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Burghfield & Mortimer Newsletter
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Mortimer marks VE Day 80 on 8 May |
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Speed Limit Reduction
I'll use my survey results to create a petition to colleagues, suggesting we reduce the speed limit along The Street Mortimer, outside St Mary's school, during school drop-off and collection. If that's supported, our "20 mph where residents want it" process should follow.
If you support the change, but haven't seen/done the survey, or have concerns about traffic speed elsewhere in the ward, you can still tell us by completing the short (promise!) survey. We can only consider a speed limit reduction to 20mph in 30mph areas, but there are other options. I've been sent a Goring Lane speed reduction petition by Wokefield Parish Council. |
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Helping with the parish council/volunteer run Mortimer Speedwatch. |
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Have Your Say On Bus Services
The council wants to hear your views on bus services/the bus network. Even if you told is via this earlier survey you'd use a No.2/2A route extension to Mortimer train station and/or St Mary's school, Mortimer, if it existed, I'd urge you say so in this new services survey too - as belt and braces. You can also provide any other feedback on your experience, of course. This survey closes at midnight on Sunday 31 August and "should only take 5 minutes", I'm told. |
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I've created a 'what to recycle where' guide that aims to supplement, not replace, other council and third party guidance and highlight choices where they exist.
I've included detailed and honest answers to questions I've received on the council’s approach to waste and recycling. These cover the planned change to a 3-week bin collection, green waste charges, fly tipping, pests and how other councils collect and deal with waste and recycling and their success level. |
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More Questions?
As always, feel free to table any directly to me, or publicly on the online forum HERE. There's a chance to discuss the topic at drop-ins, during the daytime in Burghfield and at the weekend in Mortimer: |
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I'm pleased to announced that we now invite individuals and groups to join our regular climate forum, previously offered only to town and parish councils. We think it's a chance to add more content and hear different experiences.
The sessions, running every six weeks on Wednesday lunchtime (12.30 - 13.30) online via Teams, usually comprise updates from us, a presentation/guest speaker and a discussion.
- 30th July 2025, 12.30 to 1.30pm
- 10th September 2025, 12.30 to 1.30pm
- 22nd October 2025, 12.30 to 1.30pm
- 3rd December 2025, 12.30 to 1.30pm
If you, your group or someone you know wants to attend please email [email protected] at least 48hrs ahead of the session.
The events will appear HERE, on the West Berks Green Exchange, the Green Hub and in our Environment Newsletter. I've asked for these sessions to be recorded - for those for whom a lunch break is wishful thinking/a time where you eat whilst on a conference call.
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Background
Last November, the government started a process of local government rationalisation. It sought to convert remaining ‘two tier’ councils (like Oxford and Hampshire), where there’s both county and district council, each doing different activities, into unitary authorities that (like West Berkshire) do them all. The council types are described HERE. It said it also wants smaller unitary authorities to merge to create ones that serve about 500,000 people, for cost saving and efficiency.
West Berks Council, whilst not asked to respond, mindful of its continued cost pressures and small size, reviewed the pros and cons of various options with its senior staff. We decided to proactively partner with South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils to propose a solution to both the government's wishes.
The proposal, with a working title of Ridgeway Council, would create a single unitary authority serving between 424,000 and 562,000 residents by 2040. Ridgeway is however only one of 3 likely proposals, the others being an Oxford county-wide unitary (that, if it went ahead, would mean Ridgeway would not) and a 3-unitary scenario, in which Ridgeway could. They are all summarised here Elsewhere in Berkshire, other existing unitaries (Bracknell Forest, Wokingham, Windsor & Maidenhead) are considering aligning. The leader of Reading Borough Council and our MP Olivia Bailey, have proposed that if West Berkshire joins Oxfordshire’s reorganisation, Tilehurst and suburbs should become affiliated with Reading. More on that here. So whilst it can't be said to be definitely happening, particularly given other unrelated government challenges/priorities at the moment, assuming change comes, we feel Ridgway is an excellent solution to deliver what's been asked for.
More information
There's a drop-in at Theale Library on 15 July from 18.30, where our CEO Joseph Holmes, will be on hand to explain all aspects of this topic. If you can make it, I'd recommend hearing it from him. If so, please register in advance HERE
If you can't make it, feel free to raise points on the online forum, at my drop-in or fill in the survey below. |
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In June the council carried out much-needed resurfacing of Reading Road from Hollybush Lane to the Goring Lane mini roundabout/Three Firs Crossroads, as part of its 3- year highway improvement and maintenance programme. Since it disrupted the No 2 bus service, the council laid on a shuttle bus during most the work. I'm sorry this wasn't announced in advance owing to a communication error and that it didn't run on the Monday.
Other planned resurfacing includes:
- The Hatch from 70m. south west to 70m. north east of the Theale Road junction;
- Pingewood Road South between Amners Farm South and the railway bridge;
- Goring Lane from 250m. to 300m. east of the Lockram Lane junction.
As usual I’ll aim to notify subscribers to my Facebook page HERE of future works just ahead of their start.
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7: Willink Leisure Centre Funding |
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Summary
As reported in issue 12, Mortimer, Burghfield and Sulhampstead parish councils, informed West Berks Council, of their intention to cut en bloc and without warning, their annual contribution, totally about £50K, towards Willink Leisure Centre services. They'd been paying this for about 28 years - see the last issue for the history. Whilst I'm a Mortimer parish councillor I wasn't at the meeting where this cut was decided and am not party to all the activities that have led to this decision. Perhaps the cause is a concern about a lack of influence in the centre's actitivities (my offer to resolve this was declined), the lack of a face to face meeting (these restarted in January) or because, as the chairman stated, the council might prefer to spend the money on "other things". Perhaps the thinking was that the annual saving on leisure can be used to pay the interest on a loan towards the cost of the proposed footoath/cycleway to Burghfield. £15K was added to this year's Mortimer parish council tax for the path. If the path/loan went ahead a similar figure would need to be paid annually for several years.
What's The Impact/What Next?
At a public meeting, someone asked what impact this cut will have on the leisure services. We hadn't had a chance to digest it at this point - it was a bit of a bombshell. I undertand that two weekly well-attended exercises classes for seniors that began in Mortimer earlier this year (I usually attend), may be loss-making and are hard to staff. These are difficult times for West Berks Council. This article discusses some of the latest challenges. So time will tell what the impact might be.
On a more positive note, if you have any feedback good or bad on the leisure service, just let me know, or table it on the forum HERE. |
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8: AWE Mobile Incident Alerts |
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AWE's layered communications, comprising sirens, radio broadcasts, and social media notices, that notifies the public of incidents at one or other of its sites, has been expanded.
A new opt-in mobile phone alert is, the council and AWE think, a quick and effective way to share information with the community. It notifies residents swiftly in the event of a potential emergency, and gives any action to take.
You can opt in to this service for the Aldermaston, Burghfield or both sites.
To sign up
- Text “A” to 0786 003 0391 to register for the Aldermaston site alert, text “B” for Burghfield or “Both” to register for both.
- If your sign up succeeds you will receive the response: “Thank you. Your mobile number has been added to the [Chosen Option] list.”
To unsubscribe
- Text "Stop A" to unsubscribe from the Aldermaston site alert, "Stop B" for Burghfield or "Stop Both" to unsubscribe for alerts from both sites.
To identify which (if any) site's Detailed Emergency Planning Zone you're in, please check this map.
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Fly Tipping
Our Waste team is exploring adding equipment to deter fly tipping. They've also provided the parish council and I with contact details for their Wokingham opposite numbers, because one of the problem areas lies over the county boundary. This has all come about through the work of parish councillor Sam Leadsom who outlined the issues in detail. |
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Landowner Liason
The parish council is trialling taking on the role of liason with landowners to ask for ditches to be cleared, to allow the Highway to drain propoerly. This seems a good example of how local knowledge can make processes more efficient. The templates are available to any other parish council who is interested in doing likewise. |
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In June West Berkshire Council agreed to adopt its Local Plan. The plans sets out how a district might develop over a 15 year period. it defines where new homes should go (none allocated here); specifies how to protect the countryside; guides sustainable growth; and supports local services/infrastructure. The documents are HERE. There’s background information and thoughts on what this means/might mean to Burghfield & Mortimer in the article midway through this previous newsletter.
The number of houses allocated within this plan does not take account of the additional country-wide "mandatory" housing targets issued by the Government in December 2024 - more HERE and HERE. West Berkshire Council, and others, objected to the scale of these proposals and awaits the Government's next move on them.
Some residents are petitioning councillors to ignore the Planning Inspector's allocation of land east of Pincents Lane, Tilehurst for housing. Whilst this is outside our patch, I sympathise. Unfortunately, the only way to challenge this decision is by Judicial Review, within 6 weeks of the plans adoption. And such a review would be of legal compliance only. If it was deemed legal that would be the end of the matter. |
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Our Highways staff led another resident engagement session at Burghfield Village Hall recently, with representatives of the Environment Agency and the Canals and Rivers Trust present. I felt it was a productive session, both discusing the council's plan, getting insights from those agencies and ideas from residents. The council hopes to carry out repairs it its surface water drainage in the area soon, which it hopes will help, but not in itself solve the more complex issues that lie at the root cause. |
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I submitted my petition against the closure to Co-Op Mortimer and Post Office on 14 May. Thanks if you signed it. I've heard no more from either party since, I'm afraid. I heard no more from our MP's office either, my having chased twice for the suggested meeting. Whilst I couldn't think what councils (West Berks or parish) could do to force anyone to run a post office here, on the about £14,000 allowance offered, I emailed Olivia Bailey asking her to request Post Office assure would be franchisees that they don't need to fund shop refit. No answer on that so far from her or them. |
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13: Small Electricals Recycling |
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Our recently-installed recycling bank for small electricals in Mortimer, is proving popular, with it quickly becoming full. I've asked for the emptying schedule to be changed to keep on top of it. If you find it full please email [email protected] to let them know.
Please do not dump any item that does not fit the bin, beside it. As with leaving clothes outside charity shops, such acts are fly tipping, which is a criminal offence. Please take them home or to the dump in such an instance. My thanks to parish Cllr Hill for his support of this initiative.
accepted items
✅ Kitchen appliances eg kettles, toasters ✅ Telecoms & computers DIY/garden electricals ✅ Radios & music players ✅ Remote controls ✅ Mobile phones ✅ Cables and chargers ✅Household appliances eg hairdryers, irons, electric toothbrushes ✅ cordless vacuum cleaners/their batteries
Not accepted:
❌ microwaves, large vacuum cleaners. ❌ TVs, computer monitors, batteries, light bulbs. ❌ broken glass or sharp components
The bank is are emptied by and the contents recycled by CSS Recycling, who have Authorised Treatment Facility acredditation. The bins come at no cost to the council.
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14: Neighbourhood Police "Have Your Say" |
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Home Page
To receive future newsletters by email, simply sign up at the foot of THIS HOMEPAGE. You can unsubscribe at any time. The homepage shows previous editions, FAQs and useful web links. |
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Raise issues with us at our monthly drop in/'surgeries' each first Saturday
- Nick is at The Baobab, West End Road, Mortimer from 10.00-11.00
- Vic is at Burghfield Library in School Lane, from 10.00-11.30.
Ask either of us about anything across the "patch". |
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Online Forum
Community Connect is an online forum that lets residents and parish councillors ask questions, suggest change and see what others are saying about the issues. It's a tool to both suggest an improvement or even have a polite moan.
I've run these with great success in the private sector as a way to foster open discussion. It supplements but does not replace, face to face and other communication. Not everyone uses Social Media, and those that do may use different platforms. The forum provide a one-stop shop for ideas and answers that might otherwise be missed.
There's instructions on the site on how to register but if it's not clear, just let me know. |
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16: The Real Boat That Rocked |
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Radio Caroline was a pioneer of pop radio in the 1960s, the first of several. It started the careers of Tony Blackburn and many others. Fellow Mortimer resident Richard Swainson played a central role in the early days. When the stations were outlawed in 1967, unlike the others, Caroline continued, as current boss Peter Moore put it, "as a point of principal and to play great music".
I spent a memorable weekend aboard its boat Ross Revenge in February as guest presenter for the monthly Radio Caroline North live broadcast - the tale is summarised HERE. I'm starting a (legal) afternoon show on the "Album" channel, 38-years after first climbing aboard via moth-eaten rope ladder, when it was in International Waters - more HERE. |
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