OHRA Newsletter DEC 2021

Dear Readers Welcome to our December 2021 Newsletter Our usual seasonal edition finds us at the end of yet another extraordinary year. A Zoom AGM, door-to-door subscription collection just restarted, Committee meetings initially by Skype and then by Zoom and still of course the weirdness of Covid-19. We all find ourselves with some freedoms even though the number of cases is once again increasing and who knows what next. This edition has, unfortunately, been delayed making sure that a couple of the items were fully up to date. So once again, and no matter what your personal beliefs, we wish you Season’s Greetings and the hope of a much improved and Happy New Year. Online subscriptions. Previously we have mentioned the possibility of online subscriptions but, although we have set this facility up, we are not moving forward with it for now. There has been little demand from you for us to implement it and we also think that the PayPal route may create other problems we would rather not have. So, for now it is still just a thought. The Web site. This is now going through a period of revision and update. We have already changed the way the important news is shown on the front page and removed the red pop-up. Now all we must do is work through the content and bring it up to date and make sure that emerging issues are flagged up on the front page more frequently. To that end one of our committee members with the right skills has volunteered to make this happen. What is in this issue? Page 1 For the future. With Covid-19 still very Welcome to our December Edition Page 2 much in mind let’s hope things stay Changes to the Newsletter Page 2 under control sufficiently for us all to Advertising Page 2 enjoy Christmas this year, stay safe Planning Matters Page 4 and keep your vaccinations up to date. A local walk to try Page 5 Hertfordshire Health Walks Page 6 New Committee members and Road The Scams continue to increase Page 11 Reps are still needed, so please Adverts Page 12 contact us even if out of idle curiosity. How to deal with scammers & cold callers Page 13 Food Bank Collections Page 13 Valuing your community Page 14 Volunteering Page 14 Clubs and Associations 1 Editor: Paul Everington – 01923 231697; email: [email protected], Website: www.ohra.community

. We have noticed that other organisations have more attractive newsletters than ours and have drawn some inspiration from CPRA NEWS produced by Carpenders Park Residents Association. Colour & Silk. You may already have noticed, but we have now introduced colour for the first time and printed on a better-quality paper, and we have been able to do this without cost increases. This edition is a first step, and we will be looking to improve this over the next editions in 2022. Advertising Later in the Newsletter you will see two advertisements. We would like to know from you if you would like to advertise your business about 3 times a year to all Oxhey Hall residents. We anticipate half or whole page adverts and will decide on likely costing soon – it will not be expensive but will hopefully contribute to the Newsletter being expanded and bringing you more, relevant, local information. You will be able to pay for a single entry or a whole year. Planning Matters The Local Plan Planning continues to occupy much of our time. Involvement in the Local Plan has now eased off pending the next stage of public consultation when the Council will publish the results of the recent consultation and state their proposals for meeting housing targets. Much lobbying and questioning is taking place behind the scenes and through the Three Rivers Joint Residents' Association (where we are actively monitoring developments). We are trying to clarify the flexibility that there is on the centrally imposed rules and targets. The question is, does the original housing target still have to be met? It is agreed that it is based on flawed out-of-date data and doesn't reflect recent population and societal changes. If the original target is retained, then some Green Belt will have to be sacrificed since Three Rivers does not have sufficient brown field sites. Or does the government recognise that targets dictated by a national formula cannot fully reflect individual authority circumstances and that they are therefore able to negotiate? In which case the importance of the Green Belt land will be emphasised and hopefully preserved. Watch this space! Water Board Cottages – 165/167 Hampermill Lane WE WON!! Or to be a little more restrained, the Council Planning Committee have refused the latest application to build on this site. An application had been submitted to replace the pair of cottages with 2 semi-detached properties. 2

In our opinion this was a worse application than the previous one and had many demonstrable shortcomings. Despite this, officers were recommending approval, so we stepped up a gear in our lobbying. Our three ward councillors spoke against it, and it received no supporting comments from any other councillors on the committee. We want this site developed but with something in tune with the locality. It remains to be seen whether the applicant appeals the decision. If you want to see what we have just been saved from (at least for the moment) the drawings are available to view on the Council website. How to look up Three Rivers planning applications Follow the link https://www.threerivers.gov.uk/egcl-page/search-for-a-planning- application to search and comment on planning applications. Once on this page you will be invited to “Click here to agree with the copyright notice and other limitations below and view Planning Applications” Having done this, you will then see Planning – Simple Search. In the search box you can enter an address, 165 Hampermill Lane or, if you know it, the planning application number which for the Water Board cottages is 21/2090. You can also just put in a road name, such as Hampermill Lane as well, when you will see all recent applications. They are dated. You can then see applications and all the published documents relevant to them. Conservation Officer For some time, the Council did not have a Conservation Officer in post, but this has recently been filled (possibly shared or part time - we are not sure). But this person has made their mark already on an application from a private resident which tests the boundary of what is acceptable within the Conservation Area. A highly critical report by this Conservation Officer must have been a material factor in having this recent application refused. However, unfortunately, a similarly critical report on another application for the same property was ignored and over- ruled, allowing this application to be approved. We are lobbying as hard as we can to avoid adverse effects on the Conservation Area, whilst taking care not to intrude on what a householder can do by way of modifications and improvements. 145 OAKLANDS AVENUE Unusually for the Committee, we have had to review not a planning application but a request to TRDC for a ‘Certificate of Lawfulness’. This was a first for us and involves a request for a change of usage at 145 Oaklands Ave on behalf of a company called Family Cornerstone Ltd, who wish to provide a home for up to three children between the ages of 10 to 18 in a family situation. This application does not require planning permission as it falls under permitted development. We have been concerned about aspects of this application and have submitted a response detailing our concerns and findings to the Planning Department and our three local District Councillors. 3

Research has revealed little about this company or their track record and we have made our representations in the hope that inadequacies in the application will be fully rectified and checked. Whilst this application may well be well intended, well administered and successful, we as your committee, in the absence of clear information, have felt it necessary to seek assurances on your behalf. A local walk to try This walk starts at the junction of Oaklands Avenue and Hillcroft Crescent and takes you across Hampermill Lane to Oxhey Hall and then on the footpath across the field to join the lane onto Ebury Way. Proceeding left through the tunnel of trees, follow the sign to the left onto Ebury Way marked Rickmansworth, climbing to the old railway line. Proceed along there climbing gently until another crossroads with the way to the left marked as the footpath to Hamper Mill. Follow down through the farm fields on the marked path when you will find Hampermill lake on your right – now used by Carpenders Park Angling Club. Then up an incline to the bridge over the River Colne, where the photograph of the intrepid walker was taken. Then, initially keeping to the right onto Sandy Lane, cross over when it is safe to do so and at the end of the houses take the footpath upwards between two metal posts, through the woods onto the fields. You can then walk steadily across the fields until, with the football pitches in sight, you join the path on the left to walk past the Scout hut. Finally past Highlands onto Prestwick Road to re-join Oakland Avenue to finish. This is a good 4 miles adding to your 10,000 steps!! By the way if you reverse this route, it is perhaps more challenging with two sustained uphill sections. If you know of any good local walks we can include, then let us know. We have included the schedule for Hertfordshire Health Walks for our area below. 4

Hertfordshire Health Walks Watford and Three Rivers Timetable of walks JANUARY to APRIL 2022 Enjoy the countryside and local green spaces with the FREE Hertfordshire Health Walks led by qualified volunteer leaders Walks and meeting point Day/time Date Walk Grade/Booking Information South Oxhey Mondays Every GRADE 2 - 3 Meet in the large car park All Saints Church, 10am (except bank No limit restrictions, pre- Gosforth Lane, South Oxhey, WD19 7AX booking optional Wednesdays holidays) South Oxhey 10am GRADE 3 Meet in the large car park All Saints Church, Every No limit restrictions, pre- Gosforth Lane, South Oxhey, WD19 7AX (except bank booking optional holidays) South Oxhey Wednesdays Every GRADE 4 + 10am No limit restrictions, pre- Meet in the small car park All Saints Church, booking optional Gosforth Lane, South Oxhey, WD19 7AX Mill End Wednesdays Every FIRST STEPS 11am Slow pace up to 40 minutes Meet at Mill End Community Centre, Church Every Buggy friendly Lane WD3 8HD No limit restrictions, pre- Every booking optional Abbots Langley Thursdays Meet in the public car park – entrance at the 10am Jan 7 GRADE 2 side of Abbots Langley Pharmacy, 78 High Feb 4 Duration 45 – 60 minutes Street, WD5 0AW, in the parade of shops Thursdays Mar 4 No limit restrictions, pre- opposite the Methodist Church 10am Apr 1 booking optional Jan 14, 28 Abbots Langley Monthly Feb 11, 25 GRADE 3 Meet in the public car park – entrance at the Fridays Mar 11, 25 No limit restrictions, pre- side of Abbots Langley Pharmacy, 78 High 9.30am Apr 8, 22 booking optional Street, WD5 0AW, in the parade of shops opposite the Alternate GRADE 4 + Methodist Church Fridays meet No limit restrictions, pre- booking optional Maple Cross 9.50am to start 10am GRADE 4 Tea Shack Woodoaks Farm, Denham Way, No limit restrictions, pre- Maple Cross, Rickmansworth WD3 9XQ booking optional FREE PARKING on site halfway along the track, in available car park right hand side Croxley Green Morrisons Supermarket, Ascot Road, Watford, WD18 8AA Meet at green space adjacent to supermarket café All walks are FREE and are graded between 20-30 minutes (First Steps) and 90 minutes (Grade 4) unless otherwise stated. Grade 4+ progression walks can last up to 2 hours. We ask that you arrive 10 – 15 minutes before your first walk. To pre-book you can ring our Telephone Booking Line 01992 555888 Monday to Friday 09:00 – 11:30 and14:00 – 15:00. To find out more about all our walks please visit www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/healthwalks 5

The Scams continue to increase! There has been much publicity concerning scams of late, by television, by newspapers, by the banks, OWL, etc. etc. The material included has come from current BBC and ITV programmes, The Times and personal experience. This article is long, and you may say that it is all old hat. However, these scams are all in use now and are still catching people out. Most of these examples were accompanied by those who were caught out explaining in front of a camera how easy it was to be taken in, especially if they were being distracted by other immediate issues. One of the most recent was courtesy of WhatsApp and is typical of what happens on all social media, Facebook, Instagram to name but two more. On the one hand it takes the form of information about scams. In the box to the right is an extract from a recent WhatsApp message (personal info removed), which claims to warn you about a scam that has just been promoted. In fact, a (very) brief internet search showed that this had been around since early 2020 and was very quickly debunked as being bogus and the method described in it as not even being viable. Further to this, it is another example of claiming that someone with a good reputation had supported it. In fact, Martin Lewis debunked this in November 2020 when WhatsApp first made this claim and both he and Action Fraud called it out as being false – as some would say FAKE INFORMATION. Does this matter you might say? Well, yes it does, because this spreads false information and increases the levels of anxiety in what is already a fraught area. So, the message here is if you get these types of things, do a quick check before circulating them any more widely. They don’t help. If you get them and you are worried forward them to Action Fraud. https://takefive-stopfraud.org.uk; www.actionfraud.police.uk 6

Social Media Concerns This use of well-known names is common on social media platforms. Sometimes it is spreading false information as above and sometimes it is advertising fraudulent products. These can be of many types but: ❖ Just because someone famous is endorsing some product does not make it real. Martin Lewis for example does not support any adverts or products and has even won a lawsuit with Facebook for falsely promoting things using his name and not taking them down when asked to do so. Always check celebrity endorsements, you can nearly always find out by a simple search on the internet. ❖ Products for sale on these platforms do not always deliver. Unlike newspapers they make no checks on those placing adverts as, at the moment, they are not liable for false representation. They claim that as they are not publishers, but only a vehicle for others to use they do not need to check. But this is beginning to change. ❖ So, check the offers, especially if they are financial (check with the FCA https://www.fca.org.uk/ ) They can help you spot scam companies who will and do steal large quantities of money from individuals. Buying online Another key here, whenever you are buying online, is to remember that how you pay can be critical to how successful your transaction is. It you are buying through any platform, and it comes to the paying part, do not be tempted to start dealing with the vendor directly outside the website or App you have been using. Do not agree to pay by Direct Transfer to anyone you do not know. Once you do this the risk of losing your money increases and more importantly, having moved outside the website you can lose all protection for your money. So, as they say in LIDL “When it’s gone it’s gone”. In most cases when you are trying to do this through your bank account or bank App, you will get a direct warning and probably must indicate that you have read and understood before you can proceed. There is a good reason for this as the banks are protecting themselves as well as you. This can happen when: ❖ Renting a holiday home ❖ Buying goods ❖ Buying services ❖ Financial services, etc. Cold Calling Another new one is selling household appliance insurance – “its only £10 per month Direct Debit”. This is similar to people calling and saying they owe you a refund (Amazon perhaps). If you give over your bank details, you will lose money. 7

It’s simple - DON’T TAKE COLD CALLS – they will claim to work for companies you may have heard of – ask questions – don’t take what they say at face value – who, what, where, when, how? Ask for their FCA Number – they won’t have one. Check with your bank. As said many times before do not give your bank details to anyone you do not directly know or have confirmed over the telephone. The Banking App scam Another relatively new one is the person who is buying goods from you, probably by calling at your house to confirm the transaction and take the goods away. They arrive, they inspect the goods, they confirm they want to buy and then they take out their Smart phone. They open their “banking App”. They ask you for the details of your bank account – number and sort code – and they enter them into the App. They show you that the transaction has gone through. You give them the goods and they leave – no wait a minute – you’d want to check wouldn’t you. So, you check your own smart phone (or other device), you get into your account and the new transfer isn’t there. “Well of course it isn’t” says the buyer. “They don’t always come through immediately do they. You must have seen this before”. And they show you their App again and you say “It must be OK, so here is your purchase. Nice to have done business with you”. Well, they were nice weren’t they. Bye bye goods and bye bye money! Charity Scams Public urged to donate safely this Christmas as it’s revealed £1.6m was lost to online charity fraud over the past year This is from Action Fraud: The fraud captured by this data includes asking for donations for non-existent charities and the fraudulent collection of funds from genuine charities. Action Fraud’s data shows that the £1.6m loss to fraud is 16%up on the previous year. The call for the public to give safely this Christmas is being coordinated by the Fundraising Regulator – the body which oversees charitable fundraising in the UK. Take steps to protect yourself online, particularly as the nation approaches the festive period, during which appeals for charitable donations increase. The campaign is urging members of the public to conduct some simple checks before giving to charity, to make sure their donations reach the intended recipient. This includes: • Check the charity name and its registration number on the Charity Commission website to find out whether the charity is legitimate. • Use the Fundraising Regulator’s online Directory to find out whether a charity has registered with it and committed to excellent fundraising. • Look out for the Fundraising Badge on charity marketing materials – when people see it, they can have confidence in charity’s fundraising. 8

• Ask questions about the cause – if people are still unsure about giving, they should always ask for more information. Legitimate causes will be happy to respond. Don’t be a part of the £1.6 million In this run up to Christmas we now have: Courier scam. They have a parcel for you, and you should contact them to reschedule, and they then ask for money or account details. Again, contact the real organisation directly to check. ▪ Do not transfer cash or use a credit card unless you are certain. ▪ eBay selling can lead to you sending the goods to the non-registered address invalidating your rights to refund. ▪ Even Amazon carries inferior products – buy (and sell) with care Competition Fraud You have won a prize and we need to verify the details. This then moves to the usual patter to get hold of your bank details and is affecting all age groups. Fraudsters are expecting bumper profits from the season of goodwill (courtesy of The Times newspaper) The amount of money lost to scams and the number of shoppers duped spikes in December as people spend more online. With fraud already on the rise — £754 million was stolen by criminals in the first half of the year, up 30 per cent on last year — festive fraud is expected to follow suit. Here’s what to look out for. Unfestive fees Loan fee scams, where the victims are asked for an up-front fee when applying for a loan, typically spike around Christmas as people look to borrow money to deal with the costs. Once you have paid the fee, the criminals either disappear or come back asking for more. Once you hand this over it’s unlikely that you’ll see them — or your money — ever again. Terrible taxes With the self-assessment deadline fast approaching on January 31, scammers often dress up as the taxman. They use emails, phone calls and text messages to try to convince taxpayers they are from HM Revenue and Customs and will mimic government messages to make them appear authentic. They will try to trick you into handing over money by pretending you owe HMRC a bill or obtain personal and financial information by offering a rebate. If in doubt, hang up or ignore and call HMRC. 9

Parcel problems Four out of five fraud cases that start with a text message involve fake texts supposedly from Royal Mail, DPD or Hermes, according to the bank TSB. The criminals send you a text saying that you owe a small fee for a missed delivery. If you click on the link in the text message, it will send you to a fake website that looks like the delivery company’s, you will be asked to fill in a form and the scammers will harvest your data. The fraudsters will then call pretending to be from your bank’s fraud team. They will mention the delivery text message, say that your account has been compromised and tell you to transfer your money into a “safe account”. If you do this your money is probably lost. Your bank would never ask you to transfer funds, and if you are unsure if you are legitimately talking to your bank, hang up and ring the number listed on its website. Do this even if the number on your phone matches the number listed because scammers can “spoof” an institution’s phone number. Merry Christmas, Mum Hearing from your children might seem like nothing out of the ordinary but be extra wary if you get a text from a new number claiming to be one of your family. Scammers are sending messages to random numbers, saying: “Hey mum, it’s me. I got a new phone, can you delete the old number and save this one?” or “Hey dad, I’ve somehow lost my phone, so this is my new number.” If the parent falls for this part, the scammer will often go on to ask for money. One, pretending to be someone’s daughter, said they needed money because the bank had put a 48-hour security block on her banking app. Another duped a father into sending £2,000 for an online course after pretending to be his son who had lost his old phone so could not get texts from the bank to confirm the payment. And don’t forget Find out about all the latest scams doing the rounds and how to avoid falling victim. Contact Us (Watchdog Scam Hub) Email: [email protected] Twitter: https://twitter.com/bbcwatchdog Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bbcwatchdog https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4WS5xhHY7WTnDfXvsFyCQrG/scam-hub 10

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How to deal with scammers and cold callers? All very aggravating but how do you deal with them? Some tips – you can tell them you rent the house – amazing how quickly they put the phone down; some people when asked if they are Mrs or Mr X always says no but I’ll see if they’re in. Then ask who is calling so you can let Mr or Mrs X know, you can then decide if you want to talk to them or not. Of course, if you’re going deaf you might not be able to hear them anyway. Another option therefore is to pretend to be deaf. And if you can’t be bothered to spend the time leading them on simply HANG UP! You can also use a call blocking service such as Sky Shield or BT Call Protect or other call blocking device or service. It’s amazing how far these calls disappear and by the way if you do respond to them the word soon goes round and you could find yourself on the receiving end of increasing numbers of these calls. As before, anyone asking you to provide personal or financial details - TAKE 5 (pause, consider for 5 minutes) https://takefive-stopfraud.org.uk/ , call the police on 101, or contact www.herts.police.uk/protectyourmoney 12

Food Bank Collections Coronavirus first prompted us to highlight the need for foodbanks. It has become more and more apparent over the last year that far from the need for these diminishing, the need has increased. So, we are asking you once again to think about this when you shop. When you do your shopping most of the local supermarkets provide a facility for you to buy an extra item or so of food and other key provisions and then leave them for the local food bank. The collection points will usually indicate the most appropriate things to buy. We know that Tesco, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s, Lidl, Aldi all do this. And many provide an additional top up to the donations from you. They also donate surplus food, further improving the level of help that is provided. You can even do this if you are on-line shopping. You can check the link below for an update in respect to items that Watford Food Bank currently need: http://www.watfordfoodbank.co.uk/donate-food/. Three Rivers operate in conjunction with the Watford Foodbank and the Rickmansworth Foodbank http://www.rickmansworth.foodbank.org.uk more details of which can be found on the TRDC website, https://www.threerivers.gov.uk/egcl- page/three-rivers-food-banks If you have the need to use a food bank then Citizens Advice can get you a referral https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/help-if-on-a-low-income/using- a-food-bank/ or call 0344 245 1296 for Three Rivers or 0800 144 8848 for Watford. You can also call Watford Foodbank -Trussel Trust 01923 804435, or call Three Rivers District Council on 01923 776611. Valuing your community Winter is upon us once again so there are somethings we can think about. We all value the neighbourhood so please consider ❖ Garden tidying and tree trimming leads to bonfires. So please make sure these are at considerate times of day and don’t affect you neighbours washing or use of the garden on those few times we are likely to be outside. ❖ Grass verges – don’t let them turn into mud by driving over then too quickly or unnecessarily. Sometimes it will be your tradesmen who need to be reminded. ❖ Having your drive cleaned – don’t simply pile up all the debris on the pavement, which others then must walk through. Get the contractor to clean up or put the waste in your brown bin if it’s compostable. ❖ Leaves, leaves, leaves – don’t just leaf blow them outside to be someone else’s problem – compost or brown bin. 13

Volunteering The Watford and Three Rivers Trust is an umbrella body that offers support, advice, information, and training to the voluntary and community groups in Watford and Three Rivers. In addition, the Trust provides information on volunteering opportunities and access to a timebank for volunteers and those needing help. W3RT (Watford & Three Rivers Trust) is based at The Holywell Community Centre, which is in King George V Playing Fields, at the end of Chaffinch Lane off Tolpits Lane. Watford, WD18 9QD, Tel. 01923 216950, Email:[email protected] More information about the Trust can be access on their website at https://w3rt.org/ There is also #TeamHerts Volunteering. It is your one stop hub for all volunteering opportunities across Hertfordshire. Through the website they provide all the latest volunteering opportunities whether it be micro- volunteering, ad hoc or regular, For more information, visit teamherts.org Clubs & Associations Update - The Choir from the Unsung Town South Oxhey Choir are pleased to announce that we are back rehearsing on Tuesday evenings, 7pm till 8.30pm with Covid procedures in place, i.e., wearing of mask when entering the Oxhey Wood School, Oxhey Drive until seated, social distancing between chairs and rows, plus sanitised chairs too. In view of the Virus situation several our members are not returning just yet, so we have spaces available for new members join us. Want to know more contact: Ann Cox either on my phone 07852 369935 or email [email protected]. 14

Oxhey Hall Horticultural Society The Trading Hut opens again in March. For membership information contact the Chairman, Mike O’Mahony (01923 445243) or visit the website https://ohhs.wordpress.com/ OXHEY HALL COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION With extensive facilities and easy reach. Facilities • Fully Licensed Bar • Function Room • Sound & lighting System • Dance Floor • Stage • Small Kitchen • Tennis Courts • 2 Snooker tables • Table Tennis • Disabled access • Car Park • Air Conditioned Contact Michael Zapala on 07771 767033 15

Oxhey Hall Ladies’ Club Running for over 40 years, the Club meets at 2.30 pm on the 2nd Wednesday of each month at the Watford Rural Council Offices in Oxhey Drive. We hold a monthly lunch outing to a local restaurant, a member runs a craft making afternoon at her house, we also have a scrabble afternoon at Ransom Court and a member has a Canasta afternoon. It is a very friendly club the annual subscription is £10 which helps pay for the hire of the Council premises. New members are very welcome. If you would like to know more and sign up for their Newsletter and join our social meetings, then contact June Sampson on 01923 445486 or Rosemary Ruston on 01923 232120 We wish everyone Good Health for Christmas and Happiness and the New Year Oxhey Hall Residents Association Newsletter Disclaimer Neither the OHRA Committee or newsletter editors accept any responsibility for the views of contributors or the content of advertisements or any services provided by advertisers. OHRA is a non-party political association. Any opinions expressed here are incidental and should not be deemed to associate the Association with, or stand particularly against, any political party. 16