The Bulletin
Get your copy of the latest Bulletin, click here.

Updates from West Berkshire Council
As you will know, the government requires the abolition of district councils and their re-organisation into larger councils. The proposal for West Berkshire Council is laid out here. Also, the new Local Plan Review Adoption Statement is viewable here and the Sustainability Appraisal / Strategic Environmental Assessment relating to the Local Plan is here.

CPRE
The latest Campaign to Protect Rural England newsletter is available here.

The Hungerford and Kintbury Ward news can be found here.

North Wessex Downs National Landscape

The North Wessex Downs National Landscape management plan consultation, finished on the 30th of April. Nevertheless, the management plan is still visible on their website at:

https://www.northwessexdowns.org.uk/our-work/management-plan/management-plan-review-2025/

A lot of this is perhaps a bit dry, but please have a look at it, and at the policies at the bottom of the webpage. There are numerous policies that we should perhaps be aware of and know where to find them in future. They affect planning, biodiversity, our local history, nature and the environment. These policies will be signed-off by the government in November this year, so they are not to do with some marginal pressure group, they are government agreed and driven targets. They affect You.

Switching off your Outside Lights

The North Wessex Downs NL ask people to switch off their outside lights when they’re not absolutely necessary. Wildlife groups ask the same. Neighbours living next to someone that keep their outside lights on at night want the lights to go off and the police tactfully suggest that leaving outside lights on simply helps burglars. Switching off your outside lights helps the environment and saves money.

Any suggestions about how to incentivise people to switch off unnecessary outside lights would be gratefully received. Email inkpen-climate@outlook.com.

INKPEN HISTORY SOCIETY

The next meeting will be in July on Friday, the 18th at 7:30pm at the Inkpen Pavilion. The topic for the talk is ‘Community through the centuries’, starting with news clips (court rolls) from the 14th century and following through to the present day. You might be surprised at how community in Inkpen has changed.

A week earlier, on Saturday the 12th July we will be holding a dowsing day.


Our dowsing location and details are posted on the history website, ‘history.inkpenvillage.co.uk’. All are welcome but you will need to bring your boots or wellies and a smart phone with My GPS Location app (or similar) installed if you can please. The ground we are dowsing is uneven and has weeds (including thistles) in it.

A building outline has already been mapped out along with the position of a well. This is your chance to see if you can detect these ancient foundations. At my last attempt, I mostly found spent bullet cases though the well is relatively easy to find.

Entry is £5 per couple and the £5 includes a set of our dowsing rods. This is a very different way to spend your Saturday afternoon and a rare opportunity to dowse! Come and give it a go! The history group will also be represented at the Inkpen Fete, at the Inkpen playing field, on the 5th July. Come and talk to us there.

HEATWAVES ARE HERE.

Want to keep cool? The Pop-In Café has advanced air conditioning helping you to keep cool and relaxed. Play a game of chequers, dominos or simply come for a cuppa and a chat with friends. Opening times are the 3rd and 17th of July, 10 till 12:30 at the Inkpen pavilion and the 7th and 21st August.

In addition to our normal range of hot drinks, we are able to offer a limited range of cool drinks.

The café is for all. It is also dementia friendly, carers or sufferers, and we will do all that we can to make you feel at ease and relaxed. If you haven’t already tried the Pop-In café, then do give it a go. ALL are welcome and it really is a chance to have a natter, make friends and chill out, whilst enjoying a slice or two of cake and a cuppa. We very much look forward to welcoming you.

Inkpen is most fortunate for being in one of the UK’s darkest sky areas, so the opportunity to stargaze is at its best. If you would like to join us in the adventure of seeing and imaging those amazing deep sky objects, then please get in touch. Email us at inkpen-climate@outlook.com.

On the 5th of July, at the Inkpen fête, we will have a stall displaying some of our astronomical equipment and images. More importantly, someone from the Inkpen stargazers will be at the stall so that you can come and talk to us directly.

Our next group meeting at the Inkpen pavilion/playing field will be in September and advertised on the group website, stargazers.inkpenvillage.co.uk. All are welcome to attend our meetings. By popular demand, we are moving from infrequent meetings to regular monthly meetings, with an annual subscription fee of just £15 a year. We look forward to welcoming you. Come and get excited!

Going for a walk
If you want a breath of fresh air and some exercise, check out the Inkpen walks, but keep your distance from others, that's at least 6 feet apart in old money. If you feel that you should wear a face mask when outdoors, then checkout the design given on the News page.

On the news page this month there are a number of updates including from the Inkpen Primary School and pre-school, from the Playing field trust and Village Hall, and there's this months Police Report .

Local Climate Group.
We have a newly formed climate group. The website is http://climate.inkpenvillage.co.uk. If you have a look, you’ll see that we have collected data on moths, trees, bird sightings and beetles, as well as data on the weather. This data enables us to see what changes are taking place locally and the pace of those changes. If you have any data, new or historic, on local climate related events or know of someone with an interest in this, then please get in touch with us. We want to bring all local data together in one place and make sure that it doesn’t get lost. Email us at inkpen-climate@outlook.com.

In September, we’ll hold a meeting so that all of you that are concerned about climate change can meet and help us to get properly organised. Keep an eye on the website. Thank you.

Inkpen Rights of Way Committee - Volunteer Secretary Needed
The Inkpen Rights of Way Committee is one of the oldest groups in Inkpen, formed over 30 years ago and represents a wide variety of interests such as conservation, horse riding, nature study as well as recreational walking and rambling.

The prime objective of the group is to ensure the Rights of Way are maintained in a state which enables them to be used at all times of the year as the paths are used not only for recreational pleasure but also for those without transport who need to make their way across the village. It is important to continue to improve access for the less able as well as for the able-bodied walkers/ramblers. The village is an historic and important ancient landscape, and the footpaths are part of this heritage.

Leaflets on the 5 charted walks around the village are available from the committee or from displays at various points in the village.

The Committee needs to urgently recruit a volunteer secretary to start in September as the current post holder is standing down. Please get in touch with the committee if anyone is interested in joining the group or can fill the vacant post of Secretary – please email: gloriakeene@hotmail.com .

Please give us a hand – Oak Trees in Inkpen
We need your help to measure oak trees. Measuring tree girths helps us to evaluate changes that have taken place in Inkpen and enable future researchers to evaluate the effect of climate change on tree growth and distribution. This is work of real value, be part of it. Go to inkpenhistory.uk to find out more.