Category: Parish Council News

 

Reminder: Bridford Village VE Day Celebrations

On Thursday 8^th May 2025 Pip Morrison will fly the VE Day flag from the Church tower and it will stay up for a week: it is a very handsome flag.

At 3.30pm on Thursday 8^th May, there will be a VE Day Tea Party in the Village Garden – a time to mingle with neighbours, wear fancy dress and take home a candle – a lamplight of peace – to light with the rest of the country at 9.30pm. Everyone is welcome.

The following evening, Friday 9^th May, step back in time to 1945 with the Bridford Inn. Live music from the fabulous Hummingbirds, a 40s style menu and fancy dress.

We look forward to sharing this time with you all.

PLEASE NOTE THAT CHAT IN IS CANCELLED FOR THURSDAY MAY 8TH AS IT IS VE DAY,

INSTEAD PARISHIONERS ARE CORDIALLY INVITED TO THE VE DAY TEA PARTY IN THE VILLAGE GARDEN

Annual Parish Meeting

The Annual Parish Meeting will take place on Monday 2^nd June 2025 from 6.30pm upstairs in the Village Hall, before the regular Parish Council meeting which starts at 7pm. This is a meeting for the people of the parish and an opportunity to raise and discuss parish affairs. All parishioners are very welcome to attend.

Devon County Council Locality Funding

Bridford Parish Council was delighted to receive funding from the 2024/5 DCC Locality Fund for a new picnic bench for the play park and for hosting the FREE Community Celebration on Saturday 17^th May at the Village Hall (12-3pm) to which all Bridford parishioners are invited. Many thanks to County Councillor Jerry Brook for supporting our bids.

Dog fouling in the village

Several parishioners have raised the issue of dog poo in the village, the churchyard and the woodland park. Please could dog owners be mindful of this and ensure that dog poo is picked up and dogs are not left unattended around the village. It is unpleasant for all those living, working and playing in the village and can pose a health threat to young children; please help us to keep the village clean.

 

Time to celebrate our community in brilliant Bridford!

It was a house (and a view) that brought us here 6 years ago, but we soon realised we’d landed in a wonderfully welcoming community. Maybe it’s in part the challenges of the weather and the lanes, the deer and the potholes that bring folk together, but the Bridford community thrives way beyond helping a neighbour out or shifting a tree off the road! There are 3 crucial places in the village: the well-resourced village hall, the beautiful church and the fantastic Bridford Inn – our community centre in so many ways (and my husband’s second home!) But there’s so much more besides: the Woodland Park and the Bridford

Trust, the sweetest village garden, our play park, and allotments with the best views imaginable. None of these can thrive without the wonderful people of the village – people like you, dear reader – who keep everything going and form our supportive community. People like you make possible the groups and events that happen in the village – for example (and this isn’t an exhaustive list!) the long-established Twinning Society, the Bridford Fete and its committee, the Wassail, the ongoing delights of Bridford Wives, Chat

In, our Bridford community Larder, the wildlife and tree wardens, the book exchange in the phone box, the clothes bank, the Snow Team, Unity Magazine keeping us all in touch, and, of course, the Parish Council which I am now delighted to be part of.

SAVE THE DATE – Saturday May 17^th 2025 12pm-3pm –

Community Celebration

– a delicious lunch and an afternoon of celebration for all the community

So, let’s celebrate the splendid people who give up their time to plan events, bake cakes, organise rotas, help out, put things up/take things down, provide lifts, report problems, sort problems and make Bridford brilliant.

On Saturday, May 17th you – and everyone in and around Bridford – is invited to join us from 12pm for lunch and an afternoon of activities in and around the Village Hall for a Community Celebration. There will be a delicious Ploughman’s Lunch with drinks and sweet treats too, along with displays and photographs celebrating village life, activities for children, music, and happy chatting – all to showcase and celebrate volunteering and community in Bridford. The event will be FREE – thank you Devon CC for their help in making this possible through Locality Funding.

If you or your group would like to put up a display, showcase your organisation, share village photos, offer an activity, or help out in any way we would love to hear from you – please contact me,

Cllr. Pippa Marriott on marriott.bpc@gmail.com.

We have been informed by DCC Highways that there will be two road closures on Tuesday 25th March 2025. Bridford Bridge will be closed in the morning then reopened in the afternoon, and Sowton Cottage Bridge will be closed in the afternoon only.  Please see further details in the letters and maps below.

Consultation Letter – Bridford (00697)

Consultation Letter – Sowton Cottage (00699)

 

VE Day celebrations May 2025

BRIDFORD VILLAGE VE DAY CELEBRATIONS

On Thursday 8^th May 2025 Pip Morrison will fly the VE Day flag from the Church tower and it will stay up for a week: it is a very handsome flag.

At 3.30pm on Thursday 8^th May, there will be a VE Day Tea Party in the Village Garden – a time to mingle with neighbours, wear fancy dress and take home a candle – a lamplight of peace – to light with the rest of the country at 9.30pm. Everyone is welcome.

The following evening, Friday 9^th May, step back in time to 1945 with the Bridford Inn. Live music from the fabulous Hummingbirds, a 40s style menu and fancy dress.

We look forward to sharing this time with you all.

PLEASE NOTE THAT CHAT IN IS CANCELLED FOR THURSDAY MAY 8TH AS IT IS VE DAY, INSTEAD PARISHIONERS ARE CORDIALLY INVITED TO THE VE DAY TEA PARTY IN THE VILLAGE GARDEN

Tree Planting in the Village Playpark

Have you been to the village playpark recently? If you have, you may have noticed a small copse of trees have been planted at the far end by the hedge. Following a Parish Council consultation on ideas for the playpark, it was agreed that planting a few trees would be beneficial for people and wildlife. The trees were sourced from Devon Wildlife Trust and planted in January. The trees are a combination of birch, crab apple, rowan and maple, giving spring blossom and autumn colour.

The spring flowers will provide a vital source of nectar to pollinating insects such as bees, beetles and moths. Helping the insects in turn helps insect eating species such as swallows and bats. The berries in autumn will be foodstuff for a large range of birds including blackbirds and song thrushes. The rowan tree alone provides one of the most important food sources for fruit eating birds in the UK, so this is a great tree to plant for wildlife.

These trees are part of a wider framework to encourage biodiversity in the area. Connected habitat is vital for encouraging wildlife. The copse is small, but it will link up with other areas that are managed sympathetically for nature, supplying wildlife corridors through the landscape. We hope that in a few years’ time you will be able to sit under the shade of these trees and watch as birds flock to eat the berries.

Many thanks to Lucy for sourcing and Stephen and Lucy for planting the trees which were provided free of charge by Devon Wildlife Trust.

TDC Carton Recycling Trial

Under new Government ‘Simpler Recycling’ reforms, all English local authorities will be required to collect the same set of dry recyclables. From March 2026, TDC must include cartons in kerbside recycling collections. From February 2025 they will be running a trial to test the most efficient and cost-effective way to do this. Approximately, 4700 households have been selected to take part. They will be contacted directly and given instructions and a pack of bags to collect their cartons. The streets included have been selected according to which vehicles collect the recycling. This is so they can monitor the impact on the efficiency of different sized collection vehicles. Some streets from the rural outskirts of Bridford have been selected along with other villages in the area. Participants in the trial will be able to recycle drinks cartons such as those used to contain juices, smoothies and milk and liquid food cartons such as those used to contain soup, custard and tomatoes and pulses. The cartons collected will be recycled at the only dedicated recycling facility in the UK, in West Yorkshire. Further information can be found at www.teignbridge.gov.uk/cartonrecyclingtrial

Next meeting

The next Bridford Parish Council meeting is on Monday 3^rd March 2025 at 7pm in Bridford Village Hall and members of the public are very welcome to attend.

 

Please note the new email address for the Clerk at Bridford Parish Council: [email protected]

Precept

At the January meeting the budget was discussed and the Precept – the funding which the Parish Council requests from Teignbridge District Council each year – was agreed. There was much discussion about the cost-of-living crisis, in conjunction with the rising cost of providing services against the need to meet the necessary expenditure of the council. With all these things in mind, a modest increase to the Precept was agreed, taking the total amount requested to £13442 for 2025; an increase of 10% on last year.

Facebook

Bridford Parish Council has a new Facebook page where we will share news from the Parish Council and updates about road closures etc. The link is: https://www.facebook.com/share/14dwub14eC/?mibextid=wwXIfr We will also share relevant items to the Teign Valley Facebook group.

Gritting team

Many thanks to the team of volunteers, including new members, who are continuing to work hard to ensure Pound Lane is gritted in the icy weather. Please take extra care when driving in icy conditions.

Potholes and drains

Many thanks to parishioners who continue to support the Parish Council by reporting issues online and volunteering to clear out blocked drains etc, your help is much appreciated.

If you come across a problem, such as a pothole or blocked drain, please report it to Devon County Council online at:

Report a problem https://www.devon.gov.uk/roads-and-transport/report-a-problem/

If you are reporting an emergency that requires immediate attention, please call them on 0345 155 1004. An emergency on the highway is defined as something that is very likely to present an imminent threat to life or serious injury or serious damage to property.

Wishing all our parishioners a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Best wishes,

Bridford Parish Council

Weather Ready and Parish Emergency Plan

Please see the link below for advice from the Met Office to help households prepare for the winter weather. The advice covers helping people take care of health and wellbeing, preparing their homes and gardens for weather changes and how to get out and about safely:

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/warnings-and-advice/weatherready

Bridford Parish Council are also in the process of putting together a Parish Emergency Plan which will help to ensure that everyone knows what to do, who to contact and how best to help in the event of any type of emergency, including weather related.

Acorn Community Support funding

Bridford Parish Council recently put in an application to Devon County Council locality fund to support Acorn Community Support to widen their offer to parishioners in Bridford and the wider Teign Valley who are carers and were delighted to receive £1100 for Acorn to use to set up regular carer peer support groups. Many thanks to County Councillors Jerry Brook and Frank Letch who supported our application.

The October Parish Council meeting was held on Monday 7^th October 2024 and these were the key points of discussion:

Snow team for Bridford – plea for additional volunteers

We have a very good snow team in place but need a few more volunteers to help run the gritter when needed as some members have moved away from the area, and it is always useful to have additional members to call upon should help be needed. As Bridford is not on the main gritting route, we rely on the volunteers to keep the roads to Bridford open in the cold weather. Please contact Tamsin Mowat, Clerk to Bridford Parish Council on [email protected] if you are able to help.

Reporting Highways issues

As the weather is changing, just a reminder to please report any issues you notice on the roads, such as potholes, drainage, overgrown vegetation, etc. directly to Devon County Council Highways department on: https://www.devon.gov.uk/roads-and-transport/report-a-problem If you are reporting an emergency that requires immediate attention, please call 0345 155 1004. An emergency on the highway is defined as something that is very likely to present an imminent threat to life or serious injury or serious damage to property.

You can also find out the latest information about planned road works and road closures here: https://one.network/

Clothing bank and recycling/disposing of large items

Many thanks to all those who have contributed items to the clothing bank at Bridford. Just a reminder to please double bag items before donating them in order to keep them dry and in good condition in the wet weather.

Larger items that are not suitable to be donated can be taken to Devon County Council recycling centres at Newton Abbot https://www.devon.gov.uk/wasteandrecycling/centre/brunel-road-recycling-centre and Exeter https://www.devon.gov.uk/wasteandrecycling/centre/exton-road-recycling-centre or collection of large items, such as beds, mattresses and white goods, can be arranged from your home for a fee; see Bulky waste collections by Teignbridge District Council here: https://www.teignbridge.gov.uk/recycling-and-waste/special-collections/bulky-waste-collections

Fountain Forestry have instructed Euroforest Ltd. to undertake log clearance work at the Laployd and Smithacott Plantation near Tottiford Reservoir from 4th October 2024. The work is due to be completed in a few weeks, weather dependent. Lorries will need to travel up from the Teign Valley Road (B3193), up Pound Lane and through the village to access the site and return that way too. There will be signs in the village to direct the lorries. This should complete the work that was started last year and further work in this area is not due to take place for another 5 or 6 years.