Local News and Events

Donations

We have received with thanks a donation of £20 since our last edition.

Anyone wishing to make a donation towards the cost of producing Signpost should send a cheque to The Hermitage, Corston, Malmesbury, SN16 0HB. Thank you.

Help for our Churches

The COVID Pandemic has created major funding challenges for our churches, as it has for many other institutions and charities. Planned services and fundraising events have not taken place since the end of March, but regular bills still have had to be paid including insurance premiums, electricity payments, upkeep and repair bills as well as payments to the Diocese for clergy and for administration. In many cases, there is little or no income coming in to cover these costs and some of our churches are facing a crisis. Do we want to find yet more of our facilities are no longer available when the Pandemic is over?

If you feel you can make a donation to help your local church, please contact the Treasurer of your Parish:

Great Somerford: Mark Vincent 01249 721420

Little Somerford: Simon Nuttall 01249 720978

Corston & Rodbourne: Maureen Inwards 01666 822775

Seagry:

Sheena Tilley 07801 749544

Great Somerford 2020 Vision Hundred Club Lottery – Results

New cases still going up with a big jump on 6 September so as far as this house is concerned too many people are getting infected for us to do anything too exciting! Which is why on Sunday 6 September the numbers were once again drawn by Jude Picton Phillipps and, in no particular order, the winners were Basil Miles, James Layton and Jude Picton Phillipps. Congratulations to them all.

If you would like to take part please contact Tom Picton Phillipps on 01249 721202 or at tom.pictonphillipps@btinternet.com or knock on his door at 4 Paddock Close. It only costs £5.00 a month Depending on the degree to which support is maintained or enlarged the level of prizes (currently £125.00, £75.00 and £50.00 monthly) may have to be varied.

Corston & Rodbourne Reading Room 200 Club August

1st 15 Sally Barrett Corston 2nd 22 David Malpas Rodbourne 3rd 96 Emily Eason Corston

Any enquiries regarding the 200 Club, please contact Norma on Tel: 01666 825303.

Malmesbury & District U3A

Malmesbury & District U3A is keeping in touch with members with regular editions of the Lockdown News. Some groups are meeting virtually while others are beginning to meet in other ways within government guidelines.

Our monthly meetings continue to take place via zoom and over the winter we plan to have 2 a month starting in November. Our next Zoom meeting will be on 22 October. Sir Muir Gray and Jill Turner will give a talk entitled ‘Live Longer Better with the Optimal Ageing Programme - How to stay well and increase physical and mental wellbeing.’

U3A Members can look forward to a thoughtprovoking talk with some well-researched advice on maintaining a positive outlook and an active lifestyle.

Sir Muir Gray CBE MD is the Director of the Optimal Ageing Programme for Living Longer Better and an esteemed national figure in public health. His current work focuses on health and wellbeing support for older people, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic. He is the author of 7 books.

Malmesbury U3A is now 5 years old and we look forward to being able to celebrate this milestone when life returns to normal. If you are retired or semi-retired do join us (now or in a few months time). We have more than 500 members and 40 different interest groups including book group, history, gardening, dancing, theatre trips, languages, walking etc. Check our website for an up –to-date list of groups and other information: www.malmesburyu3a.org.uk.

Please contact Elaine Sharp for more information on tel: 01666 823568 or e-mail: membership@malmesburyu3a.org.uk

Lockdown

This has been a very trying time for all. The uncertainty of it, the curtailment of our movements and restriction which we are not used to in our free society, all very necessary to ensure that the majority of us come through safely.

On a more personal note my husband and I never realised how many good and reliable friends we had. They have rallied around and made sure we had all we required, all done with a smile even though they had to stay on the door step. They know who they are, I won't embarrass them by naming them. It is good to know when family are a distance away such friends are there to ease the journey though these troubled times.

We would also like to extend our appreciation to Lisa our ‘Street Champion’ as we say in Yorkshire. She has been a real champion;

To the Fourway Stores to Rohit for his weekly delivery service;

Finally to The Signpost for keeping us informed; A very big thank you to all. Bram and Pat Widdowson Startley

The Evans TrustWelcomes Applications

This Trust exists to support young people in education, who live in Little Somerford and Great Somerford. Grants are available for people between the ages of 16 and 25, towards the cost of higher or further education. The amount awarded, up to a maximum of £250.00, will depend on the number of applicants.

If you would like to apply, please do so in writing and send to Mr Robert Gawthropp, Cranford, Little Somerford, Chippenham, SN15 5JX before 31 October 2020.

Please explain in your letter the course you are undertaking, how much you are applying for, and what this amount will be spent on.

NorthWiltshire Villages Flower Club

Although unfortunately the Flower Club has been unable to meet for six months, behind the scenes work has continued on planning future events as lockdown measures continue to ease. The committee met in late July (socially distanced, outdoors) to discuss how best to move forward during these difficult times. Given the current uncertainty over the opening of venues, and the necessity of social

MALMESBURY & DISTRICT LINK

Registered Charity No 1043099

LINK is a local charity which enables patients without access to transport to attend medical appointments. We are continuing to operate during the current Covid-19 pandemic.

If you need help to get to a medical appointment or to collect a prescription, please contact us on 01666 840861 between 09:00 and 13:00 Monday to Friday or send an email to: coordinators@malmesburylink.co.uk

distancing, it was felt that the remainder of the programme planned for 2020 wasn’t feasible and sadly would have to be cancelled. This includes our major event for the year planned to be held at the Sundial Theatre Cirencester in November. The only exception is our September AGM which will be held via Zoom.

We hope to actively re-start the Club from January 2021. A full programme of events for next year has already been arranged, incorporating several originally planned for this year. As usual the programme is very varied and includes a good mix of workshops, demonstrations, social events and visits.

In 2021 we very much hope that Flower Club meetings will once again take place at Crudwell Village Hall, SN16 9HB, on the third Wednesday of the month, 7 pm for 7.30 pm (with some exceptions for social events/visits as outlined in our programme). We are a friendly and enthusiastic group with members from throughout the area.

Visitors and potential new members are guaranteed a warm welcome at our regular meetings, so please do come along if you’re interested. We really look forward to welcoming back both our current members and any guests at our next meeting which is planned for Wednesday 20 January 2021 (regulations permitting). Save the date!

In the meantime stay safe and well. If you’d like to get in touch we can be contacted by email: nwvflowerclub@gmail.com.

Thank you

A huge thank you to everyone who came and bought produce and/or donated at Florrie’s stall outside our house last month. She raised £65 which went to Malmesbury Food Bank. Lucy Dalgleish

Advice from Ellen Blacker

As we slowly creak back into life to what seems to be called “the new normal” I just wanted to say hello again and that I hope you are all fit and well. We have been through such difficult times and my thoughts have been with you.

Moving forward, I have some news to share with you. To avoid incurring the wrath of the editors (marvellous people one and all) by making this too long, I will keep it short and in bullet points. Of course, just give me a call if you would like more information on this or anything else I may be able to help with. • Beware the scams….again. With new legislation and furlough payments, there comes a host of new scams. This week alone I have been told that I have a tax rebate and a tax fraud case against me, also that a friend has lost his phone and a lady in Nigeria who would like to give me a share of $50,000,000. My suggestion is always to be very cautious and any genuine callers will agree to put their message etc in writing – nothing is ever that desperately urgent. Don’t give away your address, genuine callers will already know that. • Do you have memory problems or know someone who does? Music is a great stimulus for memories of times past and Playlist for Life has produced a great little booklet to have some fun with thinking of the old tunes and why we loved them. • I have some leaflets which have been produced by Wiltshire Council on staying safe during these strange times. Its well worth a read. • To get this information I plan to pop a supply to each village and leave them, wherever possible, in your churches or church porches. I will also leave some in the library in Malmesbury.

Garden Shredder for Sale AL-KO Shredder Bought second-hand and never used! Any offer considered, but buyer collects. If not, it goes to machinery sale in October. Call 07774 605431 (Rodbourne) • As the groups and clubs start to re-open please let me know, I would love to pop along to say hello to you all again and catch up with the news. • Lastly, the impact of the virus continues in less obvious ways. Many of us have poor hearing and we often combine other senses to communicate. We often use these strategies without even realising what we are doing! Sadly, face masks reduce our ability to “read” peoples faces and so Salisbury Hospital have offered some ideas on things we can do to help overcome barriers to communication through face coverings.

Speak slowly and clearly – Our brains need time to put all the clues together, especially in difficult environments

Reduce noise and obtain the person’s attention

– do what you can to remove noise sources or move the person into a quieter space if possible.

Re-phrase sentences if not heard – Use different words, avoid repeating a phrase which has already proved difficult to hear

Give time for the person to respond – they may still be working out what you’ve said

Avoid shouting, over-emphasising, or

exaggerating your words – this can be more harmful than helpful and can be misunderstood as aggressiveness.

Face the person – don’t turn or walk away while finishing a sentence, this only adds to the attenuation offered by face coverings.

As always, if you have a problem which I may be able to help with, give me a call on 07557 922020 and leave a message. Alternatively email me ellen.blacker@wiltshire.gov.uk. Be aware that I work part time and so will get back to you as soon as I can, but it may be a day or so. Stay safe everyone.

Ellen