16 minute read
Community
We would like to welcome locals and visitors alike back into Tavistock as coronavirus restrictions start to ease. We are blessed to have lots of open space to enjoy your visit to the town and you can be assured of your safety – with additional signage, hand sanitiser stations and renewed street graphics among some of the measures in place. Our businesses cannot wait to see you back! We are kicking off spring in Tavistock with the annual ‘Paint the Town’ event beginning on April 10th. This year, with many people having faced extended periods of isolation, the event involves the wider community as well as schools. Working with West Devon Art Workshops, some of the displays will incorporate light – signifying our hope that the worst is over and the town can re-open and thrive once more. We will be relaunching the Tavistock town app ‘Tavistock Local’ in the coming weeks. Along with the Visit Tavistock website, this will be an engaging source of useful information about the town and its businesses. If you haven’t downloaded it already, you can easily do so from Google Play and the Apple App Store. Don’t forget you can continue to support the high street by giving the gift of Tavistock – The Tavistock Gift Card. With over 50 places to spend it, this makes a great gift for any occasion throughout the year. You can purchase a card online at www. tavistockgiftcard.co.uk, or pick one up from Lawsons Tavistock, or load your own from any of the participating businesses.
BID Events
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01 April – 17 April TAVISTOCK EASTER EGG HUNT
Another egg-citing and free trail brought to you by Tavistock BID. Collect your clue sheet and find all the eggs to earn yourself a prize. Collect your sheets from The Pasty House, Mime Café or download them at www.visit-tavistock.co.uk/ towntrails
From 10 April PAINT THE TOWN WITH LIGHT, TAVISTOCK
Local businesses, in conjunction with local primary schools and community groups, will create bright and wonderful window displays throughout town to bring Tavistock alive for spring. A seed swap activity will be taking place on Bedford Square. www.visit-tavistock.co.uk/whats-on
Buying Local
Liz Abell from The Diverse Regeneration Company, explains how money spent locally creates a vital ‘circle of life’ that helps maintain our communities and longer-term local economic stability. A report from data agency Kantar, found that 65 per cent of UK consumers believe that ‘local shops and businesses are important to the community.’ Well certainly in the case of local food and farming, it means fewer carbon emissions from fewer miles travelled, will often be fresher, better quality, will taste better and is more likely to be ‘plastic free’ in terms of packaging. On top of all these benefits money is reinvested back into the local economy, creating more jobs and improving job security. A number of research companies have been taking a closer look at how money flows in and out of areas and have noticed profound economic impacts of keeping money within a community. This flow of money in and out can quite literally make all the difference to a community, town or even village’s survival. Research by The New Economics Foundation, found that twice the money spent in local shops or at a farmers’ market, in comparison to that spent in a supermarket, would stay within the local community. The community can then benefit by spending it on services, support facilities and investment in new businesses and jobs. This in turn also means money spent locally can help save our towns from losing local shops and services. Perhaps more surprisingly, buying local has implications on a global scale. Just a small increase in exchange rates or the rise of oil prices globally could see the cost of many imported products rising. Therefore by supporting our own producers and manufacturers, this gives us more resilience to cope with future global fluctuations. Another perhaps overlooked bonus to buying local, which we’ve particularly seen during the past few months, is its ability to give us a vital source of human contact, helping us all stay mentally and socially healthy. As you can see, buying local products, using local services and supporting our local manufacturers, gives us so much more than just a feel-good factor! As such I would urge you this year to support the amazing local businesses and food producers we have across the region. So please think local and buy local.
Liz Abell Managing Director, The Diverse Regeneration Company
The Diverse Regeneration Company, a not for profit CIC, supports rural and coastal businesses and community organisations; it can assist with securing grant funding for projects in sectors such as farming, forestry, tourism and community, and help with many aspects of business from project planning, diversification, bid writing and more.
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Morris Bros (Tavistock) Ltd
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Arranging any funeral can be distressing, which is why choosing the right funeral director to ease you through the process can make all the difference. At Morris Bros, we understand the pain of loss and open our doors to you, offering both practical guidance & personal comfort. Simon & Lucie Luke live at the Foundry & are available to you 24 hours a day. Your loved one will stay with us; their care, attention and preparation only provided by us.
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e Old Bedford Foundry Lakeside Tavistock PL19 0AZ www.morrisbros.co.uk
A pre-paid funeral plan with Golden Charter gives you and your family peace of mind with a range of plans to suit all budgets from just £1950. Your plan will be allocated to Morris Bros here in Tavistock. We also o er bespoke plans to suit speci c requests. Contact us for further details or to make an appointment.
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Robert Kilby sealing the lane to Ramscliffe © Chris Chapman 2001
2001 - the year of the foot & mouth epidemic
While our lives are being turned upside down thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, 20 years ago another virus was wreaking havoc in many countryside communities in the UK - and particularly so in West Devon. I remember talking to our next door neighbour, retired farmer Ginger White, in the bar of the Blacksmith’s Arms at Lamerton, the weekend that foot and mouth disease was discovered in Devon. The dread he felt was plain to see. I was working at the Tavistock Times then, the fax machine on the corner of my desk. In the months that followed, curled paper messages from DEFRA spewed out endlessly, recording the relentless march of foot and mouth disease across the countryside. Police kept watch by taped-off farm gates, fields steadily emptied, infected stock was destroyed and even sadder, healthy animals were killed, just for being ‘contiguous’ or next to a farm where the virus had been found. A total of 173 cases were confirmed in the county - some 390,000 animals slaughtered and burned on huge pyres. The effects of the epidemic were felt throughout the area, not just within the farming community. Public footpaths and bridleways were closed, setting foot on farmland, common land and Dartmoor was prohibited, while disinfectant-soaked straw was laid down across car park entrances in an effort to halt the spread of the deadly disease. Sue Wonnacott, whose family farm is just outside South Zeal, remembered: “We used to go up into our fields on the moor in the evening and you could see the smoke and the pyres all around - it was an awful sight. But farmers are very resilient, they are
Preparing the pyre, Ramscliffe Farm, Beaford, North Devon © Chris Chapman 2001
Gathering sheep, Vellake Corner - July, by Mary Heard
very good at bouncing back, they get on with their lives. And the farming community is good at getting stuck in and helping each other out. It’s like now, people have come together and it’s brought out a lot of good in the community.” Christine Marsh of Okehampton was newly elected to Devon County Council at the time of the epidemic and was a member of the authority’s inquiry panel into the crisis. The 90-page report, Crisis and Opportunity, recommended that in future, culling of animals should be limited to those which had proven contact with infected stock, that research into vaccination should be carried out and that the army should co-ordinate the response to any future outbreak from the start - also that a national contingency plan be drawn up. Christine was scathing of the way the epidemic was handled, however she said: “It was a very, very sad time in our history, but we moved on, in the same way we will move on from this Covid pandemic.”
Jane Honey
Tavistock Community Fridge
Tavy Fridge opened in March in the lobby of Tavistock Library, providing free fruit and veg, bakery items, packaged food and chilled food – it is one of over a hundred community fridges to open across the UK since 2016. The idea of a community fridge originated in Germany as a way of reducing food waste and the carbon footprint that goes with it. The charitable organisation, WRAP (Waste Resources Action Programme) has calculated that a third of all food produced for human consumption is thrown away! In the UK alone, 9.5 million tonnes of food are wasted by households and the retail and hospitality industries, generating 25 million tonnes of greenhouse gasses and costing the nation £19 billion a year. Tavistock librarian Denise Gatley, felt motivated to do something for the community as times grew harder during the first 2020 lockdown. “Tavistock pulled together in an amazing way during lockdown but it was obvious that job losses and reduced incomes were hitting the community hard. Libraries Unlimited fully supported the project, providing the space and covering public liability and insurance. Their backing has made a huge difference,” said Denise. Denise, and Alison Knight from Live West recruited a small group of volunteers; Live West provided funding of £1,300 and Tavy Fridge coordinator Sharon Gedye, started looking for doners. The food retail and hospitality industries dispose of a huge amount of food that is past its best-before date or has damaged outer packaging, but is still perfectly good and edible, in particular, fruit, vegetables and bakery items. All three supermarkets in Tavistock responded to the Tavy Fridge request for help and the hope is eventually for other food businesses, gardening groups and even the public to be able to offer surplus food. Over four million tonnes of edible food are thrown away by UK households every year, costing the average family £700! You can find helpful hints on how to reduce food wastage our Facebook page. Tavy Fridge is available during library opening hours, five days a week – for more details see tavyfridge.org. If you would like to volunteer to help please contact volunteers@tavyfridge. org; for donations email information@tavyfridge.org; business doners please contact foodpartners@tavyfridge.org; To Good to Go and Olio are useful apps for sourcing excess food. Tavy Fridge coordinators would like to say a big thank you to Libraries Unlimited, Live West, Trudy Eperon from The Lemon Grove Café for her support, guidance and donations, Dartprint for the posters and signage, ABC for hosting the Tavy Fridge website, Tesco, the Co-op and Lidl for their donations and Sharon Gedye’s partner Steve for sourcing and building the shelving free of charge!
Denise Gatley (Libraries Unlimited) & Alison Knight (Live West)
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Hat trick of tourism awards for Devon Yurt
Devon Yurt, established in 2007, was a pioneer in the glamping world. Now entering its 14th year, it remains at the peak of its game and for a third consecutive year, owner Julia Martin has received news that they have reached the finals of the Devon Tourism Awards; last year they received the gold award for glamping and are poised this year for a further top accolade. They were also the silver award winners in the South West Tourism Excellence awards in 2020 and have a gold award from Green Tourism which is only awarded to businesses with a significant investment in green issues and sustainability. A closer look at Julia’s business explains why these awards are flooding in. With just two yurts in their own private paddocks on a beautiful West Devon farm overlooking Dartmoor National Park, guests have the benefit of both natural surroundings and luxury. Each yurt has its own firepit and logfired hot tub; the attention to detail is exemplary, with one guest likening it to a hotel, but with more space and privacy. Couple this with a plethora of stunning, rare breed animals to get to know on the farm, great places to visit in the neighbourhood, and a range of local food items that can be delivered to the door - from breakfast baskets, BBQ packs and new for this season, a pizza pack. Always thinking of ways to improve the visitor experience, Julia has even ordered a new barrel sauna, arriving later this season. If you want to sample a touch of glamping luxury without the risk of travelling very far from home this summer, use code LINKS21 to qualify for a free hot tub session during your stay. For further information visit www. devonyurt.co.uk or telephone Julia on 01822 870366.
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Spring symphony
As the days get longer, we can start to make the most of the lighter mornings and early evenings. Wildlife is also responding to this increase in natural daylight and warming temperatures, encouraging animals to pair up and prepare a safe space to raise their young. I’m sure many of you wake up to the sound of bird song, maybe a robin or wren is singing in your garden. Our resident birds are the first to start the spring chorus – male birds sing at first sunlight to attract a mate or defend their territory. Migrant birds join the choir later to create a melodious symphony culminating in May. Join others around the world to celebrate ‘International Dawn Chorus Day’ on Sunday 2 May at wildlifetrusts.org/dawn-chorus-day.
Common frog by D. Deveney Some bird species start to pair up earlier than others, so in February I started to survey the Burrator woodlands for one of Devon’s rarest birds, the Willow tit. It looks virtually identical to a Marsh tit - both are similar in size, have a black cap and favour damp habitats such as wet woodland or scrubby edges of Rhos pasture near streams and ditches, so spotting the difference is virtually impossible. The only reliable way of distinguishing between them is to listen to their song or
Wren in song by E. Scotney
contact calls – so we use a playback song/call and wait for a response. Unfortunately, no willow tits have responded yet but I did see a beautiful pair of Marsh tits, listened to a mistle thrush in song (sounds quite like a blackbird) and heard great spotted woodpeckers drumming to establish their territory. Another creature we associate with spring is the Common frog, when the males croak at night or early morning. I came across frog spawn in most of the wet flushes, and even saw a few worn out frogs enjoying the sun’s rays! The female frog lays thousands of eggs each spring to ensure survival – only 1 in 50 eggs makes it to tadpole stage and the odds are even lower to reach final adult stage. You can attract frogs to your garden by creating a small pond – it’s amazing how quickly they will find it. The pond should have gentle sloping sides to allow the frogs to climb out and a deeper area in the centre so they can hibernate at the bottom in the mud, but don’t introduce fish as they will eat any frog spawn. Freshwater Habitats Trust is collecting spawn data at freshwaterhabitats. org.uk/projects/pondnet/spawnsurvey2021 or for advice on how to create a garden pond visit freshwaterhabitats.org.uk/ pond-clinic/create-pond. I hope you can get into your garden or local green space and appreciate the beauty and sounds of nature in full song.
Deborah Deveney Burrator Biodiversity Officer, South West Lakes Trust
