Chairman's Annual Report February 2006

It is customary at the AGM for the Chairman to review the past year’s activities of the Society.

We continue with our two walks each year, and in 2005 organised one within the village (walking private ground as much as possible).  We are grateful to the land owners who gave us permission to walk over their land.  In September we took an entirely different approach and nearly 40 of us visited or saw all of Mad Jack Fuller’s Follies at Brightling.  As always, we are grateful to Philip Message for having arranged our walks.

We continue to assist the Parish Council with the clean-up days they organise to held keep Benenden clean and free of litter; and keep members regularly in touch with events in our Newsletters.  Ernie Pollard has continued to supply regular articles about local history and the last war and we are very grateful to him for his continued interest.  I am also grateful to our Committee members who each carry out an important job in the running of BACS.

BACS is keen to organise other events for its members, families and friends and put on a film evening “Adventure in the Hopfields” with supporting programme in the village hall last November.  £500 was raised for charity which was split between Hawkhurst Cottage Hospital and Hospice in the Weald; and the organiser, Barry Littlechild, in place of a fee asked us to contribute to The Sherwood Park Primary School PTA in Tunbridge Wells.  Our money will help fund their “Grow your own school dinners” project which makes pupils more aware of where their food comes from, as well as getting them quality, home grown produce.

To continue our theme to raise awareness of Benenden Hospital in its centenary period, we are organising a social evening at their museum on 27 March.  Ticket application details are given in the latest BACS Newsletter.

BACS was established to raise community awareness, so as to help protect and sympathetically develop Benenden Village and Iden Green and to protect their environment in an ever more demanding and changing society.  The catalyst for its establishment was the future of the Fuggles Coach development, which had an important impact within the parish.

Benenden now has another development which requires a high profile to be adopted to help ensure that proper and long lasting decisions are sympathetically made.

There is no doubt that the Primary School needs to  be renewed and resited to cater for the teaching and pastoral requirements of the children of future generations and to help ensure that the location is safe for the children, parents and staff.  At the same time full consideration should be given to the changing needs of the village and the villagers.  Children spend a few short but critical years at the Primary School.  The staff spend (usually) a longer period at the school, but the majority of villagers spend an even longer time in Benenden and their needs should be carefully considered – especially with regard to access to amenity land and exposure to traffic.  For the elderly – and those who will grow old in Benenden – traffic safety is of particular interest and worry, especially when car ownership and movement of traffic is increasing so dramatically.

Benenden has been fortunate to have so many sites under consideration.  Two are under particular scrutiny at the moment and villagers are encouraged to join in the consultation and complete a questionnaire available from the TWBC web site.  I have copies available for those who do not use a computer.

Both sites are near to the village centre and to St. George’s Church and, inevitably where there is choice, different views prevail.

One site is the Glebe Field and land immediately to the east of it [called site 8].  That will remove an amenity made available over centuries to the villagers by permission of the incumbent vicar.  It will affect at least 3 public footpaths and encroach upon the high ridge above the recreation field – a site which is clearly seen, as it is the highest part of the village.  It might well also increase use of the village green, with the result of further erosion to its edges and its beauty.  Speaking personally, I am totally against the development of the Glebe Field or any curtailment of the right of enjoyment of it.  Furthermore, I would prefer that any development is dealt with in a very sensitive way, and especially so as not to encroach visually upon a prime focus point of Benenden Village.

An alternative site currently under consideration by TWBC is an overgrown orchard on the north side of The Street which currently has no amenity value and a very low visual profile.  This site [called site 1] would be accessed through New Pond Road thus saving, on present movements, an estimated 60 return journeys each day through The Street.  That is because (according to a traffic survey) most children and staff come to the present school via the crossroads.  Choosing the orchard site will greatly improve safety in the village for all residents of all ages, and reduce traffic movement, noise and pollution.  Movement of delivery and other vehicles connected with the School would also be reduced.

Both sites are very near to the heart of the village.  Each gives greater safety to the children, parents and staff.  Driving times would be only marginally different from what is current.  An important aspect, though, might well come down to cost and time comparisons of construction on either site.  The components of this would be costs of land acquisition, site preparation, buildings and facilities construction, and maintenance and running costs.

These all have to be carefully considered during and after consultation and I would hope that all of this information would become available to the village in assessing the situation.

The sad thing is, though, that a school which is so closely allied to the church has a project location choice which is splitting the village.  And that, I am sure, is not what the church itself would want.

All BACS members are encouraged to participate in the TWBC questionnaire and return it to the Borough Council by 17 March.  The Parish Council have an important role to play and so you are also encouraged to talk to the Parish Councillors and find out their views and the reasons for them after their Parish Council meeting next Monday.

Hopefully, also, we will have another Parish meeting where the pros and cons of the shortlisted sites can be fully discussed and the views of Benenden residents can be fully taken on board.

This is an important decision to be made by the village for the long-term future of our next generations.  Let us review all angles without emotion and with our historic and beautiful village in the forefront of our mind. 

Alan Milne