Fairlight Focus

Due to unforeseen circumstances the Afternoon Tea at Fairlight Lodge for members of TLC has had to be postponed from August 15th  to August 22nd.

The Committee sincerely apologises and hope that you can attend on the 22nd.      

Thank you.         

Shirley Gilbert

Several FAIRLIGHT artists are displaying their work in this great show on all this week

EXHIBITION & SALE of ART
SATURDAY 12th – FRIDAY 18th AUGUST 2023
ST. MARY’S CENTRE, LION STREET, RYE
FREE ENTRY – 10.30am to 5pm daily including Sunday

Dear resident

Please find attached the Parish Council newsletter for August 2023

If you have any queries please do not hesitate to contact me

Thanks

Pauline

Mrs P Collins

Proper Officer and Responsible Financial Officer
Fairlight Parish Council
Kerri, 35 Waites Lane, Fairlight, Hastings. TN35 4AX
Tel: 07487 822729  Email: fairlightparishcouncil@gmail.com
Working days: Monday, Wednesday and Friday 

Advance warning of closure of parts of Rockmead Road starting Monday 14th August

Drain jetting of the carrier drain for the pumps along Rockmead Road is going to be carried out 

This may well take all week and the truck will completely block the road for pedestrians as well as vehicles. It will be moving along as they work through the wells and will mean that residents will need to access their properties from whichever end of the road that it is clear to do so.
This will affect Rockmead Road from Smugglers way to number 22/ 17

Sorry for the inconvenience  but this is essential maintenance work on the pumping system that is preventing more properties going over the cliff.

Issy Horsley 
Fairlight Preservation Trust

Fairlight History Group and Fairlight Residents’ Association are jointly organising an important exhibition for Saturday 19^th August, at the Village Hall.

We have put together an interesting and expansive collection of material, including photographs, postcards, documents, maps, etc. As part of the exhibition, we will be using the new interactive screen to show some videos and play some music from artists who previously performed in the Hayloft at The Cove public house.

We wonder if any of you have any aerial photography of Fairlight Cove or the surroundings, preferably photographs, but video would also be of great interest. If you have any material you would be willing to share, can you kindly let us know.

Finally, if any of you have an hour or two to spare on the Saturday, we could always use the extra help.

Paul Draper (paulwdraper@gmail.com)

Dear Resident,

I recently found two emails in my spam folder. They were about Rother business but has been sent to my personal address. I marked them as “not spam” since when they have disappeared and I am unable to reply.

It is much better to use official Rother email addresses for council business –

Cllr Andrew Mier email Cllr.Andrew.Mier@rother.gov.uk

Cllr Tim Grohne email  Cllr.Tim.Grohne@rother.gov.uk

And our County Councillor –

Carl Maynard email Cllr.Carl.Maynard@eastsussex.gov.uk

If you have sent me an email to which I have not replied please get in touch again.

Best wishes,

Andrew

Cllr Andrew Mier

Rother District Council 
Southern Rother Ward
(The villages of Fairlight, Guestling, Icklesham and Pett)
07941-693737

Time for a site update.

Works are progressing well on site despite the weather and next week we are looking to commence the timber frame to plots 9, 10 and 11 with the crane on site on the 10th.

Plots 1 to 6 have had the plaster board fixed and the plasterers have started to plaster.

The roofs to plots 14 15 and 16 are nearly complete, the windows are in and the plumbing, electrical and carpentry 1st fix nearing completion.

Plots 12 and 13 foundations will be competed next week, followed by sub structure blockwork and the block and beam floor.

Lets hope for summer to return soon.

Regards

Piers

Piers Cowley (formermarketgarden@gmail.com)

Dear resident

Please note there will not be a meeting of the Community Hall Committee on Thursday 10th August.

The date of the next meeting will be Thursday 14th September at 7pm

Thanks
Pauline

Mrs P Collins
Proper Officer and Responsible Financial Officer
Fairlight Parish CouncilKerri, 35 Waites Lane, Fairlight, Hastings. TN35 4AX
Tel: 07487 822729  Email: fairlightparishcouncil@gmail.com
Working days: Monday, Wednesday and Friday 

Local NHS Hearing Aid Maintenance sessions are being held this week at:

Pett Village Hall between 10am and 11.30am on Wednesday 2nd August

Fairlight Village Hall between 10am and 12noon on Friday, 4th August

If you have an NHS Hearing Aid come along to collect your free batteries and have your aids checked, cleaned and retubed

Hello Fairlight,

I have attached the form for the Activate Summer Activity Days which are open to ALL.
Children aged 5 and under must be accompanied by a parent/carer.’Cost is £2 per child and you are invited to bring a picnic each day.
The form says we will start at 11am but we will finish at 1.30pm NOT 2.30pm.
Forms available on the day or print the one attached to complete and bring with you.

It would be good to have a rough idea of  how many children will be attending but not necessary. 

Wendy Hatch

Dear resident

Please click here for the agenda for the Parish Council’s Finance and Administration Committee meeting to be held on Tuesday 1st August 2023 at 7.00pm in the Village Hall.

All members of the Public are welcome to attend

ThanksPauline

Mrs P Collins
Proper Officer and Responsible Financial Officer
Fairlight Parish CouncilKerri, 35 Waites Lane, Fairlight, Hastings. TN35 4AX
Tel: 07487 822729  Email: fairlightparishcouncil@gmail.com
Working days: Monday, Wednesday and Friday 

Dear resident

Southern Water Fairlight Pathfinder Project Update.

Friday marked the first full meeting of the Southern Water Fairlight Pathfinder Group of which we are founder members. The group is now chaired by Sally-Ann Hart MP who is fully engaged in this project.

Much interesting work and detail was covered and two new engineering members of the Southern Water team with direct responsibility for Fairlight were introduced.

Things that will hopefully slow the flow of wastewater in our sewer system resulting, hopefully, in a big reduction of contaminated water spillages, will happen soon now. You will also notice increased activity by Southern Water and their contractors around the village as a large number of wrongly connected drains have been discovered among other anomalies.

Now for the really exciting news.

Within the next four weeks every household in Fairlight will receive a leaflet through the post explaining fully about the “leaky waterbutts” program and how they work. Fairlight has been allocated up to 1,000 of these with all costs being borne by Southern Water.

Shortly after you receive these leaflets engineers from Southern Water and their contractors will be knocking on doors and asking if they could survey your rainwater downpipes to see which ones would be suitable for a “leaky waterbutt”. They will, hopefully, also give you the option of converting any waterbutts you may already have. Then, if you’re agreeable, an order will be placed for the installation on your property. The installations will take place fairly quickly after completion of the survey. Remember that there will be absolutely no charge for any of this.

NB: All these people will carry official identification so please be sure to check it before allowing them on your property.

So look out for the leaflet where all details of this project will be found.

In the meantime anyone feeling like reading our joint authored report published earlier this year can find it by clicking on this link. 

https://www.southernwater.co.uk/media/7969/fairlight-pathfinder-technical-report-260123.pdf

Regards

Lower Waites Lane – Fairlight Cove – Maintenance Association

Dear resident

Please click here for the agenda for the next Parish Council meeting to be held on Tuesday 25th July at 7pm in the Village Hall.

All members of the Public are welcome to attend

Thanks

Pauline

Mrs P Collins
Proper Officer and Responsible Financial Officer
Fairlight Parish CouncilKerri, 35 Waites Lane, Fairlight, Hastings. TN35 4AX
Tel: 07487 822729  Email: fairlightparishcouncil@gmail.com
Working days: Monday, Wednesday and Friday 

Dear resident

Please click here for the agenda for the next Parish Council meeting to be held on Tuesday 25th July at 7pm in the Village Hall.

All members of the Public are welcome to attend

ThanksPauline

Mrs P Collins
Proper Officer and Responsible Financial Officer
Fairlight Parish CouncilKerri, 35 Waites Lane, Fairlight, Hastings. TN35 4AX
Tel: 07487 822729  Email: fairlightparishcouncil@gmail.com
Working days: Monday, Wednesday and Friday

The bowls club are hosting a quiz for our charity TheCommunity First Responders and invite people from the village to make up the last few tables…..Details on the poster.

I report that Jeff Pyrah is now the executive in charge of the development of Rother District Council’s (RDC) new Local Plan.

I have written to Rother’s chief executive and others pointing out that most people in the Fairlight area, Pett Level and downstream, wish to see the de-allocation of housing on Wakeham’s Pond Field as well as this being in RDC’s and the environment’s best interest.

RDC have already consulted on their new Local Plan with Parish Councils (I am informed that Fairlight PC have advised that they are in favour of de-allocation)  but are pushing the Public Consultation out from initially Jan 2023 then July 2023 to now Jan 2024.

This Consultation will be after Jeff Pyrah has conducted a review called “Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment (HELAA) when he will assess a large number of sites across the district for their ‘suitability’ and ‘availability’ under the Government set methodology which will include all of the current allocations.

He has confirmed he will consider my submission in his HELAA assessment that will be part of the draft Local Plan that goes before the Rother Planning Committee (who have already rejected unanimously the last Pond Field housing application) and onwards to be considered by a National Planning Inspector.

I am advised by my friend, a very experienced Local Planning Consultant, that the HELAA process involves a “call for sites” – that is, bids from landowners and developers for allocations – and all such bids are screened against a range of planning criteria. Although it is unusual that HELAA assessments de-allocate pre-existing allocations, in a situation like Wakeham’s Pond Field, with a National Planning Inspector ruling against the site only last year, it is possible that Jeff Pyrah may conclude that it would be a waste of time and RDC’s money to ask another National Planning Inspector to reconsider the issues all over again unless there is strong evidence that the reasons for refusal (upgrades to the system are required for the foul water flows from the development to be accommodated-para 49) have now been overcome, which everybody, including Southern Water, knows have not been. 

So my advice to people is to be patient, leave this process to unfold rather than pestering Jeff Pyrah at this stage, while our elected councillors, Tim Grohne and Andrew Mier,  who are both on the Rother planning committee with Andrew being its chairman, exercise their influence on our behalf.

Thank you for your support and do email  or call me with any queries. Lorne.finegolf@gmail.com  07803434283. 

Fairlight Open Gardens are delighted to announce an impressive £4248 was raised over the weekend earlier this month.

Over the next few days, 3 local charities, MOPP, Fairlight Playgroup & Nursery, and Community First Responders will each receive a cheque for £1400. The remaining £48 will be held to help start the 2025 Open Gardens project.

There are too many people to thank, but we must mention each and every one of the villagers who opened their gardens for this two-day event.

Special thanks, once again, to Ben and Sarah at  Just Property, for their continued sponsorship and to Olivier and Henry at The Cove for their support this year.

However, the biggest thanks must go to everyone who bought tickets for this event. We hope you enjoyed visiting some of the great gardens that Fairlight has hidden away, and that you had a wonderful weekend.   

Everyone at Fairlight Open Gardens looks forward to doing it all again, in 2025!

From Bob Scattergood

Fairlight Gardening Club Annual Show on Saturday 15th July 2023 – All welcome

Dear resident

Please find attached the Parish Council newsletter for July 2023

Thanks
Pauline

Mrs P Collins
Proper Officer and Responsible Financial Officer
Fairlight Parish Council
Kerri, 35 Waites Lane, Fairlight, Hastings. TN35 4AX
Tel: 07487 822729  Email: fairlightparishcouncil@gmail.com
Working days: Monday, Wednesday and Friday 

Dear Resident,

A man has been seen acting suspiciously in Waites Lane.

He approached a resident claiming that there was a missing tile on the roof. While in the garden he was seen lifting stones as if searching for a concealed key.

The police have been informed, ref 1101 06 97 2023

The man is white, local accent, age about 35, height about 5’ 10” (180 cm).

He was driving a small white van with no markings, but with a ladder on the roof.

While there may be an innocent explanation please don’t deal with cold callers who shoukd be reported to the police. Keep an eye out for suspicious activity and report any you see to the police.

Best wishes,

Andrew Mier

Dear resident

Please find attached the agenda for the above meeting to be held on Thursday 13th July 2023 at 7pm in the Village Hall

All members of the public are welcome

Thanks
Pauline

Mrs P Collins
Proper Officer and Responsible Financial Officer
Fairlight Parish Council
Kerri, 35 Waites Lane, Fairlight, Hastings. TN35 4AX
Tel: 07487 822729  Email: fairlightparishcouncil@gmail.com

Dear Resident,

This Rother Voluntary Action event is aimed at groups that provide activities, information, advice, guidance and support to residents.

Date 14 July

Online or in Bexhill

Cost: Free

The Future of Community Networks in Rother Tickets, Fri 14 Jul 2023 at 14:00 | Eventbrite

Best wishes,

Andrew

Cllr Andrew Mier
Southern Rother Ward
(The villages of Fairlight, Guestling, Icklesham and Pett)
Mistral, Shepherds Way, Fairlight TN35 4BB
01424-814178

Dear Resident,

Rother is consulting on proposals for dog controls across the district. The deadline for comments is Monday 31 July.

One proposal which may prove controversial is –

“Sports and Recreational Facilities”

We propose to ban dogs from sport and recreational facilities that are available in public open spaces, such as tennis courts, cricket, football and hockey pitches, gym equipment areas, BMX and skateboard areas in all of Rother. We have received complaints from football coaches that they have to “clean” football pitches before training or a match. Unfortunately, some dog owners don’t clean up after their dogs or don’t do so effectively. The exclusion would apply to football and cricket pitches when in use. The exclusion would only apply to the actual sports pitch or court and not the entire green area or ground.  Dogs would continue to have the same permissions to use the rest of the green space.”

I am not sure how this would affect shared recreational spaces such as Wood Field in Fairlight.

At Pett Level it is proposed to remove the restrictions on dogs on the beach.

To take part in the consultation please follow the link –

Best wishes,

Andrew

Local NHS Hearing Aid Maintenance sessions are being held this week at:

Pett Village Hall between 10am and 11.30am on Wednesday 5th July

Fairlight Village Hall between 10am and 12noon on Friday, 7th July

If you have an NHS Hearing Aid come along to collect your free batteries and have your aids checked, cleaned and retubed

Hi Fairlighters,

For those who did, or didn’t for that matter, get along to Fairfest’s Midsummer Party and Picnic on Saturday afternoon, here is a short video of the event. https://youtu.be/1QYrtt6AlUk

Chris

Please see attached notice of MOPP AGM to be held at Fairlight Village Hall onFriday 28th July 2023 at 11am:

Annette

Kind regards
Annette Holmes
Co-ordinator of Fairlight Friday Lunch Club
Marsham Older Peoples Project Charity
Mobile: 07703585329
email:mopps.fairlight@gmail.com

Our efforts to engage with Authorities regarding the former Market Garden Building Site.
Dear Residents – we are a network of neighbours who live next to the building site or on the Site Access Route. 
As many of us are walkers we meet mostly outside or talk online via the ‘What’s Going On In Fairlight’ Facebook Page, where photos and videos of various concerns are posted: the badgers, wildlife area, stream, trees, inconsiderate parking, noise nuisance, reversing lorries, blocked driveways, etc. We’ve recently started a short monthly walkabout, where we view the Site and its impact from resident gardens to offer support.

In April 2023 we asked Rother District Council Planning Officers to provide an update to the high number of villagers who took the time to read the Construction Management Plan (CMP) and completed a Breach of Planning Condition Complaints Form. Rother Officers continue to receive “high levels of correspondence” about the Site. No written updates have been provided.
We also contacted the Neighbourhood Policing Team and were told that Officers had visited the Site in April. No updates have been provided. We’ve been informed Laura Harrison is the main PCSO contact for Fairlight Village. Her email is laura.harrison@sussex.pnn.police.uk

A lot of the Site issues fall under the banner of Community Safety. We sent a rep to the Fairlight Parish Council meeting in March and have visited the Drop-in Social Hub twice; however we are unclear as to how the Parish Council’s Five Year Plan regarding crime, neighbourhood watch or parking problems is being implemented.

It would be helpful for any Authorities who visit the Site to spend 15 minutes ‘face to face’ with residents. We’ve been contacted by residents in Fairlight Gardens, Broadway, Smugglers Way, Bramble Way, Lower Waites Lane, Shepherds Way and Waites Lane with issues about how the development impacts on their daily lives, e.g. noise levels, inability to use their gardens, and the resultant stress. We do not speak with one voice and have a wide range of different concerns.
Residents with concerns about the LWL stream, drainage or flooding issues can contact the Lower Waites Lane Road Maintenance Association Chairman 

lowerwaiteslane@gmail.com

Residents with issues about the builders can contact Piers Cowley, the Site Manager for GemSelect, on formermarketgarden@gmail.com or you can also email Gino at futuresouthhomes.ltd@gmail.com

If you need help reporting any issues about the site you can contact our Southern Rother District Councillors: Cllr Andrew Mier Cllr.Andrew.Mier@rother.gov.uk or the newly elected rep Cllr Tim Grohne cllr.Tim.Grohne@rother.gov.uk

Best wishes, Paul Wilson-Patterson – ‘Village People’, Bramble Way, Fairlight Cove.

Continuing with the summer events in the village, next weekend sees the village residents opening their gardens for the ever-popular biannual Fairlight Open Gardens.For two days, Saturday and Sunday, July 1st & 2nd, between 11 am 

and 4 pm, 13 gardens will be open to walk around, relax in, eat, drink, and be merry!

Refreshments, including tea, coffee, cakes, savory snacks, ploughman’s lunches, hot dogs, homemade ice cream, and cold beers and wines are available at various gardens.

Plus of course, The Cove Pub and Restaurant will be open on both days from midday, with live music on Sunday.
There’s also the opportunity to buy local artwork, handmade jewelry, and even Funky Hen clothes.
Tickets, valid for all gardens on both days, are now available from The Village Stores and Garden Gems, plus at any of the gardens on the day, £8 per person, children free.
This event, kindly sponsored by Just Property, hopes to raise much-needed funds for local charities, including MOPP, Fairlight Playgroup and Nursery, and Community First Responders
.Here’s hoping the lovely summer weather continues, for what promises to be a wonderful weekend.

Dear Residents,

Works are progressing well on site.

The timber frame to plots 14,15 and 16 is complete with plumbing and electrical 1st fix well underway. The facia and soffit is ongoing and looking to start the felt and batten next week.

The dry lining has commenced in plots 6,5 and 4. and the roofing nearing completion.

Plot 11 substructure is ongoing however the retaining wall is a slow process as we can only cavity fill a small amount at a time otherwise we risk the wall ‘blowing’. Once the sub structure is complete we will block and beam with a view to starting the timber frames to 9,10 and 11 in  July.

Regards

Piers

 (formermarketgarden@gmail.com)