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A lost Saturday afternoon spent drinking coffee, talking bicycles and listening to poetry; half pints of lager shandy at The Greyhound were also involved.

Splendid.

It all started off so innocently - most mistakes do these days - but somehow managed to manifest into a late August afternoon of shandy and scones.

Whoops.

A very kind invite for mid-morning coffee round at the home of Wivenhoe’s esteemed Bike Guru got Saturday off to a good start. Any man who likes to combine cycling with coffee is always worth a chin wag with.

As well as offering a Bike Guru service around Wivenhoe, plus manning the mechanical duties at the very ACE Re-Cycle across in Colchester, Matt - for he is your Bike Guru - is about to set up a cycling ‘n coffee shop down by the old bus station in Sunny Colch.

It’s an idea that is not new to London, and hopefully now is the perfect time to introduce a similar service around these North Essex estuary parts. As well as serving high-class coffee, bike repairs will be available, all within a space that celebrates cycling culture.

This may take the form of showing live coverage of the Grand Tours, or perhaps film evenings to screen some of the classic cycling documentaries.

Keep Colchester Cycling will also be based down at the kiosks in the old bus station, sharing the space with Bike Guru and his coffee n’ cycling cultural exchange.

Meanwhile, back in Wivenhoe and there was a coffee machine to road test. I admit to being more of a Tetley Tea type of chap - perhaps at a push then a rather generous teaspoon of Nescafe if I’m going for that continental look.

It was certainly an education in the Wivenhoe kitchen as I was shown how the machine works, or rather how you work with the machine and tame all that lively hissing and spurting.

The Bike Guru has grand plans, and having listened to them with great interest, I explained my own grand plan for the remainder of the day:

Mr Mule, LIVE and DIRECT Upstairs at The Greyhound.

Oh Lordy.

A brief bicycle fixation back at my base, and soon we were propping up the bar, ordering the half shandies and even shouting a round for the always engaging Pop Genius of this Parish.

Currently trading as Wivenhoe’s Leading Light Entertainer - and who are we to doubt this? - Mr Mule was on fine form as he prepared to entertain the afternoon crowd Upstairs at The Greyhound with verse, song and good humour.

Some parallels were in place from what I had heard from Matt earlier in the day. Upstairs at The Greyhound is a dead space during the day. Much like the old kiosks in Colchester, Mr Mule is keen to explore this and fill it with happy folk.

It was a mixed crowd that had come to see the Leading Entertainer - a local borough Councillor, a young chap dreading the Back to School routine that awaits, Mr Mule’s Mum.

Blimey.

The first half of the performance focussed upon The Hythe. Not at all wanting to claim credit for being the muse for Mr Mule, but having read my recent @Colchester101 piece all about the old industrial heartbeat of the Colne, this sparked an interest in revisiting some of his previous research.

In the unlikely event that you find yourself standing on the platform at the Hythe train station, do take the time to take in the words and ideas that decorate the area. This was a commission for Mr Mule, who undertook months of research and writing.

[note to self: you may have a fancy dan stereo mic mp3 gizmo, but it still sounds slightly ropey, unless you are sitting facing the performer - doh! Apologies...]

These ideas also came together for one Saturday afternoon only, Upstairs at The Greyhound. We heard about the old boys who worked the port, the returning commuters from Liverpool Street and the whores of Hythe Hill.

It’s quite a lively area, I tell you.

Mr Mule was joined by Dr Adrian May, a well-known figure on the folk circuit, and a Hythe resident. His murder ballad was one of the most beautiful pieces of music that I have heard in some time, and somehow it just seemed to make perfect sense on a Saturday afternoon at The Greyhound, just as the estuary rain took issue with the fag end of the summer.

Mr Mule returned for a mandolin version of Home Counties Boy. I have touched on before how this is his personal calling card. Everything that you need to know about Wivenhoe’s (current) Leading Light Entertainer is encapsulated in song and verse.

And then just as the Pop Genius sang:

“and don’t drop your H’s, my mum said to me…”

…I glimpsed his dear old Ma sitting opposite have a twinkle in her eye, a slight foot tappin’ moment and an even a singing of the chorus.

Awww…

Lovely.

Mr Mule of course was oblivious to it all, doing the rock ‘n roll thing. Still, the moment was there, and I’m sure a very proud dear old Ma went home feeling rather happy.

Just like me.

A brief break for beer and scones, care of the wonderful @Seelkram and his burgeoning Well Bread Wivenhoe business, and then we were back for more songs and dance (sort of) from the top turn of the afternoon.

Pound for pound this was poetry and pastry value for money. Where else on a hit and miss North Essex Saturday afternoon are you going mix songs, scones and shandy?

So yeah - quite a random start to the weekend. I blame the seriously strong coffee.

More of the same please, kind Sirs.

It’s a mighty long way down rock n’roll from the Royal Festival Hall, The Barbican and the Montreux Jazz Festival to… St Mary’s Church in Wivenhoe.

Blimey.

That’s the exact musical path however that local chap Chris Allard is about to take, with a homecoming concert arranged at the church for the 8th October.

I really wanted to catch up with Chris for a Wiv Chat recording as his story seems just perfect for what I am trying to capture for this project. Plus it’s not everyday that you get a personal rendition in your own kitchen by one of the country’s leading jazz guitarists.

Chris doesn’t have to play St Mary’s to help pay the bills. In fact I very much doubt that the rather generously priced £10 ticket for the St Mary’s show will cover all of the overheads involved in bringing an all star jazz band to little Wivenhoe.

Chris explained during our conversation how:

“I’m fond of Wivenhoe and I have just moved back here. We did a gig at Snape Maltings and it made sense for the band to come and stay over. They were very impressed at how lovely Wivenhoe was. We’ve been friends for ages and I just suggested that we organise a gig.”

That “we” just happens to be Jacqui Dankworth, described by The Times as “one of our finest Singers regardless of category” and Charlie Wood - nominated by Downbeat in the USA for Best Blues Album 2010 and a former keyboardist for Albert King.

Splendid though Even Song is at St Mary’s, I can’t see it competing with the appearance of an all star jazz band for one night only.

But there is so much more to the personal journey that Chris has taken leading him back to Wivenhoe, the town where he was born and grew up. Our conversation covers Millfields and the Colne schools, character building gigs in Clacton and Colchester and then the progression to the prestigious concert stages such as the Royal Festival Hall and the Barbican.

After fifteen years of the bright lights of London, Chris now finds himself settled in Wivenhoe, being able to carry on his career from his hometown base.

We also explore during the chat the logistics of a church gig. The altar area will act as a stage, the pews are perfect and the acoustics should work. What is impressive is that Chris is working with local people for promoting the show, as well as sound and events management on the night.

I have always believed that there is an appetite for jazz within Wivenhoe. The concert may just be the springboard to help resurrect the Wivenhoe Jazz Club.

Listening back to the recording for editing purposes (not a great deal to be honest) and I was struck with the absolute technical and creative brilliance of the personal performances I was privileged to be able to experience - LIVE and DIRECT from downtown Wivenhoe!

If one man and his guitar can produce such an uplifting musical delight whilst sitting in a Park Road kitchen, imagine what is possible at St Mary’s with the support of an all star band.

The concert will also feature Dudley Phillips on bass, who’s toured and recorded all over the world with artists including Bill Withers, Womack and Womack and Mark Knopfler.

Once again it really worth repeating: THIS IS COMING TO WIVENHOE!

Tickets for the show are available now at the Bookshop, priced at £10. If you are from out of town and can’t get to the Bookshop before 8th October, you can reserve them over the phone on 01206 824050. There is also a gig coming up at the Arts Center in Colchester on 13th November.

But for now, Wivenhoe can look forward to a very special night. The Royal Festival Hall, The Barbican the Montreux Jazz Festival… St Mary’s Church.

Nice.

Image copyright: Richard Allen.

There’s been a bit of a birding break around these North Essex estuary parts of late.

Pfft. Part-timers (the birds, not the charming birders.)

But yep, just as the leaves start to turn on the wisteria, the muddy banks of the Colne lose their seasonal cake layered crust, and the cat stops taking a crap outside (cripes) - it’s a sure sign that these golden days of summer are slowly, slowly coming towards a close.

Which all must mean that Richard Allen, Wivenhoe’s bird watcher extraordinaire, is polishing up his bi-focals and preparing for a winter of weekends wading around and making notes all about the migrants that are about to come our way.

The Daily Mail would descend into a fit of unwanted moral outrage if it got a whiff of any of this.

A few notes from Richard’s most recent walk:

“A lovely sunny morning with a brisk breeze. There were not too many waders to be seen, most having departed for their northern nesting grounds, but we did manage to find a Curlew two Redshanks and a few Oystercatchers and Lapwings. Lots of Shelduck were feeding out on the mud along with Black-headed Gulls, and a couple of Cormorants vied for the best wing drying perch.

The wind made viewing small birds tricky, but we did obtain good views of Linnets, and heard a variety of warblers singing from cover. In the shelter of the wood we found a group of recently fledged young Chiffchaffs, Great Tits and Long-tailed Tits foraging together. Kestrels were actively hunting, obviously with young to feed somewhere, likewise a Marsh Harrier.

More unexpected was a large dark bird of prey circling over the wood, it had me totally confused until it banked in flight to reveal a gleaming white rump patch and chestnut wings, a Harris Hawk. This is an American species commonly used in falconry and quite a frequent escapee.

Perhaps the best bird however was a rather inconspicuous grey brown bird singing its jangly song from a bramble bush, a Corn Bunting, a good summer record for the area.

Recent sightings: Two broods of Shelduck appeared from their burrow nest sites, one of twelve the other four. From late July wader number have increased and there are now lots of Godwits and Redshank, a few Greenshank and Avocets, and a scattering of Curlew and Whimbrel. Common Terns now have squeaky young following them, and it’s a good time of year to spot an Osprey passing through.

If that has whetted your appetite for wading around Wivenhoe and beyond, then Richard is running a series of guided birding walks on the following dates:

10th September, 8th November, 12th November and 10th December. All walks start at 10am outside the Sailing Club, £8 per person. Booking is required.

Meanwhile, a spectacular find of late has been George Mac’s Wivenhoe Country Diary on Radio Wivenhoe. The premise is simply to walk around the rolling fields and estuary openings, and to record all the green and good that comes the way of George.

It works on every level for what I want from a hyperlocal broadcast - genuinely local knowledge about areas and observations of which I know little, all delivered in a style that suggests that you are actually out walking with George.

There is even a listen again feature for the fledgling station, allowing for the possibility to perhaps download Country Diary, put it on your iPod, and then walk with George for real.

Woh.

In true Partridge style - possible idea for a programme: George Mac walks around with Richard Allen on a birding tour, and records the feathery friends they encounter along the way. If it is an overcast day then you could always play paper, rock, scissors.

Nope, that wouldn’t work on the radio.

I’m off to a BP Garage for a mushroom slice.

A late night Greyhound drinking session with Scoop Scarpenter last week (well, past 9pm) and the GREAT man tells me that he has a deadline of 9am for the following morning for the esteemed Brightlingsea and Wivenhoe Chronicle.

I went round to the other side of the bar to buy Scoop a lager shandy, and whaddya know - faster than a hand delivered hyperlocal (ish) news publication is delivered single handedly door-to-door around the town, yer man was back bashing away at his typewriter.

And so no surprises that with the 9am deadline delivered, so is the August edition of the organ of truth and justice. I bet the lager shandy is still standing at the bar back at The Greyhound.

Having bemoaned the Brightlingsea element of the Brotherhood in previous blog posts, it gives me great pleasure to see that Wivenhoe has something of a monopoly in the latest print run.

I like to view the relationship as one in which the never the twain live in glorious isolation, joined together at the hip in the form of a hyperlocal newspaper. If Scoop were ever to scarper, then the North Essex estuary Special Relationship would be as fractured as Scoop’s right elbow after bashing out his latest copy deadline.

Four front page stories, three with a Wivenhoe angle.

First up:

Former Councillor Campaigns for a Village Green.

“A former Wivenhoe Town Councillor is leading a campaign to gain village green status for public open space in Bowes Road. The land, which covers approximately one acre and is opposite Millfields School, became the centre of controversy last year when it was discovered that Elmstead Parish Council, who own the land, planned to sell if for development.”

Greedy developers, rival councils, village maidens carrying pints of warm beer (steady) - you could almost pen a concept album around the theme.

“Now Essex County Council, who have the power to grant the land village green status, are asking for the views of local residents.”

A HUGE hurrah for former Cllr Cyril Liddy, who has been continuing his fine civic service away from the cut and the thrust of the council chamber, and is actively campaigning to grant village green status for the land opposite Millfields.

“It should be protected from development, and people have until 2nd September to make their views known to Essex County Council.”

The good (ex) Cllr has more details over here.

A glance to the right of the front page lead and we have:

Preparing for the Big Jubilee Celebrations.

Aren’t we all, Comrades, aren’t we all…

“Preparations for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee local celebrations recently started in Wivenhoe when the town council hosted a meeting of interested volunteers.

A draft programme of events has been assembled… These celebrations are expected to include street parties on 2nd June, with a ball in the evening at the William Loveless Hall [where else] a special church service on the Sunday and party in the King George V Playing Field on the Monday.”

With May Fair falling the previous weekend, I’m abstaining from cheap cider and cream scones already.

“It is hoped that the party in the park will involve all age groups and will include entertainment such as a teddy bears’ picnic, a children’s pageant and a sports day with races. Other proposals include live music from a band, with the whole event ending with a fireworks display.”

Volunteers, as ever, are required. Contact the fine Town Clerk on 822864.

And to complete the BACK OF THE NET hat trick of Wivenhoe front page leads, save the best for last with:

Fund Raising Event for Radio Wivenhoe.

Keep it brief, Jase with the fabled 5 W’s:

WHO: Radio Wivenhoe.

WHAT: um a fundraiser.

WHERE: The Greyhound - hurrah!

WHY: ‘cos hyperlocal community broadcasting is a medium that is far superior to the banal big boys on oh so many levels.

WHEN: 3rd September, 12 noon onwards.

Sorted.

And that really should be yer lot from The Chronicle for this month, with every Wivenhoe angle covered on the front page. Has the whole of Brightlingsea buggered off on holiday or something?

But nope - wait, what’s this? Editorial independence, ‘n all that, but the GREAT MAN Scoop seems to favour our part of the estuary divide with yet further wanderings and word counts all about Wivenhoe.

Blimey.

Martin Newell’s Cabaret at The Greyhound.

Not wanting to suggest that the Wivenhoe social scene evolves around Mr Mule and The Greyhound, but…

“Martin Newell, the writer and musician currently describing himself as Wivenhoe’s leading light entertainer [ACE] will be doing another Saturday afternoon cabaret-style [and then some...] performance in the Upstairs restaurant of the Greyhound pub.

Newell, whose usual stock in trade includes poems, songs, rapid-fire stories and highly-risqué jokes [mouth like a sewer, Scoop, but splendid all the same] will be dedicating one part of his act to look at Colchester’s much maligned Hythe area.”

And hurrah for that.

Anyone who caught Sir Nartin’s Upstairs event at the start of the summer will recognise the randomness and radiance from Wivenhoe’s finest. Cakes - oh yes - comes your way once again from the scrumptious Well Bread local Wivenhoe cake emporium.

W*5 etc: Sir Nartin, filth and fun, Greyhound, pleasure, 20th August, 3pm. £4 on the door.

But it’s not all about the poetry and fine pastries. I’m a firm believer that you can pace the heartbeat of a town (blimey) by the success of its sporting teams.

Hang on…

Success for Tennis Club.

We’re not talking about Brightlingsea, either:

“Wivenhoe Town Tennis Club has gone from strength to strength this summer, enjoying a very successful season. With some matches still to be played, the men’s team has secured promotion from the 2nd to the 1st Division of the Colchester and District League, while the ladies’ team has secured promotion from the 3rd to the 2nd Division.”

Golden days up at Broad Lane it seems. Make the most of those memories.

Wivenhoe Memories Exhibition.

Seamless, Jase. Seamless.

“Local maritime history will be strongly featured at the forthcoming Wivenhoe Memories Exhibition to be held later this month. Maritime history covered will date back to the late 1500′s, and there will also be a display of model boats of the Seaplane and Wivenhoe Flyer.

Also on display will be numerous old photographs of local families, plus census reports dating back to 1841. Once again this annual event will be organised by local resident John Stewart, and it will be held at the William Loveless Hall [where else] over the August Bank Holiday weekend.”

The Bakehouse gets a charming piece of advertorial on page 8. Not exactly a filler, but worthy praise for a local restaurant I continually hear great things about of late. The three-course meal for £15 is something of a filler - and a bargain.

Across the road and:

Great Entertainment at Wivenhoe’s Church Ale Festival.

There’s a tale to be told about the crack PR team that managed to position this piece of wondrous copy in The Chronicle for this month. But I think you’d probably want to hear about the Wivenhoe Church Ale instead:

“Programmes for September’s two day medieval extravaganza - The Wivenhoe Church Ale - will soon be on sale. The family friendly festival is raising money for the maintenance of St Mary’s.”

It is also packing quite a punch in coming up with a hugely ambitious schedule for the weekend of 17th and 18th September.

More over on the ACE website. Much more over on Wiv Chat with the fine Marika.

And finally…

Folk Club - no edition of the esteemed organ of truth and justice would be complete without a plug for the pipe blowers [and SO much more...] up at The Flag and their monthly get-togethers:

“A new musical group whose aim is to help to return to the community some of the many folk songs collected by Ralph Vaughan Williams, Potiphar’s Apprentices [ACE name alert] will be the guest artistes at Wivenhoe Folk Club on 1st September.”

Ya see - I never did doubt Scoop could come up with his Wivenhoe leads with less than twelve hours to go and a slightly giddy tired and emotional outlook to the evening back in The Greyhound.

See you next month. Or next week. Or maybe even tonight.

Your round.

To the Rose and Crown on Friday evening for what seemed like an event that half of Wivenhoe had turned out to witness. I like to think that the merry making of the Colchester Morris Men was the reason for the rallying of the troops; I suspect Friday night riverside refreshment played a part.

After freezing their jingly jangly bells off outside the Black Buoy on Boxing Day, the good folk of the Colchester Morris Men returned to these parts under slightly more favourable conditions.

It takes some balls (and big sticks) to get all handkerchief-ed up on a Friday night, and then skip around the Quay to the sound of some fiddly diddly folk music. When I tired it all alone last week, I came close to ending up in a padded cell for the evening.

But there’s safety in numbers - both for Morris Men and boozers alike. Shortly after 8pm, the first bellows from the accordion were puffed out, and the spectacle of mass middle-aged men skipping was upon us.

An appreciative audience clapped, took photos and then went back to boozing - just another Friday night in Wivenhoe then.

There was no giant wooden dog doing the rounds this time, but instead a large wooden spoon was passed around the tables of the Rose and Crown. I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to offer up some loose change, or use the utensil as some medieval phallic totem-pulling device.

The good men of the Colchester red ‘n green continued with their skipping, just about holding off the elements with their estuary non-rain dance. Five pints later and it was time for me to head back to base with a hop, skip and a jump. No bells, no big sticks - only inside my trousers anyway.

Boom boom.

Prior to my most recent Wiv Chat recording, Peter Hill and I had yet to cross paths. I had heard, and read plenty about this popular local figure, but somehow our Wivenhoe wanders had taken a different way.

Or possibly a different pub.

Time to put this right I though. With twenty-five years unpaid civic service on Wivenhoe Town Council, an interest in supporting young folk and a passion for online publishing - I just knew that Peter and I would find some common ground.

Peter likes to talk of how he has now taken a step back from local activity, after an unbroken quarter of a century serving as a Town Councillor. It sounds more like a life sentence than civic service.

But as we explored various ideas within the chat, it soon became clear that Peter is just as busy now as he was some five, ten or even fifteen years ago. I wanted to find out the motivation for this - Peter put it perfectly early on in the conversation when he stated:

“People change when they come to Wivenhoe.”

Quite.

I don’t think he meant in a metaphysical bodily transformation (but then again…) - more like you have to be something of a social hermit to not want to participate and experience the many levels of activities that Wivenhoe life has to offer.

Our dialogue starts in 1972 with Peter and his wife Bonnie moving to the town from Southend. Searching to find a social scene, Peter immediately started helping out with the Wivenhoe Scouts and Guides movement - a connection that still remains in place today.

This led to further connections, a formal introduction to Wivenhoe Town Council, an active part in promoting the Wivenhoe Carnival and perhaps Peter’s finest hyperlocal achievement, the setting up of the Wivenhoe Encyclopaedia.

“It’s all about meeting new and different people…”

Which is something that I am finding out for myself.

Having undergone some superb Radio Wivenhoe training the previous Saturday, this was my first attempt at taking up the advice of being more direct.

“You need a structure - you need to nag away and ask those tricky questions.”

Um, yeah, www-welll, tell me about blah blah blah…

I did ask Peter about the mystery Mr X, and the promise to pump £1m into the Broad Lane Trust, something that Peter was instrumental in establishing. I also approached head on the incredibly delicate issue of the St John’s Ambulance building and the rival community bid to Pru Green’s private planning application.

The famous phrase of “Wivenhoe is full” also cropped up - which I believe the origins can be traced back to Tom Roberts?

And then just as I was prepared to put on my serious Paxman persona - whaddya know: @murphie_kitten did a whoopsie.

Whoops.

We picked up the pieces (but not the litter tray) and tried to compose for the conclusion of the conversation. The bells of St Mary’s can be heard towards the end - a fitting finale to end an interview with a fella who has fought for Wivenhoe in the past, and continues to do so, even after officially taking a step aside.

To the Town Council Offices on Tuesday evening for the NEW quarterly Wivenhoe Neighborhood Action Panel meeting. We may have scaled back the every other month scheduling, but boy - the NEW NAP certainly knows how to pack a few punches.

It wasn’t quite on the same scale of law and order issues around the capital of late, but the situation was tense, not to mention a little comical at times.

With a backlog of issues having built up, I wouldn’t say that it got personal, but OUCH: tense! Tense!! TENSE!!!!

It made the recent Wivenhoe Town Council grudge cricket match against the town team seem like a gentile afternoon of underarm bowling. I fought the law, and the law won.

Not really.

I sat at the back of the chamber, sharing a table with the good Chair of Wiv Soc and scribbled down the volatile agenda that one would expect from issues such as Considerate Parking and Speedwatch, before being politely asked to leave at the end as a “sensitive” issue was about to be discussed.

I hope they weren’t about to talk about the size of my prize courgettes.

But first of all, a disclaimer: this blog post is brought to you in association with the good folk of Essex Police. Not in a brown envelope sort of way, but a black biro endorsement all the same.

Tell It Like It Is, etc - it’s probably best to bring along your writing pen as well.

Whoops.

With a scribe in my hand care of the charming PSCO Louise Neville, I was glad that I didn’t have to revert to memory when recalling the conversation that came out of the first agenda item: Parking.

Oh Lordy.

Park Road still seems to be a problem. Disclaimer: close to home, blah blah blah, but as a non-car owner, I don’t really see what the problem is. Which isn’t really the point of the NAP - we’re all neighbours around here, Comrades.

One man’s Chelsea Tractor mounting the curbside two doors down doesn’t bode well for the sense of community ownership and empowerment on the street where you live. I’m sure m’South London colleagues would agree right now.

Councillor Kraft enquired if it was possible to paint one side of the road with double yellows. The good Chair of Wiv Soc raised the regulation and likely cost. Councillor Ford confirmed that this had been discussed four years ago. Residents were apparently against it.

I was reminded of my first ever NAP appearance, nervously shuffling into the Town Council Offices as the outsider back in those long lost heady days of, um, October 2010.

I was asked about any parking issues concerning my new Park Road patch. I retold the story of being fleeced by the fools at Lambeth Council and having to pay just under £200 for the privilege of parking a removal van outside MY house for one morning only.

Expecting something similar at the other during the Great Escape, contact was made with Colchester Borough Council. I was laughed off the phone when asked if I had to pay to park a van outside MY new home.

Parking in Wivenhoe ‘aint perfect, but I prefer it to what I have experienced elsewhere…

Tensions rose slightly when the good @SgtLouMiddleton was asked about the flyers to promote considerate parking that were pledged at the last NAP meeting. These have been attached to any cars around the town that aren’t parked in a considerate way, but not leafleted through the letterboxes.

It wasn’t quite a Croydon situation developing, but the long arm of the law very politely agreed to make residents more aware of what is expected parking wise.

Ah yes - considerate parking…

The above shouldn’t be capped up, but the below most certainly should.

Confused? Join the club.

The flyers, I believe, are to promote considerate parking - a linguistic term rather than a letter of the law. Considerate Parking however is a paid for initiative that has legal implications.

Wivenhoe has the former, but not the latter; Brightlingsea has both.

Blimey.

A question was asked of the panel as to why Brightlingsea manages to get funding for Considerate Parking, whereas Wivenhoe doesn’t. The political food chain of Town Councils, Borough Councils and County Councils all lead to the same paper chase of the big boys and girls controlling power (and the purse strings) over in Chelmsford.

Further complicating matters is that the local policing team in Wivenhoe can’t give their full support to Considerate Parking, but they are happy to support considerate parking.

Phew.

A Facebook group should be started with the relationship status of: It’s complicated.

Hey hoe.

Here’s something far more positive: Yoof matters within Wivenhoe. I have blogged before about how bloody brilliant the Youth Hub is. It’s not so much the facilities themselves down at the Philip Road Centre, but the sense of community and support from members and volunteers alike.

But that’s all down at the bottom end of the town - what of the top, I hear you ask?

Well…

Wivenhoe Town Council is proposing to develop Henrietta Close. Councillor Cory of the Cross ward is heavily involved and has been adding considerable support. Which is just as well, seeing as though Colchester Borough Council seems to be the only remaining stumbling block in allowing what facilities to be sanctioned.

A re-launch date is being planned for later in the month, coupled in with the putting in place of BRA. Stop sniggering - we’re talking about the resurrection of the Broomfield Resident’s Association.

The project has the expertise backing of the Hub. If the passion can be transferred from the Phillip Road Centre up to Henrietta Close, then the scheme will be an undoubted success.

With the NAP agenda speeding like a lycra clad lout along the Wivenhoe Trail (steady) - whaddya know and it’s only Wivenhoe Speedwatch.

@SgtLouMiddleton very helpfully informed the NAP that this has now been rolled out along Elmstead Road. Essentially the volunteer led scheme involves residents being trained up to use equipment to catch out speeding motorists.

It is not a snooping scheme - all volunteers wear high res jackets and the aim is to prevent, rather than to persecute motorists.

Considerable concern came from the Chair of the NAP, who enquired as to why Speedwatch isn’t quite so speedy in being rolled out around other parts of the town.

Risk assessments are involved, and being purely volunteer led, Speedwatch is always going to rely upon the goodwill and free time of those kindly stepping forward.

It’s got legs, this Big Society lark I tell ya…

I wasn’t sure who was quizzing whom, with some NAP members unhappy about the neglect of other parts of the town.

Tense! TENSE! TENSE!!!!

Oh Lordy.

Councillor Julie Young asked how often Speedwatch is currently put in place - on five occasions over the past three months apparently. The Chair asked where are the other proposed routes? @SgtLouMiddleton wasn’t prepared to volunteer this information.

It was a good point, and one well made. Why would you want to advertise where the Speedwatch scheme is about to be introduced? Accusations were made that closed information was being held back by the police.

Hardly.

@SgtLouMiddleton couldn’t have been more open in recent months in keeping residents informed about his work online. There is a sense however that Speedwatch is possibly slipping off the local agenda.

We then got bogged down slightly in the public nature of the meeting. The bored blogger sitting at the back started to chew on his Essex Police sponsored pen.

A resolution of sorts came when @SgtLouMiddlton agreed to inform the next NAP of which roads have been Speedwatched since the previous meetings, and how may vehicles have been found to be breaking the speed limit.

It was also agreed to publish this data online. ALL online sharing of information has to be a good thing. But not necessarily when it comes to NAP matters.

The bored biro chewing blogger was then politely asked to leave the open meeting, as a sensitive issue was about to be discussed.

Tense! TENSE! TENSE!!!!

And that was just me handing back my pen to PSCO Neville.

Until next time…