Hurst Parish Council news - March 2025

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Berrylands Pond Update

Over the last few years, and with the active support of our MSDC Ward Councillors (latterly Cllr Geoff Zeidler), the Parish Council has been seeking the restoration of the Berrylands Farm Pond at Sayers Common. It has increasingly been lost in the undergrowth, along with the Sayers Common village sign. The change in the MSDC grounds maintenance contractor to Glendale has provided the opportunity for some of the undergrowth and trees to be cleared, and for the volunteers of our local Woodland Flora and Fauna Group to now focus on improving the health of the pond. The Group are always looking for volunteers so please contact the Office if you wish to help. Meanwhile, the village sign needed a good clean. The Parish Council has taken it down and the SCVS have very kindly volunteered to repaint it.

Hurst Meadows Butterflies

Weekly from April to September, volunteers walk the same route recording numbers and species of butterflies. This helps us monitor the health of the Meadows as a habitat for wildlife. The data is then sent to Butterfly Conservation to form part of the national picture. If you are interested in taking part in spotting and recording these beautiful insects, find out more on Thursday 27 March 1.30 - 3.00 pm Village Centre, Hurstpierpoint.

To read the full newsletter, pick up your copy of March’s Hurst Life or click the images to enlarge them.

Hurst Parish Council newsletter - January 2025

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Here we Come A-Wassailing...

January can be a dark and depressing winter month. Maybe this is why our ancestors came up with all sorts of communal festivities to lighten the gloom!
Wassailing is an old Twelfth Night custom to ensure a good apple harvest in the year ahead through singing, processing and generally having fun. This aims to frighten away the bad spirits and encourage the trees to produce lots of fruit.
The second (free!) Hurstpierpoint Wassail will be taking place in Hurst Meadows and the Millennium Garden on Saturday 11th January 2025.
Please come along and join us at the evening Wassail, bring LED torches and lights (no flames please) and/or the preceding Wassail Workshop.
For more information or to sign up for the workshop visit: www.hurstpierpoint-pc.gov.uk/wassail, or contact the Parish office team.

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More information about the ancient custom of wassailing can be found on the National Trust website: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/discover/history/art-collections/wassailing-ritual-and-revelry

To read the full newsletter, please pick up your copy of Hurst Life or click the images to enlarge them.

Hurst Parish Council news - November 2024

Speed Indicator Display

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The Parish Council owns and operates a Speed Indicator Display (SID) which is placed at different locations throughout the parish, and the data is collected for analysis. Between 26th April and 21st May 2024, the device was located on Cuckfield Road, Hurstpierpoint, recording 52,800 recorded vehicles, 3598 of which exceeding the speed limit, 332 of those by more than 10mph. One vehicle was recorded at 74MPH! Between 4th July and 1st August 2024, the SID was positioned on Reeds Lane in Sayers Common, where of the the 37,329 vehicles recorded, 6,490 were speeding, with 163 of those travelling more than 10mph over the limit.

According to www.think.gov.uk/themes/speed, speed contributes to around one in four fatal collisions on our roads and kills or injures 58 young people every week. We urge everyone to be mindful of their speed when travelling through our villages.

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South Avenue Recreation Ground

The hammock in the play area has been repaired, and with the help of Section 106 money two new larger waste bins have been installed. We have also received confirmation of additional section 106 money and generous funding from the Hurst Society to plant the new avenue of lime trees.

To read the full newsletter, please pick up your copy of November’s Hurst Life or click the images to enlarge them.

Hurst & Sayers Common Parish Council news - October 2024

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Memory Café Court Bushes Community Hub

We were so pleased that a joint project between the Parish Council, Sussex Vale Rotary Club and the local AgeUK led to the first of the reinstated monthly memory cafes taking place on 3rd September 2024. These are aimed at people who are experiencing memory loss whether they have a diagnosis or not and their families/partners/carers. These get togethers are informal and fun as well as providing support and advice.
We know there are many of you in our villages living with memory loss and that you and your loved ones often feel lonely and cut off from the rest of the community. Please come along to your local Memory Cafes where you will receive a warm welcome. These take place at Court Bushes Community Hub, Hurstpierpoint, BN6 9TH on the 1st Tuesday of the month and at Adastra Hall, Hassocks, BN6 8AG on the 3rd Wednesday of the month. To find out more please call 01444 450248, email midsussex@ageukwsbh.org.uk or ask in the Parish Office.

Community Grants

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A reminder that the Parish Council awards small grants to local voluntary groups and charities who need f inancial assistance and who provide services which directly aim to improve the quality of life of residents in our Parish. Grant applications are considered at our regular Community Engagement Committee Meetings. The next deadline for submitting a grant application is 31 October 2024. Further information and guidance on applying for a grant is available on our website www.hurstpierpoint- pc.gov.uk/services-information/grants or ask in the Parish Office.

To read the full newsletter please pick up a copy of October’s Hurst Life today or click the images to enlarge them.

Hurst & Sayers Common Parish Council newsletter - June 2024

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The Parish Council owns and manages several of the local recreation grounds in Hurstpierpoint and Sayers Common, including Reeds Lane Recreation Ground, which has a history of flooding and damp ground conditions. A project is therefore underway to install an underground drainage solution that will improve these issues. This drainage work is currently out to tender. Consequently, no date has been finalised for the works yet, but it is hoped they will happen this Summer or Autumn. Once the ground has settled, the Parish Council will move forward with completing the second phase, installing new play equipment to make the site even more of a destination for fun activities. New bike racks are also being installed outside the Village Shop which recently celebrated its ten-year anniversary. It is a really valued community asset so please support it and, if you haven’t been, do visit.

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Hurstpierpoint Village Centre

Next to the Library on Trinity Road is the Village Centre with its large main hall with a newly sparkling wooden f loor. There are so many activities open to the public here from ballroom dancing to gymnastics, martial arts to knitting and Pilates to yoga. If you are keen to join in with a new social activity, have a look at our website to see what is on. The Club Lounge, home of the Hurstpierpoint Pre-School, is very well used but there is availability for the Conference Room which is just £28 to hire during the day for a five-hour session, which falls to £21 if ten sessions are booked in a row. It has state of the art audio visual equipment to hold Teams and Zoom meetings as well. Here is the Friday morning art class…

To read the full newsletter click the images to enlarge them or grab your copy of June’s Hurst Life.