Postman Simon’s charity Changing the lives of slum children nightride around London School girls raise funds for charity helping children living in poverty in India THE LONDON NIGHTRIDE is an annual charity cycle ride over 50 or 100 km routes starting and finishing at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
This year’s event took place on 10/11 June and I chose to undertake the 100 km route which took me along open roads and many landmarks including Victoria Park, Knightsbridge, Westminster and Big Ben, St Pauls Cathedral and Tower Bridge to name but a few. Travelling down to London in preparation for the Nightride was quick and smooth, curtesy and big thanks to Ivon for the lift. With his experience in navigating his way round the capital, we or should I say he, found the start line in plenty of time and check in ran smoothly with plenty of time to get organised, rest and eat before the start time of 10.30 pm approached. The ride was extremely well organised and other than a few mis-directions and wrong turns it all went well. However, some sights where easy to miss as the night became darker, the mileage increased and the time wore on and the final section on cobbles was a bit sneaky! I finished about 4.30 am and time for a bacon butty and a strong coffee before catching the early train to my pickup at Stanmore and to catch up on sleep! A holiday was beckoning, I could feel the sand and sea already! At present the fundraising stands at approximately £600 but still have more pledges to collect so will update you shortly when the final figure is known. Thank you to everyone who has supported me in raising money for Adapt (All dependent and pre-term babies) it is greatly appreciated.
Simon Moore, Field Head GROBY POST OFFICE Proposed change to Saturday Closing Hours WHILST historically the Post Office was closed on Saturday afternoons, when we took over last year, we have been open until 5.30pm on Saturday. We have noticed that the footfall on Saturday afternoon is low and hence are proposing to close at 2.30pm instead of 5.30pm. We would like to hear your views on the idea and request you to visit the Post Office to let us know. Please note that the proposed change is only for Saturday closing hours. Our trading hours will remain 9am to 5.30pm Monday to Friday and 9am to 2.30pm on Saturday if the proposal is accepted. Thank you all for reading and look forward to discussing this with you on your next visit.
Mrs Ila Mashru, Sub-postmistress Groby Post Office
TWO INSPIRATIONAL young girls have set out to raise £1000 for the Friends of Asha (GB) charity which helps children who are living in the slums of Delhi, India. Evie Stockill (11) of Groby and her mum, Helen, will be travelling to India in October where they will spend time volunteering for the charity. The trip has been coordinated by the Discovery Schools Academy Trust and around 20 people will be making the trip to help Friends of Asha (GB), which is the trust’s chosen charity. Romy Goodman-Saunders (9), of Mountsorrel, planned a charity fete, the second one she has organised in two years, and chose Friends of Asha (GB) as her nominated charity as she wanted to help children living in poverty. Romy hosted the charity fete at her home and, with the help of her friends and family, raised £342 by making and selling cakes, organising children’s games and selling handmade gifts. Helen said: “Evie and I were so
Romy’s fete (l-r): Evie Stockill, Helen Stockill, Katy Saunders, Romy Goodman-Saunders, Jason Saunders, Abigail Rudge pleased that Romy chose the Friends of Asha as her charity, she worked really hard and the money she raised will make a big difference. It’s been amazing to see such young girls working to help others less fortunate than themselves. “Evie and I will be volunteering with the charity which aims to change the lives of the children in the slums by giving them access to healthcare, education and financial services. The word ‘Asha’ means ‘hope’ in Hindi and this is exactly what the charity gives to people. “We hope the money we raise will help to change the lives of the children, and that we raise awareness of the charity.” If you’d like to make a donation and help Evie and Romy reach their target please visit www.justgiving.com/ fundraising/helen-stockill
NEXT ISSUE OUT: Saturday 14th October - Advert/Articles needed by 30th September
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
News from Groby Allotments LIFE has been busy on the allotments this year. On the management side, we are starting to build our plot for disabled gardeners to use, with ultimately, we hope, four raised beds on a level paved area on the Ratby Road site. We applied for a grant from the Co-Op and received a very generous grant of £1500 to help with the cost. We have also had two very willing volunteers hard at work preparing the plot, measuring up etc. It has taken a lot of work, both to raise the money but also to plan • where the raised beds should go • how high they should be • the width between them to cater for a wheelchair user • and where to provide space as a turning circle for a wheelchair. Since the application to the CoOp was prepared, it has been decided that the plot needs to have a potable water supply for disabled use, rather than collected rainwater and so further funding is being sought. Hopefully by next spring, we should see two of the beds in use and we already have two potential users! We also are working on a development plan so that we can schedule in various improvements for all users, as and when our finances allow. There’s more to having an allotment than just planting, weeding and picking For our social gatherings, we have the regular Sunday morning “Open Shed Sundays” at the shed on the Ratby Road site, offering a cup of tea or coffee and bacon butties on the first Sunday of every month between 10am and 12 noon, and chance for a chat or to meet new friends -open to everyone, not just allotment holders, so do come along and join us for our last summer session on October 1st and see what we are about! We also had a day trip out to Ryton Organic Gardens in August. The gardens, about five miles from Coventry, demonstrate all aspects of organic gardening as well as conducting research on various techniques and methods of organic gardening there. We
had an interesting conducted tour around the gardens followed by a delicious lunch (and cake!) at their on-site café, which uses the organic produce from the gardens as well as other locally sourced ingredients. Some of us, (me and my back included!), were very interested in the no-dig method of vegetable growing and the low -maintenance perennial flower gardens. We also learned about minimal watering methods of planting, something which is becoming increasingly important with our current unpredictable weather patterns.
variety and the beauty of these is that they are slug (the bane of many a gardener’s life) and scab resistant and so are well suited to our plots in Groby. Runner beans were late this year but are now producing well, as are the French climbing beans, preferred by some members. The soft fruit has
Growing pains On the vegetable growing front, it has been a mixed year on the allotments. We had a cold start to the year, which slowed the growth of most plants down a lot, and then we had almost a drought situation earlier in the year, so much so that by May, most of us had used up all of the rain water from our water butts , but then just as we were beginning to think we would have no fruit to speak of this year, it began to rain (whoever successfully did the rain dance, they were almost too successful!) and thankfully we were blessed with a bumper harvest of fruit and vegetables] We had a bumper harvest of onions this year. They are named “Globo”, from Kings Seeds, and are an exhibition onion, good for cooking and mild to eat with some good granary bread and a thick slice of Red Leicester cheese (not forgetting a pint of Everards!). We also had a good crop of potatoes this year. They are the “Picasso”
also had a bumper year this year because of the later rains. I’ve had a bumper crop of blueberries this year, a nice crop of strawberries and the autumn raspberries are just ripening to perfection with all this sun and rain. Want an allotment? Our waiting list dropped to zero for a short time this year, which has never been known before but it is now on the mend and we have a healthy list of people wanting allotments again. There is always a steady rotation of members, who for various reasons decide to either give up their plot or to downsize and so for those on the waiting list, the wait should not be too long. If you think you would like to rent an allotment, and wish to add your
name to the waiting list, then please contact John, our chairman. He can be contacted on 0116 2876087. Allotment Security Sadly, we have had several reports of produce being stolen from various plots on the Ratby Road site over the summer. Despite asking all Allotmenteers to look out for suspicious behaviour, things are still being stolen and so we have decided to look at installing CCTV cameras and security lights on the site to catch the culprits and inform the police. Any information about any suspicious behaviour noticed on or around the Ratby Road Allotments will be gratefully received.
Carol Lincoln
I usually meet my girlfriend at 12:59 because I like that one-to-one time.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
GROBY BOOK CLUB GROBY BOOK CLUB resumes after our summer break on Thursday 21st September. Meetings are held in Groby Village Hall on 3rd Thursday of every month. Meetings are held in The Waldrom Room from 2.00pm until 3.30pm with a fee of £2.00 each week for refreshments and cake!. Our book for September is The Help by Kathryn Stockett. This was made into a film a few years back, which I missed but the book is riveting, I can’t put it down and if I don’t finish it soon my garden will be looking like a cotton field. Called by critics as The other side of Gone With The Wind, it’s thought provoking, funny, moving and shocking. Next meeting Thursday October 19th sees a return to our favourite topic, crime, with Case History by Kate Atkinson, the first of the Jackson Brodie series. Thursday November 16th is the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon. Due to Christmas festivities there is no meeting in December and we resume on January 18th with a book by William Boyd. Title to be decided. If any of these books take your fancy please come along and join us whenever you can. Bring along your favourite book and if you have a favourite author, the name can be added to an ever growing list. For more information contact Linda Boyd via email to bookclubgroby@ gmail.com or phone Julia Taylor on 0116 287 1895.
Special service for families who have suffered a bereavement THE GROBY and Ratby Bereavement teams would like to invite any family and friends who have gone through a bereavement this year to join us for special service on Sunday 22nd October at 3.00pm at St Phillip and St James church in Ratby.
Routines bring contentment
YOUR GRANDMOTHER knew this. Regular bedtimes, regular meal-times, and very limited TV, work great when it comes to raising emotionally stable children. Now a recent study at Ohio State’s College of Public Health agrees. It has found that ‘routines for pre-school children are associated with their healthy development’, and that these three routines in particular are linked with ‘better emotional selfregulation. It is a measure of how easily a child becomes frustrated or over-excited.’
I used to be addicted to swimming but I’m very proud to say I’ve been dry for six years.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Sir Thomas White Loan Charity
Recommend a Friend Scheme Open THE SIR Thomas White Loan Charity is delighted to unveil a brandnew Recommend a Friend initiative; an opportunity available to past or current borrowers of the Charity, launched with a view of helping more aspiring business owners make their dreams a reality.
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The concept is simple – if you have a friend that is keen on starting up their own business, put them in touch with The Sir Thomas White Loan Charity. If their application results in the approval of a business loan, we will provide YOU with a voucher worth £100 to spend on whatever you want on Amazon – just as a way of saying thank you for helping us start-up another business in Leicestershire and Rutland. The Sir Thomas White Loan Charity is hosting its next round of interviews with prospective borrowers in November, providing time for those interested in applying for an interest-free business or education loan to get in touch ahead of the October 9 deadline. We provide interest-free loans up to £20,000 to help business start-ups in Leicestershire, in addition to loans of up to £10,000 to support those wishing to study for a post-graduate qualification. Loans are available to people aged over 18 and under 35. For more information, please visit www.stwcharity.co.uk
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My Dad told me to invest my money in bonds. So I bought 100 copies of Goldfinger.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Self-access libraries set for roll-out ‘Smart’ libraries are set to expand across the county, after a successful trial. Self-access technology is due to roll out to 15 libraries across Leicestershire as part of wider plans to save £1.3million. People who’ve registered to take part would use their library card to access the buildings, in order to borrow, return and renew items or use the public computers, wifi and printing and copying facilities. The move could increase opening hours and follows a successful trial at Syston library. Self-access technology makes it more convenient for people who work during the day or on shifts, plus parents who want to take their children to the library on the way to school. During the four-month trial in Syston, opening hours increased by 30 hours a week and a number of people enquired about using the venue for community activities. “We have a good track record in delivering libraries differently. Despite the financial pressures, the roll-out enables us to extend the benefits seen in Syston to thousands of residents,” said Councillor Richard Blunt, cabinet member for communities and wellbeing If the proposal is approved, ‘Smart’ library technology would be rolled out at 15 of the 16 market town libraries: Ashby, Blaby, Birstall, Broughton Astley, Coalville, Earl Shilton, Glenfield, Hinckley, Loughborough, Lutterworth, Melton, Oadby, Shepshed, Syston and Wigston Magna. This would save £230,000.
Enjoy reading Spotlight? If so, please pass it on to a friend or relative. Thanks!
Martinshaw School News From Owen Lawrence
Mystery at Magpie Manor
YEAR 6 SAID goodbye to Martinshaw Primary School in spectacular fashion by staging the musical play 'The Mystery of Magpie Manor', a mysterious cunning flashback to the 1920's. From Agatha Christie to His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, featuring life 'Downstairs and Upstairs' and much more! Ex-Inspector Spectre, actually Percy Pica in disguise, allegedly in charge of security, what could possibly go wrong ? Who stole the Solid Silver Pitcher with the Magpie design? No, it wasn't the butler this time, but the dastardly Inspector Spectre (Percy Pica) of course. A great whodunnit play, with plenty of laughter along with superb solo performances by year 6 students ably assisted by the year 5 ensemble, plus a classic flappers Charleston dance, what more could you ask for in a great night out ?
Learn to drive at 5
THE NEW road layout in the play area of Early Years Foundation Stage, complete with: Road Junctions, Pedestrian Crossings, Traffic Islands, Centre Road Markings and Traffic Lights, is great fun for the youngest students in the school. However, it also teaches rudimentary road craft and traffic awareness, all the skills needed to negotiate our very busy modern road systems and most importantly how to keep safe.
New Kitchen in Year 2
AFTER RAISING funds for the school students' cooking area and kitchen, the Martinshaw School Assoc. (MSA), depending on your age and point of view, have gone one better and provided a very realistic looking 'play', kitchen and barbecue for the year 1 students. This will, of course, give the children a chance to practise their culinary skills before getting stuck in, so to speak, to the real ovens and grills.
Owen Lawrence
I heard a rumour that Cadbury is bringing out an oriental chocolate bar. Could be a Chinese Wispa.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Mark Wilde’s September Watercolour Classes LOCAL ARTIST Mark Wilde has been running art groups in the area for many years and now has spaces available in beginners and intermediate levels.
In the 12 week sessions he will explain and demonstrate the various techniques used in the traditional approach to watercolour painting. Step by step demos and one to one assistance will be features of each course, which is run in a friendly, workshop atmosphere. For more information, please ring Mark on 07757 010982 or email markwilde8@gmail.com.
Letter
Scouts say ‘Thanks’ to UK Gas I WOULD like to express our Scout Group’s thanks to a local business, UKGas on Leicester Road, for recently installing our new gas cooker in the Groby Scout Hut. As a charity, money is always spent very carefully to ensure as much as possible can go towards activities for the young people in the group, in this case UKGas very kindly installed the cooker free of charge for which the volunteers and young people are most appreciative.
John Olynn
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Coalville Furniture Superstore, 79 - 81 Belvoir Road, Coalville LE67 3PH (former Co-op department store) Tel: 01530 833311 Opening hours: Monday to Saturday 9.30am to 5pm, Sunday closed. Car park at rear. I love Snapchat. I could talk about classic card games all day.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
GROBY VILLAGE SOCIETY Forthcoming Events Thursday September 28 Tricks of Light and Colour Bob Massey Thursday October 26 Leicestershire Ladies David Bell Meetings are held at Groby Village Hall Starting at 7.30pm. Except for October which will be at Groby Library Starting at 7.30pm. For Further Details Contact Hon. Secretary Mr. P. Castell Tel. 0116 287 9842 email: groby.villagesociety@ tiscali.co.uk Non Members are Welcome
Cat - and holiday news from Lindy
WE LEFT our ginger kitten Peter home alone for the first time in August. Alone that is, except for our older cat Olaf, but they are not exactly bosom buddies. They ignore each other entirely unless they unexpectedly come face to face – then there is a brief exchange of hisses and spits. I visited Olaf ’s sister Ava in Skipton recently. She had invested the entire house with fleas shortly before I arrived, but my granddaughters reassured me that there were not many still at large. Most sensible people jet off in search of sunshine when they go on holiday. We drove to Belgium in a converted horse box to race motorbikes. It had rained copiously before we arrived, turning the campsite into a quagmire. Then it rained lots more. I huddled in the horse box with the latest Philippa Gregory while David worked on his bike, compared notes with like-minded chaps and drank Belgian beer. I only ventured out to wade through the Ardennes mud to the portaloos. By day three I had trench foot. At the end of the week our vehicle had to be towed out of the swamp by tractor. Bizarrely, one of our fellow campers was playing a George Formby CD at full blast as we left. Twenty tracks, one tune, one innuendo. A kind neighbour agreed to visit the cats twice a day in our absence to feed them. My daughter and family also called in a couple of times in transit to and from the south coast, so I knew Peter would get some of the attention he craves. He really is the most affectionate creature. He follows us around the house purring loudly and takes an intelligent interest in David’s bikes and my beloved back garden. At eight months old he is bigger than Olaf, eating for England and looking increasingly like a tiger cub. We may have been mis-sold.
Lindy Hardcastle
Wheelbarrow Race raises £220 for LOROS CONGRATULATIONS to the Bradgate Rotary Club on raising more than £220 pounds for LOROS at their 20th August wheelbarrow race which was staged on the closed Markfield Road in Groby. The event (a first for Groby) attracted 52 competitors who all safely completed the course.
Ted Hollick and Martin Cartwright
Talking about the Ch****mas Word WE ARE mentioning it quietly this early in the year but we want you all to know about our ‘Bygone Christmas’ Fair in the afternoon of Saturday the 9th December at Groby Village Hall.
We are planning to have a great selection of food and craft stalls along with games and fun activities for all the family. We would welcome any enquiries from stall holders to take part in our event. We would also welcome any kind offers of help and support to help us run the fair (assisting with set up , manning the stalls and games or any original offers of activities we can put on as part of the fair). It is all in a good cause for the local charity groups we are supporting this year (The Shuttleworth Clarke Foundation and The Joe Humphries Trust). Please put the dates in you diary!! Santa has already got it in his!! Please get in touch with Jane on 07876 561954 for any further information/Stall holder applications/help and support offers.
Hey, if anyone knows how to fix some broken hinges, my door’s always open.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Arriva says passengers have to stand on “odd occasions only”
The NEED to be beautiful
Norman Griffiths asks the company to comment A READER has complained about the Saturday bus service following the changes introduced in February which reduced the number of buses on the Leicester Road routes from five an hour to three an hour. “Are Arriva aware that it is often standing room only on Saturday morning 29 & 29A bus services between Groby and Leicester?” he asks. “Should Arriva consider reinstating the 20 minute frequency on Saturdays?” He added that he understands that it is difficult getting on the early morning buses out of Leicester at the time of the buses for the Amazon shift, despite there being a double decker on the service. As the reader did not specifically refer to the 40% reduction in the Saturday service resulting from the withdrawal of the 28 and 29X services a spokesperson for Arriva declined to comment on this issue, but said that he had reviewed cumulative passenger boardings on a journey-by-journey basis for every Saturday since the network change. “Although there are some odd occasions where the total number of passengers using a specific journey is greater than the seated capacity of the vehicles there is no discernible pattern; indeed there have been no such journeys in the past five weeks. I should also highlight that it is cumulative boardings I have assessed, which assume that nobody gets off the bus between Coalville and Leicester – a worst-case scenario we know not to be realistic.” He disagrees with the comment that “it is often standing room only on Saturday morning” and says the level of service provided is one that is appropriate to customer demand and financially viable. He will, however, arrange for Arriva Inspectors to survey journeys through Groby and “undertake manual passenger counts to reconcile against the data we hold to ensure there are no anomalies, and also to investigate why customers might be standing if there are seats available.” With regards to the observation concerning the early morning service that serves the Amazon warehouse shifts the spokesperson said “the journey that is timed for the Amazon shift workers uses a double-decker and departs Leicester for Coalville at 0632 in the mornings. This journey has been provided specifically to meet the needs of staff at Amazon and was introduced in February this year. We are aware that this journey is extremely busy and we are working with Amazon to provide additional capacity as their staffing levels continue to grow. I can only apologise if residents of Groby are finding it difficult to board this journey for travel to Coalville early in the morning, but as the journey did not exist prior to February I would hope that readers do not feel they are being unduly disadvantaged. “Should readers require any further information please contact Arriva on 0344 800 4411.”
BEWARE AN unintended effect of Instagram. In recent research, it scored the highest of all social networks for its negative impact on teenagers’ mental health. The reason is that Instagram and other photo-sharing sites such as Snapchat are very imagefocussed platforms. These can often drive feelings of inadequacy and anxiety in teenagers, who are already uneasy with how their body image affects their popularity. The Royal Society for Public Health warns of ‘social media psychosis’, where sufferers can become disconnected from reality because of totally unrealistic expectations for their looks, wealth and social life, driven by social media. On the plus side of things, YouTube is the social network with the most positive impact on teenagers, because it helps users to become more aware of other people’s health experiences, and helps them build an identity and feel part of a community.
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I’m selling all my fishing equipment but I can’t figure out what is the net worth.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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County Councillor’s Report from Ozzy Road closure - Groby Lane, Newtown Linford Leicestershire County Council Highways has agreed to a Temporary Traffic Regulation Order at the above location. Groby Lane will be closed on 18th September 2017 for 1 day (08:30 hours till 16:30 hours). The road will be closed between Main Street, Newtown Linford and the A50 Markfield Road (Groby). The Temporary Traffic Regulation Order will be implemented for public safety to allow Milestone Communications Ltd undertake works to install a new pole on behalf of 02. During the restricted period, the alternative diversion route will be via:- Ratby Road (Groby): Groby Road (Ratby): Markfield Road (Ratby): Ratby Lane (Markfield): Launde Road (Markfield): Markfield Lane (Field Head): Markfield Lane (Newtown Linford): Main Street (Newtown Linford) and vice versa. Leicestershire County Council apologises for any inconvenience caused during these works.
Apple ID Scam - Please Be Aware Please be aware of the following email circulating trying to obtain your personal details, Don’t be fooled! You received this message because this email is listed as the Apple ID. If this is not your Apple ID, you can change it on account setting. Someone tried to login to you Apple ID. We stopped this login attempt, but we take additional action that we locked your account for security reason. Please signin and complete security step to recover your account.
Details Date & Time : Sunday, August 06, 2017 7:45 PM (GMT) Location : Madrid, Spain Operating System : Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server release 5.6 (Tikanga) For Additional information If you believe an someone has accessed your account, you can use the link below to return to your previous security settings
East Midlands Rail Franchise Consultation The Department of Transport are seeking your views on the future of the East Midlands rail franchise to ensure the new franchise delivers the best railway for: • passengers • communities • businesses The purpose of this consultation is to: • explain the planned process and timescales for awarding the rail franchise • provide information about the current franchise services and our aims for the new franchise • seek your views on all aspects of the rail service so we can ensure the new franchise delivers the best possible railway for passengers, communities and business • below is a link to the Department for Transport website. https://www.gov.uk/government/ consultations/future-of-eastmidlands-rail-franchise
Public consultation events. Leicester Thursday 21st September 2017 at the African Caribbean Centre, Maidstone Road,
LeicesterLE2 0UE
Sexual Health Services Consultation Sexual health services are currently jointly commissioned by Leicester City, Leicestershire County and Rutland County Councils. These contracts end on 31 December 2018. As a result, sexual health services need to be re-procured across all three local authorities. As part of this, we need to determine what the new services should offer so that they meet the needs of the people who use them. This consultation is about ‘integrated sexual health services’. This includes contraceptive services and prevention, testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections. These services can be used by people no matter where they live. It does not include the HIV treatment and care services that are provided by University Hospitals of Leicester. Why We Are Consulting The contract for our current sexual health services for Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland ends next year and so we would like your views to help determine what the new services should offer and how they will work. In addition we also want to highlight future sexual health services available in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland and how people will be able to access them. We need to understand how people might be affected by any proposed changes to how we run our sexual health services. This is why we are asking members of the public,
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services users, staff and partner organisations to comment on the proposed changes. The proposed changes will be described in more detail in each section of this consultation. A summary of the proposed changes is also available on the first summary page of the questionnaire. The consultation continues until Monday, 16 October To view the consultation, visit: https://consultations.leicester.gov. uk/communications/sexual-healthservices-review/ I would like to thank residents and councillors for your continued support. Should you need my help or advice on any matter or issue, I pride myself on always making myself available to residents and councillors and getting straight back to you. Remember I am only a phone call or email away. Kind Regards
Ozzy O’shea Working for you Cllr Ozzy O’shea Tel 0116 2394336 or 07808585825 Email: ozzyoshea@hotmail.com
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Groby Surgery Patients’ Group Newsletter
Never contracted flu? Lucky you
If you’re eligible get the free jab in October and stay lucky ANYONE who has suffered from influenza will tell you what an unpleasant infection it is even for those who are young or normally healthy.
nurse specialists on all aspects of living with cancer, drop in sessions on taking care of both your physical and your mental health, advice on welfare and benefits as well as a chance to get a makeover from WLCCG partners at Boots. Macmillan will have an information centre there, as well as offering advice and support on the cervical, breast and bowel cancer screening process. Simply go along for as long as you wish, at any point during the afternoon. If you can’t make this event, there will be further events across West Leicestershire in 2018.
For the elderly, or those with certain conditions, it can mean more than just a few unpleasant days, so it’s sensible to take the precaution of the free vaccination if you are eligible. The flu vaccine will be available free on the NHS to those 65 or over on 31st March 2018, adults over the age of 18 at risk and children aged six months to two years at risk. There will be special sessions at Groby Surgery on September 29th and October 7th or, if this is not convenient, by arranging to see the nurse at a later date. Both patients and surgery benefit from the flu jab programme, so by attending one of the clinics you will be supporting Groby Surgery. The dates for your diary are September 29th between 8.30 – 12.30pm if you want to ring and pre-book an appointment, or October 7th if you want the flexibility of dropping in anytime between 8.30am and 13.00pm. If you are ringing to book an appointment please telephone after 11.00am. If you are over 65 and have never had the pneumococcal vaccination ask about this as well, as it is also free. When attending for vaccination try and wear something that gives easy access to your upper arm.
Getting help with health costs
PATIENTS will have a Summary Care Record (SCR) unless they have chosen not to have one.
As you would expect the system has to be secure and confidential, so it will be no surprise to hear that you need a user name and password to do this. Just have a word with reception if you want to sign up for online services. Even if you still want to drop a repeat request in at the surgery you can still have the prescription sent electronically to a pharmacy that you use regularly to collect your medication.
Enhanced Summary Care record
The SCR includes important information about medicines being taken, allergies and any bad reactions to medicines. It’s all very useful but there are circumstances where having more information available could improve the care you receive. Sometimes you may need to be treated by health and care professionals who do not know your medical history. Essential details can be difficult to remember when you are unwell or have complex care needs, but there is another option available. You are entitled to ask for an Enhanced Summary Care record which can hold more information about illnesses and health problems, operations and vaccinations, who should be contacted for more information about you, what support you might need and how or where you would prefer to receive care.All patients are being recommended to ask for a form at the surgery and to sign up.
Cancer : Helping you to take control
ARE YOU or a loved one battling against cancer? Building on a successful event earlier this year, the West Leicestershire Clinical Commissioning Group(WLCCG) is holding another drop-in afternoon especially for people who have been diagnosed with cancer, the carers who are helping them live with the diagnosis, those who have survived cancer and those who support them. In conjunction with Macmillan Cancer Support, the event will be on Wednesday 4 November 2015 from 1pm to 5pm, and lunch will be provided. The location is Sketchley Grange Hotel & Spa, Sketchley Lane, Burbage, Hinckley LE10 3HU. At the event you will be able to get private, personal advice from clinical
ALTHOUGH most NHS treatment is free, there are still some costs you might need to pay, for example, to get your prescriptions or to travel to your hospital appointment, costs associated with eye or dental care, or wigs and fabric support costs. There is detailed information about what assistance is available and to help you decide whether you qualify, too much to include in an article. There’s lots of information online at www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/nhs-help-health-costs and also a blue booklet you can pick up from the leaflet rack in the surgery waiting room.
Don’t forget online services
IF YOU have access to a computer or other device that can connect with the internet don’t forget that you can book appointments or ask for repeat prescriptions from home.
Taking the first steps to a healthier lifestyle
A NATIONWIDE campaign encouraging adults to get more active by building just 10 minutes of brisk walking into their daily lives is being backed by Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council. The One You campaign is encouraging adults to start improving their health by walking briskly for 10 minutes each day and to help, people are being encouraged to download the ‘Active 10’ app. This free app shows how much brisk walking they’re doing, when they can increase their pace and how they can fit more brisk walking into their day. It also sets goals and provides hints and tips to keep people going, and has been endorsed by the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP). Over 50,000 people have already downloaded the app, which can be found by searching ‘Active 10’ online. Chirag Ruda, the Borough Council’s Health Improvement Officer, said: “I would encourage people to take the first steps towards a healthier lifestyle by downloading this app. Over time, brisk walking can help to lower the risk of serious illnesses like heart disease and type 2 diabetes.” For more information contact Chirag on 01455 255913 or email chirag. ruda@hinckley-bosworth.gov.uk.
Norman Griffiths for Groby Surgery Patients Particpation Group
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
National Trust Leicester Association AT THE BEGINNING of September the National Trust opened a new property to the public. “The Firs” in Lower Broadheath near Worcester was the birthplace of Sir Edward Elgar, arguably England’s greatest composer. He was born in 1857 and died in 1934. Elgar personally requested that his birthplace should be the site at which his music is remembered and since 1935 the Edward Elgar Trust has operated the building as a museum and education centre in memory of the composer. His most famous compositions are probably the Pomp and Circumstance Marches and the Enigma Variations. Unfortunately the Elgar Trust has been operating at a considerable loss in recent years and the property was in danger of being lost to the nation. The National Trust therefore agreed to lease the property for five years with a view to making it a viable location again that will be accessible to everyone for years to come. The property, always referred to as a humble cottage, contains four rooms both downstairs and upstairs in addition to the usual amenities and outbuildings. There is also a large garden and a separate visitor centre. Over the past few months the National Trust has carried out conservation work to the cottage and rejuvenated the contents and exhibits. There has also been extensive development work to the visitor centre including the addition of a new tea room and essential work to the beautiful garden. “The Firs” is open Friday to Monday, 10.00am to 5.00pm, every week until 23rd December. • THE NT LEICESTER ASSOCIATION has an afternoon meeting on Wednesday 27th September when Caroline Roberts will present a talk entitled “Murder Most Foul”. The meeting will be held at St Guthlac’s Memorial Hall, Holbrook Road, Leicester at 2.30pm. There will also be an evening meeting on Tuesday 10th October at The Braunstone West Social Centre, St Mary’s Avenue, Braunstone at 7.30pm. Roy Mitchell (NT) will present an illustrated talk entitled “Conservation at Stoneywell Cottage” Admission to both meetings is NTLA members £2.50, visitors £4.00, including refreshments. For details of the NT Leicester Association and its Talks Service for other organisations please call 0116 2229133.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
News from Elizabeth Woodville Primary School AFTER AN enjoyable and relaxing summer holiday, pupils have had a fantastic start to the autumn term already, settling quickly back into school life. Look at everything they have been doing in just the first week of the school year!
New-look Foundation Stage - interactive learning environment in action
to use their impressive scientific knowledge to classify the rocks that they had collected outside, deciding if they were igneous, sedimentary or metamorphic. Year 3 have been looking at different artists and how they create their art. The children looked at pointillism, layering and pop art and they picked which one they wanted to recreate. We have had a fantastic first week back at school!
Artistic Teamwork
It’s a doubly exciting time for our newest pupils, not only are they starting at Elizabeth Woodville for the first time, but they are also the first class to explore our new interactive learning environment, which was fitted during the summer. Pupils particularly enjoyed exploring the new resources and dedicated early years learning zones. One of the highlights was designing and creating a picture for the front cover of their learning journey, selecting from an incredible variety of resources and colours. In our outdoor environment, everyone was delighted to explore and develop their problem solving and creative ideas through large water play and den building. We also mustn’t forget those delicious mud-cakes produced in our new mud kitchen from the most nutritious soil - very tasty!
What a start it has been to life in the upper juniors! During our first week, we have been focusing on teamwork through art lessons where, our new Year 5 and 6 children collaborated together to create artistic masterpieces. In Year 5, each child contributed their own wooden square to create a bright, colourful and unique piece of art. During a science lesson, our children took part in a marble run space rollercoaster challenge. The children had a series of timed tasks to complete and had to work together to ensure that ‘Teamwork made the dreamwork!’
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Amazing summer holiday activities! Our Year 1 and 2 classes have settled extremely well back into school life. They have written all about their school holidays and the fun times they had as well as showing excellent IT skills by making a bar chart to show all the activities that the children did during their Sumer break. They have enjoyed learning all about the parts of the body and enjoyed a great game of ‘Body Bingo!’ Mrs Taylor has been very impressed with the children’s drawing skills, to begin their new unit of writing about Setting Descriptions. They have also been learning all about the patterns in numbers up to 100. All this in just 3 days!
Watch out for tremors! This term the curriculum theme for Year 3 and 4 is called tremors. Year 4 started off by investigated rocks and soils. They enjoyed a rock hunt around the school grounds, examining rocks that are natural and man-made. On their return to the classroom, pupils carefully drew the rocks they had collected, including every detail they could see. Pupils were able
Don’t forget to send us your news! Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
A weekend of fun at Newtown Linford Scarecrow Festival
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Come and Sing
Songs of the Spirit
THE POPULAR Newtown Linford Scarecrow Festival will be taking place this year on 23rd and 24th September 2017. During that weekend, the village will come to life, showcasing an array of scarecrows as well as activities such as the school fete, Morris dancing, village hall activities and amazing stalls selling wonderful gifts. The village will be buzzing with people, so why not take the opportunity to enjoy a stroll in beautiful Newtown Linford and go for a walk through some enchanting English countryside. The scarecrows are on display all Saturday and Sunday, programmes will be available at £1 each to guide you through the village providing further details on the various scarecrows. This year we are pleased to announce that all proceeds will go to Newtown Linford Primary School. The scarecrows are judged and prizes are awarded at the end of the festival on Sunday at 4pm in the village hall. The public is invited to vote for their favourite scarecrow and the programme will include the voting form. We would love you to get involved in the judging of the ‘People’s Choice’. The weekend is packed with activities, including: SATURDAY 23RD SEPTEMBER 2017 • Newtown Linford Primary School Fete with various stalls, activates, BBQ, ice cream and refreshments – From 11pm onwards
Bell ringing at All Saints’ Church – From 2pm onwards • Judging of scarecrows SUNDAY 24TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • All Saints’ Church Harvest Festival & Luncheon – From 10.30pm onwards, lunch at 12:30pm • At the Village Hall – From 12pm onwards • Variety of amazing stalls • Teas, coffees, cakes and refreshments • Caroline and Claire’s Preschool activities • Scarecrow Prize Giving – At 4pm • Morris Dancing outside The Linford – From 1.30pm onwards • Bell ringing at All Saints’ church – From 2pm onwards If you would like to have a stall on the Sunday, or show your support by adverting in the Scarecrow Festival programme, please get in touch. If you just need more information about the event or a scarecrow application form please contact Jonny Appleton at info@newtownlinfordscarecrow. co.uk. Don’t forget you can find us on Facebook, just search for Newtown Linford Scarecrow Festival. We look forward to seeing you. •
Sunday 17th Sept 3.30-5.15pm Groby Village Hall
Songs from around the world that make your heart 'sing' Songs of joy, liberation and peace with Christian roots Come and add your voice to the harmonies, no singing experience necessary All ages are welcome although we ask that parents help us maintain a peaceful atmosphere. Led by local professional musician No booking required. £2.00 donation at the door. Tea and cake included.
for more information contact Karen 07739 555015
BRAINTEASER:
A man and a woman live peacefully in a house together. But one day the woman shoots her husband. Then she holds him under water for over five minutes. Finally, she hangs him, but ten minutes later they go out and enjoy a wonderful dinner. How can this be? ANSWER ON PAGE 28 ...>
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Groby Gardening Society News Our Three-Day Trip WEDNESDAY the 26th July dawned with great potential. The early morning skies promised another good summer’s day. Alas, by 9.00 grey clouds started to precipitate steady rain. Members, who were embarking on our latest 3 day trip, were torn between thankfulness for much needed rain and the feeling that perhaps it ought to have waited for a couple more days! The British bullog spirit was to be tested and, typically, all on the coach accepted what the English weather could throw at us with calm, dignified resignation. Our first stop was a visit to Normanby Hall north of Lincoln. Initially, the rain drove most to seek sanctuary in the café, but soon people were drifting towards the lovely stately house. A warm welcome from the greeter and an interesting tour of this house was enjoyed. The extensive grounds of parkland and many mature trees was impressive and the walled garden and farming museum were the source of much pleasure. The museum especially was wellconstructed and was full of interest to so many as, given the ages of our members, lots of the specimens and instructive notices revived happy memories. The journey to the hotel was brief, but interesting, as we used the Humber bridge from which good, distant views of Hull were possible. After registering and relaxing, a very good dinner was served in a private dining area. Although, this was not before some of the more intrepid had tried out the pool, jacuzzi or gymnasium. A plentiful breakfast started us off on our visit to Harlow Carr. This is the most northerly of the R.H.S. gardens and is a superb place to marvel at wonderful, professionally maintained gardens. A look at their web site is recommended as its attributes are too numerous to detail here. The day was showery, but plenty of shelters were available including the famous Betty’s tea room, a comprehensive plant centre and a well-stocked shop. The second day’s dinner was well-earned and enjoyed after which many used the hotel’s well-appointed bar area to spend the evening and socialise with other members. A more leisurely start to our last day allowed our swimmers to enjoy their last dip, after which another
40th Anniversary of Groby Gardening Society A CELEBRATORY lunch has been organised for 5th December and is to be held at The Bull’s Head, Woodhouse Eaves at 1.00. Members who are attending are reminded that their confirmation of attendance (£10 p.p.non-returnable deposit or the full price (£28 p.p.) is needed by our October meeting along with menu options). The lunch is arranged for 1.00 p.m. and a free(!) coach will depart from the Village Hall at 12.15)
The Village Show terrific breakfast set us all up for a few hours in The City of Culture: Hull. Some had retail therapy at the top of their todo list, whilst others visited museums, the famous aquarium (The Deep) or simply enjoyed the sights of this lovely city. The architecture of some of the main buildings was magnificent and the renovated docklands and marina were well worth a visit. Some members chose the wonderful art gallery, complete with a rather special section picked out for special praise by some! Sadly, all good things have to end and as we set off for home, a heavy, persistent rain set in and accompanied us all the way back to Groby.
A Talk About Bats ON THE EVENING of 10th August we welcomed Ann Greaves from The Leicestershire & Rutland Bat Group. Ann gave an interesting, informative and illustrated talk about bats. We learned that there are about 100 species of bats worldwide, although only 17 are found in the U.K. Bats belong to the order Chiroptera and are the only true flying mammals. The latin name, chiroptera, refers to their wings which are modified hands. Within the skeletal structure of their wings can be found fingers and thumbs. The webbing between these digits form the wings. In the U.K., we only have microbats, although another group, the megabats, are more physically impressive. The largest can have a wing span of 2 metres. The U.K. species are all insectiverous and rely upon flight-line features of the environment to navigate. Hedgerows and lines of trees linking roosting places
to feeding areas are vital. Their superb echo-location abilities are well-known and each species operates its unique frequency sonar system. We had a bat detector demonstrated and heard how the inaudible sounds emitted by the bats could be changed to audible signals of varying pitch, depending upon the bat species being recorded. In autumn, bats mate and exhibit a phenomenon called “swarming”. This is when bats from several colonies gather in a swirling swarm to mate. It is thought that this enlarges the gene pool which may not happen if isolated groups breed. The females store the sperm until the spring, when they become pregnant. Usually, babies are born in June or July and females usually only have one young. Bats have suffered an alarming decline in numbers over recent years and gardeners can help by having a wide range of flowers, especially nightscented ones, as these attract moths upon which bats prey. Good news for the less than pristine gardener is their liking for nettles and dandelions. What should you do if you find a grounded bat? Put it in a box with some soft cloth for it to hide in, give it water and ring the National Bat Helpline ( 03451300228). The highlight of the evening was Ann’s production of a live pipistrelle bat for all to see. Its extremely small size and its furry appearance brought much admiration and descriptions such as “cute” were commonly heard. Finally, bats do not get tangled in hair, their navigation system is too good for that, and if handling them, a pair of gloves is needed, in case they give a little nip.
When a guy says he’s fine what he really means is he’s fine.
AGAIN, the show proved a popular and successful event. More details, including the prize winners will appear in the next Spotlight edition, but help of numerous members to set up and take down the show was appreciated. They certainly showed that the old saying “Many hands make light work” was true! Jane Marston, our Show secretary, says “I would like to thank all the many helpers who made the show such an enjoyable and successful event. Without this help, there would have been no show”.
Reminder! MEMBERS may recall that our October meeting (12th) includes our annual “Plant and Seed Swap”. Hopefully, they will be dividing perennials and collecting seeds for this event.
Future Meetings •
September 14th: “Orchids in your home” by Keith Bates • October 12th: “Gardening the other side of the pond” • November 9th: “Tulip Time”by John Gibson IF YOU LIKE the sound of what we get up to, why not come along to a meeting and try us out. You will be most welcome. Our monthly meetings are held at 7.30pm on the second Thursday of the month in the United Reformed Church rooms on Chapel Hill. Details about membership and the events programme can be obtained from Eric Atherton. (Tel. No. 01162876637) or E mail e.atherton637@btinternet.com
Alvar Johnson
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
17
Groby Street Fair needs your help
One in a hundred is all that’s needed Norman Griffiths hears that’s all it needs to run the Street Fair WHEN YOU put it like that you wonder why organisations across the village are always saying how difficult it is to recruit volunteers to run their good causes. For the Groby Street Fair, which can average about 2000 visitors, if only one in a hundred of them volunteered to help provide a core of 20 people on the day it would ensure everything runs smoothly. More would be better, as a proportion of volunteers drop out at the last minute, even though they may have only been scheduled to be on duty for an hour. Like everyone else the lives of volunteers are unpredictable and some can’t make it on the day. But for some the weather is also a factor which leads to cancellation. To the outsider this may not seem critical, but for the 2016 Christmas Fayre this resulted in insufficient numbers to collect the modest admission fee and badly needed income was not collected. The £1 admission, along with the pitch rents, forms the core of the Street Fair income. The bills still have to be paid and the shortfall left a hole in the financial reserves which has a knock on effect on the finances of the Fair. Some may say that there should not be such dependence on a variable like gate admissions, and if you think this and have an idea for a different business model for the Fair the organisers would be very glad to have your input. In fact the Fair needs an injection of new blood, so to speak. The organising Committee has changed little since the first Street Fair in 2011. Although there are some younger members what has changed is that the core group of enthusiastic seventy-somethings have aged are now eighty-somethings who need to hand the reins on to a new committee. “After a summer without a Street Fair I’m keen to see it return in 2018,” said Chair Christine Sturgess-Smith. “But neither I, nor the village, can reasonably expect those who conceived and so professionally executed this annual event to carry the responsibility any longer.” Read between the lines and she’s saying that without a new committee the Street Fair could become another piece of Groby’s history. Roles such as Treasurer, Secretary, Bookings Manager and Entertainment Co-ordinator will need to be filled and a meeting has been arranged for Tuesday 26th September for anyone who wants to ensure the continuation of the Street Fair to find out more. So if you think that you can ride to the rescue of this popular event, attended by an estimated 25% of villagers, put the time and place in your diary : 10.00am at 1 Old Hall Barns on Tuesday 26th September. You’ll be given a warm welcome. If you would like to know more but can’t make the meeting, you can ring 07866 123 151 or email grobystreetfair@virginmedia.com
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
The reason why you have a peculiar walk DO YOU have a silly walk? Almost certainly yes, if you walk and use your smartphone at the same time. It seems that when we text, phone, or scroll through our contacts, we adopt a cautious and exaggerated stepping strategy, in order to try and avoid tripping over hazards which we no longer see. Researchers from Anglia Rushkin University have found that this involves us lifting our lead foot up to 18 per cent higher and 40 per cent slower over any obstacle, which does look very silly indeed. But it is probably sensible, as when we text-walk we reduce our look-out for obstacles by up to 61 per cent. Text-walkers have become such a problem on the Continent that in cities such as Antwerp, Belgium, special ‘text-walkinglanes’ have been brought in, so that textwalkers do not irritate or endanger other pedestrians. A number of European countries have also started to put fixed warnings on the ground, to alert text-walking pedestrians that there is a road or tram track right in front of them….
Speedwatch still needs volunteers Norman Griffiths hears that more help is needed IF THERE’S one way to ensure that things don’t get done it’s to assume that there will be no shortage of offers of help with a good cause and so there’s no need to volunteer. Speedwatch is a good example. Most people agree that there are a small minority of drivers who drive too fast through the village and they would prefer that they drove more slowly. Enforcement of speed limits locally might be described by some as non-existent and this is unlikely to change. Speedwatch is one way that villagers can encourage drivers to have regards to the speed limit. The owners of cars that are travelling too fast receive a letter from the police reminding them of the penalties and the risks to themselves and other road users. Not everyone agrees that this project is worthwhile, or that residents should be participating in this way, but the majority may feel that if there are a group of villagers prepared to • work to an approved code of practice, • under the supervision of the police and County Council, • to encourage drivers to slow down, it’s a good thing. Those who think this may assume there will be no problem in putting together a team of at least six people who are prepared to get involved. But it’s this assumption that can result in nothing being done. Although Speedwatch is active in communities across the country, and some Groby residents have come forward as volunteers, there are still not enough to form a viable team. So if you’ve thought about it, decided that you approve of the scheme, and then decided that you don’t need to volunteer as there will probably be a queue of others waiting to join Speedwatch, think again. If more volunteers don’t come forward the scheme cannot go ahead. Most people who support the scheme won’t want to participate perhaps because they have too many other commitments or simply because they don’t want to be in a Speedwatch team either doing the monitoring or the paperwork. That’s completely understandable and is the position of most residents. If too many offered to help that would create its own problems. But if you feel strongly about this issue and decide you want to be involved just email your name and contact details to parishclerk@groby.com. If you don’t have internet access you can register with the Parish Clerk at the Village Hall or ring 0116 287 6985. With the hours of daylight getting shorter there will be no speed monitoring until the Spring of 2018, and there will be no ongoing weekly commitment as the equipment will not be on permanent loan as it is shared with other villages.
My dog and I both freak out whenever the doorbell rings but we run in opposite directions.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Letter from Uncle Eustace
On the perils of trainers, high heels and soft shoes in church The Rectory St. James the Least My dear Nephew Darren
H
AVING informed you of why clergy must always wear black shoes in church, my belief is that all those who hold any office in church should be similarly dressed. Altar servers have the tendency to arrive wearing what I am informed are called trainers. Were they black it would be tolerable, but they seem to be without exception either brilliant white or luminous pink. When they arrive so attired I insist they remove them and serve in the sanctuary in their socks. Since our church floor is several degrees colder than permafrost, it normally takes them the rest of the morning with their feet in a bucket of hot water before circulation returns. They do not make that mistake a second time. The rule applies to members of
the choir also; my only concession is that ladies are allowed to wear shoes with heels. But that can present its own hazards. Miss Threlfall recently appeared in heels that, by chance, were the exact size and shape of the holes in our beautiful Victorian heating gratings in the nave floor. During the procession at the start of the Service, her heel wedged in one. She is a lady of some determination and refused to stop, thereby holding up the procession and letting the congregation know something was amiss. So she proceeded, now with a twelve inch square cast iron grid firmly attached to her foot. As she gallantly clanked up the aisle, rocking slightly since one leg was now several stones heavier, one of our basses, completely innocent of what had happened, stepped into thin air. Half of his body disappeared vertically downwards as the other half proceeded in a horizontal easterly direction, scattering tenors like skittles. I continue to visit him in hospital.
Our organist arrives wearing black shoes, but once hidden in the organ loft, removes them and plays the organ in soft shoes. Or he did; these days he never removes his shoes at all. At Evensong on Sundays, my dog comes with me to swell the congregation and wanders round the church benignly as the Service progresses. After one Service, our organist came to retrieve his shoes only to find them missing. Their absence was inexplicable - until two weeks later when I found them buried in the Rectory rose garden. Churchwardens, of course, know the rules for correct footwear - that is why they have been elected to serve in such a distinguished office - although I do feel that Admiral Hopkinson’s practice of wearing white spats on top of his shoes when the bishop is here, a little excessive - even rather flash. Maintaining this dress policy once you have your own church, will be maintaining the true faith. Your loving uncle,
Eustace
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Preserve it with a photo
DO YOU struggle with clutter? Many of us have so much STUFF in our homes. But the stuff reminds us of various events in our lives, and brings back precious memories that we can’t bear to lose. So, what do we do? One solution may be to take some photographs of those possessions, and then declutter a bit. That idea came out of recent extensive research at Pennsylvania State University. As one researcher explained: ‘What people really don’t want to give up are the memories associated with the item. We found that people are more willing to give up these possessions if they have a way of keeping the memory and the identity associated with that memory.’
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
News from Lady Jane Grey School Headteacher’s Welcome
PO Box 8, Markfield, Leics. LE67 9ZT
By the time you read this, we will have already started our new term at Lady Jane Grey. We will have welcomed our Foundation class of 30 children into the school and hope they are enjoying their new adventure. The school has undergone significant changes over the Summer holidays. The old Year 3 classroom has been split into two, to provide a new office – for Miss Boaden, Mr Caldwell and Mrs Marriot - and a separate Intervention room. Miss Boaden’s old office is now a second Intervention room. In addition, the library has been re-organised by Mrs Lyons and has seen the addition of lots of new books for the children to read and enjoy. The library will be available to the children throughout the day, and at lunchtimes. It looks really good! We are pleased to announce that Deb Coupland has been appointed as Office Administrator. Deb is well known to our school community through her work as a Teaching Assistant and through her voluntary role supporting the H.S.A. Welcome Deb!
New Topics As part of our exciting curriculum, the first topics our children will be enjoying are: Foundation - All About Me Year 1 – Superheroes Year 2 – Muck, Mess and Mixtures Year 3 – Gods and Mortals Year 4 – I am Warrior Year 5 – Peasants and Pestilence Year 6 – A Child’s War I look forward to reporting back to you next month about how these topics are progressing!
Upcoming Key dates Monday 18th September - 6.30pm Pioneer Parents Evening Monday 25th September - Individual & sibling school photos Monday 25th September - 6.30pm PGL Parents Evening Saturday 30th September - Cross Country team Cross Country event at Prestwold Hall (as arranged with Mr Heaney) Tuesday 3rd October - Fitness in Schools (FINS) Friday 13th October - Break up for October Half Term
Groby & Field Head Spotlight Telephone
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After school clubs From September, our after school clubs will be run through Schulz Coaching and Stay & Play. A lot of parents/carers may already know Schulz Coaching through their football academies. Schulz Coaching have been delivering Sports Coaching in Primary Schools since 2005 and have a fantastic reputation of delivering outstanding sporting sessions to children. Stay and Play have been at LJG for nearly two years and will be delivering non-sport related clubs i.e. craft, cooking, IT etc. There will be two sports clubs ran by Schulz Coaching and one club ran by Stay & Play each day, Monday to Friday. Clubs will start week commencing Monday 11th September 2017. There will be a nominal charge of £4 per child per club attended.
Price Increases With immediate effect, the following prices will apply: • School dinners - £2.30 per meal • Breakfast Club - £3.50 without breakfast, £4 with breakfast
H.S.A (Home School Association) News The H.S.A need your support! Volunteers and organisers of events are desperately needed to ensure that extra revenue comes into the school for the benefit of all the children of LJG. If you feel you can give up a few hours of your time, please email dcoupland@ljg.academy. The first H.S.A event will be a Fund raising week from 23rd to 27th October. Details will follow shortly. Watch this space for the rest of the H.S.A. calendar of exciting events.
Visit the website at www.grobyspotlight.co.uk 3,500 copies distributed 11 times a year (no issue in July) to homes and businesses in Groby, Field Head and The Brantings. Compiled and published in the Parish of Groby & Field Head. Printed in Ellistown by Norwood Press. The Spotlight is a monthly compilation of articles, press releases, events, general items of interest and news items submitted to us by local residents, groups, associations, sports clubs and local authorities. The opinions expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the Spotlight Production Team. The inclusion of any group or organisation in this publication does not necessarily imply a recommendation of its aims, methods or policies. Groby & Field Head Spotlight cannot be held responsible for the information disclosed by advertisements, all of which are accepted in good faith. Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of information in this magazine, but no liability can be accepted for loss or inconvenience caused as a result of error or omission. Groby & Field Head Spotlight reserves the right to amend, shorten or refuse to publish articles and/or advertisements submitted for publication. All contents © Groby & Field Head Spotlight. None of the articles contained in this magazine are to be reproduced in any way without first obtaining written consent from Groby & Field Head Spotlight.
NEXT ISSUE OUT ON: 14th October 2017 DEADLINE: 30th September When you administer mouth-to-mouth resuscitation at a public beach, first make sure that the victim is not just sleeping.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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Losing 8st 7lb has changed my life, says Woman of the Year Kirsty! KIRSTY BROWN, from Markfield, represented Groby Slimming World in the nationwide Slimming World Woman of the Year 2017 competition. After successfully reaching the top 54 regional finalists out of 348,316 weekly attending members (across 2,500 groups ) in this region, she then went forward to the final 12. Hazel Hickson, who runs the Groby group, says: “I’m so proud of Kirsty. She’s a fantastic ambassador for Slimming World and what she’s achieved is nothing short of incredible! She’s a huge inspiration to everyone in our group and I hope she inspires other women – and men – in Groby to change their lives in the same way.” More than half of all women in the UK and Ireland (58%) are overweight and a quarter of women’s weight risks impacting on their health by increasing their chances of developing a range of conditions including diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Slimming World’s Woman of the Year competition recognises the achievements of thousands of women in making long-term healthy lifestyle changes. Kirsty, who has gone from a dress size 22/24 to a 10, says: “When I started out I never dreamt I’d be able to achieve all that I have. Losing the weight has made such a big difference – it’s changed my life. My health is better, I have more energy and I’m much happier now – I definitely feel more comfortable in my own skin.” She joined Slimming World in February I tried lots of different diets but they usually left me feeling hungry or miserable – or both, in fact. With Slimming World it’s completely different, I never have to miss out and I don’t have to get hung up on weighing and measuring everything I eat. My family and friends are all amazed by how much I can eat and still lose weight. I still eat many of the same meals that I did before I started losing weight, like spaghetti bolognese, curries and roast dinners. Now I just prepare and cook them differently – and they taste so much better. I’ve picked up lots of new healthy recipes from the other members at my Slimming World group, too. “I know a lot of people worry about joining a slimming club because they don’t know what to expect. Right from the first moment I walked
Kirsty pictured before her weight loss into my Slimming World group I felt comfortable though, and the support I’ve received has been amazing. I look forward to going to Slimming World each week.” Kirsty lost 5.5lbs in her first week and was blown away that the changes she’d made had such a big impact so quickly. As the weight started to come off, her fitness improved Kirsty now loves Body Combat. She says: “I feel like a different woman to the person who walked into Slimming World 15 months ago and winning Woman of the Year is a real honour because there are so many amazing members in our group. I remember feeling like there was no hope when it came to
How Kirsty looks now my weight but I’ve realised that when people believe in you – and you believe in yourself – you can do anything you set your mind to. I really hope my weight loss can inspire other people to get started on their own journey and know that there’s a whole group of people waiting to support them every step of the way – especially at the Groby group.” The Groby Slimming World group is held every Thursday at 9.30am at Groby Community Centre. And 5.15pm and 7pm at Brookvale High School To join or find out more call Hazel on 07817303018 or email hazel_slimmingworld@ hotmail.co.uk
Anyone for ... Badminton? A FRIENDLY local Badminton Club requires players at Brookvale Groby Learning Campus, Ratby Road, Groby. We meet on Wednesday evenings between8pm and 10pm. Interested? Then tel: 0116 267 5800.
I like having conversations with kids. Grownups never ask me what my third favorite reptile is.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Groby Library News Summer Reading Challenge SO, DID YOU read the books and catch the crook? The Summer Reading Challenge is over for another year with over 100 children visiting the library to take part. They helped the Animal Agents to solve the crime of who stole the fish from the library cafe! It has been great to see so many enthusiastic readers selecting their books and receiving the stickers and other incentives to keep them reading over the summer and helping them to solve the crime. We hope all the children have enjoyed taking part and will be looking forward to next year’s challenge which will be all things BEANO to coincide with the 80th anniversary of the much loved children’s title. So in good Strictly style don’t forget to ‘Keeep Reading’
Libraries week THE FIRST ever Libraries week will take place from 9th - 14th October 2017. Groby Library is getting involved with this and we are in the planning stages of how to show off the range of things that are available here in your local library. As well as books and audio books don’t forget there is free access to the Internet on our computers, free Wi-Fi, our jigsaw library, Wriggly Readers, Knitters group, local history, book swap etc. We are also exploring new things we can offer to the local community. Look out for further details on our Face book page.
Founder Trustee Steps Down IT FEELS like so long ago when the representatives of Leicestershire County Council came to Groby Village Hall to consult with the residents about the proposed closure of Groby Library. There was a lot of high emotion and anger that part of our community and a lifeline for many was about to disappear. Some residents felt passionate about saving the library but it was difficult to know where to start. Fortunately for us David Ryan did. A local resident and businessman, who had also been involved with various groups within the community, came forward with a business plan that was accepted by the council. He has led the group of trustees, since forming at the end of 2015 through to April this year when he stepped down as Chairman, to achieve charity status and keep the library doors open. His vision to make the library a ‘hub’ and ways to evolve the library to secure its future have been fundamental. Over the summer David has taken the decision to step down as trustee as his life and commitment to work, family life and other projects no longer gives him the time the library demands. David and his expertise will be sadly missed. The trustees, volunteers and customers would like to thank David for being brave enough to step forward back in 2015 when we desperately wanted to save the library but didn’t know where to start. Without him we are certain Groby would
have lost its library. As we begin the fifth month of our second year as a community library the work that David started will continue, with the strong team of trustees and chair, making the library a ‘hub’ for all the community.
Up and Coming Events ... KEEP YOUR eye out for information on up and coming events either via Facebook or posters at the library. We have quite a few events and activities in the pipeline with dates and details being confirmed. • September - Harvest Festival from 23rd September - look out for more info at the library. • October - Halloween activities for the children and Libraries Week • November - We will be running weekly craft workshops for children in the lead up to Christmas. • December - Remember our Santa Trail? We are putting plans together for another fun family activity at the first weekend of December. • Chatsworth Christmas Visit - requests have been coming in! Yes, we will be running a coach trip to Chatsworth to see the house decorated for Christmas. This years theme is ‘Oh Dickens It’s Christmas.’ Details on date, price and how to book will follow. More information on up and coming events will be published in the October issue of The Spotlight, as well as an update on the coffee shop!
Have you seen our new chair? THE MOST amazing chair has been donated to the library by its amazing and very talented creator, Molly Matson. Molly is one of the very lovely ladies who make up Groby’s Knitting Group and can be found every other Friday afternoon chatting, enjoying
The knitting group and summer reading challenge finishers admire Molly Matson’s chair which she has very kindly donated to the library. tea and biscuits and of course knitting. The beautiful chair cover was knitted using a variety of wools in various shades and textures, giving it a patchwork effect. The legs of the chair are covered in Leicester City and Tigers colours, while French knitting and Pom poms give added interest. Then to complete the masterpiece knitted flowers, butterflies and a ladybird are scattered over the back of the chair. The chair is functional and used by Molly during the knitting session. So next time you visit the library look out for the chair and it might even inspire you to pick up some knitting needles. The group will next meet at the library on Friday 15th September at 4pm and then fortnightly. Beginners welcome!
Janet Bishop and Roz Smith Groby Community Library Trustees
Ten of the Best Novels Ten best-selling novels available now at Groby Community Library. •
Victoria Hislop: Cartes Postales from Greece
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James Patterson: 16th Seduction
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John Grisham: The Whistler
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Sophie Kinsella: My Not So Perfect Life
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Helen Dunmore: Birdcage Walk
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Martina Cole: Betrayal
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David Baldacci: No Man’s Land
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Ian Rankin: Rather be the Devil
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Linda La Plante: Hidden Killers
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Harlen Coben: Home
My boss says I intimidate the other employees, so I just stared at him until he apologized.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
New square hosts ANTIQUES market LEICESTER’S new market square is filled with with curios, collectables and vintage items every Monday as a programme of weekly antiques markets gets under way. Operated by specialists Antiques2Go, the first of the markets took place on Monday 4 September. Markets development officer Adam Piotrowski said: “Antiques markets are always popular, so we’re expecting these events to attract collectors and dealers, as well as people who just want to come down and browse. “The new market square is the perfect location for speciality markets, and we’ll be using the space for more of these types of events in the coming weeks and months.” Steve Heritage of Antiques2Go said: “We are delighted to be working with Leicester City Council and look forward to bringing an eclectic mix of antiques and vintage to this vibrant city on a weekly basis.” The antiques market will be open from 9am until 4pm every Monday.
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Hundreds of brand new wedding dresses all under £200 at LOROS Bridal Event
SOMETHING old, something new… LOROS is giving brides-to-be the chance to pick up their perfect wedding dress at a bargain price, with hundreds of brand new and pre-loved gowns all priced under £200.
On Thursday 12th October, LOROS By Design Shop, in Leicester’s Market Street, will be hosting a free bridal event, which will have hundreds of beautiful wedding dresses up for grabs. With some of the dresses originally selling for the price of £2,000 this is the perfect opportunity for brides to literally say yes to the dress, for less. By Design shop manager Abi Jarrom said: “For one night only, we will be transforming our entire By Design Shop into a beautiful wedding showroom, with a huge range of beautiful gowns available for bridesto-be. “We’ve been donated a number of brand new gowns in a variety of sizes and styles, which have been kindly donated to us by local organisations, while some of the dresses are preloved and have been given to us by former brides. “Ranging from strapless gowns to beaded vintage beauties, there really
is a style to suit every bride for every type of wedding. “We don’t want the fact that we’re a charity to put people off because we still all appreciate just how much of a special occasion it is for brides and their loved ones when they find that perfect gown. “And with some of the dresses originally priced at nearly 10 times the amount we’re selling them for, they would be an opportunity missed if they didn’t pop in, even just for a browse.” “We were overwhelmed when we received a donation of more than 150 brand news wedding dresses to the shop, they are all absolutely gorgeous and a variety of styles,” added Abi. “Together with the gorgeous stock we already had in, as well as a few other large donations from other
businesses, we knew we had enough dresses to showcase at our very own bridal event.” As well as bridal gowns, there will also be a range of bridesmaid dresses and mother-of-the bride outfits available to try on, including all the much-needed accessories like shoes and hats. If you would like to donate your preloved wedding dress to the event, or if you own a wedding dress shop and would like support the event, then email marketing@loros.co.uk LOROS Bridal Event is on 12th October, from 4pm until 8pm. For more information visit loros. co.uk/bridalevent If you cannot attend the event, then you can book an appointment at our bridal boutique by calling (0116) 254 8112.
When we have self-driving cars, I’m pretty sure my wife will complain about its driving too.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
ONE OF our favourite speakers came along to our meeting this month and gave, as usual, her excellent talk this time on the French singer Edith Piaf, “The Little Sparrow”. Edith was born in 1915 in Paris, her mother, a café singer, abandoned her at birth and she was brought up by her grandmother, who ran a brothel. Later she joined her father, a circus acrobat, so she had very little education. To earn a meagre living she began singing on the streets, mixing with petty criminals. She gave birth to a daughter who unfortunately died at the age of two. Small in stature, under 5 feet, she was discovered by Louis Leplee who owned a nightclub and it was he who gave her the name “little sparrow”. Louis offered the starving but talented street child a contract. He alone was responsible for taking her off the streets at age 20 and changing her name from Edith Gassion to “La Mome Piaf ” (or “Kid Sparrow”). Maurice Chevalier was amongst her audience at her first performance. In 1935 Edith made her theatrical debut and began her career in the large music halls of Paris where she sang just standard songs, but later was fortunate enough to have songs especially written for her by acclaimed writers. Edith had loads of affairs throughout her life but one in particular was special - the boxer Marcel Cerdan - who died in a plane crash. From 1936, Piaf recorded many albums and eventually became one of the highest paid stars in the world. She was first embroiled in scandal when her mentor, Leplee, was murdered and she was held for questioning. She had a happy marriage in
Groby WI NEWS 1952 to actor Jacques Pills who unfortunately died young. Though slowly crippled by severe arthritis, a series of spectacular comebacks in concert and recordings would follow over the years but her health would slowly waste her away. Her last appearance was at the Paris Olympia, racked and hunched over with pain and barely able to stand. Her last recorded song was “L’homme de Berlin” in 1963, the year of her death. Edith’s life was full of turmoil, ill health and unhappiness for most of the time hence she turned to drink and drugs. All these factors took their toll and she died at the age of 47. Her death was mourned across France and thousands lined the streets for her funeral procession.
Cinema trip
Theatre visit
ANOTHER visit to Kilworth House, this time it was an evening performance to see, or should I say, hear, “The Last night of the Proms”. The weather during the day hadn’t been great so it was decided just to go to the concert. Luckily the audience is under cover but from experience, I know it can be draughty but those that went said it was a great evening with lots of flag waving etc.
Village Show OF COURSE we had the annual Village Show which is a joint enterprise of the Gardening Club and the WI.
SOME OF our members, including yours truly, went to see the film “Dunkirk”. I thought it was an excellent film but I would hardly call it entertaining. This was, again, my personal view, of a wonderful depiction of a very famous and heroic event.
My job this year was, for a change, not in the kitchen but in the craft room in the afternoon. I was to guard the mouth-watering goodies, nobody reported anything being stolen so I suppose I did a good job. It did mean, however, that I had a good look around at the large variety of entries in that room. For the first time I didn’t put anything in. I will now make a confession, I made two different cakes both disasters, no idea what I did wrong. Luckily I had one in the freezer which I took along for sale in the
café, apparently that was fine. I wouldn’t be a judge at village shows for all the tea in China. About a dozen entries of fruit loaf all made to the same recipe, all looked very different, amazing. Anyway the Judge selected the best in his opinion and the Judge is always right. I did get a look at the crafts, some lovely really wonderful entries, paintings, needlework etc, we have a lot of talented ladies, and some gentlemen of course, in the Village. Saying that, we also have entries from neighbouring villages, our fame spreads. We had quite a few winners, Kay, as usual, did us proud along with Angela, our President. There were plenty of other WI entries who were awarded places, too many to mention but I am happy to report that we didn’t let the WI down. Also a team of ladies throughout the Show in the kitchen and tearoom worked liked Trojans, many thanks ladies. I think Groby can be proud that so many people, doing various jobs, make it a Village Show to be proud of.
Next meeting THIS MONTH’S meeting is Professor Gavin Murphy from the Glenfield Hospital. He is top man in Cardiac surgery research. He is most anxious to spread the news of the latest results etc of his work in this field. This is a wonderful opportunity to have news of such research from such a noted surgeon. So do come along on Thursday 21st September to the Village Hall at 7.30 p.m., you will be most welcome.
Margaret
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I’m so angry right now that I could strategically throw my phone at a safe spot on the couch.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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Call to find 70 new Leicestershire adopters
Have a say on plans to revamp Clock Tower area PEOPLE are being invited to give their views on proposals that could see the area around Leicester’s Clock Tower transformed. Leicester City Council is proposing a major revamp of Belgrave Gate/ Haymarket and Church Gate which would see the popular shopping streets reconstructed in high quality materials, similar to those used on nearby Silver Street and Guildhall Lane. The proposed scheme would also see traffic removed from the two streets from 11am until 5am each day, in line with the rest of the city centre pedestrian zone. To pave the way for the streets’ pedestrianisation, a short stretch of new road would be created, linking Belgrave Gate and Mansfield Street. This would provide a quicker, safer and more direct route out of the city centre for buses leaving the Haymarket bus station, helping to improve bus journey times. The new link road – for buses and taxis only – would remove the need for buses to use Haymarket and Church Gate. Along with improvements to Sandacre Street, it would also form a new, direct pedestrian route between Haymarket bus station and St Margaret’s bus station. Bus stops in the Clock Tower area would be relocated to Haymarket bus station and the new link road. Taxis would pick up and drop off near the steps to the Haymarket Theatre. Subject to acquisition of the required land, which is still under negotiation, work on the new link road could get underway in April 2018, with work to pedestrianise Haymarket and Church Gate potentially beginning later that summer. The entire project is expected to take around a year to complete. City Mayor Peter Soulsby said: “This is a high profile part of our city centre and it is vital that we continue to invest in it. We’re looking at making some ambitious changes and improvements which will help create a much more attractive, and safer, environment for shoppers and other visitors in the area around the Clock Tower.” The plans will be on display at Haymarket bus station until 2nd October and will also be available to view on the council’s website at www.leicester.gov.uk/ connectingleicester People can email their comments on the proposals to transportstrategy@leicester.gov.uk
Every Saturday morning 10.00am—12.30pm
CATCH meets for play, craft, story & chat for pre-school children with a parent or carer 9.30-11.30am every Friday at Groby URC Chapel Hill Fair Cuppa for FairTrade refreshments in fairly traded mugs. Every Thursday 10.3012am at the Village Hall
A DRIVE to encourage more people to become adopters and transform the lives of Leicestershire children has been launched. Leicestershire County Council currently has 34 children in its care who need adopters to offer them a loving, permanent ‘Forever home’. These include babies, pre-school children, older children and children with disabilities or health issues. The council is hoping to recruit 70 adopters this year to help meet the need. Anyone can be considered, including people on their own or in a relationship, working or not working. You can adopt regardless of your race, religion, sexual orientation or financial situation and time is spent matching children to families who can meet their needs. Adoption is a lifelong commitment and is about providing a child in care who cannot return home with a permanent and secure ‘Forever family’. Adoption can transform lives; both for our adopters and for the children in our care who need loving, permanent ‘Forever families’. To find out more, call the adoption team on 0116 3050505 or visit www.adoptionleicestershire.co.uk
Date for your Diary A BULB PLANTING Event will take place at Glenfield Millennium Green on Saturday 21st October, starting at 10.30 am.
Refreshments and bulbs will be provided free. Bring your own trowel and gloves if you have them.
Weekly events for children and young people
for 6’s to 14’s on Mon evenings, at 6.00pm or 7.45pm; for 15-18’s on Wed evenings at 7.30pm; for 15-18’s on Fri at 7.30pm. We meet at the United Reformed Church All of these activities, along with our work in schools, are provided by the two churches in Groby under the group name EXTEND.
For further information please see websites and church magazines St. Philip and St. James www.grobychurch.org.uk United Reformed Church www.grobyurc.com Children and Families Worker
Phil Holmes (Church Secretary) 225 3335 1733 John Fryer 07540 957926
Tomorrow is a big day for me at work. They are refilling the snack vending machine.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Borough Councillors’ Monthly Report Klondyke update FOLLOWING the Parish Poll a second meeting has been held between members of the Klondyke Steering group chaired by Councillor Cartwright at which Officers of Hinckley and Bosworth attended along with Groby Parish council Members, Charnwood Member of Parliament Edward Argar, Groby County Councillor Ozzy O’shea, Hinckley-Bosworth Borough Councillors Bill, Lay, Morrell, Council Leader Mike Hall, Groby Juniors F.C. Chairman John Caswell and Groby residents Steve Brown and George West. The meeting was held in order to discuss a way forward to enable a satisfactory solution to be reached which would benefit the Community. After a frank and robust in depth discussion it was agreed by all that a joint meeting would be held in 6-8 weeks time when Hinckley & Bosworth Officers had received legal advice. It is therefore anticipated that a progress report could be available for the November issue.
Recycling and Replacing AT THE JUNE meeting of the Hinckley & Bosworth Executive Committee it was agreed to replace the Council’s seven year old fleet next year by purchasing 64 new vehicles consisting of bin lorries, light vans, mowers and a road sweeper vehicle all at a cost of £3.8 million pounds, a vast amount of money but one which it is claimed will be cheaper than leasing in the long term according to the Council’s asset management professionals. The current lease expires next year. At the same time and the start of the Council’s next financial year (April) the Borough Council proposes to bring its recycling back in-house and change from the ‘Caddy’ system to one which will be easier for residents whereby all recyclable material (paper,card,metal,glass and some plastics) can be deposited in the same bin.
The Old ... protecting Groby’s Heritage assets THE BOROUGH COUNCIL recently held two separate Heritage Consultation workshops which Martin and I attended individually as we are both aware of the importance of protecting the Heritage assets we have in Groby. We took the opportunity to emphasize this fact to HBBC stressing both the national as well as the local importance of these assets not least that Groby was the home of two queens of England and the home of the country’s third oldest railway - the quarry spur is preserved as the mineral line walk which runs parallel with Ratby Road down to Sacheveral way and between the church and Groby Pool car park.
The New ... 9 bungalows to be built for locals A START is due to be made on the nine bungalow development off Martinshaw Lane Groby on September 12th. This Borough Council project has been delayed due to sewer alignment problems which resulted in lengthy discussions between Severn Trent and Hinckley & Bosworth. A further problem for the Council and more particularly the residents of the Victoria Cottages is that the Developers proposed a 34 week closure of the rear access track to the garages and gardens of the properties. Councillor Cartwright is currently in discussion with the Developer and the Borough Council in an attempt to alleviate the difficulties that a long term closure would create. This long awaited scheme will be welcomed by residents of Groby who are, I am told, the only people who will be eligible to apply for the properties, 2 of which will be wheelchair friendly. When the new sewers are installed the track will be widened and surfaced to the adopted standard which will be of benefit to the existing cottages as well as the new bungalows,
Martin Cartwright Call: 0116 287 4500 Mobile: 078 50 70 70 50 E-mail: hbbc@appliancehome.co.uk Write: Maverick House, 10 Pine Tree Avenue Groby, LE6 0EQ
Ted Hollick Call: 0116 287 5955 Mobile: 07962 373983 E-mail: ted.hollick@tesco.net Write: 7 Shaw Wood Close, Groby, LE6 0FY
Congratulations to Rotary fundraisers CONGRATULATIONS to the Bradgate Rotary Club on raising more than £220 pounds for LOROS at their 20th August wheelbarrow race which was staged on the closed Markfield Road in Groby. The event (a first for Groby) attracted 52 competitors who all safely completed the course.
Ted Hollick and Martin Cartwright
The Future
A Neighbourhood plan for Groby and why we need one A NEIGHBOURHOOD PLAN has to be Community led and it cannot be run by a Parish Council. Many thanks to the gentleman who volunteered to help following a previous request for volunteers, it is very much appreciated. It is becoming increasingly clear that Villages like Groby will be hard pressed to fend off future housing developments as the pressure to provide housing increases. Even now the city I am told has nowhere to accommodate its quota of houses and so Government policy is to tell neighbouring Boroughs that it has to take some of these to ‘help out’. Therefore it is vital that residents of the village realise the importance of working together to create a Neighbourhood Plan for Groby. The task facing the group is to protect the assets, the identity and Green Spaces of the village whilst at the same time it needs to decide where any housing or industrial development could go. Residents may remember the success the Parish Council had in protecting the extremely important Green Wedge separating the villages of Ratby and Groby, this is a good example of what will be required but don’t think this is the last we will hear of it, we have to strengthen the evidence we have in order to mitigate any further attempts to remove its green wedge status. An attempt to designate a nearby field as an LGS (local green space) by the Parish Council was unfortunately unsuccessful. I am pleased to report that all of Groby’s parks are now protected as ‘Fields in Trust’which ensures that they remain as parks and will not be developed. Other areas needing protection are the Allotment sites, green spaces around the village along with the Meadow, hedges, woodland and places that are of benefit to wildlife. So please do forward your names to our Parish Clerk at the:Groby Parish Council Office Email: parishclerk@groby.com Leicester Road Groby, LE10 0DQ
You will be instrumental in planning for the future of our community
Hold music was invented to make you angry enough to hang up and never call customer service again.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
The prescription you can’t get at the chemist… AS YOU GET older, you should be given a dog on prescription. That is the unlikely finding of a recent study at Cambridge University and the University of East Anglia.
Which way?
It’s very rare to see someone driving the wrong way up a one way street but it does happen occasionally. If you inadvertently turn up Short Street towards the back of Argos and Iceland from St Margarets bus station you can draw comfort from the confusing signage at the top end. It’s unlikely to stop you getting a fine if you are caught in the act.
The researchers found that owning or walking a dog was one of the most effective ways to beat the usual slowing-down in later life. It seems that elderly people who own a dog are active for at least 30 minutes a day more than their counterparts with no dog. And when it rains or is cold outside? No problem – for the study also found that older people with dogs were far less impacted by weather, and that they went ahead with walking – rain or shine, wet or dry. Overall, their physical activity even on miserable days was 20 per cent higher than those without pets. The researchers confess: ‘We were amazed to find that even on the coldest, wettest and darkest days, dog walkers were more physically active and spent less time sitting than did the non-dog owners on the long, sunny and warm days of summer.’ Thus, the team has suggested that dog ownership or community schemes for dog walking could be prescribed to older people by their GPs.
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Alexander the Great is what happens when men get to name themselves.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Live & Local
What’s On at Local Pubs & Clubs Groby Ex-Servicemen’s Club Leicester Road, Groby Tel: 0116 287 1809
Wednesday Evenings: Bingo From 8 pm. With Members Jackpot Also Raffle. Thursdays Line Dancing With Jeff From 8 pm
Saturday 16th September: - Sean
Haven - Excellent Male Vocalist (Also performs a Robbie Williams Tribute).
Last Friday Of Each Month - Andy’s Quiz Night.
Friday 22nd September: - Eddie Brown - Male Solo Vocalist - (Salsa Party In The Concert Room See Below For Details)
Every Saturday Bingo In Lounge With Free Supper For All Players From 8 pm.
Saturday 23rd September: - Can You Feel It: - Excellent Male/Female Comedy Duo
Every Sunday Dancing To Organist From 8 pm. £2-00 Entry On Door With Raffle/Eight Houses Bingo(Optional)
Friday 29th September: - Jane George - Wonderful Female Vocalist
Charity dance on Fridays: • September 22nd. • November 24th. Also includes a raffle and a short bingo session
Saturday 30th September: - Two Tonik - Ska/Reggae Duo Friday 6th October: - Robbie Dixon Fantastic Comical Vocalist
Saturday social dance: • September 16th • October 21st Start at 8 pm. Admission will be £2. As with the charity dance, there will also be a raffle and a short bingo session.
Saturday 7th October: - Leonie Voss - Out Of This World Vocalist (Also Performs A Rihanna Tribute) - *NOT TO BE MISSED* Friday 13th October: - Kelly Jenns Excellent Lively Young Lady
All Enquiries To 01530 230205. Also Room Hire Available For Any Occasion.
Saturday 14th October: - Tones Of Soul - Top Quality Motown Friday 22nd September - Salsa Party In The Concert Room - Everybody is Welcome, Tickets Available On The Door
The Club Thornton, Main Street, Thornton LE67 1AH 01530 230251 Sky & BT Sports. Free concert room hire. New Garden. Bingo on Tuesdays
The Club Bagworth, Station Road, Bagworth LE67 1BZ 01530 230205.
Fri 15th Sept: The Fantom’s Charity Evening for Thornton Church
Every Monday From 8 pm, Dominoes With Supper £1 -50.
Sun 24th Sept: Bar Boot sale Fri 29th Sept: Jane’s McMillan Coffee Morning
Every Tuesday From 8 pm Target Shooting With Rifle And Pellets Plus Tuition If Required£2-00.
Sat 7th Oct: The Boneyard Blues Band
Wednesday Afternoon From 2-4 pm Tea Dance £1-00 With Tea/Biscuits.
Sat 28th Oct: Dr Gastric’s Halloween Party
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Spotlight Small Ads • Gtech ST05 Rapid Blade Cordless Trimmer - £40.00. Comes with one blade. New blades can be bought directly from Gtech or found on ebay • Gtech HT04 cordless garden multi tool - £60.00. Comes with grass shears, branch cutter and hedge trimmer attachments • Qualcast 2800W Blower Vac - £15.00 All of the above are unused, in perfect condition, with original instructions. Tel: or text: 07950 058568 • Indoor Cage suitable for Guinea Pigs. Approx Cage size: L95cm x W57cm x H46cm. Price: £10.00 Tel: 01530 243418 • Lonely white rabbit needs rehousing. Vaccinated, neutered 4 year old male, recently lost hutch mate and threatened by local fox, needs home with outside space and companion if possible. More details contact 07462 287884 • Free: 2 Seater Sofa by M&S. V.G.C. Tel: 0116 287 6697 • WANTED portable electric typewriter in good condition. Tel: 0116 2250229
• Table Lamp - red/silver. Price: £20.00 • Bric a Brac (crockery) - ideal for car booters. Price: £35.00 Tel: 0116 231 2865 • Mothercare Ocean Buddies Bath Tub. Birth to Toddler. With removable sling, head rest and bath toys.At Grandma’s and never used. Price: £10.00. Tel: 0116 2876847 or mobile: 0744 3958399 • Dunelm metal framed coffee table. Glass top size L31 x W18.5 X H19. Excellent condition £30.00 • Brass fireside companion set HMS VICTORY. Poker, shovel, tongues & brush. Price: £25 Tel: 07547 901657 IF YOU HAVE any household items which you’d like to advertise FREE in the Spotlight, please SEND DETAILS by post or email - sorry, we can’t take them over the phone. Maximum EIGHT items please. Our postal address is Spotlight Small Ads, PO Box 8, Markfield, Leics. LE67 9ZT or you can email details to: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk. Please put ‘Small Ads’ in the subject line, and include your postal address (not for publication).
Brainteaser Answer (from page 15): The woman is a photographer. She shot a picture of her husband, developed it and hung it up to dry.
I can hold my own in a bar fight as long I have a few minutes to stretch before.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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News from Glenfield Millennium Green THANKS TO everyone who supported our musical evening in July when we were entertained by ‘Go Ukulele Crazy’. There were over 70 people in the audience who joined in lustily when asked to! The musicians (over 40 of them) enjoyed their evening as much as we did and helped us to raise £380 for our funds. In the same month we had a lovely garden party in Glendale Avenue and just cleared away tables and chairs before the rain. Thanks to Rosie and Dale for hosting this and to everyone who came raising another £290. This article is being written the day before we have a gardening session on the Green. One task that really needs doing is to trim the willow tunnel. This feature has always been popular with children who devise all manner of games to play in or around it. Sadly we cannot do this at present and have had to close the tunnel as it is attracting lots of wasps. There are no nests so we cannot take any action to relieve the problem. Hopefully the ‘invaders’ will eventually move on and we can open it up again. There is only one more gardening session on the Green this year, on October 7th. However we will be planting more daffodils in the Marie Curie Field of Hope on Saturday 21st October from 10.30am. Usually this takes volunteers about an hour and you are welcome to come and help. Full details on the notice boards on the Green.
The ‘must-have’ Facebook a Christmas toys? religion? WHAT ARE you getting your children for Christmas?
How about life-like dolls with artificial intelligence and a Lego robot which can be controlled from an iPad? According to Argos, this year’s ‘must-have’ toys for Christmas will be such ‘blockbuster’ gifts. The Luvabella doll, at £99.99 has fluid movements and responds to being fed and cared for like a real baby. Lego boost (£149.99) lets children build five models out of bricks, including Vernie the robot, all of which can be brought to life by coding through a free app that can be downloaded to an iPad.
FACEBOOK has revealed that it now has more than two billion monthly active users, 13 years after it was launched. Facebook is also becoming like a religion, according to its founder, Mark Zuckerberg. In a recent speech, he suggested that his social media site is like a religion because people can find ‘purpose and support’ online that previous generations found by going to church. Zuckerberg also said that belonging to a group on Facebook can give people a sense that they are part of ‘something bigger than ourselves’, akin to a religious congregation. But if it is a religion, who exactly is being worshipped?
Five Reiki Principles To Promote A Healthy, Loving Life 1. Just for today, I will not worry. 2. Just for today, I will not be angry. 3. Just for today, I will give thanks for my many blessings. 4. Just for today, I will do my work honestly. 5. Just for today, I will be kind to every living thing.
There are now 9 times as many smart phones in the world than there are smart people.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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STRICTLY Wordsearch
9/9/2017
Word Search Puzzle
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IF YOU can find the 15 STRICTLY COME DANCING CELEBRITIES in this issue’s Wordsearch puzzle, you could win yourself a meal and a drink. This month we are offering a tasty prize of: A Main Course for Solutions Districts Hotel. Free Two, plus A Bottle of House Wine at TheforFieldHead
D H M C Y M G K H L Y S C C J W X S
K L D O D V D X V J E N G W T J N D
R R O F L B H V I L K E Z Q Z I N A
H U Y G V L R S O X M N D O K F E V
Y I T E Y X I C D M L E H W D S K O
T E V H Q R D E A Q B W A S E I R O
Resources To go into the draw, all you have toWhat do is find and mark aWho line through - the names of 15 CELEBRITY DANCERS inStudent We-Offer We Are Teachers Parents this year’s Strictly Come Dancing.These can run vertically, horizontally or diagonally (and backwards!). Send your entry to: KEEP DANCING, Groby & Field Head Spotlight, PO Box 8, Markfield, Leics. LE67 9ZT to arrive by Tuesday 3rd October 2017. Remember to include your name and E V V Y N R O N V U W J address. The first all-correct entry drawn out of the hat will win the prize. Good luck! A H D T I V O F X A U O
L C L R R A K B F H P N N M U D
H N A A T E I I E T J Q A O B G
U H O K N E M T N M I J M N A H
C E I C M G T N S G J O L R R A
B N K C N O S A O R M O A I D D
S Z G F L A W F J T N Z C M N A
S E S R P H I H O K S D N M A M
E C A P D K G R V R R A A E X I
C H J W O F W J B F D Y S R E P
C N E D D A F C M E O J U A L P
L O D U K A Y Z Z I H C S H A I
N N I E P E A C O C K L Y I E P
Here are the 15 STRICTLY CELEBRITIES you have to find:
ALEXANDRA BURKE • ASTON MERRYGOLD • BRIAN CONLEY CHARLOTTE HAWKINS • CHIZZY AKUDOLU • DAVOOD GHADAMI DEBBIE MCGEE • GEMMA ATKINSON • JOE MCFADDEN JONNIE PEACOCK • MOLLIE KING • RICHARD COLES RUTH LANGSFORD • SIMON RIMMER • SUSAN CALMAN Name: ................................................................................................. Address: ................................................................................................ .................................................................Postcode: .............................
Last Month’s Wordsearch Winner The first correct entry drawn out was from: AZAM HASSAN of Stephenson Way, Groby Congratulations! Enjoy your meal!
Groby Players
ALEXANDRABURKE ASTONMERRYGOLD BRIANCONLEY CHARLOTTEHAWKINS CHIZZYAKUDOLU DAVOODGHADAMI DEBBIEMCGEE GROBY PLAYERS’ next production is GEMMAATKINSON scheduled to be performed on October JOEMCFADDEN 26th/ 27th/28th in the Village Hall, JONNIEPEACOCK Groby, starting at 7.30 pm. MOLLIEKING We are performing two comedy plays. One RICHARDCOLES has an environmental theme, with a lively RUTHLANGSFORD cast of characters from all walks of life and a SIMONRIMMER mysterious twist, and the other is a short play concerning a book club, and SUSANCALMAN the characters who attend, among them, the book club founder, a ‘new age’ older hippy, a ‘resting actress’ and two more ‘challenging’ characters! Tickets, priced at £6, will be on sale in the Village Hall on Saturday mornings beginning 30th September,Created between 10am-12noon. by Puzzlemaker Tickets can also be reserved by tel 0116 287 7373, or by email to dottieh743@gmail.com ,or tel/txt 07790 861033. Seating will be cafe style, so bring your own refreshments and drinks for the interval, and come and enjoy an evening’s entertainment, supporting your local community.
Two comedy plays to enjoy at the Village Hall
at DiscoveryEducation.com
Dot Hollins
Plastic-free, please MORE THAN nine out of 10 of us would welcome a plasticfree aisle in our supermarkets. Such an aisle would offer products in strictly non-plastic packaging. A recent survey by Populus has found growing concern about the staggering amount of plastic packaging being thrown away. We have so far produced over eight billion tonnes of plastic since the early 1950s, but recycled only 9 per cent. 12 per cent has been incinerated, and 79 per cent dumped in landfills or the natural environment.
People should have to travel together for at least one week prior to getting married.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-SEPT 2017 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Christmas is coming Norman Griffiths hears about a unique 3 in 1 community event on December 9th EVERYONE GROANS as September arrives and the big merchandise reorganisation starts in the stores. The remains of the gardening stock start to get reduced to free up the space and businesses gear up for the end of year trio – Halloween, Bonfire Night and Christmas. It’s not just the retailers who have to be planning ahead, anyone involved with activities relating to these events has to finalise their plans. No doubt there will be Halloween activities but this year the Stamford Arms will not be hosting a fireworks display. But here’s a date for your diary, Saturday 9th December at the Village Hall. Three events will come together at the venue • the Christmas Tree Lights Switch On Ceremony • Bradgate Rotary’s afternoon tea, stalls and Santa visit • Parish Council Open Day The Christmas lights will still come on without any fanfare, but plans are afoot to illuminate a tree donated by GE with one of our local schoolchildren throwing the switch. Last year there was a chance to travel on Santa’s sleigh at the Victorian Street Fayre. The opportunity to be the one to control the Christmas Tree Lights lights may turn out to be as popular a prize. The proposal is to co-operate with Bradgate Rotary in the event they are organising. It will, of course, be more than the flick of a switch. It will be a community event with, perhaps, a hog roast, a stage with live entertainment, activities both inside and outside the Village Hall, and fun for everyone. Local businesses will be invited to participate and community organisations who want to raise funds or spread the word about their activities will be welcomed. The Bradgate Rotary plans are well advanced and include afternoon tea, fund raising stalls, and the chance to meet You Know Who in Santa’s Grotto. With two months notice there’s time for local groups to consider how they could participate in a seasonal family event that will bring families to the centre of the village on a winter’s day and which could prove to be a useful fund raiser. Call the Parish Clerk on (0116) 2876985 or email parishclerk @ groby.com to register for more information as it becomes available.
Parish Council Open day Another proposed aspect of the event, if approved, is likely to provide an opportunity to find out what the parish council does, and meet some councillors. You may have thought about bec oming a councillor but would like to know more about what it entails, and this would be an ideal opportunity to talk about it informally. It will also be an opportunity to raise concerns about any issues that concern you locally and also hear about the challenges that will be facing the village in coming years. It’s these challenges, and the threat of an increase in the pace of housing development over and above the numbers that had been agreed as needed to 2026, which is demonstrating the need for a Neighbourhood Plan. In very simple terms, a Neighbourhood Plan is: • A document that sets out planning policies for the neighbourhood area. Planning policies are used to decide whether to approve planning applications. • Written by the local community, rather than the Local Planning Authority. • A powerful tool to ensure the community gets the right types of development, in the right place. A neighbourhood plan is an important document with real legal force, therefore there are certain formal procedures that it must go through. A neighbourhood plan forms part of the statutory development plan for an area. It may contain a vision, aims, planning policies, proposals for improving the area or providing new facilities, or allocation of key sites for specific kinds of development. It may deal with a wide range of social, economic and environmental issues (such as housing, employment, heritage and transport) or it may only focus on one or two issues. A plan won’t stop development happening but it will enable residents to say where they want it and where they don’t want it. The first time the Parish Council encouraged residents to form a Neighbourhood Plan Group there was only one volunteer, but it is hoped that as the implications of the national housing crisis become clearer there will be more interest this time. If there is not there is a view that the village will be sleepwalking to a future where developers, not residents or planners, have the upper hand. Arrangements have yet to be finalised but with three events coming together at one location it should be an interesting, informative and, above all, an enjoyable day out in December. The Spotlight will have more information as it becomes available.
I am now on three dating sites because you can never get enough rejection.
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