Bishopstone

PARISH PLAN - Bishopstone Group Parish Council comprising Kenchester, Bishopstone, Bridge Sollers, Byford and Mansell Gammage are working to produce a Parish Plan. This was the message given to 31 people who attended the public meeting held at the Lord Nelson Inn on Wednesday, April 9. We were told that 95% of all the questionnaires returned last year indicated that our community wanted to be involved in the recycling of their waste material and that this meeting was being held to support that aim. Tony Lindsey-Jones of Herefordshire Council was introduced and he gave an interesting talk on the new 'kerbside' collection service recently introduced by the council. This service covers 50 per cent of all households, but these households are in the urban areas because the cost to cover rural areas increases by three times we were told. Kenchester will be the only village in our group to have the new service. Mr Lindsey-Jones said that each household in the county produces one tonne of waste per year on average and that this figure increases by three per cent annually. It was no longer possible to use land-fill sites as there were none available in the county. Alternative means had to be found and recycling was the prime aim. After his talk the speaker invited questions. A varied and sensible range of questions were answered in an honest and respectful manner making the evening interesting and informative. To finish off the evening a buffet was enjoyed and the reaction to the evening was one of satisfaction. Should there be a need to know more about Herefordshire Council's waste collection service then call 01432 261769. Our next village plan meeting, in May, will be about a need for a community centre and this will be announced by letter again.

WHACKY WALKERS -- A walk has been organised for Saturday, April 26 at Weobley starting at 10.30am. Meet at the public car park in Bell Square ( below the Red Lion Hotel). This is an easy two-hour walk over fields and roads. There are six stiles. Be prepared for muddy conditions if there is rain in the preceding days.