Please see pages 8-9 for more information
Civic Amenity Lorry Visits 2018-19
The dates for visits from April 2018 – March 2019 will be confirmed in due course. Please visit the Parish Council website for the latest information.
Village Litter Pick
The Parish Council will be holding a Litter Pick event on:
Wednesday, 28 February at 10.00am. Your support is needed. Please meet at Chetwynd Arms car park and help keep your village tidy.
A further date will be arranged in due course, to cover the Milford end of the village.
Brocton Village Hall events
Sat 17 FebQuiz Night. Brocton Village Hall, 7.30pm. Give your grey matter a workout & see how you find the challenge of our Eggselent General Knowledge Quiz. £20 per team of 4, to include light snacks. Entrance forms from the Post Office. All welcome.
Weds 21 FebCoffee morning – pop in for a chat & cake with friends, old & new. All welcome.
Sat 17 MarItalian Food Night. Brocton Village Hall, 7.30pm. Why not come along & sample the delightfulcuisine of Italy & fruits of the vine. Tickets from the Post Office, £12.50 per person.
Weds 25 AprAnnual Parish Meeting. Brocton Village Hall, 7.30pm
Speaker: David Middleton, Fundraiser at Katherine House Hospice.
All welcome.
Sat 28 Apr Rummage Sale. Brocton Village Hall, 1.00 – 3.00pm. Admission 20p.
Tues 8 MayBrocton Village Hall Annual General Meeting, 7.30pm. All welcome.
Parish of Berkswich Church events
Tues 13 Feb Shrove Tuesday Pancakes. Community Hall, 12.30 – 4.30pm. £3.00
Adults £3.00, children £1.50.
Sat 24 Mar Concert. Holy Trinity Church, 7.00pm. Light supper & glass of wine.
Adults £8.00, children £4.00.
Sun 22 AprAfternoon Tea, with flower arranging demonstration. Community Hall, 6.00pm. Entry by ticket only, available from Bob Moore, call 01785 664302. £10.00
Sat 26 May BBQ. To be held in the grounds of St Thomas’ Church, Walton on the Hill.
6.00pm. Bar and raffle. Adults £8.00, children £4.00 – eat all you want!!
Mobile Library Visits
Mobile Library Visits in Brocton
Brocton Village Green: 10.15 – 10.45am on Wednesdays as follows:
14 February; 7 and 28 March 2018
Please support this service or its future may be in doubt. The service isbeing reviewed by Staffordshire County Council. Please visit the Parish Council website for information relating to the current Public Consultation exercise.
Ladies Exercise Class
Brocton Village Hall, Thursday evening 7.30 – 8.45pm.
Suitable for all ages and abilities. For more information contact Monica Mudway on
01785 662868
Yoga Classes
Brocton Village Hall, Monday afternoon 1.30 – 3.00pm
NEW CLASS – Brocton Village Hall, commenced Tuesday 16 January 2018, 4.30 – 6.00pm
To book a place please contact or mobile 07709 61310
Parish Council in Brief
Parish Precept. The Parish Council has agreed the budget for 2018/19 and set the precept accordingly. Details of the budget and precept will be made available on the Parish Council website in due course. For those residents who do not have access to the internet, details will be includedin the May edition of the Paperchase.
Picnic in the Park. It is with some regret that the Parish Council have taken the decision not to hold this event in August 2018. The decision was not taken lightly, as the Parish Council have enjoyed staging this event for a number of years, however, as the event in 2017 was poorly attended the Councillors have decided that perhaps it is no longer of interest to the residents/children. However, time will be taken during 2018 to consider alternative community events and the Parish Council are really keen to receive ideas from residents as to what events they would wish to see offered within the village, for the benefit of all. If you have any ideas that you would wish the Parish Council to consider please inform the Clerk accordingly. The Parish Council hope to be able to offer a community event in 2019.
Planning Application on A34.In the summer of 2017 the Parish Council became aware of a Planning Application from Gladman Developers who wished to build 155 houses and up to 55 care apartments next to the A34 Cannock Road near the Wildwood estate and Acton Hill Road. This application fell within the remit of South Staffs Planning Authority, however, the Parish Council, along with Berkswich Parish Council, submitted objections to this application for a number of reasons: increased volumes of traffic; pressure on services; proximity of site to Cannock Chase AONB to name a few. The Parish Council is delighted to inform residents that the application has been refused.
New Parish Council Website. Towards the end of last year, the Parish Council took the decision to re-launch its website and in December 2017 was fortunate enough to receive a grant from the Transparency Code for Smaller Authorities towards the cost of this. The new website is still in its early stages and will evolve as the year progresses. Why not take a look and if you have any comments or any ideas for items to include that would be of interest to the residents of Brocton, please contact the Clerk. You can do this directly through the website at or by email directly to the Clerk,
Neighbourhood News
Cannock Chase Country Park Update
Sarah Bentley, Environmental Advice Manager at Staffordshire County Council, writes:
“It’s a busy time for Cannock Chase Country Park with winter works underway on site. As part of our current Environmental Stewardship scheme contractors are halo thinning at Brocton Coppice to benefit the veteran oak trees, and scrub / small trees are being removed from archaeological features to protect them from damage by the roots. Contractors will also be thinning trees in the area of woodland near the Katyn Memorial, an area where trees have been affected by wind blow.
We are also preparing for the new Stewardship scheme which will start in 2019. We are reviewing proposals for future management of habitats following the survey and workshop undertaken last year, looking carefully at the feedback we had from local people and visitors about grazing with livestock, herbicide treatment, cutting scrub, bracken and heather and controlled burning of heather. We will be back in touch with people soon to discuss ideas further, but are hugely grateful for all the information and ideas people sent. We are taking these ideas on board and reviewing how we manage areas near to residential properties and how we make sure the country park remains accessible and enjoyable while also managing the rare wildlife it supports.
As part of the preparation for the new management scheme, a number of studies will be carried out on the country park over the coming months to identify detailed work required over the next ten years. This will include survey work in Brocton Coppice to look at how we can restore it to wood pasture habitat and to plan the next phase of works for the veteran trees. This important ancient woodland site needs to be managed to protect the ancient oaks, some of which may be up to 600 years old, and the rare insect life they support. Brocton Coppice is also really important for nesting birds, including redstarts and wood warblers, and roosting bats.
There will also be a study of Oldacre Valley to investigate the hydrology to help us understand what factors are affecting the rare mire and wetland plants, such as round-leaved sundew and grass of Parnassus.
Thisstudy will run over the next couple of years. We will then be doing a study to look at the condition of the vegetation to help target future management work. This will be mostly done using aerial photographswith some field survey. All of this information will help us plan the work that needs to be done on the site over the next ten years and will help us secure funding to keep the site in great condition for people, wildlife and heritage.
We are drawing together the outcomes of the Chase through Time project, which has been running since 2016 with support from the Heritage Lottery Fund. This first stage of the project saw the completion of a Lidar (light detection and ranging) survey which allows us to detect archaeological features normally hidden under the vegetation. The project has added a huge number of historic features to our records and volunteers have been adding even more to our knowledge by surveying some of the features in the field and researching how the Chase has developed over time through archive information and historic maps. Historic England staff have supported this project by analysing the Lidar data and training the volunteers. We are now planning the next stages of this exciting project, which is shedding light on how the Chase has been shaped by people over centuries to give us the landscape we see today. To find out more, visit
Keep your property/valuables safe – Report Suspicious Activity
Residents need to continue to be vigilant as a Claude Butler ladies bicyclewas taken from the front garden of a property in Old Acre Lane at the end of October 2017. If you see anyone acting suspiciously, please make a note of their description or if they are in a vehicle make a note of the vehicle type, colour and registration number and contact the Police on 101.
Horses on Sawpit Lane. The footpath running alongside the Children’s Playing Field was re-surfaced by Stafford Borough Council in April 2017. Since that time the Parish Council have made requests of horse riders coming to the village to avoid riding their horses on the footpath. This was particularly important for several weeks after the re-surfacing work had been completed so that sufficient time could be allowed for the new surface to fully harden. The Parish Council acknowledges that this request was supported, for which it is very grateful. However, as the months have passed, it would appear that horse riders are now starting to use the footpath again and therefore, the Parish Council wish to remind all horse riders of their request not to ride your horses on the footpath, as this will affect the life of the surface.
Be Winter Ready. Whilst it is February and we are all hoping for Spring to hurry up and arrive, the months leading up to Spring can often be very cold and Western Power Distribution launched a campaign towards the end of last year to encourage people to prepare in case they experience a power cut or gas emergency during the winter months. There are some simple steps you can take;
- Know your free emergency numbers; in a power cut dial 105 or for a gas emergency dial 0800 111999
- Prepare your home; keep a torch handy, get appliances serviced by a Gas Safe registered engineer to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning
- Register as a vulnerable customer; vulnerable households can get extra support by signing up to the Priority Services Register, visit this website for more information
- Keep your eyes open; monitor the weather forecast, if there is a power cut or gas emergency check on your neighbours.
ADOPT A KIOSK PROGRAMME
This is a reminder to the residents of Brocton to get involved with this programme. A small number of residents have already expressed an interest in being involved, which is really great, however, more are needed to really give this project some legs. Therefore, if you would like to be involved and support the kiosks become an asset to the village please contact the Clerk.
The Parish Council have joined forces with AEDdonate, a charity based in Stone, to raise funds to purchase a defibrillator, which it is hoped can be installed in the kiosk located on Sawpit Lane, near the A34 Cannock Road junction. The Parish Council are willing to make a donation to the cost of the defibrillator but also need the support of the residents to make this happen. Therefore, please take the time to visit the Parish Council Notice Boards and read the posters or visit the Parish Council website at
and click on Latest News for more information. You may also visit the AEDdonate website, where Brocton Parish Council has its own page dedicated to this campaign,
Please support this campaign, give what you can and help make the village a safer place.
Competitions
- Children’s Poster competition. Open to all children from the village, between the ages of 5 & 11 years of age.
- Children’s Poetry & Prose competition. Open to all children from the village, between the ages of 5 & 11 years of age.
- Paintings, Sketches, Photographs, Poetry or Prose or a combination of these. Open to all residents of the village, aged18 years & over.
The above competitions are being sponsored by the Community Council of Staffordshire, who are supporting the Best Kept Village Competition (BKV). Normally, entry to the above competitions would only be available to entrants of the BKV, however, Brocton has been allowed, for this year only, to enter the above, which are complimentary to the BKV competition.
The Children’s Poster competition will be split into 2 categories, for ages 5-7 years & 8-11 years and is simply a traditional children’s poster competition. So why not encourage your children to have a go.
The Children’s Poetry & Prose competition will also be split into these same age categories. So, if you have any budding writers, tell them about this and encourage them to have a go.
Grandparents – this is something fun and valuable to do with your grandchildren.
The final competition is open to all of those aged 18 or over, who may have some hidden talents – this is a good excuse to focus them and get involved.
The Parish Council will be happy to share some of the entries on their website, so why not give it a go. Please visit the Parish Council website for more details.
Brocton is a pretty village and has many of the elements that are important in BKV and the village may fair well in the Small Village class, so it is hoped that by allowing entry to the competitions interest may be generated in BKV and residents be inspired to enter in 2019.
Brocton Football Club
Slowly but surely Brocton have begun to raise themselves above the danger zone of the first Division of the Midland League. An unfortunate sequence which saw them up against the top four teams in the league table, inside five games, resulted in dropping as low as one from bottom place, despite some good performances. However, victories over Alvis and Stafford Town, both struggling with league form themselves, helped hoist Brocton away from the bottom four, and with several games in hand over many of their close rivals, they ought to be able to pull clear.
They have lost players to Sporting Khalsa, Newcastle Town and Lichfield, and are looking to some of the younger players to bolster the squad. The under-21 team, themselves stretched at times, are obtaining some good results in the West section of the Under -21 division of the Midland league, and are currently situated mid-table, they too have several games in hand over teams around them in the table.
Youth Teams:
The U-17 team, playing in the County Youth Cup(aimed at U-18 teams) have reached the semi-final, entitling them to enter the competition again next year, however they are not enjoying the best of fortunes in the league, lying just above the foot of the table.
The U16’s are just below midway in the Potteries & District league, but no fewer than four of their opponents have withdrawn, resulting in the games played being voided, which has resulted in Brocton coming down from 2nd place!
Forthcoming Fixtures – First Team
Feb10 Paget Rangers Home
17 Pershore Away
24 Lichfield City Home
Mar 3 Atherstone Away
10 Nuneaton Griff Away
17 CadburyHome
24 Walsall Wood Away
31 Lichfield CityAway
Apr 2 StudleyHome
14 Coventry CopsewoodAway
28 Coventry AlvisHome
All kick off 3pm
There will additional fixtures scheduled midweek as several games have been postponed due to bad weather and the club is still in the JW Hunt Cup.
Info at:
Brocton Village Hall
As the Village Hall, on Old Acre Lane Brocton, approaches its centenary in 2021 it seems a good idea to remind parishioners of its existence.
At the end of the Great War many villages and towns commissioned memorials to the fallen. A large number were able collect sufficient funds to enable them to build a memorial hall as well. In Brocton, the memorial is inside the church. The first hall, built on land loaned by Frederick Haines in 1921, was a wooden hut (not a nissen hut, as sometimes reported) from the German Officers’ Prisoner of War Camp on Cannock Chase. It was erected at a total cost of £200 and served the village well for 40 years.
At the end of 1953 the freehold to the land was bought from the landowners, for a mere £77/10/- for around a third of an acre of building land. It took the next 6 years to save enough/raise enough from the village to rebuild the hall at a cost of £5,150 and it was only possible then because of substantial grants from the County and Parish Councils. The present hall dates from 1961, with some later extensions.
Run by a committee of trustees, the hall is a registered charity which belongs to the villagers, who are the beneficiaries. However, it is available for hire by anyone. Regular users are the Play School, Mother and Toddler, the Brownies, the WI and various other clubs and societies. It has a fully equipped kitchen and can cater for up to 80 people for a meal. There is a stage and sound system available, with a separate lounge bar.