The agenda for the March Parish Council meeting is now online on the Meetings page. The meeting will take place on Wednesday 11th at 7:30pm in the Reading Rooms. The open forum will be held prior to the parish council meeting and commence at 7.30 pm. We would particularly invite comments and queries ref agenda items but other issues can be addressed. The open forum will last for up to 25 minutes and the chair will ensure that the time allocated to people is fair.

The Police Commissioner has launched a consultation on what the policing priorities should be in Dorset over the next four years. It is vital that as many residents, businesses, community groups and partners take part in the consultation which is live until 25 January, to ensure your views reflect policing priorities.
He has identified four key strands of protecting people at risk of harm, working with our communities, supporting victims, witnesses and reducing re-offending and transforming for the future. Are these important to you? What would you change? What would you add?
There will be a live webchat on Tuesday 10 January between 6pm and 7.30pm for residents to ask any questions they may have in relation to the policing priorities and Council Tax consultations running at the moment. Take part by clicking here. You can even set a reminder via the link!
Alternatively, he is holding fourteen consultation events across Dorset where you can have your say in person. To see where and when your nearest event is click here.

Dorset County Council are currently consulting over a proposal to further reduce support of the concessionary pass scheme.
Dorset Travel proposes removal of free travel before 09:30 on routes that have no other services until after 10:30. Impact on the 311 service will be that passengers from Milton Abbas will no longer be able to use their concessionary pass on the 09:25 to Dorchester if the proposal goes through. Thankfully, the only bus to Blandford on a Thursday morning is currently unaffected. Free travel before 09:30 for blind and partially sighted pass holders will continue as it is currently.
DCC claims that by ceasing to provide free concessionary travel before 09:30, savings will be made that will enable them to focus financial resources more effectively. It does not, however, suggest the potential value of these savings! The changes will also allow for the wider use of schools transport routes for public services. Following on from the results of this consultation, any changes will be implemented to the service in April 2017.
To have your say, you can complete the consultation online here, or if you need a paper copy contact Nigel Hodder on 881709 and he will get one to you. Closing date for consultation is 13 January 2017 so you do not have very long. Unfortunately, we were only advised of this by DCC on 1st December (the start day of the consultation) so missed the December issue of The Bulletin!
by Nigel Hodder

Over the Christmas period, your bin collection day will be different. Check the table below for revised collection days:
Usual collection day Friday 23 Dec Revised collection day No change
Usual collection day Monday 26 Dec Revised collection day Tuesday 27 Dec
Usual collection day Tuesday 27 Dec Revised collection day Wednesday 28 Dec
Usual collection day Wednesday 28 Dec Revised collection day Thursday 29 Dec
Usual collection day Thursday 29 Dec Revised collection day Friday 30 Dec
Usual collection day Friday 30 Dec Revised collection day Saturday 31 Dec
Usual collection day Monday 2 Jan Revised collection day No change

Remember:
• they will collect up to two extra sacks of rubbish left beside the bin on the first rubbish collection after Christmas Day
• they will collect extra recycling if placed in residents’ own boxes, with glass kept separate
• fortnightly garden waste collections are suspended over the Christmas and New Year period, from Saturday 24 Dec to Sunday 8 Jan

Further information can be found here.

There will be no Parish Council meeting in December.  The next Parish Council meeting will be held on Wednesday 11th January 2017 at 7.30pm in the Reading Rooms.

Apologies for any inconvenience caused.

A section of the road from Milborne St Andrew to Milton Abbas will be closed from 7am on the 27th August 2016.  It is anticipated that works will be complete by 4pm on 27th August, however the closure notice remains valid for 5 days.  You can view the closure notice here.

On behalf of the Parish Council, the Neighbourhood Development Plan Working Party would like to invite residents to an event entitled: “Early views on the Milton Abbas NDP”. 

We recently ran a Vision Questionnaire that asked all residents to tell us about their vision for the development of the village over the coming years. We asked you about your likes and dislikes, about the things you treasure and the improvements you want to see.

At this event on Wednesday 24th August, in the Reading Rooms at 7.30pm, the Working Party will present the feedback we’ve had and suggest the core themes that will be taken forward in the Neighbourhood Development Plan.

Please come and hear what the residents have said – there will also be an opportunity to ask questions about the NDP and put your additional ideas forward.

If you haven’t returned a Vision Survey, but would like to do so, the final deadline is Friday 5th August. 

The Playpark has been accepted as a nominee for the One Family Foundation appeal and has requested a £25,000 donation. The Playpark’s success or failure is now based purely on total votes received.  Please share the following link with your family, friends, neighbours, colleagues and associates and encourage them to vote and then to share with their contacts.  Thank you. (Shared on behalf of the Playpark Committee)

Since the disappearance of the finger post pointing down to Jane’s Wood there has been some confusion about the status of the path that runs between the fields and the houses in Athelstan Way. The Title to Jane’s Wood includes the following easement: “A right of way to and from the Property at all reasonable times but on foot only over a strip of land 8’ in width between the [start and end of the path].”
The Parish Council’s understanding is that as the Title is held in trust for the community the community is the real owner of Jane’s Wood and as such any member of the community may use the path.