Category: News

Would you like to help to make Todwick a better place to live?

There are currently 2 vacancies on Todwick Parish Council because the term of office of the councillors has come to an end.  These vacancies have been caused because of an insufficient number of people from the parish standing for election. 

The council can now fill the vacancies by co-option, which is a process whereby the council considers applications from interested persons and can then select people to fill the seats.

If you are interested in becoming a parish councillor, please write to the parish council and include a few details of why you would like to become a councillor together with the skills and experience that you have for the role.

If you need any information about qualification for being a councillor or just want more information about the role, please contact;

Rod Walker, Clerk to the Council, e-mail to clerk@todwick-pc.gov.uk

or the Chairman, Jim Dixon at councillor.dixon@todwick-pc.gov.uk

Community Transport providers in our region have stepped in to offer a free return journey to a Covid-19 vaccination site to people from priority groups who cannot access public transport and have no other means to get there.

What is Community Transport?

Community Transport is a subsidised service, funded by South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE), which, for a small charge, normally provides an alternative solution for residents who may find it difficult to access standard public transport. Offering Door 2 Door ‘Dial-a-Ride’ and ‘Shopper Bus’ services, they are a lifeline for vulnerable members of the community.

During the national lockdown, while everyone has been advised to stay at home wherever possible, Community Transport operators have only been providing a limited Dial-a-Ride service for essential trips.  Therefore, they decided to use this vital resource to support people in need across South Yorkshire to travel to vaccination sites for free and support the region’s vaccination effort.

How can people book a free ride to and from a vaccination site?

All Community Transport services use fully accessible vehicles and can pick up passengers directly from their homes. 

To book a free ride to and from a vaccination site with Door-2-Door services in South Yorkshire, passengers must call their local provider, once they have their vaccine appointment.  There is a dedicated service available for Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield as follows:

• Barnsley Dial-a-Ride – 01226 732096
• Doncaster Community Transport – 01302 342400
• Rotherham Community Transport – 01709 517100
• Sheffield Community Transport – 0114 285 9906

You should try to give as much notice as possible and at least one or two days before the journey itself. Operators will work hard to accommodate as many people as possible, but places are limited, and will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis.

Pursuant to Section 89 (3) of the Local Government Act 1972 and the Local Elections (Parishes and Communities) Rules 2006.

Notice is hereby given:

(1) That a casual vacancy exists in the office of Councillor for Todwick Parish Council

(2) The vacancy has arisen within six months before the day on which it would regularly have occurred and in accordance with the Local Elections (Parishes and Communities) Rules 2006, an election will not be held to fill the vacancy.

(3) The Parish Council may from the date of this notice co-opt a person to fill the vacancy. In the event that the vacancy is not filled by co-option the vacancy will be filled at the next ordinary elections on Thursday 6 May 2021.

Mr Rod Walker
Clerk to Todwick Parish Council
High View
Orchard Gardens
South Anston
S25 5FL

Following the receipt of updated information from HM Government and RMBC setting out legislation and guidance requirements, it is with regret that the Parish Council finds it necessary in order to comply with the legal requirements of the new legislation, to close the Recreation Ground. This will take effect from 5pm this evening Tuesday 12th January 2021.

The Children’s Playground at the church will remain open and the equipment will continue to be cleaned and disinfected each evening. Todwick Parish Council apologises for any inconvenience caused but sadly feels it has no alternative.

Please continue to observe legislative and guidance requirements and keep you, your families and others safe.

Thank you for your support.

Jim Dixon
Chairman
Todwick Parish Council

Licensing Application – Todwick Interiors Premises, The Pastures

Following the comments which have been made on Facebook regarding Todwick Parish Council making objections to the issue of a Licence to establish a Wine Bar at the above premises. The comments appear to eminate from a short article printed in The Star on 2^nd December 2020. Having read the article the true circumstances of the application as reported are completely inaccurate and I thought that as the Chairman of Todwick Parish Council it is incumbent on me to set the record straight.

First of all, let me state that not one of the Parish Council members were against establishing a Wine Bar in the village. To the contrary, we all considered it to be a good idea and that such a business could be beneficial to the village giving residents somewhere to socialise and meet up in a convivial atmosphere.

The members did however feel it was their responsibility to point out problems that may arise as a result of the application. The first was noise late in the evening if the premises were to be open until 11pm and persons leaving for some time afterwards. This was amended by the applicants to our satisfaction.

Parking was the second issue. Off road parking is non existent in the vicinity of the premises. Customers vehicles would be parked on the road and outside residents houses. Many of the residents are elderly and there was the possibility of their being disturbed late in the evening by customers leaving the premises in their vehicles.

Yes it might not have been a problem if people walked to the premises but we all know of the love affair that many have with their cars. There are already problems with badly parked vehicles in that area and if the premises became popular it would no doubt attract custom from nearby villages etc.

Our role was to point the issues out so that the applicants had the opportunity to consider and address them which they did in respect of the opening hours.

Contrary to what is stated in the press report, the liquor licence was granted.

That was only the first stage of the process. The applicants had to make application for planning consent as to change of use of the premises. The Parish Council made no representations at that hearing. It was at this stage that the planning application was refused and not the licensing application. There were a number of issues which the planners referred to in refusing the application. They also added a caveat that they would not consider any amendments to the application. The only course left open to the applicants was to appeal to The Secretary of State. 

To date they have not done that and we understand that the premises have been advertised for rent.

It was not the Parish Council who prevented the application being approved and the establishment of this business in the village.

Jim Dixon

Chairman

Todwick Parish Council.

The lock to one of the gates at the children’s play area is currently jammed

It’s possibly just frozen, but if we are unable to fix it we’ll be removing the lock later

The play area is still accessible so please do so carefully, if others are present

The working group are scheduled to meet at 10am on Saturday September 5th, at the time of writing we do not know if we will be able to provide refreshments, which pre lockdown were one of the mornings highlights.

The August get together was one of the best attended for quite some time.

We are extremely fortunate to have such a beautiful spot in our village, it’s a lovely area to work in. Over the period of lockdown there have been two significant enhancements created by the group.

The first is a wildflower garden, work began in this space late last Summer, the final piece will, hopefully be a bench, the space is ready and once sited it will provide the space to relax and enjoy the environment.  It will take some time for the plants to establish themselves, there is a combination of species which have been gathered or grown from seed. It is hoped that in Spring we will see the first true evidence of the work.  Every plant is a native, some may well be regarded as weeds to many gardening experts, however their presence in this area is by design, to provide as much diversity as possible.

The second has been the creation of a rockery, which several villagers provided us with the rocks, whilst another generously donated a tonne of topsoil.

The August get together was one of the best attended for quite some time. This enabled us to achieve a significant improvement of the border bed, shrubs were pruned, weeds cleared and the entire area “mulched”. 

As with any garden there is always plenty to do, for example we plan to work on the length of area between the wildflower area and the rockery.  Two areas have already been dug over thoroughly and seeded, creating a grassed area to fit in with the churchyard grassed area, there are still sections that need bringing up to the same standard.  Also, the border along this area requires working on to enhance it.  And of course, the flower beds need weeding, and graves that have no one to look after them need attention.

The Eat Out to Help Out Scheme has launched today with participating businesses offering a 50% reduction on bills for food and non-alcoholic drinks (up to a maximum of £10 per person), to all diners who eat-in on Mondays to Wednesdays throughout August.

Check out https://www.facebook.com/RothTownCentre/ page for more details about which businesses in Rotherham Town Center are involved.

New guidelines from the Department of Health and Social Care have changed the self-isolation period from seven days to 10 days for people who have tested positive for COVID-19 or have symptoms of the virus.

You can read the Chief Medical Officer’s full statement here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/statement-from-the-uk-chief-medical-officers-on-extension-of-self-isolation-period-30-july-2020

Rotherham’s new walk-through Covid-19 testing site at Forge Island is now open.

The facility, which is operated by the Department of Health and Social Care, is open to the public from 8am to 8pm, seven days a week for the next 12 weeks and is in addition to the drive-through site at Midland Road.

Anyone with coronavirus symptoms, however mild, or those who are concerned that they have been in contact who is COVID-19 positive, is being urged to get tested as soon as possible.

Both the new walk-in and drive through sites are operating an appointments system to ensure that tests are available for everyone who needs one.