In Touch News with East Bergholt - June 2017

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with Dedham, East Bergholt, Flatford & Stratford St Mary Volume 4 • Issue No. 9 • JUNE 2017

Stratford St Mary Playing Field – see page 4

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NEWS

A WORD FROM THE EDITOR I heard an interesting term the other day, ‘world whelm’, defined as ‘crashing anxiety caused by a never-ending, nerve-fraying news feed’. Most of us will have experienced this at some point in recent months, but I hope we can provide a brief respite. I have my moments and occasionally despair when I watch the news, but as deadline day approaches and my inbox fills with emails from groups and individuals organising fundraising events or undertaking personal challenges to raise money for charity, I find comfort in knowing there are many, many, many good people doing good things every day of the week to help others.

So when ‘world whelm’ strikes, pick up your In Touch magazine to ease the anxiety and perhaps you’ll be inspired to do ‘your bit’. You don’t have to jump out of a plane! Just supporting others in their efforts, whether it’s a local event or a fundraising activity, is worthy, and you’ll discover other benefits too.

Living in a place where you don’t know your neighbours, where you don’t have any shared sense of space or don’t know what’s going on socially or politically, can feel isolating. That’s why it’s important to engage or to foster community spirit, to find ways to bond with neighbours and to build a life which extends beyond your front door. So turn off the TV, take a walk, shop locally, attend local events or join a committee, maybe even start a club, offer help when you can and ask for it when you need it.

I’ve occasionally been accused of being naïve, but I believe people are innately good and that social connection is a basic human need. I’ve read that strong social connection strengthens our immune system, helps us recover from disease faster, and may even lengthen our life. People who feel more connected to others have lower rates of anxiety and depression. Moreover, studies show they also have higher self-esteem, are more empathic to others, more trusting and cooperative and, as a consequence, others are more open to trusting and cooperating with them.

You’ll have no problem finding things to do or events to support this month.

Your problem may be fitting it all in!

In Touch

with Dedham, East Bergholt, Flatford & Stratford St Mary

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Mansion House Publishing (UK) Ltd, 20 Wharfedale Road, Ipswich IP1 4JP Editor: Sharon Jenkins Email: sharon@intouchnews.co.uk

01473 400380 Send editorial copy to: bergholt@intouchnews.co.uk Readers are invited to submit articles, illustrations and photographs for publication. The publishers reserve the right to amend such submissions and cannot accept responsibility for any loss.

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01473 400379 Disclaimer: The views expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the publisher. Every effort is taken to ensure that the contents of this magazine are accurate but the publisher cannot assume any responsibility for errors or omissions. While reasonable care is taken when accepting advertisements or editorial, the publisher/editor will not accept responsibility for any unsatisfactory transactions and also reserves the right to refuse to include advertising or editorial. They will, however immediately investigate any written complaints. © Mansion House Publishing (UK) Ltd. No part of this magazine may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means, either wholly or in part, without the prior written permission of the publisher. © In Touch with Dedham, East Bergholt, & Flatford is published by Mansion House Publishing (UK) Ltd as part of the “In Touch with . . . ” series of magazines.

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• NEW Beyton, Drinkstone, Elmswell, Haughley, Hessett, Norton, Tostock, Wetherden & Woolpit • Bramford, Offton, Somersham & Willisham • Capel St Mary • Barham, Claydon, Henley & Whitton • Belstead, Bentley, Copdock, Tattingstone & Washbrook • Baylham, Gt & Lt Blakenham & Nettlestead • Ipswich East • Kesgrave & Rushmere St Andrew • Brantham, Lawford, Manningtree & Mistley • Martlesham Heath & Old Martlesham • Needham Market & The Creetings • Chelmondiston, Erwarton, Harkstead, Holbrook, Pin Mill, Shotley, Stutton & Woolverstone • Burstall & Sproughton • Stowmarket & Stowupland • Ashbocking, Tuddenham St Martin, Westerfield & Witnesham • Chattisham, Hadleigh, Hintlesham, Holton St Mary, Layham & Raydon • Melton & Woodbridge

DEFIBRILLATOR AT HALL FARM Stratford St Mary has a new Public Community Access Defibrillator sited at Hall Farm. This has been achieved by the kind donation from the family of the late Hazel Read and her daughter, the late Sandra Swain, who both sadly passed away in 2014 and 2012. Both mother and daughter used to meet in the at Hall Farm Café Restaurant for lunch. The family wanted to purchase a defibrillator in memory of their much loved mother and sister.

With the family’s fantastic generosity to purchase this equipment, help and support from the local parish council, and Sue Lawrence (trainer and first responder) who went out into the community to raise awareness and gain even further funds to help towards purchasing an external cabinet and demonstration unit to assist her when training, we are now in a very privileged position to have this much needed defibrillator available for our local community.

John Barrie, proprietor of Hall Farm said: “I cannot thank the family of Hazel and Sandra enough for this most generous contribution to the community of Stratford St Mary, we have placed the defibrillator at the front of the shop for easy access for anyone to come and use should the need arise.”

There has been a plaque placed beside the defibrillator in memory of both mother and daughter, Hazel and Sandra.

THE EAST BERGHOLT SOCIETY A Card for Constable – 11am to 5pm on Sunday, June 11 at the Lambe School Our cards are disappearing from the church, the tearooms and Flatford Mill and reappearing with wonderful paintings, sketches, etchings and photos. There is still time if you haven’t had a go, and your work will be exhibited alongside internationally known professional artists. So sharpen up your pencils and dust off your brushes. We look forward to showing off your artistic efforts, to selling them to boost the funds of St Mary’s Church, the Lambe School and the Constable Hall. And we will have refreshments and entertainment too.

Reproduced here for inspiration is a contribution already received.

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JULY DEADLINE 20 JUNE 2017

is the final date for both advertising and editorial copy

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For further information contact Patricia Wright: secretary@eastbergholt.org / 01206 298258

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NEWS OBERAMMERGAU PASSION PLAY 2020 AND CASTLES & LAKES OF BAVARIA

NEW PLAYGROUND FOR STRATFORD ST MARY

Presented by the Benefice of East Bergholt & Brantham

For more information on this tour contact your group organiser.

Five days from £1,018, departing 21 May 2020. The deposit of £150 is due immediately but is fully refundable before January 2019.

Featuring category 2 Passion Play ticket (upgrade to category 1 for £30) plus four nights on half board basis (one dinner in Oberammergau) at the 3* Hotel Kolberbräu in Bad Tölz (or similar). Facilities at the hotel include a restaurant and a bar and all rooms are en suite.

• Full programme of included excursions • Return scheduled flights from London • Professional tour manager • Executive coach in Germany What is the Oberammergau Passion Play?

In 1633, in the middle of the Thirty Years War, Bavaria was being swept by a plague epidemic and more than 80 lives had been lost in Oberammergau alone. The local elders vowed that if the village were purged of the plague, they would ‘keep the Passion tragedy every 10 years’. The epidemic came to a standstill and in 1634 the villagers fulfilled their solemn promise for the first time. Ever since they have loyally kept their vow and in 2020 Oberammergau will, for the 42nd time, be staging the Passion Play telling the story of Christ’s Passion, from His entry into Jerusalem and ending with the Resurrection and Transfiguration.

Full details can be viewed online at: www.tailored-travel.co.uk (quote bebp201) For a detailed brochure please contact Rev Canon Stephne van der Toorn: The Rectory, Rectory Lane, Brantham CO11 1PZ 01206 392646 / revstephvdt@googlemail.com

THE FUTURE OF GENERAL PRACTICE The NHS Five Year Forward View advanced some fairly radical ideas about the future of general practice. At its inception in the 1940s, most NHS general practices were single-handed. Over the years partnerships have developed, so that now throughout the UK there is a mixture of various sized partnerships with very few single-handers left, the average list size being around 7,300.

NHS England have made it quite clear that they will not offer future contracts to practices with less than 30,000 patients and are actively encouraging the creation of super partnerships of over 50,000 patients.

Trail blazers in this area are Our Health Partnership (OHP) in Birmingham, where 37 practices joined together to form a super-partnership covering 300,000 patients in November 2015. Many other super-practices are now in the pipeline, including two in North East Essex.

Ardleigh Surgery is to join The Colte Partnership (TCP) from its launch on 1 June 2017. This will be a partnership of 12 local practices and it will cover 120,000 patients. The partners at Ardleigh took the decision to join because of the benefits to the practice which include: • Strength in numbers

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Stratford St Mary has had a new playground installed thanks to the Tesco Bags of Help grant and support from Babergh District Council.

The children and families of Stratford St Mary are celebrating this month with the installation of their new playground. The new structure, which includes monkey bars, swings, a slide, and a zip wire was officially opened by a group of school children from Stratford St Mary Primary School and members of the parish council and public on Friday, May 12.

The previous playground, located in the playing field on Higham Road, had been in place for almost 20 years. Ideas and support were gathered from children, families and village residents to understand what equipment would have the most benefit to our community through an online survey, discussions at the parish council and meeting with Stratford St Mary Primary School’s pupil led school council.

It has taken 18 months to secure the playground and complete the community engagement process, with Stratford St Mary Parish Council, Babergh District Council and Tesco Bags for Help providing the funding. Thank you to all the readers of In Touch who voted for the Stratford St Mary playground redevelopment in the local Tesco Express stores last March (2016).

All 81 pupils from Stratford St Mary Primary School attended the opening, along with the teaching staff and headteacher Mrs Bilner, who braved a go on the zip wire.

• Sustainability • Being able to bid for contracts and new services • Freeing up more clinician time • A bigger voice in the future of local healthcare • Savings through reducing duplication and through centralised purchasing As a patient, I am sure you will be concerned about what changes you will notice. The answer is simply you should not see any differences. You will still be registered at Ardleigh Surgery and be seen here. Our doctors and staff will remain working here and we will retain our autonomy to make decisions about how Ardleigh Surgery is run. It is hoped that as the partnership establishes itself you will see additional services offered locally and improvements to community services.

If you would like any further information about the merger, please contact me.

Practice Manager Stephanie Durrant Ambrose Avenue, Ardleigh, Creffield Medical Practice, Colne Medical Practice, Layer Road, Mersea Island, North Hill, Riverside, Rowhedge, Tiptree, Walton Medical Practice, Wivenhoe

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NEWS

REPORT TO PARISHES, MID-SAMFORD WARD: MAY 2017 BABERGH DISTRICT COUNCILLOR, SUE CARPENDALE Babergh’s issues with falling five-year land supply All of a sudden the core villages in Babergh find themselves in a new and vulnerable position when faced with less-than-ideal development applications. Developers and landowners have not been implementing permissions or applying for consent for reasons which are not well understood. We do know that first-time mortgages are not readily available; neither are building materials, or even bricklayers, following the financial crisis a few years ago. These could be contributory factors. Babergh previously had a comfortable land supply position – many permissions were granted last year, for example, before the CIL (Community Infrastructure Levy) was introduced – but applications received in the current year have been delayed while awaiting the outcome of the CS11 Judicial Review initiated by East Bergholt.

The council should be delivering 355 new homes per year, but has failed to make even half of that target. (Last year 157 homes were delivered. Nearly 80% of those were ‘windfalls’, 63% located in the core and hinterland villages.) In the last month or so, we have been told our land supply has fallen to three years. This, in essence, means that the NPPF’s notorious paragraphs 14 and 49 come into play. A “presumption in favour of sustainable development” trumps the policies in the Local Plan or the Neighbourhood Plans. This is not good news for the villages.

It also means that applications such as the 144 in East Bergholt are now re-appearing, although the Hopkins application for 100 in Capel St Mary was pulled at short notice from the Planning Committee on April 26 as a result of many complaints and fresh information. We have no further information at present but are expecting a statement from Babergh very shortly. www.babergh.gov.uk/assets/Strategic-Planning/AMR/INTERIM-BDC-5year-land-supply-update-report-April-2017.pdf

Appointment of a Design and Planning Team The Strategy Committee have approved the appointment of a team to support the council with design options, planning and cost work so that Babergh and Mid Suffolk can fully evaluate the future options for the two HQ sites once they have moved into Endeavour House.

A fixed price contract is estimated to cost around £420,000, plus a further £130,000 for surveys and other planning fees (to be split between the two councils). A grant of £50,000 has been secured.

Options for the sites should be presented to the councils in September.

The intention is to enhance the value of the sites, to generate a capital sum and on-going revenue.

Industrial Strategy Consultation – Green Paper from BEIS The strategy has identified ‘10 pillars’ which include science, research and innovation, skills, infrastructure, business start-ups and growth, procurement, trade and inward investment, affordable energy and clean growth, and the right institutions to bring together sectors and places.

Suffolk already has significant strengths in offshore wind, engineering and renewables, leading research in life sciences, an advanced manufacturing sector, an equine centre in Newmarket, BT’s Global Centre for Innovation and Growth, finance and insurance, ports and logistics. It has market leading food and drink producers and first class cultural heritage driving tourism.

100% Business Rates Consultation In theory local councils in England stand to gain a share of some £12.5B of revenue to spend on local services. The catch is that councils will be expected to take over the funding of several grants and services. They hope to be a pilot area for this scheme. sue.carpendale@babergh.gov.uk

BABERGH DISTRICT COUNCILLOR, FENELLA SWAN Housing Revenue Collection The 2016/17 figures of the 2016/17 HRA Income Collection Performance for Babergh and Mid Suffolk have been announced. Highlights of which are: • Current dwelling arrears have reduced this year in both Babergh & Mid Suffolk, despite managing more than 40 Universal Credit cases

Grass Cutting Season The grass cutting season is upon us again. All amenity areas in Babergh will get 10 cuts per season which is approximately once every three weeks usually March to October. This frequency has been cut since 2014 when the new specification was agreed following the funding cuts that were made at that time.

• Dwelling arrears have marginally improved in both Babergh & Mid Suffolk

Grass cuttings are not collected off these areas due to the scale of the works. Once every three weeks the contractor cuts 949, 575 m2 of amenity grass. To put that in a magnitude that can be more easily estimated, it’s roughly equivalent to 133 football pitches cut once every three weeks. There are some much smaller areas in the district, for example sheltered housing schemes where due to the requirements of the housing department the grass is cut more frequently.

• Total arrears (including dwelling, garages and former) have reduced in both councils during the past year • The percentage of local authority housing rent collected (which includes all income – dwelling, garages, former) has improved once again in Babergh (now 0.39% above target), and while Mid Suffolk performance has reduced, it is only 0.08% below target Performance has been maintained despite: • The 1% reduction in rents which has a negative impact on the ‘% of dwelling arrears collected as a % of debit’ • Significant amounts of officer time invested in the consolidation of the Capita Housing software • An increase in the number of Universal Credit cases being managed • Changes to the rent calendar year in Babergh and staff shortages for extended periods of time

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Cutting teams are divided into two types: the ‘ride on’ crew who operate the ride on mowers and the ‘banks crew’ who cut areas where ‘ride on’ mowers cannot be used, such as on slopes.

Babergh only cuts grass on land it owns and on highway verges in village centres and urban areas where they cut on behalf of the county council. The county council only pays for three cuts per year, but for practical purposes this frequency is increased and paid for by Babergh because they are often cutting adjacent areas 10 times. fenella.swan@babergh.gov.uk

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NEWS REPORT TO PARISHES: DODNASH WARD – MAY/JUNE 2017

NOTES FROM THE CASE

DISTRICT COUNCILLOR JOHN HINTON Planning has again caused problems with local opinion largely ignored by councillors and officers from other parts of the district. There was plenty of comment about the proposed ‘move to Essex’ but I’m afraid that most missed the point which, as far as I’m concerned, was that we feel neglected and that no one listens.

It’s been a busy few weeks at The Case. April saw a very successful Easter Egg Hunt and bonnet competition – and who could have guessed what local millinery talents we’d been harbouring – followed by The Best of British Beer which ended on May Bank Holiday with a superb barbecue – thanks to Dave and friends – and some lively music from The Wrong Face and John Campbell.

Thanks to all who contributed to make these events such a success.

I’m sure planning will be front and centre for the foreseeable future as the three controversial applications are re-heard and the Local Plan and provisions of the Neighbourhood Plan are ignored. There appears a belief that only the NPPF can be used for planning, but that is not the case. It’s purely a shifting of ‘weight’ so that if there are lots of negative points from the rest of the NPPF they can be added to Local and Neighbourhood Plans to work against a proposal. Training is the key, which I am fighting for, but that means individuals being able to utilise their own minds rather than following the leader.

The annual council meeting is approaching, but unfortunately I will be away. It promises to be interesting, with some acrimonious comments flying around the dominant Conservative Group. If rumours are correct the chairmanship of planning will do us no favours.

Transport Focus are still pushing Highways England, but an interesting and rather terse reply from the chief executive of HE to me prodding for a response to an earlier email, indicates a certain sensitivity, which may make some sort of ‘action’ possible, but they work in slow methodical ways rather than intuitively and for maximum results.

The county council results will I am sure mean more of the same so this part of Suffolk will continue to be the neglected outback of the county. I am sure that devolution will again appear regardless of what the public think. Oh yes, they weren’t really asked! What a waste of time and money when there are so many more important things for them to do.

I was pleased to see the chief executive of Babergh at the East Bergholt Parish Council meeting last month. He was in ‘listening mode’ and I’m sure has a lot to sort out before we will see real change. Planning policy is already a little ‘twitchy’, but are listening. However, the obsession with joint plans and surveys make the results of any form of proposal rather suspect, as with the Strategic Housing Market Assessment which involved five councils and was conducted by a consultant firm whose methodology is unknown and I suspect did not engage with any significant numbers of the public! It does enable another box to be ticked, but when you think of the Bidwells Housing Need Survey at 450 for East Bergholt against the Neighbourhood Plan at 80 you have to ask how come!

I am away charging the batteries, but will return refreshed and fighting for the needs of all of Dodnash soon.

If anyone has any questions, please contact me: john.hinton@babergh.gov.uk / 01206 298309

Suffolk’s first Co-operative Pub

April ended with both a farewell and a welcome. After over four years of gruelling work, David Westley retired as the chair of the pub management committee. The Case was packed to the rafters with shareholders and volunteers all eager to express their gratitude to David. From an initial idea which had the nay-sayers shaking their heads and muttering ‘It’ll never work’, he inspired and mobilised enough enthusiasm to buy the pub, get it in order and open by Easter 2014. The benefits of the pub are endless. A meeting place for friends, craft and reading groups, events… and without it we wouldn’t have a shop either. Sad as we are to see him retire, we wonder how many people would have been able – or willing – to do what he did for our community. And has it worked? We’d say so.

At the same time we said goodbye to Gail Nye, who has also retired from the committee. A member of the original set-up group, Gail has fulfilled the (frequently thankless) task of organising the many volunteers without whom the pub couldn’t have operated. To both her and David we say thank you, and enjoy your retirement!

And the welcome? To our new committee chair, Kate Spicer. Most people would be planning to put their feet up when they retired from their day job, but not Kate! We’re looking forward to working with her to take The Case onward over the next three years.

Coming up at The Case The next big event will be a Garden Party and Craft Fair on July 9. We’ve been lucky enough to book the fantastic jazz band who entertained us at the Queen’s birthday bash last year, so don’t miss them. There’ll be home-made cakes and many other attractions, and of course the bar will be open. In August we’ll be hosting another celebration of beer, so if you enjoy trying different brews, don’t miss this one. And of course there’ll be the regular quizzes and Tastes Of… Watch for details on the website and boards.

Finally – don’t forget Dad. June 18 is Fathers’ Day. Why not treat him to Sunday lunch, with a free pint for dads?

01473 805575 / www.thecasepubbentley.co.uk

We stopped to look at our favourite view It’s the little things that make a funeral special Here for you every hour of every day

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NEWS / OUT & ABOUT SAFER NEIGHBOURHOOD TEAM With summer close by, here’s just a little reminder about shed and garage security.

Think about: • Fitting a good quality padlock (there are even alarmed ones that are activated if tampered with) • Checking that your door hinges are secure • Obscuring windows with a net curtain or fitting internal bars/grille • Keeping doors and windows locked • Security marking items of value with your postcode (make a note of any serial numbers and photograph items) • Install external dusk till dawn lighting and consider an alarm which can deter intruders Should you require any further advice please contact: • 101 in a non-emergency or 999 for emergency calls • Email the Safer Neighbourhood team: hadleigh.snt@suffolk.pnn.police.uk • Follow us on Twitter @HadleighPolice • Join up to Police Connect: www.suffolk.police.uk/policeconnect Alternatively for any further crime reduction advice please contact the local crime reduction officer on 01473 613500 or visit: www.suffolk.police.uk Any information you may wish to pass about any crime can also be passed by calling CRIMESTOPPERS: 0800 555 111

STRATFORD ST MARY OPEN GARDENS / OPEN VILLAGE Saturday, June 24 ALL WELCOME Beautiful gardens to inspire you Art Exhibition Boat Rides Pop-up stalls Arts and Crafts exhibitions/demonstrations Village History Music Refreshments …and much more Put the date in your diaries.

We look forward to welcoming you to our village.

For further information contact Julie: Julie@jj-associates.co.uk / 07989 639583

Regards, PC287 Sarah George, Hadleigh SNT

DOCTORS SURGERY TRANSPORT The requests for transport keep coming thick and fast. We therefore need to recruit more volunteers to reduce the frequency with which volunteers are called to provide transport. If you feel that you could offer and hour or so a month by taking someone from their home in Capel, Washbrook or Bentley to the Capel or East Bergholt surgeries please contact Chris Yule: 01473 310992 / chris.yule2@tiscali.co.uk The scheme is strictly regulated with the surgery being the point of request. If you cannot drive, we also need allocators to ring the surgery and allocate the requests for transport amongst the volunteer drivers. If you are worried about any effect on your insurance, nearly all insurance companies allow unpaid voluntary lifts as part of social, domestic and pleasure use.

If you are a patient needing transport please contact the surgery to set the allocation process in motion.

EAST BERGHOLT CINEMA Friday, June 2 at Constable Hall, Gandish Road, East Bergholt: Doors open 7.30pm, film starts at 8pm. Adults £4, 18 years and under £2. This film has a PG certificate. Bar and refreshments available.

Tickets from Fountain House Tea Room, East Bergholt, by calling 01206 299774 to reserve until 7.45pm, or on the door.

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St Helena Hospice’s

Open Gardens Join us for teas, cakes and a ride on the miniature railway.

Saturday June 10th, 2pm to 5pm.

St Winifreds, Bargate Lane, Dedham.

Adults £2, children £1 (includes refreshment and train ride) StHelenaHospice @sthelenahospice sthelenahospice.org.uk

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COMING SOON – 6 DUPLEX APARTMENTS THE OLD MALTINGS, LOWER STREET STRATFORD ST MARY Prices on application

A rather special and imaginative conversion of an historic Old Maltings set in the heart of Constable Country into 6 Duplex Apartments that creatively combines the traditional presence of this significant building together with retention of vaulted ceilings and existing timbers with the benefits of interior design and contemporary living space.

Each 3 Bedroom Duplex has been individually designed to take advantage of its position over 2 floors within the building and offer extremely generous living space, especially for those downsizing, ranging between 1450 – 1750 sq. feet. In addition four apartments will enjoy lift access and Plots 5 and 6 will also benefit from basement / garden rooms of approx. 750 sq. feet each, balconies and outdoor space.

The finish will be a luxury high-end specification with beautiful kitchens set in an open plan environment, luxury bathrooms, gas heating, alarm system and a secure undercroft garage with 2 allocated spaces each, electric charging point as well as basement storage for bicycles etc.

Stratford St Mary is a beautiful village set in the Dedham Vale with local shop, pubs and renowned Talbooth and Milsoms restaurants.

All within easy reach of Manningtree Railway station for the London commuter who relishes a Constable Country lifestyle.

PRE REGISTER YOUR INTEREST. T: (01206) 299222 E: enquiries@grierandpartners.co.uk www.grierandpartners.co.uk

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The Old Shop The Street, East Bergholt Colchester, Suffolk CO7 6TF

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OUT & ABOUT CONSTABLE SINGERS

CAPEL LIBRARY

We are invited to sing at an East Bergholt Society event on June 11 which will commemorate John Constable’s birth on 11 June 1776.

June sees us with hopefully brighter, warmer evenings to feel motivated so why not enjoy a stroll around our beautiful county with idyll walks? There are lots to choose from and many are in books from your local library or from the catalogue. Do take time to browse and then go out and enjoy, feeling all of those health benefits.

The concert at East Bergholt Congregational Church in April was well received and an evening of songs was performed at Dove Close in Capel St Mary.

We welcome new singers, especially sopranos, to join us. No audition is required, words are provided and the first session is free. We just sing to enjoy ourselves at the Lambe School in East Bergholt each Thursday of the month (starting at 7pm), apart from the second Thursday when we meet at the Congregational Hall in East Bergholt. We sing music from the musicals and various popular songs. We currently have members aged 16 to 80.

For more information contact Mel on 01206 298628 or Yvonne on 01206 298428.

FRIENDS OF CAPEL LIBRARY Our next off-site event is Capel Fun Day. Look out for our distinctive marquee and come in to browse the extensive selection of second hand and ex-library books. There will be a chance to join the Friends and our 100 Club which is growing almost monthly.

Many of you join after coming to one of our Community Cinema shows.

In June we are showing Lion and as I write this many have already bought tickets for Deepwater Horizon in May. The Community Cinema continues to meet on the third Tuesday of the month at 7pm for a 7.30pm screening.

Watch out too for the Creative Arts shows offering some of the best arts events on screen, generally during an afternoon.

We continue to offer clubs to youngsters including Creators, our Lego club, and Minecraft for those into playing the computer game together as a group. Ask in the library for details.

In September Kathleen and Ali are running again in the Great East Run in Ipswich. They have offered again to be sponsored for the Friends, so I hope you will feel able to sponsor them. Forms will be available at Capel Fun Day and in the library. Last time they raised a substantial amount for the library which helped us to start the process of replacing the entrance counter to make it much more ergonomically useful for Jackie and her staff.

The May 100 Club winners were: £20 Kevin Austrin £10 Christine Phasey £5 N Hunt £5 John Wheals

www.keepingintouchwith.com/eastbergholt

We would like to welcome our new member of staff, Sandra Bumphrey.

Sandra will cover anytime that a regular member of staff is away. Sandra lives in the village and you may know her from Capel Community Trust activities.

Sadly we say goodbye to Claire Pike who is leaving us on June 3. We thank Claire for her nine years of valued service to our team.

GROUPS MEETING THIS MONTH Baby Bounce: Every Tuesday at 2pm, come along and join in with our little, lively group of youngsters with singing of nursery rhymes and shaking of instruments. Open to all children from birth with their parents and carers.

Capel Creators: Our Lego group will meet on Saturday, June 24 with the theme of making space and science models. Refreshments served and the charge is 50p per person. Children under eight must be accompanied by an adult. Time: 10.30am-12.30pm.

Minecraft Club: Sundays, June 4 and 18 from 10.30am-12.30pm. Children under eight must be accompanied by an adult.

Library Book Group: Friday, June 16 at 2.30pm. Do come along and join in and share your review of the latest read. New members are very welcome.

Friends Community Cinema We are showing Lion on Tuesday, June 20 at 7.30pm with the doors opening at 7pm. Do buy your ticket early as this activity is proving to be very popular.

Reading Game Our Summer Reading Scheme, Animal Agents, is nearly upon us and we are seeking volunteers to help us out during the summer break from school. Please ask the staff for any further information about the help required and to fill in the diary. It does make our working life easier if we have more than enough people to help us out. Thanks in advance.

Further details of the scheme will appear in next month’s edition.

Advance Notice: We will close the library from 5pm on Friday, July 7 so that the Orchard Players can prepare for their summer show.

OPENING TIMES Monday: closed Tuesday: 9.30am-12.30pm & 2-5.30pm Wednesday: 9.30am-12.30pm Thursday: 9.30am-12.30pm Friday: 2-5pm & 5.30-7.30pm Saturday: 9am-3pm Sunday: 10am-3pm

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OUT & ABOUT DEDHAM FILMS

BRANTHAM 5 MILE & JUNIOR FUN RUN Wednesday, June 21, 7.30pm (doors open at 7pm) at The Assembly Rooms, Dedham: Lion (PG) / Dir Garth Davis (2017

A story with buckets of built-in emotion where the blurred images on Google Earth of a tiny village, leave us longing with our hero Saroo to find out if he can be reunited with his past Tickets £4 from Shakespeare House Gallery Dedham High Street or at: www.dedhfilms.co.uk ​DEDHAM FILMS LIVE! Our next live broadcast event is on June 6 at 8pm: Take That Wonderland live from the O2 Arena Performing in the round for the first time ever, Gary, Mark and Howard are sure to deliver a unique and unforgettable cinematic experience. Get ready for it!

Tickets £10 from Shakespeare House Gallery Dedham High Street or online at: www.dedhfilms.co.uk

BUMPER BOOK SALE Saturday, June 24 at Manningtree Methodist Church, South Street CO11 1BQ from 10am-4pm.

10th ANNIVERSARY 2007-2017 Friday, July 21 – Brantham Leisure Centre Junior (14 years or under) race starts at 7pm Senior (15 years or over) race starts at 7.30pm Available facilities include changing rooms, showers and toilets, refreshments, first aid and free car parking. For the safety of competitors, cars for junior runners will only be allowed to exit the car park between 7.30 and 7.45pm or then only after the last senior runner has finished.

ONLINE REGISTRATION Visit www.runbritain.com/races and search for ‘Brantham’.

Any queries should be directed to Janet Webb (01206 398027) or Phil Wainwright (07721 591748).

BATS ARE BUNKERED! Brantham Amateur Theatrical Society is proud to present the hilarious comedy Bunkered by Lynn Brittney on June 7, 9 and 10 at 7.30pm in Brantham Village Hall.

Somewhere near the coast of Britain is a naval intelligence Cold War bunker manned by four naval personnel nearing retirement. The play is set in the present day and if this is so, why are they still there? The answer to this will be revealed and will leave naval headquarters with a headache. Come along and see how it is solved and meet some lovely warm characters, as well as some surprising ones. We are delighted to be acting in a Lynn Brittney play as she is an exceptionally strong writer.

We have an excellent bar and a good raffle to suit all. Tickets (£7) are on sale from: www.ticketsource.co.uk / Bakes and Blossoms / 01206 396674 / 07891 974844 (leave a text). This is a play for adults or young people.

Music for a Summer’s Evening in the Vicarage Garden Dedham Saturday 15th July 7pm

Tickets on the gate £5 per adult, free for children Bring your picnic, drinks, a rug or chairs and enjoy a Blues Band and the Dedham Songbirds in aid of Dedham and Ardleigh Churches and the Duchy Barn Youth Club

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OUT & ABOUT ST MICHAEL’S MONTHLY MARKET

SINGING FOR THE BRAIN Singing for the Brain is a service provided by the Alzheimer’s Society which uses singing to bring people together in a friendly and stimulating social environment. The local group meets at the Venture Centre 2000 Lawford every second and fourth Thursday of the month from 2-3.30pm.

The next monthly market at St Michael’s, The Church on the Park, Woolverstone is on Saturday, June 10, 9am-12.30pm.

Fruit, vegetables, cakes, bread, meat and an interesting range of handcrafted items which helps present buying.

East End Butchers are pleased to be the market’s resident meat supplier.

If you would like to place on order with them it can be collected at the market each month. Their number for orders is 01206 392190.

Come along to mingle with your friends, have a cup of coffee and a bacon buttie and enjoy the lovely venue.

New stalls welcome. Contact Jane Gould: 01473 780777

VOLUNTEERING AT BRIDGE COTTAGE June 1-7 is National Volunteers Week and all week we will be celebrating some of our wonderful volunteers and introducing them to you on our Facebook page, FlatfordNT. Have a look to see the many and varied things they get up to.

If you are interested, or have always been meaning to or wanting to volunteer and you just haven’t got round to it, we will be hosting a meet and greet sessions at Flatford on June 2 and 3 from 11am-4pm where you can drop by and say hello, speak to a volunteer about what they do and why they like it and see if it’s for you.

This year we’re having a party to celebrate John Constable. Join us on June 11 from 2.30-4.40pm for Music by the Mill, an afternoon of great live music with the West Bergholt Concert Band playing pop, swing, big band and film classics. No tickets required, standard Flatford car parking price applies (free to National Trust members).

Keep an eye out towards the end of June for our local thatcher working on the thatch of Bridge Cottage and the shop. We’re excited to be supporting a great local tradition with a wonderful local craftsman. Craig is a sixth generation thatcher. This conservation in action is supported directly from you visiting Flatford as all money goes back into looking after this special place.

SPEND AN EVENING WITH JULIET BARKER Juliet Barker is a historian specialising in the Middle Ages and literary biography. Her books include The Brontës, Conquest and the bestselling Agincourt. Her latest book is The Brontës: A Life in Letters, described as “exhilarating because it is a portrait of six extraordinary people in their own words”.

Juliet will be appearing at the Ipswich Institute Reading Room (15 Tavern Street, IP1 3AA) on Wednesday, June 7 as part of Suffolk Book League’s 2017 programme of events. Doors open at 7pm with the event starting at 7.30pm. General admission is £8 (members £4). Students free with ID. Tickets to be paid for on the door. Reservations can be made by emailing: tickets@sbl.org.uk

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Singing is not only an enjoyable activity, it can also provide a way for people with dementia, along with their carers, to express themselves and socialise with others in a fun and supportive group. Hidden in the fun are activities which build on the well-known preserved memory for song and music in the brain.

Even when many memories are hard to retrieve, music is especially easy to recall.

Do I need to be good at singing to join?

No – everyone’s welcome whether you already sing or not, and you don’t need to read music.

What sort of songs will we sing?

A range of different songs are sung from different eras, musical styles and traditions and according to the preferences of the group. The ‘Singing for the Brain’ model involves trying new pieces of music but also essentially familiar and well known songs and melodies.

What can we expect?

We meet regularly, once a fortnight, and sessions last for about one and half to two hours and include a relaxed welcome with refreshments on arrival. After about half an hour the singing leader calls everyone into a circle and uses a greeting song to welcome everyone by name. The session begins with some gentle tried and tested vocal warm-ups and breathing exercises to ease tension and relax the muscles in hands, feet, neck and shoulders. This increases lung capacity and increases blood flow to the brain, helping keep the brain in optimum condition.

Action songs increase the playful exercise element and give challenges to the brain which people with memory problems often cope with very well. Well known songs are used to evoke verbal and emotional memories. Sessions usually include light percussion or other accompaniment from participants. We generally finish with a quieter song as a calming finale, and to wish each other well till we meet next time.

Find out more at: www.venturecentre2000.co.uk

OPEN GARDEN Treetops, Cemetery Lane, East Bergholt CO7 6RZ ‘A small but interesting garden packed with plants and with no lawn to mow’ For St Elizabeth Hospice and Suffolk Bereavement Support Sunday, June 4, 11am-5pm Hospice Plant and Craft Stall Refreshments Entry £5 – Children Free Free parking on village car park www.stelizabethhospice.org.uk www.suffolkbereavement.org.uk

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OUT & ABOUT

EAST BERGHOLT WI

MANNINGTREE & DISTRICT PHOTOGRAPHIC SOCIETY

East Bergholt WI meets on the second Wednesday of each month at the Constable Hall in Gandish Road. Our next meeting is on Wednesday, June 14 at 7.30pm when our guest speaker, Jane Sago, will present a talk entitled Love Food, Hate Waste.

New members are always welcome so please come and join us.

We look forward to seeing you. If you would like more information about becoming a member or any of our activities, please contact our president June Firman: 01206 298742

DEDHAM FOOTPATH GROUP Sunday, June 4 at 10.30am Meet at Stour Wood car park for a woodland ramble of approx 4 miles

Leaders Jan Jukes (01473 684893) and Helen Edevane

In April we were privileged to have a visit from Colin Westgate FRPS MFIAP, one of the most experienced and well-qualified photographers in the area.

Based at West Mersea and working under the name of Quest Photography, Colin’s interest began in 1959 and he still likes black and white. He talked to us about The Expressive Landscape as illustrated by this intriguing, faultless and atmospheric picture of the Misty Severn Sisters in Sussex.

MANNINGTREE FREEMASONS WORK FOR CHARITIES

Colin has generously shared his experience with us and others, so if you want to sharpen up your technique have a look at www.chelmsfordcameraclub.info/technical_general_landscapes.html, but please do credit the author and Chelmsford Camera Club.

Leader Alan Bridges: 01206 323901 Friday, June 16 at 6.30pm Meet at old road (dead end) to the left of The Street, Wherstead immediately south of the A137/A14 junction for 4/5 mile evening walk

The end of the Masonic Season is nearly upon us and the Lodges have ended their year with donations to several local charities Following a visit from the Manningtree Branch of the Royal British Legion, a sum of £414 was passed to their Branch while other donations of £100 each were made to Clic Sargent, the Children’s Cancer Charity, The Olive Dove Fundraising Appeal, Manningtree First Responders and Colchester Hospitals Charity in aid of a new cancer facility. An additional donation will shortly be made to Fresh Start, a charity that supports children who have suffered abuse.

While these donations were being reported, our dining room staff mentioned that two of the waitresses would be undertaking a sponsored walk in aid of the British Heart Foundation. The two Lodges immediately donated £200 to the appeal while a table collection raised another £200, much to the surprise of the staff.

We continue to support Essex Masonic Festival which over the next five years is expected to raise £5million from the 300 Essex Lodges. This will be used by the Masonic Charitable Trust for Masonic charities as well as public charities which have in the past included Air Ambulance Services, hospices and the Red Cross.

Lodges in Manningtree continue to thrive with new members coming along each year. Interested? Contact any member or call 01206 392348.

It doesn’t cost as much as most think to become a member and enjoy fellowship and activities.

The society entered the annual Granville-Foulger Trophy Competition, again organised by the East Ipswich Camera Club. We maintained a commendable third place against some larger clubs including the winners, Bury St Edmunds.

Our Open Colour Competition later in the month proved popular and again challenging. Last minute stand-in judge, Patrick Hyam, another experienced hand (of over 30 years) was quietly spoken and philosophical, but delighted us with his dry humour. The acid test of a good shot in his eyes was one that would provoke a reaction from that mythical Mr Average ‘on the Clapham Omnibus’, the key points being interest and interpretation. Luckily one of two out of well-nigh 80 entries did so, notably from Harvey Perkins, Richard Woolven, Barry Weaver and Ian Parker.

Our 2017/18 season will commence in September and run through to May 2018. Another full programme of talks and competitions is promised which we hope will further your enjoyment of this fascinating hobby.

We meet twice monthly on Thursday evenings at 7.30pm at St John’s Centre, Station Road, Manningtree CO11 1EB. New members will be welcome to join the society or may attend initially as a visitor (£3). Please contact our secretary, Margaret, for more information: 01206 396958 / madps@post.com www.manningtreeanddistrictphotographicsociety.co.uk

MANNINGTREE POETRY GROUP The next meeting of Poetry Plus will be held at 7.30pm on Tuesday, June 13 at the Red Lion, South Street, Manningtree.

All those interested in poetry are invited to attend either to listen to the spoken word or to read poetry themselves. Some people will be reading their own poetry and some will choose to read the work of other poets.

There is no charge for admission.

Thank you to everyone who helped and supported our latest jumble sale and made it a success. If you missed this last sale, there will be another in either October or November 2017, so watch this space!

To keep up to date with this poetry group, please visit: www.poetryplus.org.uk

Please save all your goodies, but if this is a problem, we can collect before then.

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OUT & ABOUT VILLAGE LINK CLUB

STOUR VALLEY U3A

In May Horry Parsons presented a talk about the building of Bury Tower.

Substantial foundations had been put in during the 1960s, but money ran out before the tower could be built. A legacy from Stephen Dykes Bower, the cathedral’s resident architect (1943 to 1988), and a contribution from the Millennium Commission allowed building of the tower to commence in 1998. Despite its 150ft height, the planning application simply stated that it was to be a single story addition to a single story building.

Constructed from high quality Barnack Limestone, the tower should have a life of several hundred years. Ninety-eight miles of tubing was used to form a free-standing scaffold tower to aid construction.

On Wednesday, May 10, Emma Roodhouse, art curator at Colchester & Ipswich Museum Service, introduced us to Leonard Squirrel, known as the ‘grand old man’ of East Anglian painting. In highlighting his prolific career, she concentrated on artworks in the Ipswich Borough Council collection, including drawings, watercolours, etchings and pastels from 1912-1978.

On June 14 Nathan will present a talk about the Hearing Care Centre.

Future talks this year will be: Local History of our Villages, Suffolk Chapter & Verse, Elderly Drivers, Jewel of the Canaries, A Year as Mayor of Ipswich, Christmas Special Message & Carols, First Aid & AED, Dad’s Army, History of Scarecrows, Pray Silence for ? and History of Butley Priory.

Meetings are held at 10am on the second Wednesday of every month in Tattingstone Village Hall. Following the speaker we have refreshments, when there is time for a chat with other members, and a raffle. New members and visitors are welcome to join us. After the August and February meetings, we normally hold a members’ lunch.

Roger Felgate: 01473 311684

On Wednesday, June 14, Alan Goldsmith from Stansted will present a talk titled Giving it Both Barrels, an amusing and light-hearted talk of his 50 years in the rock ‘n’ roll and entertainment business.

On Wednesday, July 12, Dr Stephen Ashworth, senior lecturer at UEA, will talk on kitchen chemistry, a science show using readily available materials to illustrate some of the principles of chemistry.

Our main purpose is to encourage lifelong learning for those who are no longer in full time employment and emphasis is always placed on making learning active and fun as well as helping in developing friendships. We have a wide range of groups including language study, country walking and computer studies and groups that visit gardens, churches and historic buildings. In the main, membership is drawn from communities in the lower Stour Valley and adjacent areas including Brantham, Capel St Mary, Dedham, East Bergholt, Holbrook, Lawford, Manningtree, Raydon and Stratford St Mary. We are affiliated to the ThirdAge Trust, have over 260 members and 21 groups. For further information please visit www.stourvalleyu3a.org.uk where membership secretary Gillian Gibbs may be contacted.

We meet at Constable Hall, Gandish Road, East Bergholt CO7 6TP at 2.15pm. Annual membership is £12 which entitles members to attend meetings on the second Wednesday of each month, except August and December.

Last autumn and spring this year have seen our unit expedition training programme completed, culminating in practice expeditions for both bronze and silver levels of the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme and the Chief Scout’s Platinum and Diamond Awards.

Last year we reported six new members had joined the unit forming a new bronze team, our eleventh, and their qualifying expedition was also successfully completed during the recent bank holiday weekend in East Suffolk at bronze/platinum level. Seven unit members, our fourth gold team, are now gearing up for their Queen’s Scout / DofE expedition on Dartmoor this summer which for most of the team will be last section of the award to complete before departing for university.

The unit has already set up another bronze team this year, our twelfth.

With more young people expected to join the unit this year we are still seeking additional adult support to join those who volunteered following last summer’s request. If you hold a Duke of Edinburgh Award and would like to help more young people achieve theirs, or wish to know more, please contact Roger for an informal chat.

We now have a fairly strong team supporting the expedition programme and the award schemes generally, but we are keen to lighten the load by recruiting additional team members. We meet once a month for the award programme element of the general Explorer Scout programme and help with some of these and/or the expeditions would be appreciated In addition to the recognised award schemes offered by the unit there are other opportunities to participate such as offshore sailing organised

by Suffolk County Scouts with one of our Explorers taking part in one leg of the Tall Ships event from Finland to the UK. There are a number of weekend events too where there are opportunities to be part of the crew. There are also many international activities to take part in, with two Explorer Belt expeditions this year in South Africa and next year to Poland. These events usually involve training prior to and completing a project in the country being visited.

Cattawade Explorer Scout Unit: Roger S Dann, Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Leader 01206 395285 / 07778 463172 / catt-explorers@outlook.com www.wolseyscouts.org.uk/explorers www.brantham.onesuffolk.net/the-parish-council/groups

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STOUR VALLEY MEN’S PROBUS CLUB Tom Tyler returns on June 7 with a talk entitled When Holidays Were Fun and on June 21 John Field will speak to us about the redevelopment of Ipswich Docks.

On July 5, Lewis Tyler presents Daddy, What is TV?. On Wednesday, July 19 we are holding our summer lunch and invite our spouses and Probus widows to join us. This year we have moved to The Haywain to enjoy the occasion.

We don’t hold a meeting in August and return after our break on Wednesday, September 6 when Tom Williams presents Everyone Has a Book in Them, followed on Wednesday, September 20 by Philip Roberts with a talk entitled The Mary Rose.

Our club endeavours to be simple in structure, free of the constraints and obligations of service clubs and involve members at minimal cost. The club is directed primarily to providing fellowship between members who are compatible with each other and the opportunity for development of acquaintances. New members are welcomed.

We meet on the first and third Wednesday of each month at St John Ambulance HQ, Manningtree CO11 1EB at 10.30am. For further details please contact speaker secretary Dave Carman: 01255 880202

BABERGH & SAMFORD DISTRICT GUIDING MEMBERS AND VOLUNTEERS NEEDED Would you like the opportunity to build your confidence, raise your aspirations and have fun?

COME AND JOIN US! Anyone interested in joining Rainbows, Brownies, Guides or Senior Section as a member or volunteer please register your interest on the Girlguiding website and fill in the details on the ‘Join Us’ section.

For further help and information email our district commissioners on: baberghandsamford@gmail.com

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OUT & ABOUT EAST BERGHOLT HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY

GIANT FROG FOUND IN THE WILDLIFE GARDEN

Gardening tips for June

Giving nature a home is what Flatford Wildlife Garden is all about, but just recently some vastly oversized creatures seem to have moved in, and right from their first appearance they’ve been drawing admiring comments from our visitors. Carved from sweet chestnut from the RSPB Stour Estuary Reserve, these wonderful characters are part of our new family trail around the garden. The aim of the trail is to encourage children to learn a little about our native garden wildlife, while also having fun in the great outdoors as they take part in simple activities based around the needs of the animal characters that they encounter.

April did not live up to its ‘showery’ reputation and as I write on May 2, we have still had little, much needed, rain.

June is a beautiful time of year with flowers in abundance. Like May, it’s also a busy month for hoeing, mowing, watering and pruning. If hoeing on a dry day, leave weeds on surface to wither and die. Support tall plants in herbaceous borders and dead head regularly. Trim winter flowering heathers, give them a liquid feed and mulch to preserve moisture.

Water containers and hanging baskets at least once a day. Feed them if a slow release fertiliser was not added to the compost when planting up.

Keep some fleece handy to protect plants from a late frost – this applies to the veg patch too. Trim hedges where necessary. Nip out tips of dahlias and chrysanths to promote ‘bushiness’.

Vegwise – pinch out side shoots of tomatoes – they seem to appear daily. Feed them according to directions on the fertiliser you are using.

Beetroot, broad beans, early potatoes, peas, radish and lettuce may be ready to ‘harvest’. Continue to sow seed for ‘succession’, not easy to get this right. Support runner beans – make sure canes are deep into the ground – mine blew over last year! Mangetout and broad beans may need support too.

As children experience and enjoy nature, they will hopefully develop a sense of responsibility for it, resulting in a commitment to protect it. If you don’t have children with you, you’re equally welcome at the garden.

The wood carvings will bring a smile to your face and you will also find lots of simple ideas to consider implementing at home to support wildlife in your own garden. Come and talk to our friendly volunteers and look at the information available in the barn. For example, at this time of the year it’s good to leave the lawn a little longer and find space for a small pile of logs or tiles and some leaf litter. These places are great for bugs and beetles and they, in turn, are great for insectivorous birds trying to keep a nest full of hungry chicks fed.

Why not come along to our forthcoming Volunteers’ Wildlife Art and Craft Exhibition, running from June 22-25? For full details of the activities and events visit: www.rspb.org.uk/Flatford

Again, just a few of the jobs for June. Hopefully, warm evenings will provide a chance to sit and enjoy our gardens, perhaps with a barbecue.

If you have some spare time available and would be interested in volunteering with the RSPB locally, do get in touch for information about the range of roles available. Please either ring 01206 391153 or email shirley.sampson@rspb.org.uk for more details.

Janet Alcoe

Visitor Experience Officer Sharon Barker So Much More Than a Dance Class Any Age & Ability Very Welcome No Partners Required

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"Strictly" style Dance-a-cise

Constable Memorial Hall

Gandish Rd, East Bergholt every Monday at 10am spaces are limited to reserve yours

Call Janet on 07506 350 455

classes also in: - Brantham - Capel St Mary - Hadleigh - Nayland, & - Stratford St Mary

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janet@fundancing.co.uk www.fundancing.co.uk FunDancing.Suffolk FunDancing

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SCHOOLS BENTLEY CEVC AND COPDOCK PRIMARY SCHOOLS Spring has sprung and the children (and chickens) are full of the joys of the season! As ever there is so much to report on, but here is a selection of the best bits.

The head pupils from Bentley and the junior road safety officers from Copdock have been out with PCSO Ford this month looking at how safe children are outside the school with local traffic. They looked at how parents and visitors park outside the school and talked about what they could do to help keep children safer. They designed a leaflet asking parents and visitors to think about how they drive and park outside of the school and PCSO Ford showed them a ‘traffic light’ leaflet system they could use to help get their message across. We hope that this project will help promote and improve our pupils’ safety and wellbeing when they are out and about in our lovely little villages.

Year 3 and 4 pupils from Bentley travelled to Trinity Park to take part in the annual Schools Farm and Country Fair. They learnt a great deal about current projects to help preserve and recover our wild habitats as well as about agriculture and food production. The children particularly enjoyed all the taste testing they did on the day!!

The whole of Key Stage 1 (Reception to Year 2) from both schools travelled to Orford Castle last month to learn more about castles as this is their topic at the moment. Despite a bewildering array of weather that included bright sunshine followed by huge, heavy hail stones, the children thoroughly enjoyed their visit and have been following up their learning in class, even producing detailed plans of castles and all their component parts.

A team from each school represented our pupils at the inaugural Under 9’s Cross Country Competition at East Bergholt High School. One of our pupils, Joshua, in Year 4 came second overall, which when you consider they were up against lots of other schools in the area, was a fantastic achievement. A special mention also goes to one of our other Year 4 boys, Charlie, who when he had finished his race, ran back to support and encourage a couple of other pupils who were finding the event a challenge. We are exceedingly proud of the kindness and responsibility

our pupils demonstrate. Well done to all the children who took part and showed such team spirit.

We were fortunate to be given places at an amazing and inspiring event recently. The African Children’s Choir is touring the UK at present and were performing at Ipswich School and we were lucky enough to be there! Key Stage 2 (Years 3-6) from both Bentley and Copdock spent an afternoon listening to and joining in with this group of inspirational young people who have suffered the worst possible losses due to war and famine. The parents at our schools showed again just how generous they are and donated a total of £130 for the charity that supports these youngsters. Thank you all.

It’s not just our parents we need to thank though; the local community around our schools has a huge impact on us and we would like to say a warm and sincere thank you to all those residents, parents and extended families who have been collecting Sainsbury’s vouchers for both schools.

As small schools it can be very difficult to collect enough vouchers to place a significant order with the scheme and the donations we have received from the community have made such a difference. In particular we would like to mention Bentley Community Shop who have had a box in the shop and have been actively encouraging visitors to the shop to donate any vouchers. Thank you to you all.

Midday Vacancy We have a vacancy at Bentley for a midday supervisor from September and are looking for someone to work one or two lunchtimes a week. If you would be interested in this role, please do call the school office for more information.

Finally, the chickens of Bentley continue to go from strength to strength.

Three of our hens have successfully hatched chicks and we now have our third generation of chooks. Once they are old enough for us to be able to ascertain their gender, we will be looking to sell these new birds to raise funds for eco council. They are well handled friendly birds all of which are small bantam types. If you are interested in buying one of them when they mature, please contact the school office on 01473 310253.

ROBIN’S NEWS Baby Bears We have been happily exploring mud week! The Baby Bears have been investigating the wet and dry textures and smells of mud through play. We have been learning which animals could live in the mud and have all been busy learning new songs and actions using our hands, feet and a variety of instruments. We have been spending even more time outside in our garden as we are getting our planting area ready for our summer plants.

Toddling Tigers This month we have been exploring flowers and planting some of our own. The Tigers have been painting their own daisies, sunflowers and roses to decorate the garden with. They really enjoy the song Sleeping Bunnies and ask for it to be sung all the time. Their animal impressions are really very good. Over the next few weeks we will be exploring The Very Hungry Caterpillar and having a physical week where we will be concentrating on our fine and gross motor skills.

Gruffalos: Fi fi fo fum, watch out everyone, here WE come!

We have been reading Jack and the Beanstalk with the Gruffalos.

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So much has been learnt from this great fairy tale (numbers, repeated refrains, learning about the world, measurements) and lots of board games have been played too. We planted beans that have grown into our very own bean stalks, but we didn’t meet any giants. As an alternative the children had their bodies drawn around to make their own friendly and scary giants.

We went on a long walk to visit some fields in Capel, working our gross motor skills going up and down steep hills, which was a challenge for all the grown-ups too. On our outing we met a wild hare and learnt more about the environment it lives in and how we can help protect its habitat.In September we are planning to offer at least one free Forest School session to the children who are starting school in 2018. Children will need to be using all five funded sessions exclusively at Robin’s Childcare. These sessions will be led by a qualified Forest School leader.

If you would like information about Robin’s Childcare please contact Vicki on 01473 310767, visit www.robinschildcare.co.uk or follow us on Twitter/Facebook.

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SPORT MISTLEY CRICKET CLUB

EAST BERGHOLT TENNIS CLUB

APRIL 100 CLUB WINNERS 1: William McMillan (54) £110 2: Peter Spencer (56) £50 3: Stuart Dove (83) £50

East Bergholt Tennis Club welcomes new members of all ages and abilities on its all-weather floodlit courts located behind the playing fields at Gandish Road, East Bergholt. Whether you are a complete beginner, coming back into the game after a number of years off or a regular player, there is something in it for you.

After success in the pre-season friendlies both 1st (Div1) and 2nd (Div3) XIs lost their opening two fixtures in the Two Counties League. The 3rd XI and the Ladies are still to play. The club fared better on Sunday, May 7, recording a T20 victory at Gt Bentley and progressing to the NVC Round 2 by overcoming Woodham Mortimer (with James Scott recording a century).

SATURDAY FIXTURES 1ST TEAM: TWO COUNTIES DIV 1 Sat, May 27: Frinton II (H) Sat, Jun 3: Witham (A) Sat, Jun 10: Elmstead (A) Sat, Jun 17: Wivenhoe (H) Sat, Jun 24: Braintree (A) Sat, Jul 1: Halstead (H) 2ND TEAM: TWO COUNTIES DIV 3 Sat, May 27: Haverhill II (A) Sat, Jun 3: Tuddenham (H) Sat, Jun 10: Bury St Edmunds (H) Sat, Jun 17: Brockley (A) Sat, Jun 24: Wivenhoe II (H) Sat, Jul 1: Halstead II (A) 3RD TEAM: TWO COUNTIES DIV 9 EAST Sat, May 27: Stradbroke (A) Sat, Jun 3: Felixstowe & Corinthians III (H) Sat, Jun 10: Woodbridge II (H) Sat, Jun 17: DBSL (A) Sat, Jul 1: Eye (A) SUNDAY AND MIDWEEK FIXTURES NECL AND NATIONAL VILLAGE COMPETITION Sun, May 28: NVC R3 Mon, May 29: Tendring Hundred Farmers (H) Sun, Jun 4: Eight Ash Green (A) Sun, Jun 11: NVC R4 Sun, Jun 18: Clacton (H) Sun, Jun 25: Frinton (A) Sun, Jul 2: Gt Horkesley & Lexden (A) SUNDAY DIV TEAM: TWO COUNTIES SUNDAY DIV Sun, May 28: Abberton (A) Sun, Jun 4: Wivenhoe (H) Sun, Jun 18: Frinton (A) Sun, Jul 2: Gt Bromley (H) LADIES TWO COUNTIES Fri, May 26: Sudbury (A) Fri, Jun 2: Eight Ash Green (H) Fri, Jun 9: Colchester (H) Sun, Jun 11: Felixstowe T20 (H) Fri, Jun 16: Copford (H) Fri, Jun 23: West Bergholt (A) Tue, Jun 27: Copdock T20 (A) Fri, Jun 30: Sudbury (H) Sun, Jul 2: Felixstowe T20 (A) New players are always welcome, please email: mistleycc@btinternet.com Mistley CC is a community club with strong traditions. Please come along and give us a look sometime.

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The club is currently operating a range of coaching programmes for members and non-members, catering for both children and adults. Membership subscriptions (allowing free use of the courts until 10pm every day subject to prior booking) are: adults £50, family £70-100, juniors (under 18) £15, students £25. Rates are reduced if starting part of the way through the season, which runs from April 1 each year. Prices for coaching programmes, which are higher for nonmembers, will depend on the course.

All enquiries about the coaching programmes should be directed towards Pete Richmond, whereas membership enquires can be directed to either Pete Richmond or Elaine Fenn.

Chairman/Coach Pete Richmond: NEETacademyHQ@gmail.com Membership Secretary Elaine Fenn: elfenn@btinternet.com

EAST BERGHOLT UNITED FOOTBALL CLUB By the time this issue lands on your doormat the season will be completed. All in all it has been a good season for the club.

The 1st Team have one more fixture and depending on the final day results could finish as high as sixth in the Senior Division. The Reserves will finish League A in fourth place but still have the Goals of Ipswich Cup Final to play when hopefully they will be successful in bringing some Silverware back to Gandish Road. The A Team completed their schedule with back to back victories, which ensured their League B status and can be considered something of a success after a tough season.

The club held its end of season awards night at the end of April, with the recipients being.

1st Team Players Player: Ben Bibby 1st Team Coaches/Supporters Player: Jamie McGrath 2nd Team Players Player: Matty Hayward 2nd Team Managers Player: Dave Pettman 3rd Team Players Player: Dan Bass 3rd Team Managers Player: Luke Taylor Young Player: Jamie McGrath Clubman of the Year: Peter East Our AGM is on Thursday, June 8 and pre-season resumes in July.

We are always looking for people who can help the club as committee member, whether it be on the playing side or just in the background.

If you would like to sponsor the club in some capacity we would also be delighted to hear from you. Club strips, dugouts, banners or boards on matchdays all offer potential exposure for your business while supporting a local organisation.

Steve Butcher, stevebutcher55@btinternet.com

CAPEL CHEETAHS 5 MILE RACE AND FUN RUN Sunday, June 18 from Capel St Mary Playing Field Races start at 11.15am and noon CAPEL 5 Affiliated club members: £8 / £10 on the day Non-affiliated members: £11 / £13 on the day FUN RUN: £3 For more information visit: www.capelcheetahs.co.uk / www.runbritian.com Sign up online by visiting www.runbritian.com (click enter race and search Capel 5)

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CHURCH NEWS BRANTHAM & CAPEL METHODIST CHURCHES ON ANTICIPATION (Holidays and Marriage) My daughter announced her engagement to a fellow doctor on Mount Carmel in Israel – a wedding next year. We are planning a holiday in France this summer, our first overseas holiday for a while. Also there are challenging and exciting things to anticipate on the work front.

In his book The Art of Travel, Alain de Botton talks about the anticipation of planning holidays, focussed on the images in brochures of the resort, beaches and weather. We are caught up in anticipation and forget the journey to get there, the packing, the traffic, the airport queues, the humidity, passport control and the dusty roads. Even when we have arrived (and if everything is as good as the brochures describe), Alain de Botton says “a momentous but until then overlooked fact was making its first appearance: that I had inadvertently brought myself with me to the island.” He describes a “number of other incongruous and unrelated elements, a sore throat, worry at not having informed a colleague that I would be away, pressure across both temples and a rising need to visit the bathroom.”

The holiday brochures show an ideal, but it leaves out the imperfect you being in the picture! We always have ourselves in the picture, our aches and pains, our high or low self-esteem, our frustrations and hurts, our anxieties and fears. In marriage you anticipate love and harmony, but again it’s bringing two imperfect people together and it may not all be sweetness and love.

I do not do holiday planning, but I do offer marriage preparation, and will do that for my daughter and future son-in-law. I am also happy

to talk with individuals or couples about the stresses and strains in relationships, even to talk with individuals about the imperfect you. I am so grateful that I am known by God with all my imperfections, but that he still loves me and gives an amazing degree of peace and contentment.

I can enjoy the moment and the people I am with, whether at home or in some exotic location. Do contact me.

The Rev Sankey, Minister at Brantham & Capel Methodist Churches 8 Roundridge Road, Capel St Mary IP9 2UG apsankey@gmail.com / 01473 311178 / 07966 187216 AT BRANTHAM METHODIST Sunday 4 11am Worship with Mr Chris Jowett Sunday 11 11am Worship with Mrs Gloria Theobald Sunday 18 2.30pm Songs of Praise with Rev Andrew Sankey Sunday 25 11am Worship with Mr Harry Chicken AT CAPEL ST MARY METHODIST Saturday 3 10.30am Messy Church Sunday 4 10.30am Worship with Rev Andrew Docherty

6.30pm Prayer Sunday 11 10.30am Worship with Mrs Linda Pepper

6.30pm Worship with Rev Andrew Sankey Sunday 18 10.30am Worship with Mr Ted Jack Saturday 24 2pm Health Fair Sunday 25 10.30am Worship and Communion with Rev Sankey

6.30pm United Prayer

LINK LINE CHRISTIAN MINISTRIES Un-denominational / meeting at the Venture Centre, Bromley Road, Lawford CO11 2JE (unless otherwise stated) Sunday Services: 3pm Saturday, June 3 at the Ogilvie Hall, Wignall Street: Our popular monthly Café/Oasis Coffee Morning, 9.30-11.45am Sunday, June 11 – Trinity Sunday: Divine Worship including Holy Communion conducted by our Pastor Tuesday, June 13: Mini-Bus Fellowship Tour Theatre visit to Clacton and restaurant lunch. To book call: 01206 512994 Friday, June 16: Link Line Ministries Prayer Meeting in the Ivell Suite at the Venture Centre, 10am Thursday, June 22: Link Line Ministries AGM at Honeycroft, Waldegrave Way, Lawford, 2pm Sunday June 25: Summer Songs of Praise at the Venture Centre, 3pm For pastoral visits, ministries information: 01206 272064 General information: 01255 714544 We warmly welcome people of all ages and our free bus service covers the district.

KEY TO LOVE CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP Where Jesus is Love and Love is Jesus COME AND JOIN US IN OUR NEW FELLOWSHIP – EVERYONE IS WELCOME Hear the teachings of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus, with our lively worship and service. Refreshments served afterwards.

Every Sunday morning at 11am in The Ivell Suite at Venture Centre 2000, Bromley Road, Lawford CO11 2JE. If you or someone you know needs prayer for anything, please contact David and Rosie Rhule 07787 572977 / 01206 397533 info@thekeytolove ministries.co.uk www.thekeytoloveministries.co.uk

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DEDHAM AND ARDLEIGH PARISHES SERVICES AND EVENTS FOR JUNE 2017 Sunday, June 4: Pentecost 8am Holy Communion BCP, Dedham 11am Morning Worship CW, Ardleigh 5pm Evensong BCP, Dedham Sunday, June 11: Trinity Sunday 8am Holy Communion BCP, Ardleigh 11am Holy Communion CW, Dedham Sunday, June 18 8am Holy Communion BCP, Dedham 11am Parish Eucharist CW, Ardleigh Sunday, June 25 8am Holy Communion BCP, Ardleigh 11am Matins BCP, Dedham 5pm Revive@5 Dedham BCP – Book of Common Prayer / CW – Common Worship Weekly Midweek Services Tuesday Morning Prayer at Dedham, 10.30am Thursday Evening Prayer at Ardleigh, 5pm Half Day of Prayer – part of Thy Kingdom Come worldwide Saturday, June 3 at Ardleigh Church, concluding with torch lit prayer walk from Ardleigh to Dedham at 9pm. More details in Church Chimes.

Men and Breakfast: Saturday, June 10 at 9am at the vicarage Come along and enjoy bacon butties, coffee and catching up www.dedham-and-ardleigh-parishes.org.uk

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CHURCH NEWS BENEFICE OF EAST BERGHOLT & BRANTHAM Rector: The Rev Canon Stephne van der Toorn 01206 392646 / revstephvdt@googlemail.com www.constablecountrychurches.co.uk Sunday, May 28: Easter 7 8am BCP Communion, East Bergholt 10am Benefice Choral Matins, East Bergholt Saturday, June 3 1pm Wedding of Olivia Langdown and Chris Brice, Brantham Sunday, June 4: Pentecost 8am BCP Communion (Healing), East Bergholt 11am Benefice Communion with Healing, Brantham Wednesday, June 7 9.30am BCP Communion, East Bergholt Sunday, June 11: Trinity 8am BCP Communion, East Bergholt 10am Communion, East Bergholt 11am Family Service, Brantham Sunday, June 18: Trinity 1 8am BCP Communion, East Bergholt 10am Family Service, East Bergholt 11am Communion, East Bergholt Saturday, June 24 2.30pm Wedding of Amy Silburn and Frederick Slater, East Bergholt Sunday, June 25: Trinity 2 8am BCP Communion, East Bergholt 10am Choral Matins, East Bergholt 11am Baptism of Neveah Smith, Brantham Friday, June 30 2pm Wedding of Grace Foster and Luke Garwood, East Bergholt Sunday, July 2: Patronal Festival 8am BCP Communion, East Bergholt 10am Benefice Communion with Healing, East Bergholt Check the website for details. There is a BCP Communion every Sunday at 8am and Choral Matins is usually on the fourth Sunday. This service schedule may change without prior notice if needed.

RAMBLING RECTOR The election season has only just begun and already I will be very glad never to hear the words “strong and stable” or “rigged economy” ever again! The tone of debates has sadly been strident and to my mind, rude.

For the first time in many years I am undecided how to vote. To me the importance of a strong opposition cannot be overstated. A government without checks and balances is a dangerous animal. When our rulers lose contact with us, the people, and stop listening we are all threatened.

In a pastoral letter, our Archbishops have raised concerns about the NHS, housing and poverty. They encourage voters to remember Britain’s Christian history and heritage as well as a concern for future generations and God’s creation as they make their decisions. At a time when political differences may be felt more intensely than ever, the Archbishops insist that Christians’ “first obligation” during the election and beyond is to pray for those standing for office. But Christians also have a duty to play an active part in the process, they add.

Following divisions of recent years, they call for reconciliation drawing on shared British values based on cohesion, courage and stability. The letter also calls for space for faith in political debate and says politicians must be free to speak openly about their own beliefs and convictions and treated fairly for doing so. They call for a generous and hospitable welcome to refugees and migrants but also warn against being “deaf to the legitimate concerns” about the scale of migration into some communities.

They also single out the importance of standing up for those suffering persecution on grounds of faith around the world. Faith, they argue, has a unique role to play in preventing extremism and religiously motivated violence. “Contemporary politics needs to re-evaluate the importance of religious belief.”

May God grant us all wisdom as we go to the polls, and protect us from evil, Rev Steph It can’t have gone unnoticed that the path around St Mary’s Church under the tower has been cordoned off. We apologise for the inconvenience

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caused, but we have directed visitors to take the path by the Bell Cage and back down the south side of the church. This is due to unsafe masonry from the tower that has begun to fall and we need to take emergency action to make it safe. It is likely that the path will be closed for some time as remedial work is carried out on the south west turret of the tower which is close to the road and then the whole tower will be made safe for future generations to enjoy our rich local heritage.

For the duration of the building work, wedding couples will enter church from Church Plain. Funeral directors will continue to use the church gate opposite the war memorial. In time there will be scaffolding erected and safety measures put in place to protect the public.

By the time you read this, you may have already unwittingly have contributed to the tower fund. This year’s pram race is supporting St Mary’s Church East Bergholt Preservation Society and we are working closely with them on the project and are extremely grateful for their support. Together we are looking at potential grants to apply for and ways of raising the large amounts of money that are going to be needed.

If you want to help in any way, to donate or have a novel idea for fundraising, please contact one of the churchwardens: Liz Digby 01473 312281 / Fiona Trott 01206 298205 We will keep you posted via the parish magazine as to how the work is progressing and please watch out for events and ways that you can support this important building project.

St Mary’s East Bergholt Bank Holiday Market takes place on Monday, May 29 from 10am. With the ongoing repairs to the tower our fundraising has a sense of urgency about it.

CHURCH CLEANER WANTED St Mary’s East Bergholt needs a cleaner to help keep our beautiful church clean. The person we have in mind will be responsible for cleaning the chancel, nave and Lady Chapel and enjoy interacting with visitors to the church. Contact church warden Liz Digby – 01473 312281 / 07557 569192 – for details on hours and honorarium paid.

BRAVE BEARS WANTED

TEDDY BEAR 1st Prize PARACHUTE £50 CHALLENGE 2nd Prize Saturday 24 June 2017 from 9:30am St Michael’s Church Brantham Sponsorship forms are available in the church

£30 In Touch online:

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“

THIS IS THE BEST OF ME…THIS, IF ANYTHING OF MINE, IS WORTH YOUR MEMORY.

“

Elgar

ELGAR’S THE DREAM OF GERONTIUS Holbrook Choral Society | Phoenix Singers, Framlingham | Royal Hospital School Chapel Choir Reade Orchestra | National Youth Choir of Great Britain Fellows Richard Edgar-Wilson, Tenor | William Saunders, Conductor

SATURDAY 17 JUNE, 7PM

PRE-CONCERT DRINKS FROM 6.30PM CHAPEL, ROYAL HOSPITAL SCHOOL, HOLBROOK, IPSWICH IP9 2RX

Full: £10 | Conc: £7 | U18: FREE Available from experiencetickets.co.uk/rhsmusic 01206 573948