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| Parish Council Report |
Developing Local Facilities
One of the key roles of a Parish Council, in addition to being an advocate for local people in District and County matters, is to campaign for local facilities and there is good news on two fronts.
We will be taking over the management of the leisure facilities at Napsbury Park but there are still a few contractual snags with the District Council, before we can start setting up a management board with local organisations. I am hoping the transfer of facilities will be finalised within the next 6 weeks so that we can get on with the job of providing enhanced facilities for our whole community.
The Parish Council are undertaking a youth project at Shenley Lane play area adjacent to the football pitches. A £60,000 investment is being planned with our partners Groundworks; consultation with young people and with neighbours will take place before plans are finalised. The aim is to have this finished by early September.
Still on the issue of leisure, it is our intention to upgrade the tennis courts at Morris Playing fields at Whitehorse Lane. Cllrs Jones, Cooper and Mahoney have been looking at other tennis courts with Linda Gibling, our project manager, and will now be pursing charitable funding on our behalf. And while discussing the Morris Playing Field many families will be pleased to know that John Copley and his grounds team are working hard to have the paddling pool opened at the end of May. What a great facility it is!
We are negotiating with St Albans Council to have sports in the park for children on two afternoons a week during summer, as well as summer tennis coaching: watch this space.
Moving house and into a new area is usually quite stressful and the Parish Council wants to ease the transition for new residents by preparing a Village Welcome pack. There is so much going on within London Colney and we hope our new pack will provide valuable information about the village and help new residents and families to obtain a flavour of their new lively and friendly communities. This ties in with upgrading of our website.
Congratulations to 1st London Colney Scout who are celebrating their 90th birthday. This is a marvellous achievement and we pay tribute to all of those who have dedicated their time to supporting our young people over past years.
Following Carol Singing by local residents and Parish Cllrs and the Parish Ball, four local schools received over £100 each. Well done to all involved.
It seems a long way from fireworks night but early planning will hopefully result in a bumper contribution to local schools, scouts, and guides. The Parish Council will be funding the whole event this year and contributions received will the be distributed to these groups preparations are already underway.
Malcolm MacMillan
Parish Council Chairman
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