Parish Plan
Beaulieu Parish, located in the south-east corner of the New Forest National Park, is an unspoilt area at the head of the tidal reaches of the Beaulieu River. Beaulieu village, itself, has changed little over the years: the village centre has remained compact and there has been little outlying development in recent times. There are approximately 345 properties in the Parish, the majority of which are privately owned.
Most people who responded to the Beaulieu Parish Plan questionnaires expressed their satisfaction at living in an attractive area close to the river, with delightful surrounding countryside, and with all the advantages which it offers. 72% of the respondents have lived in the area for over 20 years, although only 16% were born within the Parish.
Traffic and tourism have increased vastly with the proliferation of motor vehicles, causing both problems for and benefits to the local community. Cars are needed by visitors to reach the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu village and the surrounding countryside, whilst residents need cars to gain access to nearby towns and villages. Many lorries of ever increasing size negotiate the narrow lanes; some of these same lorries are driven up the village High Street to satisfy the requirements of local businesses, whilst others are just passing through.
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There are no health facilities in the village. The nearest doctors' surgeries are in Hythe and Dibden Purlieu, where 70% of residents go. As far as chemists are concerned, most go to Dibden Purlieu, followed by Lymington and then Hythe.
The dentists' surgeries used are more spread out, with 37% of respondents going to Lymington. 86% are treated privately; some had sought but failed to find a NHS dentist.
Lymington and Southampton are the most widely used hospitals within the district. The 6% who had used maternity services at Hythe, Southampton or Lymington in the last five years were all satisfied. 24% of respondents have used the ambulance service within the last 5 years and were overwhelmingly either 'satisfied' or 'very satisfied' with the service; 2% said they were not. 17% of respondents had visited a chiropodist, for the most part privately.
7% of respondents had someone in their household who needed assistance with daily living (but 50% did not answer this question). 67% of these received help from family members and physiotherapists and 33% from district nurses and home care assistants.
No-one attended a day care centre or received meals on wheels. No projects related to these health and welfare findings are included in the Parish Action Plan but this information should be taken into account when considering all relevant planning matters in the future.
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84% feel they are adequately informed about events happening in the village; 76% read the Estate Newsletter regularly, 36% read the church's Parish Magazine although only 27% look at the Village noticeboard. (See Action Plan Project 2 .) 76% of respondents can access the internet, with 65% able to do so from home. The Village Hall is rarely used by residents for private functions although it is used regularly by clubs and societies and for the provision of school meals. It was suggested that, since many local organisations need storage space, perhaps the hall building could be modified to provide this. (See Action Plan Project 4 .) Only 6% use the Mobile Library. 87% are satisfied with the NFDC Rubbish Collection. Over 90% make at least occasional use of recycling facilities and 35% regularly use the recycling bins within the Parish at nearby Hazelcopse Farm. A suggestion was made that it might be worth exploring the provision of a communal compost heap (see Action Plan Project 7 ). As most respondents can access the internet, more use might be made of communication by email. The village web site could be improved by expanding and regularly updating information on it. (See Action Plan Project 3 .) Since several suggestions indicate that better provision of information would be valuable, a Welcome Pack for newcomers and others could be developed. (See Action Plan Project 1 .) Perhaps some local publicity might be helpful to advise parishioners when and where the Mobile Library is in the village. Publicising the availability of the Village Hall for private functions might also be worth-while. |
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As for clubs, societies, and other organised group activities, six attract a large membership from people living in the village, in other cases many of the members came from outside Beaulieu. A few respondents did not know what was availab
le and 16 suggested clubs that they would like to see started. Four people mentioned a film club (see Action Plan Project 5 ); otherwise no more than two people mentioned any one activity.
A fifth of respondents attend a church regularly, over half occasionally, and a quarter never. However, 81% said they would expect to use a church for weddings, baptisms and funerals. 84% of church-goers attend Beaulieu Parish church; most of the others go to Roman Catholic churches in the neighbourhood. Suggestions for making the Parish church more accessible included putting greater focus on the family and young people.
Information from this section has been given to the Parish Priest and to the Parochial Church Council.
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74% do their main grocery shopping in Hythe or Dibden Purlieu. Half shop on line, regularly or occasionally.
Of the village shops, the Abbey Stores with its Post Office, the Newsagents, and the Garden Centre with its café are used by almost everyone either regularly or occasionally.
There is some demand for vegetables (65 responses), meat (52), fruit (38), bread (22) and fish (15) to be available in the shops in the High Street. This information has been given to the village's shopkeepers for their consideration.
8% and 10% respectively, shop regularly at the Farmers' Market which comes to Beaulieu monthly or at the organic outlets in the neighbourhood, but higher percentages, 51% and 37%, use them only occasionally.
Local shopkeepers have been given this information.
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98% of residents said they felt safe by day and 89% at night.
30% had been affected by crime in the last five years, of whom 31 had suffered theft or burglary, while others had suffered criminal damage. 91% reported all or some of the crimes they experienced to the police.
24% considered policing adequate; 38% felt that it was inadequate, while 38% had no opinion. Respondents suggested a police presence on the beat and bringing back the village 'bobby'. If the village does have a designated policeman/woman, 97% don't know the constable. (See Action Plan Project 8 .)
26% said they were aware of a Neighbourhood Watch Scheme in their area. 34% of respondents would be interested in participating in such a scheme with 48% replying 'maybe'. (See Action Plan Project 8 .)
