge of all policing in East Hampshire north of Butser Hill.

I raised my concerns with him about the continued absence of a Beat Manager, (Police Constable) in Grayshott and also the absence of a sector sergeant in the chain of command that includes Grayshott. I was sure to praise PCSO Jim Leggat, however, who continues to do a first class job in my view.

As a result of the meeting, CI Kedge and I are developing a new proposal for Grayshott and I hope to announce this in my next newsletter.

Postal Address

Many of you returned the survey form I prepared for the previous copy of Parish Scene. There was an overwhelming preference for the address format that goes “Grayshott, Hampshire, GU26 6XX”. As you would expect this is the least attractive to Royal Mail, but I’ll certainly give it my best shot.

“Bowleswood Farm”

You will have noticed extensive groundworks taking place there. This is in preparation for the handover of the land from EHDC, who own it, to the Grayshott Heathland Trust, who will lease it from EHDC and manage it. I am a member of the Trust and have been since its inception in 1999. The history of the site has been fraught, but I must praise parish councillor Colin Thompson, the current chairman of the trust, for the way he has pursued the site clearance, fencing and general ground improvements. The signs are that we are not too far away from getting this sorted out.

Village of The Year

I’m not sure I want to talk about it. Congratulations to Headley of course, they have a lovely village, too. However for me, there is only one and no panel of judges will ever convince me there is a better village in Hampshire than Grayshott.

Movies in Grayshott

I was really pleased that MIG won a grant from the District Council to keep them going after their recent difficulties. It was especially satisfying because the grant is a new type of grant that I have introduced to the Council to help defray the running costs of small community organisations such as MIG. My idea is to offer three years help with running costs after which the relevant organisation has to be able to run without Council support. The principle is that within three years it should be possible to assess the degree of support for the organisation, start earning subs or other types of income and get established.

So, can we all have another go at giving MIG our very best support please? We’re very lucky to have this facility in the village and especially lucky to have such enthusiasts as Barbie and Steve to run it for us, often at their own expense.

GrayshottPrimary School

Being a District Councillor can be difficult, especially when the public get annoyed and start calling you everything there is under the sun! This is magnified tenfold as Leader and so events like the GrayshottPrimary Schoolprizegiving are an absolute delight. I was flattered and delighted to be asked to give out the Certificates for Outstanding Achievement and Effort.

More important than that, though, is that based on the morning’s proceedings, I can promise all of you that our futures are assured by the talent of the young people I met that day, the support of their parents and the skills of the teaching staff and their headmaster, Jon Hills.

Boundary Walk

Don't forget to test your stamina and knowledge of Grayshott at this year's Grayshott Boundary walk on Sunday 28th.September. Entry forms can be obtained from www.boundarywalk.co.uk

….and finally,

normally I sign off by saying “As usual, if you disagree, agree or just want to get in touch over a local matter, please email me at fcowper@aol.com or call me on 609858”. However, for the time being, would you mind following the advice I have offered in my opening remarks? I’m grateful to everyone who is bearing with me on all of this.

Best wishes,

Cllr. Ferris Cowper
EHDC Councillor for the ward of Grayshott and Leader of the Council