Box Vale Report for September 2025 from Cllr Bryn Hurren.
Incredible as it may seem, we are now heading out of our summer holiday period and into the Autumn season and into winter again. Will we remember our glorious summer weather then? Yes, as I have spent countless hours carrying water to allotment and garden keeping plants and crops alive, while continuous sun is good for holidays, it is bad for farming and good harvests.
The beginnings and continuation of the affect of climate change are well upon us now and the extremes of weather changes will effect the upcoming generations so much harder as time progresses, the present governments intent to allow local planners to insist on PV panels on new builds of domestic and business buildings is a good step forward but 10 yrs too late, that’s when BDC fitted them on as many of our council houses as could take them, we did it for public benefit, big developers just do what they want for themselves and shareholders financial gain.
I did manage to get away for a couple of days to attend my favourite music festival, Cropredy in Oxfordshire, brilliant line up again of Blues, Folk and Rock n Roll, also witty comedy and comments from the artists themselves who can be relied upon to get everything in a nutshell and crack it hard. Fantastic music as well including a walk on performance from Robert Plant as a guest with another band. 15,000 audience were thrilled at that, even yours truly got up for a boogie on that one, big advantage having two good working knees now.
Politically we are now in the throes of devolution and are setting in motion along with the County Council our own demise into a unitary set up for the whole of Suffolk.
All of the Districts across the new mayoral region of Norfolk and Suffolk want three new unitaries in each county, making 6 in all, this we feel will give best value for money for all of our residents and also best accountability and contact with staff and elected representatives as well. It is so important that Parish Councillors and every member of the public has a known representative to look after local needs and issues and report back and fight for local issues as they always have done.
The present county council on the other hand, seem to want to carry on regardless of constituents’ desires and wishes and want to quash the popular opinion of their residents to try to cling on to power as they always have done. The fact that they are spending money in lobbying residents who don’t even have a vote or say in what is going on, is quite pathetic and sickening. One large authority has already failed under their stewardship, so why carry on with another??
That money should be used to put towards setting up the new authorities, or even, wait for it, cutting some of the roadside signage out of the hedgerows and filling in some of the very worst potholes. Not exactly ground breaking is it? Maybe it is for them.
We can but hope that the minister for communities breaks the mold for local government and makes the decision in the District’s favour.
The District’s motto is
Big Enough to Deliver, Local Enough to Care.
Great news that the first 2 stages of the Lloyds Tour of Britian cycle race are to take place right here in BaberghMid Suffolk. First day Sept 2nd will be between Southwold and Woodbridge via coastal and inland roads. Then on second stage Wednesday Sept 3rd the cyclists pedal off from Stowmarket, along to Sudbury, then towards Hadleigh and veering off 1071 to take in Semer hill as the king of the mountain climb and back through the villages to Stowmarket for the evening stopover. Find a vantage point and leave the car at home, I will try to get a map into the Sept edition of BRN (please Trudi) to assist viewing and travelling as we will have rolling road blocks.
We may even get the potholes fixed along the route, to save the dear old county council further embarrassment, I wonder.
Reminding all constituents again that we are doing the Tree for life scheme throughout 2025, this enables any parents of a baby born this calendar year to apply to the council for a tree to plant to commemorate the child’s birth, they will be given out in early spring ready for planting, either in a private garden or named public place for everyone to enjoy.
Should any family suffer a bereavement during or after the birth of a child, the tree will be presented in memory of that child.
Another big focus for us at the moment, is to bring more affordable houses forward into service for our ever growing homeless list, with the near collapse of the rental market we are struggling to be able to house folks anymore, while plans to end the dreadful right to buy are going on to the statute book now, it is once again too little too late and another thing that will come back to haunt us forever. We must now start to build houses for the next generation to gain a foot on the housing ladder and for the older folk to downsize into and have a warm home that they can afford to run and live in. Houses should be homes, not just a way of making money.
Also a way of keeping family ties together.
Enjoy the rest of the holiday and good luck to all students as they move up and along the educational ladder. Start of the new season for the super blues. Come on Town.
If anyone needs help then, catch me when you can, moving a lot quicker now.
bryn.hurren@babergh.gov.uk Tel. 01787 210854 Mob. 07771 508348