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Bettisfield, Maelor South, Wales |
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BETTISFIELD VILLAGE WEB |
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Village news |
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Wrexham Local Development Plan is now available for you to read and make comments on. Bettisfield Community Councillors have a copy and will discuss it at the Community Council meeting in Cadney Lane Methodist Chapel on Tuesday 6th July at 7.30pm. All are welcome.
Bettisfield Community Renewable Energy Project: Dr Simone Lowthe-Thomas, Renewable Energy Project Manager will be coming to Bettisfield on 13th July. If you are interested in renewable energy and would like to joina group to take the idea forward, pleae get in touch.
Taraloka takes giant step to reduce its carbon footprint It’s over two years since staff at Taraloka started gathering data to work out their carbon footprint. They calculated that they could reduce it by two-thirds by using solar thermal panels and a biomass boiler for their heating system. It’s been a steep learning curve in finding information and then finding out for what grants Taraloka was and was not eligible. Some grants that are available in England are not available in Wales and vice versa. But now all the funding has fallen into place : from Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) who provide funding via the Low Carbon Building Program and The Carbon Trust. The Welsh Forestry Commission Wood Energy Scheme was prepared to step in with a top-up funding application if DECC didn’t manage to meet their request. Last month they also heard that Scottish Power’s Green Energy Trust had granted them additional funding, so work could begin. In May heat trenches were excavated from the boiler house site to the retreat centre buildings and to the community house. This month will see a very large crane there to unload the biomass boiler. By the end of the June the solar thermal panels should be installed and working in tandem with the wood pellet boiler.
Going green is not cheap even with the grants so Taraloka was delighted to learn that DECC have announced an extension to their Renewable Energy Incentive Scheme which encourages sustainable energy installations by paying so much per kilowatt produced - even if you use that energy yourself! It already covers electricity and from mid-2011 it will include heat energy. In other words the government will pay per kilowatt produced by the biomass and solar thermal equipment! That will be a huge help to Taraloka. For mor information go to the blog (www.taraloka.org.uk). To see for yourself go to Taraloka Open Afternoon on Sunday 25th July 2-5pm and have a look!
Heating trenches for new biomass boiler system
Five Years Foreward One subject raised at the May Community Council Meeting was that communities like Bettisfield need to have a ‘wish list’ of things that community members would like to see over the next 5 years or so. Its safe to say that Bettisfield has no such list but should it? For example what would be on your list? · A 30mph village speed limit? · Mains drainage for sewage? · Speed humps on Main Street? · Street lighting? · Resurfacing of the roads? · A fibre-optic broadband network? · A better bus service? · Reopen the railway? Without suggestions from you then your councillors will be left to fill the gaps with their own ideas, which may not be such a good thing. So please give it some serious thought and let your coun cillors know.
Bettisfield Power and Light? A new project has beeen set up by the Welsh Assembly to help local communities invest in new technologies to generate their own renewable energy. The funding will help about 22 community enterprises install innovative technology to generate electricity and create a sustainable source of income for the community. The village hall committee is keen to explore the possibilties of this project and welcomes any villagers to join a small team to take it forward. If you have skills that would contribute to the project or would like to get involved then please phone or email Phil Jones (01948 710145)
Church Treasurer retires John Birch joined the Parocial Church Council aat St John the Baptist Church Bettisfield in 1952 and has served as treasurer since 1966. On Easter Sunday the Reverend Clive Hughes thanked John for his unparaqllelled service to the Parish Church (John’s service started before Clive was born!) and presented him with a gift from parishoners. John will continue as an ordinary member of the PCC. The Village Web wonders if John is one of the longest serving PCC members in the country?
Taraloka has taken a major step towards reducing its carbon footprint by committing to produce all its heating and hot water needs by burning wood pellets. Wrexham Planners have approved plans for a wood pellet store and burner to replace their old oil-fired boilers. You can get more facts and figures from the taraloka website then go to the Our Blog pages.
Drains Again. Thanks to some hard work the ‘Bettisfield Main Line’ also known as the big ditch across the corner field, the one which should carry most of the drainage water from the village, has been cleared out following permission from the land owner. WCBC have cleaned out the culvert between the Brambles and the ditch. There is now no obstruction to water flowing from here to the Roden Brook. If your home or land borders a ditch in the upper part of Cadney Lane please ensure there are no obstructions to the flow of water. View photos
Thank you to all those who have adopted planters and set about bringing a touch of colour to the village. Your Community Council is looking for ideas to continue this scheme in 2010, if you have any then please get in touch asap.
If you blinked you missed them!. Did you know that the BBC Sports relief cycle team passed through bettisifield on March 4th? Thaanks to a tip off from Alan Hibbert we went to watch. It was a bit of a let down and the 2 cyclists sped by without fanfare . According to the support person there was no publicity incase the cyclists were overwhelmed by crowds thronging the route! View photo
Snow business. The village has seen some of the heaviest snow in many years on 5th January the temperature fell to –13 C, so its no wonder that the roads were so slippery. The grit box by the bridge is now empty and WCBC can’t say when it will be refilled so do take care when trying to get over the canal. A few people have remarked about boaters cars being parked on the bridge approach, does Britich WEaterways not allow them to use their car park? One resaident telephoned WCBC to ask when our roads would be gritted and was told that minor roads are only gritted on request. If there were more grit boxes around the village then we could put grit where it was most needed. The Community council has requested more grit boxes for the village but it us unlikely they will be in place before the end of the current cold spell.
New Community Police Officer. PC Luke Hughes moves to Rhos on January 5th and we all wish him well in his new appointyment. Luke has been an excellent Community Officer during his period in Bettisfield but we can now extend a warm welcome to PC 1885 Stephen Evans who takes over from Luke at Overton. Contact details for Steven are:
PC 1885 Stephen Evans Bronington & Overton Community Beat Manager Overton Police Station Station Road Overton LL13 0EF
Telephone: 0845 607 1002 ext: 48425 E-Mail click here
Demolition of Nag’s Head planned. Eatonfield Developments of Tarporley have applied to WCBC for permission to demolish the former Nag’s Head pub and replace it with four town houses (application P/2009/0971). These four houses will be in addition to the 14 four and five bedroomed houses which are planned for the field behind the Nag’s Head. When planning permission was granted in 2007 many thought that the permission was granted on condition that the Nag’s head should be restored to a single dwelling. The Nag’s has had a colourful history from its beginnings as a maltsters until the time it was closed by the Border brewery see Bygone Bettisfield), but there was always the hope that it wouldremain as a village landmark perhaps having a new role as a ‘Hub Pub’ (pub, post office and village shop) but once it is demolished time will have been called for the last time.
The rural bus service run by North Shropsire Wheelers (www.northsalopwheelers.co.uk) which provides a lifeline for Bettisfield residents wishing to get to Wem may, because of inaction by the Welsh Assembly, lose its funding. Mainstream bus companies such as Arriva will not be affected but those that provide links to isolated rural villages are looking anxiously in their rear view mirrors. If you think the service should be continued then pleasse write to your Assembly member.
Badgers Bodge BW Banking Works On the morning of 17 November a breach occurred on the Llangollen Canal between Cornhill Bridge and the Roving bridge near Bettisfield. Engineers had been working for a couple of weeks to stabilise the embankment with long steel piles as part of BWs planned maintenance works. Although it is too early to say what caused the breach it is believed that badgers had made setts in this area. Unfortunately one of the piles could have been rather too close to a tunnel and the resulting collapse caused millions of litres of water to flow into the Roden brook, draining the canal and grounding the floating pontoons from which the pile driving was being done. Canal Side cottage was flooded and at least one car was under water. Richard Chadwick who was clearing ditches in a field close to the breach said “ I saw the water level beginning to rise rapidly and the excavator began to tilt into the ditch. I had to reverse rapidly to a dry gateway but the digger is now trapped in a very wet field.”. By mid afternoon some 3 miles of canal were empty revealing a very sandy bottom. One of the engineers said that they had never seen such a clean canal. Not much comfort to those affected by the flood water. It is not known how long it will take to repair the breach and get the canal back into service. Click here for photos.
Beautifying Bettisfield You may have noticed that the village now has new name plates and that a number of wood boxes have appeared around the village. These planters will be filled with soil and plants and should provide a splash of colour over the coming months and years. If you or your family would like to adopt one of the planters and look after it during the year please contact one of the Community Councillors. The Community Council will pay for any plants that are needed and you may devise your own planting scheme. There could even be a competition for the ‘Best Kept Planter’.
Sleepless in Bettisfield. British Waterways have placed a large generator in the carpark next to bridge Cottage. It helps keep the night-watchman warm but seems to go on all day as well. Its all because of the pile driving that is going on between Cornhill Bridge and the Roving Bridge. Work that is needed to prevent the badgers causing a breach in the canal. Can you imagine what a shock the badger would get if the set collapsed? The car park is beginning to look like the Somme in 1918, what a good job that no houses were built on it.
Rural Stories The village hall was packed with those who had come to hear and see the Rural Stories premiere. 11 stories in all ranging from ‘A nice place to live’ to ‘The Captains Pyjamas’. Some were sad and quite a few had a tear in their eye. Others were humorous but all brought out the Best in Bettisfield. Sue’s canapés and the Buck’s Fizz went down well, a big thank you to all who supported the storytellers and to Lisa, Geraint and the students of Yale College for helping get it all together.
Going Up! One consequence of the recent heavy rain will be a rise in the water table which may have a knock-on effect on septic tank soak ways. If your property boarders one of the ditches do make sure that water can flow freely. Any obstruction will affect neighbours further up the water course. If you feel strongly that Bettisfield should be on mains sewerage disposal contact you local councillor, Severn Trent Water is the authority for sewage disposal in our area.
Trees planted. Thanks to the generous sponsorship of two parishioners two ne trees have been planted to replace the cypresses which obscured the war memorial. The trees are @Fastigate or cypress’ oaks (Quercus robur “Fastigiata Koster”). These trees have a much more compact growth when compared with common oaks and so should not obscure the war memorial even when approaching maturity.
Beautifying Bettisfield The materials have arrived for the construction of our planters and we are hoping to assemble them and put them round the village during the week beginning November 16th. If you would like to help please get in touch with John (710353), Ken (710250) Gill (710525) or Phil (710145).
Clearing Ditches: Village Web can report that all ditches, including the Roden Brook to the east of The Cadney have been cleared by a contractor. This has resulted in a substantial lowering of the water table in fields alongside Cadney Lane (below the bust shelter). Residents higher up Cadney Lane may still experience flooding and high water table as the Scottish absentee owner of the corner field has refused to clear the drain leading from Cadney Lane across his/her land. If you are affected by high water tables and/or flooding this coming winter the Community Council has contact details for this person, should you require them.
Rural Stories Thanks to all who came along to the village hall on 21st and 22nd September to record their stories. Stories will be finalised on 28th September and them made into DVDs. Lisa Jones from Yale College hopes to organise a ‘Premiere Night’ in the village hall to showcase our stories. All Bettisfield residents will be welcome to come along so get those frocks out of their mothballs!
Resurfacing work. A BIG THANK YOU to the Streetscene gang who have done a magnificent job of resurfacing 3 stretches of road in Bettisfield. They are hoping to do some of the other rough spots just as soon as funds can be made available.
Corn Buntings have been spotted in Bettisfield, wouldn’t it be good if one of the farmers could leave a patch of corn standing to encourage them?
Speed restriction following the off road incident by the refuse collection lorry and the repairs to the Cadney, it has been recommended that drivers do not exceed 20 mph along this stretch. above a minor aquifer. Planning permission for the latest development in Bettisfield (The Old Stable Yard) was granted on the condition that sealed cess tanks with level monitors were installed for the properties. The BW carpark is currently up for sale, as it is a site which floods regularly any prospective purchaser may wish to consider a house boat!
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