New Milton Advertiser 9th Oct 2020

Friday 9th October 2020 · 13 News

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Town centre church scheme thrown out

Hylton takes mental health charity to hArt

Man jailed for flouting order

COVID-19 survivor and en- vironmentalist Hylton Mur- ray-Philipson has become pa- tron of the New Forest-based art and mental health charity hArt. Mr Murray-Philipson, who owns Kings Farm in Hordle, featured on national news when he was discharged from Leices- ter Royal Infirmary in early April after recovering from the coronavirus. The landowner, who also op- erates a family farm in Market Harborough in Leicestershire, spent 12 days in hospital – in- cluding five in intensive care – and received a personal get-well message from Prince Charles. Discharged to a chorus of clapping NHS workers, he ex- pressed his immense gratitude at the care he received from NHS staff as he “battled for every breath”. Hylton said: “As hArt’s new patron, I’m particularly keen to promote the use of outdoor spaces to benefit health and wellbeing, providing opportuni- ties to offer creative and educa- tional activities under the guid- ance of experienced and skilled therapists and facilitators.” Annie Jeffery, chair of trus- tees at hArt, said: “We’re thrilled to welcome Hylton to the hArt family. He’s already a wonderful ambassador, helping us to work towards offering fur- A POPULAR bus route which takes in New Milton, Highcliffe and Christchurch has returned to its normal timetable for the first time since the Covid-19 lockdown. Yellow Buses has been work- ing with local authorities to improve frequencies across the network, which has culminat- ed in the 1a service once again running every 30 minutes on weekdays. Highcliffe and New Milton were added to the route in April 2019, and during the first five months passengers made over 35,000 new journeys along this section. The boost in service comes after the company noticed more customers using the 1a in recent weeks, with some full

Plans for new 5G mast ‘tree’ New chair for cancer trust WESSEX Cancer Trust has appointed Diane Cutler, a development coach and mindfulness teacher, as its new chair. Ms Cutler, who has 40 years’ experience in senior management, turned to the charity herself for support when she was diagnosed with cancer. She said: “The care that Wessex Cancer Trust offers clients and their families is truly amazing.” A NEW 5G mobile phone mast designed to look like a tree could be installed near Fordingbridge if granted per- mission by the national park authority. MBNC Ltd, which rep- resents providers EE and Three, has applied for plan- ning permission to build the 18-metre mast on land next to Hyde Garden Centre. So far it has attracted one letter of objection. A decision is set to be made by the NPA after the public consultation ends on 28th October. A TOTTON man has been jailed for 42 weeks for flout - ing a non-molestation order while on a suspended prison term. Shane Simpson (33), of Arundel Road, pleaded guilty to entering a road he had been banned from and sending messages to a per- son on various social media platforms. Southampton magistrates noted the offences put him in breach of a suspended sentence he was given for flouting a similar court order by trespassing at a property he was banned from entering and damag- ing items and damaging a vehicle.

Baptist church’s expansion proposal refused by council

BY JOSH WRIGHT

Hylton Murray-Philipson

CONTROVERSIAL plans for a new church in Christchurch have been unanimously refused by BCP Council. Members of its planning com- mittee threw out Christchurch Baptist Church’s plans to re- develop 51 Bargates for a new church centre to meet increas- ing demand, writes Josh Wright of the Local Democracy Report- ing Service. The church said the increas- ing size of its congregation meant it needed to expand beyond its existing building to “serve the needs of future gen- erations”. The scheme had been sup- ported by Christchurch Town Council and BCP Council town centre ward councillor Mike Cox. But the application attract- ed significant opposition from those living nearby. Becky Myers, who lives in Beaconsfield Road, said there were “constant” parking and noise issues in the area caused by the church and its “disre- spectful” parishioners, and crit- icised the design of its “gargan- tuan” new proposal. “The new church is ugly and neither resembles a church nor WORK has finally begun on a planning document covering Ringwood after the town coun- cil secured a £3,450 grant. Deputy town clerk Jo Hurd told the planning committee’s latest meeting that national or- ganisation Locality had handed over the money to cover initial consultancy fees for the Neigh- bourhood Plan. Introduced by the govern-

ther outdoor programmes so we can build on our success.” Hylton’s involvement comes as hArt is developing new out- door creative therapy groups as well as continuing with its pop- ular indoor sessions once Covid restrictions lift further. HArt offers individuals sup- port for their mental health through creative activities in one-to-one and group sessions. As chair of both Global Can- opy, an Oxford-based think tank for tropical forests, and of Willows Activity Farm, Hylton believes in the links between health and the environment and has been a supporter of hArt for many years, hosting outdoor art psychotherapy workshops journeys, particularly between Somerford and Christchurch. Now it is hoped the increased frequency between Bourne- mouth, Christchurch, Highcliffe and New Milton will help them travel at less busy times. Yellow Buses commercial director Simon Newport said: “We are working really hard to ensure that our buses continue to be safe places to travel. “We have enhanced our clean- ing arrangements so that all surfaces that people can touch are cleaned on a daily basis, and all vehicles are deep cleaned on a weekly basis.” Passengers are asked to try and pay using the firm’s app or contactless, observe social dis- tancing and wear a face cover- ing unless they are exempt. on his farm in Hordle. Visit www.hart.works

A CGI composite of how the new church (left) would look (Photo: Dua Architecture)

fits in with the local character of the Victorian properties in Beaconsfield Road,” a state - ment read out on her behalf at the BCP Council planning com- mittee meeting said. “Who would’ve thought when I moved in that my prob- lem neighbours would be the church at the end of the road? “I loved the idea of having a church at the end of my road when I moved in but due to the issues the selfish and un - caring parishioners present, it ment to give local people a say in planning matters, the plans can be drawn up by resi- dents with the help of town or parish councils to lay out how to develop their areas in accor- dance with overarching local planning policies. The consultants met the town council’s steering group this week to discuss terms of reference, evidence, stakehold-

has been an expensive lesson learned.” Cllr Peter Hall, a commit- tee member and Christchurch town centre ward councillor, said he was concerned both by the design of the proposed church and potential traffic is - sues it would create. “I’ve had countless residents contact me who strongly object to this large, dominant building – especially with it being in the town centre conservation area,” he said. er engagement and financial implications. However, the town council has not yet committed to a full Neighbourhood Plan and it will likely face a future vote. The au- thority has long been split on the idea, which was first moot - ed more than two-and-a-half years ago. Other communities to have taken up the opportunity local-

“The scale, design and mass would cause significant harm to the character of the area and another big prob- lem is that the police station development will lead to the loss of more than 200 parking spaces.” Following a recommendation to refuse planning permission by BCP planning officers, Cllr Hall proposed this be accepted that and was supported unani- mously by the rest of the com- mittee. ly are Lymington and Penning- ton, New Milton, Milford, Hythe and Dibden, Fordingbridge, and Totton and Eling. Neighbourhood Plans are not binding but must be taken into account by the district council when making decisions on planning appli- cations, and can unlock large amounts of funding for local projects.

Bus boost as popular route back to normal

Cash grant sees work start on town plan