Welcome to the Rudloe and environs website.

Here you will find news, articles and photos of an area that straddles the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in north-west Wiltshire.

Contributions in the form of articles or photos are welcome. Even those with completely contrary views to mine!

Thanks to the website builder 1&1 and Rob Brown for the original idea.

Rudloescene now, in January 2014, has a sister, academic rather than anarchic, website about Box history here: http://www.boxpeopleandplaces.co.uk/

It contains thoroughly professional, well-researched articles about Box and its people.

Contact rudloescene through the 'Contact' page.

Rudloe Estate and Social Club - Christmas 1999

25th February 2024 - the resurrection of Rudloe Community Centre (RCC) under the auspices of the reconstituted Rudloe Community Association (RCA) is advancing... slowly. Whilst certain difficulties have been overcome in the negotiations with Wiltshire Council, a considerable hurdle remains the condition of the heating system and reconnection of the gas supply. Wiltshire Council's contractors initially estimated a five-figure sum for the reestablishment of the system but then intimated that the whole system would have to be replaced. All costs would have to be borne by the RCA.

The current situation is that RCA, through its proposed anchor tenant Corsham Baptist Church, is negotiating with Wiltshire Council to open RCC in order to enable 'our own' contractor to evaluate the state of the heating system. Watch this space...

31st January 2024 - two fine cedars in a Prestley Wood Road garden have been felled, leaving this north end of the estate looking like a concrete jungle. Ironically, the trees were felled by an Amesbury company that was fined £7000 (and had their vehicle crushed) in 2021 for fly-tipping.

15th October 2023 - the rudloescene reader may have already heard that a group of local people is, thanks to much work from local councillor Derek Walters, in the process of resurrecting the charity Rudloe Community Association. The group will be the new trustees of the charity whose aim is to reopen Rudloe Community Centre. The 'case' for the charity and the centre reopening was put to the Corsham Local Area Board of Wiltshire Council at Selwyn Hall on Thursday (12th October) and, thankfully, the board approved the project unanimously. The case for the asset transfer of the community centre from Wiltshire Council to Rudloe Community Association will now be put to the Wiltshire Council 'Cabinet' at one of their upcoming meetings, possibly in January.

7th July 2023 - Rudloe Community Centre will be open, in the charge of Councillor Derek Walters, for local people to view the state of the centre and to voice opinions regarding the possibilities for future usage. The opening dates/times may be seen in the .pdf  'flyer' below:

25th June 2023 - I guess the Rudloe cognoscenti will all know by now that GreenSquare (GSA) has, after years of misinformation, disinformation, hypocrisy, pretence and deception, abandoned its 'regeneration' plans for Rudloe Estate. The central block of land, including the community centre and Green now falls back under the control of Wiltshire Council. The Green, thanks to the work of Councillor Derek Walters, has been given the status of an Asset of Community Value by Wiltshire Council. Local councillors and others are now looking at options with a view to a real regeneration of the community centre (and perhaps the shop). One possibility would be a Community Asset Transfer from Wiltshire Council to ... (possibly Box Parish Council or another local organisation)... once again, Derek and others are actively pursuing this option.

The reader (yes, you) may know that GSA has, through an article in the Wiltshire Gazette, attempted to blame others for its failure to pursue this project - see https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/23605107.plan-50-new-homes-community-centre-site-rudloe-abandoned/. I could have written a book on GSA's deceit but made do with the following comment on the article:

21st May 2022 - the rudloescene reader (yes, you) may have seen an unusually accurate report in the Wiltshire Gazette & Herald of 20th May entitled Rudloe green space made asset of community value. The background to these bids can be found in the 21st March and 3rd April articles below (as well as the rest of the articles on this webpage!). Despite Box Parish Council voting not to support the bids (by 6 votes to 4 - Rudloe councillors Davies, Wright and Johnston and Box councillor Ingledew were the four supporting the bid) at a Full Council meeting on 31st March, Wiltshire Council (WC) did decide to list Rudloe Green as an asset of community value. WC's decision not to list Rudloe Community Centre (RCC) unfortunately gave an invalid reason for doing so as follows 'We have made the decision that the Community Centre is not to be listed as an ACV on the basis that it has not been used since before its closure in 2017 due to lack of use'. Apart from the tautology ('not been used ... due to lack of  use'), as all that did use RCC (including yours truly) on a regular basis know, this statement is inaccurate; it was used by a number of local organisations and clubs every week and also for celebrations, parties etc. However, Wiltshire Council's formal letter on the decision states, inter alia:

“We note that the process determined that the community centre has not been designated as an Asset of Community Value, whereas the green space has. Despite this registration, the land remains in Wiltshire Council’s ownership and it remains at the Council’s discretion to determine the future of the site, including disposal. The process to designate an Asset of Community Value is a statutory planning function that can have an impact on the landowners proposals to dispose of a site, but does not oblige the Council to transfer land to either a community group or other party (including the Parish Council). It is our understanding that as the Council is offering the whole of the site for sale to Green Square Accord (the green, the community centre and associated parking, and the shop), we would not be bound by any moratoria (as set out in legislation), as it would constitute partlisted land – i.e. sale of a site only part of which has been listed which is an exempt disposal. On that basis, we have no instructions to vary from the existing course of action to enter into a conditional contract to dispose of the whole site to Green Square Accord; the condition being that they obtain planning consent prior to the disposal taking place".

In spite of Box Parish Council's lack of support for the ACV bid, Councillor Wright (Dave) did gain support at the parish council's Policy & Finance Committee meeting on 16th May for the establishment of  a working group to 'examine all functions required for the planning, development, acquisition, management and maintenance of the Rudloe Green Community Asset and the Rudloe Play Area'.

In the meantime, in view of the listing, Councillor Walters (Derek) has written to GreenSquare Accord (GSA) informing them of the situation and of the intention of Rudloe parish councillors to object to any development proposed on Rudloe Green. Derek has proposed a compromise, an alternative solution that should satisfy all parties. That solution would see GSA redevelop the twenty-five apparently unsatisfactory, 1970s maisonettes but leave Rudloe Green and RCC as community assets to be developed through local initiatives. On which subject, there are two nascent initiatives (apart from the Parish Council working group): the first is the revival of the extant but dormant charity the Rudloe Community Association. (the Charity Commission has stated that this may be revived following a meeting of new trustees with the minutes of the meeting being sent to them); the second is from local resident Phil Rice who intends to set up Rudloe Community Group which would include amongst its activities the organisation of events, such as a Platinum Jubilee Party* (on Rudloe Green!).

*See the 22nd May 2022 article above

3^rd April 2022 – the Asset of Community Value (ACV) bids for Rudloe Community Centre and Rudloe Green, initiated by Councillor Derek Walters, were presented for Council endorsement at the Full Council meeting of Box Parish Council on 31^st March. The reasons why the Centre and Green are considered to be valuable assets were, of course, identified on the bid documentation and may be found in the .pdf file below.

Naturally, the Council voted not to support the ACV bids. This vote continues the protracted campaign of inaction and disinformation emanating from this rotten council. The usual, shameful arguments were rolled out such as ‘nobody stepping up to the plate when the Centre closed on 31^st July 2017’. This is a classic example of the pot calling the kettle black. On 31^st August 2017, Wiltshire Council offered the Centre to Box Parish Council (BPC) on a sale or long lease basis and what did BPC do? The offer was not registered, it was not put on the agenda of any BPC committee, it was not responded to. BPC did absolutely nothing. Does the rudloescene reader detect a hidden agenda here?

Contrast the squalid behaviour of BPC with the purposeful, substantial and heartfelt sentiments in a letter sent to BPC and Wiltshire Council by Rosie McNamara, author of The Boxfields Bungalows, which, with Rosie’s permission, may be found in the .pdf file below.

21st March 2022 - the 5th March public meeting has moved our local councillor, Derek Walters, to present two applications to Wiltshire Council to have both Rudloe Community Centre and Green declared Assets of Community Value* (which they, of course, are). Each application required authentication by 21 local people who are on the electoral register (there is no particular reason for the number - I suppose that this was 'plucked out of the air' by some past administrator).
 

*ACV status gives communities a right to identify a building or other land that they believe to be of importance to their community’s social well-being. The aim is that, if the asset comes up for sale, then they will be given a fair chance to make a bid to buy it on the open market. If the nominated asset meets the definition of an asset of community value, the local authority will list it.

A petition to save the Community Centre and the Green was also initiated at the 5th March meeting. Over 300 local people have signed.

5th March 2022 - the photo below shows the throng at the end of the public meeting about Rudloe Green and Community Centre. Given that with wind chill taken into account, the temperature was only two degrees, the turnout wasn't bad - about 40 excluding councillors and yours truly.

1st March 2022 - a public meeting will be held on the Green at 10 o'clock on Saturday 5th March about the future of the Green and the Community Centre. The 'flyer' shown below (and in the .pdf file below that) will be posted through all Rudloe letterboxes this week

14th January 2022 - following continued entreaties from our local Wiltshire Councillor Derek Walters, the GreenSquareAccord (GSA) organisation finally (after years of requests) saw fit to open Rudloe Community Centre to Wiltshire Councillors (Derek Walters and Dr Brian Mathew), Box Parish Councillors (Sheila Parker, Rob Davies, Ian Johnston, Nigel Ingledew, Marilyn Tye and Anna Woollard) and the Parish Council secretary, Margaret Carey.

And what did they find? A wreck? This was the benighted, malicious description of the community centre provided by former local councillor Moore. One wonders what was his motivation for providing such a description and what has been the motivation of others for blindly accepting such nonsense.

As many previous articles make clear, when closed in July 2017, the community centre was in a good state of repair. How and why could it become "a wreck"? This was clearly malevolent baloney. The exterior of the building does require some maintenance, particularly to the roof ridge tiles, but this is to be expected after four-or-so years of neglect. Significantly, there has been no vandalism directed at the centre - this is an indication of the respect that local children have for this significant piece of social infrastructure.

The following photographs indicate that the interior of the building has not deteriorated since its closure.

24th December 2021 - Twas the night before Christmas and all through the estate, the residents were on tenterhooks to learn of their fate. Would Santa reign supreme or would Satan (GreenSquare) prevail with the abomination they are about to unveil. Their Dec 2021 'Update' on matters of Rudloe demonstrates fantasy over de facto. Seventy-four per cent seems clearcut but seventy-four per cent of what?

Enough already of the rubbish verse. Let's take a look at their Update - tis in the file below.

Have you asked yourself why GreenSquare doesn't provide actual figures or real numbers in their bulletins? It is, of course, because they prefer to continue their tradition of deceit and duplicity. The percentages of 74% in favour of their proposals and 26% against are meaningless. The nearest whole numbers which those percentages would represent in real terms are 6 people in favour and 2 against. The next nearest whole numbers (real people) that they might represent are 11 in favour and 4 against. In view of GreenSquare's statement that there was "a large reduction in the number of returned forms compared to previous consultations" it is quite likely that one of these presumptions (ie 6 and 2 or 11 and 4) represents the de facto numbers. So which was it GreenSquare, were there 6 or 11 people in favour of your proposed development?

Compare with the 59 people who signed the petition "We do not subscribe to or support GreenSquare's plan only now revealed on 22nd September 2021" at the Blue Bus consultation event or the 101 people who supported Camomile Cafe's proposal for a community hub at Rudloe Community Centre (which GreenSquare' plans will see demolished) or the 105 people who supported the 2019 village green application for Rudloe Green (which GreenSquare's plans will see ravaged by reconstituted block, concrete and tarmac).

And their disinformation continues with "The planned new green space is slightly larger than the current green space used by the children to play football". Once again GreenSquare is hiding behind abstraction - the maps in the file below show the current and proposed green spaces with figures. Their proposals will reduce considerably any area where children might play football.

Only now, years after their supposed Steering Group was set up, are they thinking of the disruption to the life of the estate that their proposals will bring with their "Access to green space while building works are ongoing". Perhaps they (or the local councillor who is their mouthpiece at Box Parish Council meetings) could indicate whether this subject ever came up at Steering Group meetings. They have only come around to thinking of this following representations from local people and through articles on this website.

And we see why the 'Number of properties proposed' is not a number to satisfy demand or to fulfill local housing need but is an inflated number by which GreenSquare will make a profit. Through this proposal, west Corsham will become an extensive conurbation from Pickwick to Neston: we already have the 88 homes at Dickens Gate with 35 'affordable' homes; the Park Place development with 170 homes including 50 affordable; the upcoming Bellway Westwells Road development with 168 homes of which 50 will be affordable; the Donkey Field development with 81 homes and a probable number of 30 or so affordable; the, as yet unannounced, development of around 100 homes in the remaining Miscanthus field south of Bradford Road and east of Skynet Drive and the also unannounced development (from Great Tew Estates) of the two fields north of Bradford Road to the east of Rudloe Estate which will bring about 170 new homes. The last thing that west Corsham (and Rudloe) needs is an increase in density of an existing residential estate.

16th December 2021 - at Box Parish Council's (BPC) Full Council meeting tonight, a vote was taken on the Council's desire to spend the £42,849 Dickens Gate S106 allocation for 'leisure facilities in the vicinity of the development' on the Pavilion in Box village.

There was no need to make a precipitate decision on this matter as the time limit for the allocation/spending of the money is, I believe, a good eight years away (2029?). Yet, the vote to allocate the money to the Pavilion was passed by a majority of four with councillors H. Parker, Clifford, B. Walton, T. Walton, Campbell, Tye, S. Parker and Woollard voting for and councillors Ingledew, Davies, Johnson and Wright against. This was in spite of the following rational arguments/statements against taking such a decision (the first three arguments were made by yours truly at public question time):

• The 2015 S106 agreement and the follow-up 2019 side agreement specified 'leisure facilities in the development'. There is no mention in the agreement of the Pavilion; this redirection has always been simply a desire of Box Parish Council officers.
• Many people at Rudloe desire to see the Community Centre revived. One-hundred-and-one locals supported Camomile Cafe's proposal of an activity hub for all age groups at the Centre.
•  Even if the existing Community Centre is not saved, the GreenSquare organisation (GSA) proposes to build a replacement centre as part of its so-called Rudloe Regeneration plan. The 106 monies could be directed at this facility.
• In a statement read by Wiltshire Councillor Brian Mathew, our other Wiltshire Councillor, Derek Walters, stated that any decision should be delayed until Box Parish councillors had had the opportunity to look around Rudloe Community Centre in order to see for themselves the state of the building. GSA has offered to facilitate such a tour in January.
• Councillor Johnson stated that he had just been appointed as BPC's S106 officer and he wished to establish, before any decision is taken, that the monies are used properly, legally, and in accordance with any County Council guidance and regulations.
• In a statement read by Councillor Wright, Councillor Barton stated that he supported the direction of the S106 monies to Rudloe as this area had the greater requirement for leisure infrastructure.
• Councillor Davies recounted the sad history of disinformation emanating from BPC officers on this issue.

Yet, in spite of these judicious arguments, the heedless decision was made with some (what shall we say?) 'misinformed' supporting remarks. With no knowledge of the area or its people, Councillor Walton (T) stated that following the closure of Rudloe Community Centre in 2017, there had been no interest from local people in reviving the centre (see the corrigendum below at *), conveniently forgetting my earlier testimony that 101 local people had supported Camomile Cafe's robust attempt in 2019 to establish a community hub despite the indifference/antipathy of outside agencies. And then there followed the oft-repeated yarn by Councillor Parker (S) that the S106 agreement was drawn up in 2015 when most of Rudloe (including the community centre) was part of Corsham Parish and certain Wiltshire councillors had agreed that the money could be spent, as BPC council officers desired, on the Pavilion. Yes, but things change and did change - all of Rudloe became part of Box Parish in April 2017; Rudloe Community Centre was offered to BPC on a sale or long lease basis in an August 2017 letter from Wiltshire Council's agents - BPC officers ignored this letter, it was not recorded, put on the agenda of any committee or discussed in committee (this was one of the key points in Councillor Davies's analysis of the 'sad history'); and the handover of the S106 monies did not take place until a final agreement (called the side-agreement) had been signed in November 2019, two-and-a-half years after Rudloe (all of) became part of Box Parish. Yet BPC officers were so fixated on spending this money on the Pavilion in Box that they could not or would not countenence changing their position in order to allocate the monies to their rightful place ... in the vicinity of the development.

And this position has now been supported by an unthinking BPC commitee, some of whom feigned snoozing through the debate.

* Councillor Walton has requested that I clarify what he said; in a message sent on 7th January 2022, he says: "What I actually said was that the Community Centre closed because when the people that were running it at the time pleaded for support, no one stepped forward, so they closed it".

2nd November 2021 - Silencing Dissidents

The Real Story, a series to be found on BBC Sounds, looks at underlying aspects of political issues in the modern world. The 13^th August programme was called Silencing Dissidents. Late in the programme, the host, Ritula Shah, posited the following: “The idea of who is a dissident is changing. It’s become people who are trying to defend democracy. It’s the criminalization of simply the act of asking questions.”

On Thursday, 28^th October 2021, at the ‘full’ Box Parish Council monthly meeting, Councillor Davies of Rudloe asked questions regarding a letter, reproduced below, sent by Wiltshire Council’s agents Lambert, Smith, Hampton on 31^st August 2017 to Box Parish Council following the closure of Rudloe Community Centre on 31^st July 2017. The letter indicates that Wiltshire Council will consider proposals for community use and will offer the building either on a ‘full repairing and insuring lease’ on terms to be agreed or on a ‘sale’ basis on a 125-year lease at a peppercorn rent. A costed business plan would also be required.

Councillor Davies’s questions were: ‘What action did Box Parish Council (BPC) take on receipt of this letter? Was it registered? Was it placed on the agenda of any council committee? Was it discussed in committee? Was any acknowledgement or reply sent to Wiltshire Council’s agents? In response, the BPC secretary stated that Wiltshire Councillor Ben Anderson was consulted and he suggested that the letter be placed on parish notice boards. Manifestly, this response was far from satisfactory. An offer of a £800k, 15-year-old community building was just placed on notice boards with no committee involvement or discussion to what end? Is this standard practice, that significant correspondence is simply placed on notice boards?

The nub of Councillor Davies’s ‘argument’ was that this was certainly not standard practice and that BPC should have taken a proactive approach in an effort to find and coordinate solutions to this significant issue - but BPC did nothing, it did not even register receipt of the offer. Then the BPC ‘mob’ weighed in with: “IT’S NEARLY HALF-PAST NINE”, “WE’RE FED UP WITH HEARING ABOUT THIS”, “WHAT ABOUT ALCOMBE, KINGSDOWN AND WADSWICK”, “RUDLOE HAS A BUS SERVICE”.

This antagonism has its heart in disinformation (a posh word for a lie). At the 19th December 2019 full parish council meeting, we heard that Box Parish Council (BPC) had not been given the opportunity, by Wiltshire Council, to look at the possibilities for the future of Rudloe Community Centre following its closure in 2017.  This continued the disinformation found in the Parish Council's statement in its News column in the October 2019 Box Parish magazine regarding Rudloe Green and Community Centre that "The Parish Council have not had the option from Wiltshire Council to purchase the building”.

The council officers and councillors now cannot revisit a situation whereby the officers are revealed to have acted improperly then to have been economical with the actualite (ref Alan Clark).

Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive … (Walter Scott this time)

25th October 2021 - a family objection to the proposed disposal of Rudloe Green may be found in the file below. Note that today is the last day* that objections may be made over the proposed disposal.

*The date has been extended to Friday, 29th October to allow Box Parish Council to determine a response following the Full Council meeting on Thursday, 28th October. I see no reason therefore why others may not continue to object during this time.

24th October 2021 - my further objection to the proposed disposal of Rudloe Green may be found in the file below:

The objection, sent by email, had one attachment which may be found in the .pdf file below:

20th October 2021 - my objection to the proposed disposal of Rudloe Green may be found in the .pdf file below:

The objection, sent by email, had two attachments which may be found in the .pdf files below:

8th October 2021 - Wiltshire Council's 'Legal Notice' regarding its intention to dispose of public open space, know to us as our beloved Rudloe Green, was published in the paper copy (not in the online version) of the Wilts Gazette & Herald yesterday, 7th October. The notice says that "Objections to the intended disposal must be made in writing etc". As few people will have seen this notice, tucked away in an obscure part of the paper, I propose to do a leaflet drop to all homes in Rudloe, which will include a copy of this notice. Clearly, there are many issues with this proposal; 105 local families supported the adoption of Rudloe Green as a village green in 2019 - it is our 'de facto' village green and should not be disposed of to a developer. And I have made the following point elsewhere: GreenSquare's proposed scheme will proceed as follows: (1) in year 1/2, demolish the Community Centre and build on the Green; (2) in year 2/3, move existing tenants from the houses to be demolished into the new houses, demolish the houses vacated and build new houses in the area of those demolished; (3) in year 3 construct the smaller (yes, smaller), more formal and confined green space proposed. Now this is extremely important - for two/three years, children, particularly those confined in flats and those with special needs, will have nowhere to exercise or play. This is an aspect of this proposal that no one, not GreenSquare, not its supposed Steering Group, not Wiltshire Council, not Box Parish Council, no one has considered and this is an outrage.

25th September 2021 - GreenSquare's Blue Bus 'consultation' could presage a Black Future for Rudloe but 'we' shall continue to present the case against GreenSquare's lies, deceit and misrepresentations.

Fifty-eight local people (all from Rudloe Estate) signed the proclamation "We do not subscribe to or support GreenSquare's plan only now revealed on 22nd September 2021". Four erstwhile members (M Davies and Mmes Creighton, McCarron and Orr) of the so-called Steering Group knew nothing of this plan and no minutes (apart from the first meeting) or conclusions or results of votes have been published from any 'deliberations' during the three-year life of the Steering Group. All is hidden.

A local man, Charlie Redford, said that this state of affairs is evocative of the Delphi technique or Delphi method. Charlie directed me to a paper by Albert Burns which included the following:

More and more, we are seeing citizens being invited to “participate” in various forms of meetings, councils, or boards to “help determine” public policy in one field or another. They are supposedly being included to get ”input” from the public to help officials make final decisions on taxes, education, community growth or whatever the particular subject matter might be.

Sounds great, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, surface appearances are often deceiving.

You, Mr. or Mrs. Citizen, decide to take part in one of these meetings.

Generally, you will find that there is already someone designated to lead or “facilitate” the meeting. Supposedly, the job of the facilitator is to be a neutral, non-directing helper to see that the meeting flows smoothly.

Actually, he or she is there for exactly the opposite reason: to see that the conclusions reached during the meeting are in accord with a plan already decided upon by those who called the meeting.

The process used to “facilitate” the meeting is called the Delphi Technique. This Delphi Technique was developed by the RAND Corporation for the U.S. Department of Defense back in the 1950s. It was originally intended for use as a psychological weapon during the cold war.

However, it was soon recognized that the steps of Delphi could be very valuable in manipulating ANY meeting toward a predetermined end.

This outlines what we have been through, with GreenSquare being the 'facilitator' and the 'predetermined end' being GreenSquare's plan to build on the Green and demolish Rudloe Community Centre.

There are 'Seven Principles of Public Life' (the Nolan Principles) which apply to public office-holders and those in other sectors delivering public services. These principles therefore apply to GreenSquare which, as a housing association, is regulated by the state and receives public funding. What are these principles? They are: 1. Selflessness, 2. Integrity, 3. Objectivity, 4. Accountability, 5. Openness, 6. Honesty and 7. Leadership. Further explanation may be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-7-principles-of-public-life/the-7-principles-of-public-life--2

GreenSquare certainly falls foul of five of these principles, particularly Integrity, Openness and Honesty.

19th September 2021 - GreenSquare's latest, supposed 'consultation' will take place in their Blue Bus this coming Wednesday from 5pm to 7pm in the car park adjacent to Rudloe Community Centre. Their leaflet about this event may be found in the.pdf file below.

I have produced a 'flyer' about this event which, touch wood, will be posted through all Rudloe Estate letterboxes in the next couple of days. The flyer may be found in a .pdf file below and is also reproduced here ...

The GreenSquare ‘Rudloe regeneration consultation’

You may be aware that GreenSquare is holding a ‘consultation’ event in their Blue Bus on Wednesday 22^nd September from 5pm to 7pm. The bus will be located in the central car park close to the Community Centre. And, by the way, ‘consultation’ is in quotes as it is nothing of the sort because …

• GreenSquare always intended to build on the Green and demolish the Community Centre. The supposed ‘steering group’ and previous consultations have been nothing more than a sham designed to illustrate to Wiltshire Council how they have consulted local people in the design and development process. And now, after hiding their intentions for years, this ‘consultation’ has a cut-off date of 27^th September – people have just a few days to give their opinions about their ‘regeneration’ plan, the detail of which has finally been revealed. GreenSquare has held the people of Rudloe in contempt; we should now do the same and refuse to participate in their sham.
   
• The fact that GreenSquare intends to build 51 homes (and then demolish 25 homes) has nothing to do with a housing requirement for local people. This is purely for the benefit of GreenSquare’s balance sheet – 51 is the minimum number which will give GreenSquare a ‘profit’. The Green will be lost for their benefit, not ours.
   
• 85 social homes have just been built across the Bradford Road at Dickens Gate and Park Place. GreenSquare could have bid for these but they chose not to. 50 more social homes are also planned among the 168 to be started soon at the ex-RAF Rudloe No 2 Site in Westwells Road. There is no local requirement for more homes.
   
• If you choose to respond to GreenSquare’s feedback form, you should be aware that supposedly ‘innocent’ questions are a trick and a trap. If you answer “Do you have any preference to property finishes, eg brick with cladding, or the proposed colour scheme?”, GreenSquare will use this on their planning application to show Wiltshire Council that the people of Rudloe want these homes so much that they are even choosing finishes and colours. Do not answer these questions.
   
• If (God help us) GreenSquare does receive planning permission to build on the Green and then demolish the existing twenty-five 1970s homes, think about how long this would take (Dickens Gate, across the road has taken three years) and how much traffic, noise and pollution there would be (JCBs, piledrivers, diggers, trucks etc) and where would the children play during these ‘lost’ years?
   
• Rudloe Green is designated Public Open Space. It is our village green. Wiltshire Council was supposed to consult over its disposal but they have failed to do so. But this word ‘disposal’ typifies the attitude of Wiltshire Council and GreenSquare.

www.rudloescene.co.uk/news/rudloe/rudloe-estate

email: rudloe-issues@hotmail.com

phone: 07803 295291

31st July 2021 - GreenSquare's (now GreenSquareAccord but still with the same attitude towards the people of Rudloe and the environment) 'Rudloe Update' of June 2021 (but dated July!) has only now (as I say in the letter reproduced below) reached this corner of Rudloe. The 'Update' is, of course, their warped view of the future of Rudloe Estate, laughingly called Rudloe Regeneration. The 'Update' may be found in the .pdf file here:

Yours truly's response to this charade follows (this response has been sent, by email, to GreenSquare with copies to our new Wiltshire councillor, our local (Rudloe) councillors, Box Parish Council, Wiltshire Council's 'new' lead on strategy and planning and Wiltshire Council's rights of way department (who also have responsibility for village greens). A .pdf version may be found below.

29th June 2021 -  The following article is from yesterday's Times. It poses the ecological/Green/sustainability argument for renovation and against demolition. As the article says, the construction industry is responsible for two thirds of all waste produced in the UK and 10% of the country's carbon emissions. So here we have the national, Green argument for the retention of the existing Rudloe Community Centre (and perhaps also for the retention of the maisonettes that Green Square is proposing to demolish). The reuse of existing buildings is proposed by the Architects Journal and has widespread industry support (but not from GreenSquare it seems).

18th December 2020 - the following 'letter' (email) was sent to Wiltshire Council, our local Wiltshire councillor, Box Parish Council and others yesterday. It points out, in view of its position and configuration, how useful Rudloe Community Centre could be as a Covid vaccination centre. 

Dear All,

The following information may be found at Wiltshire Council's Public Health webpage on Coronavirus here: https://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/public-health-coronavirus under the heading 'Where will people get the vaccine'.

'Vaccination Centres: The NHS will also establish vaccination centres, where large numbers of people will be able to go and get a jab.  The majority will open in the New Year when supply of the vaccine increases. They are being set up in local venues such as sports stadiums and concert venues that offer the physical space to deal with large numbers of people while maintaining social distancing.'

This is relevant to today's (17th December 2020) Box Parish Council Full Council meeting at which GreenSquare will be giving a presentation on their Rudloe 'regeneration' plans which, as is commonly known, will include the proposed demolition of the existing, £1 million community centre.

Buildings large enough to enable the "physical space" for socially-distanced queueing, away from winds and weathers, are not exactly plentiful in Box and its related settlements. Selwyn Hall is perhaps one which would fit the bill but even this is not altogether easily accessible, in view of its position on a slope and with one main entrance. The one local building that is perfectly placed to offer every facility that mass vaccination would require is, ironically, the one that the GreenSquare organisation would propose to demolish.

Apart from its smaller spaces, Rudloe Community Centre has two large rooms connected by a double-door. The larger of the two, the former bar, would be ideal for queueing; the smaller (but still large) room could be used for the vaccinations. Each of these rooms has three entrances/exits, two internal and one external. The building itself has four external double-door entrances/exits, two which are wheelchair-friendly and two onto the covered terrace (which itself could perhaps be put to use in some way). And, of course, it has a large, adjacent car park which Selwyn Hall (for example) does not.

In the current, and quite likely mid- to long-term health crisis, we should put to one side the slanted, unfounded fictions on the state of Rudloe Community Centre and make all haste to enable this much-maligned but now seemingly (in the current climate) expressly appropriate building to be used as a vaccination centre for Rudloe.

Sincerely

Paul Turner

6th August 2020 and it is time to stop beating about the bush and call out lies that have pervaded the local narrative for the last few years. In this article, I am accusing Box Parish Council (BPC) of lying about the monies (now called Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), formerly S106) amounting to £38,000 due from the Dickens Gate development for 'Leisure facilities within the vicinity of the development'. BPC has consistently stated that at the time of the apportioning of the monies due from this development, it was agreed that the £38k was to be spent on the Pavilion on the Rec. They stated that this agreement could not be changed. As late as 30th July 2020, BPC said the following in an email: "... a S106 agreement was drawn up in which it was agreed that the contribution would come to Box Parish Council for use on the Pavilion".

This was and is a lie - Lie No 1. There was never any such agreement. In an email dated 18th August 2018, the Wiltshire Council S106 and Community Infrastructure Officer reported to me as follows: "The £38,000 leisure contribution within the S106 agreement dated 02/04/2015 is to be used for leisure facilities within the vicinity of the development.  The agreement does not specify an exact location for this contribution.  When the contribution is received, it will be paid into the Leisure code on the S106 element of the balance sheet and I will let Colin Brown (Leisure) know it is there and a conversation can be had to establish location / best use of money etc". 

We see from BPC Planning Committee minutes that the draft (note, draft) agreement was reported as received at the 14th October 2019 meeting and then was reported as signed at the Planning Committee meeting on 11th November 2019. So it was not signed and agreed "at that time" but sometime between 14/10/2019 and  11/11/2019. It appears that prior to 14th October 2019, that 'conversation' between Colin Brown and BPC had taken place and only then had BPC directed the money towards the Pavilion with an agreement then being drawn up between the two parties.

Lie No 2. At the 19th December 2019 full parish council meeting, we heard that Box Parish Council (BPC) had not been given the opportunity, by Wiltshire Council, to look at the possibilities for the future of Rudloe Community Centre (RCC) following its closure in 2017.  This continued the disinformation found in the Parish Council's statement in its News column in October's (2019) Box Parish magazine regarding Rudloe Green and Community Centre that "The Parish Council have not had the option from Wiltshire Council to purchase the building ...". However, a letter to Box Parish Council from Wiltshire Council's agents Lambert Smith Hampton dated 31st August 2017 gave details of the proposed lease/sale of Rudloe Community Centre under the terms of  either a full repairing and insuring lease for a rent and term of years to be agreed or sale on a long leasehold basis for a term of 125 years with a premium required along with a peppercorn rent for the duration of the lease.

The future of Rudloe Estate has been determined by these lies. What should have happened is that BPC take responsibility for this 'leisure facility within the vicinity of the development' (ie Rudloe Community Centre) and use the £38k CIL monies to facilitate required repairs/improvements. (The cost of such repairs/improvements had been grossly overestimated by Wiltshire Council at £66k whereas a sensible figure has been calculated at £22k which would include the addition of a 'wet' central heating system from a reputable local company).

Readers (plural?) will know that the current initiative for Rudloe Community Centre (RCC) and Green coming from the GreenSquare organisation will bring about the demolition of the former and the probable laying waste to the latter - laughably designated Rudloe Regeneration. GreenSquare proposes a small replacement for RCC adjoined to flats (this, in itself, would be a recipe for conflict) but in the current, and likely future, Covid climate large premises like RCC will have greater utility for the now extremely important social distancing.

So what do our local authorities give us to make up for the loss of RCC and the Green (and the shop) and the increased density that 'Regeneration' will bring about? It's a posh sign that proclaims 'Rudloe' as some kind of model village. (The following 'article' is repeated from this month's (August 2020) 'Litter' page).

The text below the sign further says that it was funded by Box Parish Council, Wiltshire Council and the GreenSquare Group and the design, manufacture and installation was by members of the Brunel Shed. A fine sign it is and congratulations to all those involved in its creation but ... (did you sense this coming?) why give Rudloe Estate such an ornate 'village' sign when renowned villages such as Lacock and Castle Combe do not have them? Rudloe Estate was the original (prefab) estate at Rudloe but wasn't the first 'bricks and mortar' estate - this claim to fame goes to the RAF estates off Leafy Lane. And Rudloe Estate is not Rudloe; Rudloe now takes in the other Leafy Lane estates: Springfield Close/Clift Close, Kidston Way/Highlands Close and Ashwood Road/Pine Close.

Communities (or villages) are not created by installing posh signs. Look behind the sign and you will see Rudloe Community Centre completed in 2002 at a cost not far short of £1 million and which that same GreenSquare organisation that part-funded the sign proposes to demolish. How's that for a deal? We will raze your £1 million community centre to the ground and give you a fancy sign that makes you look like a village. Also, the 'green' in front of the Community Centre is, effectively, a village green. It has been here for generations, since the days of the prefab estate, and was designated as Public Open Space in the North Wilts Open Space Study. One-hundred-and-four local people supported the application for Village Green status for the green in 2019. Now the GreenSquare organisation is threatening to build on the 'traditional' green whilst offering the sop of a replacement elsewhere. Another deal! We will build on your traditional green and give you a fancy sign that makes you look like a village.
 

And the sign was designed and produced by children from Broadwood School ... wait a minute, this school is in what now seems to be Rudloe Village (formerly Rudloe Estate) at Rudloe so why isn't it called Rudloe School or Corsham School, Rudloe Site? Would anyone out there care to speculate as to why this is?

28th May 2020 and in spite of the plethora of new homes creating the west Corsham conurbation, GreenSquare continues to impose a fraudulent narrative regarding the brightest future for Rudloe Estate. Apart from Redcliffe’s 170 Bradford Road homes and Bellway’s 88-home Dickens Gate development, we have Bellway’s 100-home Copenacre development and their 168-home Westwells Road application. In addition, the Planning Inquiry for the Gladman 150-home proposal ‘north of the A4’ is due to resume in July. And now that the slope shaft for Hartham Quarry at Rudloe Firs has been approved, the 15-acre field in the Bradford Road which was the previously-proposed site for this shaft will also now be available for development (this was an undisclosed corollary of the Rudloe Firs application) – so at least another 100 homes will be proposed here.  And on a smaller scale, the Neston Gardens development (which is in Hawthorn, not Neston) has brought a further 12 homes. This brings us to a figure of close to 800 new homes built, under construction or proposed in west Corsham.

And yet GreenSquare wants to bring the worst of all worlds by increasing the density of Rudloe Estate. If they receive planning permission for this, then normal life on the estate will be disrupted for years. The 88-home Dickens Gate development has been under construction since October 2018 and best estimates indicate that completion will not be for another 18 months. Can you imagine this in the middle of Rudloe Estate - heavy building site traffic - JCBs, trucks, pile drivers, earth movers and noise, dust, constant reversing beepers, nowhere for the children to play ... for years! And after all this, the upshot will be flats looking out upon flats - a dystopian scene and all to satisfy not the best interests of the people of Rudloe but the business interests of GreenSquare.

We had a precursor of this today when a geotechnology company with a French name (Integral Geotechhique) from Cardiff visited to take samples of earth in the form of approx 1-metre cores. It's hard to see what could be discerned from such cores (see pics below - click on the icon with outward-pointing arrows for full-screen images).

31st December 2019 - twas the night before New Year and time for an update on the Rudloe Estate situation. Misinformation and disinformation (take your pick) continues to be spread by those who should know better. At the full Box Parish Council meeting on 19th December, we heard no end of tosh from a councillor and from the officials. Some of the tosh is to be found in the Box Parish Council NEWS in the parish magazine and this is what has prompted this article. I was so incensed by the misinformation repeated at the meeting (where visitors are not, of course, allowed to take part in discussions) that I had to put pen to paper (email) on the following day. Similarly, I sent an email to the editor of the parish magazine today. The content of these emails is reproduced below.

Sir,

I appreciate that you can only publish the information you receive from the parish council but, if you have the time, you may wish to read the email below sent to Box Parish Council following the December full council meeting on Thursday 19th December.

The email makes plain the Rudloe Estate/Green/Community Centre situation. This is information that members of the Steering Group (and the Council itself) should know and understand but it is clear that this is, worryingly, not the case.

You may see, from the email, that a proposed replacement Rudloe community hall is a quarter (internal) or a fifth (external) of the size of the existing centre and not the same size as reported in Box Parish Council NEWS in your magazine. It is also worrying that the implications of the Green being moved are not understood or appreciated by certain members of the Steering Group or by the Council itself.

Sincerely

Paul Turner
_______________________________________

From: Paul Turner <wirepuller@hotmail.com>
Sent: 20 December 2019 10:57
To: Box Parish Council

Subject: Rudloe Community Centre & GreenSquare's Plans

Margaret,

Thanks for the festive offering at the Council meeting last night.

With regard to Rudloe Community Centre, I appreciate Box Parish Council's current position that the matter is now in the hands of Wiltshire Council and GreenSquare, however ...

Much misinformation (indeed, at times, this appears to be disinformation) continues to be repeated by councillors and officials. As a member of the public sitting in at meetings, it is frustrating that a discussion cannot be had with councillors/officials when such misinformation/disinformation is peddled and I can appreciate our councillor's (Rob Davies) frustration at the continuation of this state of affairs over many months.

It is also frustrating to be, effectively, lectured (by Councillor Whitford) about the decisions made at the Wiltshire Council Cabinet meeting at Salisbury in June 2018 when both myself and Frances Tristram of Camomile Cafe were present at this meeting and spoke in support of the retention of the Community Centre and the possibilities of its future with Camomile (Camomile's Mike Tristram was also there).

There were a number of things mentioned last night which were simply not true.

Firstly, it was said that Box Parish Council (BPC) had not been given the opportunity, by Wiltshire Council, to look at the possibilities for the future of Rudloe Community Centre (RCC) following its closure in 2017.  This continued the misinformation (we'll be kind here) found in the Parish Council's statement in its News column in October's Box Parish magazine regarding Rudloe Green and Community Centre that "The Parish Council have not had the option from Wiltshire Council to purchase the building ...". However, you will know that a letter to Box Parish Council from Wiltshire Council's agents Lambert Smith Hampton dated 31st August 2017 gave details of the proposed lease/sale of Rudloe Community Centre under the terms of  either a full repairing and insuring lease for a rent and term of years to be agreed or sale on a long leasehold basis for a term of 125 years with a premium required along with a peppercorn rent for the duration of the lease.

Secondly, it was stated by Councillor Whitford with confirmation from Chairman Parker that the roof of RCC was leaking or had been leaking and that this information was given by the former Centre manager, Kathy McCarron. I don't know how many times 'we' (myself and Councillor Davies) have to repeat this but Mrs McCarron has informed us that the Centre roof has never leaked and no leak has ever been reported.

Thirdly, it was stated and confirmed by messrs Whitford and Parker that the proposed replacement community hall would be the same 'size' (square footage) as RCC. I have attached two maps, one which shows the external footprint of the existing centre at 677 sq metres (the internal area has been calculated from a detailed, internal plan at 525 sq metres). The second shows GreenSquare's Option A with their proposed replacement hall with red stripes (just to the left of the Green); it will be seen that the size of this hall is somewhat smaller than, for example, the disabled person's bungalow at no. 1 Leylands Road which, using online tools for area calculation, is about 135 sq metres. The proposed hall then would be of the order of 125 sq metres which, as will be clearly seen, is less than a quarter of the internal size of RCC or much less than one fifth of the external size.

Fourthly, Mr Whitford gave great store to GreenSquare's proposal of a replacement green of the same size as the existing Green should GreenSquare options B or C be adopted (from discussions with GreenSquare's project manager, Mr Cox, at the 3rd December consultation event, it seems that option B is GreenSquare's preferred option). However, Mr Whitford and others forget that the existing Green is designated Public Open Space by Wiltshire Council. I have attached the North Wilts Open Space Study which designates Rudloe Green as Public Open Space (specifically a Local Park in para 4.41, table 8) within an area, Corsham and Rudloe, “where the deficiencies of Public Open Space are most acute” (para 4.76). Also, the Wiltshire Open Spaces Study 2015 – 2026, which can be found here: http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/wiltshire-open-space-study-draft.pdf, in section 8.1.3 (Existing provision to be protected), states that the starting point of any policy adopted by the Council should be that all open space should be afforded protection unless it can be proved it is not required’. Further, 104 local people made representations towards the designation of Rudloe Green as a Village Green in April this year; without exception, all stated that Rudloe Green is important to the community where it stands and where it has stood for generations!

Continuing with this fourth point, Mr Whitford (and others) conveniently overlook the fact that if the existing Green is built on then the children of Rudloe Estate will be deprived of any play space for up to two years (in year one, new flats/houses will be built on the existing Green; in year two, residents will be moved to the new homes and the old homes and other infrastructure will be demolished). How would Box residents feel if they were denied access to and use of the Rec for two years? No doubt, there would be a riot. This is just one example of how Rudloe issues are not given the same consideration as those of Box itself.

In addition, whilst the exaggerated cost of £66k has been mentioned with regard to getting RCC back into working order ('we' have quotes for roof, heating and electrics which put the figure at, at most, a third of this figure), no mention has been made of the cost of demolition of RCC and the building of a new hall. I would imagine that this would be a substantial six-figure sum (probably £200k+). If GreenSquare's regeneration were to go ahead, then the best option, surely, would be their 'A' but with the retention of the existing community centre (saving demolition and building costs). This option is further reinforced by having Camomile Family, a successful Corsham business, champing at the bit to take on RCC thus enabling their expansion and providing many facilities for the local community. Contrast this with GreenSquare's proposed hall which would be too small for Camomile, would have flats beside and above it thus creating potential conflicts due to noise etc AND, importantly, having no one to manage it (Rudloe Community Association tried to find people willing to take on the management of RCC before its closure without success).

I trust that if and when the subject of RCC comes up at future Box Parish Council meetings the canards listed above will not go on being repeated.

Happy Christmas.

Sincerely

Paul Turner

Let's start with "Residents have urged councillors during a cabinet meeting to ensure community spaces and popular parking spaces at the building in Leylands Road, that has been closed since last July, are not lost if the development goes ahead" - there were no Rudloe Estate residents present at this 12th June 2018 Cabinet meeing in Salisbury. The only local people (apart from councillors) who spoke were yours truly and Frances Tristram of Camomile Cafe (now Camomile Family) and we said nothing of the sort - we urged, inter alia, against housing development.

As far as I am aware, no one, whether councillor or a GreenSquare representative, called the Community Centre a 'disaster zone' or 'the epitome of rural deprivation'; this is pure sensationalism designed, as with this article's 'Sex, Lies etc', to grab attention. But if (if!) Councillor Sturgis did use the term 'disaster zone' (it is certainly not in the meeting's minutes) he was wrong and nothing could be further from the truth. For example, in times of trouble, the community came together (and will again) to support any of its members who had fallen on hard times. Over the winter of 2012/13 when the community came to hear of one of our own, Martin O'Shea, falling prey to motor neurone disease, a fund-raising evening was organised, which Martin attended along with his family, in spite of his dreadful disability. £1,200 was raised, a cheque for which amount was presented to North Wiltshire Motor Neurone Disease Association by Phil Beattie.

Coming to more mundane aspects of the Gazette & Herald disinformation, their article states "The council currently has 74 people registered in need of affordable housing in Rudloe". As the reader may see from the table shown above, the official Wiltshire Council figure in July 2018 was 73 for the whole of the Corsham Community Area, not for Rudloe!

I could go on (of course!) but why bring up this 16-month-old material now, in November 2019? The reason is that the disinformation continues e.g. the Community Centre having been the target of anti-social behaviour (not true), the Centre requiring £60k of spending to bring it into habitable condition (not true), access to the Centre is not possible for 'health and safety' reasons (not true), the £38k S106 monies from the Dickens Gate development for 'leisure facilities in the vicinity of the development' having to be spent on the Box Pavilion (not true), the roof is leaking (not true).

The reader should know that this disinformation ('fake news' in modern parlance) is being spread by those whose interests are not those of the Rudloe community.

27th October 2019 - eighty-seven responses thus far (29th October update - now ninety-five responses; a milestone passed - one-hundred-and-one responses by the morning of 1st November) to the 'Brighter future for Rudloe' campaign which aims to fulfil the desire of the community to create an activity hub for all age groups (see the 11th October article below) at Rudloe Community Centre.

Many heartfelt views were given (and may still be given - this is a continuing campaign) via the 'Your own views' page of the brochure (again, see the 11th October article below) some of which may be found in this .pdf file:

The requirement for a shop, also given in the 'Your views' page of the brochure, saw the following desires expressed: 58% for a 'separate' shop (perhaps in the former shop premises); 42% for a small 'shop' within the Community Centre for everyday essentials. 

Support for the Community Centre and Green has come from an unexpected quarter. Can you (the rudloescene reader) guess who said this: "We are looking beyond building more homes. In the long term we are interested in improving the very centre of Rudloe - the community centre, the shop, the green and parking, to make the estate a better place to live". Need another clue? Well, how about this: "The areas valued most by people are the green space and community centre. There was more emphasis on improving what is there already than on new development". Got it yet? This was GreenSquare in their 'Rudloe Update' of May 2013 - see the .pdf file below:

Here we are, six years on, in the 'long term', and GreenSquare's 2019 'improvements' include the demolition of the community centre and shop and the likely building of houses/flats on the Green. To paraphrase a 1970s dictum about President Nixon, "Would you buy a used car from this organisation?" It seems not - GreenSquare, I am sorry to say, is an organisation that cannot be trusted to "make the estate a better place to live".

But in any case, as stated by Wiltshire Council planners in their refusal of the Donkey Field development in September, 'The indicative remaining requirement for the Corsham Community Area (CCA) remainder is zero. This proposal is not required as part of housing supply'. So the very basis for GreenSquare's 'Rudloe Regeneration' proposal to increase the density of Rudloe Estate through building in the central area is false. The housing requirement for the Corsham Community Area has been fulfilled.

And with regard to 'affordable housing', the Bellway 'Dickens Gate' development alone is providing 35 affordable homes (see the thirty-five pink and blue dots indicating affordable housing for shared ownership and rent on the Planning Layout here: Dickens Gate affordable homes). But not only that, a further fifty affordable homes will become available through the Bromford housing association in the Redcliffe Park Place development - see the photo below advertising shared ownership homes.

As indicated above, GreenSquare's 'Rudloe Regeneration' which aims to increase the density of Rudloe Estate because of a supposed requirement for affordable housing is a fiction. But attempting to do this to the detriment of the community by demolishing the community centre and shop and building on the Green is an outrage.

11th October 2019 - the 8-page brochure below (and in the .pdf file further below) was distributed to all 242 homes on Rudloe Estate, and other homes on other estates, on Tuesday, 8th October. The response pages (7 & 8) of the brochure should be completed as requested by as many people as possible as, as with the Village Green application, this will provide a real indication of the needs of the Rudloe community. Don't forget, 104 people (plus other family members) stated, categorically, that Rudloe Green was, and is, a tremendously important community facility. This gives great weight to the argument for the protection of the Green. Similarly, a good response to the brochure regarding the retention of the Community Centre (and shop) cannot be ignored by those 'in power'.

John Harrill who has lived at Rudloe for 47 years has provided a succinct, germane view in his response; John says: "The Camomile Family proposal would seem a lifeline for old and young alike, with a little shop for everyday essentials and so many different interest groups catered for. Let's all hope for the future!"

5th September 2019 - GreenSquare has produced a September Rudloe Update leaflet which has been distributed to selected homes at Rudloe and is reproduced below.

If this were a court of law, counsel would be reprimanded for asking leading questions. So there were 41 completed questionnaires; that sounds reasonable until you recall that there were 104 submissions on saving Rudloe Green through the Village Green application (see articles below) earlier this year. So, local people do not want this so-called 'regeneration' which is simply a deception designed to suit the corporate objectives of GreenSquare. Clearly, in spite of the disinformation (yes, disinformation not misinformation - the dictionary definition of disinformation is: deliberately misleading or biased information; manipulated narrative or facts; propaganda). Disinformation is revealed in the paragraph on 'green space/open areas' which says: "Residents agreed that green space should be mainly kept, however there were varying opinions on where the final location should be"! I rest my case m'lud - "mainly kept" and "where the final location should be" demonstrates a deliberate misrepresentation of the true situation - 104 people (plus other family members I should add) stated that the Green was tremendously important in its present location (particularly to the occupants of the 81 flats) and has been for generations. So "mainly kept" and "where the final location should be" are fabrications brought about by asking leading questions. 

1st July 2019 - GreenSquare has organised a 'consultation event' at the Broadwood Avenue school from 4pm to 6:30pm on Thursday (4th July) regarding its supposed regeneration of Rudloe Estate. For those who would care to reflect on the facts, there follows an analysis of the current Rudloe Green and Rudloe Community Centre situation  followed by a 'Case for a brighter future for Rudloe Estate'. The text is also available in a .pdf file below.

Rudloe Green and Community Centre

Why would Corsham councillor Philip Whalley, who has no particular housing remit and who has fought tooth and nail against development in Corsham, make a representation at Wiltshire Council’s Cabinet meeting in Salisbury in June 2018 in support of the ‘regeneration’ of Rudloe Estate which would see the demolition of Rudloe Community Centre and the loss of Rudloe Green?

It seems that Wiltshire Council’s slogan ‘Where Everybody Matters’ should be qualified with ‘But Some Matter More Than Others’. Would this councillor give over Corsham Recreation Ground on Meriton Avenue to ‘regeneration’? The answer is, of course, no. But, in his eyes, sanctioning the loss of Rudloe Green (Rudloe’s recreation ground) and Rudloe Community Centre is alright.

The upshot of the Cabinet meeting was that Wiltshire Council’s assets (including the Community Centre and the Green) at Rudloe be given over to the GreenSquare organisation on terms to be agreed. It should be noted that those terms have not yet been agreed and there is a far brighter, more prosperous future for Rudloe outside this agreement. That brighter future sees the Community Centre and Green becoming the first Rudloe assets of Box Parish Council, the Community Centre becoming a family centre for therapies and other activities under the auspices of Camomile Family, a successful organisation already operating in Corsham, and the Green remaining a de facto village green as it has been for the past 75 years. See the case for this in the file ‘Case for a brighter future for Rudloe Estate’ in the accompanying paper.

GreenSquare’s proposed ‘regeneration’ will be illustrated through options at the public consultation event on 4^th July at Corsham School, Broadwood Avenue (4pm-6:30pm). But all these options will involve the demolition of Rudloe Community Centre and the 1970s homes at the ‘top end’ of the estate’s central ‘island’ and the loss of the precious Green. Writers Iain Sinclair and Jonathan Meades describe regeneration as ‘an incipient threat’, ‘a payday without end for the demolition community’ and ‘an outright fib’.

The outright regeneration fib is supported by the associated fibs a. that the outcome of deliberations by the, yet to be constituted, Steering Group will be anything other than one of the preordained outcomes required by GreenSquare and b. that the Community Centre is beyond repair and must be demolished and c. that the houses at the ‘top’ of the estate’s central island have problems and also must be demolished.

With regard to fib a., it will be interesting to note the full constitution of the Steering Group, its minutes (which, I would hope, will be available to the public) and how much attention is given to those who require the brighter future of a successful Community Centre and vibrant Rudloe Green.

Regarding fib b., there are no major problems with the Community Centre that would require its demolition. Demolition would only be required because the Centre interferes with GreenSquare’s plans. Confirmation of the state of the Centre could be achieved through examination by a structural (or other) engineer. In order to reveal the fib, I will institute and pay for such an examination.

Fib c. is extraordinary. If you had a problem with some aspect of your house, would any of the possible solutions be ‘demolish the house’? A rumour is that damp is the problem, but our (myself and her majesty) first house, in an old terrace in Corsham, had a significant damp problem which was remedied through a modern (chemical) solution. Also, renovation is far more cost effective and environmentally friendly than demolition and rebuilding.

And if, god forbid, GreenSquare does manage to get its way by playing the trump cards of ‘sustainable development’ and ‘affordable housing’ can you imagine the disruption, apart from the loss of the Community Centre and the Green, that will be caused to the life of the estate. The Bellway development across the Bradford Road started last October. Nine months on and every day brings a cacophony of noise, vehicle movements both on- and off-site, traffic disruption and so on. And this site will probably not be completed until sometime in 2021 or perhaps 2022. Such loss of the normal amenity of everyday life on Rudloe Estate, with no Green for the kids to play on for the best part of two years (and the rump of a proposed green beyond that), would be disastrous for the community. And the proposed Rudloe Estate ‘regeneration’ would involve demolition before construction.

It should not be forgotten how we arrived at this state of affairs. It was through a previous ‘regeneration’ at the turn of the century when North Wilts District Council made the disastrous decision to demolish the old, successful Club and replace it with the current £1 million (best part of) offering which was, not long after, declared ‘not fit for purpose’. And the houses built in place of the Club (Club Row) are completely out of character with the estate. So here we go again - piling miserable decision on miserable decision at the expense of the taxpayer/ratepayer.

It is worth repeating here a paragraph from the 17^th April 2019 article on this webpage: ‘The North Wilts Open Space Study, here: http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/northwiltsopen_space_study.pdf, designates Rudloe Green as Public Open Space (specifically a Local Park in para 4.41, table 8) within an area, Corsham and Rudloe, “where the deficiencies of Public Open Space are most acute” (para 4.76). Also, the Wiltshire Open Spaces Study 2015 – 2026, which can be found here: http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/wiltshire-open-space-study-draft.pdf, in section 8.1.3 (Existing provision to be protected), states that the starting point of any policy adopted by the Council should be that all open space should be afforded protection unless it can be proved it is not required’.

So Wiltshire Council’s records state that Rudloe Green is Public Open Space and must be protected. But we have forgotten that Rudloe Estate is seen as a place (see first two paras above) where the slogan ‘Where Everybody Matters’ is conveniently forgotten and previous, important designations (protected Public Open Space) can be pushed aside. Forget GreenSquare’s 4^th July public consultation - the people have already spoken. They have confirmed that Rudloe Green must be protected. The one-hundred-and-four representations made by local people in the Village Green application of April this year affirm the importance of the Green in the life of the estate.

What is now required is that Box Parish Council take the initiative on this matter, not just through its Neighbourhood Plan which should confirm the importance of and requirement for Rudloe Green and Rudloe Community Centre but through immediate action on an alternative to GreenSquare’s disastrous proposals. A proposed plan for a bright, prosperous future for the Green and Centre is given in the accompanying paper ‘Case for a brighter future for Rudloe Estate’.

Case for a brighter future for Rudloe Estate

According to statistics published on the Box Parish website, at the time of a 2011 survey of Box residents, there were 1,755 households in the parish. Through recent research, we find that there are currently (in 2019) 658 households at Rudloe which is 37% of the Box Parish total.
 

From Box Parish Accounts 2018-19, we find that Box Parish Council’s fixed assets (the value of all the property owned) is almost £18 million. The value of assets at Rudloe is nil, £0.

This state of affairs illustrates that the Parish Council’s support is completely skewed to Box village itself; it is therefore about time that the Parish Council undertook to support significant community assets at Rudloe - Rudloe Community Centre and Rudloe Green.

The Parish Council should know that the Centre and Green are owned by Wiltshire Council and following a decision at its Cabinet meeting in June 2018, it was decided that these ‘assets’ would be handed over to GreenSquare subject to a formal agreement. That agreement has not yet come to fruition.

It is common knowledge, through a plan published in 2015, that GreenSquare proposes to demolish the Community Centre and all the houses (except one which is privately owned) built in the late 70s  in the central ‘island’ of the estate. GreenSquare would then massively increase the density of the estate by building all over this newly-created ‘bombsite’. The 30^th June 2019  article on this webpage (and a number of earlier articles)  discusses what a disaster this would bring about for the Rudloe community.

One-hundred-and-four representations were made by the people of Rudloe in support of the April 2019 Village Green application. The representations indicated what a vital role Rudloe Green had played over their and, in many cases, their children’s and grandchildren’s lifetimes. Rudloe Green has been a de facto village green for 75 years and should remain so. Those children and grandchildren would never forgive Wiltshire Council and GreenSquare if the Green is built on.

There could be a bright future ahead for the Community Centre. Camomile Family (formerly Camomile Cafe), now a Community Interest Company, runs a successful enterprise in Corsham High Street (see http://camomilecafe.com/). The company is thriving so much that it needs to expand but cannot do so in its current location. Rudloe Community Centre would provide an ideal location with its substantial spaces, accessible toilets, a dedicated car park, bus stops close by and access to green space. Camomile pleaded their case at the Wiltshire Council Cabinet meeting in June 2018 but the proposition failed to find a sympathetic ear.

Being now a Community Interest Company and with its aims of family support, including not just children but parents and grandparents also, Camomile is in an ideal position to procure funding from different, perhaps charitable organisations. Notwithstanding this potential support, Box Parish Council could, with Wiltshire Council’s support, take on the freehold (or perhaps have a leasing arrangement) of Rudloe Community Centre (the Parish Council’s first asset at Rudloe!). Some of the Parish Council’s ‘cash in hand’ (£183,000 as at April 2019) along with investment from other quarters (substantial Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) payments from the Bellway and proposed ex-RAF Rudloe site in Westwells Road are, or are proposed to be, spent elsewhere, not in Rudloe!) could be used to reconfigure/refurbish the Centre (although, actually, no significant alterations are required).

Camomile pays a substantial five-figure sum in rental alone for its High Street property. If Box Parish Council invested in this project, as the new ‘landlord’ of Rudloe Community Centre, it would, no doubt, be able to come to an agreement with Camomile on the rental rate. Assuming a suitable rate could be agreed, this would be a win-win situation for both parties. In addition, other organisations, clubs etc that have used the Centre in the past (eg karate, choir, bingo etc) could negotiate a return to the Centre with Camomile and/or Box Parish Council.

The Camomile enterprise seems an ideal fit not just for the building but for the Rudloe Community also. Its website highlights ‘Babies & Children’, ‘Baby Massage’, ‘Hypnobirthing’, ‘Mums & Dads’, ‘Delicious Food’, ‘Shop’ and much more besides. This project would offer a bright, prosperous future for the Rudloe community.

17th June 2019 - as expected, the Rudloe village green application has been rejected as a 'trigger event' has supposedly occurred. Prior to the application, we were told that such a trigger event was a planning application involving the subject land; there was no such planning application. However, Wiltshire Council was fighting a village green case in the Court of Appeal the result of which would determine whether the subject land (in this case in Wootton Bassett) was within a defined development area (a potential development area anyway) which would also, apparently, constitute a trigger event (the Court of Appeal judgement documents may be found below).

The judgement, in some respects, appears to be nonsense (but what do us mere mortals know) as the interpretation of it by Wiltshire Council (and presumably by all other councils) is that if a village green application is for land within a settlement boundary it will be rejected. But by their very nature, most if not all village greens would be in the centre of a village, at the heart of village life. What would be the point of a village green if it was outside the village?

The settlement boundaries for the Corsham area are shown in the Corsham Inset Map in the Wiltshire Core Strategy (2015) here:

In this map, Rudloe and its green are shown within the 'Rudloe Settlement Framework' so fall foul of this new Appeal Court ruling. Wiltshire Council's rejection letter, dated 11th June 2019, and a subsequent email exchange between Sally Madgwick, Definitive Map and Highway Records Manager, and yours truly are given in the files below:

In the email exchange, I query why the complete village green application (the application form itself including the 6-page case (which, for interest, may be found in the file immediately above), 6 appendices and 104 representations from local people) has been returned as I thought that this should be registered in Wiltshire Council's files for 'posterity' (if anyone searches the files in future for a village green application for Rudloe Green, none would be found). The answer is given in Wiltshire Council's email.

So what now? I hypothesize some possibilities in my email to Sally Madgwick (Wiltshire Council) but I didn't mention the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL formerly known as Section 106 payments) which is imposed on all major new developments. These are not insubstantial sums - for example the levy imposed on the as yet only outline development at the ex-RAF Rudloe No. 2 Site in Westwells Road will be the best part of £1 million and that imposed on the 88-home Bellway 'Dickens Gate' development was over £700,000.

With the 242 homes on the original Rudloe Estate, the further 400+ homes on other Rudloe estates, the 170 homes (including 50 affordable) on the new Redcliffe 'Park Place' development, the 88 homes (including 35 affordable) on the Bellway 'Dickens Gate' development and the 180 homes (including perhaps 60 affordable) on the outline ex-RAF Rudloe Westwells Road development, the Rudloe/ Bradford Road/Hawthorn communities will constitute about 1,100 homes which, with average occupation from the 2011 census of 2.3 per household, gives the extended Rudloe community a population of over 2,500. A significant 'community' with no community centre or village green!

But not a single penny of the £1,700,000 CIL monies (not including the perhaps further £1 million from the Redcliffe development) has been proposed to enable local community hubs such as Rudloe Community Centre and Rudloe Green to provide for the existing or new communities. But the proposal for Rudloe Community Centre from Camomile Cafe and the saving of the Green (in one way or another) would secure a prosperous future for the Rudloe communities. Camomile Cafe, through its recently initiated Community Interest Company, along with local activists and councillors will continue to pursue this objective.

17th April 2019 - the village green application for Rudloe Green was delivered to the Rights of Way department (who also deal with village green matters) at County Hall, Trowbridge yesterday. The application consisted of the 9-page form 44 application countersigned by a local solicitor (thanks Matthew), a 6-page full case with 6 appendices, a list of the 103 people/families who provided evidence of use over the years and the evidence forms/emails themselves - so quite a weighty bundle (but all documents were also provided on CD)!

I must admit that I'm not overly optimistic that the application will get across the first hurdle which is its passage through the Wiltshire Council Planning department. In order to proceed, there should not have been a 'trigger event'. This would normally be a planning application on the subject land. In our case, there has been no planning application but, as the reader may know, GreenSquare has, over the years, proposed redevelopment of Rudloe Estate's central island including the building of homes (flats?) on the Green.

The ongoing threat of development should not constitute a trigger event but at the Wiltshire Council Cabinet meeting in Salisbury in June 2018, a decision was made regarding the future of Rudloe Community Centre and other Council-owned assets (including the Green) in the central island. That decision was to 'Engage in negotiations with a view to a transfer of the Council's freehold land and property holding to GreenSquare on terms to be agreed, for a regeneration scheme of affordable housing'. This decision might be seen as a trigger event.

However, that decision was made by Council Cabinet officers (and unfortunately supported by Councillor Whalley of Corsham) without any consultation with local people. The decision may be seen as unreasonable, ill-advised and invalid for a number of reasons - see below.

Firstly, a proposal with business case for the Community Centre was made by Camomile Cafe, a successful Corsham business with year-on-year increasing custom. Camomile Cafe's (CC) business plan was rejected by Wiltshire Council Estates departmental; CC also made an impassioned representation at the Cabinet meeting but to no avail. CC's initiative should have been seen as a valid, positive proposal to enhance the life of the community (5 locals and 2 councillors continue to work on this initiative).

Secondly, there is no requirement to increase the density of Rudloe Estate with further 'affordable' housing. The two closest new developments across the Bradford Road, Redcliffe's Park Place with 170 homes and Bellway's Dickens Gate with 88 homes, will include 85 affordable homes (50 at Park Place and 35 at Dickens Gate).

Thirdly, in an undated (but possibly 2011) study/paper, the North Wilts Open Space Study, here: http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/northwiltsopen_space_study.pdf, Rudloe Green is designated as Public Open Space (specifically a Local Park in para 4.41, table 8) within an area, Corsham and Rudloe, “where the deficiencies of Public Open Space are most acute” (para 4.76). Also, the Wiltshire Open Spaces Study 2015 – 2026, which can be found here: http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/wiltshire-open-space-study-draft.pdf, in section 8.1.3 (Existing provision to be protected), states that the starting point of any policy adopted by the Council should be that all open space should be afforded protection unless it can be proved it is not required.

Fourthly, when local people are consulted, it is absolutely clear that the Rudloe Green has been and continues to be a vital part of the life of the estate's residents, particularly for the occupants of the 81 flats who have no garden space of their own. The 103 evidence statements bear witness to this; one example being the words of the Genery family "the Green has been an integral part of our lives".

So how could Wiltshire Council's Cabinet (unfortunately supported by Councillor Whalley) possibly come to a conclusion that this part (or any part) of the well-planned Rudloe Estate should be "regenerated" (this of course is a misnomer, a euphemism which actually means that more development will be forced upon Rudloe Estate as it would not be countenanced in other areas like Corsham town or Box village)? As stated above, this decision should be seen as unreasonable, ill-advised and invalid.

Anyway, we live in hope regarding the acceptance of the Village Green application which, if accepted, would mean that the Green could never be 'regenerated'.

30th March 2019 and the Rudloe community gathers for a picnic on the Green. Having realised that the Green could (could!) be lost if (if!) the GreenSquare Steering Group (see the 14th March 2019 article below) decides to adopt a plan similar to that proposed in 2015, the residents decided to show how important the Green is in the life of the Estate by holding this first picnic of the year and by completing around a hundred evidence forms on the use of the Green over the past 55 years or so.

GreenSquare's 2015 plan for the redevelopment of the central 'island' of Rudloe Estate (above): the Green and the Community Centre are replaced by housing (probably flats); the 1976 housing is demolished and replaced by some further housing (flats?) and a replacement (much smaller) 'green' with, inappropriately, a play park in the middle. A small community centre may be seen (in blue) at centre-left. A shop (in purple) and car park are proposed at the entrance to the estate.

The passion for the Green's continued survival was demonstrated not only by current residents of the Estate but also by former denizens, one of whom undertook a 30-mile pilgrimage across Salisbury Plain to lend support. But I was particularly impressed by a young teenager who had clearly been thinking deeply about what the Green means in the life of the community; at the prompting of her mother she articulated her thoughts to me and others.

14th March 2019 - Rudloe Community Centre and the 'Green'. A group of Rudloe residents along with Camomile Cafe (Corsham) is in the process of trying to form a Community Interest Company (see government link: CICs and the Wiki link: CICs) based at Rudloe Community Centre which remains, at present, in the hands of Wiltshire Council. The Council has come to an interim agreement with the GreenSquare organisation which through a proposed Steering Group is looking into the future of the whole of the central area of Rudloe Estate, including the Community Centre and the 'Green'. The proposed CIC and Village Green (see below) could be seen as an alternative plan to the 'formal' GreenSquare/Steering Group activity.

The 'formal' GreenSquare/Steering Group could (note 'could') come to a conclusion that would see the Community Centre demolished and the Green given over to housing. However, the CIC group will endeavour to save the Community Centre and the Green for the community and, through rudloescene, keep locals up-to-date with events.

With regard to the Green, there will be a leaflet drop over the weekend 16th/17th March 2019 asking for people's experiences of using the Green over the 55 years since the construction of the Estate. These experiences could be for just short periods at any time in the life of the Estate, from the 60s through to the present day or longer experiences over the whole life of the Estate. And the experiences could be from childhood (for pastimes or playing football or other games) and/or from teenage years through to adulthood (picnics, firework displays etc). The gathering of these experiences is an important first step in trying to gain Village Green status for the Green which would mean that it could never be built on.

The text of the Rudloe Green leaflet is shown below and is given in .pdf format further below. If the reader wishes to complete a form via this website, please print and complete a form and bring or send it to the address given or send it electronically to rudloe-issues@hotmail.com (this address is also given on the form). Understandably, the reader may have many questions so please feel free to make contact via the 'Contact' page on this website or by email to wirepuller@hotmail.com or by phone to 07803 295291.

23rd September 2018 - the future of Rudloe Social Club and its environs has been placed, by Wiltshire Council, in the hands of a steering group. Councillor Ben Anderson is the 'sponsor' of the Steering Group and Phil Bowley, Strategic Estates Manager of Greensquare Housing Association, is the project manager. The Steering Group will be responsible for producing a proposal for the future of the whole central area between Leylands Road, Priestley Wood Road and Westwood Road.

Not too long after this new, unnecessary (the old Club was popular, well-used and had a wide variety of spaces for different uses), £850,000 Community Centre was built at the turn of the century it was described as 'not fit for purpose' by the very body (Wiltshire Council) that created it. Wiltshire Council has now 'transferred' the Centre from its books to GreenSquare for the princely sum of £1.

This debacle is a local example of the worthlessness of governments and councils whose ignorance is borne of a lack of knowledge (bit of tautology here ref ignorance/lack of knowledge but it emphasises the point!) of the issues on which they pass judgement.

Wiltshire Council's Estates team has assessed business plans for the Centre over the past six months and all were rejected. However, if the bids already considered, and others, were taken in combination then this might well provide an ideal opportunity for local groups to continue in operation. The two groups whose bids were rejected (individually) were Rudloe Pre-school and Camomile Cafe (which already has a premises in Corsham and would offer, inter alia, therapy sessions for both young and old which would provide an ideal adjunct to pre-school activities). The third group could be the Magic Dragon pre-school group which has lost its home in Box and is looking for new premises. 

Anyway, GreenSquare now presides over the future of the central part of Rudloe Estate through the Steering Group which will be further composed of members of Box Parish Council and local (Rudloe) residents. With regard to the Community Centre, the in-combination use by the three groups mentioned above should be one of the first items on the Steering Group's agenda.

12th June 2018 - Wiltshire Council's Cabinet meeting in Salisbury decides on the 'Future of Wiltshire Council's Freehold Assets in Rudloe' (Rudloe Community Centre)

The proposal put to Cabinet by Councillor Toby Sturgis regarding  Rudloe Community Centre was 'To support the recommendation on the preferred option to engage in negotiations with GreenSquare with a view to a transfer to GreenSquare the Council’s freehold interest required for their regeneration scheme within an agreed timescale, potentially at an under-value and on terms to be agreed'. Following representations from councillors Ben Anderson, Brian Matthew, Ruth Hopkinson and Phillip Whalley, the principal of Camomile Cafe (Corsham) and yours truly, the proposal was, effectively, put through 'on the nod' by the Cabinet.

Our local councillors, Ben and Brian, put forward positive views and proposals regarding the future of the Centre. I wish I could say the same for Corsham councillors Hopkinson and Whalley who, whilst fighting Corsham development tooth and nail, are happy to throw Rudloe to the wolves. The Camomile Cafe rep (whose name, unfortunately, slips my mind) made an impassioned plea for a social/therapy centre for both young and old. My three-minutesworth can be found in the .pdf file below the photo of the old Club.

The meeting agenda and reports can be found in the file link, again below the photograph. The pages of interest on the Rudloe Community Centre are 213 - 228.

A well-considered report of the Cabinet meeting, with regard to the Rudloe Community Centre and the traffic issues in Westwood Road and Leafy Lane, from Ben Anderson can be found in the final .pdf file below.

31st July 2017 sees the 'final' closure of Rudloe Community Centre after 75 years. Most of that 75 years was, of course, in the 'old' but successful and well-used social club (shown in the title picture and elsewhere on this website) but 'official' intervention brought about the demolition of the club and the construction of a £1 million white elephant which, just a few years after its construction, was described as "not fit for purpose" by the very body that created it.

A lesson from this debacle? Beware of government, whether national or local, and their 'projects'. Billions are wasted on unnecessary and/or unsuccessful projects and the Rudloe Community Centre is a prime, local, example. 

'The Village on the Hill' across the By Brook Valley, Colerne, a village of about 3,000 souls supports two pubs (The Fox and Hounds, The Six Bells), two clubs (the Liberal and Conservative clubs), a community centre, two shops and a Post Office. Contrast Rudloe/Hawthorn, a community of similar size, which has lost its shops (Rudloe and Hawthorn), its Post Office and now its community centre (although there is a 'community centre'/cafe in Leafy Lane). So what's the difference?

I would say that Colerne is a 'proper' village, one that has grown organically wheras Rudloe, with the demise of the generation that arrived, largely from Ireland, for the war (WWII) work and the continued work at MoD establishments, has lost its soul. Thousands of people but no community. And with the 'official' (again) sanctioning of 700 new homes in west Corsham (Redrow's 150 at Pickwick, Bellway's 100 at Copenacre, Redcliffe's 170 at Bradford Road, Hannick's 88 at Rudloe, Framptons' 180 at ex RAF Rudloe No. 2 site) 'we' will simply be a dormitory conurbation for activities which take place elsewhere.

So what now? Our local councillor, Ben Anderson, states "Following a period of informally advertising the Centre, an agent has now been appointed to formally advertise it to potential new users. The Centre will be advertised for ‘All enquiries’ and the current plan is for it to be advertised for up to 6 months. Any organisations interested in leasing or buying the building will be asked to provide a business plan showing how they will viably run the Centre. There is at least one charity currently being spoken to that may bring forward a business plan. Once the outcome of advertising is known, Wiltshire Council will make a decision on which of the options to pursue."

The following response to the above article is from Rudloe resident Carl Wadkin-Snaith:

Thank you for the link to the story about the demise of the community centre. I have to say I disagree with quite a bit of what you say, and particularly with ‘thousands of people and no community’ claim.

I don’t think it is possible to compare Rudloe with Colerne in that way: Colerne is a typically twee Wiltshire village where most of the original working class inhabitants have been replaced by those who can afford to live in a supposed rural idyl (as long as the church bells are not too loud.)

Rudloe, as we know, is a late 20th century satellite estate of Corsham, and those who chose to live in Colerne would more than likely never dream of purchasing a house in Rudloe. Furthermore, access to retail facilities of any type from Colerne is pretty difficult and would help to explain the survival of it’s shops. Whilst in contrast, it’s hardly a chore to drive into Corsham from Rudloe. The demographic differences alone would have a bearing on the survival of Colerne’s shops and pubs too.

There is a great community in Rudloe with people helping one another out, but crucially not interfering or prying in other’s affairs. It is in fact, the nicest place Sharon and I have ever lived. And as I mentioned to you once before; the contrast between the residents of Rudloe and Neston is quite marked, and I know which I prefer. Despite the fact that Rudloe is still spoken of in disparaging tones by those who live elsewhere.

As far as the community centre is concerned, perhaps the usefulness of such an edifice in the community is past it’s sell by date? The digital revolution has transformed the way people occupy their leisure time and perhaps the demographic mix in Rudloe is not interested so much in the facilities on offer. I don’t know enough about use of the centre as it is, though I recall some local people campaigned for the new building at the time. Perhaps the ‘not fit for purpose’ claims back then were spurious and in fact demand for the building was faltering.

Oh well I’ve had my pennyworth, please don’t knock the community of Rudloe, they make it a great place to live.

6th February 2017 - the Green Square developments of eleven new homes, eight in Long Close Avenue and three in Sandy Lea Avenue, along with their twenty-two private parking spaces (two for each house) are nearing completion - see the gallery below.

Allocating twenty-two spaces for Green Square's new homes is all very well but what about parking for the other Estate residents? The 19th February 2014 and 18th January 2015 articles below propounded that these developments skewed available parking to the advantage of the owners/tenants of these new homes and to the disadvantage of existing residents.

This has proved to be the case. When we visit a relative in this area we have to park in the 'main' road (Leylands Road) and block someone's drive. Steve, at no. 70 Leylands had someone block his drive all day some weeks ago and could not get out to go to work.

As indicated in the 2014 and 2015 articles, this situation was entirely predictable and unnecessary. This early-60s estate was well-planned by the Council with green space and an eye to the scale of future car ownership. This 'squeezing' of more houses (and people and cars) into the estate is mimicking all late-20th and 21st-century developments and is not the way we should be living.

28th January 2016 - GreenSquare plans (or not?) for Rudloe Estate

The following is an email exchange between myself and GreenSquare:

Dear Mr Turner,

Simon Henstock has brought your message below to my attention. I am the development manager leading on the Rudloe regeneration project so I can help you with your enquiries – my apologies that it has taken a little while for us to respond to you.

We currently have planning permission to develop eight new homes on the garage site off Long Close Avenue and to develop three new homes on the garage site off Sandy Lea Avenue. We're pleased to say that we will be starting on site to build these new properties very soon.  They will all be for affordable rent.

At present, this is the extent of the activity we have going ahead in Rudloe and we don't currently have firm plans to develop any further beyond these two sites. However, we are keen to invest more in the area, so we will continue to look into how we might be able to regenerate the wider estate. Please be assured that we won’t take forward any plans without first carrying out consultations with local people.  

If you have any other questions about our plans, please do get in touch.

Kind regards,

John

And here's a 'link' to the supposed design rationale, from GreenSquare, for the Long Close Avenue development:

The rationale, with regard to parking, states that because of the substantial increase in vehicle ownership, there is parking 'misuse' (on the roads) around Long Close Avenue and Kingslea Avenue. GreenSquare's solution? To provide two parking spaces, including a visitor's space (ref Wiltshire Council's Car Parking Strategy of 2011), for its proposed homes. A corollary of this is (of course) to deny parking to existing owners, tenants and their visitors! My wife, sister-in-law and myself regularly visit a house around this location; we used always to park off-road in the garage area. With GreenSquare's already identified parking problems, where does their 'rationale' now propose that we park? Without the garage area, we will have to park in Leylands Road, potentially obstructing buses (and perhaps other large vehicles) that use the Westwood Road/Leylands Road route. As Jim Royle would say "rationale my ****".

31st December 2014 - planning permission granted for increased density at Sandy Lea Avenue

The 19th February 2014 article discusses the issues associated with increasing housing density at Rudloe. However, in spite of the problems highlighted, Green Square is pushing ahead with its so-called 'Rudloe Renaissance'. This hyperbole is typical of modern life - in this case, glossing over the state of the British housing stock (the smallest in Europe) with slogans. This is not so much a renaissance as a backstreet density increase, stealing the open spaces that 60s planners (in their wisdom) granted necessary for a decent standard of communal life.

And here's a 'link' to the supposed design rationale, from GreenSquare, for the Sandy Lea Avenue development: