YOUR INDEPENDENT COMMUNIT Y MAGAZINE FOR CARLISLE
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The Christmas Robin Two Christmas Crackers Travelling this Christmas Bring in the Wildlife Local Government Reorganisation
Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year to all our readers S TAY SAF E - H AN D S • FA C E • S PAC E Cumbrian Local Publications • Issue No. 167 1
TIER 2
HIGH ALERT
FROM 2 DEC
MEETING FRIENDS AND FAMILY
BARS, PUBS AND RESTAURANTS
RETAIL
WORK AND BUSINESS
No mixing of households indoors, apart from support bubbles. Maximum of six outdoors.
Pubs and bars must close, unless operating as restaurants. Hospitality venues can only serve alcohol with substantial meals. Venues must stop taking orders at 10pm and must close by 11pm.
Open.
Everyone who can work from home should do so.
EDUCATION
INDOOR LEISURE
ACCOMMODATION
PERSONAL CARE
Early years settings, schools, colleges and universities open. Childcare, other supervised activities for children, and childcare bubbles permitted.
Open.
Open.
Open.
OVERNIGHT STAYS
WEDDINGS AND FUNERALS
ENTERTAINMENT
PLACES OF WORSHIP
Permitted with household or support bubble.
15 guests for weddings, civil partnerships, wedding receptions and wakes; 30 for funerals.
Open.
Open, but cannot interact with anyone outside household or support bubble.
TRAVELLING
EXERCISE
RESIDENTIAL CARE
LARGE EVENTS
Reduce the number of journeys you make and walk or cycle if possible. Avoid busy times and routes on public transport. Avoid car sharing with those outside of your household or support bubble. Avoid entering a Tier 3 area, other than where necessary such as for work or education. Further exemptions apply.
Classes and organised adult sport can take place outdoors, but cannot take place indoors if there is any interaction between people from different households. Organised activities for elite athletes, under18s and disabled people can continue.
COVID-secure arrangements such as substantial screens, visiting pods, and window visits. Outdoor/airtight visits only (rollout of rapid testing will enable indoor visits including contact).
Sport, live performances and business meetings limited to 50% capacity or 2000 people outdoors (whichever is lower) and 50% capacity or 1000 people indoors (whichever is lower)
Find out what support you can get
If you have any coronavirus symptoms:
For example, if you’re out of work, need to get food, or want to take care of your mental health.
A high temperature • A new, continuous cough A loss of, or change to, your sense of smell or taste.
gov.uk/coronavirus
Get a test and stay at home
For more information and detailed guidance visit: gov.uk/coronavirus 2
Contents The Christmas Robin Page 6 Christmas Food Hygiene
Pages
8 & 11
Two Christmas Crackers Page 10 Books about Cumbria, at the Bookcase
Pages 12 - 13
Travelling this Christmas
Pages
Feeding the birds in your garden
Pages 16 - 17
Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come
Pages 18 & 21
Bring in the Wildlife - Nature by design
Page
20
Local Government Reorganisation proposals
Page
22
Five Minutes Spare Select & Collect
Page
23
Quinn HR & Kaveney HR Solutions
Pages 24 - 25
Seasonal Wordsearch and Quiz
Page
14 - 15
25
Pamela’s Scramble Page 26 Cumbria Police Update
Page
27
We’re going to need a bigger boat!
Page
28
Local Government Reorganisation continued
Pages 30 – 31
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updates
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Advertising in your Border City Times starts from £29. We have standard size adverts starting from 1/10 pages up to full pages. We also have varied and special sizes for advertorial pieces and for those adverts you can't just fit in a standard size box. Call Lee on 07881 530085 for more details.
The Christmas Two Christmas Robin Travelling this Crackers Bring in the Christmas Wildl Local Governmen ife t Reorganisa tion
Merry Christma
s & a Happy
(Be careful out there when booking advertising on the phone. There is only one point of contact dealing with advertising enquiries at Cumbrian Local Publications and we do not take payments over the phone) Cumbrian Local Publications Ltd Notice: We print various articles, features, and advertisements. Although these appear in Border City Times, any opinions expressed are the opinion of the author, these are not necessarily the opinion of the publisher. ©Copyright Cumbrian Local Publications 2020. The contents of this publication are written specifically for our readers, no part may be reproduced elsewhere without express and prior permission.
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New
Year to all our S TAY SAF readers E - H AN D S • FAC E • S PAC E Cumb rian Local Publi catio 1 ns
• Issue No. 167
E
Welcome to Cumbrian Local Publication no. 167th trusted news and what isn’t. We’ve put an Ofcom report together for you to make your own decision (p 29).
Welcome to your last Border City Times of 2020 and your second issue to print since we returned to Carlisle only last month. I would like to thank all those who have emailed in and called us showing their appreciation for receiving last month’s magazine through their doors. It is free to read on line at https://issuu.com/edenlocal/ docs/bordercitytimes-nov20-lr and should you require a hard copy of last month’s issue if you have missed it, you can call us or write to us to request one.
Something pops up on the internet whilst you are searching, and it drags you in by a headline today like a baited hook. These headlines have money behind them and potentially hidden agendas and other links which create even more traffic to your phone, your mobile device or computer. The Border City Times isn’t ever going to be wall to wall advertising. We will try and produce some current news the day before we print. Some will be clips to links to the full story, with links to the originator and therefore we hope it bridges a gap and not a trap! For those that aren’t online, some isolated in their homes, not just in a pandemic, but for 365 days of the year, we hope it provides some comfort in reassuring you, you are not alone. Of course at a blink of an eye you may have missed a social media post and in the tidal wave of information, you may have missed something really important whilst wading through irrelevance, but here we are and between this issue and the next which is out after Christmas, we hope you get something positive from this little magazine.
From a business point of view, launching a free printed publication that is posted through doors during a pandemic is probably not something that would be seen to be a good business move. So, firstly I’ll answer this question. It is vital to any community to be able to access information and important news that can impact on their lives. Whilst much of this information is freely available on line as it is to everybody, not everyone is on line. And whilst most news is online, a lot of events are promoted today and tomorrow or on the Tuesday or Wednesday of this week. It seems for many providers of news that involves important events, projects or campaigns, they are unable to think more than a week ahead, but wouldn’t it be good to know what’s happening next month or in two months’ time, rather than today.
As a publication, we get sent press releases six days a week from a range of council communication officers, communications teams, consultants for local councils, government agencies, and publishers along with online keyboard warriors - many of these people, salaried communication professionals. Of course, if it’s not Comms teams, we have marketing managers and executives sending out press releases, who are in actual fact advertising for events or their business, trying to save on their marketing and advertising budgets!
Wouldn’t it be good to be able to take part in a consultation that affects your life or where you live, not on the day it is due to finish but given the notice before it starts? With so much information out there, you still need to know where to find it and you need to know if it is
Added to the local information coming in, we then have the national agencies, more often than not book publishers in London or other cities, asking us to promote a book by someone who visited the Lakes, or may have been born in Cumbria, who needs to sell more books locally 4
online through Amazon, who may not have visited the homeland since they left! As it’s just me wading through this information at present and we have just 32 pages, I do my best. If we are really lucky we get people like those in this publication helping with some great stories. We have our local chef (p10), our local bookshop (P12-13), local charities/societies (P6, 16, 17 and 19), and local people all doing their bit. Without them we wouldn’t have the editorial we have. In a growing city, Carlisle has over 39,000 doors in CA1, CA2 and CA3. Can we reach everyone? At this moment we can’t, but we’ve made a start. In a well-known film of 1975, there was a phrase, ‘We’re going to need a bigger boat’ (P 28). To cover every door every month requires something special - ‘people’. So, our initial goal of reaching out to all is always going to be down to getting sufficient support from local authorities with budgets, that have key commitments and a duty to communicate to the community, not just online. We hope for local businesses that think it is a good thing to be seen supporting a local community magazine that’s free, not just going to affluent areas, is also a good thing. Council service providers and groups that want to see better recycling, need to receive more feedback on what people have been given as well as what they actually need. 2021 has the potential to be the beginning of something better. The more information we have and the more that we understand about what is going on, the easier it is for us when called to make the right decisions. On behalf of the Border City Times Team, we would like to wish you, your family and friends a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New year, we hope with better communication in 2021! Lee
Border City Times
Phone: 01768 862394 Email: lee@cumbrianlocal.co.uk www.cumbrianlocal.co.uk Cumbrian Local Publications Ltd, 4 Market Square, Penrith Cumbria CA11 9AX
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The Christmas Robin Of all Britain’s birds, none is more closely associated with winter and Christmas, than the robin. But how did this come about?
In the 1900s, Victorian postmen wore red uniforms, as a proud link to the British flag, earning them the nickname ‘robin redbreast’. As Christmas drew near people eagerly awaited cards from loved ones, delivered by their local ‘robin’. The small bird’s fate was sealed, as artists began illustrating Christmas cards with the birds delivering festive letters and cards, and they quickly became a Christmas icon. It may be suspected that these reasons, alongside the festive red colouration, have led to the robin being featured on Christmas cards and decorations across the land. But the real reason goes back much further. Legend has it that the robin’s redbreast gives it a direct link to Christianity. One fable suggests that when the baby Jesus was in his manger in the stable by the fire; a small brown bird fanned the flames to help keep the baby Jesus warm. Embers
from the fire scorched its tiny chest, leaving it red-breasted forevermore. There is also a legend of when a robin rested upon Jesus’ shoulder when he was on the cross and sang to relieve his suffering. Blood from Jesus’ crown of thorns stained the little bird’s chest, since then, all robins were red breasted.
Have you noticed a robin’s red-breast is actually orange? The bird was named before the English language had a word for the colour ‘orange’. Many things that were really orange were called red instead even though we did have the word for ‘orange’ as in the fruit. The colour orange was not named as a colour in English until the 16th century. The name for the colour comes from the fruit. Robins are not the only bird visible at Christmas time and can be spotted all year round. Perhaps we hold a special feeling for them, as other species abandon us for warmer climates in the cold winter months. Their cheerful song is the soundtrack to many a wintery morning – although this cheerful piping tune is actually a male robin’s aggressive claim to territory. Robins evolved as woodland birds, and in mainland Europe this is still their main home. In Britain they prefer gardens, which provide the ideal habitat where they can feed, breed and roost. They also take advantage of the UK’s passion for 6
gardening, following residents closely as they dig up hard winter soil to reveal juicy worms. This has made them very tame – even more so when snow covers their food supplies. Cold weather also means robins have to plump up their feathers to trap a layer of warm air beneath, which makes them look portly and even more endearing than normal. Recent mild winters, especially in November and December, mean there is still plenty of natural food available elsewhere, so your garden robin may go missing for a while. But if there is early snowfall, you can be sure a robin will appear at your door in search of much-needed sustenance. See inside this edition for advice on feeding birds in your garden. Why not look out for them in January, and take part in the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch. Full details on how to take part in the 2021 survey in next month’s edition. Dave Smith, Group Leader, RSPB West Cumbria Local Group
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Christmas food hygiene tips and how to cook your turkey safely (advisory foodstandardagency.gov.uk). There are an estimated 2.4 million cases of food poisoning in the UK each year. Whether cooking at home, or reusing leftovers, it’s important to maintain good food hygiene at Christmas by following the ‘4Cs’ of cleaning, chilling, cooking and avoiding cross-contamination. Christmas is a significant period of food waste. Love Food Hate Waste estimate over 100,000 tonnes of edible poultry, 96,000 tonnes of carrots and 710,000 tonnes of potatoes are thrown away each year in the UK. Thinking hygienically when storing, cooking, reusing and freezing food will help keep your Christmas safe and minimise food waste over the festive period.
Christmas food shopping Take enough bags for your Christmas food shop so that you can keep raw and ready-to-eat
food apart. To prevent crosscontamination, store raw meat, fish and shellfish separately from ready-to-eat food and vegetables. Keep these covered on the bottom shelf of your fridge. When food shopping over the Christmas period, it is important to understand the difference between best before and use-by dates to effectively plan your meals, get food to
last longer, and make sure you’re not throwing away food unnecessarily. Check your fridge is set at 5°C or below. Test this with a fridge thermometer. As long as your food is within its use-by date, it will stay fresher for longer. For the use-by date to be a valid guide, you must carefully follow storage instructions. Continued on page 11 YOUR IND EPEN
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The Christmas Two Christmas Robin Travelling this Crackers Bring in the Christmas Wildl Local Governmen ife t Reorganisa tion
Merry Christma
s & a Happy
New
Year to all our S TAY SAF readers E - H AN D S • FAC E • S PAC E Cumb rian Local Publi catio 1 ns
• Issue No. 167
E
in 1 ng 02 ni r 2 pe e O mm su
Newton House coming soon! Newton House on Newton Road in Penrith has been designed to offer independent living with access to on-site care if you need it. A stylish Extra Care Living development for people over the age of 65*, providing one and two bedroom apartments for affordable rent, and two bedroom apartments for shared ownership**. Pets are more than welcome too! Key benefits and services: • • • • • •
The privacy and security of your own home Dedicated Housing Manager 24 hour emergency alarm Care team on-site 24/7 Optional, tailored care and support Impressive range of communal facilities, including a restaurant
*The age for Newton House is 65 plus, however residents can qualify between the ages of 55 and 64 if they have a care and support need. **Eligibility criteria, monthly rent (up to 75% on shared ownership), core charges and service charges apply.
To find out more call us on 0345 608 4021, Monday - Friday, 9am - 5pm, or email newhome@housing21.org.uk Newton House | Newton Road | Penrith CA11 9FY
housing21.org.uk
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Two Christmas Crackers from Chef John Crouch festive but also taste great. Made from simple ingredients they really have that wow factor. We all like tucking into popcorn while watching a good film. So why not treat the family to this homemade snack.
Christmas is a time of treats and decorations, so why not combine the two? These Holly Wreath Biscuits not only look
Fill decorated cellophane food bags (Lakeland Ltd) with Christmas Popcorn and give as presents this holiday.
Check the government website for guidance on how to safely freeze your food. Don't waste the turkey carcass. Boiled up with some vegetables and seasoning it will make a tasty broth.
You've enjoyed your Christmas dinner and now ready to relax. But before you put your feet up make room in your fridge and
Look out for the next issue of Eden local where I'll give you some ideas to use up your leftover turkey.
Christmas Popcorn For the popcorn
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil • 2 tablespoons popping corn You will need a fairly large saucepan that has a lid. Have a heatproof basin ready to hold the cooked popcorn. Pour the oil into the saucepan and put it on the hob. Heat the oil over medium heat for about 2 minutes. Add all the corn to the pan and put the lid on. Turn the heat to high until the corn begins to pop. When the corn is popping turn the heat to the lowest setting. Shake the pan occasionally and cook the corn until the popping has stopped. • • • • • • • •
chill any leftover cooked turkey. Once chilled this meat can be frozen in portions to be used at a later date to make quick easy meals.
100g (4oz) popped corn 50g (2oz) red glacé cherries 50g (2oz) green glacé cherries 50g (2oz) raisins 50g (2oz) chopped almonds 50g (2oz) chopped mixed peel 2 teaspoons ground mixed spice silver sugar balls
Mix all the ingredients together and serve.
Holly Wreath Biscuits Ingredient • • • • • • • •
85g (3oz) butter 170g (6oz) marshmallows 4 drops vanilla essence 1 teaspoon green food colouring 115g (4oz) cornflakes red glacé cherries silver and gold sugar balls edible glitter
Method Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan over a low heat. Add the marshmallows and stir until melted. Stir in the vanilla essence and food colouring, then mix in the cornflakes. Drop tablespoonfuls of the mixture on to greaseproof paper and press a hole in the middle of each. Decorate with half red glacé cherries, sugar balls and edible glitter while soft. 10
How to defrost your turkey If your turkey is frozen, check the guidance on the packaging in advance. Some turkeys can be cooked from frozen if the manufacturer’s instructions say so. Do not defrost your turkey at room temperature. Always defrost your turkey in a container large enough to catch any juices to avoid crosscontamination. A typical large turkey weighing 6-7kg could take as much as 4 days to fully defrost in the fridge. If there are no instructions for defrosting your turkey, you can work out yourself how long it will take to thaw completely. In a fridge, allow around 10-12 hours per kg. If your turkey is not fully defrosted before cooking, it may cook unevenly. This means harmful bacteria can survive the cooking process and you will be at risk of food poisoning.
How to cook your turkey Do not wash raw turkey before cooking. Washing raw meat spreads germs onto your hands, clothes, utensils and worktops. Thorough cooking will kill any bacteria present. When cooking your turkey, always check the advice on the packaging and follow the instructions provided. The cooking guidelines will be based on a bird that is not stuffed. Cook your stuffing in a separate roasting tin, not inside the turkey. A stuffed turkey will take longer to cook and may not cook thoroughly if it has not reached the correct temperature throughout. To work out the cooking time for your turkey, check the retailer’s instructions on the packaging. If there are no cooking instructions, in an oven preheated to 180ºC (350ºF or Gas Mark 4): Allow 45 minutes per kg plus 20 minutes for a turkey that weighs under 4.5kg Allow 40 minutes per kg for a turkey that weighs between 4.5kg and 6.5kg Allow 35 minutes per kg for a turkey weighs over 6.5kg Check the temperature of the thickest part of the bird, between the breast and the thigh, using a temperature probe.
The temperature needs to reach one of the following combinations to make sure it has been cooked properly: 60°C for 45 minutes 65°C for 10 minutes 70°C for 2 minutes 75°C for 30 seconds, 80°C for 6 seconds Remember to fully clean the temperature probe or cooking thermometer after each use to avoid cross-contamination.
Reusing your leftovers Reuse and reinvent your leftovers in different ways. Cool and cover your leftovers, and put them in a fridge or freezer within one to two hours. Splitting leftovers into smaller portions will cool food quicker and help portion control. You can freeze cooked turkey, other cooked meat and meals made from cooked and frozen meat. Once defrosted, you should eat the food within 24 hours. You can also use previously cooked and frozen turkey to make a new meal, such as a turkey curry. Love Food Hate Waste (Opens in a new window) have various creative recipes and ideas for how to make your Christmas leftovers go further. Freezing your leftovers Freeze and defrost any leftovers for future dishes. Freezing acts as a pause button. It is safe to freeze food right up until the use-by date. You can freeze most food. This includes raw and cooked meats, fruit, potatoes (after boiling for five minutes), grated cheese, and eggs. When food defrosts, its core temperature rises. This provides the ideal conditions for bacteria to grow if left at room temperature. It is best to defrost food slowly and safely in the fridge. You can also defrost your leftovers thoroughly in a microwave. Make sure you re-heat until steaming hot. Once the food is defrosted eat within 24 hours. The above information was researched and obtained from https://www.food.gov.uk/safety-hygiene/ christmas-food-hygiene#how-to-defrost-your-turkey Last updated 12 December 2019 11
Books about Cumbria, at the Bookcase
More books have been written about Cumbria than any other county. And 2020, despite the pandemic is no exception.
Top of my Christmas list is Live at The Front Page by Martin Lawson. Many people will remember the cellar night club in Fisher Street in Carlisle. In the 1980s it was the place to be. An amazing number of the country’s top acts performed there in the crowded, smokey atmosphere. Everyone turned up from Humphrey Lyttleton to The Bhundi Boys. Martin Lawson ran the club and he knows the inside story of this legendary Music Club. (Bookcase. £12)
Nostalgia of a different sort is provided by Roger Bolton. The Radio 4 Feedback presenter and one-time Panorama producer tells of his growing up in Carlisle between the War and the Beatles. The earlier years were ones of austerity living with grandparents in Denton Holme, but his father’s joinery business saw the family move up in the world to Upperby and then Dalston Road. And Roger grew up, fostered by Trinity School and St John’s Church, to be a keen footballer and cricketer and to discover the world that opened out for every teenager during the sixties and the days of the Beatles and the cultural changes they brought with them. It’s a wonderfully evoctive description of a world that many will remember with affection. (Bookcase, £10) James Rebanks, the Herdwick Shepherd from Matterdale, is now known internationally. English Pastoral tells his own personal story of growing up on a Cumbrian sheep farm and interweaves the argument for changing the face of farming. We should recover something of the old ways where the farmer worked in sympathy with nature and not against it. This is a very timely and important book. (Allen Lane. £20)
Douglas Clark from Maryport was The Man of All Talents. (Pitch £12.99). Duggy was born, the son of a coal merchant, in 1891. Playing for Huddersfield Town, he won every honour Rugby League offered. In the First World War he was seriously injured but he won the Military Medal for his bravery. An incredibly strong and fit man, he established a reputation as one of the great Cumberland and Westmorland wrestlers. 12
Jon Colman celebrates more Cumbrian sporting prowess in Bolts from the Blues. (Vertical Editions. £14.99) Those bolts from the Blues are the iconic goals scored by Carlisle United through the years. Jon has spoken to the men who scored those girls and this is their story of the great moments in the history of Cumbria’s leading football team. More sporting success is celebrated by Steve Chilton in his story of the remarkable Billy Bland. A quarryman, builder and drystone waller by trade, Billy, from Borrowdale, broke all the fell running records in the ’80s and ’90s. His record for the exhausting Bob Graham Round stood for thirty years. Billy was not only a man of incredible stamina and determination but a man with a deep affection for his native Cumbrian fells. (All or Nothing at All: The Life of Billy Bland. (Sandstone Press. £19.99). For the aspiring sportsman or woman with stamina and a love of the water Suzanna Cruickshank has provided a guide to the most beautiful wild swimming spots in the larger lakes. Swimming Wild in the Lake District offers a fish’s eye view of the beauty of the Lakeland fells. Sometimes those fells are bathed in summer sunshine and sometimes, for the keen and hardy swimmer, they can be covered in winter snow. But the attraction and pleasure of swimming wild is still the same. (VP. £17.99) Another lover of the outdoors is Ann Lingard. The novelist and broadcaster now runs a small holding on the Solway Plain. In The Fresh and the Salt: The Story of the Solway (Birlinn. £25) she shares her enthusiasm for this beautiful and unpredictable part of the country. The estuary’s varying moods and rich history are evoked with the deep affection of someone who has come to know them intimately.
Stuart Edgar and John M Sinton are also lovers of Solway history. In The Solway Junction Railway (Oakwood £13.95) they tell the story of the doomed railway that bridged the Solway on a viaduct that ran from Bowness to Annan. The line opened in the 1860s and was closed sixty years later and the viaduct no longer spans the estuary, but, in its day, it was a remarkable achievement of Victorian engineering. Other features of the Cumbrian landscape are the innumerable boundary markers to be found everywhere. The may be found isolated on the fells or they may be seen alongside busy roads, but throughout the county there are these overlooked indicators of the ways the land has been divided. Colin Smith and his fellow enthusiasts have unearthed a remarkable number of these forgotten artifacts which offer their own account of Cumbrian history. (Boundary Markers in Cumbria. Bookcase. £16) These books and many more on Cumbria and much else are available from Bookends in Carlisle and Keswick and from Bookscumbria.com. They make the perfect Christmas presents.
BOOKCASE 17-19 Castle Street Carlisle CA3 8SY Tel: 01228 544560 www.bookcasecarlisle.co.uk 13
Christmas travel measures to help plan your journey A comprehensive plan to minimise disruption and help people travel safely during the Christmas travel window between 23 and 27 December. Published 3 December 2020
the course of the pandemic, journeys during the Christmas period could be longer and busier than usual. The measures to be outlined today are targeted at supporting passenger and staff safety, reducing disruption wherever possible, and helping people travel with confidence.
From: Department for Transport and The Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP • government outlines measures for safe Christmas journeys between 23 and 27 December
Travellers are also reminded to closely follow guidance, including wearing face coverings, maintaining social distancing and washing their hands frequently.
• Transport Secretary announces 778 of miles of roadworks cleared • rail upgrades postponed enabling extra services with over 95% of the rail network unaffected by engineering works
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: With many people carefully considering whether to travel to see loved ones this Christmas, we’re taking steps to try to ease journeys.
• longer trains and extra services added alongside waiving of admin fees to change advance rail tickets
Clearing 778 miles of road works and postponing rail upgrade works will ease congestion, minimise disruption and allow extra services to run.
• passengers urged to plan carefully, book ahead and follow guidance if they decide to travel
That action is backed by scrapping the admin fees for changing advance rail tickets, ensuring a strong staff presence to help people on their way. And I’ve asked former Olympics transport boss and Chair of Network Rail Sir Peter Hendy to carry out a rigorous assessment alongside transport operators to ensure everything possible is being done to help.
The government has today (3 December 2020) outlined a series of measures focused on minimising disruption and helping people travel safely over the Christmas period, while urging passengers to plan their journeys carefully, consider quieter routes and where possible book ahead. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has announced a comprehensive plan for the Christmas travel window between 23 and 27 December, including lifting hundreds of miles of roadworks, enhancing rail services, postponing and accelerating rail engineering works and cutting ticket charges to help travellers with their journeys.
We’re working with transport operators to help people see their loved ones, safely. We ask everyone to closely consider their journey, plan and book ahead, be patient, and be considerate of fellow passengers – and particularly staff who have worked so hard all year - by following the guidance carefully, including keeping space and wearing a face covering on public transport.
The government is also working closely with transport operators to establish priority areas for testing of workers, to maintain and maximise services.
The government is also working with the devolved administrations on our plans to ensure we take an aligned approach as far as possible.
As roads and rail have typically been quieter over 14
Longer trains will run on Anglo-Scotland and Liverpool routes to boost the number of seats at anticipated busy times on the West Coast Main Line Travelling from England to other UK nations Before you travel from England to Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales, you should check that: • the activity you are travelling for is permitted in the country you plan to visit Rail measures outlined today include:
announced on 26 November,
The government is waiving change of journey admin fees for advance tickets purchase before new COVID tiers were
and ensuring passengers
enabling fee free changes are not left out of pocket for complying with the new COVID restrictions.
15
• you are permitted to stay overnight, if you need to do so • your trip respects each nation’s social contact rules
Feeding the birds in your garden
Feeding garden birds is one of the easiest ways you can give your feathered friends a boost to help them survive natural food shortages and harsh winter weather, ensuring that they are in tip top condition to breed in spring. In the UK, birds need a fairly constant amount of energy throughout the year. In winter they will need this energy to keep warm, while in the spring and summer they have to deal with the rigours of raising young and then moulting and regrowing their feathers. In autumn, many migrant birds arrive at our bird tables hungry after their long journey. Although food shortages can occur at any time of the year, the natural supply is usually lowest in winter and spring, so this is when garden birds will reap the most benefit from the food you put out.
mostly house sparrows, dunnocks, finches, reed buntings and collared doves, while flaked maize is taken readily by blackbirds. Tits and greenfinches favour peanuts and sunflower seeds. Mixes that contain chunks or whole nuts are suitable for winter feeding only. Pinhead oatmeal is excellent for many birds.
There are different mixes for feeders, for bird tables and for ground feeding. The better mixtures contain plenty of flaked maize, sunflower seeds and peanut granules. Small seeds, such as millet, attract
Nyjer seeds are small and black, rich in fat and with high oil content. They do need a special type of seed feeder however. They're a favourite with goldfinches and siskins and are popular with tits, greenfinches, house sparrows, nuthatches and great spotted woodpeckers too.
Warning: Avoid seed mixtures that have split peas, beans, dried rice or lentils as again only the large species can eat them dry. These are added to some cheaper seed mixes to bulk them up. Also avoid any mixture containing green or pink lumps as these are dog biscuit, which can only be eaten when soaked. Black sunflower seeds are an excellent year-round food, and in many areas are even more popular than peanuts. The oil content is higher in black than striped ones.
birds, so always buy from a reputable dealer. Never put out loose peanuts, during spring or summer, as these pose a choking hazard if they are fed to chicks, place whole peanuts in a suitable mesh feeder. Fat balls and other fat-based food bars are excellent winter food. If they are sold in nylon mesh bags, always remove the bag before putting the fat ball out – the soft mesh can trap and injure birds. Mealworms are relished by robins and blue tits, and may attract other insect-eating birds such as pied wagtails. Mealworms are a natural food and you can feed them to birds throughout the year. Warning: as with most foods, there can be a risk of salmonella poisoning. If you're using dried mealworms reduce any risk by only providing small amounts that get eaten quickly. You can also store dried mealworms in the fridge. Soak dried mealworms in warm water for 20-60 minutes before putting out to provide valuable moisture content and make it easier for younger birds to digest.
Peanuts, crushed or grated, attract robins, dunnocks and even wrens. Nuthatches and coal tits may hoard peanuts.
Any dry breakfast cereal makes useful bird food, although you need to be careful only to put out small amounts at a time. Uncooked porridge oats are also fine for a number of birds.
Warning: Don't use salted or dry roasted peanuts. Remember, peanuts can be high in a natural toxin, which can kill
Warning: never cook porridge oats, this makes them glutinous and could harden around a bird's beak.
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ŠRSPBC
to digest milk and it can give them serious stomach upsets or kill them and never use desiccated coconut as it may swell once inside a bird. All types of bread can be digested by birds, but ideally it should only be just one component in a varied diet. Bread does not contain the necessary protein, vitamins and fat birds need from their diet. Although bread isn't harmful to birds, try not to offer it in large quantities, since its nutritional value is low. During the breeding season, make sure bread is crumbled into tiny pieces and dry chunks of bread will choke baby birds.
Lard and beef suet on their own are fine as they re-solidify after warming. Warning: fat from cooking is bad for birds as they will have meat juices blended in and when set, this consistency makes it prone to smearing, not good for birds' feathers destroying the waterproofing and insulating qualities. Polyunsaturated margarines or vegetable oils are also unsuitable for birds. Birds can digest fermented dairy products, such as cheese. Mild grated cheese can be a good way of attracting robins, wrens and dunnocks. Give fresh coconut only, in the shell. Warning: never give milk to any bird. A bird's gut is not designed
Dried fruits, such as raisins, sultanas and currants are particularly enjoyed by blackbirds, song thrushes and robins. Soak them during spring and summer. Some dogs and cats react badly to these fruits please do not put them out in areas where these animals might get to them. Apples, pears and other fruit, including bruised and part rotten ones, cut up, are very popular with all thrushes, tits and starlings. Garden birds are practically unable to metabolise salt. It is toxic to them in high quantities and affects their nervous system. Never put out salted food onto the bird table, and never add salt to bird baths to keep water ice-free in the winter. Birds need a supply of water for drinking, to help digest food and for bathing. If there is no local source of water; bird baths are a good substitute but position them where the birds 17
will feel safe from predators. Keep all bird tables, feeders and baths clean to avoid transmission of disease. Whatever food you use, always make sure it's fresh. Why not add your bird feeding equipment requirements to your list for Santa! As lockdown and various tiers make it hard to get out to the shops, the RSPB online shop has all sorts of goodies, from bird food to chocolates and books to binoculars. Have a browse at https://shopping.rspb.org.uk Dave Smith, Group Leader, RSPB West Cumbria Local Group The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a registered charity: England and Wales no. 207076, Scotland no. SC037654 For more information and contact details: RSPB West Cumbria Local Group https://ww2.rspb.org.uk/ groups/westcumbria/ RSPB North Cumbria Local Group https://ww2.rspb.org.uk/ groups/carlisle
Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come Christmas has never not happened! Bank holidays move, Easter could be in March or April but 25th December is always Christmas for those celebrating it. As a child from the mid 60’s to the early 70’s, I remember a series of Christmas’s being a set routine for quite a period of my life. Nan cooked the turkey the night before, and after lunch, which was 12.30, we went to my great grandmother’s or we brought her back to ours. Then in the evening we went to my cousins. This meant four lads all within 4 years age of each other, aged 3 to 6 till we got to the aged range 7 – 10 we would be playing the games that we had as presents for Christmas until I went home. Yes, Christmas Day evenings as I remember included Mouse Trap, Battling Tops, Buckaroo, Fastest Gun
in the West, Haunted House, Subbuteo, Battleships, Striker and Kerplunk to name a few. Christmas in the late 60’s - we had three TV channels, all black and white. There weren’t that many Christmas films in the 1960’s that were like what we have now. There certainly wasn’t a Christmas channel. In raising this as part of memories of Christmas, I know it will jog memories for a lot of readers we have who will be reminded of more than just a white Christmas. My memories of these films included three American movies and songs that originated from a film called ‘Holiday Inn’, an American musical from 1942, with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire, with Marjorie Reynolds and Virginia Dale. The film featured
the song White Christmas, and it also featured the song Easter Parade, so technically it wasn’t a Christmas movie, however in 1954, based on the success of the song ‘White Christmas’, this led to another film based on the song, called White Christmas (1954), which starred Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, and Vera-Ellen. It is a plot involving an inn, but otherwise different from the earlier film. Another couple of classic black and white movies were ‘It's a Wonderful Life’ released in 1946, an American Christmas fantasy drama film with James Stewart, and then a 1947 film, Miracle on 34th Street that was the first full-length black and white film to be colourised. Above all of these in my childhood memories was the film Scrooge, also known as A
Continued on page 21 18
Recycle your Christmas Tree with Hospice at Home Are you having a real Christmas Tree this year within your home or business? Do you live or work within the CA1, CA2, CA3, CA4 8, CA5 6, CA5 7, CA6 4, CA6 5, CA7 9, CA8 1, CA8 9, CA10 2, CA11 7, CA11 8, CA11 9, or CA11 0 postcode areas? Hospice at Home is once again organising this festive fundraising initiative that not only helpfully recycles trees after the festive season but also raises vital funds to provide local hospice care in the community. Last year, the Charity collected over 1,100 trees, raising almost £12,000. The areas in which the Charity is collecting trees covers Penrith, Carlisle, Wigton, Longtown, Brampton and Dalston – a significant proportion of the area in which Hospice at Home Carlisle and North Lakeland’s clinical services operate. Supporters can book their
tree for collection at www. charityxmastreecollection.com from Sunday 15th November and make a donation of their choice to Hospice at Home. On Friday 8th January 2021 volunteers and local businesses, who have pledged vans and staff teams to help, will collect the trees and take them to be recycled locally. No trips to the tip or needles in your car – just leave the trees in your front garden or outside your property and Hospice at Home will do the rest! Cath Coates, Fundraiser, said “We are delighted to be offering the Christmas Tree Collection again this year, particularly with many events cancelled during 2020 due to the Coronavirus pandemic. We were keen to continue organising this collection, and we will be following strict guidance to ensure our collectors stay safe. Year on year this event has
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increased in popularity and in turn, so has the fundraising total, which ultimately means we can provide more care for more people. We would like to thank all of the supporters of this event, from our leaflet distribution volunteers, to our van drivers and tree collectors, as well as our lead sponsor this year, Lloyd Motor Group”. For more information about the Charity or the Christmas Tree Collection please visit www.hospiceathome.co.uk. To help deliver leaflets in your local area to spread awareness of this appeal please email fundraising@hospiceathome. co.uk. To help with the collection on 8th January by donating your time and a van/ large vehicle, please email comms@hospiceathome.co.uk. Alternatively, please call 01768 210719.
Bring in the wildlife autumn. It can grow quite large but I have mine in a big pot because it copes with restricted soil space; it’s pollution tolerant too, making it great for towns. So much to love about it!
It’s heading into winter and so you might think there is nothing left to do.. but think again; 28th November – 6th December is National Tree Week and it is the perfect time to plant bare-rooted trees. You’ll need to do it while the ground is still workable so get cracking.
A well-known Cumbrian sight on the hills… The rowan tree – Sorbus aucuparia – has a mythical history and is another native which the birds adore and I do too. It reminds me of being out on the majestic Lake District fells and has lovely feathery, dark green leaves which are blue-green underneath, also bright red berries which will amaze you and the birds. Plus it flowers in late spring and there’s the bonus of autumn colour. Historically the wood was used to stir milk to prevent it curdling and for divining rods… and the berries make fantastic jam. Leave some for the birds though.
As a garden designer, my starting point with any garden planting is to think of trees. They can provide structure and all year round interest, and importantly, bring in wildlife – if you read my last article you know I aim to get the wildlife into every garden!
These are all deciduous but next time I’ll talk about evergreen plants.
I’m a firm believer there’s a tree for any space. Do bear in mind the ultimate size of the tree and the distance from your house, but there are some wonderful small trees for small gardens and you can find trees to plant in pots.
Contact me to discuss bringing out the beauty in every season, from revitalising gardens to complete garden designs. © Karen Roberts Garden Design
Striking colours and bird friendly… There are so many trees to choose from but it is hard to beat Euonymus europaeus – the spindle tree. It has so many positives: a shrub or small tree native to hedgerows, with scarlet red fruits and orange seeds – spectacular to see and tasty for the birds, plus brilliant red autumn colour and attractive corky bark.
07856 528893 137x34mm magazine banner ad.indd 1
A tolerant tree… Ginkgo biloba is an amazing deciduous conifer, sometimes called a living fossil with almost identical leaf fossils dating back more than 200 million years, which blows my mind a bit. The national tree of China, one of the first examples in the UK is in Kew dating back to 1759. It has beautiful bright green often bi-lobed leaves (hence “biloba”) which turn a magnificent yellow in 20
• karenrobertsgardendesign@gmail.com 29/10/2020 15:41
I was the 1970 version remains my favourite
Christmas Carol created from the Charles Dickens book of the same name, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843, the Christmas Ghost story featuring Ebenezer Scrooge, an elderly miser who is visited by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley and the spirits of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come.
A British release in 1901 on the silver screen as a silent movie called Scrooge, it was then produced again as a silent movie in 1910 at the Edison Studios in the Bronx in New York City. The film was then called A Christmas Carol. It was finally released in 1935 with sound and of the seven since then! I think because of the age
Christmas 2020 might just be a bit different. You might look back at Last Christmas and let’s hope you won’t be lonely this Christmas and a good friend or family are with you. I don’t miss walking across the road to the red telephone box to call friends and family but I’d do it again if I had to. And if you haven’t already, you will hear the sound of some of the best ever 50’s, 60’s, 70’s and 80’s Christmas music, again, which will last forever. This Christmas will be a Winters Tale next year, even if you’re not driving home for Christmas. Staying in with the Mistletoe and Wine, with some chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow. Merry Christmas Everybody!
SALE NOW ON BEAT THE JANUARY RUSH Station Yard Plumpton Penrith, CA11 9PA Tel: 01768 894528
www.cumbriaoak.co.uk 21
Local Government Reorganisation proposals At a Special Council meeting on Tuesday 1 December, Carlisle City Council supported the council’s proposal for Local Government Reorganisation in Cumbria. The proposal follows a formal Government invitation for councils in Cumbria to submit locally-led proposals for unitary local government, which was received in October of this year. Carlisle’s proposal outlines the Council’s vision for local government in the county, which includes adopting a two unitary model incorporating Eden, Carlisle and Allerdale in the North of the county and South Lakes, Barrow and Copeland in the South. A final decision on the proposal and business case will also be considered at an Executive meeting on Monday 7 December. The final proposal and businesses case will be submitted to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, The Rt Hon Robert Jenrick MP, by Wednesday 9 December. Leader of Carlisle City Council Cllr John Mallinson, said: “We want a positive future for Carlisle and Cumbria. We believe that our proposal for local government reorganisation is the way to achieve this. This is a golden opportunity to create a new way of working that will be more efficient and will best serve our communities. “We will do all we can to ensure that the changes provide the best possible option for our residents, businesses and the wide region.” The report to the Special Council is here: https://carlisle.cmis.uk.com/Meetings/ tabid/73/ctl/ViewMeetingPublic/mid/410/ Meeting/4946/Committee/823/SelectedTab/ Documents/Default.aspx
C.133/20 LOCAL GOVERNMENT REORGANISATION There was submitted report of the Town Clerk and Chief Executive (CE.06/20) recording that, as Members would be aware, the City Council had been invited, along with other local authorities in Cumbria, to submit proposals for reorganisation of local government in Cumbria to create one or more unitary councils. An outline submission was submitted on 9 November 2020 indicating that a final submission would be made by the deadline of 9 December 2020 in support of two unitary authorities being created in the county. The latest draft of the submission (Appendix 1) explained how two unitary councils struck the optimum balance between local government being close to the communities it served, whilst having the resources and influence to drive positive change. Importantly, two unitaries would also support the establishment of a mayoral combined authority that had a genuine strategic purpose and provided the basis for devolution to the area. The submission of the proposal was a decision of the Executive, and the Members of the Executive sought the views of Council to inform (but not direct) their decision on the final submission. https://carlisle.cmis.uk.com/Meetings/tabid/73/ ctl/ViewMeetingPublic/mid/410/Meeting/4946/ Committee/823/SelectedTab/Documents/Default.aspx Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, face to face visits are by appointment only. You can make an appointment by calling 01228 817200 or emailing customerservices@carlisle.gov.uk Carlisle City Council Civic Centre, Carlisle, Cumbria, CA3 8QG Continued on page 30 22
SELECT AND COLLECT WITH FIVE MINUTES SPARE It was a few months back that I wrote the first introduction to a new idea for a local Business Directory. It was and is of course an online directory, but is also very different from many that are out there on the Internet.
Just because you see it doesn’t mean anyone else has. You can be a small fish or a big one in the ocean, but what about being a shoal of fish all swimming in the same direction. The Internet has certainly caught a lot of you out!
The Internet can be a wonderful thing, especially with up to date information, but it is an infinitive ocean polluted with out of date details of businesses with the wrong details, and some don’t even exist. A lot of businesses have taken a free listings offer which they have no access to. Left floating around with out of date information, their business is online sending potential customers and businesses to the wrong address, giving them the wrong contact details or phone number.
Five Minutes Spare, working with Cumbrian Local Publications, has helped and continues to help and support local businesses to rise above the waves with simple solutions in getting local businesses online. Imagine all the businesses in a town or area all heading in one direction. Imagine the impact it would have, when, for example, someone wanted to discover Penrith and through one portal they could discover it all.
As a test for current businesses who have moved, search for yourself. You know of a business that sadly has closed in the last 6 months - it will probably still be there. How many times as a new business do you get calls for the previous business that had that number? Shop Local is the way forward for any town, village or area where we live, but as a community together it requires linked thinking, not just opinions but a structure, a plan and not another point scoring exercise for business groups and unqualified keyboard marketeers. In the current situation, COVID 19 came like a tidal wave, not once and it took some businesses out and for those not online, if left them high and dry. Online shopping shouldn’t be unknown, unaffordable and a complicated thing for local independent businesses, whether they are retailers, restaurants, pubs, hair or beauty salons, garages or garden centres; yes there are a lot more trades that need to be seen selling products and services online. Firstly, I’m not taking about social media, post today gone tomorrow when the money is spent.
How high would this rank in a search online? Reserving products online, ordering a take away for delivery, booking an appointment, making a reservation, choosing a time for collecting your Christmas tree - as a business you don’t need to wait for a pandemic to be open 24 hours a day, to sell more products, to deliver a better customer service and saving your time and theirs, so you and the customer are not waiting around. You have a Choice. You can be the same or to be different and stand out, The question is, ‘Have you got Five Minutes Spare?’ Make that call! If you have Five Minutes Spare, let us help you release the full potential of your business online in 2021. Call Lewis on 07587 774689 or Lee on 01768 862394. www.fiveminutesspare.com/businessdirectory/ select-collect-shop-local-penrith/cumbria/ www.fiveminutesspare.com/businessdirectory/ select-and-collect-eat-local-penrith/cumbria/ penrith/ 23
Q
HR
The Importance of Communication & Remote Working share some of these with you. They may be useful for both employers and employees.
A number of our clients have contacted us over the last few months expressing concerns over their employees’ mental health and feelings of isolation as remote working and furlough continue.
VIRTUAL TEAM MEETINGS With most meetings now held virtually, there are a number of things to consider. We’ve learnt a lot about them over the last 9 months!
As people continue to be encouraged to work from home where they possibly can (and many are still furloughed), whilst there is an upside to working remotely, there is also a downside, which can lead to feelings of isolation and loneliness where face to face interaction with work colleagues is missing. Communication is, therefore, absolutely critical.
• Create a consistent schedule to ensure everyone is being looped in on updates, expectations and next steps – perhaps a daily catch-up session, including a short slot at the beginning or end of the formal meeting for more light-hearted chat • Be careful not to hold too many virtual meetings each day and always try to avoid back to back meetings (virtual meetings can be more intense than face to face because you don’t get the same type of interaction and they generally require greater levels of concentration)
PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNICATION How we communicate with our employees, particularly in these strange and challenging times is really important, so what do you need to think about? We would advise following these principles:
• Try to leave at least 30 minutes between meetings and encourage employees to use that time to have a proper break (not just to catch up with other emails and do other work)
• Be open, accessible and willing to respond as much as possible to those needing more information • Be truthful
• Meetings generally shouldn’t last any longer that 1½ to 2 hours and given the intensity, it is a good idea to have a 15-minute break after the first hour of any meeting
• Be compassionate, empathetic and considerate • Don’t over-reassure • Acknowledge uncertainty
LINE MANAGERS
Good Practice and Ideas
Line managers need to adapt their approach to managing and communicating with their staff
There’s so much good practice and so many great ideas out there, so we thought it would be good to 24
remotely. It’s so important to recognise the support for staff will require more planning than usual, and you may need to think creatively about how best to engage with different members of the team.
enjoy – perhaps cooking, walking, reading or even learn something new. Employers may want to consider signing up for an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP). An EAP is an employee benefit that provides them with support and practical advice on issues that might be affecting their wellbeing and work performance. Counselling and expert support is provided through the EAP, on personal and workrelated issues. EAP’s can be incredibly useful for both employees and employers, and whilst it is another cost for any business, in our experience the benefits outweigh the costs.
• Hold regular 1-1 check ins with each team member, giving individuals an opportunity to express and discuss any personal concerns, and allowing the manager to detect early on if someone is struggling with their work and/or may be feeling isolated or experiencing other issues • Act quickly if you have any concerns about an individual – this may involve speaking to others to be able to offer the necessary support and advice, but always ensure confidentiality
HERE TO HELP
• Operate with higher levels of compassion, kindness and space for listening
If you need any help or advice on any of the matters raised in this article or with any other employment matter, we’d be delighted to hear from you.
• Be creative – create virtual or socially distanced opportunities for staff to connect and feel a sense of workplace community. Fizz Fridays and bringing pets and kids into the calls have been seen!
Please email Charlotte charlotte@quinnhr.co.uk or call on 01768 862394 / 07732 556315 or email Sue - sue@kaveney-hr.co.uk or call on 01228 537153 / 07917 273884.
OTHER TIPS AND IDEAS Encourage employees to be as active as they can as this really can help mental (as well as Physical) wellbeing, and to participate in activities that they
C W S S T O C K I N G S T
T R F U F E S L O R A C E
E I H A T C Y L L O H N L
I E I L S I I T I R A B G
V R R C P G N V I O R A N
Y T T A H A G S R E E U I
N S M T Y R T R E E R B T
C O S N V M G D B L S L S
R R A A A R N V K V S E I
I F E S T I V I T I E S R
S N W L E S R O B I N M H
P D V R F E H Y K O M H C
Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas! Stay safe and well
O H Y D L O C B W C L G R
December 2020 Wordsearch
COMPILED AND SPONSORED BY QUINN HR
Christmas Festivities Carols Santa Claus Reindeer Holly Christingle Snow Frost Ice
Cold Crisp Ivy Tree Tinsel Baubles Fairy Lights Stockings Robin
WIN A WINTER PRIZE How many times can you count the word Winter in your Border City Times?
Email the correct answers to info@cumbrianlocal.co.uk Entries close 12pm Sunday 3rd January. From all the correct answers one will be drawn live in the breakfast show on Eden FM 107.5 and online at www.edenfm.co.uk (click to listen) on Tuesday 12th January straight after the 9am news and weather. The winner will be confirmed in your first Border City Times of 2021. 25
SCRAMBLE QUIZ Answer the questions and unscramble the initial letters of the answers to find something you might do on the Big Day! To help you here’s the number of words and letters in each word. (4),(9),(8) mimes the tile of a book, film, theatre, T.V. or similar for the rest of the group to guess.
1. He’s the one with the big red nose! 2. It can be thrown on the fire or it’s a chocolate covered yule cake.
12. A dried grape found in Christmas cake, Christmas pudding and mince pies.
3. They look after sheep. 4. A sweet dish you have after your main meal. At Christmas it’s full of fruit & nuts and is often set on fire with brandy.
13. The highest ranking Angel – Gabriel was one.
5. Often shown on Christmas cards as a chubby, healthy looking child or baby with wings; it is the second highest order of the 9 levels of angels.
15. The UK’s favourite bird. They traditionally appear on Christmas cards.
6. It’s where Santa might put your presents; ……… the Christmas tree!
17. An evergreen parasitic plant with white berries, it is traditional to kiss under it at Christmas time.
14. Traditionally the white outer layer and decoration on the Christmas cake.
16. A desert animal with one or two humps.
7. Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar are better known as the three what?
18. The four Sundays (and weeks) before Christmas. This year it will start on 29th November.
8. A portable light source. They traditionally used a wick or a candle and could be carried or hung up.
19. A decorative material that mimics the effect of ice. It is often used to decorate the tree or the house at Christmas time.
9. The name given to January 6th. It celebrates the arrival of (Q.7) to visit the baby Jesus.
20. Found wrapped in bacon with the turkey or in pastry on the buffet!
10. The Jewish festival which this year will be celebrated 10th -18th December. It is also known as The Feast of Dedication, Festival of Lights or Feast of the Maccabees.
21. A herb usually mixed with onions, breadcrumbs, butter and egg to make a traditional stuffing to go with turkey or chicken.
11. A traditional parlour or party game that is played at Christmas where one person
Here are the answers for last month 1. Open 2. Banana 3. Florence 4. Nettle 5. Equator
6. Icicle 7. Rhubarb 8. Ulaanbaatar /Ulan Bator 9. Geordie
10. Yesterday 11. Prune 12. Anteater 13. Eggplant 14. Scissors
15. Ragtime 16. Ruler 17. Skittles 18. Knitting 19. Lilo
What you might see on the 5th November - Bonfire, Guy, Sparklers 26
Cumbria Police update Camera upgrade - Shadygrove Road in Carlisle Due to an increase in anti-social behaviour and crime in the Shadygrove Road area of Carlisle, we have increased CCTV capacity - which has already assisted in detecting crime and identifying offenders. These cameras have the ability to give high resolutions images even in poor light.
The city west community team are out-and-about on the beat near you We are hitting the beat more often following a shake-up in the team covering the west of Carlisle and its rural patch. Our officers are now able to do a lot of their admin work on their new smart phones, which replace old pocket books. Because of this officers are aiming to be more visible for residents of Dalston, Belle Vue, Morton, Sandsfield Park, Denton Holme and neighbouring areas. PC Christie and PCSO Mcrea join PCSO Longfellow and PCSO Kirkpatrick on community policing. The city west community policing team will be contacting all primary schools in the coming weeks - and hope to encourage a new generation of Mini Police.
Don’t let loan sharks get their teeth into you We have been contacted by the Illegal Money Lending Team to remind people not to borrow from loan sharks, especially at this time of the year. While it is not an offence to borrow money, it is to lend without correct authorisation. Remember loan sharks often: • Offer you a cash loan but do not give you any paperwork. • Take your benefit or bank card as security on the loan. • Don’t tell you when you will finish paying. • Increase the amount you owe even if you are making regular payments. • Threaten or use violence to get money from you.
Anti-social Behaviour
If you think you may have borrowed from a loan shark call the
Carlisle Police want you to report all anti-social behaviour and crime
England Illegal Money Lending Team hotline and talk in complete confidence.
Please report any incidents of crime or anti-social behaviour to us, to help us keep Carlisle safe.
Call: 0300 555 2222
If a crime is in progress then use 999. If it is a non-emergency, call 101 - or report online at: cumbria.police.uk 27
Text: 07860022116 with your message Email: reportaloanshark@ stoploansharks.gov.uk Report a loan shark online at: stoploansharks.co.uk
YOUR IND EPEN
DENT CO MMUN
IT Y MAG AZIN
E FOR CA RLISLE
Border City Times
BorderTimes City
The Christmas Two Christmas Robin Travelling this Crackers Bring in the Christmas Wildl Local Governmen ife t Reorganisa tion
Merry Christma
s & a Happy
New
Year to all our S TAY SAF readers E - H AN D S • FAC E • S PAC E Cumb rian Local Publi catio 1 ns
• Issue No. 167
We’re going to need a bigger boat! Everyone has something to say, whether it is as part of a political playground or as a group in there competing for the same space as a local society or charity that needs to be seen in the community.
of these are promoted generally the week of the campaign, or the day after it has started, as if it is only for online. The County is not alone in this, but wouldn’t it be great to see in our next issue a list of all of these events and activities for 2021 in January, online or otherwise?
Press releases get delayed whilst a member has to add a line endorsing a cause or an idea, which from a news reporting point of view on radio is too long. A lot of press releases are clipped. When it comes to a free magazine, with so many adopting the advertising directory format, they miss the concept of what they should be doing in serving the community. Are they just aiming for profit - selling advertising on the basis that with so much wall to wall advertising, they’ll claim a reader equal to a publication that is actually something that can be read. On getting the free press releases, we are then expected to set these on to a page or two, print and post it for free. Well, as a note to those on a salary working in communication or marketing who are then pushing a button and ticking a box that’s not communication, the process of communication is and will always be a twoway process. If you deliver a message, you have to have some sort of format in which you can receive and measure a response. The message sent out, once received must be understood across all areas of the audience you are addressing. As an example, Cumbria Council County and councils across our region arrange some fantastic campaigns every year. Many are key to the people in the community. Unfortunately, many 28
As a publication, we can only ask again as we do most years, because one thing that has come out of 2020 is how much information we all need to know and we don’t have, especially when it could have an immediate impact on our lives or where we live. On the boat theory, Chief Brody's "You're gonna need a bigger boat" is a most iconic line, that was an inside joke during troubled production of what turned out to be the blockbuster movie Jaws in 1975. Based on the bestselling novel by Peter Benchley, it was director Steven Spielberg's third movie and it suffered throughout production with issues related to filming on the water, causing constant delays and the mechanical shark not working. Your community magazine is afloat, but this is just the beginning. To be in a position to reach more doors every month and grow every month like the city’s expansion, it needs to be more than just an online magazine, or a magazine based on collection points. Relying on doors is better than relying on sales or ‘likes’ on social media. We need a greater distribution and a larger team of writers. But importantly, we’ll need advertisers to understand that being seen in a home in print via a magazine with content, is much greater than being found online in a sea of advertisers, especially among all those internet sharks!
Who can you trust in the media?
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Continued from page 22 Councillor Mallinson (J) (Leader) introduced the matter, emphasising that the golden opportunities afforded by Local Government Reorganisation were not about, or for the benefit of, the organisations that currently provided public services in Cumbria; rather they were for residents, businesses and for the young people of Cumbria. It was time for Cumbria to confidently take its place in the North with a directly elected mayor supported by a combined authority of unitary councils.
discussion ensued, during which Members outlined their support for / opposition to the proposed amendment.
The focus of the discussion should not now be on whether or not there should be unitary local government in Cumbria, but what pattern that should take.
• Members were not necessarily opposed to local government reorganisation. However, the options were deserving of proper and full consideration/scrutiny in order that the matter may progress at the right time
Councillor Mallinson (J) commented in detail upon the merits or otherwise of the various options, together with the implications for Cumbria should the process be deferred. He implored the Council not to let Carlisle or Cumbria down and urged all Members to enthusiastically support the North/South option. Councillor Mallinson (J) moved and Councillor Ellis seconded the report and recommendation that the Council supports the submission of a full proposal for two unitary councils to be created in Cumbria based on the existing district boundaries of Allerdale, Carlisle and Eden in the North; and Barrow, Copeland and South Lakeland in the South. Substantial and lengthy
A number of observations were raised by Members during the debate, including: • frustration at the lack of information / supporting data provided, such that Members could not properly scrutinize and come to an informed opinion on the options available and ultimately arrive at a decision which would stand the test of time
• the City Council should focus its attention on helping people, including the vulnerable, through the current pandemic • a wish to ultimately see a Council which provided the best services for local residents in their local environment • a Member expressed disappointment that the option of the four District Councils in the north coming together was not on the table • a process should be put in place whereby the options that go forward to public consultation are meaningful • a clear message should be conveyed to the Executive that the Council did 30
want local government reorganisation, but with unitary councils which delivered the right services in the right place for local people and a sense of place; it should not just be a cost cutting exercise • devolution brought investment opportunities to Carlisle and Cumbria which were greatly needed Concerns were further expressed in relation to: • the lack of public consultation undertaken to date and the tight timescale for submission of the full proposal to Government • that the COVID-19 pandemic was resulting in increased levels of deprivation, unemployment and a financial / economic crisis and there was also the issue of Brexit; consequently, this was not the right time to progress local government reform • failure by the City Council and other Cumbrian Districts to put forward a submission to Government would result in a single submission i.e. a unitary Cumbria. The Council owed it to the community to show leadership and work to deliver an authority which would serve the area moving forward and build
a better future. Failure so to do would result in an opportunity lost, perhaps for another generation • the decision was ultimately one for the Executive, but it should really be a decision for the people • the general public was supportive of unitary councils Whilst speaking in support of unitary local government, certain Members were of the opinion that: • two tier local government was confusing, wasteful and un-necessary, and had cost implications; there was a lack of clarity in terms of City / County Council responsibilities, service provision/delivery and accountability • the opportunity for public consultation would arise following evaluation of viable submissions by Government
• there would never be ‘a right time’ and always reasons not to move to unitary local government At time of print 6th December 2020 actions from 7th December 2020 onwards were not known. Full notes of meeting Minutes of the - Special Council meeting 1 December 2020 are available at https://www.carlisle.gov.uk/news-and-events/ local-government-reorganisation-proposals and other details Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, face to face visits are by appointment only. You can make an appointment by calling 01228 817200 or emailing customerservices@carlisle.gov.uk Carlisle City Council Civic Centre, Carlisle, Cumbria, CA3 8QG
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