Cloughey & District Community Association

Annual Report for 2008/09

(presented to the AGM on 5/2/09)

Since the last AGM on 07 Feb 2008, there have been 10 Committee meetings and these have been well attended.  The Committee has continued to work on a number of fronts and has made significant progress in several areas.  These are reported below.

The 2007 Committee was as follows:

Chairman                               Joe Maclean

Vice-Chairman                       Derek Millar

Hon Secretary                        Kellie Armstrong (Resigned Oct 08)

Hon treasurer                         Diane McIlveen

Minutes secretary                   Ronnie McDaniel

Committee members:               

                                                Lee Jenkinson

                                                Joanne Palmer

                                                Andrew Gillespie,

                                                Jeff Smith

                                               Jane Smith

                                                Alistair Dunn

Yolande Truesdale

Mark Newell

Eric Rainey

Bill Montgomery (Co-opted)

Margaret Adair (co-opted)

Report of activities during the year – we have had another very busy and active year,  taking on a few new projects, and finalising other issues.  Hon Secretary did sterling work and we are very sorry to lose her energetic and efficient services.

Roads and Road Safety

We have continued to campaign on this issue, but there is little progress to report. 

·         New footpath link Quarter Road (Orange Hall to School) work on this has not yet started but with the new School hall in use we expect action soon. CDCA will continue pressure to ensure safe pedestrian use of this stretch of road which links the school to the Cloughey Kids Club after schools centre.

·         Speeding and new traffic calming proposals on Main Road – We have continued to lobby politicians and Roads Service on this issue.

·         New Assembly Hall/Gymnasium at Kirkistown Primary School – The Montgomery Hall was completed in Sept 2008 and adds a much –needed meeting facility to the village.  The Hall is available for hire to local groups in the evenings.

·         Sewerage – The new Waste Water Treatment plant has been constructed at Slanes Point, Cloughey and has been operational since early January 2009.  the landscaping and finishing works will continue for a few weeks.  This is a temporary facility that will be located in Cloughey for a period of 5-7 years. After this time the plant will be removed with the new permanent Waste Water Treatment plant located further north – to serve Cloughey, Portavogie and Ballyhalbert.

Environmental improvement schemes

Green Coast Award

Eric Rainey took the lead on this project and was surprised to learn that Cloughey Beach had been given an award under the Green Coast Scheme, for the efforts to clean up the beach and to provide improved standards of water quality.

Coastal Path

This exciting project has been driven by our new member Eric Rainey who has been tireless in his efforts to research the background and to persuade landowners of the benefits of having a recognised path from Cloughey Warren to Kearney and beyond.

We are liaising with National Trust, Countryside Access NI, Ards Borough Council, NI Environment Agency to create several walking routes to the south of Cloughey that can be used by residents and visitors. The first stage is a circular walk from the White House Inn at Ardminnan along the coast to Cloughey Beach and back by Ardminnan Road taking in a short detour to Slanes Graveyard.

Protection of warren from damage by Quads and Scramblers

We have worked closely with the ASBO team in Ards to deter scramblers and quads from using the warren and beach area.  An article was placed on the website with photos of offending activities and the severe damage being done to the dunes behind the Pavilion.  However, our main aim is to stop the damage to the vulnerable short grass area beside the car park, and we have had some success in this area.

Somme Memorial Garden

The public garden, situated between Main Road and the Beach at Cloughey has been maintained by the CDCA with assistance from Lower Ards Community Action Group.  Remembrance ceremonies were held on 1^st July and 11^th November and well-attended, with Jim Fletcher Mayor of Ards Council taking part.    

New low-level lighting was installed in October, and illuminates the garden in tihe dark evenings up to midnight.  On the night of Remembrance Day, vandals damaged 2 of the lights and threw away the wreaths The wreaths and small crosses were recovered by the committee and replaced.  We have continued to receive a lot of positive feedback from residents pleased that the garden brightens up this corner of the village.  This small garden area adjoins the open grass play area beside the playground and provides a pleasant place for people to sit in peaceful contemplation. 

Boulevard scheme - Children of Cloughey – tree planting scheme

This scheme was conceived to improve the appearance of Main Road Cloughey and by introducing some trees into the footpath area. The trees were planted in early 2006.  The plaques with the names of over 300 children currently living in the district were added and the children and their families were invited to plant bulbs. 

The trees are not thriving and the committee is considering remedial action to improve the ground conditions. 

Plans have been prepared for more trees to be planted on the shore side of Main Road and this time we are proposing palm trees (New Zealand Cabbage Palm)  which seems to do well in Cloughey.

Campaign against proposed sell-off of Council Land at Main Road.

Our campaign to oppose the development of this strip was successful.  The planning application by Ards Council was refused by Planning Service and the Council is now working positively with CDCA on a landscaping scheme to improve the appearance of the centre of the village and provide another sitting area for residents and visitors overlooking the beach and the bay. 

Campaign to save children’s playground at Ballygalget

 Ards Council proposed to close down several small playgrounds in rural areas but reversed the decision after a vigorous campaign spearheaded by Kelli Armstrong whose article in the Chronicle brought the matter to public attention.

Community Facilities

Tennis – During the year the tennis courts were refurbished and a new tennis club was formed.  The improvements to the courts were due to be carried out in the early spring but were delayed and then interrupted by bad weather so that the courts were out of action for most of the summer season.   The courts were completed in Mid November and the Club has been playing 3-times a week when the weather permits.  Plans are in place for a coaching course for adults in early spring and a juior course in Easter Week.  The new courts have a polymeric surface which allows play all year round and in all weathers and floodlights which enable play in the dark winter evenings.

 Old Presbyterian Church – The Church Committee is not prepared to allow the building to be converted to community use at the present time.  The building is in poor repair and unless some maintenance work is done it is likely to deteriorate and become very expensive to refurbish.  CDCA would be willing to support any scheme for the building that can provide some community benefit.

Entertainment – Our Fifth Children’s Halloween Party was another success with around 100 attending.  This year we asked people to book their place in advance which meant that we could make arrangements for the right numbers. Entertainments included games provided by Lee and Alistair, face painting bu Jenny Macrory, stick-on Tatoos by Peter the Vet and a fancy dress costume competition sponsored and judged by Watson’s Centra. The Committee provided the support supervision. Thanks to Watson’s Centra for their continued support for this successful community event.

Christmas tree - We again provided a Christmas tree at Cloughey Primary School, but this year Santa was unavailable to visit the school.

Security Issues

Home security for the elderly – we have continued to supply safety advice, door locks and personal alarms for the vulnerable and elderly in the District. CDCA also helped to distribute medical aid bottles (to include medial information for use by emergency services in the event of an emergency).

Good Neighbour Scheme -   We have continued to participate in this scheme and have attended the Safety Forum on a regular basis. 

CDCA decided against developing the existing Good Neighbour Scheme to a full Neighbourhood Watch as the later scheme could not be managed appropriately at this time.

During the year, CDCA replaced the Good Neighbour notices on the roads approaching the district, and received sponsorship for the cost of the new signs from Belvoir Lettings, a Belfast-based property letting and management company. 

Communications

Newsletter – During the year we produced and distributed 4 issues of our newsletter.  Kellie Armstrong continued to  produce the publication, and organised several bumper editions full of local news stories and useful advice.  Around 800 copies of each issue were distributed to households in the district, with additional copies available for pick-up in Watsons, the pavilion and the golf club.  Thanks to the Ni Housing Executive who now produce the newsletter in colour. Our thanks to committee members who distribute it to all of the households in the District. This keeps local residents informed about our activities and how to contact us.

Website – The www.cloughey.org.uk website has been steadily expanded to provide additional information on all aspects of life in Cloughey and District including the local weather forecast, bin collections dates and tides!   The website now contains a wealth of information about the area and its history and is well worth a weekly check.

Notice board – This board in the forecourt of the Centra Supermarket displays notices about CDCA activities and events.  The tourist map will shortly be replaced with a larger scale map and additional information for visitors. 

Finance

CDCA does not charge its members any subscription and relies on other fund-raising activities to fund its activities. 

This year Kellie Armstrong arranged a major charity quiz for CDCA at Ballygalget GAC club, organised by legendary quizmaster Liam Braniff, in September.  This well-attended event raised well over £1000 of which £500 each was presented to St Patricks PS and Kirkistown PS.

Hon Treasurer Diane McIlveen reports that our current balance is a healthy £2662.11.

Margaret Adair

Hon Secretary

05^th  February 2000