13 minute read
Community
Proud times at literature festival
SHEPTON Mallet’s own literature festival – Literally Shepton –saw the official launch of a community-inspired book about the town’s battle to save its library from closure. The Town that saved its Library – written and compiled by Helen and Rob Heaton – features paintings and drawings of the town by young people and charts the campaign to prevent the closure of the facility in the Market Place.
As a result, the Somerset County Council-owned library is operated by Seven Starlings CIC and has seen the building opened up for more community use.
The book was launched in the library, which also hosted talks by writers of both children’s and adult literature, whilst the Art Bank Café saw live music and comedy performances as well as a book swap.
All the paintings in the book are to be framed and will go on show at a Town that saved its Library event at the town’s SS Peter and Paul church on Friday, January 20th – Sunday, January 22nd where it is also hoped to auction the original watercolour by Rob used for the cover of the book.
Children’s author Alex Cotter, who lives near Bath
Mells Winter Fayre
Helen and Rob Heaton (seated with daughter Sofia who drew a map for the book) with festival organisers Tim and Julia O’Connor
Jack Cooper, aged ten, who contributed to the book
Christmas presents
MELJameson from Chew Stoke is pictured with some of the Christmas boxes collected in the Chew Valley for Operation
Christmas Child.
Mel said: “Some 75% of the boxes are going to Ukrainian children in the surrounding countries and hopefully Ukrainian orphanages.”
Go ahead for new shop
THEfuture for Brent Knoll’s community shop has received three green lights to proceed. Having launched as an “emergency shop” in 2020, the volunteer-run venture has been operating from a Portakabin for the past year.
A plan to demolish the village’s public toilets and replace them with modern toilets and a permanent shop building has been backed by a public vote, the parish council and Sedgmoor’s planners.
The parish council will now pursue a loan application and prepare a pre-lease agreement, while the community shop team seeks a shopfitter to advise on the optimum internal layout for the new shop building.
Craft days
Pictured (l to r) Sandra Blair, Steph Butler, Alice Prescott, Julie Shahin, Delia Jenkins and Jenny Coomber
THElast craft day in Compton Dando before Christmas attracted 15 people, with 13 staying for lunch. The next dates for this popular group will be Thursday, January 5th and Saturday, February 4th.
New Year walking with Mendip Ramblers?
Mendip Ramblers supported Frome’s Walking Festival. Walkers gathered outside the Cheese & Grain where the Mendip Way meets the Saxon Kings Way for a riverside trail
Guide Mary Henderson points to a brown plaque on a house on North Parade which was once the Champneys Arms inn and London coach office, built in 1739
AFTER an incredibly mild autumn walkers everywhere enjoyed easy walking in dry weather.
Mendip Ramblers almost forgot about the waterproofs and hats! Almost 50 members enjoyed lovely walking on the beautiful Llýn peninsula in North Wales.
But the New Year is here and with it, colder weather must be expected and those resolutions of sensible eating and exercise need to be acted upon. So, our Mendip Ramblers walking programme is planned across the whole Mendip area, ranging from long and speedy walks, more leisurely moderate walks, and some whose main purpose is to stroll slowly towards a teashop; something for almost everyone. As usual, our working party has been out checking stiles and bridges, improving routes for walkers and local communities alike.
All walkers are welcome – you don’t need to be a Rambler to join in, so why not give us a try? Take a look at our website – www.mendipramblers.co.uk – and look out those jackets and boots!
Minibus future still in doubt
THEMidsomer Norton & Radstock Community Minibus is still operating, but its future is still in doubt.
Just two of their pre-pandemic members continue to use the minibus, Peasedown St John Methodist Lunch Club and Stanley Court Residents Club.
But Swan Transport, Swallow and Clutton Trefoil Guild have now all become regular users, enabling their members to enjoy time out at coffee and chat sessions, social evenings, football tournaments, garden centres and the like.
They say: “In order to sustain this important community service we do need to get more users on board and, if we can do that, we will then need more drivers.
“Without an increase in users, drivers and trustees it is unlikely that the community minibus, which has been serving our local community for the last 55 years, will survive for very much longer.”
Details: Melvyn Johnson 01761 452585 or Nick Rogers 07817 476535
Successful first year
CHEDDARVisitor Information Centre marked its first anniversary under the management of the local community by helping more than 15,000 visitors to the gorge. The former National Trust shop has been taken on by the Cheddar Community Partnership CIC and is being run entirely by local volunteers.
Most visitors came from this country, but around a fifth were from overseas, from all corners of the globe, reflecting the international attraction of Cheddar Gorge.
The centre is now closed until the February half term and organisers are hoping more locals will come forward to help cover opening times next season.
Details: cheddargorgevic@gmail.com
Snowdrop King remembered
MEMBERS of the Inner Wheel Club of Shepton Mallet welcomed one of the organisers of the town’s annual snowdrop festival, Amanda Hirst, to their meeting.
Amanda talked about James Allen, known as the Victorian “Snowdrop King” for his work hybridising the plant. His work and his life in his home town of Shepton Mallet provided the inspiration for the festival, which takes place each February.
Club president Harriet Farquhar with Amanda Hirst The club boasts a wide age range. Harriet, at 45, is the youngest, whilst the eldest is Doreen Bailey, aged 92 years. Doreen is lighting the candle of friendship
Coffee and cake for all
Pictured (l to r) Linley Hunter, Helen Neary, Emily Adams, Rachel Belton, Shane Melanophy, Sara Box, Dammi Hogg with Edith and Kirstie Hunter
A COMMUNITYcafé has opened in Temple Cloud, with tea, coffee and cake available for everyone who calls in. It runs every other Thursday, 9.30-11am in the village hall.
Organiser, Sara Box, said: “It was a suggestion by myself, with the support of the parish council, to try and bring the community of Temple Cloud together.
“At the moment it is just cake and refreshments and a chance to catch up with everyone. In the future we may look at inviting guests along as well to tell us about things they are involved in which would interest us as well.”
Details: 0772 3030842
Thank you, Dave!
Parish council chairman Vicki Taylor with Dave Mattick
VILLAGERS in Leigh-on-Mendip turned out in force to say thank you to stalwart Dave Mattick, who has stood down after ten years on the parish council.
The council laid on a celebration at The Bell Inn where Dave was presented with a wooden platter carved by artist Rich Blaker, who lives in the village.
Dave, a former nuclear submariner who specialised in electrical engineering, will remain on the parochial church council and as a member of the Friends of Leigh Church.
Community support
QUARTETCommunity Foundation awarded 888 grants last year worth £4,848,905 and is pledging to award at least £5million a year in future.
It marked its 35th anniversary by seeing its endowment fund reach £60million and is appealing for more support in the current economic crisis.
Its annual report says: “The spiralling cost of living crisis show no signs of slowing. Like the pandemic before it, we know that everyone is being affected, but not equally.”
It supports community groups and charities in Bristol, B&NES, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire.
Details: www.quartetcf.org.uk
Breakfast club donation
Head teacher Karen Bazeley and children from Longvernal Primary school with Alan Bowhay, president of Somer Valley Rotary Club
MEMBERS of Somer Valley Rotary Club have made a £600 donation to support Longvernal Primary School’s Breakfast Club activities.
Caring for donkeys
Janet (right) with helpers Barbara, Christine, Ros and Val
JANET Parsons from Stowey and her friends have been busy selling their homemade crafts at Christmas fairs throughout the Chew Valley and were able to send £1,000 to the charity “Safe Haven for Donkeys” which operates in Israel and Palestine.
Rotary gift to Temple Cloud Larder
THE Rotary Club of Cam Valley has presented a cheque for £150 to the Temple Cloud Larder Group to help the Larder Ladies with the running costs of the village larder.
It began operations in early 2020 around the time of the first Covid lockdown, when people were reluctant to go to supermarkets.
Later this changed to include those furloughed from their jobs or made redundant, but by and large this group found work as the level of Covid infection dropped.
However, three years down the line, the need for the larder remains and is growing.
Organisers say: “The recent and very steep rise in the cost of electricity and gas along with the soaring cost of food has seen the return of many of the original larder uses as well as a large number of new users who would normally have been able to manage without any additional support.”
The larder group consists of half a dozen ladies who collect produce reaching its “best before” date from local supermarkets each day. This is perfectly good food that would otherwise have to be wasted by the store.
In addition, the larder group have also benefitted from the support of the village, with excess home-grown items, such as cooking apples, donated directly to the larder itself.
With Christmas approaching, the donation from the Rotary Club of Cam Valley will enable the team to purchase non-perishable items designed to allow the preparation of hearty meals for those living on their own as well as for families at what is often a particularly difficult time of the year.
Team member, Liz Brakspear, said: “A very big thank you is due to all the Cam Valley Rotarians for their continuing support to the Temple Cloud larder.” THElongest established bridge club in the North Somerset area, Nailsea Bridge Club, is celebrating its 50th year and held a special event attended by more than 50 players, including many former members.
They held two sessions of bridge, either side of a special afternoon tea, at their regular venue,
Nailsea’s Mizzymead Recreation Centre.
The friendly club was founded in 1972 and participates fully in county events, with several notable successes over the years. Two of its original members, Barbara Parker and Marion Blackhall (pictured), still play regularly at the club’s weekly duplicate bridge sessions.
Marion won the first session with club chairman, Tom Gibbard, a Backwell resident, who helped organise the event. The club hopes that some of the occasional players enjoyed the day so much that they might play on a normal club evening.
Bridge club celebrates 50 years
Details: www.bridgewebs.com/nailsea/ Ann Bawdon 01275 853509
Poetry evening
MIDSOMER Norton and Radstock Inner Wheel club enjoyed an evening of poetry with Paul Evans from Wickwar, who sold educational publications to schools all over the west of England.
From that he developed a love for all kinds of poetry and is now much in demand for talks on the subject.
This is just the beginning
DOZENS of people attended the official opening of Ashwick and Oakhill Village Hall’s new community café ahead of a Christmas craft fair.
Author Cate Ray, from Bath, cut the ribbon to open the space converted from disused changing rooms and storage areas in a project costing £85,000.
The idea of the café was first raised just 13 months ago and much of the money came from grants from organisations such as Somerset Community Foundation, Mendip District Council and from direct fundraising. Work has also started to improve access to the hall.
Longer term proposals include upgrading and extending the building for externally accessible changing rooms. The outside leisure facilities are also being reviewed with a view to upgrading the old BMX track and installing additional leisure and exercise equipment.
Hall committee chairman Andy North said: “The café will be run by volunteers and we would love more people to get involved so that we can extend the opening times. It’s also an official Warm Space.”
Cate Ray with her latest novel. Cate has previously written four other books under the name Cath Weeks
Rhymes and reason
A FARMER’S wife who has been entertaining clubs, societies and other organisations for decades with her amusing “ditties” about life in the countryside has finally turned them into a book.
Margaret Adams, who grew up on a farm in North Wootton before becoming a nurse and then marrying a farmer herself, has called the book “Living with the Boss” her name for her husband Tony who, although officially retired, still keeps a few animals on their 100-acre farm at Dimmer on the edge of Castle Cary.
Margaret was very much hands-on with the farm, mostly milking the cows but also driving the tractor and mucking out.
Her humorous poems cover subjects ranging from growing up in wellington boots to moving heifers and make-up.
Margaret, who plans to resume giving her talks in the spring, said: “I used to write the ditties on the back of envelopes and stuff them in a drawer, but the family persuaded me to do something more with them. When I give talks I usually recite them from memory.”
Her daughter, Maureen Wincott, said: “They make for a humorous read, but they also capture a farming way of life which is disappearing.” l Living with the Boss is on sale at the Bailey Hill Bookshop in Castle Cary, priced £5. Profits will go to the town’s Market House Project.
Cate Ray prepares to cut the ribbon to open the café watched by committee chairman Andy North
The café will open initially every Saturday morning and every other Wednesday morning from January 11th
