By HILARY GAVIN
I’M POSTING a brief report on this month’s full Sidlesham Parish Council meeting as the trustees of the Sidlesham Community Association (SCA) prepare to meet with the committee of Infinity Football Club tonight (Nov 13th, 2025).
If you’ve read my Facebook post and YouTube footage of yesterday’s meeting held at the village parish hall, you’ll know the police were called to deal with “adverse behaviour” at last Saturday’s match (Nov 8) between the home club Infinity FC and Whitstable Town at the Sidlesham Memorial Hall & Recreation Grounds.
As you can see from the footage of yesterday’s meeting, SCA’s acting chairman and treasurer Norman Robson, who wasn’t at the match when Infinity lost 1-2, said he had heard that drinking had led to trouble on Saturday.
You can skip to 28.48 mins into my YouTube footage above to hear Mr Robson and the Chairman Martin Mellodey discussing item 8.4 of last night’s agenda when Cllr Mellodey, who was at the match, claimed the “poor behaviour came from Whitstable Town fans” and the Infinity guys “were fine”.
Cllr Mellodey told the meeting that the Infinity FC “guys” were allegedly attacked, adding that he was sure that Infinity would be “sending a report to the FA” and the SCA and parish council should wait for the club’s report at tonight’s meeting.
The Chairman told yesterday’s meeting that “apparently drinking and drugs were involved, apparently” but the incident “wasn’t that bad, relatively”, and added that the parish council doesn’t “encourage any disruption” of this kind that could impact on the memorial hall’s licence.
If you view my footage of yesterday’s meeting at the parish hall next to St Mary’s Church, and read the agenda on the SPC council’s website, you will see that all the parish councillors attended last night’s meeting bar Cllr Tracy Parsons who wasn’t able to attend as she has recently become a new granny.
WSCC Pieter Montyn updated the parish councillors on county council matters (Item 6) and explained that the gas pipe work planned for Stockbridge had now been postponed until early 2027 although the traffic lights at the south side in the built-up area of Donnington were still due to go ahead (see 2.48mins). Cllr Nick Wade praised WSCC for the excellent verge-cutting in the village
Cllr Montyn asked for councillors to report incidents of hanging hedges and bushes to WSCC and said one resident had been vocal about the installation of gigabyte connections in Highleigh which wasn’t within WSCC’s remit.
He told the meeting that commercial companies did not consider it worthwhile to connect rural areas, of which Sidlesham “has plenty”. He said Digital Britain UK, an executive agency of the department of Science, Innovation and Technology was dealing with the rollout of this the gigabyte connectivity.
Cllr Montyn left at around 14 minutes into yesterday’s meeting after updating councillors on the planned local government reorganisation and mayoral elections as part of the devolution plans in May 2026 before reminding them to report any footpath or rights of way issues they may have to the WSCC ranger. Cllr Mellodey said Paul Bedford was investigating Baker’s Lane and his report will go the Environment Agency but WSCC would be included.
Although CDC Cllr Donna Johnson was ill and missed yesterday’s meeting, the Parish Clerk Alison Colban read out her update on the retrospective planning permission appeal for the Melita Nursery Travellers’ site.
In her report Cllr Johnson said she had spoken to a CDC planning officer the day before and a barrister recommended using the “sequential test rather than flood risk” as the council’s grounds for refusal.
Ms Colban told the meeting that Cllr Johnson said “we” have until 2026 under the Local Plan to find a few more travellers’ sites. She said CDC were writing to the minister about the time scale in view of the local land constraints but added that both Sidlesham and the Manhood Peninsula were not impacted.
Cllr Mellodey questioned CDC Cllr Johnson’s assertion by mentioning the development at North Mundham which he said was put through “in anticipation” of more sites, adding that the council should “not take what she says as gospel”.
Sidlesham Community Association’s acting chairman and treasurer Norman Robson followed Cllr Johnson’s report by updating councillors on the accounts and rates for the trust which manages the Sidlesham Memorial Hall & Recreation Grounds. Mr Robson said SCA’s income was holding up very well six months into the year and the cost side was showing “a reasonable good achievement”.
Saying this, Mr Robson said fewer plays were being staged at theatre but skittles were coming along and a young lady wanted painting classes on the go. Cllr Trisha Tull asked Mr Robson if SCA had a share of the ticket money along with the hire of the hall. Mr Robson replied that discussions a year ago recommended each play should have a net income of £1,000 or above and the chairman at the time promised to make up any shortfall himself.
Mr Robson said he was not involved in the discussions but the out-turn had been £300 so the takings were “nowhere as optimistic as the figures that were being told to us”. He said the SCA was now only taking fees for hiring out the hall, which he said was only right as the SCA should not be in the “risk-taking business”.
As you can see, Mr Robson went on to flag up the “adverse behaviour” at SCA’s primary user Infinity FC’s football match after telling the meeting that both parties has finally arranged to meet to discuss their licence and a few outstanding issues that might take time to talk through such as opening the bar and cafe etc. (27mins)
Mr Robson gave the councillors an update on the other users of the football pitch and late payments and said Chichester Gulls had been an “absolute nuisance”. Sidlesham Parish Council owns the memorial hall and recreation ground and Cllr Mellodey laid down the law by adding: If they don’t pay, they don’t play.
The parish councillors agreed to extend Infinity FC’s MoU with SCA, which had been duly signed by both parties, for an additional three months.
Cllr Mellodey said this would allow the new board of trustees at SCA to settle in, whilst also mentioning there had been “animosity between the previous trustees, Paul Devonshire and Wendy Devonshire, and the Infinity FC committee.
As you can see from the meeting’s agenda at the Sidlesham Parish Council website the councillors went on to discuss Sidlesham’s neighbourhood plan and the current state of the memorial hall recreation ground playground which has recently been given a clean bill of health bar a few minor repairs.
The meeting also heard that Portsmouth Water engineers had visited the hall and recreation ground when some hidden water valves were discovered. In addition, they discussed installing Yeep! parcel delivery lockers at the car park, which should bring in an extra £1,400 pa, and their new official parish council email addresses.
Unfortunately, my camera’s memory card ran out of storage space at 46 minutes into the meeting so I didn’t capture the discussions surrounding the proposed Speedwatch venture and improvements to the B2145 Stagecoach bus shelters.
Saying that, I am embedding my Facebook post which I wrote earlier today below in this WordPress blog post to update you on these matters.
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Hilary Gavin
Journalist & Writer
6 Southover Way
Hunston
CHICHESTER
West Sussex
PO20 1NY
YouTube site Business ‘n’ Commas (sole trading name)
Email: grumpywoman@hilarygavin.blog
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