This page will be used to report on issues or council decisions that will have an impact on the village or surrounding area. Information will be added regularly, in line with reports in the Bramford Community News.

Rather than fill the page with text there is, where appropriate, a short note below on each subject and a link to allow you to view any appropriate document.

Annual Parish Meeting  27 April 2010:

This year the Parish Meeting will take place in the Church Room on Tuesday  27 April.  The chairman will give his report on the past year along with the Parish accounts and there will be a presentation about the work of the River Gipping Trust given by their treasurer,  Spencer Greystrong.  The history of the Gipping navigation and the current work of the trust in maintaining the river is of interest to those of us living by its banks.

Safe crossing in The Street: Update 23-02-10

The Bramford Community Group (BCG) have been investigating safer crossing options in The Street between Gippingstone Road and the Co-op.  There is a particular need to allow the residents of Cherryfields to feel more secure whilst crossing the road.

After a meeting with Suffolk County Council Highways it appears that there is only one viable option.  That is to increase the pavement width near the drop kerbs South of the Co-op and on the Northern side of Gippingstone Road.  This will reduce the crossing width to 6 metres in both cases.  It would reduce the amount of space available for car parking, but this would be minimal compared to having a zebra crossing installed.  A copy of the plan drawn up by SCC can be found at Street crossing plan

If you have any concerns about this proposal please contact the Parish Clerk.  Those residents in the Street directly affected will be contacted individually.  The matter will be formerly discussed at Parish Council at its 15 March meeting.

Lawn Cemetery extension:  Update 23-02-10

The lawn cemetery is getting full and the Parish Council will have to extend it into the field between the existing cemetery and the houses on Bullen Close.  Plans for this are available to view at the Parish Room.  Please contact the clerk if you wish to look at these or make any comment.  Houses bordering the cemetery have already been contacted by letter.  

Options for affordable housing or a woodland burial site have been suggested, but have not yet been considered by the Council.  Neither of these would go ahead without further consultation.

National Grid - Proposed overhead power lines 04-02-10:

We now have more information about the proposed new power lines from Bramford to Sudbury. There are four suggested routes and these all start from the sub station at the top of Bullen Lane and travel West. The Parish Council takes the view that the new lines should follow the existing route rather than take another line across the Suffolk countryside.  We have also asked that more visible consideration should be given to putting the lines underground.

Chairman's Annual Report 2009

The following links will take you to the full report, accounts and presentation

Report

Income and expenditure

Balance sheet

Boundary Committee report update 12-02-10:

The Minister of state has now ruled that the twin proposals for a unitary Suffolk must go back to Suffolk for a consensus to be reached as to whether the single or dual unitary model should be used.  A Ministerial decision that has decided nothing after the expenditure of much money and effort.  The Parish Council has no idea what further consultation may be needed, but will take its part when invited.  Our position remains unchanged at present from our original submission.

Our original submission is at Boundary committee II .

Budget 2010-11:

The Council has agreed to an increase in the budget of 3% for the year.  Although we have many requests to fund more activities we are concious that a large rise this year would be out of line with most peoples pay expectations.  The 3% rise will mean an increase of 90P per month on the parish rate for an E band property.  More information will be given once we agree on the precise allocation of this money.