Blackheath Village Society Minutes 10th April 2025

Minutes of the Meeting Held at Theobolds on Thursday, 10th April 2025,
Commencing at 7.30 pm

Present: David, Paul, Anne, Ranald and Max. Apologies: Simon and Laura.

1. The minutes of the last meeting held on Tuesday, 28th January 2025 were
approved and the following matter arose:
Andy Taylor has been invited to join the BVS committee which he has agreed to. This
will be confirmed at the AGM to be held later this year.

2. Village Fair (2025):
Progress is being made with the set-up and one of the large tents has been erected at
the crossroads. We need to organise some days to start setting up the stalls, which
were agreed as follows:
a) Making up of signs on Tuesday 15th April 2025.
b) The installation of signs in the local area will be on Wednesday 16th April 2025.
c) Scaffolding will be erected on the 16th & 17th of April and David will advise the
committee.
d) Raffle tickets can now be distributed during the course of next week.
e) A fair meeting will be held on Thursday 17th April 2025, at Theobalds for the BVS fair
committee to provide an update.

Max confirmed that Terra Cotta estate agents will be our main sponsor for £750 and
additional support from the Parish Council, who will contribute £250. This will enable us
to complete the signage with the appropriate sponsorship. The main priority is to
encourage more people to run stalls and some residents still need to be contacted.

2. Village Street Party (2025):
The idea of holding a village party for Billy’s 100th birthday has now been abandoned, as
it was felt it would be too much for her to cope with. Jan Cope has very kindly arranged a
tea party to be held at 4 p.m. at the cricket club on Saturday May 31st, 2025.
Jane Barlow has also compiled historical photographs from Billy’s childhood with a video,
which will be played at the cricket club during the course of the event. The BVS will be
very happy to support this event and will help to circulate any messages or flyers to
village residents.

3. VE Party:
We discussed possibly holding a VE party (80th year) on Monday 26th May 2025. After a
detailed discussion, it was agreed that it would be too much for the committee to run two
events within three weeks of each other during May. It was also considered unrealistic to
expect the residents of Blackheath to attend two events so close to each other.

4. Summer BBQ (2025):
It was agreed that we would hold a BBQ at the cricket club in the afternoon of Monday,
August 25th, 2025. Simon will be asked if the cricket club is free for the BVS to use and if
no games are being played on the Monday bank holiday.

5. Annual General Meeting (2025):
It was agreed that we would hold the Annual General Meeting in the village hall at 8 pm
on 17th June 2025. David will contact Jane Hayward to ensure that the village hall is free
that evening and confirm with Paul. Once we have this information, Paul will distribute a
circular advising residents of the event.
We will agree on the agenda in due course, but it was agreed that this will include an
update on the drainage and flooding in the village and the village pub/cafe. It is
envisaged that Max/Ralph will make the presentations on behalf of the BVS. David
suggested that we prepare a factual statement for circulation regarding the Villager's
public house update to avoid any misunderstandings during the meeting.
If available, we will also distribute information about how the net profit from the village
fair will be distributed. In the past, we have arranged for a separate subcommittee to
decide how any profits are distributed to local organisations and charities, as well as
mandatory contributions to those organisations that have helped us during the event.

6. The Villagers Public House (Update):
Paul confirmed there is very little to update the committee that wasn’t discussed during
our last meeting. We are still waiting for the completion of the Judicial Review Process
and the Ombudsman has instructed a representative to investigate our case.
Any further update will be provided at the AGM and we will communicate our ambitions
regarding the community pub/cafe and why the property is still listed as an Asset of
Community Value.

7. Wonersh Parish Council:
Max reported that there were no further updates with reference to Blackheath Village.

8. Village Hall:
No further updates with respect to the village hall.

9. Cricket Club:
Ranald confirmed he joined the cricket club committee and the season will be starting in
two weeks' time. Preparations are in progress to prepare the grounds for this year’s
season which is going well. Children’s cricket has been taking place throughout the week
and it has proved to be very successful in the lovely weather.

10. Security in the Village:
Paul confirmed that the signs have now been fixed and since the CCTV notices were
installed, there have been no reported robberies in the village. We can only conclude
that our initiative has been successful and that we should keep a careful eye on the
security within our community.

11. Any Other Business:
Ranald asked if it was possible for Wonersh and Shamley Green School to borrow one
of our larger tents, but the school will need to arrange for volunteers to collect and erect
the tent for their function. We expect it to be returned in the same state.

12. Next Meeting:
To be arranged at Theobalds for 7.30 pm on Monday 26 May 2025.
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Blackheath Village Society
http://www.blackheathsurrey.co.uk
Mobile: 07768850003 Email: paul@bil.uk.com
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