Nestling in the Chiltern Hills, there has been a vineyard on the site – off and on – since Roman times. Simon and Natalie Tooley replanted the vineyard in 2006 with Solaris, Phoenix and Rondo vines that are specially developed to thirive in the relatively cool English climate. Now production of two white and one rosé wine is in full swing .

Their vineyard shop opened in 2009 and their Terrace Café is available for light lunch, afternoon tea – or you can book your own party or event, majoring on the wines (of course) and delicious home made cakes.

Or visit them for a guided tour or a winetasting. Contact via 01442 878723 or info@frithsdenvineyard.co.uk

With fine weather for a change the Friends of Tring Church Heritage (FOTCH) held their most successful Family Fun Day ever at St Peter & St Pauls Church, Tring. With bouncy castles, stalls, fun and games, choral and instrumental music there was something for everybody – inside and outside the church.

More people came and relaxed at the FOTCH Family Day in the wonderful space at the heart of our town than ever before.

There were tours of the tower, a barbecue, a brass quintet, plant sales, cake stalls and (where would an English summer event be without it?) WI jam. And, of course, the now traditional “Teddy Tower Terror” when specially selected intrepid Teddy Bears are are sent down a zip wire from the top of the tower and down across the green to be rescued from a crash landing by their anxious owners!

With takings of over a £5,000 on the day it was not only an afternoon of family fun but a worthwhile contribution towards the rather expensive upkeep of the notorious “North Wall” of the church. Well done to everyone who worked so hard to make the day a success!

What Dacorum has presented for the Berkhamsted Parking Zones M & P has really been decided upon already.

The only choice is now is just between non-residents being blocked for:
A   a 2-hour period or B   a 10-hour period in Zone P and a 12-hour period in Zone M

But the proposals for both Zone M and Zone P lack support and are confusing for the following reasons:
1. The extent of the schemes is not clear. The Town Council proposals list 11 streets in Zone P but the consultation results list only 5. The Borough Council decision papers do not define the zone at all. 
2. The way the data was obtained was flawed. In 2002 a professional survey was carried out by Ove Arup. It resulted in a massive rejection of parking zones in Berkhamsted.
With many more commuters it was reasonable to test again the acceptability of parking zones.
However, DBC did not make resources available for a second professional survey.
So town councillors carried out informal surveys in 2008 and 2010. Good for them, but they are unqualified and inexperienced.
Not enough residents in surrounding streets were consulted  – and their views are crucial since they bear the adverse effects of displaced cars.  Nor was local business parking allowed for.
3. The Way the Data was Collated was flawed
Council officers thought up a data category of “Provisional Acceptance”. This undermined the data that was collected. Answers in this category were so highly qualified as to be incompatible with what was offered. They should therefore have been counted as rejections– not as acceptances.
When the Dacorum Parking Centre surveys were carried out in 2011 this same flaw was present in the results and the collated data.
Many responses arrived by e-mail and were mainly comment. Officers interpreted the answers and added them to the dodgy “Provisional Acceptance” category – then counted them as “acceptances”.
This invalidated the preliminary Dacorum Parking Centre consultation, which should have enabled respondents make simple YES/NO decisions about clear proposals.
All this completely discredits the claim that the scheme is acceptable to residents.

To sum up, the Conservatives are pushing ahead with a scheme where:
1.  The proposals are not clearly explained.
2.  Insufficient consultation has taken in adjoining streets.
3.  The results are undermined by the “Provisional Acceptance” category.
4.  The results do not show sufficient acceptance of the proposals.

Liberal Democratse say that the process should be halted for further consultation to take place on a sounder basis and over a wider area.

BANKING REFORM
Labour failed to regulate the banks: Vince Cable has won the argument and “Casino Banking ” is now to be split off from retail banking operations. This leaves the banks free to profit from commercial and corporate financing but removes the risk to taxpayers and current account holders if they get things wrong again.

NEW FLAT RATE PENSIONS
The current full state pension is £107.45 a week and can be topped up to £137.35 with pension credit. But roughly one and half million pensioners are not claiming this additional pension credit to which they are entitled. So now there will be a new £140 a week flat rate pension. No one will miss out in the future because they didn’t know or couldn’t cope with the complex application forms. The £140 a week will increase with inflation and so will rise steadily to up to £155 by 2015 or 2016.

A BETTER DEAL FOR BRITAIN’S HARD-PRESSED FARMERS
A new enforceable Groceries Code is being brought in to protect our farmers from commercial exploitation and boost rural wages. The Groceries Code will ensure that the largest retailers, such as the big name supermarkets, do not abuse their buying power and treat their suppliers (i.e. our farmers) fairly.

There are other signs of Lib Dem influence which we can celebrate – but the three above are a good start!

The meeting will be open to the public and will be held in the Education Centre at Hemel Hempstead Hospital in Hillfield Road at 1.00 pm on 31st May, 2012.

An announcement from the NHS in June 2009 referred to a £35 million project but it is not known whether the new plans represent a similar investment or a scaled-down version.

Dacorum Borough Council is giving away free compost

Dacorum residents recycle around 15,000 tonnes of food waste, cardboard and garden waste in their green wheeled bins each year. This green waste is made into nutrient rich compost by Envar, who are supporting Compost Awareness Week (Sunday 6 to Saturday 12 May) by giving some back to residents for use in their gardens.

Residents also will be given useful information and tips on how to get started with home composting, including special offers on home composting bins. For more information contact Dacorum Borough Council on 01442 228000 and ask for Waste Services.

There were Morris Men, children from the school weaving intricate patterns round the Maypole, local produce, exotic cheese, olives and paella from Mme Valerie, mountains of cakes, savouries with a Spanish flavour, a host of ingenious fundraising games of chance and skill and enough tea to float a battleship.

The hardwork and preparation of  the organisers really showed through. There was well provided car parking, signs and directions were clear, stands and stalls well laid out – and if anything went wrong, I certainly didn’t see it.

All in all it was a friendly and happy occasion – and it no doubt raised lots of funds for lots of charities. So thank you – and well done!

Food Hygiene Assessments:

The Time Team have been carrying out a dig on the site of the Manor of the More (now Northwood Prep School). We will circulate the date/time when the TV programme is to be broadcast and there will be a talk to the local community later about what they found.

We were delighted to be visited last week by Danny Alexander MP, Chief Secretary to the Treasury. He met senior Three Rivers officers and councillors and we explained some of the difficulties government policies have created for local authorities. We were pleased that he praised Three Rivers for its financial record and tight financial management.

French Market in Chorleywood : Sunday 13th May, 10.00am to 4.00pm in New Parade, Chorleywood. 14 stalls selling a variety of goods including bread, patisserie, cheese, pate, saucissons, French music CDs etc. Many of the local shops also will be open.

Urgent Tree Safety Work to Protected Trees
*Very big mature sycamore with large cavity at base – crown reduction of 50%
*Large lime with hollow & decayed base – needs heavy reduction.
Both these trees are in Rickmansworth Park adjacent to paths and popular areas near the Rickmansworth Park School playing fields.

Efficient Management of Planning Applications: the Government sets targets for Local Authorities determining planning applications.The national figures, recently issued, show that TRDC has met and comfortably exceeded both the national targets and national average in all categories – an excellent performance. Nationally 35% of appeals against refusals are allowed, but in TRDC it is only 22%, well ahead of the national average.

A Herts County Council by-election in Watford, Meriden Tudor resulted in the Liberal Democrats holding the division with the vacancy being filled by new county councillor, Kareen Hastrick

Sadly, Geoff Dunne lost in Carpenders Park (Three Rivers) in a draw following a tied result with the Conservatives.

However, in Three Rivers, in Choleywood West, Sue Stibbs was elected with a large majority, replacing Harry Davies who has retired.

In Watford the Liberal Democrats lost one seat to Labour but gained one from the Conservatives thus retaining their 12-vote margin of control.

St Albans City and District Council remains in No Overall Control although Lib Dems lost 4 seats to Labour.

What you need to do is to wait until you get a letter asking if you want to make an application for a refund of your money or if you want to allow the Council to pay your money to charity instead.

If you decide to make an application to have your money back then make sure your application is sent back in time to beat the deadline.

Note that it could take a couple of months before some people receive their letters.