Stokenchurch wins Village of the Year Competition!

Congratulations are due to everyone, who contributed in any way to Stokenchurch’s success for the second year running in the Buckinghamshire “Village of the Year” competition. We did it in 2007 and now we've done it again in 2008!

This competition, sponsored by Calor Gas Ltd, seeks to highlight six major aspects of village life: community life and activities, the way that businesses support community life, activities for young people, services for the elderly, the environment and availability/uses of ICT.

It is a competition which highlights the very best of village life and encourages villagers to work together for the benefit of all residents,

so

“Well done, Stokenchurch, let’s do it again next year”!

Your Fire Station Needs YOU

Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service has launched a recruitment campaign to fill a number of vacancies for Retained Duty System (part-time) firefighters at Stokenchurch Fire Station.

Ideally, we want to have a pool of up 12 people so that the station’s fire appliance is available to attend emergency incidents in Stokenchurch and the surrounding area 24 hours a day. At the moment we only have seven people, which means we sometimes have to send in appliances from further afield.

Could you be a Retained Duty System (RDS) firefighter in Stokenchurch, or do you know someone who would be interested in becoming one?

RDS firefighters are paid staff who do the same job as full-time firefighters.

Many of Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service's 200 or so RDS firefighters combine this work with their day job.

We are hoping that people who haven’t previously considered applying will stop and ask themselves whether they can, in fact, provide cover at critical times of the day or night.

For example, someone who can be on call for the six hours between the morning and afternoon school runs, coupled with some evening and weekend hours, can make the difference between Stokenchurch Fire Station being able to respond to a call for help, or a possible delay while firefighters from another station are mobilised.

Like their full-time colleagues, RDS firefighters are trained and equipped to deal with a wide range of incidents and situations. These include fires, road traffic collisions and protecting the community through fire safety work. The difference is that RDS staff are not based in a fire station - instead, they are on standby waiting to be called out. They may be at home, working for themselves or working for a company that allows them to leave work to attend an emergency call.

Their on-call time can be a combination of daytime, evening and weekend hours. They are paid for being on call and called out, and are entitled to paid holidays, sick pay and membership of a pension scheme.

There are benefits for employers who release staff to be RDS firefighters too.

The employee will be professionally trained to deal with emergencies, and an RDS firefighter on the staff could help save lives and property in the event of an emergency.

Staff can also be trained for further qualifications such as health and safety and first aid, which could help the business as well.

To be a retained firefighter you need to be at least 18 years old, physically fit and live and/or work close to the fire station.

Just as important are qualities like common sense, commitment, enthusiasm and the ability to work as a member of a team.

If you would like to find out more about working as an RDS firefighter in Stokenchurch, or if you are an employer interested in allowing your employees to participate, ring the information pack hotline on 01296 744670 or email rdsrecruitment@bucksfire.gov.uk

Stokenchurch Action Group.

The next meeting of the Group will take place at Longburrow Hall on Wednesday 30th April at 7.30 pm.

Speakers committed so far are Dave Sutherland, Waste Reduction Manager for Bucks County Council, who will speak about local and national issues in relation to recycling and Fiona Broadbent, the Bucks County Council Co-ordinator for Healthy Walks.

Also present and available for question and answer will be County, District and Parish Councillors and local Police Officers.

Come along and keep in touch with local affairs.

Stokenchurch/Ibstone Motorway Bridge Closure

Your Parish and District Councillors continue to monitor the situation, in conjunction with the Highways Agency and UK Highways.

Watch this website for updates.

Your views are important to us. Please feel free to input your suggestions/comments to the Parish Clerk via the following e-mail address:

clerk@stokenchurch.org.uk

John Capell
Parish Clerk
Stokenchurch Parish Council
01494 482403