July 2010

Dig Deep PLEASE
Mark Byatt who has been putting on a very brave and cheery face around the village despite a serious medical condition is asking for everybody to support his campaign to raise money in gratitude for the treatment he has been receiving at The Leukaemia & Lymphoma Unit of the UCLH hospital in London. Read about his intentions and please give him all your support by donating as much as you can to his appeal by clicking on his JustGiving site at: http://www.justgiving.com/byatt-showell
Don’t forget to Gift Aid your donation and pass the word around to others without a computer.

Grow your own.

A move is underway to try and establish garden allotments close to the village.

At the last Parish Council meeting a formal letter was handed in from signatories requiring that the council give consideration to the request. A local council must formally consider any written request by six or more electors to operate the Allotments Acts and in addition, if it is of the opinion that there is a demand it is bound to provide allotments but duty is restricted to the provision of allotment gardens. The use of land for agriculture and the use of buildings occupied together with agricultural land is not to be taken to involve development, for which therefore, development permission is unnecessary.

If you have an interest in this initiative contact either David Hooker (01621 810505) or Will Davenport (01621 817773) who are actively seeking suitable sites and means to establish the allotments. Please pass this on to others who may not have access to a computer.

Youth Council.

The Parish Council is seeking to establish a voice and forum for young people in the village. It is hoped that in the autumn a youth worker from Essex County Council will be able to give a talk to them about how such a group can be formed and what benefits might flow from establishing such a group. Look out for a leaflet that is to be distributed inviting young people to the event and if you have children of suitable age please try to get them interested in attending this.

 

Parish Council representatives.

Three parish councillors have been appointed to the following liaison posts:

Highways – Paul Holmes (Inworth Councillor)
Rural Community Council of Essex – Chris Bryant
Village Hall – Debbie Blacow

Confirmation is being sought for the position of Footpaths Officer.

 

Borough Grants

It is inevitable that grant aid for the parish precept from Colchester Borough Council will be cut dramatically or be none existent after warnings from Borough Councillor Andrew Ellis at the parish council meeting. It is therefore expected that there will be a considerable rise in local rates next year.

 

Independence Day

Thanks to all the residents and friends who generously supported the event. We hope you all had a great day which was helped by the remarkable weather. Currently a final figure on the amount raised is not confirmed but it is likely to be just over £2,000 to be divided between Essex Air Ambulance, Friends of Messing Church and Messing Village Hall.

A slide show of some of the pictures taken at the event can be seen at http://www.messing-and-inworth.org.uk/MidSummer_Messing/index.html

Thanks to Keith Gooday and Jan and Jim Barker for their photos and if you have any of the day that you would like to be incorporated in the slide show please let Geoff Jackson have them be they digital files or prints.

 

May 2010
A Walk on the Wildside

Fifteen stalwarts set off under threatening skies to partake in a six and half mile ramble over local footpaths on Bank Holiday Monday 3rd May. Mark and Karen had kindly opened the Old Crown premises in order that those participants requiring food could put in their food orders for their return. Some might have been reluctant to leave the fire burning in the grate that morning but the organisers were determined and those that were not put off by the inclement weather set off suitably clad for the mornings stroll to the first stop at Layer Marney Towers. Hot chocolate was in much evidence at this stop where our organisers had negotiated free entrance in order to use the much admired and commented on facilities. We were welcomed by proprietor Mrs Charrington while socialising over hot drinks and other purchases that could be said to have been defeating one of the objects of our exercise. Having got our second wind we set off for the second leg of the walk which although a little muddy underfoot we were fortunate to experience only a very brief few spots of a shower. Returning to the Old Crown all the excellent food that you can expect from Mark and Karen was ready for all those with not only a thirst but a healthy appetite and which no doubt continued the damage that may have started at Layer Marney Towers. Kirk Culley must be especially thanked for thoughtfully scouting out the whole route on his bike just prior to the event in order that we did not encounter to much mud and water and Carole and Alan Baxter together with Gill Culley must be thanked for organising the exercise and this very sociable event. A picture record of the proceedings can be seen here.

March 2010
Inworth sign installed

The Inworth village sign has finally been installed in the environs of the Prince of Wales public house. After a long and tortuous effort that was originally inspired by the late Peter Crowe and residents Allan and Brenda Wakley the sign depicts the church, local activities and a loco from the Kelvedon and Tollesbury Light District Railway. In days gone by Inworth had a station that was served by the railway also known as the Crab and Winkle line, scenes from which can be seen here.
The sign was made by Harry and Pam Stebbing in Norfolk and paid for by funding from the Essex and Colchester Community Initiatives fund.

January 2010

Substantial grant awarded for Messing Parish Church roof

Messing notes Jon Longman

Messing Parish Church is set to be the beneficiary of a substantial grant of £49,000 from English Heritage to go towards the restoration of the church roof.

The church, a Grade II listed building containing historic 17th century stained glass, has been awarded a first stage grant of £9,000 to cover the cost of setting up the project and establishing the extent of the work to be carried out. This preliminary investigation will include an architect's report, an access survey and a bat survey to be carried out by Natural England.

The bat survey team will visit the church to listen to the animals and establish which varieties are present in order to determine when the work on the roof can be carried out.

Once the preparation work is complete, the Messing Parochial Church Council (PCC) will be eligible for an English Heritage grant of £40,000 towards the cost of the work, providing the national body is still receiving support from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

A meeting of the PCC voted to accept the grant offer, set up a maintenance sub­committee chaired by Jan Barker, and appoint an architect to start the process.

The preparatory work will be carried out this year with a view to starting work in 2011 on a project that is likely to cost in excess of £100,000 in total.

The PCC already has the promise of a grant from the Essex Environmental Trust, and the Friends of Messing Church have an on-going fund-raising programme with more than £19,000 available.

Snow-delayed panto aids Haiti appeal

The blizzards that delayed the Messing Youth Group's production of 'A Lad In A Manger' had a silver lining as the production was delayed for a fortnight and was therefore able to raise £211 towards the Haiti disaster appeal.

October 2009
Villagers vote in favour of Collins Green revised plan

A significant majority of Messing residents have voted in favour of Harding Homes pressing ahead with submitting revised plans to Colchester Borough Council for the Collins Green development site in School Road. The revised plans are available to view here (depending on the speed of your connection this image may not load instantaneously).

The parish councillors carried out the door-to-door survey of every home in Messing after a hurriedly-arranged meeting in the village hall had proved inconclusive, despite being attended by more than 40 villagers.

Five days of talking to or passing information sheets on to more than 240 residents resulted in 71 per cent voting in favour of plan B, 19 per cent voting for Plan A (retaining the original designs and reducing the heights of the homes on plots 1 and 2, which is only the far right-hand building) with 10 per cent of residents abstaining. A total of 186 votes were cast.

Parish council chairman Jon Longman said: "The parish council felt that we had to seek a fresh mandate from villagers as the debate over this site has been so controversial.

"More than 77 per cent of the village voted. The figure could have been higher but a number of people were away on holiday and students were away at college and therefore did not get a chance to see the architect's impression of what the site could look like.

"Harding Homes will now present a planning application for the changes to the site to the Borough planning committee.

"Even though there was strong support for Plan B, some felt further changes could be made to the blueprint for the site. Whilst this may not possible we will be making strong representations on your behalf.

"The parish councillors met the Harding brothers on this Saturday morning to pass on comments received from residents during the survey.

"Those residents who supported Plan A will indeed be disappointed that Plots 1 and 2 may not now be reduced in height but the parish council feels that there is an option on the table that was not there three months ago.

"I am sure everybody in the village will scrutinise the revised plans most carefully, when they are made available, to ensure that we end up with a development that blends into the village scene.

"Please continue to pass on your views to the parish councillors." You may also make your comments known (even anonymously if you wish) on the community forum here.

Collins Green
The Collins Green site has been sold by the receivers to Harding Homes. The company are aware of the problems regarding failure to comply with planning consent. The principle owners of the company addressed a large meeting of residents to inform them of their intentions for the site. An alternative plan was shown to the audience and after much debate a vote was taken on two proposals that the company had shown to the audience. This resulted in a majority of just one for a revised plan that the company felt justified in putting forward as a more attractive proposition to the existing plan albeit this kept the roof height of plots 1 & 2 as they had been built. No copies of the pictorial representation of the schemes have been made available to publish here but a detailed list of the intentions is available here. After a meeting the following day the parish council decided to carry out a doorstep poll of residents the result of this is not known at the time of writing.
More on Collins Green here >

September 2009
Conyfield Wood
The Parish Council have received a letter stating that Conyfield Woods had been withdrawn from sale. The Parish Council’s offer letter resulting from public meetings was discussed at the parish council meeting and it was resolved to take no further action at this time but the Chairman was asked to contact the agents and ask for Council to be kept up to date.

Maypole/ New Road junction.

Following the meeting held to discuss the options for the junction the controlling engineer received the results of the safety audit for the mini roundabouts. The advice was against the option being considered. Another design therefore needs to be formulated to produce a viable scheme. It is thought that this will mean leaving Messing Road central island in place and slightly modifying Oak Road junction. The proposal will still remove the Oak Road island and try to separate the junctions slightly.

July 2009
Farm Watch
A new Farm Watch has been set up for the Messing area, if you see anything suspicious it would be helpful if you could report it to Jonathan Brown who can then feed the information 'into the system', Jonathan's number is 01206 - 331 238. Mobile 07850 038252.  Obviously if you witness a crime taking place (including fly-tipping and Hare coursing) telephone the police directly. Read more here.

Collins Green:

The Developer has been given 14 days to agree to carry out the works required by the Planning Committee.  This 'agreement period' expires on 28th July.  If he does not agree, then an enforcement notice will be drawn up by CBC legal department, this typically takes around 2 weeks.

 

The developer then has 28 days to lodge an appeal against the enforcement notice (the compliance period will be set within the enforcement notice).  Any appeal is likely to be an informal hearing or enquiry.  Both Cllr. Andrew Ellis and Cllr. Kevin Bentley have offered to attend and speak to the planning inspector if the need arises.

 

Cllr. Andrew Ellis will keep residents up to date with developments (via the Parish Council and this website), as and when they occur.

Our Community Spirit
In the light of Messing's recent awards particular thanks must go to David Smith, Keith Gooday and their rota volunteers and all those residents who give of their time to making and keeping our village and its environment such a pleasant place to live in. In addition we should also be appreciative of those who are giving their time to care for the elderly in the village. After the "Lend a Hand" appeal recently this must include all those new volunteers who gave their names to Robin and Elizabeth Hill-Sanders, for the rota that they organise, some of whom have been going beyond and above the call of duty in the concern and care they are showing to those who need a little help and company in their declining years. As well as many others who contribute behind the scenes are we not fortunate also to have such a community minded landlord and landlady in the Old Crown?

Strawberry Fayre
It was encouraging to see what appeared to be a greater number of children, residents and friends attending the Strawberry Fayre this year despite the vagaries of the English summer weather. There appeared to be considerable consumption of items that would have done nothing for ones waistband, but which of course was all in a good cause. Our thanks must go to all the organisers who contributed in many ways to a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon and to all those whose purses and wallets went away a little lighter to the tune of £405 by the end of the event.

Conyfield and Pods Woods are up for sale.
Parish chairman Jon Longman wrote in an e-news letter "You may have seen, read or heard that Conyfield and Pods Woods are up for sale. There is a groundswell of opinion among villagers and friends that we should group together as a community to buy the woodland on the Messing side of the B1022".
A good number of residents interested in the suggestion attended a Village Hall meeting to see if a way of achieving this goal could be found. Many others Jon said at the meeting, had sent their apologies that they were not able to attend but were interested. The various implications and costs of acquiring this property as a community asset were discussed at length. Concern was expressed that the freehold might fall into the wrong hands and that it should be protected as an amenity to enjoy. Lack of knowledge on the details of the lease held by the Forestry Commission hampered decisions, but it was generally felt by all who attended that the idea should be pursued. David Hooker agreed to enquire about the conditions of the lease and was thanked not only for agreeing to do this but also his contributions to the outcome of the planning committee meeting on Collins Green. It was also felt that both Cllrs. Ellis and Bentley should be formally thanked for all the background work that they had done on this matter.
It was encouraging to see a younger member of the community attending the meeting and expressing his feelings about the future of the woods which bodes well for the proposal for the establishment of a Youth Council within the village.
At the parish council meeting on Tuesday 21^st July 2009 at (7.45pm) the sale of the woods will be first on the agenda for discussion based on the feedback from the meeting and further information regarding the lease that is being sought. Residents are urged to come to the meeting to give their views.

Successful night for Messing at the Best Kept Village awards.
At the Rural Community Council of Essex AGM meeting attended by Cllrs. Jon Longman and Carole Baxter together with Jon's wife Helen, it was announced that Messing had retained the best kept small village in its class title, winning top prize of £150. Also as Messing-cum-Inworth, the village were announced as joint winners of the green village title (top three – Messing, Great Bentley and Little Baddow - were all highly commended).

Messing - Collins Green
Eighteen residents attended the planning committee meeting held at Colchester Town hall on 9 July to listen to the report from the planning officers on recommendations for an enforcement notice to be served on the developer with regard to unauthorised material changes made to the external appearance and scale of the buildings. David Hooker spoke on behalf of residents as did Borough Councillor Kevin Bentley.
Borough Cllr. Andrew Ellis (who now sits on the Planning Committee) was told at the last minute that he had a prejudicial interest in the enforcement notice, as he had spoken strongly against the planning application and was therefore deemed to have prejudged the outcome of the enforcement. Unfortunately he therefore had to leave the room whilst the enforcement notice was discussed. The committee were unanimous in authorising the issuance and service of an enforcement order requiring the following;

a.   the removal (by cutting out) of the currently unauthorised brick on edge lintel detailing to all windows on the front elevations and

b.   the insertion of new decorative stone (or reconstituted stone if appropriate in appearance) lintels of a type to be agreed in writing and in advance with the local planning authority and

c.   the removal of unauthorised plastic cills and the cutting in of decorative stone (or reconstituted
stone if appropriate in appearance) cills of a type to be agreed in writing and in advance with the
local planning authority and

d.   The addition of quoin detailing on the front elevations as shown on the approved drawings. (The use of stone slips of a type to be agreed in writing and in advance with the local planning authority is likely to be acceptable subject to appearance and convincing profile) and

e.   The removal of the unauthorised plastic pedimented door hoods and replacement with simple timber lead covered flat hoods with timber pilasters of a type and appearance to be agreed in writing and in advance with the local planning authority and

 

f.   The installation of swept metal railing detail to the front door of plots 1 & 2. This detailing to be of a type and appearance to be agreed in writing and in advance with the local planning authority and

g.   The addition of decorative cornice detailing below eaves on the front elevations to plots 1 & 2 of a type and appearance to be agreed in writing and in advance with the local planning authority and

h.  The proper making good of any brickwork damaged by the removal of
unauthorised elements.

 

It was felt by the members of the committee that the "tarting up" of the buildings was not a satisfactory solution but the complete demolition of the buildings, although perhaps desirable was not considered to be fair, however the following was also agreed;

Removal of the entire roof of plots 1 & 2 and the removal of some 800mm of brickwork below the current eaves level. The subsequent replacement of the roof. This will also have a significant impact on the building's rear elevation where the two storey extension has also been built too high. It will also mean the loss of the rooms in the roof.

Enquiries have been made to Borough Councillor Ellis as to what period is likely to pass before the enforcement notice is served and what period of time the developer will be given to implement the requirements.

Neither the developer nor any representative for them attended the meeting so it remains to be seen if they will appeal the decision.

June 2009

Inworth Village Sign.
A new supplier has been engaged by the Parish Council to complete this work. Another coloured interpretation by the new supplier from the original design has been supplied and a mould for the castings is being constructed now. Councillor Bentley at a recent Parish Council meeting presented the metal base for the sign that the late Peter Crowe had had made. He commented on how keen Peter had always been to have a sign erected as as far as was known Inworth is the only village in the Borough and maybe in the County that does not have a village sign. The Prince of Wales has reopened again and presumably the Parish Council will be speaking to the new occupants to confirm the signs location.

Highway Junction Improvement
It was noted in a June issue of The Tribune that under news from Tiptree Parish Council that Essex County Council highways has advised them that funding is now available to allow improvements at the Maypole Road/Colchester Road/Messing Road/Oak Road junction to be implemented during the current financial year.
What a pity after all the work that has been done by our Parish Council in the past on the concerns that our residents have over this awkward junction, that apparently our Parish Council seems not to have been advised of this worthwhile safety improvement.

 

May 2009

Messing - Collins Green
With apologies to any Messing resident who had set aside time to come to the CBC Planning Committee meeting on the 21^st May.  The Collins Green Enforcement report has been postponed once again, due to the necessity for a further meeting between planning officers and the developer. 

Messing Primary School Shop

Please consider using http://www.buy.at/messing when shopping online as all purchases generate a donation for our school. Purchase CDs, DVDs, books, insurance and much more. Also available are flights, short breaks, presents, toys and gifts. The school will receive up to 12% of what you spend.
Lots of large, brand name shops are included in the website so please take a look at http://www.buy.at/messing, as every purchase counts.

New School web site

A new web site has been created for Messing cum Inworth Community Primary School. There is now much more information for both parents and pupils alike ranging from information and links on how to apply for admission to the school, to help for pupils taking next weeks SATs exams. The current menu for school meals is there as well as diary dates and newsletters.
This terms curriculum, picture galleries of recent events, pages for the school council and the Friends of the school are also included. Why not take a look where even you might learn about the Great Fire of London or other subjects in the pupils' zone study area.

A Walk on the Wild Side

Well over forty people together with dogs and children assembled at the Old Crown on Mayday Bank holiday morning to take part in a walk along local footpaths organised by the Parish Council. Karen and Mark took orders for meals to return to before the party set off on a walk measuring over six miles that took us along the old Birch airfield runways to the B1022 Colchester Road. A short walk along this road was taken before entering
Layer Wood to emerge south of Haynes Green.
A breezy traverse with rain threatening across some open farmland then brought us out to the ancient earthworks called The Ramparts. Following around
the Kelvedon Angling Club fishing lakes eventually saw us back at the B1022 again after walking through Pods Wood.
After crossing over the road back onto the public footpath, an amble down the side of Coney Field Wood brought the walkers back to New Road where an option was given to return to Messing or carry on for another three miles. Those carrying on were lead up Oak Road to a footpath that one could take down into Inworth but a path was taken instead that lead out to Parsonage Farm and the Kelvedon Road and back to Messing and the Old Crown.
Tables had been reserved for the walkers who were promptly served with the great food that you can expect to receive at the Old Crown these days and a good trade was being done over the bar. The small amount of drizzle that was experienced at Parsonage Farm did not dampen any spirits and the walk was universally accepted as being a great success with talk of organising another in the autumn over different paths

April 2009

Important consultations

Colchester Borough Council has prepared two consultation documents to supplement policies in the adopted Core Strategy. The two documents we are seeking your views on are;

 

1. Backland and Infill Development - The purpose of this draft Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) is to provide guidance to members of the public and developers of the Borough Council’s approach to backland and infill development.
2. Provision of Community Facilities - The purpose of this Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) is to: highlight the importance of community facilities to the well-being of residents and as a mechanism for building community cohesion; ensure adequate provision of community facilities to satisfy the needs of local communities and the borough as a whole; inform developers and other interested parties about what the Council will expect regarding contributions to community facilities within the Borough of Colchester.

 In accordance with the requirements of Planning Policy Statement 1 ‘Delivering Sustainable Development’ and the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, a Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report has been prepared for each SPD and was sent to statutory consultees and selected interested parties in February 2009.  The results of that consultation have informed the production of the Sustainability Appraisals which accompanies these documents.

 

Both documents are now the subject of public consultation and any comments made will be reported to the Council before the document is formally adopted as a Supplementary Planning Document within the Borough Council’s Local Development Framework (LDF).

 

This draft SPD’s do not contain any new policies but expand upon and provide guidance on existing policies in the Adopted Review Colchester Borough Local Plan, the Core Strategy and in time new policies in the emerging Development Policies Document.  Once adopted the documents will be a material consideration in the planning process to which considerable weight will be attached.

 

The consultation period starts on 1^st May and lasts for 4 weeks, until 29^th May 2009.

 

The document and the Sustainability Appraisal are available on the Councils website (www.colchester.gov.uk/ldf) and at the Council Offices in Angel Court and in local libraries.

 

Representations can be made by email to planning.policy@colchester.gov.uk or by post to the following address;

 

Planning Policy

Colchester Borough Council

FREEPOST NAT4433

PO Box 885

Colchester

CO1 1ZE

More on Collins Green

March 2009

Youth Parish or Town Councils.

A recent search on Google for Youth Parish Councils revealed a total of 420, 000 results of a similar nature in the UK. There were just in Essex nearly 40,000 results. Our Parish Council is now as a result of the Parish Plan looking for 10-18 year olds who have the enthusiasm, time and interest to form a Youth Parish Council. The matter will be debated at the April 21st PC meeting and at the annual parish meeting in May, that parents and youngsters are welcome to come along (noting the new meeting start time of 7.45pm) and anyone interested in further info should contact Jon Longman on 01621 819443.

So what is a Youth Parish or Town Council and why should we need one?

A Youth Parish or Town Council is a locally based group of young people who meet regularly as a mirror image of their Parish or Town Council. They discuss ideas and utilise any budget allocated to them within a specific area of responsibility of their Parish Council. In addition, they can identify the needs of local young people and can act as a voice for them. Youth Parish and Town Councils are not a new idea but they do provide an excellent and effective way of contacting local young people.

What is the purpose of a Youth Parish or Town Council?

Youth Parish and Town Councils can ensure that the voice of local young people is heard when community matters are being considered. Youth Parish and Town Councils can provide the mechanisms for bringing issues which are of concern to local young people to the attention of the local decision makers, perhaps through organising debates and seminars. The needs and wishes of the local young people might also be established by means of a questionnaire which would be more effective when formulated and collated by the young people themselves. Through sending representatives of the Youth Parish or Town Council to meetings of their Parish or Town Council, young people can become more aware of the wider issues affecting the whole of their community.

How are they organised

Like their parent Parish or Town Council, youth parish or town councillors should be nominated and elected (by the local young people); the elected members of the Council then choose their own chairman. A schedule of meetings should be established and, as in the parent Parish or Town Council, committees or working groups should be set up to tackle specific issues. Agendas should be issued before meetings and minutes taken. Minutes should subsequently be circulated.

So why do they need to be organised so formally?
First, having to go through a formal nomination and election process helps young people understand the electoral system and provides a practical link with citizenship programmes in schools and colleges. Being an active member of a Youth Parish or Town Council is useful preparation for a future role as an active good citizen.
Secondly, the formal structure of a Youth Parish or Town Council shows how it is necessary to prepare a convincing case and to put forward reasoned arguments for a proposal to be adopted. The traditional, formalised committee structure ensures that meetings reach some positive and constructive conclusions and that everyone is given the opportunity to put their case.

What do they need to be effective?
Most importantly, a Youth Parish or Town Council needs the active support of its parent Parish or Town Council including, ideally, the commitment to give them responsibility for a budget. They also need:

• A high profile within their local community.
• An appropriate structure.
• Access to premises, money and resources.

To have their enthusiasm utilised.

 

More on this subject:
What is Colchester Youth Council?
The Young Essex Assembly
UK Youth Parliament

Best Kept Village Award
Thanks to David Smith, Paul Marvin and William for planting the silver birch on the green. The tree was bought with the prize money from the 2008 RCCE Best Kept Small Village and Best Small Green Village awards.

Collins Green Hearing
The planning officers have recommended refusal of the developer's retrospective planning application and the matter will be discussed by Colchester Borough Council's planning committee in the Town Hall next Thursday April 2nd at 6pm. So thanks to more than 30 people who came to the parish
council planning meeting and more than 40 people who submitted written objections. I hope a good few villagers will make their presence felt in the public gallery. David Hooker will speak on behalf of the parish council in a three-minute slot for public objection before our borough councillors, Kevin Bentley and Andrew Ellis, address planning committee members later.

Collins Green again
For Messing there was a remarkable turnout for the planning meeting that was held in the evening of Tuesday 3rd March. Borough Councillors Kevin Bentley, Councillor Andrew Ellis and 30 members of the public and all the parish councillors bar two were in attendance to listen to the disquiet that residents have over the buildings erected so far on the Collins Green site. Many of the comments made had been expressed in the article for February below. All those attending indicated that they were not in favour of the retrospective planning application that has been put in by the builder Leelamb Homes. Councillor Ellis said that he would call in the application if the Parish Council wished him to do so. The Parish Council agreed to this and this will allow both Councillor Ellis and Councillor Bentley to speak at the Colchester Borough Council Planning meeting on the matter. One member of the public would also be allowed to speak at the meeting for three minutes. The date of the meeting will be announced later when it is known.
After the public had had an opportunity to express their opinions it was resolved that the Parish Council should object to this application on the grounds that it did not comply with the original planning permission, and many other features on this site did not comply either.
You can read the proposed minutes of the meeting here.
If you have not made your submission to date and wish to do so click here. The final date set to recive your comments is March 13th.

Village Design Statements.
At this time when the subject of what has been built on Collins Green to date is in so many residents minds, why is it that as a Parish we have not submitted a Village Design Statement?
A Village Design Statement could be adopted as a Supplementary Planning Document.
Local communities have a unique appreciation and understanding of their own place and a VDS is based on this knowledge.  Residents can feel that they have no say over what development takes place in their community, but Village Design Statements offer a constructive solution to this dilemma. By describing the qualities and characteristics that people value in their villages and surroundings, local communities can have an input into the planning process. VDS’s which have been produced taking into account the views of a large number of people and which contain relevant planning information can be used as a material planning consideration in determining planning applications.
Because much of the work has already been done in the Parish Plan that has been produced, it is not felt that it would be such an onerous task. Help and guidance is available not only from the Rural Community Council of Essex but also from, believe it or not, the Planning Officers who you should also liase with.
For more information contact your local Field Officer at the RCCE at fieldteam@essexrcc.org.uk
or request an information pack.

Street cleaning in Messing Village - or the lack of it.
A lack of regular street cleaning was raised at the Parish Council meeting in January. This was taken up by Borough Councillor Ellis with the Street Care and Recycling Officer of Colchester Borough Council.  Whist apologising that members of the public found it necessary to complain regarding the level of service they had received, the officer's response was that "all litter and dog bins are emptied on a weekly basis, and areas are litter-picked fortnightly.  Mechanical sweeping takes place every 8 weeks. The next dates will be 13 April, 8 June, 3 August and 28 September. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the mechanical sweeping schedule is maintained, operational factors and weather conditions may result in slight delays to these dates".
At the following Parish Council meeting when this response was reported the statement that areas are litter picked fortnightly and mechanical sweeping took place every eight weeks was meet with some scorn amongst those attending.

Has anybody ever seen a Borough Council employee litter picking in the village let alone the parish? Fortunately we have a few residents, who on their walks around the area are community minded enough to pick up some of the litter that is mindlessly dropped. Have they been masquerading as Borough employees?
One of the recommendations to the Parish Council in the Parish Plan was to evaluate what support there would be for an adopt a road scheme for litter picking. Unfortunately this has never got past just being mentioned at a Parish Council meeting. If you wish to help once in a while when you are out for a stroll, litter pick sticks are available from Geoff Jackson on 815742.

As to mechanical sweeping taking place every 8 weeks, this was also brought into question as Parish Clerks past and present have had to make requests for sweeping to take place when none has appeared to have been done. Keep a look out around the next date, April 13th,  to see if you can spot a mechanical sweeper in the village. We need to retain last years best in class winner of 'best kept village'

Daffodils & Bluebells
The efforts of residents to make the village attractive are being thwarted by someone who selfishly wishes to deny the pleasure to all of us of the sight of daffodils around The Green. Now that the Bluebells in our local woods are just beginning to push through the undergrowth it is worth reminding folk that it is certainly illegal for anyone, without the permission of the owner or occupier of the land, to intentionally uproot or destroy any wild plant (Wildlife & Countryside Act). In addition to this general restriction, there are some rare or vulnerable plants that are specially protected by law and the picking, removal or sale of any part of these plants is unlawful.

Picking bluebells or daffodils, along with most other wild flowers, fruit and foliage, is not generally an offence, although there might be associated access and ownership issues relating to where the plants are growing (Theft Act).

Dumping hazardous waste, polluting protected areas and collecting wild flowers would all be punishable by jail and hefty fines under new plans for EU-wide 'green crimes'.

The nine offences detailed in the directive include the 'taking or damaging' of wild flowers, and damage to protected habitats.

                                                 
Of course, the individual seen carrying that bunch of daffodils or bluebells could have obtained them quite legitimately with the permission of the landowner, from cultivated plants grown commercially or maybe from a domestic garden. On the other hand, these flowers are best seen in the wild where they should be allowed to follow their natural life cycle. Their rich scent might enhance the temptation to pick the flowers, but they won't last anything like as long in a vase, quickly wilting and dying, although it's interesting to note that picking the flowers is not as damaging to the plant as treading down the leaves.

The UK is home to about half the world’s population of the Bluebell, with Scotland being its most northerly habitat. Over recent years however, the British Bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta), sometimes known as the Wild Hyacinth in Scotland, has declined severely and is now an endangered species. Sadly, like many other wild plants, our native bluebell is now under threat, partly because of competition and hybridisation with the Spanish bluebell, a non-native species that is frequently grown in gardens, and from the effects of habitat loss and the uncertainties of climate change.

Spanish Bluebells (Hyacinthoides hispanica) are similar in height to the British Bluebell, though much more erect, rarely drooping, with flowers which are less fragrant and range in colour from dark blue through to pink or white. The flowers can be on any side of the stem and their lobes flick out as opposed to curling back, and they have much broader leaves than the native variety. Spanish Bluebells can tolerate sunnier conditions and are often found outside woodlands, in gardens and along coastlines.

The Hybrid Bluebell (Hyacinthoides hispanica x non-scripta) is more difficult to identify, especially in the early part of the season. They are more erect than the British Bluebell, and their flowers can range in colour. Indigenous to Britain, they can still cross-breed with the native Bluebell to dilute the genetic strain.

Most of our wild plants that have become extinct have apparently been lost in the last fifty years as a result of changes in land use, the development of waste ground, more extensive management of roadside verges and other green areas and, significantly, the loss of hedgerows and woodland - even
through changes in the way we manage our own gardens.

The ideal way to protect them is to conserve the conditions where they grow naturally. So, if you want to identify a wild flower, please make a sketch, take notes or take a photo - never take the plant!

February 2009

Collins Green
Many residents in the village consider the Collins Green development to be an eyesore. It is felt that the builders have failed to comply with the planning approval which was meant to ensure that the houses were to be as sympathetic as possible to their environment and the character of the village.

 

It has been pointed out, that the developers have built the houses with approximately two and a half feet of extra brickwork, (10 brick courses), to the front elevation and with it, it is suspected, an attendant increase in height of the ridge line. It is important to note that at an appeal by a previous prospective developer, particular attention was paid to the ridge line aspect by the planning inspector in her refusal to uphold that appeal. The bland frontage to the buildings erected to date has been exaggerated it’s been noted, by the fact that the original drawings also show plain lintels over all the windows, contrasting corbelled brickwork at the flank ends and flat roof and portico style front porches whereas the original drawings indicate flat roofed portico style entrance doorways. Were the original plans adhered to it might perhaps have broken up the barrack like frontage that now confronts you.

 

The Planning Department should monitor these things, but as with everything they appear to have too much to do and too little time even though applications must have fallen, and seem to rely on local objections if something goes wrong. Planning officers have however visited the site and concluded that the height of the buildings is an issue and the developer has now submitted an application for a retrospective change to the front elevation of plots 1 & 2 for what they describe as minor detailing!
To many in the village this description is an understatement. It’s also reported however that the other aspects of what look like non-compliance are not of such concern to the planners and the builder has as far as is known not been asked to rectify these other points.

 

This is where you may have the opportunity to express your opinion and where in the past the planners have sat up and taken notice. If enough objections are received it will go before the planning committee and not be decided by an individual officer. Remember if you do not take the trouble to have your say then it is of little use complaining about it. This type of flouting of planning consent should not be permitted or go unnoticed and it is incumbent upon all who are concerned about it to make their objections known. It is also worth noting that had a village design statement been in place then we probably would not be faced with this situation.

 

If you are concerned about the look of these buildings, and many are, you should contact the planning department and object to not only the grant of consent for the extra height of these buildings but also to the fact that the other detailing which affects the look of them to such an extent has not been carried out. It is important to remember that more weight will be given to comments which relate to the planning issues of the case.

 

Here are the details you need to contact the planning department about this application:

Address: Planning, Protection and Licensing, P.O. Box 889, Town Hall, Colchester CO1 1FL.

 

Case Officer: Nick McKeever

 

Application No: 090211

 

Date registered: 16 Feb 2009

 

Location: Collins Green, School Road, Messing, Colchester, CO5 9TH

 

Comments should be made by the 13th March.

  

The following is an extract from the planning site:

If you wish to make comments on an application, you can do so by one of three methods:

• by contacting our planning department electronically using the following link: Contact Planning
• or by linking to the on-line planning system by clicking on the Colchester Planning On-line link
• or in writing to the address detailed in Contacts above, quoting the application number and description of the proposal. Comments should be made within 21 days of the date the application was registered. Please note that we are required to make all correspondence available for public inspection.

More weight will be given to comments which relate to the planning issues of the case.  We would also strongly recommend that the plans are viewed prior to making any comments. It is now possible to view these on the website (Colchester Planning On-line) and they are normally available within 2 working days of their submission.  However, you may also see the application any time between 9am - 5pm weekdays at Angel Court, High Street, Colchester.
Given the number of representations received it is not normally possible to enter into correspondence on any individual proposal, although you can telephone, e-mail or write to us if you require further advice.

Village Hall
Work has been completed on completely rewiring the village hall as part of the on going refurbishment program. This has been carried out with the assistance of a small works grant from Colchester Borough Council.
An asbestos survey was undertaken which revealed that the roof was not constructed of asbestos but cement sheeting. Some low grade instances of asbestos were found around the enclosure of the boiler and these have been removed and a warning notice placed in the vicinity of another very low grade occurrence.
Provisional ideas for the refurbishment of the hall have been put to the district planning officer who is to relay the ideas to the conservation planning officer since it is a grade 2 listed building in a conservation area.
A project development study has been carried out by The Clean Energy Consultancy which has helped the village hall committee to consider the reduction of environmental impacts and associated costs, and comply with existing and proposed legislation. The cost was almost fully funded by the Building Research Establishment which administers Lottery funding for this purpose.
A grant of £10,000 has been awarded towards the refurbishment cost from the Community Initiatives Fund administered by Essex County Council and Colchester Borough Council.
Village Hall Committee members wish to thankfully acknowledge the long-standing input to the functionality of the running of the hall over the last three decades by Carol and John Dey, who have recently resigned as members of the committee. It is well recognised by residents and users that Carol and John have been stoic in their commitment to the day to day operation of the hall and we all wish Carol and John the very best in the future.
Terry Boyden has agreed to join the committee as treasurer and Helen Longman is now the booking clerk with Janice Tong taking over the role of secretary.
Lesley Heywood has been diligently sorting out and bringing up to date compliance documents for the hall which either did not exists or no longer comply with existing legislation.

Proposed Messing Independence Day
The steering committee for this event has decided to postpone the event until July 10th 2010.

Changes on the Parish Council.
Gael Vigrass one of the two Inworth members has resigned. The Parish Council are now looking for a replacement from Inworth.
Carole Baxter has taken on the responsibility of Tree Officer and is liaising with Andrew Ellis the new Borough Councllor about the trees on the Tree Preservation Order list that has been obtained from Colchester Borough Council.
Whilst talking on arboricultural matters those of us that have the time to go for a walk in the woods have noticed that it looks like the Forestry Commission are about to undertake another felling of the conifers. Simon Leatherdale told us on a walk that he conducted some time ago that it was his aim to fell these trees in the hope that they could either replace them or that it would allow the natural species for the area to come through. Marks have been placed on a considerable number of trees all over both woods and judging by the result of the last felling exercise those with green marks on will be felled and those with a red mark will be kept. Lets hope that it is not done during Bluebell time.
Its really good to see that local farmer Andrew Smith has planted a new hedge consisting of 5000 bushes on the part of his farm that was the old airfield.
Jon Longman has taken on the added responsibility of Parish Paths Officer and is attempting to have all the paths in the parish properly marked.

Flora London Marathon 2009
Chris Garland has entered for the London Marathon again which takes place on Sunday April 26, 2009. He reports that "training for the Marathon is going well - I ran 14 miles on Feb 14 and will increase my Saturday runs by about two miles a week till I reach 21 miles which is optimum during training".
You may sponsor Chris online through Justgiving which is quick, easy and totally secure. It’s also the most efficient way to sponsor him: St Helena Hospice gets your money faster and, if you’re a UK taxpayer, Justgiving makes sure 25% in Gift Aid, plus a 3% supplement, are added to your donation.

So please sponsor him here now!

About his charity : St Helena Hospice
The St Helena Hospice is a very good cause. It provides specialist palliative care services, with no charge to patients and their families, for people living in North Essex who have progressive, life threatening illness. The emphasis is about quality of life and services include community and day services, the in-patient unit, Macmillan nurses, medical services, family support, art therapy, spiritual support, physiotherapy and occupational therapy as well as complementary therapies such as acupuncture.

St Helena Hospice is a registered charity Registration No 280919 http://www.sthelenahospice.org.uk/default.htm

January 2009

Roger Carter

MESSING has lost its best-loved character of recent times with the death of Roger Carter.

The flag on Messing Parish Church flew at half-mast in a tribute to a village stalwart, who died in Colchester General Hospital on January 8.

Roger had suffered a broken hip in a fall just after Christmas and was on the mend after an operation when he was struck down by an infection.

Prayers were said for Roger and his family at the Sunday morning service that followed his death.

Roger had been a senior executive of the Post Office during his hey day, and was even tipped for the top job after occupying a number of senior positions across the United Kingdom.

All who met him were impressed by his intelligence and he will be remembered locally for being a cornerstone of village life.

A former chairman of Messing cum Inworth Parish Council, he negotiated the purchase of the new village green for the princely sum of £1.

Roger had a major impact on village life as he galvanized the village to raise considerable sums for the repair of Messing Parish Church’s historic East Window during the 1997 Messing Independence Day celebrations.

He was a staunch supporter of good community initiatives and was always willing to pick up the phone to make his point and be a rallying point for a good cause.

Roger championed the efforts of Vicar Chris Garland in running London Marathons and drummed up considerable financial backing for the charities that Chris was supporting.

Roger had already made his mark on the village scene in 1996 by writing a history of the village entitled ‘Simply Messing’. He was not backward in coming forward in ensuring that every newcomer to the village bought a copy of the slim hardback volume.

Its publication was timely as the descendants of the Bush family from Messing were presidents of the United States and his favourite hostelry, the Old Crown, has many mementoes of those years lining its walls.

Roger wrote to the White House on a number of occasions, hoping to persuade one of the presidents to make a diversion to their ancestral home after the customary calls to 10 Downing Street and Buckingham Palace.

Though the invitations were politely declined, they must have been taking seriously on one occasion in the 1990s as stretched limousines and a secret agent or two were noted in the vicinity of Messing, which would have proved to be a security nightmare.

Roger made numerous appearances on radio thanks to the Bush connection with Messing and the publicity has brought a steady stream of Americans to the village to see where their ancestors came from.

On a more parochial note, Roger served as a parish councillor for many years, was treasurer of the village hall committee and contributed a witty column to the Tribune for a time.

His astute and often humourous observations on life from his chair in the Old Crown or at the meeting table will be missed by all who knew him.

Messing’s very own Magna Carter

MESSING church was filled with occasional smiles, the music of Bob Dylan’s ‘Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right’ and U2’s ‘With or Without You’.

It was a memorable send-off for Messing’s very own Roger Carter — a funeral billed as ‘A Service of Thanksgiving’ for a memorable life that was followed by an afternoon and evening of shared memories in his second home, the Old Crown.

The tone of the farewell was set with a smile-generating service sheet that bore a cartoon on the cover of Roger wearing a crown with a ‘Magna Carter’ caption.

There was a touch of Private Eye about the content, harking back to a time when Roger produced an irreverent news sheet for the village and all the characters had memorable nicknames

Roger’s version of ‘This Is Your Life’ was then taken up by lifelong friend Ian Plenderleith, who charted Roger’s exploits from their Oxford days and three students in a bright red Triumph Herald, through his rapid climb as a senior executive with the Post Office on to his life and times in Messing.

Ian told of Roger’s genius of talking his way into parties, his infamy as a hockey player and his management of the Christ Church College theatre group’s European tour.

On the back of an impressive academic record, Roger seemed destined for a promising career in the home civil service, but the Whitehall mandarins saw a free thinker coming their way and deflected him into the world of business where he shone until taking early retirement.

Best friend Geoff Tyler took up the story and told of Roger’s 30-year love affair with Messing — “There was nowhere else he wanted to be.”

Geoff recalled how Roger ensured how everyone in the village had a job for the 1997 Independence Day celebrations and his persuasive powers of gaining sponsorship for villagers’ charitable efforts

His passion for all-things Messing reached a peak in the 1990s as Geoff recalled how he used his friendship with several MPs to block an Essex County Council plan — parish council records will reveal a travellers’ site was looming ever larger.

It was fitting that the vicar, the Revd Dr Chris Garland, brought a copy of Roger’s ‘Simply Messing’ — a history of the village — to the service.

And how Roger would have enjoyed taking part in the next Friends of Messing Church event ‘Vicar On The Spot’ in Messing Village Hall on Friday, February 6 (8pm) for what promises to be a lively debate. So bring your questions, a bottle and glasses!

As the villagers shared in raising an Old Crown glass to Roger, a number of epitaphs were carried away on the four winds, but an enduring thought will be: “The rainbow that spans Messing has lost a colour – and we are missing a true friend.”

From Messing Notes by Jon Longman

Chairman Messing cum Inworth Parish Council

 

December 2008
Read what was said about the village when the Essex Chronicle made it Village of the Week.  

August 2008

Curry Club Evening
The Curry Club evening was well attended at The Old Crown which Mark and Karen once again generously hosted to good effect. There were hardly any left overs which resulted in £232.34 being generated from curry sales, and the raffle. A special entertainer in the guise of a snake charmer also entertained throughout the evening and very generously also donated his takings towards the church roof fund. The snake charmers Dad told us that this was completely his own idea to dress up and sourced all his own props. Well done Oliver.

 

Sponsored Pennine Way walk
Regrettably after well over 200 miles had been covered Chris Garlands walking companion Martin began to suffer from what sounded like a shin splint and was unable to walk any further in his boots.
It was therefore disappointingly decided to abandon the walk and return home to rest and recover.

January 2008

Chris & Nancy Garland caught in killer cyclone
A CYCLONE that killed 260 Papua New Guineans was witnessed by vicar Chris Garland and his wife Nancy.
Now Chris and Nancy are raising funds to aid the stricken province of Oro where Chris was spending his three-month sabbatical.
Chris says: “Four days of almost non-stop heavy rain led to the destruction of every bridge in the province, making every road impassable and cutting off the Newton Theological College where we were staying from the town on one side and the airfield on the other.
“Over 260 people lost their lives and 80 per cent of the food gardens on which the people depend were destroyed, as were several villages. 
“It is a symbol of the resilience of the people that at one bridge, left suspended 20 feet above the river bed, they made a ladder out of rainforest saplings and lashed by tough grass which, with a log to walk along next, became the main route into town.
“It showed the readiness of the people to lift themselves out of hardship by their local resources.  
“At the next broken bridge, there was a dead python at the bottom of the bank so the journey to town became a game of snakes and ladders.”
The Garlands’ visit to Papua New Guinea, a tropical island, larger than the British Isles, just North of Australia, ended a week after the cyclone and a day after the College end-of-year graduation as they were told, in default of any other means of transport, to accept spare places in the return journey to base of a helicopter hired by the Church to bring in relief supplies.  Chris adds: “There are great needs for relief supplies in the Oro Province, not only for rice, until the subsistence gardens can yield crops again but also for basic implements to make fresh gardens and rebuild villages”
Chris and Nacy had served the Anglican Church there before coming to the Diocese of Chelmsford. 
Chris had lectured in the Anglican Theological College there, and Nancy had co-ordinated Anglican health work in the country. Last year they were invited by the Archbishop of Papua New Guinea and the Bishop of Popondota to give some input into the teaching at Newton Theological College and to organise and lead in-service courses for long-serving clergy. 
Chris worked with the local members of staff at the college to set up in-service courses. He also demonstrated Godly Play in the College and at a primary school. 
As well as carrying out their teaching commitments, at a college set in a clearing in the rain forest with only four hours of generator electricity a day, they renewed friendships in surrounding villages. 
* Donations should be made payable to 'Papua New Guinea Church Partnership' (Cyclone Appeal) and sent to Chris Luxton, St Mary Abbots Centre, Vicarage Gate, London W8 4HN.
*Chris aided by Nancy will be recounting their tale at a Friends of Messing Church evening in Messing Village Hall on Friday, February 22 (8pm). All welcome.

We are indebted to Jon Longman for this report.

Free Trees
An initiative is being launched again this year by the Leader of Colchester Borough Council where the public can obtain free trees for planting on private property. Arrangements have been put in place to enable the public to collect the trees over the weekend of 19/20 February at the Rowan House car park in Sheepen Road, Colchester from 10am till 2pm on both the Saturday and Sunday.
The public will be able to select from the following native species;
Acer campestre - Field maple
Betula pendula - Silver Birch
Prunus padus – Bird Cherry
Cornus alba Sibirica – Dogwood
Eleagnus augustifolia – Quicksilver
Buxus sempervirens – Box
Viburnum opulus – Guelder Rose
If you wish to order trees please fill in the order form you can download here and follow the instructions to return it to Colchester Borough Council

Inworth Speed Sign
After laying dormant for many months the Speed Indicating sign on the Tiptree side of the entrance to Inworth has finally been connected to the power supply. We hope Inworth residents will notice a difference for all the effort that has gone into persuading the authorities to install the sign.

September 2007
Inworth Flower Festival

Part of Phantom of the Opera

All Saints Inworth Flower Festival took place over the weekend of the 15-16th. A musical theme was evident in the titles and arrangements that were accompanied by accessories that helped identify the originators vision. Many skilled arrangements were on show in this beautiful church that were highlighted by the sun streaming through the windows from a perfect afternoon. When we visited it on Sunday the car park was full. There seemed a brisk trade in tea and cakes and the tombola and raffle sales appeared to be doing well. Chris and Nancy Garland were there saying their goodbyes to Inworth residents prior to leaving for Papua New Guinea for two months. Other images for this story.

Lychgate Ceremony

The Rev. Chris Garland blessing the Lychgate. Other images for this story.

Members of the Friends of Messing Church gathered with residents to hear the Reverend Chris Garland bless the newly renovated Lychgate and fence to the cemetery. The Friends Chairman Jon Longman afterwards handed a cheque to church warden John Dalzell from the appeal fund that had been organised to carry out the work. A brass plaque has been attached to the restored gate posts recognising the generous assistance of all contributors to the fund. The gate which has stood at the site since the 1920's was severely compromised during gales earlier in the year and had gradually been subsiding due to the main posts rotting. The gate and fence were erected in memory of Mr John Osborne who was a prominent member of the community and one who established funds for the upkeep of the church. In 1924 the cost of the burial ground was £133. This left a balance of £89 in a fund appropriated for this purpose out of which the cost of the erection of the Lychgate was met. The restoration of the Lychgate was expertly and sympathetically carried out by Stephen Carpenter. The once beautiful rustic oak gates held with oak pegged mortised joints with curved braces, heavy frame work and iron fittings together with the fencing were completely remade in the same style by Stephen Arrowsmith.

A Walk in the Park

After the blessing and opening of the Lychgate the annual Rhombus Ramble organised by Friends of Messing Church took place in ideal weather. This year the sponsored walk was combined with fun competitions with a distinct orthopedic theme. Participants had to spot images of shoes that had been placed around the course which passed through Messing Park where Mr and Mrs Jenkins kindly hosted refreshments at the house whilst the children hunted peacock feathers in the grounds. Here also another competition was produced to ramblers who were asked to put a name to images of well known inhabitants and visitors pairs of feet. Prizes were won by Suzy and Josh Longman, Christine Gooday and David Smith. The ramble finished at the church where prizes were awarded and those with time and a thirst extended their ramble to the Old Crown for lunch. Other images for this story.

August 2007
New Head Teacher for Messing cum Inworth Primary School
Messing cum Inworth Primary School has a new headteacher with Kirsty Rowsell being appointed following a year of acting in the role.The governors made the appointment after interviewing three candidates for the position, which became available when current headteacher Margaret Thomas was seconded to help train teachers.
Sue Tod, chairman of the school’s governing body, said: “New beginnings in the Autumn Term - or not so new, as we all know Miss Rowsell. “Miss Rowsell has so capably taken on the role of Acting Headteacher and I feel sure we can all look forward with confidence as she starts in her role of leading the school. “As a governing body we welcome her to the role of Headteacher and look forward to working with her in the future.”
Pupils and staff had said a farewell to a popular head on the last day of term. Mrs Thomas, who has been in charge at Messing for eight years, is joining Anglia Ruskin University in a full-time role, taking charge of the training of graduates who will be studying for an extra year to become teachers.
Meanwhile, firefighters from Tiptree Fire Station came to Messing-cum-Inworth school. They showed Class 2 a video about fire safety and talked to them about the importance of making a family Fire Plan with their parents. This meant that in the event of a house fire the children would remain calm and know what to do. After that firefighter Saul Cornwell dressed in his uniform, watched by son William, and answered questions. At the end of a really exciting visit everyone went outside to be shown over the fire engine. Of all the items of equipment on display, the heat-seeking camera proved to be the most fascinating, although the cutting tool was very interesting too. The best bit was kept until last! Teachers as well as children went out on the field to squirt the hoses, and classroom assistant Mrs Milton managed to squirt enough water to put out the candles on her birthday cake!

Tearful Farewell
Pupils, staff and parents said a very tearful farewell to Messing cum Inworth Community Primary School head teacher Margaret Thomas after nine truly successful school years. Mrs Thomas was showered with gifts, which focused on her love of walking, Italy and being pampered, during a rendition of ‘A few of favourite things’ from the Sound of Music. But the tables were turned on her when she was presented with her own record of achievement by her successor, Kirsty Rowsell, the acting head teacher who has taken charge of the school while Mrs Thomas has been a part-time lecturer at Anglia Ruskin University. The book charted the progress the school has made from a struggling village school with 35 pupils to one which has had to turn parents away unless they live in the catchment area. But staff and governors had trawled through their picture files to find all the embarrassing moments which Mrs Thomas had encountered during her nine years in Messing. Earlier, Mrs Thomas had presented records of achievement to all the children leaving at the end of the school year as well as trophies to high-achieving pupils.

Mrs Tod chairman of the school’s governing body, said: “I would like to thank Mrs Thomas for the truly fantastic work she has done in shaping Messing School into the school we see today, which in very many ways bears little resemblance to the school she took on.
“Mrs Thomas has been responsible for physical changes to the school, with building work including the new computer room, the new staff room and office, Frederick's garden, changes to the school entrance, playing a part in the several landscaping and playground projects we have completed this year, decorating the school and introducing Interactive White Boards in all classrooms.”

July 2007
Essex Best Kept Village
Great news! We have won back The Best Kept/Community-orientated Village Award for 2007 given by the Rural Community Council of Essex. The award (a bronze plaque and a certificate) for the class featuring the smallest villages. Also received by Jon Longman on behalf of the village was a cheque for £150 which was presented at the Rural Community Council of Essex AGM at Channels Golf Club. Thanks for making Messing a great place to live because without a lot of hard work by quite a few people, we would not be have been in a position to have a crack at winning it back again!

June 2007
Completion Month
This month has seen the completion of four long term projects in and around the village.
An outstanding job has been done on renovating the Lychgate which now looks almost new. It came to light during the renovation that several short cuts had been taken when it was last renovated and these have now been corrected and the structure is all the stronger for it. It is fortunate that The Friends of Messing Church were able to dig into their war chest in order to pay for the new legs it now stands on and one hundred or so new peg tiles that were needed to complete the re-tiling. There remains the fence and gates to renovate as they look decidedly shabby now that Lychgate has been completed. This unfortunately will not be done until the Autumn.
The installation of a handsome seat, a gift from the Rotary Club of Kelvedon, was also completed in the early part of the month and despite the opening ceremonies not quite going according to plan a ribbon was duly cut by Bob Bowdidge and Colin South from the Rotary Club.
A bus passenger shelter has at last, after much cajoling of county council staff, been installed at the junction of Harborough Hall Road and the B1022 Maldon to Colchester Road. A bus stop sign and time table are also to be added to the shelter soon.
Last but not least printed copies of the parish plan were distributed to every household in the parish. It is understood that the Parish Council will consider the recommendations at their July meeting.

May 2007
Elections
Just two votes have stopped the Conservatives from seizing overall control of Colchester Council. In a night of gains across the country for the Conservatives, they missed out on picking up the single extra seat required to take overall control of Colchester Council for the first time since 1986. It came down to the very last seat to be declared - Wivenhoe Quay - where there had been two recounts. Labour just managed to hold the seat - by two votes - and stopped the Conservatives making the gain which would have given them overall control.

Congratulations are due to Peter Crowe, resident of Inworth, on his re-election with a substantial majority. Jon Longman, resident of Messing, standing as a Liberal Democrat was delighted with his showing in the polls as the Lib-Dem share was up by 1.2% on the last elections in a turnout down 5.1%.

April 2007
Our London Marathon representative
Despite an illness that laid him low and interrupted his training two weeks before the start of the 27th London Marathon the Rev Chris Garland completed the 26.2 mile course in 4 hours 15 minutes and 26 seconds despite the unseasonable hot weather.
Chris pictured left dropped into the Wednesday coffee morning to show his medal and thank many of his sponsors. He said he was not feeling any adverse effects and enjoyed the day and remarked on the tremendous atmosphere produced by the crowd all the way round. If you overlooked sponsoring Chris you can still do so until the 22nd of June by using the link on the left.

Parish Plan open afternoon
The open afternoon for residents of the parish to view the progress and comment on the recommendations to the Parish Council by the Parish Plan Group was well attended and the comments have been reviewed. It is hoped that printed copies of the plan will be distributed to all residents of the parish and statutory bodies in the near future.

Collins Green
For those that were not able to attend the Parish Plan open afternoon which was also used to display the planning proposal for Collins Green you can view a site plan and the developers Design and Access Statement here.

March 2007
B1023 information is posted here

If you go down in the woods today
You will see a remarkable improvement along the borders of a stretch of the B1022 Maldon to Colchester Road after volunteers turned out for the litter pick on Saturday the 23rd. Despite the chilly North East wind several new faces turned out for just an hours work and look how much was collected with just a few volunteers. If you were unable to attend we hope you can spare an hour next time. For those that do it all year round and do not need any prompting a very big thank you from the community for caring for the look of the parish and the environment. For those that did turn out on Saturday a very big thank you.

Gog & Magog
The last of the Friends of Messing Church Winter Talks took place in the village hall on March 23rd.
After a preamble about basket making in general Jan Barker informed the audience of the history of these mythological beings from an early mention of the name Magog in the Bible and the Quran through to the reasons they are a feature in the Guild Hall and why they appear in Lord Mayors show to this day. Telling how she joined with associates who were members of the Worshipful Company of Basketmakers who had undertaken this enormous task for the Lord Mayors show, her talk was illustrated with nearly one hundred and twenty images taken at different periods of the construction. The audiences attention was held by Jan as she recalled the ups and downs of nine months of alternate weekends taken to construct the two fourteen foot high wicker images.

Pointing the way
Finial ly (excuse the pun) the fingerpost outside Messing Primary school was completed on March 15th. Prior to the last pieces being put in place David Gosling from Signpost Restoration Ltd. who carried out the work gave the children from class three an absorbing talk illustrated with slides which provoked many questions from the children during and after the talk. Afterwards the children moved outside into the warm afternoon sunshine to watch David complete with high visibility jacket and safety helmet climb his ladder to put on the newly cast arm and top it out with the freshly painted finial. David had explained during his talk that the half round finial is peculiar to Essex. But that is not all that is peculiar to the Messing post. During the restoration it was found that someone who might have suffered from dyslexia must have made one of the moulds which displayed who the post was made by. Not only was there a spelling mistake but also one of the characters had been reversed in the name. Even stranger as David pointed out, as the maker’s name appeared on both sides of the post, they would normally have used the same mould on both sides, but on the reverse of the post the errors have been corrected. Before officially handing over the completed post to Parish Council Chairman Roger Carter, Councillor Longman gave a short speech to thank David for engaging the children in this piece of local history. Local signpost historian John Nicholls was also thanked for his knowledgeable advice and the research he had carried out on the post in the Essex County Archives that revealed what words were missing on the old broken cast-iron arm. The Rev. Dr. Christopher Garland then blessed the post before the children returned to school.
The restoration work was carried out with the aid of a grant from Essex County Council.

£300,000 A12 link road upgrade will cause traffic chaos
(Story: Jon Longman)

MOTORISTS face two months of disruption while the B1023 road linking Tiptree and Feering is closed to allow a £300,000 upgrade that will see a new road surface laid after drainage and remedial work.
The twice-postponed project, now scheduled for eight weeks from April 10, is aimed at improving
the road between Feering and Tiptree following years of lobbying by Colchester Borough and Messing-cum-Inworth Parish councillors.
This route is one of two main links to the A12 from Tiptree and is in need of repair and improvement after a constant pounding by heavy goods vehicles.
But passengers on the route 91 bus from Tollesbury to Witham, via Tiptree, Inworth and Feering, will face a 10-mile diversion on some days. Operator Hedingham Buses has promised to give up-to-date information and a revised timetable to passengers.
And businesses along the route have accused Essex County Council's highways department of “a hastily-arranged programme of work” that will prevent customers reaching their premises during the key trading period.
Andy Turner, licensee of the Prince of Wales, Inworth, told a meeting, hosted by the county council and attended by around 75 people, that local businesses “had been given insufficient time to plan ahead for customers and suppliers”.
Businesses were told that signs would be placed indicating that “businesses were open as usual” but no compensation was available for lost trade.
An Essex County Council spokesperson for Highways and Transportation said: “This scheme is essential to achieving improvements to the highway network throughout the county.
“We appreciate that there will be some inconvenience during the works and we will work with the contractors and local people to minimise disruption and ensure access is maintained to businesses and residents.”
The work will involve resurfacing some lengths of road and footways, installing kerbs, upgrading and replacing signs and lines and highlighting the entrances to villages.
A vehicle-activated warning sign will also be installed to remind drivers to slow down as they approach Inworth from Tiptree. A new length of footway was installed last year opposite Grange Road, Tiptree, as part this project.
The works will be completed during an eight-week closure order from April 10, but contractor
Balfour Beatty hopes that the work may take only six weeks, weather permitting.
Local access for residents and businesses will be maintained throughout the works but the road will be closed to traffic travelling through to Tiptree or Feering and the A12. There will be a signed diversion route via Stanway which through traffic is advised to use.
During the working day, an operative from the contractor will be at each end of the closure to advise drivers on the best route to access their local destination. But the road will be open overnight and at weekends, but with signal control in some areas.
The county council spokesman strongly advising motorists whose destination is Tiptree or the A12, Kelvedon to use the signed diversion route.
A programme of works and information will be delivered to residents and businesses along the B1023 on March 30. Information will also be available on the county council website (www.essexcc.gov.uk), from the East Area Highways Office on 01206 838600.

February 2007
Not Just Messing About with Cards
The inaugural session of the Messing About with Cards club saw ten adults plus Josh Longman congregate in Messing Village hall to take inspiration from villager Tina Boyden in the craft of card making. Some were experienced card crafters like Christine Gooday who showed that she has a remarkable talent for this work, and others turned up thinking they would just make the coffees but ended up being encouraged to have a go. Not wanting to miss out on the social atmosphere Claire Pemrick also turned up with her tapestry as she felt that card making might not be a suitable hobby to take up with three young children to look after at home. This prompted another resident that came in to see what the club was about to say that she might also bring in her tapestry on the next session. So for a convivial morning with other craft minded persons why not turn up at the next session on Tuesday 20th March.

Rotary Club of Kelvedon donation
The Rotary Club of Kelvedon contacted Geoff Jackson last year enquiring as to whether the community would like the seat that is at the junction of the B1022 and Harborough Hall Road moved as it did not appear to be in a suitable location. It came as a suprise to learn that the Club had donated this seat to the parish many years ago. Having seen elderly residents waiting for the Community bus on the corner of Messing Green and School Road it was suggested that if it could be moved then it would prove more welcome at that location.
Some time passed before we were contacted again to be told that it would not be possible to move that seat but the Club was willing to provide a new one. Geoff is pictured above accepting this very generous gift on behalf of the community from Rotarian members Colin South left and Bob Bowdidge center.

Parish Council meeting snippets
B1023 upgrading – Considerable discussion took place on the effects that this might have on three businesses that relied on passing trade and the fact that it was to take place during the Easter holiday period which was one of their major periods of revenue. Concern was also expressed about the fact that drivers with local knowledge would be using roads through Messing village and past the school even though, as Cllr. Longman pointed out, part of the time the children would be on holiday. As the signage had not yet been replaced in New Road and the Kelvedon Road was in such a state of disrepair and was unsuitable for additional traffic discussion centred on whether any of the police services could help in preventing additional traffic through the village.
Kelvedon Road deterioration - The Clerk gave details of a report that he had sent to the highways department and their reply.
Priority road markings outside Parsonage Farm - The Clerk gave details of a request that had been made to the Senior Engineer of the Highways Department to consider changing the priority at the junction in this locality. The meeting considered his reply and asked that the Clerk write and ask for an on site meeting to discuss his answer and suggestions.
Inworth village sign – result of design consultation – The result of the consultation revealed the following:
A - 9 votes B - 2 votes C - 1 vote D - 5 votes
The location of the sign would be discussed at the next meeting on March 20th at the Prince of Wales.
Litter Pick Weekend – The Litter Pick Weekend was to take place from Friday 23rd March to Monday 26th March. It was agreed to meet at the War Memorial at 10.30am on Saturday 24th March.
Finance - Details of the financial position at the bank were given. The Clerk did however point out that a large part of the sum had been given for the provision of a passenger shelter and that due to the fact that the base had still not been provided after five months by the Highways Department the quotation was due to run out in March. Details of the correspondence with Essex County Council was to be given to Cllr. Crowe who the Clerk asked to take this matter up in the absence of any representation by County Cllr. Manning-Press.
An annual grant for grass cutting at All Saints Inworth was approved.

More tea and caviar vicar?

Our inveterate marathon runner the Rev. Chris Garland will be running his seventh London Marathon on April 22nd. This will be his 14th marathon and Chris tells us that to date he has raised approximately £30,000 for charity. His target this year is £1800 so please be generous and have your credit card to hand when you visit his sponsorship web page which is open for donations to St Helena Hospice here. Chris's personal best in a marathon was done in Moscow in a time of 2hrs 59. When asked if he had achieved this because the KGB were after him he replied no but the Red Army were firing at them. Apparently this was no more innocuous than cold water that all participants were being hosed down with because it was so hot that year. Their version of the cold war perhaps? Later in an even more friendly act finishers were all served with tea and caviar.
Free Trees
An initiative is being launched this year by the Leader of Colchester Borough Council where the public can obtain free trees for planting on private property. Arrangements have been put in place to enable the public to collect the trees over the weekend of 17/18 February at the Rowan House car park in Sheepen Road, Colchester from 10am till 2pm on both the Saturday and Sunday.
The public will be able to select from the following native species;
Acer campestre - Field maple
Betula pendula - Silver Birch
Fraxinus excelsior - Ash
Prunus avium - Wild Cherry
Quercus robur - Pedunculate oak
Sorbus aucuparia - Rowan
Sorbus terminalis - Wild Service Trees Tilia cordata - Small leaved Lime

January 2007
Messing about with cards
Its refreshing to learn of a new activity being started in the village hall so lets give Tina Boyden some support in her new venture. Interested in starting a new hobby? Not made cards before? Tina is starting a friendly and informal card making club. The first club meeting will be held on Tuesday 20th February from 10 - 12.30 in the Village Hall. You will need to bring along your basic card making materials, your own projects and tools. Please feel free to come along. For further details please call Tina on 07939 301930.
Parish Council meeting snippets
Details of proposed designs and costs for an Inworth village sign were given. The majority of the cost it is hoped will come from a grant which is being applied for. Suggestions for its location were discussed. The designs have been circulated to the residents by post to enable them to make a choice.
Councillor Longman said that he would make enquiries of the best kept village inspection team as to what improvements could be made in Messing in order to have a chance to win back the best kept village award.
The Clerk reported that the weekly mobile library service was to be downgraded to fortnightly visits.
New road markings preventing parking in close proximity of the school entrance are to be laid in the near future.
The Scout Association is proposing to hold centenary celebrations and a World Scout Jamboree in July and August in Chelmsford. They had written seeking community projects which can take 45 young people per day (aged 14 to 17) for the full 8 days. It was felt that repainting Messing village hall might be a suitable project and the village hall committee was to be consulted about this as soon as possible.
The Clerk proposed to the Council that the precept should remain the same as the previous year and gave members details and an explanation of a cash flow to the end of October. This was unanimously approved.
A tribute to Phyllis Dobbs (nee Pooley)
Phyllis was a happy, hardworking, god loving, truly Christian person who had no time for injustice of any sort. She loved all members of her family and her friends. The Church played a dominant part in her long active life. She was a member of the choir from the age of 12 years and later became a member of the Parochial Church Council and the Mothers' Union. A dedicated Church member who helped in so many ways - laundering the alter linen, decorating the church for festivals and preparing posies for the children to give to their Mothers on Mothering Sunday. This was all done with much love. At Harvest Festival Phyllis always decorated the lectern area and put a bunch of grapes in the eagle's mouth.
As a member of the Mothers' Union Phyllis provided delicious cakes for refreshments, also for Bazaars and Fetes and Mothers' Union meetings. Phyllis really enjoyed acting in small playlets to entertain other branches of the Mothers' Union and to raise money in the old Village Hall towards the new Village Hall which exists today. At the fund-raising events for the Church Phyllis generally was in charge of The White Elephant stall and greeted everyone in a kind and friendly manner and with a smile.
Phyllis spent a good many years in her working life at Wilkins Jam factory and left to act as a carer and house-keeper to her father. After her marriage she also worked in the canteen at Thurstable School for a few years and was highly thought of by her colleagues and the pupils.
Phyllis loved the countryside and knew the lanes so well around Messing and knew all the places of natures plants and other treasures.
Phyllis was an accomplished cook and was well known for her sausage rolls and mince tarts. Her marmalade and chutney was delicious.
She loved children of all ages and enjoyed talking to them - they never went away empty handed - there was always a bun, a piece of fruit or a sweet given to them.
The village, her family and her many friends have lost a kind, generous gracious lady. She has gone to her reward in Heaven and our prayers are with her.

We are indebted to Margaret Farley for writing this tribute to her long standing friend and wonderful member of the community.

 

 

December 2006
Craft Fayre
Anxious committee members of the Friends of Messing church were relived to see residents begin to come through the door of the village hall to attend the first Craft Fayre that they had put so much work into organising. A steady stream continued through the morning with the dozen stall holders relieving quite a few of the visitors of some of their hard earned cash. The produce stall run by the Friends did particularly well as John Jenkins from Messing Park dispensed a spicey mulled wine. There were some exceptional raffle prizes donated by local businesses and residents. One of the stall holders kindly volunteered to judge the mince pie competition which was won by Clare Bell with Carol Baxter coming in as runner up. The photographic competition was judged by Dan Harman of Advance Digital Graphics. Entries for the junior photographic competition were thin on the ground but Alec Scott was a winner with his entry in the People section. Louis Bell, Chris and Nancy Garland, Robin Hill-Sanders and Kate Jackson were all winners in the adult sections of the competition. You can view the winning entries here. Although attendance seemed a little thin at the event in the afternoon the Friends were satisfied with the contribution of £524.00 that had been made to their coffers by the end of the day with many of the stall holders saying they would attend next year and residents commenting on what a good social event it was as well.

November 2006
Update on the B1023
Finally after much badgering the following information was sent to us;

The deadline for us to be able to complete the Inworth scheme this financial year has now passed and I have still not heard the outcome of our bid one way or another. This leads me to believe that the expected under spends within the County Council have not materialised to the extent that supplementary schemes will be funded this financial year. If a late decision to fund the scheme is made, I will contact you again to discuss how the works may be progressed.
The scheme will be retained in the drawer, should any funding become available in the future years but in the meantime I will try to get the VAS located to assist with advising drivers of the speed limit.
I am sorry to disappoint all who were expecting the improvements and can assure you that the scheme will remain a priority in future bids for funding.

Geoff Harris

Area Highway Manager

If you have a view or comment to make about this issue please use the Forum to let us know your views

Remembrance Sunday

New Footpath Officer
Following the untimely passing away of Dave Chambers, a new Footpath Officer was appointed at a recent parish council meeting. Kirk Culley has kindly volunteered his time to deal with any issue concerning the footpaths in the parish. Kirk lives at Hillcrest , School Road , Messing , CO5 9TH.

Upgrade of the B1023
It would appear at the time of writing this that the information given to me by an officer of Essex County Council Highways with regard to the start date of the upgrade to the B1023 was premature. They do not have any information as to whether or not they have the necessary funding to carry out the work and despite repeated requests by that department and the parish council this information apparently cannot be provided.

Busy Vicar Congratulations to Chris Garland on obtaining his Masters Degree in Pastoral Theology. Chris had taken a sabbatical earlier in the year to write his thesis which was concerned with religious education in primary schools. Chris and Stephen Brown also found time to get on their bikes and ride around Essex to raise money for Essex Churches.

October 2006 Wine Tasting Evening

A Wine Tasting Evening organized by The Friends of Messing Church proved to be very enjoyable and informative. Grape Passions, a local Tiptree company, brought a good selection of wines for us to try and we all enjoyed being shown the correct way to observe and describe the look, nose and taste of each wine. A small profit was made that will go towards the upkeep of the church. VAS (vechicle activated sign) After much campaigning over two years an undertaking has been given by Geoff Harris, Essex County Council's Highways Manger, to install a speed sign of the type shown here on the approach into Inworth from Tiptree. Mr Harris said it will be installed when the upgrade to the whole road is made. The sign will be a permanent fixture and will be located on the triangle at the bottom of Windmill Hill facing towards Tiptree. Power for the sign will be taken underground to it from sources nearby. The light emitting diodes that make up the message are designed in such a way that nearby residents should not be disturbed by them. They are also designed to be vandal resistant. Cost for maintenance of the sign will not fall upon the parish council but will be borne by Essex County Council.

September 2006 Sponsored walk The third sponsored walk based on a walk around Messing's 'triangle' was extended to include an amble through Messing Park with Pat and John Jenkins hosting a refreshment stop. It also provided an opportunity for a special guest of Messing's vicar, the Reverend Dr Chris Garland, to meet villagers. The Archbishop of Papua New Guinea, the Rt Reverend James Ayong, was staying with Garlands before attending a meeting of Archbishops and Bishops from around the world at London Colney. Archbishop James will be a regular visitor to Messing over the coming years as Chris Garland has been appointed as his United Kingdom representative. The Archbishop sampled some traditional village life after the walk with a lunchtime visit to the village's Old Crown pub.

Sign Post Restoration Begins Keen observers may have seen that work has begun on restoring one of Messing's artifacts. The sign post outside the school proved to be very stubborn to dismantle and it took approximately 8 hours to complete the planned work for the first day. The cleaning and painting was said to be easy but the finger/collar arrangement was troublesome - each finger collar is secured to the central spigot of the post by a small collar at the top and bottom of the finger blade, with a spacer collar in between. Each was seized solid with rust mainly caused by the central spigot (the bit that the collars fit over and can be seen sticking out of the top of the post) being made from steel and not iron. In the end it all came apart OK, but the interesting bit is the 'Maldon Iron Works' name cast into the bottom of the post in two places. Facing the school the spelling is perfect, but facing the road the word WORKS is spelt WOKRS and look, the pattern maker has reversed the K to boot!!!

May 2006
Trifle Competition
A trifle competition was held on the 21st of May. Originally supposed to be held on Messing Green with games intended afterwards the event was forced indoors due to unseasonable weather. The organisers – The Friends of Messing Church - were overwhelmed by the number of entries and the attendance by consumers was excellent. Some anxiety was caused to the organisers by the late withdrawal of some judges but other brave souls stepped into the breach. Looking slightly daunted by the number of entries, 24 in all, they nevertheless valiantly spooned their way through a variety of different trifles, including a High Church Trifle, a Wimbledon Trifle, two savoury trifles; a curry trifle and an Italian bolognaise trifle. The three very competent judges took their job very seriously and didn’t rush the judging. The winning trifle for the young persons section was a Tutti Frutti trifle and three prizes were presented including 1st, 2nd, and 3rd rosettes. The winner of the adult section was a raspberry trifle created by Nancy Garland, second prize was an orange and chocolate trifle and the third prize went to a carrot cake trifle. Nancy was presented with certificate for a meal for two at Crispins. Aine Turner was presented with a bottle of champagne for the second prize, and Kate Jackson with a bottle of French sparkling wine for the third prize. The couple of joke entries in the adult section produced some interesting expressions on those who were brave enough to try these but most of the other entries were consumed with relish and all the left overs were taken home. A slide show or individual pictures can be viewed by clicking here.

Election Results
The Conservative group increased their number of Colchester Borough Council seats to 30 at the borough council election [4 May]. Twenty seats, a third of the council, were up for election with the Conservatives gaining seats in Prettygate, Stanway and Tiptree, but losing Shrub End.

The Liberal Democrats reduced from 22 to 21 seats, gaining Shrub End, but losing Prettygate and Stanway.

The Labour Group stays at 7 seats on the council, having retained its seat in the St Andrew’s Ward.

The Highwoods Independent Group keep two seats on the council after independent candidate Gerard Oxford retained his seat.

The overall turnout for the borough was 36%.

The make-up before the election was Conservative 28, Liberal Democrat 22, Labour 7, Highwoods Independent 2, Independent 1.

The make-up now is Conservative 30, Liberal Democrat 21, Labour 7, Highwoods Independent 2.

Jon Longman says of the result: " It was roughly what I had hoped for - a foothold on Everest. It is better in percentage terms than last year when I stood as an Independent by almost five per cent. I knew I was on a hiding to nothing against Kevin as I was only selected by the Liberal Democrats the week before the nominations but polled more votes than all the rest combined. I am now the official opposition! The bonus is that I have made lots of new friends in Tiptree and beyond - and caught up with some old mates."

Birch & Winstree

Name of Candidate	Description (if any)	Number of Votes
BENTLY, Kevin Paul	The Conservative Party Candidate	1224 Elected
ELLIOTT, Samual James	Green Party	108
LONGMAN, Jonathan Murray Edward	Liberal Democrats	325
MCANDREW, Jeannine Lara	Independent	53
TOOTAL, Abigail Sarah	The Labour Party Candidate	128

February 2006
Messing Mission
Messing’s alternative place of worship known as The Mission sadly held its last service on 5th February. The viability of the premises which were never intended to be a permanent structure was being called into question as it needed more than a coat of paint for its continuance. Its spiritual leader Pastor Davis also wants to retire back to Wales.

The original organisation was believed to have been an offshoot of the Quakers. The Friends Evangelistic Band as it was originally known, made their appearance in Messing well over 80 years ago. Mrs Connie Wilson was just a schoolgirl when meetings originated in her parents’ house. Two ladies from the organisation who were responsible for its presence in the parish were provided with a base at Mrs Wilson’s parent’s home. In true evangelistic style they used to go around the villages in the parish, door knocking and leaving scripture tracks. Another local resident who is now 85 remembers attending meetings when he was 7.

The Friends Evangelistic Band eventually acquired two horse drawn caravans which a local land owner let them put on his meadow in Harborough Hall Road. Students from the Redcliffe Bible College stayed in them looked after by an older woman. They used to hold open air meetings in front of The Crown and also travelled to Easthorpe and Copford. Mrs Wilson recalls that local farmers would be persuaded to move the caravans with their horses to different villages in the parish. At one time on the land in Harborough Hall Road, the Church Army erected a marquee and held children’s and women’s meetings there.

In what might be felt as ironic circumstances eventually the Friends were permitted to use premises under the conical tower of the Maltings in Lodge Road which at the time was a separate cottage. The organisation is known to have moved later into another building that could not have been known for its sobriety which was the Working Mens Club on the Corner of Lodge Road opposite the Crown.

Although in those days the village was far busier then it is now the children of some of those attending meetings used to play outside on the junction and were judged to be in some danger. Fortuitously the wooden structure that now stands in Harborough Hall Road was donated to the organisation and it was decided to erect its sections back on the site where the caravans had been kept. It is believed that no record has been kept as to when the hall was erected but it is thought to have been around 1942. The mission had a thriving Sunday school for many years and locals that attended seem to have fond memories of their childhood times there.

For pictures of The Friends caravans and other pictures together with an interesting picture of families thought to have been taken outside the hall during the 1940’s click here. We would be interested to know if anyone can be identified from this picture and to hear of any other recollections of The Mission. Leave your recollections on the message board. If you have any recollections about The Mission that you would like to share call Geoff or Kate Jackson on 01621 815742.

We are indebted to Mrs Wilson, Mr & Mrs Brown and their daughter Alison Burchert for sharing their memories and pictures with us.

More information about the Church Army can be found at http://www.churcharmy.org.uk

December 2005
Hard-court play area
Messing Primary School's governing body has approved the construction of a village multi-use games area on the school site, reflecting the wishes of many village youngsters and adults in the parish plan survey. The 'hard play area', which will be the size of a basketball/netball/tennis court, will be built behind the school hall as part of a project to create an improved play area at the front of the site, a resurfaced and extended playground, and a school garden. A site plan will be agreed early in the New Year and grants sought. The school has money its budget to part-fund the overall project and the parish council has earmarked £1,000 in two £500 annual instalments to progress the hard-play area part of the project.

New playground opens
Messing have been celebrating with the unveiling of a new playpark which has been part funded by Colchester Borough Council’s Town and Parish Grant scheme.
Last year the borough council agreed to allocate £450,000 over three years to projects put forward by parish and town council’s to help improve their local communities.
A total of £153,500 has been allocated in this year’s scheme to a wide range of projects from new street lights to a youth shelter and from the refurbishment of a village hall to a toilet for disabled use.
Further cash has been provided to the projects by Essex County Council under its new Community Initiatives Fund. Messing cum Inworth secured £4,228.70 towards new play equipment for the playground from the fund.
Our old equipment had been handed on from Layer de la Haye 40 years ago, and finally had to be removed for safety reasons.
Now with further help from other grants our old play equipment has been replaced with a new climbing frame, rope ladder, netting, toys, swings and seats

November 2005
Remembrance Sunday
All Saints, Messing's Parish Church this year resumed the tradition of a service around the village’s war memorial on Remembrance Sunday, November 13.
The revival coincided with the launch of a new outdoor service format created by the Royal British Legion in association with Churches Together in Britain and Ireland.

Click on a thumbnail for a larger picture.

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STATEMENT FROM PARISH COUNCIL

Placement of Playground Equipment, Village Hall Green
This issue was extensively debated at the Parish Council Meeting on 21st June 2005 which several members of the public chose to attend. All present expressed their views and the overriding consensus (although not unanimous), was to pursue the plan as proposed.

The objective of the plan is to provide the younger generation in the village (the number is growing) with extended, safer and insurable play facilities.

Quotes were obtained for the implementation of the plan, and a presentation was prepared to document the proposals.

Fund raising for replacement and enhancement of the equipment was pursued by the Council, successfully. We obtained £4228.70 from Colchester Borough Council and the balance from two Essex County Council funds.

The plans displayed showed plenty of room for, say, a bouncy castle or a refreshment ‘pagoda’ for the enjoyment of those who hire the village hall for both indoor and outdoor enjoyment. The enhancement will serve to increase the outdoor attraction of hiring the hall.

The Ash tree in the centre of the green, which is in a conservation area, is unaffected by the plan. Some lopping of low hung branches of this tree may be necessary and agreement for this has been sought from the tree preservation officer in the planning department of Colchester Borough Council.

The contractors, with their extensive practical and legal experience, have advised that the fencing off of the smaller swings from the larger ones should not be necessary.

The picnic table will allow parental supervision, when thought desirable, and could become an acceptable and convenient outdoor meeting place for younger members of the village.

A small part of the land surrounding the village hall was conveyed to the Parish Council in 1951 and is now vested in the Official Trustee of Charity Lands. The land in question to be used for playground equipment was unarguably let to the Parish in 1799 and was then formally conveyed to the Parish in 1936.

The Council invites constructive comments on the layout of the equipment by the end of November. Please give them to the parish clerk or chairman.

October 2005

Progress on a new village hall playground
The Parish Council is celebrating grants of £10,500 that will help ensure that the village playground is rebuilt on the old green next to the village hall.

Hard court play area for Messing
The parish council has set the ball rolling on a second playground project, a multi purpose games area in the grounds of Messing cum Inworth Primary School.
The village youngsters highlighted the need for such a facility in the parish plan research and the schools governors have backed the plea as part of a bigger scheme to improve play equipment at the school and resurface the playground.
Parish councilors have set the project rolling by providing grants of £500 in the next two financial years.
School governors' vice chairman Jon Longman said: "We will now be drawing up a plan for this major project that will cost in excess of £30,000. We will be seeking grants and match funding for the multi use games area but the school would welcome support from individuals or local businesses."

Council's highways action
A packed public meeting in Messing Village Hall saw residents quiz Essex County Council highways portfolio holder Rodney Bass on the highways problems in the vicinity of Messing and Inworth.
Mr Bass addressed concerns over the high number of HGVs passing through Inworth by promising to look at the signs at Rivenhall in connection with the HGV routing which appear to deter vehicles from taking the Braxted road.
He agreed to a speed limit review of the B1 023 Tiptree Feering road with a full public consultation but warned that the limit could go up if the average speed of sensible drivers, using the road is higher than the current limit.
Following assessment by county engineers, Essex County Council will undertake a major resurfacing of B1023 but Mr Bass warned that this would mean the road would be closed for several months in order to do a proper job on the scale that county highways had carried out at Danbury,
Finally, Mr Bass agreed that the county would restore gritting of the Messing to Inworth road following a spate of minor accidents last winter.
The next meeting of the parish council takes place on Tuesday 15 November in Messing Village Hall at 8pm.

Tiptree Parish Council backs new charity to build community centre - 24th October
New plans to give Tiptree a community centre in the heart of the village have been outlined in a joint venture between the parish council and a new charity formed by frustrated residents.
The latest chapter in the long-running village hall saga took centre stage on Monday night when parish councilors backed the proposals of the Tiptree Community Centre Trust which plans to start building a hall alongside the Tesco supermarket early in the new year.
Councillors voted unanimously to support the trust’s plans and agreed to underwrite the start of the project with £5,500 towards a new design that substantially undercuts the much-delayed proposals of the existing Tiptree Village Hall Fund that has struggled to raise funds since being formed nine years ago.

World’s biggest coffee morning
The Friends of Messing Church’s Drop In morning in support of the Macmillan cancer charity’s World’s Biggest Coffee Morning raised £50.48.
The regular social event now returns to its regular Wednesday morning slot in Messing Village Hall.

School governors
Messing cum Inworth Primary School governors met at the school and ratified a new constitution which increases the number of parents elected to the governing body to four.

Sunday services
As the vicar, the Revd Dr Chris Garland, is away on a study break. Messing Mission meets in
the Harborough Hall Lane chapel at 3pm.

Remembrance Sunday service
Messing Parish Church will this year resume the tradition of a service around the village’s war memorial on Remembrance Sunday, November 13.
The revival coincides with the launch of a new outdoor service format created by the Royal British Legion in association with Churches Together in Britain and Ireland. The service will begin at 10.45am.

September 2005

Good News for Inworth
The Prince of Wales has been acquired by new owners, (Lindsay Mercer and Andy Turner), and during the next two weeks the Inn will be lovingly restored and refurbished, revealing the traditional charm and original features whilst at the same time introducing a modern, contemporary feel.

Andy said that "over the forthcoming months we will be introducing a wide and varied range of events, functions and exciting enhancements to our food and beverage menus, all designed to make The Prince of Wales an exceptional eating and drinking experience for all the family.

We will be introducing a new chef who will provide a range of culinary delights using fresh, locally sourced products. This will be complemented by an extensive range of beers, ales, spirits and wines from our cellar. We will be introducing a completely new wine list consisting of over 40 white, red, rose and sparkling wines.

We will be closed for refurbishment from the 12 September 2005 and reopen on Saturday 24 September 2005 with a Launch party for all the family.

Lindsay and I are extremely keen to integrate into the Inworth community, we would like to extend an invite to all to come and enjoy our Caribbean reopening party. We will have traditional fare, complemented by live music from Tropical Heatwave. This will give everybody an opportunity to view our new exciting menus and taste a selection of our wines from our cellar while the children enjoy the garden games and the bouncy castle."

The bar opens from 2pm and food and entertainment commences at 4.30pm.

As from the 25 September 2005 we will be open six days a week, serving a range of menus including All Day, À La Carte, Fish Friday À La Carte and Sunday Roast. View their web site for details.


Parish Council oil syndicate
The rising price of oil has not deterred Messing cum Inworth Parish Council from resuming the running of its heating oil syndicate for villagers after a summer break.
An order is placed around the middle of each month as villagers buy in bulk to gain a favourable discount on the rising price of fuel. The scheme is open to all villagers in Messing and Inworth and more details can be obtained from parish councillor Jon Longman on 01621 819443.

Parish council meeting
Messing cum Inworth Parish Council meets in Messing Village Hall next Tuesday at 8pm. Councillors have invited Essex County Council highways portfolio holder Councillor Rodney Bass to answer questions from the public. Roads not being gritted and speeding through Inworth will be high on the agenda.

Sunday services
Holy Communion will be celebrated on Sunday at Messing Parish Church at 9.30m and at Inworth Parish Church at 11am. Messing Mission meets in the Harborough Hall Lane chapel at 3pm.

Join the world’s biggest coffee morning
The Friends of Messing Church’s regular Drop In coffee morning is being put back two days at the end of the month to take part in a record-breaking event. The regular social event is being switched from its regular Wednesday morning slot in Messing Village Hall to a Friday morning forjust for one week in order to take part in the Macmillan cancer charity’s World’s Biggest Coffee Morning to boost fund raising. The event takes place between 10am and Noon on Friday, September 30 with all monies raised going to the charity. The Drop In event will then to its regular Wednesday slot with visitors from a wide area popping in.

Remembrance Sunday service
Messing Parish Church will this year resume the tradition of a service around the village’s war memorial on Remembrance Sunday, November 13. The revival coincides with the launch of a new outdoor service format created by the Royal British Legion in association with Churches Together in Britain and Ireland.
The service will begin at 10.45am.

Flower festival bears fruit
Messing Parish Church’s revival its annual flower festival in July, after a break of more than 20 years, proved to be a great success. The last festival coincided with the first Messing Independence Day, and there has been talk of staging the latter event for a third time, but in the meantime a repeat flower festival is on the cards for next year. This year’s event raised a record £1,451 for church funds and organiser Nancy Garland praised the large team of villagers and friends who had put the event together which then coincided with Messing being named as the county’s best kept small village in the competition. Mrs Garland said: “My thanks go all those who have contributed in any way.”

July 2005

Messing is Essex's Best Kept Village (in Class 5 for the smallest villages)

Parish clerk Geoff Jackson and I (Jon Longman) have been talking about launching a village newswire to keep the people of Messing and Inworth well informed - complementing this website, notes in The Tribune and Essex County Standard, and our own Post and Parish Council Newsletter.
I noted the idea was nearing fruition in Messing's entry for the Calor Essex Best Kept Village Competition run by the Rural Community Council of Essex. The RCCE is supporting both villages with the village plan and recent survey.
So what better way to kick-off this e-news service than by telling you that we went to the Channels Golf Club, Little Waltham last night and I stepped up to receive, on Messing's behalf, the Essex Best Kept Village Award (a bronze plaque and a certificate) for the class featuring the smallest villages. I also received a cheque for £150 which will go towards an appropriate village project.
On behalf of the parish council, can I thank all the efforts that have gone into keeping the village in a state that we can be proud of. We certainly made an impression on the judges. Please spread the good news!

Flower festival bears fruit
Messing Parish Church held its annual flower festival the weekend of 16th & 17th after a break of more than 20 years. The last festival coincided with the first Messing Independence Day and there are moves to stage the latter event for a third time. The organisers selected the Biblical theme on the Fruits of the Spirit and villagers created displays to reflect love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Among the displays was a selection around the font created by Messing cum Inworth Primary School pupils and others by Red House. The church was open from 10am to 5pm on Saturday with associated stalls in the church grounds with refreshments served in the village hall. The festival was accompanied by a range of fund-raising stalls and competitions with all proceeds going to church funds. The organisers are considering whether to make the festival an annual event and revive the tradition of the Messing Flower Festival being one of the highlights on the local social calendar. Click here to run a slide show of the event

Parish council
The July meeting of Messing cum Inworth Parish Council will take place in Messing Village Hall Tuesday 19th (8pm). Time will be set aside for public questions and discussion of the proposed housing development on Collins Green.

Governor retires
Sheila Charrington has stood down from the governing body of Messing cum Inworth Primary School after long period as a community governor. A vacancy is created for a community governor and head teacher Mrs Margaret Thomas or vice-chairman Jon Longman would be interested to hear from anyone who would like to be considered when the structure of the governing body is revised next term.

June 2005

Parish Council meeting
The next meeting of Messing cum Inworth Parish Council will take place in Messing Village Hall on Tuesday, June 21, at 8pm when Essex county councillor Christopher Manning-Press will be attending.Time will be set aside on the agenda for the public to ask questions.

Lock up your heating oil!

Essex Police are investigating the theft of more than 2,000 litres of heating oil from a tank in Messing. It is believed that the oil was drained out of the tank under cover of darkness. Residents are being asked to ensure that their tanks are secure and report any suspicious incidents to the police.

Flower fund blooming

An appeal for funds to help stage the Messing Parish Church Flower Festival on July 16 and 17 has topped £250 in the first week. Anyone wishing to make a donation should contact Nancy Garland on 01621 815415.

May 2005

LOCAL ELECTION RESULTS

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PRESS RELEASE FROM JON LONGMAN

A personal message from Jonathan Longman, standing in the Mersea & Tiptree division of Essex County Council as an Independent supported by the Tiptree Action Group (TAG).

TAG started out life as a group drawing support from all colours of the political spectrum, pledged to stop a plan to build a community centre and country mansion on Green Belt between Tiptree and Messing.
This successful campaign raised more than 280 letters of protest, a petition signed by almost 1800 people and saw many hundreds of residents protesting at a Tiptree Parish Council meeting. Now we face answering the call to assist the Village Hall Fund's vision to see the approved plan for a community centre, on the former TBS site, through to a much-needed building that will put the
heart back into the centre of the village.
But that is only part of the picture as TAG's many leaflet drops revealed that residents in Tiptree, Messing and beyond had many worries about a community hit by apathy. We concluded that both Tiptree and Mersea would benefit from having a county councillor with a focus on grassroots concerns. I made the suggestion so it is no wonder that I am now the candidate standing in Thursday's election.
So once again we are appealing for your support to achieve another success in defeating apathy and ensuring Mersea & Tiptree has a loud voice at the heart of county power. As an Independent councillor, I would cross political boundaries for the sake of what is best for our community, listening to concerns and dreams and then having the opportunity to draw upon expertise from local people to form an action plan. This joint approach to solving problems has been proved with a
community centre fight that has united Tories, Labour, Lib Dems and folk who had become disillusioned with local politics.
One small cross on a sheet of paper on Thursday, repeated by thousands of people across the area, could once again send out a clear message that Mersea &Tiptree voters mean business.
I hope you feel able to vote for me on Thursday.
Best wishes
Jon

Published and printed (e-mailed) by Jonathan Longman, 1 Bouchiers Place,
Messing, Colchester C05 9TY.
Agent: Ray Permaul, Elms Farm, Tiptree CO5 0ES

April 2005

PLAN PROTESTORS CELEBRATE

Residents of two Essex villages are celebrating a protest triumph over controversial plans for a community centre, car park and country mansion on a conservation area site.
The Tiptree Action Group have been mobilising opposition to fight the joint application by Tiptree Parish Council and developer Paul Hiller for the plan on 20 acres of Green Belt area between Tiptree and Messing.
The application was withdrawn by Mr Hiller’s agent Tuesday night after the borough’s planning officers recommended refusal of the application because 13 separate planning policies would be contravened and six council department leaders were unanimous in their opposition.
Public opinion has been equally decisive with more than 250 letters of objection sent to the borough’s planning department and more than 1,750 signatures gathered in one week on a petition which is to be presented to the borough council’s planning officer, Tiptree Parish Council and the ward councillors.
Group spokesman Marion Permaul said: “I would have preferred to bury this application in a 'no' vote from the committee, but it is a victory never the less.
“The weight of opinion against the application has been massive and we are so grateful for the support of so many people.
“It is only two years ago that the same committee passed the plan for a community centre in the heart of Tiptree, a plot adjacent to the Tesco supermarket on the old Tiptree Book Services site.
“This community centre scheme is still alive and the Village Hall Fund has been busy raising funds. It is now seeking Lottery funding.
“It is ludicrous that the planning committee members should have been asked to consider another plan that has not been costed, lies on a dangerous road and cuts into a swathe of Green Belt noted by environmentalists for great crested newts and Nightingales.
“It must be noted that the applicants still have the right of resubmission with no further cost within 12 months. Should this happen, it will meet with the same or similar objections.
“Messing residents were also worried that the plan for the mansion would effectively wipe out green space between the villages and merge the village with Tiptree.
“It is time the whole Tiptree community got behind the original community scheme and
backed the 1999 Tiptree Parish Council referendum result when 88 per cent of residents who responded, almost 2,000 people, voted for a centre on the old TBS site.
“This plan had the unanimous backing of all shades of political opinion then and a U-turn now will only delay a much-needed facility for one of Britain’s largest villages for the foreseeable future.
“We have urged Tiptree Parish Council chairman John Elliott and his councillors to scrap their plan and back the Village Hall Fund’s plan for a £1.25 million scheme.”

March 2005

LITTTER PICK WEEKEND
Having lambasted Borough officials about the fly tipping in our parish for some time I felt duty bound to support the Borough Council's Litter Pick Weekend initiative. I would like to thank every one else who joined in, some of whom are shown on the left. I think we were all stunned by the quantity and content of what we found once we started. The three large lorry wheels complete with tyres proved a challenge compared with car bumpers, half a bedstead, a windscreen and a bird cage to get into the boot of Kate's car but it was managed and fortunately the Borough Council cleared the pile away promptly from the patio of the village hall on Monday morning. Maybe we should think about an "Adopt a Road" scheme to do this more regularly.

OUR ENVIROMENT UNDER THREAT
No doubt you all might be thinking you are suffering from leaflet fatigue over the planning application that has been made by Tiptree Parish Council and a private individual for a country mansion and a community centre on a 20 acre site adjoining our parish borders. To my mind this is a serious assault not only on the land that separates our parish from that of Tiptree but also on the planning laws that protect our countryside. The need to protect both is paramount and I make no excuses for making sure that your are aware of what is at stake. It also calls into question the consideration that our Ward Councillors gave to the views of their constituents by deciding to give this plan their backing without residents opinions. To my mind it stresses the importance of developing the Parish Plan into a Village Design Statement as I hear another planning shock is in the pipeline on a site closer to home. For more information on this issue click here.

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January 2005
PARISH PLAN UPDATE
On Saturday 22nd another opportunity for Inworth residents to join in the parish plan process was held at All Saints Inworth where Jan Cole and her assistant conducted a two hour drop in version of the process that was held last year in Messing. Considering there are only about 40 properties in Inworth the turnout was considered to be a success in that eleven people turned out and four people volunteered to help. The comments are being analysed now and will be available at our next meeting on the 2nd February but it was clear that there were a considerable number of comments and concern about the weight of traffic and speed of vehicles on the Feering to Tiptree road.

HIGHWAYS EXHIBITION
The Highways Agency is holding an exhibition of the proposals to improve the A120 between Braintree and Marks Tey at a number of local venues. The nearest to our parish will be at the Kelvedon Institute, 28 High Street, Kelvedon on Friday 11th February between 1pm and 8pm. A person who has seen the exhibition tells me that it passes close to Feering itself as it passes not far behind the Drummonds Centre and joins up with the A12 roughly where the Travel Lodge is sited just past where the existing Feering slip road is.

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