September 2024

20 Buckden Roundabout September 2024 Village News BVHT AGM Tuesday 3rd September 2024, 7:15pm The Trust ’ s Annual General Meeting will be held on Tuesday, 3 rd September at 7:15 pm in the Lincoln Room. Everyone is welcome and there will be a brief review of the year ’ s activities. The Village Hall Trust is here to serve residents of Buckden so please do make your views known. New Trustees – we need you! If you would like to join the Trust as a Trustee please pop along to the AGM on 3 rd September or email admin@buckdenvillagehall.co.uk We are working on a number of interesting projects including improving our carbon footprint, tran- sitioning to net zero and enhancing our grounds, as well as step- ping up our marketing strategy. The Trust is a limited liability char- ity and is financially self - supporting. The Trust is developing its long - term strategy, and we would love to hear any ideas or requests from residents. Please email ad- min@buckdenvillagehall.co.uk Bookings We have a Barre and Brunch event, a 50 th birthday party, a kid ’ s party and several corporate bookings alongside all our regular hirers. Remember that Buckden residents receive discounted rates. Please also check out our online calendar at buckdenvillagehall.co.uk Other activities: Buckden Extra Time Hub Fridays 10am – 12pm. This is a new session, funded by Peterborough United Foundation and in association with Cambridgeshire County Council and EFT Trust. These Extra Time Hubs are aimed at retired and semi - retired people where there will be exercise sessions with the chance to catch up over a cup of tea, plus workshops, social activi- ties and festive meals. Come and join in every Friday 10am – 12pm in the Millard Suite. Making Memories Thursdays 1:30pm – 3:30pm The Trust has also been working with Buckden Parish Council, the local NHS and the County Council to further increase the activities available in the village for people with memory concerns and their carers. Further details about the meetings are available on the Parish Council Facebook page and on posters at the Village Hall and around the village. Footpath upgrade on playing field Work will finally begin in early September on replacing the dilapi- dated footpath along the playing field. It has taken over 18 months from applying for grant money (£34,000 with several rejec- tions), writing the quote specification and recruiting construction firms to apply. We are very excited that work will begin for the new school year. Many thanks to the FCC landfill grant charity and to Breheny Civil Engineering in Huntingdon. The Valley Maintenance of these four acres is a mammoth task for a small charity such as the Trust and we are very thankful to the band of volunteers we have who help to keep it looking as good as possi- ble. Please contact the office if you are interested in volunteering for this group. The hedge planted last spring along the zig zag path is thriving in its second year. It is a native English mixed hedge which will pro- vide food and shelter to wildlife once it matures. Richard Salmon and the Trustees will tackle the banks of the Valley in the autumn to improve the planting. We have applied to various charitable funds to renovate this area. Some of you will have noticed the water levels in the Valley are dropping. The stream feeding it is no longer flowing and we are working with Martin Hassall, our District Councillor, and Hunting- donshire District Council to investigate what can be done. The stream is an adopted water course under the management of HDC so we are hopeful that the problem can be traced, and the water feed restored. If you are interested in a map of Cambridgeshire watercourses you can find more information here: https:// tinyurl.com/3zfa3xpk The weir at the end of the Valley also appears to have failed and is allowing excess water to leak out. We are getting expert advice on replacing the weir which will require a civil engineering consultant to spec this design, so this isn ’ t an easy repair, but investigative work has begun. Last summer the Valley suffered a bad case of algae bloom due to the shallowness of the water and the intense sunshine heating the water. We spent over £800 treating the algae which was only par- tially successful. The water really needs an aerator, which we are investigating, but again this will cost several thousand pounds. We are working with various biodiversity funding sources to see what we can do. The Playing Field It has been a wet spring and disappointing summer, but the weeds on the playing field are thriving which is impacting the quality of the grass. Richard Salmon at ProLawn gave the grass an extra treatment in August to boost growth and suppress the weeds. We are very grateful to the Parish Council and the Football Association who contribute towards the cost of maintaining our playing field. Jo Harvey, Hall Manager Email: admin@buckdenvillagehall.co.uk Tel: 01480 811101 Please call or email to arrange any appointments Office hours: 9am – 2pm Burberry Road, Buckden, Cambridgeshire, PE19 5UY Tel: 01480 811101 www. buckdenvillagehall.co.uk email: admin@buckdenvillagehall.co.uk