The Parish Council met on Thursday 12th June 2025 in the Village Hall. One member of the public was present and we were pleased to welcome Dorset Cllr Mike Baker. Members of the press and public are welcome and there is a period for public participation at the start. If you are unable to attend but wish to submit a comment or question, please contact the Clerk or any member of the Parish Council.
Wyld Cabins
Representatives from Wyld Cabins and Crestview, together with Mr Chris Jowett of the Charborough Estate addressed members regarding their proposal to install approximately 50 luxury cabins in Bere Wood. The cabins would be set in 75acres of the 800acre Bere Wood site and would be between 23sqm and34sqm in size. The concept is one of a retreat to nature and, in addition to the cabins, it is anticipated that there would be two wellness pods consisting of a sauna and plunge pool and a small shop, together with a site office for the manager. The cabins would be rented for up to a week and there would be no long-term or permanent habitation on site. Any vehicles would be using the existing roads and parking would be between 50m and 400m from the cabins. The intention is for a high quality, bespoke experience with visitors being offered the option to purchase food hampers for their stay, made up from local produce.
Pre-application planning advice has been sought and the various nature surveys are underway. Access to the site would be via an existing ride from the A35, after the Sugar Hill turning and before the Bloxworth turning. Highways have confirmed that they would be happy with this access, subject to a small amount of work being undertaken at the junction with the A35. It is anticipated that the proposal will result in six extra vehicles across the 4hour check-in and check-out period. Cabin lights will be low impact and the cabins orientated away from existing paths and neighbouring cabins.
It is hoped that a prototype will be available for inspection prior to full implementation, should the application be approved but it is still very much in the planning stage. A copy of the brochure provided at the Parish Council meeting is available here.
Parish Council Roles & Vacancy
Now that our new councillors have settled into the role of a councillor, responsibilities have been determined. This is partly to provide parishioners with a first point of contact should they have a specific issue they wish to raise but also to give councillors a specific area of responsibility that they can take on. Any necessary training is provided for all areas and roles:
Planning – Cllrs Fairhurst, Bates, and Munnings
Finance – Cllrs Curtis and Walker
Parish Assets – Cllr Walker
Traffic – Cllr Walker
Allotments- Cllr Hawkins
Environment + Trees – Cllrs Bates and Hawkins
Human Resources- Cllrs Walker and Curtis
Play Area Cllrs – Bardwell and Hazell
Village Events – Cllr Percy
Community Liaison – Cllrs Curtis and Percy
Website, IT + Publications – Cllrs Walker and Bardwell
Rights of Way – Cllr Walker
Children + Youth – Cllrs Curtis and Hazell
DAPTC Rep – Cllr Hawkins
Thomas Williams – Rep Cllr Munnings
Village Hall Rep – Cllr Park
School Liaison – Cllr Hazell
Parochial Church Council – Cllr Curtis
Both the Chair and the Clerk are also available to contact on any issue, should you wish. Contact information for each councillor will be available on the Parish Council website.
As you can see, the Parish Council is involved in many areas of village life. We do still have one vacancy for a councillor. So, if you think you could contribute to both the Parish Council and the village, please contact any member of the Parish Council or the Clerk for more information.
Path Cutting
At the start of each meeting, a period of time is set aside for any members of the public present to raise any points of concern they may have. The issue of the footpath running along the bank by Rye Hill Farm was raised. During the time the farm was occupied, this path was cut back and the bank maintained. However, for the last five years, this has not been done. As a result, the vegetation has been allowed to encroach more and more onto the pathway. As a result, there are times when it is necessary to walk in the road to get past. Dorset Cllr Mike Baker offered to take this up with Highways to determine who is responsible for maintaining the bank and to get the vegetation cut back.
Community Speed Watch (CSW)
The CSW team are now managing to get out more frequently and, thanks to their efforts and the placement of the Speed Indicator Devices, the speed of vehicles is being noticeably reduced. The team were out three times in April and provided data on 33 vehicles travelling in excess of 35mph, with a maximum speed recorded at 46mph. Because we have a CSW, the Police camera crew visit more frequently which further deters speeding. However, as with all volunteer initiatives, more people are needed to help. If you can spare a couple of hours a month, please, please let the Clerk know and your name will be passed to the CSW team.
Effluent Discharges into the Bere Stream
This was reported by Dorset Wildlife Trust in last month’s magazine. Cllr Bates has confirmed that the Wildlife Group would be happy to undertake aquatic invertebrate and fish monitoring in the stream. He has asked the Dorset Wildlife Trust SNCI Officer to give them guidance and help with equipment. This is the recognised way of monitoring stream and river health. If you would like to assist with this, please contact either the Clerk or Cllr Bates for more information.
Play Park
Many of you will have noticed that the ground level trampoline has had to be removed. Whilst this is regrettable, we were informed by our insurers that they would no longer be willing to insure its use. This makes it even more important that a new play park is created. If you are able to help with the fund raising for this, please contact either Cllr Bardwell or Cllr Hazell.
Next Meeting – The next meeting will be held on Thursday 10th July 2025 commencing 7pm at the Village Hall. If you wish to have an item added to the agenda for discussion, please contact the Clerk or a member of the Parish Council. A full copy of the minutes is available on the Parish Council website.