New Milton Advertiser 18th December 2020

Friday 18th December 2020 · 19

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News

Forest tops national parks house prices

23-month roads ban for driver DRIVING while more than two-and-a-half times the drink limit and without a licence or insurance earned a Ringwood man a 23-month ban from the roads. Ben Sherlock (29), of Waterloo Way, admitted committing the offences on the B3078, Fordingbridge, on 1st September. Southampton magistrates ordered he do 100 hours of unpaid commu - nity work and pay £180 court costs. Primary pupils’ fundraisers HUNDREDS of pounds has been raised this year by pu - pils at Tiptoe Primary School from a string of charity events. The youngsters gathered a total of £712 for good causes by variously selling poppies in the playground, a Children in Need event when they wore spots for a donation, and a Christmas jumper day. Head teacher Helen Smith paid tribute to parents and pupils saying: “Their gener - osity has surpassed all our expectations.” Hitting heights to put out fire FIREFIGHTERS scaled a ladder to tackle an electrical blaze on the third floor of a care flat in Highcliffe in the early hours. Crews from New Milton and Christchurch were assisted by an aerial ladder platform team from West- bourne during the callout to a residential block in Wortley Road at around 1.15am on Monday. A small fire was located in a fuse board, and two personnel wearing breathing apparatus put it out with a CO2 extinguisher. PHONE 01425 612594 to place a display advertisement

Average cost of a home within NPA boundary is £475k

Arrest after fifth hedge blaze on the Waterside Firefighters on the scene of the latest hedge fire in Holbury

BY JON WALLER

THE New Forest remains the most expensive national park in the country for house pric- es, figures have revealed, with buyers having to fork out more than double the UK average. The £475,000 average cost of a property within the park’s boundaries is £107,000 higher than the next highest, which is the South Downs at £368,000. The figures published by the Nationwide Building Socie - ty prompted Pam Reynolds, a board member of the New Forest Villages Housing Asso - ciation, to call on local councils and landowners to work with it to address the problem. “Making use of what are known as Rural Exception Sites – small patches of land suitable for six to 10 homes – would go a long way towards supporting the local community by pro- viding affordable housing for current residents or households connected to the local area,” she said. “The need for more afforda - ble homes to rent in this area is clear and urgent and my message is we need to work to - gether with local authorities, parish councils, landowners and in particular with the local community to build a legacy for the future of villages that

PEOPLE who have made spe - cial contributions in Brocken - hurst during the coronavirus pandemic are being sought by judges of the village’s Citizen of the Year Awards. It is the second time the competition has been run by Brockenhurst Village Trust and member David Bennett hoped it would give people a boost. “This has been the toughest year most people can remem- ber,” Mr Bennett said. “But it would have been even harder without amazing volunteers who befriended the lonely, pro - vided meals, or helped in other ways. “The Brockenhurst Citizen of the Year competition seeks to identify those people who’ve A MAN has been arrested fol - lowing a fifth hedge fire in a month on the Waterside. Police confirmed the 26-year- old, of no fixed abode, was held on suspicion of arson and bur - glary with intent to steal. He was later released under investigation, pending further enquiries. Firefighters from Beaulieu and Hardley rushed to Rolle - stone Road, Holbury, just after 2am last Thursday to tackle the hedge fire which they said was starting to spread to a nearby property. It is the fifth such incident

gone the extra mile and to rec - ognise and thank them for their dedication and hard work.” It is supported by a range of groups including the parish council and Meadens Skoda, which funds the event. The first awards in 2019 at - tracted more than two dozen entries, and recognised a long - time village historian and res - idents who had run a church playgroup and promoted music. Nomination forms are avail- able in Streets and the Brock - enhurst Welcome Store, as well as the village hall, and online at the village hall website. The closing date is 16th Jan - uary and more information is available at www.brockenhurs tvillage.org.uk reported in the area after two hedge fires in Westbourne Ave - nue, Holbury, on 3rd November, and two more in Hythe’s Roman Road and Yelverton Avenue on 11th November. Police launched an arson investigation after the Hythe blaze in which eight metres of hedge was set alight. Following the arrest, Water - side police on social media con - gratulated the New Forest of - ficers involved. Anyone with information on the Rollestone Road fire should call 101, with the reference 44200475917.

There are calls for more affordable homes in the New Forest

provide opportunities beyond housing. “A great start would be for rural exception sites to be iden - tified in each parish for a small development of affordable homes.” She pointed to research by the English Rural Housing As - sociation, of which New Forest Villages is a part, showing that building just 10 new affordable rural homes provides a £1.4m boost to the local economy and supports 26 local jobs. She went on: “We know that rural homes carry some of the highest premiums in relation to average earnings in the country with local people being forced out as a result. “However, the consequences of a lack affordable homes in

the New Forest reach far be- yond just housing, impacting on the provision of local services, public transport, employment prospects and loss of social and family networks.” The Nationwide figures were based on Office for Nation - al Statistics data and showed buyers pay an average 20% pre - mium for houses within a na- tional park. Those within a 5km radius of a park’s boundary on average see their prices rise 6%. Andrew Harvey, senior Na - tionwide economist, explained: “This [20% premium] is around £45,000 in cash terms based on the current average UK house price – about £224,000 in the third quarter of 2020. “This is slightly higher than the premium identified in our

2019 research – which was 19%.” The indicative premium paid to live in the New Forest was also the highest amount of any UK national park – at £95,000. Mr Harvey noted the govern - ment recently announced plans to create new national parks in England as part of its 25-year environment plan. The unique circumstance of the existing parks made their house prices so high, he sug - gested. “Those living in the parks can make the most of the great out - doors with a range of activities on their doorstep,” he said. “Development is also con- trolled, with limited new hous - ing construction, which also helps to explain why prices tend to be relatively high.”

Village pandemic heroes wanted for awards do

Motorists cut free after three-car crash

TWO people had to be cut free by firefighters from a three-car collision after one of the vehi- cles reportedly drove through a red traffic light. The incident involving a Ford KA, a Ford Focus and a Mercedes happened on a

roundabout off Main Road, Totton, around 12.15pm last Friday, leaving the casualties trapped as a result. Both of them were released by fire crews from Redbridge and St Mary’s in Southampton who provided immediate emer -

gency care before paramedics took over. A South Central Ambulance Service spokesperson told the A&T three people – an elder - ly couple and a woman – were treated at the scene for minor injuries.

A spokesperson for Hamp - shire police said: “A blue Ford KA collided with a brown Ford Focus and a black Mercedes on a roundabout after going through a red light. “No arrests have been made at this stage.”

Draft Waste Strategy It is important that we develop a final strategy that meets the needs of our residents and helps us to protect the environment. You can find out more about the draft waste strategy and be part of the engagement process from 12 November - 20 December 2020 Resident engagement packs are available to download or comment online from newforest.gov.uk/wastestrategy We are reviewing our waste and recycling services Extended until 20 December 2020