The Parish of Iron Acton is delighted to be able to hold the very popular May Day celebrations this year and welcomes all those who attend. 

Despite the restrictions imposed as a result of the Covid pandemic, the members of Iron Acton Parish Council have been working hard to ensure that our beautiful Parish is kept well maintained and that issues of local concern are dealt with.

Local projects have included consideration of the maintenance of the stream in The Meadows, removal of Himalayan Balsam from the Iron Acton area of the River Frome,  dealing with recent storm damage including arranging the clearing of fallen trees from Chillwood and the rebuilding of fallen down walls in The Meadows and agreeing a new contract for the cutting of the grass on our green spaces around the Parish.  We also work to protect and enhance our local area by considering and responding to local applications for Planning Permission and to South Gloucestershire Council’s latest Local Plan.

Apart from the usual maintenance work, we have been looking forward to new schemes which further enhance our Parish to provide enjoyment for all residents for years to come.

In this regard, our members have engaged with residents of the Parish to plant new trees in various locations around the Parish and a large number of oak trees and other native species of tree in Chillwood.  Our thanks go to everyone involved, which included our local primary school children, who gave their time and physical effort to this project.

We have also arranged to plant a tree to celebrate Her Majesty the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, the choice of tree being the subject of a survey on our website, which is still open for voting if you would like to state a preference.

The Parish Council accepted the very kind offer from our local organisation Acton Aid to provide a substantial financial donation towards the laying of a reinforcement surface in The Meadows, which will aid better access for everyone to this beautiful area for all seasons.  Although the decision was taken in September 2020, due to Covid, the work was delayed and took place in the final week of March.  The material was carefully selected to provide a means for those with mobility issues, wheelchairs and pushchairs to access the play area and gym equipment (and at a future date, the Multi Use Games Area) at all times of the year and also to allow vehicular access to The Meadows with minimal damage to the grass for such purposes as the regular maintenance of The Meadows and recreational and play  areas and for organisations to continue with their fundraising events such as The Mash, The Proms and Bonfire Night.  The material chosen has the advantage that the grass grows through it, minimising the visual effect.  It also has environmentally sound credentials, being chemically stable so it will not cause any environmental damage to the surrounding area, it incorporates recycled plastic, has a life of about 20 years and is then recyclable.  Its use provides the advantages of a path without the environmental damage which laying a hardcore path would entail.  It has been used in many areas of a sensitive archaeological and environmental nature, such as Stonehenge.  Our thanks go to Acton Aid for providing the very generous donation and to its members who gave their time and effort to install this resource for the local community.

We are also looking forward to being able to provide an upgrade of the current multi-use courts, which are in need of renovation.  We are considering a number of proposals for a Multi Use Games Area (MUGA) and are involving representatives from a variety of sections of our community in terms of age and sporting interests, to ensure that we provide a facility which gives us maximum flexibility to accommodate a range of interests for all of our parishioners to enjoy.  We will be providing notifications on our website and will consult local residents on our proposals.  We are applying for funding from a number of different sources and hope to be able to move this exciting new project forward as quickly as we can.  We would be pleased to hear from anyone with ideas for sources of funding for this project.

We welcome input from our local community to the decisions we make on your behalf and if you would like to be involved in our Parish Council, we currently have a vacancy for a Parish Councillor, which can be applied for by contacting our clerk via our website.