The HCERA Open Gardens Day will be on Sunday 17th May from 2 pm to 5 pm. The charge will be £1, but free for children accompanied by an adult. Go to the Tennis Club (between 15 and 17 Ethelburt Avenue ) to pay the admission fee and get a map showing which gardens are open. Proceeds will go to the locally based charity Tools for Self Reliance. The event will be cancelled if the weather is unsuitable.
More participating gardens are invited. Please send us an email or contact your street rep.

As part of the celebrations for the fiftieth anniversary of the opening of St George’s School, Leaside Way, there will be a Flower Festival organised by local resident Tina Leng. Visitors are welcome to view the flowers at the following times:

Thursday 23rd April 1.30pm - 5pm
Friday 24th April 1.30pm - 5pm
Saturday 25th April 12pm - 5pm
Sunday 26th April 12pm - 4.30pm

by Shelley Lewis (née Anderson)
Encouraging news, the community is pulling together to ensure the continued protection of the Monks Brook Green. The village green application is still underway (I will update as and when I receive news). A ‘Friends of Monks Brook’ group has been set up to inform local residents of community activities and environmental news. It’s a great way to share interesting flora and fauna sightings and often highlights points of interest to look out for on your next visit.
Swaythling resident Robert Painton, who is a keen naturalist and photographer, will be conducting two guided walks on 18th and 19th April from 11am, meeting at Swaythling Railway Station. Monks Brook is a glorious spot and spring is a wonderful time to visit and experience a little area of rural tranquillity in the city. If you would like to join the email listing for Friends of Monks Brook please send your details to me at: shelleylewis2009 at googlemail.com.
Unfortunately, due to the widening of the Stoneham Carriageway, Hampshire County Council have recently cleared some of the top of the meadow. However, they are working closely with ‘Friends of Monks Brook’ to ensure minimum disruption to the area. Again I will keep you updated on any developments.

In the Monk’s Brook Greenway, a new bridge has been built near where the public footpath crosses the railway line. This bypasses an area which floods in wet weather. The crossing has also been improved with two new stiles -Ed.

Constructing the new verge in Ethelburt Avenue on Saturday 4th April

Swaythling Lawn Tennis Club is a small and friendly LTA-affiliated tennis club tucked away behind the houses in Ethelburt Avenue.
We welcome players of all different abilities, from beginners to the more experienced.  We also take junior members.  The club is always looking for new members wanting to experience playing tennis on grass courts and who are willing to be actively involved in maintaining this rather special amenity right on our doorstep. The new season will start at the beginning of May and further information can be obtained from Sue Green on 80671016.

Annual Plant and Cake Sale/Open Day:
SLTC will be holding its annual sale of plants and homemade cakes on Saturday 9 May at the Club, starting at 1.30 pm.  This will also be the Club’s open day giving non-members the opportunity to come along and have a game for free.  All are welcome.

Planning permission has been granted for development of the site which is currently the car park, housing office and youth club at Parkville Road. The ground floor will be a medical centre, to which the surgery in Stoneham Lane will relocate, a pharmacy, a convenience store and an area for community use. Above this will be 40 two-bedroom and 41 one-bedroom flats. The building will be partly two, partly three and partly four-storey, plus a fourteen storey tower. Of the 59 car parking spaces, 34 will be on the Bowers site on the opposite side of Parkville Road behind the shops.

You may well be wondering where all the residents and visitors will park and where the Swaythling Youth Centre will relocate.

Make a note in your diary of this not-to-be- missed annual event for residents. Our midsummer party will be held on Saturday 27th June from 3pm. Children’s games, a bouncy castle and a barbecue are planned.

The recent removal of shrubs and trees adjacent to the slip road from the westbound carriageway of the M27 and along Stoneham Way and the erection of a lot of temporary wooden-pale fencing is a prelude to Phase 1 of the improvement to the junction. This is due to start in late summer. At present all traffic coming off the motorway is periodically stopped by traffic lights. The slip road will be widened and a dedicated left-turn lane into Stoneham Way created, allowing a continuous flow of traffic. The two lanes of Stoneham Way exiting the roundabout towards Southampton will merge into one lane and will be joined by the dedicated left turn lane from the slip road. This will form two lanes and connect into the existing dual carriageway.

The last AGM authorised an increase of the annual membership subscription to £4. The Committee decided, at its last meeting, that in view of the recession we would keep the subscription at £3 for a further year.