Pilot Field Area Residents' Association - PFARA

Pilot Field Area Residents' Association - PFARA We always welcome new members, for a yearly subscription of £2 you will receive regular newsletters and can contact us to represent your views.

Welcome to the page of the Pilot Field Area Residents Association (PFARA) - we are a group of volunteers who live in the area who gather and represent your views. We are non political members of the community we live in.

There will be a guided tour of the Commonwealth war graves in Hastings Cemetry this Saturday 26 September starting at 10...
22/09/2026

There will be a guided tour of the Commonwealth war graves in Hastings Cemetry this Saturday 26 September starting at 10.30 from the main car park.

19/09/2026

Here are some key insights from this weekend's AGM:

Hastings United:
● Plan is to have an 11 a side and a 9 a side pitch.
● Elvis casino party on Saturday 10th October
● Fireworks on Friday 13th November

EFT:
● Coffee shop at EFT open to everyone on Saturday mornings

Update from our Councillor Yunis Smith:
● Local government devolution is currently on hold
● Planning application changes from national government coming in 31st October.
● Local plan will be agreed on 23rd September
● Crime down in Baird and Broomgrove by 88% since 2024.
● Separate surgery will be planned for residents to detail their concerns, date will be announced.

Road issues:
● Yunis is checking for interest for "20 is plenty" in Pilot Road. Tell him if you want this to be picked up.
Email [email protected]
● Potholes still being an issue in Pilot road, Ochiltree Road amongst others. Please keep reporting them.
● Request for double yellow lines at the top of St Helen's Down where the black van has been parked and not moved for over a year.

Flagship school:
● October grand opening, local residents are invited to take a look at it.
● Spaces can be used for evening and weekend community use.

AOB:
● Membership is down from 87 to 69. Please spread the word to help us continue keeping residents updated on local issues.
● If you love St Helen's Woods, please support them through volunteering or donations. They are a charity and could benefit from some support.
● Sandrock bends planning application has been rejected, but has not been taken out of the local plan. The work continues.

Thanks to all our speakers Councillor Yunis Smith Education Futures Trust Hastings United Flagship School Limited
and everyone who joined us for our AGM.

Please reach out if you require any assistance with local issues.

Guided tour of the Commonwealth war graves in Hastings cemetery on the Ridge. Saturday, 26th September 2026 starting at ...
19/09/2026

Guided tour of the Commonwealth war graves in Hastings cemetery on the Ridge.
Saturday, 26th September 2026 starting at 10.30am
Everyone welcome.

14/09/2026

Save the date for our AGM!
--------------------
Saturday 19th September
10.00 - 12.00
St Barnabas Church Hall
Hoads Wood Road
(Teas & coffees available)
===============
Hear updates from:
- Hastings United Football Club
- Education Futures Trust
- Flagship School (note - new building to be opened in September)
- Save Sandrock Bends campaign
- Ward councillors
We hope to see you there!

St Helen's Park Preservation Society and the Save Sandrock Bends campaign group are holding a:-SUMMER FAIR this Saturday...
26/06/2026

St Helen's Park Preservation Society and the Save Sandrock Bends campaign group are holding a:-
SUMMER FAIR this Saturday 27 June 12.00-4.00
Location: St Helen's Church, 311 The Ridge TN34 2RA

The St Helen's Church and its halls (upper and lower) will be open which will provide COOL (!) and dry facilities.
The lovely church garden and its community allotment (which is adjacent to the Sandrock Bends site) will also be open to enjoy!
There will be:
- an art show
- bric a brac stall
- - St Helen's Woods plant stall
- BBQ
- Cakes and refreshments
- Games
- Bookstall
The fair is a celebration of our community, but it also highlights an issue of critical importance to our town: namely the future of the Sandrock Bends area.

As you may know, the land adjacent to Sandrock Park is a vital environmental asset but is being threatened by a proposed planning application for 65 houses on it. The site acts as a natural water buffer and crucial wildlife corridor that directly connects St Helens Woods Local Nature Reserve to the High Weald. Allowing housing development on this site would be devastating to our community. Independent ecological analysis warns that building here risks a 30% net loss in biodiversity, severe disruption to local water tables, and increased downstream flooding risks.

29/04/2026

From Cllr Mike Turner re Hoads Wood Road
Please see the email below from ESCC Highways responding to my complaint to them regarding the diversion during the road works in Hoads Wood Road
Traffic will now be diverted along The Ridge to the adopted section of St Helens Down then into Pilot Road.
I have suggested that Ochiltree Road off Elphinstone Road would be a better option but waiting to see if ESCC agree.
The important thing is that I have got ESCC to reverse their decision to divert traffic into the unadopted section of St Helens Down which would have been totally unsuitable.
Cllr Mike Turner
=====================================
Message from ESCC Highways, 28 April
Good afternoon,
Thank you for contacting East Sussex Highways.
St Helens Down is an unadopted road. For this reason, it cannot be included on the approved diversion route.
We are only permitted to use highways‑adopted roads for diversion routes, which is why The Ridge to Pilot Road has been selected as the alternative route.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused and hope this explanation helps to clarify the reasons for our approach.
If you have any other concerns, we are here to help. Please contact us by phone at 0345 60 80 193 or via our website at https://live.eastsussexhighways.com/report-problem.

Kind regards,
Leigh

22/04/2026

Hoads Wood Road/ St Helen's Down update re road closure
-------------------------------------------
From: DET Support
Sent: 22 April 2026 16:37
To: Cllr Mike Turner
Subject: Member Enquiry (ref: 26637061)

Dear Councillor Turner
Our ref: 26637061

I confirm receipt of your recent enquiry to Karl Taylor, Rupert Clubb and Becky Shaw. We are currently looking into the matters raised and hope to be in a position to provide you with a full response within 10 working days.

Yours sincerely
Directors Executive Support Team
Communities, Economy & Transport

17/04/2026

As you probably know the lower part of Hoads Wood Road will be closed during part of May for resurfacing.
However ESCC Highways have indicated that the unadopted lower part of St Helen's Down would be a suitable diversion route during the road closure.
Local residents of that part of St Helen's Down have asked Mike Turner to complain strongly about this on their behalf and accordingly Councillor Mike Turner has written to ESCC Highways. Please see below Mike's email to Highways. He will keep you updated with their response.
===========================
To Karl Taylor, ESCC Highways
Good evening ,Karl .

I was pleased to have received notification that roadworks in Hoads Wood Road will be taking place on 15 May to 05th June .

Whilst this repair work is long overdue and is welcomed by the residents, the proposed diversion using the unadopted section of St Helens Down is extremely inappropriate to the point of being a public safety hazard .

St Helens Down is a narrow road with no pavement; grass verge gully drains and does not have the capacity to cope with the volume of traffic that would be generated into it as a diversion route.

It would be much safer for traffic to be diverted the very short distance down Elphinstone Avenue then into Linley Drive which is adjacent to the lower section of Hoads Wood and be a perfect diversion for all surrounding roads in that location.

Residents that live in the unadopted section of St Helens Down who have to pay for its maintenance themselves are naturally very worried about the potential damage to the road and risk to public safety.

I would appreciate your intervention. Please keep me updated progress on this urgent matter .

Kind regards,

Mike
Councillor Mike Turner
Hastings Borough Council
Mobile 07580 124828
Tel 01424 451066
[email protected]

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Hastings

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Friday 8:30am - 7pm
Saturday 10am - 1pm
Sunday 9am - 5am

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