Bulls Lane partially blocked by fly-tipping

Garden turf dumped east of Skimpans Bridge

A load of garden turf has been fly-tipped along Bulls Lane close to Welham Green, reducing the passable width of the road by half.

Drivers should take care because there is at least one concrete fence post buried under the pile of earth and grass.

Hardcore dumped in Gobions car park

Parking spaces restricted “for up to two weeks”

Two large mounds of hardcore at the southern end of Gobions car park
Image by North Mymms News released under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0

Two large mounds of rubble have been dumped in the car park at Gobions Open Space without permission.

According to North Mymms Parish Council (NMPC), which owns the land, the material was deposited by North Mymms Fishing Club who intend to use it to “replace the pathways around the fishing lake and renew the fishing lake swims”.

Welham Green community website closes

Yet another hack attack takes site down

Screen grab of WelhamGreen.org taken in August 2018
Grab courtesy of the Wayback Machine

A community website that has served Welham Green for almost six years has closed following the latest attack by hackers.

The independent site was created by Welham Green resident, photographer and historian Mike Allen. It launched on 1 July 2013.

According to the mission statement on the front page of the site, the project aimed “to make Welham Green a better place to live and work in”.

New tenant found for Hope and Anchor

Plan is to move in on Tuesday 16 April

The Hope and Anchor, Station Road, Welham Green - 1 April, 2019

Image by North Mymms News, released under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0

The company that owns Welham Green’s Hope and Anchor on Station Road says it’s hopeful that the pub will open shortly. The announcement follows confirmation that a new tenant has been found for the 19th century pub. Ei Group, which owns the building, says refurbishments will follow once the plans are signed off.

Repairs to Leach Fields fences planned

Three horses removed while fences are fixed

Broken fence alongside footpath 86

Image by North Mymms News

Released under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0

Local police say they have spoken to the owner of the horses that have been escaping from Leach Fields. The animals have frequently been found wandering local footpaths and straying into North Mymms Parish Council's open spaces.

Police officers say they’ve been told that the fences will be fixed and three horses removed while repairs are carried out.

North Mymms Parish Plan consigned to history

Three years of work to produce a reference document

“A blueprint for the future of North Mymms”

Do you remember the North Mymms Parish Plan? When it was published in 2011 it was hailed as “a blueprint for the future of North Mymms”. The plan’s authors described it as a “powerful tool to influence decisions”.

Now, eight years on, the 36-page document is used by North Mymms Parish Council (NMPC) for research only; it is no longer available on the parish council website, and it has no legal status.

Gobions food and drink van proposal rejected

Small “quaint” truck would “upset rural balance”

Gobions car park where the small “quaint” truck would have served refreshments
Image by North Mymms News released under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0

North Mymms Parish Council (NMPC) has refused to give permission to a Welham Green woman who wanted to serve refreshments from a van parked in the Gobions Open Space car park off Jonas Way, Brookmans Park.

No go for Gobions dog training classes

Proposal to run two sessions a week rejected

Dog training classes - Image by Katrin B from Pixabay

A plan to hold dog training classes at Gobions Open Space, Brookmans Park, has been rejected by North Mymms Parish Council (NMPC).

Leach Fields horse escapes discussed by council

Red and white tape at latest escape route

The broken fence at the entrance to NMPC land
Image by North Mymms News
Released under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0

The frequent escape of horses from Leach Fields in Brookmans Park has been raised at North Mymms Parish Council (NMPC), with concern growing for the safety of the horses and the public on council-owned land.

According to the most recently published NMPC minutes there are also concerns about the welfare of the horses “who do not appear to be well fed”.

A photographic journey into North Mymms’ past

Old images digitised and enhanced for future generations

A Welham Green couple in Victorian times
Image from A Nott / G Knott, from the Images of North Mymms collection

On Saturday 6 April photographer and historian Mike Allen will be attending the North Mymms Horticultural Society where he will be giving one of his local history presentations. The event is being held at the North Mymms Youth and Community Centre from 2pm.

Mike is the man responsible for Images of North Mymms, a collection of more than 3,500 historical photographs of parish life. He is also one of the team of four behind the North Mymms History Project.

Here Mike sets out the background to the creation of his photographic collection, and explains what those attending his talk are likely to experience.

Burglary at Little Heath Friday 29 March

Did you see or hear anything suspicious?

Police are appealing for the public’s help following a burglary at a house in Grangewood, Little Heath. The theft happened at around 3pm on Friday 29 March.

Important information for local walkers

Our latest North Mymms rights of way update 

The junction where North Mymms bridleway 4 and BOAT 4 meet BOAT 5
Image by Hertfordshire Walker, released under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0

Hertfordshire's Countryside & Rights of Way team has released the latest update on works currently underway on the footpaths, bridleways, and byways in the parish of North Mymms. The information is emailed to this site on a regular basis by Access Projects Officer Dawn Grocock.

Fresh hope for Welham Green pub

Hope and Anchor could reopen this month

The Hope and Anchor, Station Road, Welham Green - 1 April, 2019
Image by North Mymms News, released under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0

The group responsible for the Hope and Anchor in Welham Green says it’s “hoping to have the site open in two weeks time”.

The update was volunteered following the issuing of an April Fool hoax by the North Mymms Social Club (NMSC) which claimed that “there is a proposal in with the planning department of Welwyn Hatfield Council for the Hope and Anchor to be turned into a MacDonalds restaurant”.

The historical North Mymms pub has been closed since November, and there were fears in the village that the Grade II listed building might have served its last pint.

The North Mymms Social Club, Station Road, Welham Green - 1 April, 2019
Image by North Mymms News, released under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0

Late on Sunday 31 March the NMSC sent an email to all members saying that a proposal for a MacDonalds drive through had been submitted to the local planning department. The email asked members the following questions:

• Do we really want a MacDonalds in our village?
• Do we really want the extra traffic created by a drive through?
• Do we reall want all the rubbish on our streets that a MacDonalds will inevitably create?

The email continued: “If this is an issue you feel strongly about then NMSC will be gathering signatures for a petition of objection. The petition will be available for signing from 11.55am tomorrow. Just ask the bar staff and they will tell you all about it.”

Clearly a spoof aimed at regulars at the Station Road social club.

Text of email sent out by NMSC on Sunday 31 March

Fingers crossed for an April opening

Sign outside the Hope and Anchor

Richard Smyth the Regional Manager for Ei Group when told of the hoax email and asked whether there was any truth in it said “Really, absolutely not”.

He added that the group is planning to reopen the pub in the near future, possibly in the next two weeks “fingers crossed”.

A sign outside the Hope and Anchor describes running the pub as a “fantastic business opportunity" to run a "cask ale pub".

Last month the car park at the Hope and Anchor was blocked off following concerns raised by a local councillor that the space was encouraging drug dealing.

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Related news

New tenant sought for Hope and Anchor - 12 March, 2019
Hope and Anchor to “open in the very near future” - 31 January, 2019
Welham Green's Hope and Anchor will reopen - 16 November, 2018

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