Dear Transitioners
We will be holding our next meeting out in the open air so please bring something to sit on, something to drink, and wrap up in your winter woollies! To ensure distancing, please confirm if you plan to attend by emailing mail@transitionmonmouth.org.
We look forward to seeing you next week!
Bryan Miller, Chair
Agenda
Transition Monmouth Members’ Meeting at the front entrance of Monmouth Comprehensive School, The Burgage
Tuesday 15 September, 7pm to 8.30pm – followed by discussion/chat
Note taker
Introductions, welcome and catch up
Apologies for absence
1. Notes of the last meeting and matters arising other than those on the agenda
2. Events:-
- Apple pressings: Proposed dates:-
Saturday 26 September at Wyesham Community Hall
Sunday 4 October at Rockfield Community Centre
- Swap Shop: Proposed date: Saturday 24 October
3. Food Sense and Community Pantry
4. Water Fountain on Chippenham Mead
5. Plastic Free Monmouth
6. Green Spaces Developments
7. Monmouth Rotary
8. Any Other Business
9. Date of Next Meeting
8.30pm – close of formal meeting – now it’s time to chat ……..
Long ago we had a meeting. Here is a reminder of our hopes, plans and dreams six months ago …..
Notes of Transition Monmouth Meeting
Tuesday 10 March 2020, 7.30 pm at Ty Price (Robin Hood closed)
Present: Bryan Miller (Chair), Simon Durrant (Note taker), Charles Boase, Mary Boase, Laura McCartney, Vivien Mitchell, Kelly Jackson-Graham, Charles Emes, Jon Prince, Dilly Boase, Emma Bryn, Claudia Blair, Paul Glinn
Apologies: Clare Catto, Kate Rees
Post meeting notes are in red
Notes of last meeting and matters arising:
Apple Pressing: Bryan has written a risk assessment for the use of our apple pressing equipment to outside groups. Emma has offered to review it
Orchard Management Plan: Bryan has delivered plans of the orchard area to Helena Ronicle. Helena’s vision is to split the area into three zones and rotate grass cutting so that only one zone is cut each year. This gives safe zones for wildlife to escape to during cutting, and it can re-emerge later. This would need to be clearly communicated to the MCC Grounds Maintenance team, accompanied by signage to educate the public on ‘why is the area left untidy?’
Website: Bryan has contacted Chris Were but had no response to date. Bryan now has the website details and has undertaken minor edits including update of the list of officers
Monmouth Community Choir: To sing at the Big Spring Swap. Event cancelled
Discussion Events: Bryan to arrange a suitable weekday evening date with Bob Handley for a talk on electric cars – to be followed by Averil MacDonald talking about hydrogen vehicles. Both events on hold
Tree planting in Monmouth: Charles Emes has had no success in finding spaces to plant trees and will now concentrate on a campaign to get people to plant trees in their gardens
The recent flooding and our response: Vivien took the opportunity to address the Town Council’s Environment Committee to say that the Transition approach is to stop flooding rather than continuously deal with the consequences. RECS (our flood prevention by natural flood management) project provides base data from which to proceed and is, at last, being taken seriously. Moreover, funding has suddenly become available to take it forward. An application for about £0.5 million to cover Gwent and Herefordshire is being put together by Gwent Wildlife Trust, and an even larger project extending to mid-Wales (the source of the river flood water in Monmouth) is also in preparation. Members thought that a presentation on RECS should be made to Full Council.
About 100 trees have been planted on the Tudor Road playing fields; this has of course caused controversy but on the whole, when it is explained that a resident did this for flood prevention purposes, the reaction has become favourable. Charles Emes is setting up a working party to resuscitate a hedge on the Kingswood Gate Estate
Local Development Plan Submissions: The closing date is 22 April. Charles Emes plans to submit a footpath leading from Kingswood Gate and some adjacent fields destined for housing development; these will be accompanied with pictures of the fields flooded last month. Vivien plans to submit the open access area in front of and beside Monmouth Comprehensive School as a designated public open space, and for the entire school site to be developed for biodiversity, resilience and flood prevention. We also want to submit an over-arching requirement for all development to be sustainable and compliant with the WBFG Act. In the nick of time we did all this, and also Haydn Cullen-Jones submitted an application for the Dixton Roundabout site to be developed for biodiversity (and no construction)
Climate Futures Festival: Dilly explained the Lost Words Exhibition that was planned to be held in Monmouth Museum from August to year end. It was agreed that we donate the proceeds (minimum £250) of our Big Spring Swap towards this event. We would, of course, wish to participate as fully as possible in the CFF at the end of September, and have offered to organise open garden events. The ACE Green Spaces group plan a pop up pollinator garden and to give away small trees. Postponed, probably to May 2021
Events in the Diary:-
Repair Café on Sunday 15 March: Claudia reported that preparations were well in hand. Social distancing was practiced and the event went smoothly with many items satisfactorily repaired
Monmouth Priory, 10 to 2 on Saturday 28 March: The Big Spring Swap: Following the success of the Big Swap event in October it was decided to follow the same format. Coffee, tea and cakes to be available from 10 o’clock, followed by Monmouth Community Choir at 12, and soup from 12.30. Diane Booker has agreed to provide the Swap Shop for seeds/plants and Tools for Self Reliance have been booked to attend. We have flyers (thank you, Emma) and have started advertising on Face Book. Other actions:-
- Karin Chandler to produce a hygiene guide
- Charles Emes and Paul will provide Vivien with cash for the float; prices to be rounded so as to minimise the requirement for small change
- We need pots for donations on each table
Event cancelled
Bee Festival, 10 to 3 on Sunday 3 May: It was agreed that we request adjacent tables for Transition Monmouth and the ACE Climate Futures Festival. Event cancelled
River Festival: In Monmouth on Saturday/Sunday 9/10 May: Soap box speakers have been requested; Charles Emes has volunteered. It was agreed we should have a display table under the arches. Event postponed to end-September
ACE Climate Futures Festival (CFF): 20 to 29 September: Event postponed, probably to May 2021. If the River Festival proceeds at the end of September there will be some Transition Monmouth and ACE Monmouth involvement
Monmouth Priory: 10 to 2 on Saturday 24 October
What is a sustainable diet?: This was proposed as a debate hosted by us at Monmouth Comprehensive. On hold
Orchard pruning: To be arranged with Helena Ronicle. Postponed, probably to February 2021
Any Other Business:
The Circular Economy: On 9 March, Dilly and Vivien attended the Welsh Government consultation on the Circular Economy. The presentations and debates were much as one would expect but an interesting idea was the taxation of food miles. Towards the end we were asked ‘What can the WG to help community groups’ – to which one has to ask ‘What does WG do now?’ Vivien to draft a response. This was sent to David Blair
Food Sense – Community Pantry: The group is working with Ian Bakewell (MCC) to obtain a food poverty grant of £7,000 to set up a Community Pantry complete with fridge/freezer storage so that chilled surplus from the supermarkets can be collected each day along with bread, fruit, veg and non-perishables. Rental of a unit at Bridges has been agreed as from 23 March. We obtained the grant but have had to postpone starting the Pantry – very unfortunate as the need for food has increased during lock down, but we weren’t able to undertake the necessary work to set up the unit or comply with the additional legislation by way of H+S. It has been difficult enough continuing with the usual distribution as most of our distribution hubs – the library, churches, community halls, community groups have been closed and the stalwart volunteers have to deliver to individual families – 93 in mid-May and the number increases each week
Food Sense – Food Poverty Coordinator: The group is working with Deserie Mansfield (RDP) to apply for funding of £20,000+ a year to include mileage for volunteers. This project is being re-thought in the light of the repercussions and lessons learned from Covid-19
Date of next meeting: Tuesday 14 April, 7.15 for a prompt 7.30 start, at the Robin Hood. Meeting cancelled. Bryan is investigating the potential for a virtual meeting during lock down using technology such as Microsoft Teams
Transition Monmouth 