Kc autumn 2014 proof

Autumn 2014

More Local Food

In a Roundabout Sort of Way

There could be a lot more food

grown in public spaces around Kington. Inspired by Incredible

Edible Todmorden, KLEEN’s guerrilla planted potatoes on our roundabouts are a light-hearted

way of drawing attention to this idea.

The 3 Towns Food Network between Knighton, Presteigne and Kington is a new initiative

which aims to help reinvigorate local food production. These

three towns on the Welsh-English border are looking at Offa's Dyke as a dynamic link

(rather than a barrier) for building local food resilience

through some jo ined-up thinking. Initial projects include;

growing a bean crop for drying and storage; co-ordinated stalls

in our town markets; stalls at

K i n g t o n a n d K n i g h t o n Agricultural Shows to raise

awareness of local food security issues; and a visionary walk from Knighton via Presteigne

crossing the three rivers (Theme, Lugg & Arrow) to arrive

at Kington on Sunday 19th October for the Mayor's Reception; a community lunch

where you are welcome to share t h e i n f a m o u s K i n g t o n

roundabout potatoes! All are welcome. Oh, and talking of the

roundabouts; how about a competition for suggestions of

what to do with them? There could be a public vote held on

the Kington Blackboard. Tricky negotiations with various

authorities would be

needed to clarify the permissions needed,

but where there’s a will there is a way!

Marches Housing 2

Kington Town Council 3

CAB Celebrations 4

Kington Remembers 5

Kington Badminton Club

5

Kington & District Operatic Society

5

Kington Area Neighborhood Plan

6

Kington Fringe Issues 7

Courses at MAP 9

Kington Golf Club 10

Kington Nature Trust 12

KLEEN Events 12

In this issue

KINGTON FESTIVE FOODS FROM THE BORDERS

Saturday 6th December 2014 9.30am to 3pm

Less

Food Miles

More

Food Security!

Richie Cotterill

Page 2 The Kington Chronicle Autumn 2014

Marches Housing Association in Kington

Welcome to the latest in our regular

bulletins, keeping you up to date with what

Marches is doing in Kington.

Anti-social behaviour

At the time of writing, we have three outstanding

cases of ASB. All relate to low level noise nuisance

and we are working with those involved to resolve

the issues. The Association takes Anti-Social

Behaviour (ASB) very seriously. Housing Officers

spend a large part of their working week dealing

with ASB which is an essential part of our service.

The general term Anti-Social Behaviour covers a

number of different types of behaviour that are

considered unacceptable and which may affect the

quality of life of others. These can range from

garden nuisance, inconsiderate parking, noise and

disputes between neighbours to domestic violence

and criminal damage.

Where possible we encourage neighbours to speak

to each other about any areas of concern. This

can often resolve issues much more quickly and

more successfully before matters escalate. We

work with the Police and Environmental Health as

well as other agencies such as Social Services to

try to resolve issues as effectively as possible

ensuring residents are comfortable in their

communities.

Waste Management

You may have already received notification from

Herefordshire Council of their plans to change

rubbish collections, all over the county, to every

fortnight. This means that your black bags will be

collected alternately with your recycling collection.

Marches are aware that this may cause some

concern to our residents especially those who live

in flats or smaller accommodation and those in

sheltered accommodation. We are working with

Herefordshire Council to ensure that this change

runs as smoothly as possible and to eradicate any

Health and Safety concerns. Hopefully we will be

able to give you more information in the next

edition of the Kington Chronicle. In the meantime

if you want to find out more you can visit the

Herefordshire Council website at

www.herefordshire.gov.uk/bincollection

Litter Pick and Skip Days

On the subject of litter Marches Housing

Association are continuing with our Litter Pick and

Skip Days throughout the summer holidays.

Hannah Bragg, Housing Officer for the Kington

area recently held one of these events at

Greenfields. She was delighted with the

volunteers that came out ready to help. A huge

thank you to everyone who took part!

For your chance to take part in a Litter Pick and

Skip Day go to the Marches website at

www.marchesha.co.uk to find out when we are

near you.

Arrow View homes for sale

We have recently refurbished selected properties

for sale at Arrow View. If you are interested in

purchasing one of these properties or would just

like to know more please contact McCartneys

Estate Agents who are providing services relating

to the sales. You can contact McCartneys on

01544 230316 or visit them at 54 High St,

Kington, Herefordshire HR5 3BJ

his page has been paid for by Marches Housing

Association


The impacts of “austerity” and Herefordshire

Council budget cuts have begun to be seen – most visibly in reductions to the regular

maintenance of roadside verges, roundabouts and parks.

And now, due to a cut in Herefordshire Council subsidies, Kington's bus service is

being affected. From September, Sergeants will no longer run an evening bus. This is a very retrograde step for Kington – a good bus

service is a life-line for rural communities, especially for younger people starting out on

their working life, as well as access to job centre, schools, colleges and evening activities. The cost of fares and student bus

passes will increase and the last available bus back to Kington from Hereford will be the

18.15 departing from the railway-station.

These changes will hit younger people

hardest, and all those who cannot afford, or are unable, to drive – and this is something that we as a community will have to fight to

redress. Buses reduce congestion making roads safer and reduce CO2 emissions from

private cars. These latest cuts seem a very short sighted measure - unlikely to result in

public savings over time because of the potential negative economic impact on jobs, the young and the vulnerable.

You have hopefully heard by now that rubbish collections will become fortnightly from

November – another cost cutting measure. In practice this means that general rubbish and

recycling will be collected on alternate weeks. See posters on TC notice boards for more information.

The other major outcome of the cuts so far,

the disposal of public assets by Herefordshire

Council is moving on apace. Following the

public meeting last December, Kington Town Council, as agreed, has continued

negotiations with Herefordshire Council and developed its plans to take over the assets. These include the Market Hall, Place de

Marines and toilets, Coach House, all the public car parks, the Old Police Station and

several open spaces in the town.

A further public meeting will be held on 2nd

October to consult on the proposals. The solicitors commissioned by KTC to advise on

the proposed charitable trust to manage the assets will present their recommendations and KTC will set out the financial implications

of the transfer for the town. A final decision on the transfer will be made by KTC on13th

October and, if agreed, it is hoped that the transfer will be completed by the end of March 2015.

And on another more positive note, every year, Kington Town Council makes an award

to an individual or an organisation in recognition of outstanding service to the

community of Kington. Award winners are always volunteers. Two Civic Awards have

been given this year: to Emma Hancocks for her work with the Kington Festival and also the Walking Festival and the Chamber of

Trade, and to Dave and Lynn Rogers who together with a loyal team of volunteers have

run the St Michaels Hospice shop for over 14 years.

Participation in the annual Kington in Bloom event has enhanced our streets and views around the town – congratulations are due to

this years winners, and our thanks go to all those who participated.

Cllr Celia Kibblewhite, Mayor.

Kington Town Council Update


On the 48th anniversary of the Citizens Advice

Bureau opening in Hereford, the organization launched the “Advice for the Future

Campaign”. Citizens Advice has launched this national

campaign to highlight the value of the CAB service across the country and to get Local

Authorities, Government and politicians to recognize advice services as vital public services and commit to resource them.

The issue of resourcing the CAB service in

Herefordshire was brought into stark focus last year when Herefordshire Council proposed to withdraw completely its grant to the

service, a proposal that was withdrawn after a hard fought local campaign to save the

funding.

However the future of resourcing CAB services

locally from April 2015 remains in doubt and

Claire Keetch, Chief Executive at Herefordshire CAB is urging people to sign the

Advice for the Future Pledge. “Advice matters” said Mrs. Keetch “Every day our waiting rooms are filled with people seeking

our help on a variety of problems. I am enormously proud that whoever you are,

whatever your problem, people coming to the CAB are treated with dignity and respect, and our volunteer and staff team will do

everything possible to secure a good outcome for you”.

“When you see the relief fall from people’s faces, you know that advice matters” added

Mrs. Keetch. You can support the Advice for the Future

Campaign by signing the online pledge at www.citizensadvice.org.uk/adviceforthefuture

CAB Celebrates 48 years in Hereford

Citizens Advice Service 75th Birthday

The Citizens Advice Service began at the start

of the Second World War and to mark its 75th birthday, Herefordshire CAB celebrated with a

tea party for staff and volunteers. Alice Montague Fuller, the duty Supervisor for

the day added “the bureau has been open today as usual, and the day has brought the

usual mixed bag of problems and crises faced by people across the county. A serious neighbour dispute, a case of multiple debt,

an equity release situation that could result in the client losing everything, someone ending

up with a large overpayment of benefit through no fault of their own but as a result of bad advice from the Department of Work and

Pensions, someone facing homelessness, someone being charged by a utility supplier

even though they were not a customer of that utility company, an enquiry about land

registry, a case of possible unfair dismissal, the non-payment of wages to someone on a zero hours contract, and someone recently

bereaved struggling to cope financially. After a really busy session and dealing with some

very distressed people, a cup of tea and a

slice of birthday cake was most welcomed by the Friday team!”

“There is no better way to demonstrate how much advice matters to people, than the work

done here today “said Brian Roe, Chair of Trustees, “and I am enormously proud that 48

years to the day after the CAB opened the door for the first time here in Hereford, those doors are still open wide, and we are still

providing a much needed and much valued service to the people of Herefordshire”.

PHOTO: Brian Roe, Chair

of Trustees, cutting 75th

birthday cake.


COMMEMORATING THE 100 T H

ANNIVERSARY OF THE OUTBREAK OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR Amid the national events commemorating the

outbreak of the First World War in August 1914, Kington held its own vigil on the 4th

August at the War Memorial. Over 200 people took part in a short service of remembrance, which included the laying of a

wreath by the Royal British Legion. A poignant reminder of the period was provided

by Maia Hughes, an ex-pupil at Lady Hawkins’ School, who sang Roses of Picardy beautifully, accompanied by Annabelle Roberts on the

violin at the end of the vigil. Our thanks go to everyone who was involved in organising this

time of reflection and particularly to Neil Weston, Vicar of St Mary’s.

The first event organised by the Kington Remembers Group was the first of the

“Kington Conversations” – a series of talks about events during the period 1914 to 1918.

On 4th July, Kington welcomed Tim Butcher, author of an acclaimed new book on Gavrilo Princep, the young Bosnian whose

assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Habsburg monarchy, triggered

the events leading up to the outbreak of war. Over 60 people attended the event, and Tim also talked aobut his time as a journalist

covering the war in Bosnia in the 1990s. We hope that the “Kington Conversations” will

reflect not only on the First World War but also on the resonances of the period for events today.

The next “Kington Conversation” will take

place on Friday 17th October when Jack Spence. Jack is Professor in the Department

of War Studies at King`s College, London. He was formerly Academic Advisor at the Royal College of Defence Studies and Director of

Studies at the Royal Institute of International Affairs. He will be considering when diplomacy

can prevent war, with particular reference to the run-up to the First World War His talk is War versus Diplomacy – a theme which will

again enable us to reflect on contemporary events.

Kington Remembers now has a Facebook page and we hope shortly to have a website,

which will provide a lot of information about how Kington was affected during the First

World War, as well as the stories of Kington people who gave service in so many different

ways during this period. The Kington Remembers Group is open for

anyone to join and we also hope that forthcoming events, which will be publicised

by posters in the town, on the Facebook page and on the website, will encourage anyone who has a story about their own relatives,

who were involved in any way during the First World War, to let us have information.

The Kington Remembers group can currently be contacted at:

[email protected]. Christine Forrester

Secretary to the Kington Remembers Group

Kington Remembers

Kington Badminton Club no longer exists, but

out of some remaining funds, founder members have decided to give a Perpetual

Challenge Trophy to a budding young sportsman/woman living in the Kington area. The aim is to encourage youngsters to excel

at his/her sport. Nominations for this award to be given to

either Clubsport Kington or Grapevine by 1st January 2015.

Kington Badminton Club Kington & District Operatic Society

KINGTON AND DISTRICT OPERATIC SOCIETY will be presenting The Gondoliers by Gilbert &

Sullivan on 30th&31st October and 1st November at Lady Hawkins' Community Leisure Centre, Kington. Tickets from Tom Bounds

Electrical, 32 High Street, Kington, (01544231303) or 01544231501 (evenings). New members are always welcome. We are

especially short of men this year. Please visit our website www.kingtonoperatic.wordpress.com


Work on preparing the Kington Area

Neighbourhood Plan is now well underway. This will provide Hereford Council with the

local details necessary to implement the County’s Core Planning Strategy. The Plan will be a legally binding document, with legal

force, allowing all of us to determine how Kington, Huntington and Kington Rural &

Lower Harpton, can thrive and develop. The first two community meetings on housing

and transport policy attracted large and enthusiastic groups of residents. There was

lively discussion and a wide range of ideas were contributed from all present.

On housing, the challenge is to make provision, within Kington

Town, for around 200 new dwellings needed to meet

Hereford Council‘s core strategy requirements. Our aim is to have

some control over the rate of housing

development so that new building can take place at an appropriate speed over the Plan

period. We also want to be sure that any housing development meets local needs, and, is closely related to the creation of new jobs

in the local area. The Plan will also encourage the provision of a range of different types of

housing, appropriate for different sections of the community, including at least a third that are ‘affordable’. People at the meeting

strongly supported new housing in small developments rather than large estates, and

for houses of the highest environmental

standards.

At the second meeting, the promotion of sustainable transport in relation to development was discussed. This included

policies on pedestrian and cycle routes, bus links and car parks. Consideration

was also given to how the Plan could promote greater public safety, with an emphasis on how

Kington High Street could be made more pedestrian friendly to

help make shopping and stopping to talk, become less hazardous and more enjoyable.

More details about both meetings can be seen on our user friendly website where everyone

is encouraged to add ideas and comments:

http://kingtonareaplan.org.uk/

The next meeting, 7pm on September 30th at the Burton Hotel, will discuss how the Plan

can help to support, develop and sustain the local economy. Two further meetings on the Environment and Coping with Climate Change

will take place on October 30th and November 27th.

All are welcomed. We hope to see you there.

Martin Fitton

Planning a better future for the Kington Area


Following the interesting public discussion on

Housing let’s consider other alternatives such as the Welsh “One Planet Living” initiative.

The Lammas Community is a small farm which has been sub-divided into small-holdings where several families have built

their own low-impact dwellings. They grow and process enough food to justify their right

to be there whilst satisfying rigorously low annual carbon footprint assessments. Other options include Housing Co-operatives, Land

Trusts and cheaper temporary accommodation such as caravans and mobile homes on

“live/grow” sites. “Grow Your Own Home” (GYOH)is a Herefordshire low-impact Housing initiative which aims to create cheap,

energy efficient homes and campaigns for enlightened changes in planning to help meet

future housing needs. They believe it would be better to encourage people who are willing

to experiment in low-impact housing & life-styles with funding and active support in planning. Options include the use of more

natural building materials in structures such as straw bale houses, yurts, benders and

tipis. Come to their presentation, “You Have No Right To Be Poor," on Thursday 25th

September.

At the recent Transport public meeting we

discussed tackling the problems of congestion and the danger to pedestrians of our over-crowded High Street but there is no current

funding to carry out these works and our local bus services are being cut. We should

consider measures to lower the speed of traffic and reduce car use to make our town safer for pedestrians and cyclists. To this end,

would you be interested in joining a Car Sharing Club for Kington? Your questions

about how this could work will be answered at the KLEEN public meeting later this autumn.

Over the last 3 years KLEEN has established two Community Orchards in Kington, one

behind Park View and the other at Crooked Well Meadow. We have planted mostly apple trees which in years to come will produce

loads of free fruit. We also have a variety of different sized apple presses which are

available to borrow for home use for a

donation to KLEEN. Come to the Apple

Crushing Day in Place des Marines from 11am - 4pm on Saturday 11th October and try

them out. Bring your washed apples and containers to enjoy the tangy and sweet fruits of your labours!

On Sunday 7th December, during National Tree Week, we will be planting fruit trees in public places around the town to contribute

towards our local food security and help to highlight the issues. I want to involve our

schools to get young people to suggest where we might plant fruit trees on verges, gardens and unused areas around Kington. The

neighbourhood plan group would like to know about any special wildlife areas, favourite wild

-play places and green areas to protect or enhance (feel free to tell me about these, to pass on to the group).

Herefordshire New Leaf have also launched a

game to give some structure to young peoples' ideas through a creative method called "Back-Casting". "Seeds of the

Future" - Imagining Kington in 2050 encourages us to think of our ideal future and

then look back to see how we managed to get

Kington Fringe Issues


there. For more information visit: http://

www.herefordshirenewleaf.org.uk/game. We’d love kids to get creative; drawing, painting

and writing their ideas, some of which could even be used to illustrate the Plan when it is drafted early next year.

I will also be hosting a “Kington Green

Infrastructure Mapping" evening on Friday 5th December to help create a map of our existing trees and wildlife areas which can

provide us with a ‘baseline’ from which to monitor future preservation efforts and to help

inform our Neighbourhood Plan. As Tree Warden for Kington I take my role

as an advocate for trees very seriously. I am learning from local and county experts in

order to champion the cause of trees. Along with fruit & nut tree planting we hope to

manage our existing trees & woods better, for sustainable firewood, coppice products and to the benefit of wildlife. Please get in touch if

you’d like to help.

Coping With Climate Change. Trees can also help reduce flooding downstream by helping the land to absorb more rain in the

catchments. Our upland watersheds have become compacted through over grazing and

subsequent de-forestation. Run-off has been increased by draining of wet-lands, ploughing, building on flood-plains and etc. KLEEN’s

programme of films and discussions has been helping us to understand the wider

implications of excessive use of energy and reliance on fossil-fuels.

No-one sees the effects of climate change on their own environment better than the Kogi

people of Colombia who told us back in 1990 that we were messing up the water-cycle on their land from mountain-top to sea-shore.

With the BBC they made the film “The Heart of The World” to tell us to stop destroying the

environment. KLEEN showed this film nearly 4

years ago, to a packed house as a fundraiser

for the Kogi's second film. In November we should at last be able to show the astonishing

sequel: “Aluna.” The Kogi say: “You haven’t listened so now we must SHOW you why you MUST change your ways!”

Thinking Globally and Acting Locally, the

Kington Community Energy Co-operative has been established to help create our first solar electricity power station. We have also

set up the Kington Allotments and regularly KLEEN-Up litter around town.

Kington Household Waste Recycling Centre is at last under construction and will

even allow for a community group to redistribute the re-useable items. Kington is a

great place for such re-use and repair. Almost everything we need is available here.

Sadly, Political and Religious differences are still part of the problem. There is enough in

the world for everyone’s need but not for their greed. If we didn’t spend SO much on

Armaments we could feed the world and eradicate poverty making the world a safer place. Let us concentrate on the much greater

threat which climate change poses. I believe that we need to work for International

Peace through Understanding. “No Glory in War” seeks an informed alternative to war and conflicts around the world through better

communication; promoting spending on resolving the underlying sources of strife. The

anniversary of the Great War offers us all an opportunity to look deeply into our nation’s soul and to learn the hard lessons from its

terrible mistakes; mistakes which are still being made today. New and on-going conflicts

are still occurring all over the world. Let’s not sleep walk into another disastrous global conflict!

Richie Cotterill – a personal view

Amnesty International Film Showing of "Osama" Thursday 23rd October, 7:30pm at The Oxford Arms.

Winner of the Golden Camera Award at the Cannes Film Festival in 2002, "Osama" highlights

the plight of women living under the Taliban in Afghanistan. Shot in Kabul with cast of non-professionals it was flagged up by the Guardian as, "Challenging, full-throttle cinema, uncompromisingly engaged with the contemporary world."



Kington Show 13th September 2014

Visit our stand at the show to collect your exclusive show

discount voucher off the price of winter golf.

Winter Golf

1st October 2014 to the 31st March 2015

Winter Membership for just

£175

New to Golf £75

We offer a 10 hour group coaching programme with our

award winning Professional. Who will cover all the basic

aspects of golf including techniques and etiquette in a

relaxed manner with all equipment provided including a

chance to talk about golf while relaxing in our clubhouse,

food is included in the price.

Contact our Professional Sarah Walton

on 01544 230340 option 1.

Green Fees

From £15


Rhyme by Clive Williams and Photo by Richie Cotterill

The Kington Chronicle is a community project

run by volunteers in conjunction with The

Kington Area Regeneration Partnership

(KARP). As a community newsletter, The

Kington Chronicle needs your news, photos,

letters and announcements.

Advertising

If you would like to advertise in the Kington

Chronicle, please contact Emma (KARP

Administrator) on 01544 231771 to discuss

your requirements. Phone: 01544 231771

Email: [email protected]

Marches Access Point

The Old Police Station

Market Hall Street

Kington

Herefordshire, HR5 3DP

The Kington

Chronicle

The views expressed in the Kington Chronicle and the information contained therein are not necessarily

those of the Kington Chronicle nor do we vouch for or necessarily endorse the views or guarantee

accuracy. So if you feel like suing us, please don’t bother as we’re skint.

2014

September 30th Moccas Hill Wood. by Lewis Morrison

Woodland Trust. October 28th The Nature of set-aside. by Gordon Forrest.

November 25th AGM. Islands of Britain.

by Philip Mugridge.

2015

January 27th Polecats by Lizzie Croose VWT.

February 24th Spring flowers of Corsica by Dr. Tony Hughes. March 24th Celebrity Lecture & Social

Evening The Complete Owl

by Michael Leach.

Kington Branch of the Herefordshire Nature Trust

Winter Programme 2014/15

Our meetings are held at Kington Primary School and commence at 7.30pm. We ask for

donations towards expenses - Members £1. Non members £2. Everyone welcome. Throughout the summer we have a number of visits to local reserves.

Kington Show Saturday. 13th September

KLEEN will be hosting a 3 towns food stall demonstrating a meter square garden with

perennial and overwintering plants; seeds and “adopt a plant” giveaways for children.

Low Impact Housing Thurs.25th SeptGrow

Your Own Home presentation followed by Q&A from 8pm at The Oxford Arms

h.Energy Weekend 10th-12th October

Renewable Energy & Community Events

Friday 10th KLEEN Quiz at The Oxford Arms

Sat.11th Apple Crushing in the Market Hall

Sun.12th Paradise Fm Retrofit nr Presteigne

More at: www.herefordshirenewleaf.org.uk

Community Meal Sunday 19th October

Roundabout potato feast in the Market Hall

KLEEN Community Shop Nov.14th-21st

Donations for stock & offers of help needed.

h.Tree Week 29th Nov. - 7th December

Sat.29th Apple Crushing in the Market Hall

Sun.30th Hergest Croft Champion Tree Walk

Fri.5th Dec. “Trees Talk” Mapping our Trees

Sun.7th Community Fruit Tree Plantings

More at: www.herefordshiretrees.net

Watch out for posters and social media notices of these and other events this autumn.

For info. call Gordon Coppock on 232722

KLEEN Autumn Events

Documents

Kc autumn 2014 proof