RESIDENTS Association committee members were unanimously re-elected at the AGM a week or two back. Two main factors came out of the meeting. I want to concentrate on the first of these this week and come back to the second on another occasion.

For much of its time, apart from producing and distributing Valley News, the association has no great pressures other than a few (and it is usually a very small number) planning applications that clearly must be opposed because they do not promote the well-being of the general community. However, as chairman Alan Jedras pointed out, it is important to keep the organisation well-manned, active and alert because those less frequent big challenges that come along are usually time-critical and demand a lot of concentrated effort. Various projects, to buy tracts of woodland, to resist damaging extension of the waste tip at Booker, or to head off the county council intent on inappropriate road changes, have all had one thing in common. They needed immediate action, organisation of a lot of energy, and some funds.

The MBVRA was able to respond to all of these because the core of task forces was already there, ready to act and well-known to each other, with loads of additional contacts to recruit immediately.

They have succeeded on all of these challenges, in that they have achieved what has best suited the community at a critical time.

CHARLIE Hodgson has had a patchy year as England's rugby kicker, commented on in countless newspapers, but hardly expecting to end the season in this particular column. While some may remark that his strike lacks power, one valley resident may feel its accuracy could have been happier on one particular occasion.

As a special occasion, the whole Branch family, Ian, Alison, James (six) and Anna (four) went along to last Saturday's match to celebrate the last home game of the Wasps' season. It was about 20 minutes in when they believe it was Charlie Hodgson who kicked for touch. To be fair, he was successful. The ball was rocketing towards young James, so Alison put up her hand to save him from a nasty impact. To be fair, she also was successful to a degree. James was not hit.

The stadium paramedics, however, suspected a fracture in Alison's arm and took her to A&E at Wycombe General Hospital. The X-ray confirmed a complete fracture of the radius and Alison now has her arm in plaster for a minimum of six weeks ... confirming rugby can be a dangerous sport!

Alison is not necessarily one of those who think that Charlie's kick lacks power; the incident hasn't even put her off rugby, she's off to Twickenham tomorrow.

GETTING an arm broken is not an ever-present risk for me, writing here each week; that is, so long as I get the spelling of names right. I tend to side with T S Eliot on that "difficult matter", but it's not just cats who become engaged in a "rapt contemplation of their deep and inscrutable singular names".

People care too, I am sure, and sometimes the orthographic challenge can be truly "effanineffable", when I try to give the new starters in our pre-schools their warholian 15 minutes of fame in the Free Press.

This term, at the Village Hall pre-school, the honours go to Holly Wilde, Jem Savin, Lucie Shepherd, Raphy Hickling, Joszes Szitkovics and Max Barrett. I hope I got them all right so they can continue to "keep up their tails perpendicular and cherish their pride".

SPRING FAIR time is almost here for the valley WI. Continuing last year's plan, they will hold their Village Hall event mid-week in half-term. Books, cakes (of course), plants, craft items, small bric-a-brac and refreshments are all on offer from 10am until midday on Thursday, June 2. It's a very good source of second-hand, verified jig-saw puzzles. Admission is free.

The difference this year is that there will be a Taster Afternoon following, between 2pm and 4pm. There will be cake-making demonstrations, with tasting opportunities and several craft demonstrations to get your interest going on a new hobby. The £1 admission will include tea and biscuits.

Come and experience how the WI reputation is made, but you won't be expected to sing Jerusalem.

SUPER HEROES who want to be considered for the competition for royal positions in the Rose Carnival need to get their acts together from now until half-term. Details of the competition are available from the Burford School office. Those parents who have not delved into the murkier depths of satchels recently may need to face the challenge in case, lying there, there's a piece of crumpled paper with barely legible but relevant information.

BIRTHDAY celebrations for St Mary's church building crammed the church with an estimated 200 people last Sunday.

The service, led by Rosemary Lewis, was interspersed with recollections of the establishment of the church building by Doug Veale, Rev Nick Molony, Eddie Baker and Sue Burke, with lots of tributes to the efforts of past members like Gwynne Watson and Tony Eagles. Then there was a tea party, yes, complete with champagne and birthday cake and a lot of cheery chin-wagging.

This was the day when congregations throughout the land were being counted to estimate the strength of church allegiance.

The statistics would probably have been a bit distorted here, but there was no mistaking the continuing vigour of this particular community church.

TOMORROW night is the Old School Disco at Great Marlow School, Bobmore Lane. You can still get tickets just ring 01628 483752 or email cstag@gms.bucks.sch.uk today.

You can wear your old school uniform (can you?). Or just turn up on the night at 7.30. £10 buys you disco, nibbles, fun and access to a bar and tuck-shop.

TRIMMING of Ragman's Lane must be imminent. Because of the relatively few people who use the lane on foot, it has become something of a nature reserve. At this time of year the only real threat to its flora and fauna, as of other roadsides in the area, is an unsympathetic council which tends to indulge in community tidiness at the wrong time and at levels which are hard to justify on the grounds of road safety.

There was horror expressed by many people at the manner in which Burroughs Grove Hill was attacked earlier in the year. The Residents' Association wrote to the council to complain at this inappropriate treatment and we think the council has agreed to review the timing and degree of its trimming as well as the wholly unsuitable methods it used. Maybe a lesson has been learned.