Our new full-time Clerk, Emily Ranahan, started work at the end of June and, after a series of acting and interim Clerks, we can now look forward to a more stable and productive period. We are very happy to have Emily on board. Emily, who lives just outside the Parish in High Wycombe, is the Parish’s first American Clerk – I wonder what Coningsby Disraeli, our founding Chair, would have made of that.  Nina Villa, our current Locum Clerk, will be staying with us until the end of August to support Emily.

Come September, Emily will have her feet firmly under the desk, and the Council will be turning to our goals for the rest of 2022 and 2023. For residents who aren’t aware of our scope of services, the Parish Council maintains the Burial Ground on Four Ashes Road, playgrounds at Templewood and Great Kingshill, provides allotments on eight sites across the parish, responds to Bucks Council on planning applications, looks after certain verges and hedges on behalf of Bucks Council and makes grants to various associations, clubs and projects. We are welcoming grant applications, and if you feel you have a good case, please ask Emily for an application form.

There remains a backlog of issues from previous years that we are committed to dealing with in the coming weeks.  These include our relationship with Hughenden Community Support Trust, the maintenance  of a number of streetlights in Widmer End, our future lease arrangements with the Great Kingshill Cricket Club and the re-establishment of vandalised traffic calming equipment.

During the Autumn and Winter, we anticipate that we will be able to start to address some important issues for the future. One of these will be to communicate the results of last autumn’s residents’ survey,  which will influence our future priorities. It will be no surprise to you that traffic calming and road safety were the issues of greatest concern. We will be considering the next phase in our efforts to discourage high speed driving through our lanes. We have a number of initiatives to consider around playgrounds. We wish to promote tree-planting as part of the Queen’s Green Canopy scheme. And we are considering the pros and cons of a possible Neighbourhood Plan for the parish, including consultations with Residents associations and other groups to get a sense of residents’ appetite for such a plan.

We have room for an additional Councillor for Naphill and Walters Ash. A full Council will help keep up the momentum we’ve been building. If you have the appetite to contribute to the local area as a Parish Councillor, now is a great time to join the Council, as we’re in a good place to welcome new forward-looking energy and ideas.

Hughenden Parish Council is seeking your views on the services it provides, its priorities and on what should be considered in the future.  

A survey is taking place from 18th August. It can be completed by any resident of Hughenden Parish, & is available on-line via our web page , or paper copies can be requested by dialling 01494 715296 which you can then drop back at our offices. It should take less than 10 minutes to complete. 

We look forward to hearing from you, it is an opportunity for you to let us know what you think. 

The results will be available in the Autumn. 

The Trust has published this letter & asked that it be widely distributed.

Letter from HCST to residents

The Parish consists of eight villages and hamlets – Naphill, Walter’s Ash, North Dean, Bryants Bottom, Hughenden Valley, Cryers Hill, Great Kingshill and Widmer End. In some cases, villages and hamlets may be served by more than one Parish Council.

Hughenden Parish Council consists of 15 Councillors, who serve approximately 3,500 households, a population of approximately 9,000 people. The posts of Councillor on the Parish Council are due for re-election on May 6th.

For details please see: HPC Election Notice

2019 Christmas Poster

Below is a message from the Parish Council to all residents of the Parish

To Chair of Village Halls, Residents Associations & BBCT,

I write on behalf of Hughenden Parish Council to request your assistance in gauging parishioner opinion with respect to the provision of notice boards in the parish.

Local councils must under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 have a Publication Scheme which makes certain information available to the public.  In addition to information published on a council website http://www.hughendenparishcouncil.org.uk/ councils must display notice of any meeting open to the public by statute at the local council office and affix notices ‘in some conspicuous places in the locality’.

Council wish to ensure that there is adequate provision of notice boards within the parish:

1. To fulfil statutory requirements with respect to publication of council agendas and minutes (Publication Scheme)
2. To provide adequate provision for community notices (promoting community activities & reducing littering of street furniture)

It is suggested that the above criteria may be fulfilled by a notice board design having one half of the notice board designated ‘parish council notices’ and the other half designated ‘community notices’.  The ‘parish council notices’ section would be glazed and notices posted by council officers.  The ‘community notices’ section may be open for public use.  The entire notice board would be headed ‘Hughenden Parish Council’.  Please see the photograph attached as a possible example.  The size of the notice board would depend on location and the population of that community.  The council would prefer a uniform design throughout the parish.

Hughenden Parish Council consists of four wards comprising eight villages/settlements.  In addition to minor notice boards at allotments, ponds etc the council has external notice boards at the following locations:

1. Council Office Great Kingshill
2. Garden of Rest Four Ashes
3. North Dean Village Hall
4. Templewood Walters Ash
5. Widmer End near Village Hall
6. Widmer End George’s Hill

Council invite feedback on effectiveness of notice boards at existing locations and wish to gauge interest in installing notice boards in communities without this provision e.g. Hughenden Valley, Bryants Bottom, Naphill and Cryers Hill.  It would be appreciated if feedback specifies exact locations and requirements.  There are several online suppliers of quality notice boards.  The notice boards in Widmer End and Garden of Rest were sourced from Greenbarnes www.greenbarnes.co.uk. Council prefer to install man-made timber (recycled plastic) as this reduces maintenance costs while providing a long lasting quality product.  If you wish to see an example then I suggest visiting the Garden of Rest although the notice board at this location is larger than would be required in most communities.

Please would you be so kind as to share this email with community groups to gauge opinion from a range of residents.  The parish council welcomes feedback from village halls and residents association committees.  Council will consider feedback received at the Services Committee Meeting to be held at 7.30 pm on Tuesday 26^th February 2019 at the parish council office.  Members of the public are welcome to attend and may address the committee during Public Participation at the start of the meeting.

Please ensure that all feedback is received by the parish council office by Thursday 31^st January 2019.

Many thanks in anticipation of your assistance and if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Jill Armshaw

• Deputy Clerk
• Hughenden Parish Council
• Council Offices
• The Common
• Great Kingshill
• Buckinghamshire
• HP15 6EN
• 01494 715296,    Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday