After a busy winter of indoor tennis and fund-raising, Swaything Lawn Tennis Club will be back in business on the grass courts in Ethelburt Avenue from Saturday, 30th April. We can be found in the right-hand corner of the lower green and new members of any age and standard are always welcome.

We shall be holding our popular Plant and Cake Sale on Saturday 14th May 1.30pm followed by an open afternoon at 2.30pm. Everyone is welcome - come early for the sale and stay to play!

Our two grass courts have again been professionally treated during the winter and, weather permitting, will be ready for play from May to September.

Coaching is available for those whose skills are a little rusty! Further details can be obtained from John and Sue Green (8067 1016) or Evelyn MacPherson (8067 6746).
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Two public meetings have been held, the first in February and the other in March, to progress the development of the Action Plans for the Flower-Roads/Hampton-Park/Mansbridge and Portswood/St Denys Priority Neighbourhoods. Read the rest of this entry »

www.herbertcollins.co.uk has a new look. This arises from the adoption of Mambo for web site content management. There is now an opportunity to register, giving access to a members only area.

Suggestions for new website content are welcomed by the webmaster.

The Southampton Federation of Residents’ Associations will be having a joint public meeting with Southampton City Council in June. Details will be put on our web site when they become available.

For most of us, the sound of children happily playing is a joy to hear and so it should be. But the scene is not always so idyllic, sometimes they shout and scream at each other. This is particularly disturbing to neighbours who need to study or work at home. We look to parents to be concerned about not disturbing neighbours and to educate their children to show consideration for others.

A bonfire can be a satisfying way of disposing of garden rubbish. But it is not so much fun for your neighbours who are sitting on their patio or have just put out their washing to dry. A bonfire needs to be an occasional indulgence and you should check that laundry has not be put out or your neighbours’ windows are not wide open.

A delicious suggestion for the party!

• 6 slices of white bread, crusts removed.
• About 1 lb of summer fruit - a mixture of strawberries, raspberries, cherries (de-stoned), blackcurrants, redcurrants, whatever you have. You can use frozen fruit, if you like.
• 2-3 tablespoons of sugar, according to taste.

Line a 2-pint pudding basin with the bread, reserving a slice or two for the lid. Heat the fruit gently with the sugar just until the juices run and the sugar is dissolved - you don’t want to cook it thoroughly. Put the fruit into the basin, inside the bread and cover with extra bread. Now cover with a plate or saucer small enough to go just inside the basin, and weigh it down (use a couple of tins) in the fridge overnight. Next day, turn out on to a plate. Serve with cream, yoghurt or fromage frais according to taste!

Make a note in your diary of this great annual event. Our summer party will be held on Saturday 18th June from 3pm onwards on the Lower Green, Ethelburt Avenue.

Children

While most planning applications for single storey extensions to houses within the Conservation Area have been approved with conditions, a recent application for a two storey extension was refused. The Planning Committee considered that the size of the extension was such that it would dominate the existing house and have an overbearing effect on the surrounding environment. They also considered that it would set an undesirable precedent and make such developments more difficult to
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Walking round the estate I was struck by how bare some of the hedges are.

Shouldn’t they have a thick covering of green leaves?

After all, isn’t privet an evergreen? Well not exactly. Books generally describe it as semi-evergreen and tell us that it loses leaves in wind and frost. So perhaps the variation in leafiness depends on being in a sheltered or exposed position. I think this has a lot to do with it, but is this the whole story? The variety or the
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The next repair session will be for the Lower Road Group on St George’s Day, Saturday 23rd April. All are welcome to help and new volunteers should contact John Dixon by ringing 023 8055 0064