Fretherne with Saul Parish in 2023
Many thanks to Chris Hatton for his restoration of Upper Framilode phone box, back to it’s phone box red and is looking very smart both inside and out. Photo’s to follow.
Big thank you to Steve Mander who has kindly been out and about in the Parish installing various items on behalf of the Parish Council.
A notice board has been installed in the allotments, this is long overdue. At the moment, it is displaying the terms and conditions for renting an allotment but it is hoped the notices will evolve over time to include articles of interest to the allotment holders.
An additional rubbish bin has been installed at the Memorial Hall Playing Field carpark which replaces the old basket bin which was removed some time ago.
And final installation in the most recent work around the Parish are two lifebelts along the tow path of the disused section of the Stroudwater Canal at Upper Framilode. These are located on the stretches either side of Moor Street. Funding for the lifebelts was supported by Stroud District Councils Build Back Better Scheme.
Update: Following the seed distribution earlier in the year, the Parish Council have received some lovely photos of flowers grown from the seeds. There has been a mixed success rate to the project largely due to the heatwave during key growing periods of May and June. Thank you to the contributors who have sent these photos in.
These envelopes containing seeds will be delivered to each house in the Fretherne with Saul Parish as part of the Coronation of King Charles III celebration and the Bee Square’d project. The seeds should flower in red, white and blue and it is hoped that the community will get behind this project and make the parish blooming lovely.
Events that have happened in the Saul Community 2022
The ex-Bt phonebox, which houses a defibrilator unit, opposite Passage Road was looking very tired and needed refurbishment. A lot of hard work went into the restoration, many thanks to Nigel for his work.
A second phone box at Upper Framilode has now been purchased – it’s use is to be finalised in the coming months but possibly the home for a second defibrillator. It will also be refurbished in the coming months.
During last winter, 2021 – 22, the noticeboard at Framilode Passage was damaged beyond repair. This summer, a new notice board has been installed. Thanks to Sy for installing.
Another notice board is soon to be installed at the allotments.
At the start of the year, 2022, a lot of work was carried out by the Environment Agency (EA) strengthening the banks of the river Frome at Upper Framilode. In thanks to the patience of the villagers, in particular the residents of Upper Framilode, the EA donated a number of fruit trees for planting in gardens and park in the parish.
The summer of 2022 was an incredibly dry one and the disused section of the Stroudwater canal by The Ship at Upper Framilode suffered incredibly from a lack of rain. Water had to be pumped into the canal from a neighbouring water course. Recent rains have seen a huge improvement in both water levels and quality. There has also been a huge amount of work done on this section of canal by the volunteer work party, Framilode Canal Group, who have been clearing reeds through large stretches of the canal. Discussions are ongoing with Gloucestershire Wildlife and 35percent as to a work plan for future years to provide an acceptable balance for the conservation of all aspects of this stretch of water.
Wreaths were laid on Remembrance Day at the three churches in the Parish.
December 11th: Thank you to everyone who helped with decorating the tree on a very cold, snowy Sunday. The lights were turned on later that evening.
Also the weekend of December 10th-11th, for the first time in many years, the disused section of the Stroudwater Canal at Upper Framilode froze!
If anyone has any photo’s of the events or the local surroundings that they would like to share with the rest of the community, please do not hesitate to contact the Parish Clerk
Email fwsparishclerk@gmail.com