Berkswell Parish Council

Welcome to the Berkswell Parish Website

Agenda for Parish Planning Committee Meeting to be held on 20 June.
Agenda for Parish Council Meeting to be held on 20 June.

Parish Assembly

For the first time the Parish’s Annual Assembly and the Berkswell Society’s AGM were run back to back on the 23rd May to create a full evening of knowledge sharing and idea exchanges between over 50 residents.

Unsurprisingly HS2 dominated, but we also learned more about the Spirit of Berkswell project and how it will enable our community to be reflected and amplified online via www.berkswell.org – currently the Berkswell Society’s online home. The Parish Council is fully behind this project and expects to see it evolve rapidly over the next few months.

Many thanks to June Smitten for providing refreshments. The Council has made a donation to Zoe’s Place in Coventry on behalf of June, as a further gesture of gratitude.

Annual Barbeque

We also had an enjoyable (and dry) barbeque once again thanks to the generous contributions and support of a number of local residents– too many to mention individually here, but we should remind ourselves that the Fletcher family and the Berkswell Estate allow us access to their private working farm land, without which the barbeque would not be viable.

Airport expansion

Residents may have read about a proposal for a second runway at Birmingham Airport. If such a scheme were ever to materialise it would bring flights directly over our Parish. However, we have been assured by SMBC that they have not been consulted on the idea, that it lacks any evidence to suggest that it is required (the airport is no-where near capacity) and that it is a tactic by the airport to be included in the Governments’ forthcoming airport capacities review being undertaken by Lord Davies. We will not be complacent in recognising this as another threat to the Parish, but we have no grounds at the moment to consider it a serious one.

HS2 issues survey

Over 160 responses have now been compiled by Councillor Sandra Benton, and a summary can be seen in this graph (results in descending order, clockwise).

It’s interesting to see that while noise is the main concern, many other factors and issues worry residents. This survey was undertaken before the recent construction compound bombshell – see below. The results of the survey will be used as part of the Council’s negotiations with HS2 to win further mitigation measures than those currently planned.

HS2 Construction Maps revelations

Residents may have received notification from our local Action Group HHAG that at the recent HS2 Community Forum meeting new more detailed maps were presented to community representatives showing the further impact that HS2 will have on our Parish. This includes a 50 acre construction compound at Park Lane, a smaller compound at Truggist Lane, major earthworks, new access roads, viaduct detail, road bridge realignments at Waste Lane and Lavender Hall Lane and news that major construction traffic will use the Kenilworth Road in both directions to feed materials into the major compound via a new roundabout at the Park Lane / Kenilworth Road junction. These maps are now available to view and download at www.hhag.org.uk – remember to sign-up to receive updates.

There is so much detail to take in that the true impact is hard to imagine. The Council will be lobbying hard for more insight to help us fully understand what these revelations mean to the Parish and all who enjoy it.

Council meetings

The next Council meeting takes place at 7-45 on Thursday 25th July at the Reading Room. It’s an important time for Berkswell, so please attend if you’d like to participate in our decision making processes and contribute to the future of Berkswell.

Please take some time to view all areas of the site and let us know how we may improve the service which we are providing. We would also welcome your feedback regarding the website itself. Please complete the form on the contact page with your comments/suggestions.

Website last updated 17 June 2013