Harwell Village News and Gossip

Roadworks completed on A34

2007-04-09T10:09:00.000+01:00

The roadworks on the A34 south of Harwell have now been completed. The road surface seems to give out much less noise, but the people of Harwell still think it's a noisy and polluted place to live.

Moving Poll

2006-10-23T01:19:00.000+01:00

We've asked 10 people moving into the village, and 10 people moving out what were there top three reasons, so here they are:

Moving Into Village
1. A34/Didcot Train Station
2. Proximity to AEA Technology Park/Milton Park
3. Price of Housing

Moving Out of Village
1. A34/Noise/Pollution Issues
2. Price of Housing
3. Children things (speeding traffic, drug issues, low quality school)

Make of it what you will, please feel free to comment and add your own top three reasons to stay!

An email from our Feb 2005 archive

2006-09-12T16:15:00.000+01:00

email from our Feb 2005 archive...

> Simple question. I do no live in Harwell but do attend church at St
> Matthew's, send 3 children to the school and shop in Bobs weekly. you
> might feel I have no right to an opinion. If so fine. However, I don't
> understand how you can openly criticise 2 people throughout your webpage?
> I have worked alongside June for 4 years on a village committee and have
> always found her to be reasonable you don't appear to be showing her
> the same curtesy - what is your axe?
>
> Cath

Hi there Cath, and thanks for your email. It is only the second email we have
ever had in defence of June Blissett. The other email was received today
and had exactly the same point - almost word by word - to which the satirical
conspiracy theory side of the site would of course question ;-)

Please read the web site carefully, there are only three pages dedicated to
issues with the Parish Council, and there is a clear roadmap on how to fix
the issues identified on the site.

We have invited June Blissett and the Parish Council to respond to any point
in writing, but they do not seem able to put anything down on paper (or on
web page!). This clearly makes the site seem very one sided - gossip vs.
written word.

It is true that the 'blog' has drawn people into the site, and it would not be
wrong to think that the satire described on the front page around the issues
you discuss lighten the subject areas and form some very interesting debates
in the village; overall though we hope that as time goes on we will be able
to provide more information about the village and open the local issues up to
the people of the Parish.

I do hope that in the future we can have a 'forum' on the site where questions
like this are openly debated, but at the time of writing it is a technology
challenge that we are working on! We have great help though from similar
independent local sites who have this technology working, and we hope to be
able to have something working in a few months.

I would also like to invite you to write articles, news stories, or just
comments like this that I can publish on the site. If you think we are
wrong, biased, or just want to give people something else to think about then
please seriously consider it!

Hugh.

Of course, we never heard back from her. So Cath, here is your opportunity to have your say.

Say Hello to John Harwell

2006-09-12T16:03:00.000+01:00

"Hello Harwell

I was looking on web and found this site...would love to visit your town sometime. The reason I'm sending this is because my last name is Harwell. My name is John C. Harwell and I live in the state of Oklahoma here in the states. Hope all is well.

J. Harwell"

wonder if your name actually came from this area? welcome to the blog anyway John!

Capturing the Sun Exhibition & Events

2006-09-12T15:50:00.000+01:00

Capturing the Sun Exhibition
Art and poetry inspired by research into Fusion at UKAEA at Culham. Scientists have been inspired by artist in residence Jane Corbett, to represent their work on blackboards and in Haiku, seventeen syllable poetry.

This free exhibition runs from 8th September to 14th October and can be visited Monday to Friday from 10.00am to 4.00pm or whilst events listed below are taking place.

BA Science and Engineering Week Seminar
Wednesday 27th September 6-8pm
Free of charge
National Science Week (9-18th March 2007) is an opportunity for people to take part in events and activities relating to science, engineering and technology. This is an opportunity to find out what you could do, to share ideas and experience, and to meet other interested people in your area. Please book through the BA on 020 7019 4953.

Scientists on The Sofa
Thursday 28th September 7.30pm
Free of charge
This event features two scientists. Chippy Thyagaraja is a physicist who works for UKAEA, the UK Atomic Energy Authority. Steve Sanders is an engineer for virtual reality systems who works for JET, the world's largest fusion research facility. Both have a fascinating story to tell about fusion research and will be interviewed on the Sofa by Mike Dennis during this informal evening.

Creative Writing Workshop
Tues 3rd & Wed 11th October 7-9.15pm
£5 per person (Oxford Trust Members free)
Come and try your hand at writing creatively on some novel themes. Celebrate the many forms of energy in our lives, our connection with nature, the scientific imagination and the search for a more sustainable future. Mix any or all of these with more personal themes.
3rd October - Open to all (Adults)
11th October - Open to practising writers

Drawing Energy: Family Workshop
Saturday 14th October 2-4.30pm
Free with admission to Hands On
Come and explore how the sun brings energy to earth and the many other forms of energy in our lives and out in space. There will be opportunities for detailed drawing using microscopes.
A drop in workshop as part of the National 'Big Draw' Day.

Wine Tasting Evening
Thursday 19th October 7.30pm
£3 (RSC and Oxford Trust Members free)
Guy Boursot, a leading wine expert, will lead an informal, entertaining and informative evening on red and white Burgundy wines with a science bouquet. Organised by the Royal Society of Chemistry.

The Wicked World of the Bumblebee
Thursday 26th October 2pm
Free of charge but donation welcome
It's not all honey and flowers you know! Peep into a bumblebee's nest and you'll find trickery, fighting and mayhem. This lively talk, with chocolate pollen, will get children acting out life (and death) in a bee's nest. And what is a bumblebee anyway? Come and learn all about these fascinating creatures. Presented by Ivan Wright of Shotover Wildlife and organised by Oxford Urban Wildlife Group.

Science Oxford, 1-5 London Place, Oxford, OX4 1BL. 01865 728953. events@oxtrust.org.uk

Events at the Oxford Playhouse:
The Goldilocks Enigma
Friday 13th October 5pm The Oxford Playhouse
£6 Adults, £4 Child (18 and under)
One of the striking features of the universe is that everything is 'just right'. Slight changes in the laws of physics or the cosmological arrangement would prove lethal. Scientists are split on the explanation for this 'cosmic fine-tuning.' Paul Davies chairs a debate between proponents of each theory and gets to the heart of our understanding of the universe. Please book through The Oxford Playhouse on 01865 305305.

The Mathematics of Luck, Risk & Gambling
Friday 27th October 5pm The Oxford Playhouse
£6 Adults £4 Child (18 and under)
Are you lucky or just obeying the laws of chance? Simon Singh looks at the mathematics behind situations involving luck, risk and coincidence. Book through The Oxford Playhouse on 01865 305305.

Free computer repair in the village

2006-06-14T21:38:00.000+01:00

The chaps at GameworX (based in the village) are offering free computer repairs to villagers. If your interested check out their site as they have an email link. www.gameworx.net

Bye Bye Post Office

2006-06-14T19:14:00.000+01:00

Not too many posts recently, sorry peeps, but most know why.

Anyway, back to the latest news:

Sadly Harwell Post Office has closed. Yet another sign of the times I think, especially in our reliance upon the car these days to take us to the nearest town. While some of the older residents may find it a little difficult to get money out, the shop is now twice the size and is much better stocked. Even the lovely ladies behind the counter look a little happier (come to mention it, even Bob looks happy - well almost).

also doing the gossip rounds at the moment...

More needles have been found in the wooded area of the children's playground in the Park.

The Harwell Feast was yet another stunning success (despite the early and late rain!).

and

There is a traffic nightmare in Harwell in the mornings due to a road closure outside the village.

Pavement Parking

2006-01-12T11:10:00.000Z

I understand that the HPC (Mrs B) are now thinking about promoting a campaign to stop cars parking on pavements. This is bad and not in the public interest. why change after 20 years?

Harwell is a through route for a lot of traffic. Very important places of employment, such as the AEA and RAL are reliant on good and efficient road access for employees.

If this policy is successful then traffic efficiency will decline with traffic speeds decreasing from an average of 50mph to 30mph (OR LESS !!!).

Names from my school history come to mind --- Chartists, Plug Plotters, Tollpuddle Martyrs and Bolsheviks. Holding back progress for our wonderful village, unselfishly available to facilitate a greater good for the County, and in particular Didcot.

Some years ago the HPC provided reinforced areas for cars (outside the old newspaper shop and telephone box) ---- what a great and forward thinking generation (shades of H Wilson!).

Proof of positive contribution to pavement parking is seen daily opposite the Crown. No harm do here (pavement is badly damaged but no one walks on that bit anyway) and it keeps the road CLEAR.

Some argue that pavements should be left totally clear for wheelchair access --- I have lived in the village for twenty years and have not seen a wheelchair on the High Street pavements yet.

Mrs B must be stopped !!!!!

Can anyone answer this?

2006-01-05T22:32:00.000Z

We've had an email from someone with a few questions about the village. If you have any answers please email us.

Question 1: I am researching my family tree and came across the village name of Harwell Entity? is this the same Village?

Answer: we can't seem to find any reference to this as anything to do with our Harwell, but if anyone knows better please email us.

Question 2: I also believe that the family of Dearlove lived in King Street are you able to confirm any of this or indeed is there any way I can search parish
records on line. And is it possible that anyone still lives in the village by the name of Dearlove?

Answer: We do have a family in the village named Dearlove and very nice people they are too. You should be able to find out more from the Electorial Role. We can't find an email address for the Dearloves, so if the Dearloves want to pursue this contact please drop us an email.

Harwell Village 2005 Gossip Summary

2006-01-02T15:47:00.000Z

Well, its been a year full of gossip and scandal here in Harwell. From the costly removal of the Parish Clerk, to the obvious corruption, and finally to the back downs and climb downs of the unelected Parish Council.

The biggest news of the year for some was the removal of Mrs Emma Hollister as the Parish Council Clerk. If the unelected parish councillor Stuart Lilly's emails are to be believed (we are always stunned by the lack of thought in his emails), Mrs Hollister won just under a years salary in a settlement designed to shut her up. In Stuart's own words... “she has lost the battle and our insurance covers the lot”. Paying someone a years salary clearly shows how wrong the Parish Council are, and the slanderous gossip and persecution inflicted upon Mrs Hollister by them is unforgivable.

Mrs Hollister doesn't talk about the events (part of the agreement we think), but we do know that she continued in her other job as Payroll Manager and is nearly working full time again. Her other employer was aware of the situation and were willing to testify as a character witness on her behalf in the employment tribunal.

Bob from the Butchers seems to have come a cropper too and fell foul to the Parish Council's ever wagging tongues. So too have any members of the village who question what they are doing. We have had loads of emails on both subjects, none of which back the Parish Council!

As one reader put it... “don't worry half of them will be dead soon”. Hmmm, perhaps too extreme a comment for us, but he was right in some respects. These people are stuck in their ways and have no ability to think creatively – they are just thinking about themselves and not our community.

Unelected parish councillor Stuart Lilly and unelected parish councillor June Blissett were also investigated by the Police for mail theft when they struck a dodgy (and in the words of the investigating officer from the Post Office) “masonic” deal with the head of the local post office to ensure that Mrs Hollisters home post was redirected to June Blissetts house. The Didcot Post Office branch manager was suspended, demoted then moved, and the Post Office admitted that Mrs Hollisters post had been redirected unofficially and illegally to June Blissetts house. June Blissett denied all knowledge of this to the Police, despite the local postman confirming that he dropped the mail off there. The Police obtained a copy of a dodgy letter from unelected parish councillor Stuart Lilly to the Didcot Sorting Office Manager demanding the redirection to the house of unelected parish councillor June Blissett. I think you can draw your own conclusions on this issue.

The Parish Council were also forced to face the modern world. From 'what's the Internet' to 'lets embrace the Internet', the old fuddy duddies were forced to wake up to part of the world around them. All this thanks to this web site (you can look over the meeting minutes which had no entries about the Internet or a web site before this blog started).

But soon the Parish Council went back to their old ways...

Unelected parish councillor June Blissett employed a friend of hers (someone who rents a house from unelected parish councillor Jim Mulford)...

Unelected parish councillor Jim Mulford used Parish Council staff and equipment to help friends....

There were lots of complaints to this site about Parish Councillors getting planning permission on their own homes whilst denying anyone that they didn't get on with. With especially strong comments on the unelected parish councillor who build a house in their back garden despite turning down planning permission for neighbours.

It's been clear from this year, that the current unelected Parish Council represent themselves, their minions, and no one else. Contracts have gone to friends of councillors, and they used and abuse their positions to their own advantage and not that of the community as a whole.

This is the very great risk when a body of people are self electing. They have no risk of being unelected. They have no risk of being accountable. If they keep their minions happy, then they are their own self fulfilling prophecy.

Well have a happy new year all, and don't forget, opinions and gossip on this site have been formed from emails and conversations with people from the village. We make this gossip and we are this gossip.

Bad bad Bob

2005-10-15T11:54:00.000+01:00

"Oh how the gossip merchants are slating the local butcher, Bob. He is such a nice man and is always friendly and I am amazed that they can get away with it."

It seems though that he did not agree with the Harwell Village Parish Council or their committee minions. What a foolish thing to do ;-)

Allotment trouble?

2005-10-13T21:01:00.000+01:00

The allotments controlled by the Parish Council (legal requirements here I think) on Green Lane (off Blenheim Hill) are to be partitioned to allow Gypsies to camp. There is a piece of ground next to the cultivated areas which has been allowed by the Council to go to waste (*). The rumour has it, that the land now being cleared to facilitate a Gypsy camp

(*) The area was given, by the Parish Council, to a couple of young ‘amateurs’ to make a BMX track. They made a mess. I understand that the project was PART FUNDED BY THE P.C., never used and then left to rot. This ground is allocated for allotments for which there is a waiting list! My belief is that, in law, the Council are obligated to protect this land from any other use than for allotments.

Girls terror teen group

2005-10-12T13:41:00.000+01:00

We have had lots of email's from people complaining about a group of girls hanging around the streets shouting, swearing and littering. Have your say by responding to this post.

A little bit of gossip came my way this week

2005-10-11T16:24:00.000+01:00

The people who park their cars on Burr Street (I think it is called Blenheim Terrace) have come under police pressure with a request not to park in the street.

The best speed reduction “aide” we have in the Blenheim Hill/Burr St area is parked cars outside Blenheim Terrace.

I understand from the occupants of these houses that Police resources have been used to encourage (or harass) the residents not to park in the street as it ‘slows traffic down’. Why, who (or what political vehicle) directed the police to spend tax money on an activity which was to act on something which was not illegal?

I have thought hard as to why anyone in authority or public service would want to allow the very high speeds of vehicles passing in the area. I can only think that the emergency services are applying pressure.

My life at risk so that they can meet a target!!!!?????

The Power Station bye-pass is faster to A34 anyway -- especially as the traffic parts like the Red Sea and the Crispin isn't going anywhere!!!

Are there 'dark forces' at work in our community? Do you know them? If you know the ‘dark forces’ at work --- can you ask them to ask some questions of their own reasoning please AND can we have our fair share of traffic calming money!

Parish Council votes for speeding in our village

2005-08-16T12:05:00.000+01:00

"What do we have to do to get some support from the relevant authorities for traffic speed control on Blenheim Hill and Didcot Road?

In 2004 the residents affected by the high speed traffic (*) on the two sections of road produced good attendance at the 'OCC Traffic Strategy Planning' meetings and took advice from those running those meetings. The advice given, was to produce a petition and send the results to the relevant authorities and local representatives. The residents did this and , although only a relatively small section of road, produced a petition of 40 signatures. It was duly sent to the 'advised' bodies.

The residents therefore viewed the traffic speed situation as serious.

What did we get: Two ugly posts (which will not be seen by the drivers 'doing the speeds' {what do they mean anyway}and some new road markings !!! Great, lots of tax payer money and ZERO effectiveness!!!

I was told by a local elected representative. That Traffic control measures had been 'diluted' by the Harwell P.C.. Why? I challenge these people to stand for one hour at the top of Blenheim Hill -- try Saturday a.m. or Sunday p.m.. Formulae One !!!

(*) The top of Blenheim Hill is a blind corner. The road space between A34 and this spot is designed to encourage drivers to build up speed, and then, they hit a blind corner with serious camber and then enter a small village.

The Police on their RARE checks say that there is not problem. There is no problem if 'PLOD' statistics are used i.e. The volume of speeding traffic is no greater than any village, OK, maybe so, but do they measure the differential between those vehicles that are speeding and the actual speed limit AND then compare that figure to other situations.

I promise you, and the video is just about to appear, that we have traffic traveling at 6o mph down Didcot Road/Blenheim Hill -- THE SPEED LIMIT IS 30MPH"

Thanks Blenheim for your blog - I've added it here to raise the awareness of this serious issue. Please drop us an email when you have time (mailto:here@harwell-village.org.uk)

Road hell in Harwell (again)

2005-07-12T10:54:00.000+01:00

The High Street has now been 'resurfaced'. This has left us with a noisy road surface that has bald tar on the bends. I wonder how long it will take for a biker or car to loose control on the smooth tram lines that follow these bends and major junctions. It's a shame they didn't seek a professional road surface by looking to remove the pot holes and bumps in the old road and to reduce road noise.

Yet another bodge in our village? I recon so.

It also seems that we will not get the illuminated speed signs on the Reading Road as planned and many of the other speed reduction measures seem to have been cancelled by our glorious Parish Council. More on this to come later.

A stunning Harwell Feast!

2005-06-22T10:55:00.000+01:00

The weather obliged with a perfect day of warm to hot temperatures and full sun. The event started with a fly past and parade through the high street. The floats were adorned with many happy children's faces and I think I even saw the tractor drivers smiling with pride.

The sports ground was full to capacity with vintage cars, vintage tractors, a car boot sale, a huge tent of arts and crafts, bouncy castles and several arenas (with dog shows, ferret racing, morris dancing and more). The owl and the donkey deserve a mention here too as they were unfussed by the constant crowds.

My personal favorite was the cream tea provided by the Scouts. There is just nothing like sitting back on a nice hot and sunny afternoon in England drinking tea and eating scones.

We've had loads of emails praising the feast - and by that they are praising the organisers and the people who dedicated their time to make Harwell's annual feast a stunning success.

It's hot and pollution is up again

2005-06-01T10:44:00.000+01:00

With the temperatures soaring in our little village and predictions of the hottest summer for decades, most of the villagers are looking forward to bbq's, garden parties and evenings in the sun reading good books drinking great wine (well at least I am!).

Whilst this weather continues, Harwell is likely to continue to lead the pollution charts in England. We are consistently a top 20 entry and suffer greatly from airbourne pollution and sound pollution from the A34. We beat places like - Hull, Sheffield, and Birmingham - all perceived by some to be 'polluted'. For those outside the village, the A34 cuts around the outside of the village and is a fast dual carriageway link between the M4 and M40.

Perhaps, just perhaps, the out of date Parish Council will slowly recognise the importance of this pollution in our daily lives. The particulate pollution cannot be good for anyone, and especially bad for the elderly or those with Asthma; and the sound pollution spoils our idyllic village and keeps some awake at night.

And if the Parish Council finally recognise this, then perhaps, just perhaps, they will use the Didcot Development to ensure that we have full sound proofing, and ensure that any relief road takes us into account.

btw... and I'm sure this is an aside, did anyone see any of the planned relief roads going past a councillors house?

Road works and light up signs

2005-05-09T10:56:00.000+01:00

Roadworks have been ongoing at all entrances to Harwell Village. New speed reduction measures on the Grove Road are a great improvement. One cannot imagine that the cheap looking wooden 'stubs' that have appeared at the entrances to Harwell Village will do anything to improve the look of the area let alone our house prices. Just down the road Upton has fine white painted gates that look superb and are a credit to the area. Yet another poor selection from the Parish Council?

The Grove Road is also going to get a 40mph speed limit (this is on the common rat-run route from the north of Didcot to the A34 junction). Lets hope that the planned Light up signs will also appear on the A417 showing the 30mph speed limit to speeding drivers.

Win/Loose Loose/Loose Loose/Win?

2005-05-01T10:43:00.000+01:00

One can't help thinking that the stuffy old Parish Council have yet again put themselves in a very embarrassing position. They have done what they could to remove the old Parish Clerk and the battle has gone to the court and an employment tribunal. From what we hear, Mrs Hollister (now ex-Clerk) has won every step of the way and that June Blisset and Stuart Lilly (the chief architect's of Mrs Hollisters removal) have been backing down and running scared. We have also been led to believe that the employment tribunal threw out the Parish Council's claim's against Mrs Hollister and that it's now just a fight for the amount of compensation.

Stuart Lilly you'll remember has been embattled since joining the Parish Council with blunder after blunder. He has recently taken the vice-Chair of the Parish Council. One could even assume that June Blissett knows she is going down and is looking to place some of the blame onto an obviously gullible fall-guy.

So now it seems that June Blisset and Stuart Lilly have no where to go with the issue on the treatment of Mrs Hollister. It must have cost thousands of our money for them to defend their own little empires and actions, and there is no doubt that it will cost many thousands more – either in legal fee's or in a huge settlement fee. This could well cost the Parish one third of it's annual budget. As one member of the community commented 'That's a lot of our money to spend on one of their friends'.

No one defends the Parish Council

2005-04-18T10:47:00.000+01:00

Since this site has been up and running, which is over five months now, there have been only three people who have offered any sort of defence of June Blisset's position, and no one has offered any support for the other members of the Parish Council that have been named and shamed on our site.

Of the three people who 'rushed' to her aid, one sent a partially illiterate email, the second sent a well constructed email that could be part of a good debate, and the last sent an email that has actually made me question my assumptions.

It is this third email that has interested me and a nice debate broke out in the White Hart in our group discussing it. The email starts by offering assistance to the Harwell Village web site, but goes on to say “I could never trust anything where I do not know the author”. What a great statement, and I suspect quite a naive statement.

If this statement was true, then one would have to question his understanding of 'trust'. I suspect for example, that the author of the email 'trusts' documents issued by banks – the statement of your account, what the cash point tells him, letters from the branch and head office. None of these items has an author to which he is aware, and yet largely (apart from some cursory review) the information provided is taken as given.

So if trust is given to computerised and automated systems, does that imply that the author of the email trusts computers more than people (and therefore trusting the person/organisation who programmed that computer)? Perhaps it's the logo or the format of the paperwork that makes us trust it?

If we were to take the example further, train timetables, bus timetables etc are usually taken as a given. These could be fobbed off as statistics, but they have been written by someone, and I would suspect that one would never question the timetables (although one may question if the bus/train is on time).

So trust could also be given to statistics? Should we not question the information provided to us anyway?

Again, playing devils advocate, if the statement were true you would have to live in a world where newspapers, pages of information on the Internet, general public information (such as that on the Harwell Parish notice board) would all be irrelevant, as the sources of this information, the owners of the companies/organisation that produced them, or the editor that manipulated the words would all be unknown to you, and the information would have to be considered non-trustworthy.

Clearly, this is an extreme as we do trust some information. The big debate and question to examine is “What makes us 'trust' information provided to us?”

General Election

2005-04-17T07:48:00.000+01:00

This month its time for the General Election in the UK where we vote for our member of parliament. The next Prime Minister is decided by these elections. This month's blog has been provided by villager emails and have not been edited.

"k - i can understand where ur site is comming from. u r in a tory area with a good margin, but the last tory we had defected to labour. i have seen a lot of labour posters about and no tory ones. u will again have to rely on old people and r stuck in the past."

Reply: Perhaps you are right. It is true that the majority of the Conservative Party are 50+ and I'm sure that must sway the direction of the Party line, but I don't think that the cumulative knowledge of the senior generation should be thrown away and ignored. By the very nature, this group of people have 'been there and done that'. Their knowledge is important and they help reduce any momentary 'fad' or 'whim' from changing our society and political base radically. This is a good thing and brings us stability.

"it must be difficult 4 ya as the labour party has certainly taken the traditional centre ground leaving u with nowt but radical moves backwards."

Reply: Tony Blair does seem to occupy the centre right ground to people - specifically in his explanation of policies - but the stealth introduction of socialist ways will continue to damage our country. I think this 'Conservative' facade that Tony Blair uses will be destroyed when Gordon Brown gets closer to power. His clear and open socialist approach will be too blatant for middle England and the Conservative party will gain the lead back quickly.

"gordon has done so much for the country. he has put our economy back on track and we are seen as leaders in europe. he is clearly the leader of the future and someone that most people now trust. how do the conservatives think that they can be trusted following years of corruption?"

Reply: Gordon Brown has benefitted from John Majors time at the top. He initiated financial policies that have seen this country growing. Gordon Brown has funded his additional spending by stealth taxes - lots of them. Anyone working hard to achieve a good working income is taxed harder and harder. The money I earn is spent on local goods and services, it goes to supporting our economic growth. Why should it be taken in ever increasing amount by Gordon Brown to pay for a bloated government with high beaurocracy and low delivery?

General Election Candidates

2005-04-14T10:55:00.000+01:00

Ed Vaizey took the Wantage seat for the Conservative Party with a significant majority. Here are the other candidates.

Ed Vaizey - Conservative
Adam Twine - Green
Mark McDonald - Labour
Gerald Lambourne - English Democrats
Andrew Crawford - Liberal Democrats

There was a 11.4% Conservative majority in the last election.

June Blisset has a reputation (apparently she thinks its a good one)

2005-04-02T10:40:00.000+01:00

We feel sorry for Parish Cllr June Blissett, Parish Cllr Jim Mulford, and Parish Cllr Stuart Lilly. All three are verbally very active against this site. They cannot put anything in writing as we would hold them accountable for their words. So for the moment they rely upon unaccountable talk (as we have said many times before - cowards).

The Parish Council did attempt to close this site down using legal action.

The Parish Council did not contest the facts on this site (as they are true), but instead were worried that the site damaged their reputation.

So if I get this right - we paid our money into the Parish Council's pot of money. The unelected Parish Council then used this money to prop up their reputation. Wow - that's very bad. I wonder where the meeting minutes are discussing this?

The Parish Council won nothing from this action, we are stil here, our words have not changed, and as some have said, "their reputations are still in tatters." What a waste of our money.

One good thing did come from it though - the Parish Council aimed it's legal action at a member of our community. At the time he had nothing to do with this site, but he is now a keen supporter and sponsor.

Parish Council u-turns again and again and again and...

2005-03-01T10:39:00.000Z

Ever since this site has been here we have been holding the Parish Council to account for its actions, and for the actions done in our name. This has caused stunning and humiliating set of u-turns from the unelected Parish Council.

You can just imagine the shock on their faces as they suddenly realised that they were accountable for their actions.

So slowly the u-turns continue.

You can now attend the Parish Council meetings without an invite. You still cannot ask questions unless they are blessed by Cllr June Blissett. You still cannot hear all of the meeting as they will take some items into closed session.

What do these people think they are dealing with? Why should information about our community be withheld from us? One would assume that these closed sessions are not documented (nothing appears in the minutes). One could further imagine that dodgy handshakes take place in these sessions.

We cannot for one minute think that any of this is in the communities best interests. Of course they are only there to serve our community - have they forgotten this?

The other u-turn we noticed this month that warrants a blog mention is the creation of an occasional (and only during working hours when most of the village are unavailable) Q&A session. This is of course yet another way of avoiding actual documentation. By informally discussing issues with you they do not have to put anything down in print, and by avoiding the documentation they are not held accountable for what is said.

Cowards. Document it. Put it in writing. Be held accountable. Or do you have something to hide?

Parish Cllr Jim Mulford uses Council Staff and Equipment to help friends

2005-02-18T10:56:00.000Z

Following the collapse of the wall at Rosemead Cottage on the High Street on the 8th Feb 2005, Councillor Jim Mulford used Parish Council ground staff and equipment to help remove the debris and tidy up.

There would normally be no issue here, and we would think 'what a nice thing to do', except that this is Jim Mulford's friend, and we have no evidence to suggest that assistance has been offered to anyone else in the Parish. Clearly some people see Jim's assistance and reallocation of Parish Council staff and equipment as an irresponsible use of our money to help his friends.

One can only speculate if this sort of activity has led to the increased cost of the Parish Council this year.

This is the second incident where we have reported 'friends' of Jim Mulford gaining preferential treatment - the appointment of Jim Mulfords friend as Parish Council clerk (without as far as we can see any advertising for the post) being the first. Many in the Parish question Jim Mulfords ethics, and see this type of action as the cause.

This could be a mistake though, and Parish Councillor Jim Mulford may be honestly looking to help all members of the Parish. We would like to see his plans for this (and we will certainly be looking through the Parish Council minutes for any cost recovery or admission of a conflict of interests from Jim Mulford), but in the mean time please feel free to contact him on 01235 835500 (number taken from the Harwell Parish notice board). Do not hold your breath though as we have already heard from people who have been turned down by Jim.

We have a short addition to the article, the owner of the house did confirm to us in an email that Jim and Co. were helping. She was at pains though to point out that it was a road traffic accident that demolished the wall.

Mrs Kings Cottage Collapses

2005-02-12T10:59:00.000Z

Mrs Kings wonderful Grade II listed cottage collapsed on the 12th Feb 2005. Two thatched cottages were destroyed in the accident. These houses were a wonderful feature on the A417 heading out of Harwell towards Upton.

News papers and others are blaming a bodged renovation attempt, but at the time of writing this is not clear. The new owner Mr Dawson has been modernising the two cottages, one of which (Mrs Kings) had been empty since she passed away at the beginning of 2003.

Thankfully no one was hurt and the adjacent houses seem to be unaffected by the collapse.

So how do we fix Harwell Parish Council?

2005-02-10T10:53:00.000Z

It is clear that the current Chairman June Blissett is out of her depth and has lost focus, it is also clear that many of the Councillors are inappropriate for the roles they have undertaken. We need a new agenda, we need a new approach, and we need to bring Harwell back to the people of the village.

Here is where we could start:

Environmental Issues. Let's define a statement towards the environment. What the villagers expect, and how the council should act.

The Didcot Development. Lets get the best possible houses for the people that are going to live there. Lets not worry about personal agendas and stubborn rejection of the plans, and get back into the talks and make things better for our new Parish residents. We should explore with the developers how we can help the people of Harwell by looking at rebuilding some of the crumbling Harwell facilities.

Business Development. The Parish Council have no idea or plans to help businesses within our area. Lets see what we can do by talking to local businessmen, and working these ideas into the plans for the Parish.

Recreation. Our ground staff are among the best, but are not supported by the Parish Council. Use of the playing fields, and signs to show people how to get there will increase the use of these facilities, and allow Harwell to utilise the empty back field. We should also look to Lottery funding to help renew the worn down play area for children.

Web site. The technophobic nature of the existing Parish Council make this impossible to support. Let's open up the Parish to the world, and allow email to the Councillors and staff.

People management. This is clearly something that can only get better. Introduction of NALC policies and guidelines (something rejected by the current Parish Council) will improve staff morale, and improve the public's ability to gain access to the Councillors and the Parish Council staff.

Review the current contracts with a view to selecting the contract with the highest merit and value.

Planning. Define a set of Parish standards that will help the people of the Parish understand the general rules under which the Parish Council will accept planning applications.

Facilities. While the Parish magazine stands out as a clear success, most of the services offered to the village are in decline, or have been suspended. We need to document what is available to us, and how we are going to make the most it.

But to do this we need to remove the current Chairman June Blissett, and realign the appropriate Councillors to the new plan.

I'll get him with my wagging tongue

2005-02-01T10:37:00.000Z

Lets clear up two things on this site as they are important and will stop a lot of lies:

Emma Hollister (the now ex-Parish Council Clerk) who has been complaining to the Parish Council Chairman about verbal and other abuse from many of the current unelected Parish Councillors has finally been forced out of her administrative position in the Parish Council.

In what some might see as either a mass outbreak of forgetfulness, and others as collusion, the Parish Chairman and a few of the strutting B listers removed her from her position for misconduct. All because she sent an email, and the B listers 'forgot' that they asked her to do so. No honestly - thats was it - they are pathetic.

And of course there are no surprises that in a totally biased and not-in-our-communities-best-interests move, Jim Mulford and June Blissett's friend has taken over the position. The new clerk is of course the old clerk - well the one before Emma Hollister. She left several years ago in a tantrum over working conditions. But now, for the moment at least, she is back.

We have asked Emma to write a document for this web site, and we hope she does - it is always good to see the truth and not hear the lies.

And finally for today, we applaud our sponsor who is under constant verbal threat from the ever wagging tongue of June Blissett and the B-list gang. The 'I'll get him' attitude of the few show just how much they have to hide.

However, he (our sponsor) should seek comfort from the praise and good will that we have heard from all but one of the villagers. One also has to wonder how long it will take the old guard to realise their position is untenable, and that they represent no one but themselves.

The Parish Blog

2005-01-20T10:46:00.000Z

So whats the purpose of this blog? Well we are all fed up with what the Parish Council has done and is doing for our community. There seems to be a lot of money spent, and apart from the ground staff who seem to do a stunning job, we've no idea where it goes.

There has been a recent change though - since this web site was formed the Parish Council do seem to have some policies - they might be the policies laid down on this site, but at least that's a start.

One can only wonder how embarrassing it must be to follow the policies of a web site that they are attempting to close down. Humiliation comes in many forms.

Stuart Willy has been a Parish Councillor since he was 'elected' for us by June Blissett. His political career has up to now been quiet, with no sign of any positive contribution to the community. Stuart Willy is also the first of the Parish Councillors to openly back the policies on this site. This is a terrible start for Stuart Willy's political career, and a great sign for us as it just shows how much of the Parish policy is now run from this web site.

It's clear that June Blisset and the B-list Parish Councillors are lost. One can only speculate on the level of credibility that June and the B-list has within the community, but it must be time for them to seriously think about resigning.

June and the B-listers - Do you really believe that you represent the Harwell community and the people of Harwell? Do you honestly believe that?

We on this site, and many of the villagers think that it's time for the humiliated June Blissett and the B-listers to leave the Parish Council and allow new people, unburdened by previous battles and empires to serve the community for the community.

Robert who?

2005-01-12T10:58:00.000Z

Our local MP is Robert Jackson. In his last few months in office before retirement he has decided to end his otherwise very low impact political career by defecting from the Conservative party to Labour.

This act is largely seen as a move to give history at least something to remember him for.

Let's hope that our next MP is a little more politically astute and can deliver higher benefits for our community.

What's Broke in Harwell Village?

2005-01-12T10:51:00.000Z

The Parish Council have to rely upon sites like this to ensure that they are doing anything for the community. We cannot see a single policy or action undertaken by the Parish Council that they have thought of themselves. They need this site to tell them what to do. They need this site to tell them what is wrong. And, as some have said, they need this site to improve their morality.

The public face of the Parish Council is a prison building - and yes, it was this unelected Parish Council that boarded up its own offices. The Parish Council office is now a steel clad magnet for vandals. What a waste of our money and what a great image this Parish Council portrays to our community - boarded up, closed, and cheap.

The Play facilities for Children are poor quality, and there is nothing for older kids.

The play facilities used to be a key attraction for the village, now no-one comes here to use them as they are bordering on dangerous. Why are they not updated? The facilities for older Children look like they were created by randomly on a whim without understanding the real requirements of the village. The BMX track typifies this – no one knew it was there and it serviced one or two children in our village. Do these people represent you?

Out of Touch and Backward Thinking.

Harwell Parish Council do not have email or publish their minutes electronically; we have the worlds worst bus shelters that do nothing to improve the village and the value of the houses; and everything Parish Council provided service is cheap, nasty and of little real value. Do these people represent you?

The people of the Parish are not allowed to voice opinions to the Parish Council.

Councillors are accountable for their actions – so why can't the people of the Parish speak in meetings? They openly block your right to speak or ask questions in meetings, and refuse to answer any questions from members of the Parish. Do these people represent you?

Contracts awarded to friends and family of the Councillors.

We should ban any contract with friends and family of the Councillors. This will help stop corruption and keep the Councillors focused to best value for the people of the Parish; and remove any thought of Empire Building. Do these people represent you?

Sound proofing from the A34 is not important.

The Parish Council have very poor relations with the new Didcot development, and have forgotten to protect the village from sound and other pollution. With the new development a huge fence on the Didcot side will bounce sound back into Harwell. Do these people represent you?

Have you noticed that there are no buses any more? This might be due to the very very poor quality bus shelters, but it more likely that correctly lobbying would keep these services going. Do these people represent you?

Harwell is the only village to receive no re-development of facilities from the Didcot Development.

The Parish Council are so poor at doing their job, that they have not secured a single concession on the Didcot Development. Harwell is the only village in the development area that does not have any re-development of run-down facilities as part of the Didcot Development project. Why are they not looking to nock-down the iron clad and heavily vandalised village pavilion, for something more in-keeping with the village and the area? Do these people represent you?

What is being done to develop Harwell's business community?

There is no parking anywhere on the High Street, where do people park to shop? The passing trade should be a boom for Harwell's Shops, but is not. Overflow Parking from the Architect's successful business spills onto road junctions. What incentives are there to create business in our community? Do these people represent you?

It's time to get rid of the dead wood and bring in fresh blood, people who can represent the future, people who are willing to represent the villages and not themselves.

Unelected Members of Harwell Parish Council

2005-01-10T10:49:00.000Z

There are two different tiers of Parish Councillors at the moment, here is the A list:

Pat Staples. Pat is a great Councillor, represents the views of the villages above her individual goals and is fair . Without doubt Pat should be the Chairman.

Dee Boughton-Waite. Dee contributes well to the Parish and is willing to think outside of the box.

Tony Jenkins - Is a hard working Councillor, turning over more useful and appropriate work than any other councillor.

and here are the rest...

June Blissett, Don Hayter, Margret Turner, Ann Fisher, Jim Mulford, Stewart Lilly, and Mike Sedwards.

Who will stand at the next election is a good question, as things do need to change. The lease on the British Legion building (land which is owned by the people of the Parish - who are represented by the Parish Council) is due for renewal in the next few years. One can only wonder as to how many of the B list are members.

Corruption of the baby boomers

2005-01-01T10:35:00.000Z

I can think of no better way of using the free time of the senior generation to do good for the community, introduce a sense of consistency, and to create an environment that we can all be proud of.

I have known many people that have served their communities with home help, the odd shopping run, or even just a coffee once a week. This helps to create a sense of community, and is something to be proud of. It is a shame that this behaviour seems to have lost its way with the baby boom 55-70 year old generation.

For them it does seem to be a lot about personal gain, and not personal pride.

I don't mean everyone of course, but there are always the selfish few that are out there to build empires, and gain a sort of uneasy sense of moral high ground over the rest of the community. These people tend to look at half-empty glasses; are bullies; seek 'power'; and flock together (as individually they are very weak).

It is very sad to see that these people existing within our community in Harwell. Some have latched onto positions that allow them to 'represent' the rest of us; some just bemoan everything we have; but all are stuck in the past, stubbornly refusing to move forward in life.

We just hope that they look at their current lives and think - what will people think of me after I'm gone? what do people think about me now? how will I be judged?