Dear Residents of Cheriton and the surrounding villages,

Thank you to all those that attending the recent village meeting—it was great to see such strong support for our Village Shop. Your enthusiasm and engagement will be vital in the coming months.

Farewell to Gillian

This Thursday morning (27th March) at Café on the Green, we will present Gillian with a bouquet of flowers and a leaving card to express our gratitude for her long service in running the shop. Gillian has kindly requested that we do not hold a collection for her, but we encourage everyone to sign her card and join us to wish her well with her future plans.

Shop Status and Next Steps

Following extensive conversations, we have outlined the following plans for the Village Shop:

Long Term - Community run shop

Setting up a community-run shop will take approximately six months, we need to set up a legal business entity, set up bank accounts, receive funding etc . We will then look at the feasibility of different locations, interior design, product lines and staffing strategies.  We are currently exploring options with PlunkettUK, a charity dedicated to supporting small rural businesses. If you are interested in joining the Steering Group to help bring this project to life, please get in touch. 

Short Term - Interim shop to run whilst the Community Shop Steering Group sets up the Long Term shop.

There is a demand in the community for an interim shop, for papers, prescriptions and the Post Office. I have spoken to many of the volunteers and employees in the shop and they are happy to run a very basic service from 9am to 12pm each morning for papers and prescriptions. The Post Master has kindly agreed to run the Post Office as normal on Monday afternoons and Thursday mornings. We have no bank account, so Rupert Boissier has kindly offered help from the Pots to act as conduit to get the papers ordered, payments etc. Could you please let me know if you would like to use the newspaper service. I need to know the paper you want and the days on which you would like it. There will also be a sign up sheet for papers in the shop from Tuesday.

I understand from Gillian that she would like the shop to be closed for a 2 week period to allow for a stock take, packing up, cleaning and general repairs, so the earliest this can be put in place is the middle of April, and this is all subject to agreeing suitable terms with Gillian. I will let you all know more details when we get the final go ahead.

Can you please share this Newsletter with anyone you think might be interested. If you would like to receive email updates on this subject, can you contact me directly [email protected]

Thank you all for your support!

 

 

 

A Flood Alert has been issued by the Environment Agency.

Flood Alert in force: Groundwater flooding in Bramdean and Cheriton.

Flooding is possible for: Areas at risk of groundwater flooding in Bramdean and Cheriton in Hampshire.   

Be prepared.

In Bramdean and Cheriton, groundwater levels are high and rising. In the last 3 months, prolonged, higher than average rainfall (280mm) has been recorded at Bishops Sutton. At our borehole in West Meon, the level has risen by 75cm in the last week. From Saturday (08/03/2025), cellar flooding will begin to affect a small number of properties in Cheriton. In Bramdean, cellar flooding impacts are not expected for at least another few weeks, and only if further heavy rain is recorded. From today 06/03/2025 until Monday 10/03/2025, only small amounts of rain are forecast. We expect that groundwater levels in Bramdean and Cheriton will peak within the next week. We continue to monitor the forecast. If you use pumps to help reduce water levels, please ensure that they can operate. This Flood Alert will be updated by 18:00 on Thursday 13/03/2025.

To check the latest information for your area
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* Visit the GOV.UK website to see the current flood warnings, view river and sea levels or check the 5-day flood risk forecast: https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcheck-for-flooding.service.gov.uk%2Ftarget-area%2F065FAG010&data=05%7C02%7C%7C5e74d8a13abb4db4084008dd5c9e011d%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638768555877875412%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=FSreq3DvPBYJLcLa1mdHQVdkqZE2iVwZ25IeOgdqy%2BA%3D&reserved=0

* Or call Floodline on 0345 988 1188 using quickdial code: 216009 .

* Follow @EnvAgency and #floodaware on Twitter.

* Tune into weather, news and travel bulletins on local television and radio.


What you should consider doing now
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* Monitor local water levels and weather conditions. 

* Get ready to act on your flood plan if you have one.

* Move your car or other vehicles to higher ground, if it is safe to do so.

* Prepare a flood kit of essential items including a torch with spare batteries, mobile phone and charger, warm clothes, insurance documents, water, food, first aid kit and any prescription medicines or baby care items you may need.

* Businesses should inform staff and customers about the situation.

* Check that you know how to turn off your gas, electricity and water mains supplies.

* In rural locations, farmers should consider moving livestock and equipment away from areas likely to flood.

* Avoid walking, cycling or driving through flood water. 30 cm of fast-flowing water can move a car and 6 inches can knock an adult off their feet.

* Flood water is dangerous and may be polluted. Wash your hands thoroughly if you've been in contact with it.

 

Establishing a Mayoral Combined County Authority across Hampshire, Portsmouth, Isle of Wight and Southampton Consultation Paper.

Topic of this consultation:

This consultation seeks views on a proposal to form a Mayoral Combined County Authority for the local government areas in Hampshire County Council, Portsmouth City Council, Isle of Wight Council, and Southampton City Council (referred to as Hampshire and the Solent in this consultation).

In December 2024, the government published the English Devolution White Paper. This sets out plans to move power out of Westminster and back to local communities, ensuring that every part of England is covered by devolution. The local council leaders from Hampshire County Council, Portsmouth City Council, Isle of Wight Council, and Southampton City Council have since written to government expressing their interest in taking forward devolution within their area through the establishment of a Mayoral Combined County Authority, with the first election for a Mayor taking place in May 2026. Before taking a decision on whether to proceed with the making of the necessary legislation, the government is seeking views from interested parties, including those who live and work in the area.

Link to consultation  https://consult.communities.gov.uk/lggc/hampshire-and-the-solent-devolution-consultation/consultation/subpage.2025-02-11.9767972217/

Useful links

M3, Junction 9 (Winnall Roundabout) Roadworks update https://nationalhighways.co.uk/our-roads/south-east/m3-junction-9-improvements/

South Downs News https://mailchi.mp/southdowns.gov.uk/south-downs-news-february-2025