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Information for the Residents of Fairfield Hall

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General updates 
On this page you will find the latest news and information from your Committee on all general matters relating to the Hall and the Park.
 

22/3/11

Fairfield Community Action

Please take time to look at the posters on the notice boards going up soon. There is an action group in Fairfield Park who are campaigning to form a Fairfield Community Council as a seperate entity to Stotfold Town Council. Please also see their website if interested: www.fairfieldcommunityaction.co.uk

 

21/03/11

Contacts at CBC

If you wish to contact the local authority for progress regarding ongoing works relating to the Hall, they are as follows:

Kim Dallen – Building Control (Building Regs Inspector)

Dan Cheeseman – Technical Officer, private sector housing (sewerage smells)

Phone 0300 300 8000 or email customer.services@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk

 

21/03/11

Service Charge

You all should have received the service charge demands for the next quarter. We are pleased that following numerous meetings with the managing agents, that a small reduction has now been achieved. We are working with them to achieve value for money in all areas.

 

21/03/11

Meter Cupboards

If you are unable to access any of the meter cupboards to take your own reading, please contact your utility provider for further advice.

 

10/12/2010

There will be a carol service outside Fairfield Hall at 4pm on 11 December, organised by Fairfield Community Church. The Salvation Army Band will also be playing. Refreshments will be served at Fairfield Park Lower School afterwards.

They will also be having a carol singing service at 10.30am at Fairfield Lower School on 12 December. The following Sunday 19th December there will be a nativity, also at 10.30am at the school. All are welcome.  

 

10/12/2010

Roof report

The recent roof report uncovered several problems, and PJ Livesey have agreed to cover 50% of the costs of the report and will pay for the remedial works required.

 

10/12/2010

Sewerage problems

The recent sewerage problems in the West Orchard have been investigated, and it has been identified that all drains need cleaning out, as does the sewerage pump. Any residents experiencing problems should contact the committee as soon as possible.

 

10/12/2010

Management Audit

A big thank you to all of you who have donated money towards the management audit, and for the running costs of the committee. If you have pledged to donate but have not already done so, we would be grateful to receive monies as soon as possible.

 

10/12/2010

Emergency contact numbers

These will be added to your nearest notice board before Christmas, and they will also be on the Hazelvine website.

 

10/12/2010

Gardeners

The gardening company Tremorfa is waiting for planning permission to be granted for storage of their equipment in the caretakers compound.

 

22/10/2010

Service Charge clarification

Further to an earlier update on 27 September, service charge 'balancing adjustments' should be paid with a caveat that you reserve the right to lodge a dispute at a later date. Charges incurred more than 18 months prior to the date of the invoice are not payable.

 

19/10/2010

Bowls Club Xmas disco

Fairfield Park Bowls Club are holding a Christmas disco at Arlesey football club on 11 December. Tickets are priced at £15 and include a buffet. DJ will be playing music from the 50's to the 80's. Available from Maureen Cable on 01462 732225 or Janis Glocker on 01462 733941

 

13/10/2010

Cleaning

More good news - window cleaning will commence the week beginning 18 October 2010, as will the cleaning of the carpets in the communal areas.

 

07/10/2010

Faster internet connection

In order to cast your vote to try and obtain a faster internet connection in Stotfold (which has been a particular problem here at the Hall) then visit the BT site www.racetoinfinity.bt.com and cast your vote as soon as possible. As the old saying goes - "if you don't ask, you don't get...". If we don't vote, it may never happen.....

 

06/10/2010

Talking about wine......the FPRA Social Committee have organised a wine tasting evening on Saturday 30th October at Fairfield Park Lower School. There are still some tickets available for this event, priced at £10 each. Please contact Chris Bunting on 01462 731776 or by email at chrisbunting@aol.com if interested.

 

29/09/10

Warden Abbey Community Vineyard have a fun event on Friday 8th October if anyone is interested please see the following document here for further details - there will be wine!

 

28/09/10

Roof inspection and survey

Many of you may be aware that there have been problems with the roof, leading to leaks and water damage for some residents. A survey has started today, consisting of the following:

1. Access and then carry out a general maintenance inspection of the roof .

2. Inspect the roof above areas of water ingress to identify the causes.

3. Produce a photographic report of faults found along with suitable repair recommendations and costings where appropriate.

4. Carry out a gutter cleaning programme.

5. Identify sections of faulty guttering requiring repair.

NB. Where a fault is found and requires a simple solution such as the application of a sealant, then we will carry out the repair at the time of the inspection. We will also remove any debris likely to fall to the ground.

Work is likely to take 3-5 days.

 

27/09/10

Service Charge

Many residents may have been alarmed to to have received another demand dated 24/9/10 from Hazelvine, for the accounting period ending 31/03/10.

Our advice is not to pay until we have sought legal advice.

Watch this space, the fhra will update you as soon as possible.

 

27/09/10

Problems with sash windows

We are aware that some residents have experienced problems with the cords breaking on their sash windows, outside of the 2 year snagging period. If anyone has used, or knows of a reputable company who are able to carry these repairs, please email the committee at fhra@hotmail.co.uk and we will forward the information.

 

20/09/10

Residents may be interested to know that Fairfield Park has received an award from the Commission for Architechture and the Built Development (CABE). Details of the criteria can be found at www.buildingforlife.org/criteria and details of the award at www.buildingforlife.org/news/building-for-life-standards-2010  

 

22/07/10

Broadband improvement

We've been contacted by a resident with some interesting information for anyone who might be having Broadband speed issues.

 

"It may be of interest for fellow residents to know that my BT broadband (via a Speedtouch modem) has recently increased in speed from an average of about 1.3 MB to about 4.7 MB - a huge difference.

This happened when a BT engineer responded to a call via my ISP to fix an ever-deteriorating quality of service. The problem turned out to be incorrect connections from the wiring within the apartment to the BT master socket, and was a simple matter for the BT engineer to fix. It was obviously a common occurrence to him.

It may also be worth noting that following the call, the broadband connection varied wildly in speed for a day or two, and dropped out once
or twice. This is also normal; it is because the equipment at the exchange is responding to the new connection quality at the customer's
end, and is trying various speeds to determine the best one. When it changes speed you get a temporary drop-out."

 

08/6/10

Insurance claims

Our buildings insurance premium has rocketed in the last year as there have been so many claims, many the result of poor workmanship by PJL. We’re pursuing this with our solicitor at the moment so we’d like to hear from any resident who has made an insurance claim, hoping that this will strengthen our case against PJL. Please email fhra@hotmail.co.uk with details.

 

08/06/10

Broadband Connectivity - BT Infinity 

There is an article in the Stotfold News June 2010 edition inviting you to register your interest for BT Infinity p36. 

 

08/06/10
NHBC
Just a reminder that you should have received a policy number and the NHBC Buildmark documents upon completion of your apartment. If you’ve not received these, please contact the NHBC on 0870 241 4329 or go to www.nhbc.co.uk. 

 

16/4/10

A new bus route will be opening up from Arlesey through Fairfield Park via the West Drive. The route will be controlled by retractable bollards, so will not become a thoroughfare for normal traffic.  See Stotfold News p15.

 

16/4/10

Noise

Please be considerate and try to keep noise to a minimum if you are returning to your apartment late in the evening and walking past other residents windows or front doors.

 

16/4/10

Smoking – can we request that if you go outside of the building to smoke, please move away from the building so smoke isn’t blown back in through the door or any nearby residents windows.

 
3/3/10

Bedfordshire Police Suggestions

We have recently met with Bedfordshire Police to talk about some simple measures we can take to improve security around the Hall and in our homes. They are also producing a report for us with suggestions about lighting, signage, CCTV and parking that we can provide to Hazelvine who can in turn discuss with the Landlord. 

UV Pens are available free of charge from the Police and a supply is on its way to us. Simply mark

your valuables with your postcode and they can be easily tracked back to you. If you’d like to receive one, please email the website.

SmartWater is another way of providing your belongings with a unique identity. Bottles of Smartwater cost about £20 through a Neighbourhood watch scheme.

Immobilise is a free database that enables you to log the serial numbers of electrical items providing the police with another way of tracing

stolen goods. There are over 23m members and the database is accessed over 1m times a month.

 

More details on all these measures can be found by going to Beds Police website, www.safer-beds.org where there are links to SmartWater and Immobilise. These things only take a few minutes to organise and  in the worst case scenario, could mean the difference between your valuables finding their way back to you or going unclaimed.

 

3/3/10

Neighbourhood Watch

We’d like to try again to set up a scheme at the Hall. You don’t have to commit to patrol the grounds or attend meetings! It’s just a case of keeping your eyes open and reporting anything to the Hall coordinator. The Police recognise that people can be put off reporting something as they think that they shouldn’t bother them.. so it’s much easier to be able to report it to Neighbourhood Watch.

 

Please email our Security Committee Member for more information and help us make sure the Hall stays a very safe place to live.    

 
2/2/10
Noticeboards
Hazelvine have recently installed some small noticeboards in the main entrances around the hall so the Committee can post up useful information about what's going on at the Hall and things like useful contact details, events and emergency numbers. We hope you'll agree that this will be better than notices being stuck on the back of doors and on letterboxes!
If you'd like to see any information up on the boards, please email the committee.
 
2/2/10
British Gas and your boiler
Some residents have recently had problems with British Gas not being able to inspect their boiler flues. We understand that PJL have recently met with British Gas so if you have experienced a similar problem, please contact Diane Voss at PJL.   
 
 

 

06/04/10 & 27/9/10
Email Addresses we still don’t have up to date details for a number of Hall residents. If you think we might not have your details, please email us or contact any committee member. Having your email address is the easiest way to contact you with updates and future communications.

06/04/10
New Park Chairman we’ve received an email from the new Chairman of the Park Committee asking for anyone who’s interested in being sent information and updates about what’s happening on the Park to email fpra@btinternet.com with ‘I live at Fairfield’ in the subject line.

16/4/10
Unwanted furniture
If you have any surplus furniture, please don’t leave it in our bin stores hoping that it will be removed for you. Contact www.nhvcs.co.uk who will collect it and put it to very good use.  

 
3/3/10

Parking

This remains an issue so can we just ask again that residents follow some simple requests:

Grassed areas – please don’t park on the grass or drive across it to access or exit a space. In the recent wet weather some areas of grass have been badly damaged by this activity & it will take money that we don’t have spare to repair that damage.

Where’s my space? – if you’re not sure where your allocated space is, please email Diane.voss@pjlivesey.com.

Does that vehicle belong here? – if you’re not sure if a vehicle belongs in a car park, for example if you think it could have been abandoned, please contact Hazelvine directly and please don’t take any action yourself.

Thank you for your support and understanding.

 
3/3/10
Public Arts monies
Central Beds have advised us that an as yet unknown amount of public money is available for community art projects around the Hall and Park. They are asking for suggestions from residents as to how this could be spent. We’ve so far mentioned the re-instatement of the bandstand that used to stand near the Cricket pitch, a memorial in the area of the graveyard or some sculpture in either the West wing gardens or in front of the Hall where the sales office now stands. We’d like to hear from any residents with other ideas or suggestions, so please drop us an email or contact a committee member. 

 
Updated 9/2/10 - GL14 traffic
We've now heard from GL14 that their proposal for the one way traffic management scheme has been shelved. We're currently waiting on an update from them as to what they propose to do instead. 
 
 
12/12/09
Proposals for Managing GL14 Traffic
You may already be aware that GL14 are proposing early in 2010 to introduce a new traffic management scheme to the north of the Hall. The proposals will incorporate a one- way traffic flow for visitors to GL14 and Doughty's; the commissioning of the overflow car park adjacent to the waste compactor site; the use of a parking attendant (although it is not certain whether this will be solely for GL14/Doughty's); and the introduction of a resident parking permit scheme.

The FHRA have contacted GL14 for further information on these proposals and we understand that GL14 may have applied for planning permission for these changes. A copy of the FHRA email can be viewed below. Any residents requiring more information should contact the FHRA at fhra@hotmail.co.uk.
 
Updated 11/12/09
Broadband connectivity
A number of residents at Fairfield Hall are experiencing problems with poor Broadband performance, which can range from intermittent to no Broadband connectivity making it slow or even impossible to use the Internet service.

BT engineers advise that increased usage in this area has led to an inadequate signal or bandwidth being received by individual users. BT can upgrade the Broadband service to the area but will only do so with any degree of urgency if they perceive it to be a collective problem and not resulting from sporadic individual problems.

We would therefore advise Hall residents to contact either BT or their own ISP to advise them of any connectivity problems. A template letter to BT can be found below. Do please let us know what response you receive.