Bagshot village plan meeting

Wednesday, 21 October 2009 00:00

Well the launch meeting of the Bagshot Village Plan was a huge success with more than 140 people attending. Geoff Marston, chair of the village plan steering group, started the 3 short speeches by laying out the background and process of the plan. Glyn Carpenter shared her passion for the village and her excitement about the future. Finally Gershon Berkowitz of Surrey Community Action told us how impressed he has been with the progress already made and the buzz that exists in Bagshot. Gershon works with towns and villages across Surrey helping them to build community and he told us all that he sensed something special in Bagshot.

Gershon's was a theme echoed by some of those attending in an open question time when people told of how friendly they've found the village.

Following the questions, there was a time for people to discuss what they'd heard and to contribute their thoughts and aspirations for Bagshot in a number of areas such as the environment, business, youth and children.

Members of Hotspot, the Wednesday night youth cafe in Bagshot, came to the event and interviewed attendees for their new podcast. Hotspot is one of the success stories that came out of the TUNE-IN community consultations a couple of years ago.

About the Village Plan

Friday, 16 October 2009 00:00

What is a Parish / Community Plan?

"It is a process by which the whole community can voice their opinions on what actions they wish to see taken in their local area in the future. The plan when completed may highlight actions that can be taken by community members, be used to influence service providers such as your local authority, and act as evidence of need when applying for funding.

Communities everywhere are constantly changing. The government wants local communities to take more control of their own lives, to say what they want doing in their own neighbourhoods and to engage with other organisations to get it done. You cannot prevent change, but what you can do is influence it. Parish or Community Plans help your community to make change happen. They mean an opportunity for everyone in your community to make themselves heard.

Parish Plans lay out a shared vision for the community over the next 10+ years and contain a detailed action plan for achieving this vision. It is up to the community to define the issues to be tackled by a Parish or Community Plan.

A Parish or Community Plan sets out how community action can meet local needs, can help to prioritise resources and can provide important information to help influence the policies, decisions and actions of others. Parish and Community Plans belong to the community, to be delivered by that community or in partnership with other agencies."

from the Parish and Community Planning Toolkit

The Bagshot Village Plan is a community led initiative to help us make Bagshot the place we want it to be. The plan is being co-ordinated by a steering committee of volunteers and includes:

• Geoff Marston
• Glyn Carpenter
• Valerie White
• Paul Hutchinson
• Margaret Williams
• Meurig Williams
• Stefan Nahajski
• Ron Napper
• Nick Dorrington

If you’re wondering what a village plan might look like, you can find lots of examples of plans produced by other villages on the web (eg. Lingfield Village Plan). Clearly each community has it’s own aspirations and issues so the Bagshot plan will be unique.

If you have any questions or want to get involved, then please contact us via This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it