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P3 Update
The quarterly update for P3
Its great to see that we are appreciated. Sorry couldnt get photos copied across.
Quarterly Update: Winter 2009/2010 Is it 2010 already? I hope that everyone has had a nice holiday season and that you are making the most of this cold weather! Spring is on the way and we are looking forward to another year of hard work and achievements. Of course it will be hard to beat this year! However it is never too early to send in your work proposals in time for January to reserve a grant. Remember it is on a first come first serve basis so make sure that you get it in early. BVPI 178 November saw the Community Action Team undertaking their biannual “Best Value Performance Indicator” surveys where over the course of a year, we randomly survey 5% on the entire network. That does not sound like a lot however it means on average I have around 50km to walk each time and of course when you walk to the end of a path, most of the time you need to walk back to the car so the distance is effectively doubled! The results are used as a way to judge how well the County is doing as whole in keeping routes open and obstruction free. The results are presently being processed and analysed but so far it doesn’t look too bad. The biggest failure appears to be waymarking which is something we can all help with so if you have any ideas for waymarking improvements within your area then please feel free to get in touch. Don’t forget… Don’t forget to get your end of year claims in as it is important that we reimburse all outstanding funds before the end of tax year otherwise you may find that it is delayed. New Walking Maps Castle Hedingham & Sible Hedingham have completed a joint venture and produced a map for each parish that interlink with each other. There was a launch party towards the end of November where relevant parties from each parish were invited to attend. The maps are available locally and show promoted routes in the local area.
Work Party News Bocking
Our volunteer group of the year, Friends of the Flitch Way, have been busy as usual setting a high standard of what can be achieved. Their biggest project in this period has been their clearance work on a footpath in Bocking (Braintree) at the end of Convent Lane. This path had been overgrown with scrub & black thorn for the last 40 years and as a result local people had walked on the field edge parallel with the definitive line. When given the opportunity the Friends jumped at the chance and spent one day a week for four weeks clearing the route much to the delight of local people. The result was a lovely lane following an historic ditch before joining a network of footpaths & bridleways that ultimately avoid busy roads. Whilst doing the clearance, the Friends managed to fill over 20 sacks with rubbish, removed car parts including bumpers, recovered 2 motorcycles and disturbed 1 bee nest. Local people are now frequently enjoying this lane and the office has received compliments for their work – it was much appreciated and a job well done. Thank you!
Coggeshall Coggeshall P3 group have been getting stuck into their (massive) local network and recently installed some steps just off from the Essex Way. The path runs adjacent to a busy access route used by large trucks that are based in the quarry. The path (FP33) had a rather steep slippery bank to climb up after using a dedicated small pedestrian bridge and as a result, many people opted to use the larger vehicle bridge instead. This poses some obvious safety issues and as a result Coggeshall P3 has opened the route up to users. After: Well done chaps, the steps look great!
Byway Clearance Day – Bardfield Saling Janet Hill (Braintree area officer) had flagged up Byway 5 as a possible project for volunteers in order to improve the route for all users. Together we performed a site visit and agreed that the byway would benefit from clearance work and some minor drainage. The plan was to thin out the scrub (mostly blackthorn and bramble) from the south boundary that had built up over the years that had not only reduced the width of the byway but also restricted the usable surface. When scrub encroaches on a byway in this way, it means that all users are concentrated onto one track way and can result in damage to the surface. The 29th Jan was chosen for the main work party to take place and invites were sent out all over the county asking for help. The Friends of the Flitch Way joined us a week early to make a start by brush cutting the heavier parts and digging some drainage channels at the worst affected areas. This allowed the water to drain from the ruts in the hope that it will eventually dry out before the ruts get worse. On the 29th we were joined by a hardy group despite the wet weather and potential of snow later in the day! Representatives from Shalford, Great Saling, Felsted and Coggeshall attended alongside individuals from organised user groups such as Essex Bridleways Association and the Trail Riders Fellowship. Charlotte Fellingham (CAT manager), Jason Botelho (CAT Officer), Simon Taylor (Enforcement Officer) and Janet Hill (PRoW Officer) also attended to lend a hand. Below are various photos from the combined days.
Training Courses The training courses that are available in February are now all full, but if there is anything you think you would like to learn more about then please contact me and we’ll see if it is possible to provide something for you.
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