East Leake Mike Elliott 0115 937 6506 elliottnews@btconnect.com

CHRISTMAS LIGHTS LEFT ON ALL DAY. Christmas tree light decorations in parts of East Leake may be left on all day this year instead of being on timers regulating when they come on.

The parish council have supported an idea put forward , with the suggestion especially meaning the trees on the Village Green, the Rest Garden and Gotham Road together with the lights on all other trees.

The council have said they have no objection to the idea in principle but have stressed that the feelings of the traders supplying the electricity to the trees on their premises would need to be respected.

Coun. Mel Roper suggested to the council that they should seek help from volunteers in preparing the Christmas Tree lights in future.

The centre of East Leake is always well lit with festive decoration, these being brought to life at a well organised and superbly supported public ‘switch-on’ event towards the end of November each year.

The council have confirmed that Christmas lights paid for by traders and donated to the parish council are to be stored in the parish council Workshop.

GARDEN OF REST. Some progress is being made - but perhaps slowly - on the project in East Leake to improve the Garden of Rest.

Overgrown trees have been removed last autumn, and eventually the stumps were ground out.

Parish chairman Coun. Conrad Oatey says they then we waited for some of the fencing around the old playground to be relocated to the side and back of the Rest Garden.

Other tasks being tackled include to dig over the area to the left of the path, where the trees were removed.as well as seeding the front section as a lawn, planting around 50 colourful shrubs / plants in the remaining area, installing a shelter / seating area at the back of the area and to resurface the path.

Coun Oatey has confirmed the council were successful in being awarded £10,000 for this project by Tesco’s Bags of Life scheme and he says this should cover the work already done and the costs of the remaining tasks.

MAINTENANCE. East Leake parish council have accepted a new Maintenance Agreement for its website from Grasshopper Hosting at a sum of £15 a month.

GYPSUM APPLICATION. Plans by British Gypsum to extend their existing Mill Building at their Gotham Road site to enable the production of natural gypsum in lieu of synthetic desulphurised gypsum have been supported by the parish council at East Leake. The scheme also involved the removal of redundant plans and a small lean-to structure.

NEW BENCHES. Parish councillors at East Leake are looking at the possibility of earmarking £5000 in their budget for the next three years to allow repair and replacement of benches in the village conservation area. The parish have submitted an application to Notts County Council ’s Supporting Local Communities fund.

ON THE ELITE LIST. East Leake is to be added to the elite list of places in Rushcliffe that are included in the Growth Board area.

Three years ago the Borough agreed to the establishment of a Rushcliffe Strategic Growth Board and this has so far looked and admitted other parishes such as Bingham, Radcliffe on Trent, Cotgrave and West Bridgford.

Now it has been confirmed East Leake is to be added to the list of those involved.

The Strategic Growth Board will provide the strategic overview in relation to four key themes, aimed at ensuring it can promote, support and deliver the significant growth agenda within the Borough.

The key themes are given as Major infrastructure (roads, rail and broadband) , Business Growth, Employment/skill growth and Housing Growth.

The Board also has a role in the development and submission of any bids in relation to Growth Deal funding or other such applications that might be offered by the Local Enterprise Partnership or any replacement arrangements such as a future Combined Authority.

The Board will recommend future strategic priorities in relation to economic development and regeneration and would also support and monitor the future implementation of the housing delivery plan contained within the Core Strategy of the Council.

Mr lan Graham, Chief Executive of the Borough, says it is intended that the formation of the Board will provide the opportunity to explore, inform and consult emerging and on-going strategic priorities. It will also enable the Council to best ensure it secures a share of the future growth funding either independently, collaboratively or in partnership, particularly as it looks increasingly likely that future Government funding will be delivered through Local Enterprise Partnerships, Combined Authorities or devolved regional government.

It is expected that when the Board is established East Leake, it will include the chairman of the parish council and the clerk.

Coun. Simon Robinson, Deputy Leader of Rushcliffe Borough Council, has addressed the parish council at East Leake on Growth Boards and made numerous points to them, stressing that they are set up to appraise the needs of towns and villages in the Rushcliffe area. He said they brought together stakeholders under one board.

He said funding was set aside for Growth Boards and the first priority was to do a retail study to analyse what is missing in the village and it needs to get a good mixture of sales outlets and to raise vibrancy in the area.

Coun. Robinson said the Board would look to increase employment in the area by creating jobs, Identify priorities in the village, mentioning in particular the Health Centre and Education and went on to say Growth boards are individually tailored to each area and would liaise with all stakeholders with a connection the village such as planners, developers, employers, retailers schools and health.

Coun. Robinson said the East Leake Growth Board would be operational by May this year.

WOODGATE ROAD BUS STOPS. A request to East Leake parish council from a resident involving resiting bus stops on Woodgate Road has been supported.

The council’s Amenities Committee under the chairmanship of Coun. Mel Roper areed to support the request, especially in light of a new housing development in the area. Clerk Lesley Bancroft is liaising with Nottingham City Transport.

FLOWER TOWER ORDER. Providing a satisfactory report is received on lighting column testing, the parish council at East Leake are looking to arrange for additional flower baskets to be provided in the village this year. And the Amenities committee has approved an additional flower tower be ordered for siting at The Glebe.

PARKING DANGER. Strong concerns are being voiced on dangers caused by the amount of parking outside the village playing fields on Costock Road at East Leake.

The matter has been discussed again by the Amenities Committee of the parish council when members agreed the long standing problem still existed.

The committee were told that it was understood the East Leake Playing Fields Charity has written to opposition teams who visit the village and use the grounds to ask them to ensure their members park responsibly.

Coun. Mel Roper, chairman of the parish council committee, said it was felt by her members that marshalling by the Playing Fields would have to be provided.

Parish clerk Lesley Bancroft has written to the Charity to indicate the parish council’s concern and to ascertain what they are able to do to minimise the parking obstructions.

When matches are being played on the sports ground the on-site parking provision is always over-subscribed, leaving many motorists having nowhere else to park other than Costock Road, where often there can be up to 20 cars parked roadside.

It is understood that Notts County Council is looking at the parking issues at the bottom of Meeting House Close / Costock road.

REST GARDEN. East Leake parish council are continuing the scheme for improvements at their Rest Garden and have completed the second phase of the planting scheme. The shelter being provided has been ordered and the council has accepted the path at the garden needs resurfacing.

WINTER WONDERLAND. A full house of parents and students attended the performance of Winter Wonderland at East Leake Academy and which voted a massive success.

Academy principal Mrs Kathryn Hardy said the show encapsulated some of the wealth of talent they have here at the Academy, with it showcasing dance, drama and music from students from Years 7-13.

The evening was a complete sell out and was enhanced by the involvement of Brookside Primary School, who, said Mrs Hardy, totally blew them away with their singing voices and stage presence. Added the Principal: “Thank you to all who were involved including all the behind the scenes support too.”