HS2 UPDATE

Society members had significant roles in the public meeting ably organised by Wendover HS2 on 15 April in the Memorial Hall. The purpose of the meeting was to explain the consultation process and provide advice on how to participate. The Hall was full to its maximum capacity with almost as many people listening on loudspeakers outside.

The DfT roadshow visited Wendover on 13/14 May and large numbers of people attended to learn more and make their views known. Members of your Committee took the opportunity at the roadshow to talk to senior representatives of DfT and HS2 Ltd, including the HS2 Chief Executive, ensuring that they understood the vast impact the current proposals would have on Wendover. Unfortunately no information was presented to the roadshow by HS2 concerning the bored tunnel for Wendover that had been considered and rejected or on the discretionary property compensation arrangements described only in pages 115-121 of the full consultation document. We ensured that the HS2 and DfT representatives were aware that, if the current proposal did go ahead, then a tunnel for Wendover and fair discretionary compensation arrangements would be considered essential protection by all residents of Wendover. We have invited HS2 Ltd to produce a separate flyer on the current discretionary property compensation proposals for circulation in Wendover.

We urge all our members to respond to the Consultation before the final date of 29 July. Leaflets explaining how to do this can be obtained from the WHS2 Information Centre in Back Street. You may wish to state in your response that you are opposed to any route that damages the Chilterns AONB. However you should also express, in your own words, the vital need for a bored tunnel if the route past Wendover goes ahead and that this should be part of a tunnel right through the AONB. If this cannot be done then HS2 should proceed with the tunnel already planned for Wendover but subsequently rejected. You should also express your support for a fair discretionary property compensation scheme. You could say, in your own words, that the proposals in the consultation document could represent a starting point for the consultation on compensation.

Every individual family member can respond to the consultation in their own words. Please help - it is very important that everyone does respond on the two points above if we are to get these items onto any future agenda.

The HS2 information Centre in Back Street will provide guidance on completing the consultation document also.

THE PLANTER ON THE MANOR WASTE

Most people will have noticed the new planter on the Manor Waste by now. It has been provided by The Society and stands on the spot from where a tree was removed some time ago.

We would like to thank the Parish Council, which paid for the secure and tidy fixing of the planter in position. Sarah Nicholson kindly selected the Willow tree and surrounding plants for us and then carried out the actual planting. Nicky Gregory and Roz Green helped by watering the planter for an initial period.

Many thanks are also due to Nicola, Neil and James of '2 Pound Street' who have generously agreed to take over the watering. We can be confident that their sustenance will match the high quality that they provide in their business.

PLANNING MATTERS

Brook House

We understand that the owner is to submit a new

application shortly.

Swan Edge

The temporary permission for the caravan site is still in operation.

Lambe Road

The appeal by Bellway against the rejection of their plans for 22 dwellings was heard on 11 May. The residents of Lambe Road made their case convincingly. The decision will take some 5 weeks to be published.

THE WENDOVER SOCIETY COMMITTEE

Alan Myers resigned as Vice Chairman in April and we asked Mike Beard to succeed him.

When Carol Clark told us she was to work in France your committee decided to operate with Mike Beard as Vice Chairman. However it has become clear that Carol is having more difficulty than originally envisaged in setting up good communications with the UK. Regretfully she has resigned from the committee. As Chairman for the last 4 years and previously as Treasurer she has done sterling work and will be greatly missed by us. Your committee decided to ask Mike Beard to become the new Chairman. He has accepted. We have asked Simon Griffiths to be the new Vice Chairman. He also has accepted. Simon is playing a large part in generating the response of The Society to the HS2 consultation.

We have co-opted a new member - Rachel Kingston - to the Committee.

THE PURSSEL PATH

Following the felling of the trees at the rear of Water Meadow Way in January it is clear that some of the stumps are sprouting as we planned. The hawthorns are also sprouting.

Further along the path there is a length of the margin which we have cleared of excessive undergrowth. Some of this was dead elder bushes and ivy covered trees. At the fence side we have planted hazel, buckthorn and hawthorn bushes. Many of them are sprouting. This will let more light in and increase the diversity of species on the path.

The work has stopped for the summer and will resume in the autumn. Bringing the path margins to a better state will take a number of years.

Society Mailings

With about 400 members, it is an onerous task to distribute each mailing, to say nothing of the cost and natural resources involved.

For the last two years we have asked members to give us their email addresses. We now have 80 email addresses which with partners means that we can communicate with about 120 of our membership by email. We have not reached the magic 100 addresses so we will not award the promised bottle of bubbly just yet.

If you are prepared to receive mailings by email, and have not given us your email address then please let the Secretary David Whitaker know via george.whitaker@sky.com

The annual Calendar of Events will still be posted. However for the social events we will start to issue details by email where we can. For those without email addresses we will of course send details by post.

Please remember to pass on any changes to your email addresses.

Only Society information will be sent by email and ‘blind copied’ so your address will remain confidential. Also data will not be given or sold to third parties.