May 2015 Forum Focus

FORUM FOCUS

What do these three . . .

For Blandford and surrounding villages Issue No. 38

May 2015

Fly zapped in the nick of time CAMPAIGNERS for the treatment of the river Stour to prevent the emergence of the feared Blandford Fly are celebrating the news that the treatment has taken place.

The announcement by North Dorset District Council came after confirmation by Roger Frost, Food, Safety and Licensing Manager at North Dorset District Council, that final authorisations were secured by the product manufacturer to permit the treatment of the river. The work was done on 31st March.

Concern was raised last year that the treatment might not be carried out, firstly because of doubt over who would fund the operation, and then because of the need to re-license the product under EU regulations.

A petition, launched by Pat Ashworth of Blandford, was signed by over 2,000 people in a matter of weeks last autumn and called for the continuation of the treatment. It was presented to the district council

and Dorset Health Protection Network earlier this year.

Mrs Ashworth said: "I am delighted by the news that the treatment has been carried out. It was frightening to think that residents and visitors to the area might once again be plagued by the fly's bite, which can be so devastating and is etched deeply into the psyche of local people. There was a real strength of feeling in the town that the treatment should not be stopped."

Tony Harrocks, the councillor who spearheaded the campaign, died only a few days before permission was approved for the use of the product, and Mrs Ashworth said: "Wouldn't Tony have been delighted? He was so supportive of the petition."

The Dorset Health Protection Network had agreed to support NDDC in funding spraying of the river to control the fly and the contractor that undertakes the work had been notified and was on stand-by.

To Page 2

Fay Weldon

Grayson Perry

Cynthia Lennon

. . . have in common?

The river Stour is treated to prevent the emergence of the Blandford Fly.

FORUM FOCUS: Your FREE monthly community newspaper

They’re all featured inside this issue of Forum Focus! www.forumfocus.co.uk

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May 2015

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Where to find Forum Focus THE main drop points are: Blandford and Blandford St Mary: The Post Office, Library and Parish Centre in The Tabernacle, the Corn Exchange, Gorge Cafe and Blandford Museum in the Market Place, the Tourist Information Centre in West Street, James Newsagents in The Plocks, the Co-ops in Salisbury Road and Langton Road, the 3Cs in Damory Street, the Damory Garage and One Stop in Salisbury Road, Cherry's hairdressers in Elizabeth Road, CLP stationery on Blandford Heights industrial estate, Blandford Leisure Centre in Milldown Road, the Central Shop in Heddington Drive, the Brewery Visitor Centre, and Tesco and Homebase at Stour Park.

In the villages: Charlton Marshall Church Rooms and Charlton pub, Woodpecker pub at Spetisbury, True Lovers Knot and St Richard Close bus stop in Tarrant Keyneston, Langton Arms in Tarrant Monkton, Pimperne shop, the White Horse Inn at Stourpaine, Iwerne Minster post office, Child Okeford Post Office, Shillingstone Garage, Londis Shop & Royal Oak at Milborne St Andrew, The Crown at Winterborne Stickland, Post Office and Surgery, Milton Abbas, and The Cricketers at Shroton.

Many thanks to the Central Stores in Heddington Drive for agreeing to take more copies for the Damory Down area following the sudden death of deliverer Tony Harrocks. Volunteers are now needed to deliver in that area.

Contact us by email to distribution@forumfocus.co.uk or call 01258 456999.

Temporary reopening for closed road?

Following on from the festive spirit shown at Christmas by the badgers sporting Santa hats on the brewery-sponsored roundabout on Blandford bypass, it was nice to see them sporting bunny ears over the Easter period. What will come next to brighten the outlook of passing motorists?

River Fly zapped From Page 1 But by mid-March the council was still waiting to hear whether approval would be given or not.

Mr Frost said: "It was a close call, because there was only a small window of opportunity to treat the fly larvae so the work would not be disrupted by adverse weather conditions."

The Dorset Health Protection Network is considering what future strategy may be necessary, whether the Blandford Fly's breeding pattern has been altered and whether river conditions have changed, as well as the costs.

Forum Focus is an independent, not-for-profit, community newspaper produced entirely by volunteers.

We are always pleased to receive offers of help.

DORSET County Council's Cabinet will decide this month whether the C13 through Dinah's Hollow can be opened on a temporary basis until the start of reconstruction works.

The road has been closed at Melbury Abbas between Blandford and Shaftesbury since April last year, when an engineer's report showed that the slopes beside it were unstable and a potential hazard.

A full risk assessment has been carried out of the impact of the closure on surrounding roads, including Spread Eagle Hill, which has needed resurfacing, and proposed stabilisation works, and as a result of discussions with the local community, contractors have been asked to reduce the effect on trees and vegetation.

A revised design was expected at the end of March, and subject to approval of landowners work could start in January 2016, but without their consent could result in a protracted legal process to secure access to the slopes.

The county council is also considering the longer-term traffic management issues in the C13/A350 corridor after the C13 is eventually reopened and has outlined possible options in discussion with Melbury Abbas and Cann Parish Council and other affected parish councils on the A350 for consideration by the county's Regulatory Committee in the autumn.

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May 2015

Pimperne gets new school at last THE start of the summer term at Pimperne Primary School proved a momentous occasion with the opening of its new premises next to the village hall in Newfield Road.

As contractors put the finishing touches to the new building, children and parents arrived excitedly at the entrance and were admitted, to the sounds of Europe's 'Final Countdown', to the new playground, four times the size of the one it replaces.

There they gathered to hear prayers of blessing from the Rector, the Rev Stephen Coulter, whose opening assembly underlined the school's church foundation and linked the new school with the story of the Easter Resurrection.

Pupils selected from each year group cut the tapes across the doors to enter their individual self-contained classrooms, each opening out onto the playground.

Parents were directed to the spacious assembly hall and invited to take a short guided tour of the new facilities with head teacher Jerome da Silva and chair of governors Steven Fielding.

The school and its governors, and the Pimperne community, have waited nine years for the replacement of their cramped, Victorian school buildings in School Lane following the reorganisation of education in the area from three-tier to two-tier in 2004.

The majority of the primary schools were either extended or replaced to cater for the additional two year groups in 2007 and 2008, but Pimperne alone had to wait because of problems in agreeing a site.

Outline permission was granted in 2008, but referred back for redesign by the Secretary of State because of objections from the Environment Agency and Cranborne and West Wiltshire AONB. The estimated cost has risen from under ÂŁ4 million to more than ÂŁ6.3 million.

None of the pupils who were promised a new school at the time are pupils there now,

Governors with the Rev Stephen Coulter, second from left, chair of governors Steven Fielding, head teacher Jerome da Silva, and pupils chosen to cut the ribbons to open their classrooms at the main entrance.

although some of the most recent school leavers have been invited back to view the new premises.

The palm prints on ceramic tiles of those now attending form the leaves on the mural in the entrance hall and library featuring the five trees, the logo of Pimperne originating in its entry in the Domesday Book.

Children on their first day in the school decorated their own commemorative plate bearing the school logo and opening date.

Mr Fielding said: "The opening of the new school brings new life into the village, but the old school was a good school, and it is the children who made it so.

It is the children who will make the new school great."

He paid tribute to his fellow governors and particularly Mike Oliver, who was chairman at the start of the project, and to Mr da Silva and his staff who, over the previous week, had worked round the clock to make the move from the old to new site.

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May 2015

Grayson Perry sketch sells in aid of charity A SKETCH by Turner Prize winning artist Grayson Perry has sold at auction, raising £3,600 in support of a Blandford mental health support group.

Perry sent the sketch in black ink and pencil on an A4 sheet of paper to the Willow Tree Group after member Barrie Smith wrote asking him for support.

It arrived by special delivery in a Jiffy bag marked 'Sender: G. Perry. Do not bend', and inside was a note which read: "Dear Barrie, this drawing by Grayson Perry is for the Willow Tree Group silent auction.

It is probably worth about £2,000. Good luck!"

Mr Smith said the Willow Tree group had been going for 25 years, meeting once a week for lunch, and when its funding was cut they decided to carry on but had to find £7,000 a year to continue.

He wrote 120 letters to various people and businesses he thought might help, including the artist who is famous for wearing frocks and in art circles is best known as a potter.

"I had seen Grayson Perry on the news and on the TV and he seemed a sympathetic and caring person who might help," said Mr Smith. "I wrote to him via the Saatchi Gallery and a few weeks later a

package arrived. Normally I tear these things open but for some reason I didn't with this one, which was just as well.

"Inside a crush-proof case was a Jiffy bag containing the artwork, and the note saying it was worth £2,000. I couldn't believe it. It is a hugely generous donation which was too big for us to manage so I asked Duke's of Above: Grayson Perry's artDorchester if they work in the Jiffy bag sent to could auction it." the Willow Tree Group.

Amy Brenan from Right: the sketch.

Duke's said: "The sketch is based upon the mechanics of the mind and is extremely powerful, typifying Grayson's use of contemporary and controversial themes, often with an autobiographical theme.

A busy schedule

"He has drawn a series of disjointed motorbike engine parts in black ink, highlighted with red pen and shaded with pencil, with speech bubbles enclosing expletives and adjectives describing a disturbed mental state. It is almost a dissection on paper of someone's troubled mind.

"We are delighted to be able to sell this work and have waived our usual premiums so the group gets as much as possible."

TOWN councillors had a busy civic schedule at the end of April, starting with the Town Assembly in the Corn Exchange, when reports were given by the Mayor Steve Hitchings and committee chairmen on the year's activities.

It was followed six days later by the Mayor's Civic Day, to which mayors and chairmen of other authorities in Dorset and neighbouring counties were invited. It began with a service of thanksgiving in the parish church and was followed by a buffet lunch and walk of the town boundaries.

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May 2015

The day I went for tea at Child Okeford with Cynthia Lennon

By Stuart Booth IN the latter half of the 1990s, a couple who were then living on the Isle of Man found that the Inside Park outside Blandford was a good place to base their caravan for their regular trips to the Dorset area.

In fact, they were sufficiently impressed by the Stour Valley area that they ended up living hereabouts, in a cottage at the Gold Hill-Hollow area of Child Okeford for a couple or so years.

I was reminded of all this on the sad occasion of the death in April of one half of that couple - the lady in question being Cynthia Lennon.

Her passing, which made international news, also had an unexpectedly local, personal and poignant aspect. I say this, having been lucky enough to have visited and chatted with the first Mrs John Lennon and her then partner, Jim Christie, at their Child Okeford home.

Being involved professionally in book publishing and with one of my specialisms being popular music (also a life-long passion) I was in early-stage discussions with her about revising, updating and expanding her earlier autobiography 'A Twist of Lennon'.

We ended up talking about an entirely new autobiography, a major new perspective of her life, her life with John and the whole Beatle phenomenon.

I recall how protective Jim was of her image and any exposure.

Maybe there was an irony in this, as she was together with Jim for some 17 years, longer in fact than with any of her three other husbands after John Lennon.

Tea with Cynthia and Jim, around 1997-8, in the whitepainted cottage, was a charming and quietly civilised occasion.

Cynthia was always delightfully

Cynthia Lennon with her son Julian. friendly and candid, but with no trace whatsoever of any 'showbiz' or 'attitude' that might understandably have resulted from all the madness, glamour and her deep and personal involvement during the height of Beatlemania.

In fact, I sensed in her a dichotomy about those years. One major facet of this was the clear evidence that she was totally devoted to Julian, her son by John, wanting for him as much family normality as was possible, despite the many circumstances conspiring otherwise.

Nonetheless, she was constantly sought out and caught up in the Beatles' glory days. She explained the mixed emotions that resulted in participating in the many Beatles conventions around the world, but it was those in the USA that produced the real fanaticism and which, ultimately, resulted in her withdrawal from such events.

The occasion was at a signing held during one US convention when, after she had autographed books, LPs and all manner of

Band award for Owen OWEN McKernon was the proud recipient of the Ron Tolman Award 2015 from Timothy Stankus, Bandmaster, at the annual general meeting of the Stour Valley Band.

The award, named after band legend Ronald Tolman, is the highest honour the band can bestow and is presented each year in recognition of dedication to the band.

Owen, who plays the euphonium, has been with the band since he was eight years old and received the award for his positive attitude and pleasant demeanour over the 32 years he has been a member.

Beatles-related ephemera from the long queue of fans, one fanatic drew from his carrier bag the object he wished her to autograph - a replica head of her murdered ex-husband. Enough

was enough. It had to end.

Certainly, Cynthia Lennon lived near Blandford for only a relatively short time before she and Jim finally spilt up. She went to live in France with her fourth husband, with whom she remained until his death and then her own this spring.

Nevertheless, it is probably a relatively little-known fact that many in Child Okeford had her among their other famous, musically related neighbours for a while.

Even to a relative stranger like me, she remained a very friendly, warm, gently spoken and considerate lady. Above all, she remained a devoted mother to Julian throughout everything fame, mayhem, doldrums, John's assassination and everything else that life threw at them.

By the way, in case you wondered, the book never happened.

Well not at that time, although she did finally publish it later, entitled simply 'John'.

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ELECTIONS ELECTORS in the North Dorset constituency will have a choice of five candidates in the General Election.

In the Blandford area a total of 34 candidates are fighting for 12 seats on North Dorset district council - five in Blandford and seven in the surrounding area.

Polling stations will be open from 7am to 10pm

May 2015 on Thursday May 7th.

All the votes will be verified and the General Election poll counted at The Blandford School immediately afterwards and into the early morning. A declaration is expected at around 4am on Friday, May 8th.

The district, town and parish votes will not be counted until the morning of Saturday May 9th.

New faces joining district authority THERE will be at least a dozen new faces on North Dorset District Council as a number of members are not seeking re-election or have died.

At least four will be in the Blandford area, where Mike Oliver, whose Cranborne ward has been abolished by the Boundary Commission, and Joe Hickish, member for Blandford Old Town, have stood down, and Tony Harrocks (Blandford Hilltop) and Richard Moyle (Riversdale) have died.

A fifth is in Beacon ward where Catherine Elspeth Langham of Hilton has been nominated unopposed as Conservative candidate.

Ward arrangements have changed, with Blandford Station and Damory Down merged into Blandford Central with two members, Hill Forts enlarging and now represented by three members, and Riversdale and Portman merging, with two members.

The candidates and where they come from are as follows (those seeking re-election are

marked *): Abbey: Emma Jayne Parker *, Winterborne Whitechurch (Con), Simon Jonathan Rayson Najsh, Milton Abbas (Green), Jane Somper *, Sutton Waldron (Con).

Blandford Central (2 seats): Tony Burt, Spetisbury (Con), Esme Linda Butler *, Blandford (Ind), Elizabeth Ann Coulson, Tollard Royal (Con), Anna Therese Hayball, Blandford (Green), Mike Owen, Blandford (Lab), John Tanner *, Pimperne (Lib Dem).

Blandford Hilltop: Peter Duke, Blandford (Green), Mark George Leonard, Sutton Waldron (Con), Shane Pardoe, Tarrant Keyneston (UKIP), Haydn White, Blandford (Lab).

Blandford Langton St Leonards: Tracey Collins, Hazelbury Bryan (Con), Barrie George Cooper *, Charlton Marshall (Lib Dem), Dennis Wardleworth, Blandford (Lab).

Blandford Old Town: Hugo Anthony

Mieville, Blandford (Lib Dem), Jackie Stayt, Blandford (Con).

Bulbarrow: Audrey Burch *, Milton Abbas (Con), Joanna Stephen, Winterborne Stickland (Green).

Hill Forts (3 seats): Deborah Anne Croney *, Iwerne Minster (Con), John Leslie England, Sutton Waldron (UKIP), Andrew John Grant, Shillingstone (Green), Sherry Jesperson*, Child Okeford (Con), James Edward Schwier, Child Okeford (Con), Keith Yarwood (Lab).

Lower Tarrants: Stephen M Kelly, Tarrant Keyneston (UKIP), Deirdre Veronica Skipwith *, Langton Long (Con), Brigit Anne Strawbridge, Shaftesbury (Green).

Riversdale and Portman (2 seats): Andrew Kerby, Spetisbury (Con), Geoffrey Charles Lambert, Charlton Marshall (UKIP), Daniel Skakich, Charlton Marshall (Lab), John Arthur Stayt *, Blandford (Con), Amanda Claire Williams, Charlton Marshall (Green).

May 2015

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ELECTIONS

Five chase a seat in Parliament THE General Election candidates are confirmed as those reported last month: Richard Simon Barrington (Green) Kim Fendley (Lab) Simon Hoare (Con) Hugo Anthony Mieville (Lib Dem) Steve Unwin (UKIP)

Retiring North Dorset MP Bob Walter (Conservative) had a 7,625 majority last time over Liberal Democrat Emily Gasson. Labour's Mike Bunney and UKIP's Jeremy Nieboer were some way behind.

Anna Hayball represented the Greens, and there was also a Monster Raving Loony candidate, Roger Monksummers.

Unfilled vacancies on town and parish councils WITH the exception of Hilton and Farnham, there will be no elections for the town or parish councils in the Blandford area, where vacancies remain in a number of areas.

Four members of Blandford Town Council - Bob Brannigan, Rosemary Holmes, Sara Loch and Sylvia Hixson Andrews have not sought re-election, and the death of Tony Harrocks meant that five needed to be replaced.

Nominations for only three new councillors mean there are two vacancies, one in Hilltop and one in Central ward, and the elected councillors will decide at their full meeting in May whether or not to hold a by-election to fill them.

The new members are Lee

Hitchings (Hilltop), Colin Stevens (Langton St Leonards) and Nick Barnaby (Central).

Re-elected are Haydn White (Hilltop), Harold Galpin and Hugo Mieville (Langton St Leonards), Peter Clark, Jackie Stayt and John Stayt (Old Town), and Esme Butler, Roger Carter, Steve Hitchings, Lynn Lindsay and Mike

Owen (Central).

In Blandford St Mary, the new council will consist of Malcolm Albery, Terry Hill, Julia Marina Russell, John Stayt, Richard Whitlock and Tom Young, leaving one vacancy.

In the rest of the parishes, a shortage of candidates means that there remain vacancies in

most, with only Stourpaine, Child Okeford, Milton Abbas, Tarrant Hinton, Tarrant Rawston and Winterborne Kingston at full complement.

Pimperne, Shillingstone and Charlton Marshall have three vacancies, and Shillingstone and Winterbornes Houghton, Stickland and Whitechurch each have two.

Beware the tax cut cowboys, say councils COUNCILS in Dorset are warning people about calls from an organisation claiming to be from one of the councils offering to reduce their council tax for a fee.

They say the calls, offering to cut the council tax liability for a fee of ÂŁ55, are not from or authorised by any council.

Paul Hudson, Partnership Manager at the Stour

Valley & Poole Partnership, which administers council tax for Christchurch, East Dorset, North Dorset and Poole councils, said: "If people are looking to challenge their council tax they can contact the government's Valuation Office Agency for free."

For details of how to challenge the council tax band which a property falls into, go to gov.uk/council-taxappeals or call 0300 0501 501.

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May 2015

Helping hand for Fashion Museum

The Blandford churches' Parade of Witness on Good Friday.

Churches unite for Easter MEMBERS of six churches in Blandford gathered, initially in the rain, in the Market Place on Good Friday to highlight the meaning of Easter.

The short service was followed by a Parade of Witness behind a cross carried through the town centre, by which time the weather looked more kindly upon them.

The service was conducted by Brook MacCallum, pastor at the Evangelical Church in Albert Street, with contributions from Tom Hogan of the Catholic Church and Ian Smith of the Blandford Christian Fellowship, who said that although the six churches had different approaches to worship and beliefs on technical issues, they shared a common purpose in celebrating the Easter message.

Prayers were said at various points around the town, and shoppers and onlookers were offered free hot cross buns in the streets and afterwards in the Corn Exchange.

BLANDFORD Town Council has agreed to enter into a service level agreement (SLA) in order to keep Blandford Fashion Museum going.

Their decision followed an application which indicated that the tourist attraction and educational facility was operating at a loss and in danger of having to close within a few years.

The council already has similar agreements to provide funding over a number of years in return for an agreed service provision, in respect of the Blandford Museum, North Dorset CAB, Blandford TIC and Treads youth advice centre.

Councillors were told that the fashion museum, which opened in 1996 as the Cavalcade of Costume, displays items from the collection of the late Betty Penny in her former home, Lime Tree House, which was gifted to it.

It attracts nearly 2,500 visitors a year and relies largely on income from its tearooms and shop and donations. Rental income from a benefactor has now been lost fol-

lowing her death.

In recent years the museum has had to reduce costs from ÂŁ16,000 to ÂŁ12,000 a year by reducing its brochure print run and cutting expenditure on conservation and displays, building maintenance and insurance and restricting future development.

Councillors debated whether to commit the new incoming council to the expense or to defer a decision until after the election, but agreed to a four-year agreement starting this year which will be considered for renewal at the same time as those of the other SLAs. The council also agreed an SLA with the Blandford Food Bank.

The trustees had highlighted the educational value of work experience opportunities, the availability of items for hire by schools, and the children's trail in the museum, and outreach and halfterm lectures.

Reprieve for town pub REGULARS at the Wheatsheaf, the last remaining Blandford pub outside the town centre have succeeded in their campaign to list it as an asset of community value and are now ready to oppose any possible redevelopment of the site.

Notification came through at the end of March that the listing for five years had been approved.

Rhia Jones, who together with a friend Sara Niven-Smith started the campaign on behalf of 'The Friends of the Wheatsheaf', said: "We're all over the moon but realise that it's just the start of our campaign to keep the pub going."

May 2015

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10

OBITUARIES

May 2015

A tireless worker for the community A MEMORIAL service was held in Blandford Corn Exchange on 17th April for town and district councillor Tony Harrocks, who was found dead at his home in Mortain Close on 14th March.

A large number of organisations in the town were represented to pay their respects to a man who, in addition to his elected roles, had worked tirelessly for the community.

Mayor Steve Hitchings said: "Following his election to the town council in October 2010 as a result of a by-election, Tony threw himself enthusiastically into his work, and there are not many areas that won't miss him. If you gave him a task he would complete it he spent a whole morning cutting the tops off Christmas trees for the Yuletide Festival."

Mr Harrocks, who was 72 and leaves a twin brother Adrian and younger brother Mervyn, was born and bred in Bournemouth, and spent most of his career working for the Alan Cobham group and Meggitts as a test engineer.

He was elected to North Dorset District Council in 2011, and in 2013-14 was chairman of Blandford and District Civic Society.

He became a key member of the town's World War commemoration 14-18 group, and less than a fortnight before his death, marched from Blandford to Shillingstone in full military dress as part of the Gallipoli Memorial March. He was actively research-

Tony Harrocks ing World War One at the Dorset History Centre and compiling a week-by-week account of reports in the Dorset County Chronicle.

A volunteer with the Blandford Jobcentre and campaigner for young jobseekers, he was also instrumental in setting up the Blandford Speedwatch Volunteers and turning out regularly with them to monitor traffic on local roads.

He campaigned doggedly for the continuation of the treatment of the river Stour to contain the Blandford Fly, dying just days before it was announced that permission had been given for the treatment to go ahead.

He was a member of the Blandford Jubilee Celebrations Group and its successor the Blandford Events Group. He was an avid supporter of the Pimperne Pre-School and was descibed at the memorial service as a caring and helpful person who always went the extra mile.

He was a founder member of the steering group which manages Forum Focus, a contributor of reports on the various activities in which he was involved, and one of its volunteer distributors, latterly taking nearly 470 copies house-to-house on his home estate of Damory Down. He will be greatly missed.

Tony Harrocks: he will be greatly missed by many local organisations.

Councillor’s sudden death Richard Moyle TRIBUTE has been paid to North Dorset district councillor Richard Moyle (pictured right), of Winterborne Zelston, who was founded dead at his home on 24th March.

Mr Moyle, who was 65 and worked in corporate insurance, represented the Riversdale ward, including Spetisbury and Charlton Marshall, on North Dorset District Council from 1999, and held many positions of responsibility.

He served as a member of the Cabinet from 2004 to 2010, and vice-chairman of overview and scrutiny and a member of strategic development.

A lover of music and opera and award-winning ballroom dancer, his humanist funeral was held at the Cedar Hall, Charlton Marshall, on 16th April, when trib-

utes were paid by family members and by a representative of the Blandford Freemasons Lodge, of which he was a leading member and trustee of the Masonic Lodge in West Street.

He is survived by a brother and a son and daughter. His wife Betty died in February this year.

BLANDFORD'S Police Community Support Officers and Blandford Youth and Community Centre worked together to clean up the graffiti and litter on the Blandford skate park in March.

The youth workers did a fantastic job in getting some of their young members active and involved to support their local activities. Jo Clarke said: "We have great facilities in Blandford and it is important to keep them clean and tidy for everyone to enjoy."

If anyone finds graffiti in the skate park please contact Dorset Police on 101.

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May 2015

Fay proves a crowd-puller THERE was a full house in Beatons Blandford when author Fay Weldon gave signings of her new book 'Mischief' and was featured 'In Conversation' in support of the town's Corn Exchange Challenge.

Famed for her works examining the role of women in society, she chatted over a cup of tea with Westrow Cooper about what inspired her writing, her life and her work in front of an audience served with tea and cakes from the Beatons' menu.

The 21 stories and a new novella span four decades in which

women's roles have changed for ever, and offered some fascinating insights into the changing face of publishing, and the impact of tablet and computer screens and e-books on not only reading habits but also the author's style.

Helen Cooper, organiser of the event which aimed to put Blandford on the literary map and raise its profile as fundraising continues for the refurbishment and remodelling of the town's Corn Exchange, was thrilled to have sold every ticket, and that there was 'standing room only' in the tearooms.

Dogs meet up in verse MORE than 50 dogs, which meet up regularly on the Milldown in Blandford, have been immortalised in print by one of their walkers in a booklet published in support of three charities, the Margaret Green Foundation, Dogs Trust and Julia's House Hospice.

Pat Miller has penned the poems with the title of 'Blandford Friends', and her own dachshund Hugo is pictured on the front cover in an illustration by Linda Bett, who has also drawn a number of the doggy friends together with characters and favourite dog walking places featured.

To get a copy, email tilly2misty@msn.com.

Stella’s stories revealed LOCAL author Stella Baldwin has published her third book which features the stories behind some of the mementos of her past she keeps at her home in retirement in Westbury Way, Blandford.

The first two, 'Molly's Mary' and 'A Day in the Life Of'' were children's historical novels, but 'My Home - not my house' takes an autobiographical slant.

The stories are written with an eerie anonymity, always in the third person with the people unidentified, while places and historical figures are named. Copies are available from the Blandford Information Centre in West Street.

Bus trips on timetable BUS2Go community transport has a number of special outings planned during the summer in addition to its regular weekly excursions.

They include a half-term trip in May to Wolfeton House near Dorchester, a day out at Sammy Millers Motorbike Museum, Craft Centre and Petting Zoo at Barton-on-Sea in June. In July there is a day out in Swanage with a ride on the Swanage Railway, and in August a trip to the Somerset Lavender Farm.

The team, now based at Signpost House on Blandford's Sunrise Business Park, is seeking a volunteer able to spare a couple of hours a month as an on-board volunteer to assist with seat belts and provide a steadying hand for some of the passengers on and off the bus, and collecting fares either on the bus or at the destinations. For details, see the website bus2godorset.org.

Westrow Cooper interviews author Fay Weldon in Beatons Blandford Tearooms.

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Letters to the Editor

LETTERS Do write to Forum Focus if there is something you'd like to comment on or share with other readers.

Email your letter, which should be as brief as possible, to: editor@forumfocus.co.uk.

Alternatively, you can call 01258 459346 or deliver your letter by post or by hand to: Forum Focus, c/o

May 2015 Colin's Community Club, 49 Damory Street, Blandford DT11 7HD. Please mark your letter 'for publication' and remember to include your address, which will not be used in full.

Forum Focus reserves the right to shorten or edit letters in the interests of clarity, brevity and style.

Solar farms worse than wind farms AT last, people objecting to solar farms! I do not understand why people think that wind turbines are a blot on the landscape but solar farms are not.

Solar farms take up far more of our countryside than wind turbines, which in my opinion look far more attractive. Animals are still able to graze around them so the land is not wasted.

There are also suggestions of them being noisy, but doesn't traffic make a lot of noise and there is plenty of that?

Devon and Cornwall have many windmills stretching across the country, and if you are in Rhyl you can see them far out across the sea looking quite beautiful in the sunset.

I bet people didn't complain when the pylons were built years ago, especially visible between Dorchester and Bridport. I expect they were just grateful to have electricity in their homes.

We have to do something to provide fuel for our children's and grandchildren's futures so why are people so anti everything?

I guess a lot of it is about money and property values. If anyone wants to see an eyesore, just drive along the bypass at Blandford St Mary towards Dorchester - the solar panels cannot be missed, sitting high in a field.

H. Rawles, Blandford St. Mary

Solar farms: an eyesore?

Survey view is not balanced BLANDFORD residents have been invited to participate in an online survey regarding the siting of 600 new homes.

The survey clearly states what Blandford+ believes to be the answer. The survey also highlights factors which encourage participants to agree with the

Blandford+ answer.

The survey provides an unbalanced view and I'm concerned the skewed results will be used to justify the conclusion to which Blandford+ have already come.

It's regrettable that in a democracy participants were not free to express their opinion without being led to the desired conclusion.

Siting of new developments is a

complex matter. There are a great many factors to be considered - for instance, do we want to build houses further from the town centre so new residents are less able to support the local business? If we're to have a survey then let's have a balanced survey and a valid conclusion.

Thanks for a great magazine!

Nick Armitage, Letton Park.

Do you have an old MP3 to give away?

YOU printed a little piece for me when I climbed Kilimanjaro in 2013 and I talked briefly about the Kilimanjaro Orphanage Centre (kiliorphanagecentre.org), which is partly funded by the company that provided the guides and porters for Kili, Zaratours (zaratours.com).

Now I am finally going back and am collecting things for the children, in particular the older children who often get overlooked.

The director says they would positively kill for an MP3 player!

I have a couple, but would like one for everybody, and they will

need USB leads and earphones.

I am hoping some of your readers will have one unused somewhere, having moved on to more expensive things. I am also appealing for other items, such as sports equipment - they are all football-mad.

I will not be leaving until the end of July, so there is plenty of time to get things together, which can be dropped at 5 Kings Road in Blandford, through the letter flap, or by letting me know by email at trinepedersen_6@hotmail.com so I can collect.

Trine Pedersen

THE great news from Blandford Food Bank is that Gail never has to go out and buy food now because our donations are enough every week.

We are still, however, putting time and energy into raising money rather than contacting new referrers and thereby reaching more people in crisis.

If any of your readers could help us with a small monthly, quarterly or even annual donation by standing order, it would be a great help. For a standing order form, please contact Gail: blandfordfoodbank@gmail.com.

Jenny Galuschka, Blandford Food Bank Steering Group

LETTERS

May 2015

13

Stop moaning and lend a hand IN reply to 'Name and address supplied' in your April issue, the exaggeration in this letter is discouraging to those of us who work hard to make Blandford a place people want to come to, and worse, it actively discourages outsiders from visiting Blandford.

Not very helpful.

There are many groups working to make Blandford a more interesting and exciting place to visit.

But many are comprised of the same, few, caring people.

Unhelpful rants such as yours do no-one any good and can do a lot of harm, both to the image of Blandford, which we are endeav-

ouring to change, and to the souls of those are working so hard to regenerate the town.

The statutory bodies named in your letter as being the ones responsible for improving Blandford are, in fact, not. The community is responsible, both

Plenty care about our town WHAT a silly letter, 'Town becomes a pit of despair come nightfall'. I offer a counter view of our fantastic town - Blandford.

You refer to social issues that are relevant to every village, town and city in the UK. The tone of your letter is that nobody in Blandford is doing anything; let me assure you they are.

Many people are passionate about the town and give up their free time to become town coun-

cillors, organise events, run clubs, volunteer, pick up litter, assess and raise money for the historical buildings and sort the signage.

But yes, we could all do better; more could volunteer their time, drop less litter, and reduce nuisance noise. But be realistic people have and will always get drunk, pull up plants and have outdoor 'romantic couplings'.

It is a bit annoying but actually

Farewell after 24 years I HAVE been a member of North Dorset District Council for 24 years and during this time have been the councillor for the Cranborne Chase ward, which comprises the villages of Pimperne, Tarrant Gunville, Tarrant Hinton, Ashmore, Farnham and Chettle.

I was also a member of Pimperne Parish Council for 16 years and Chairman of NDDC for seven years, all of which I found both interesting and rewarding.

I have much enjoyed looking after the inhabitants of all my villages and done my best to sort out their problems which mainly concerned planning, housing, council tax and other financial matters and the very complicated areas of bene-

fits. Some I won and some I lost!

Sadly, for me anyway, I have decided for a number of reasons to stand down at the District Council elections on 7th May and to retire from all local politics.

I would therefore like to take this opportunity to thank all those with whom I have been involved over many years, especially the members of the parish councils with whom I feel I have had a very good relationship and with whom I have had many and various dealings, and last but by no means least the members and superb staff at NDDC, whose help and advice were always of such value to me. I will miss you all.

Thank you everyone.

Mike Oliver, Pimperne

Keep the flags flying!

AS we passed through Blandford recently we stopped in Salisbury Street and found on the corner of The Plocks a friendly cafe of your namesake Forum.

Pleased to see in your March issue ('Waste money criticism over plan to fly a £58 flag') that the non vote-participating public love the game of council knocking.

I have flown flags up here for many years now and as flagman have an unknown following who shake you by the hand and say 'Thank you for the Tricolour' or 'How did you know I was coming home from Canada?'.

Flag flying gives a place identity and a feel of belonging. Fifty-eight quid is no great shakes looking at real flags. For perhaps the more transient occasion maybe the smaller rayon at £7 or £8 would be adequate?

I hope the council will buy more flags and celebrate every day.

Obviously a well prepared issue number 36 so praise is unnecessary.

Gordon, South Gloucestershire (Full name & address supplied).

good to have a bit of 'impenitent sin', as you might put it. The next thing you will want is to ban is Christmas. My question to you is what have you contributed to the town, or are you one of those who just moan and then expect others to sort it?

So rather than write silly letters, do something for your town to make it even better. Or you could move back to Marlborough, where a quick internet search will reveal, behind the wealthy façade, issues of littering, dog fouling and vandalism and perhaps the possibility of divine retribution.

David Rose (address supplied).

business and public. While watching 'Escape to the Country' on the television I am always impressed that people are looking for a place with a "sense of community". It is nice to think we can just move into a place that has an active and involved community and sit back and enjoy it, but this is a fantasy. A community is nothing more or less than the people of that community. The community of Blandford is only as good as its involved citizens and can only be successful by engaging with a participating and committed business community.

Consider the adage 'if you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem'. If you are not involved, even in the smallest way, in your community, then you need to consider what kind of community you expect to live in.

I would suggest that the writer of the letter, who seemed very concerned about litter and dog mess, consider contacting the Clean Up Blandford group, which is working very hard to not only clean up the town, but to educate people about the importance of this.

Sylvia Hixson Andrews, Blandford.

14

May 2015

District’s future ‘in good hands’ Building excellence recognised FOUR new buildings in the Blandford area were among the award winners at the second North Dorset District Council Building Excellence Awards, presented to architects, builders, designers and property owners at The Exchange in Sturminster Newton.

Hall & Woodhouse's new brewery building won the best commercial building award for builder, Opco, and Boon Brown Architects, and the new Music School at Bryanston School won best educational building for Midas Construction and Hopkins Architects.

The redevelopment of the former magistrates court site in Salisbury Road, Blandford, won best housing development for builder, PMC Construction, and architect, Martin Ralph chartered surveyors, and the Tarrant Hinton Village Hall Committee, as builder and architect of their new village hall, won best sustainability development.

Dean Spiller of Oak A Framing in Iwerne Steepleton won best traditional builder or craftsman award for his work on a property in

Marnhull and a new house in East Orchard.

The event celebrated the very high standard of design and construction of buildings across North Dorset.

Council chairman Su Hunt presented the awards and Anna Thompson, director of training at Local Authority Building Control (LABC) was MC for the evening.

The event was supported by the south west regional office of the LABC, the membership organisation that represents all local authority building control teams in England and Wales, and sponsored by Sydenhams, the independent builders' merchant.

David Walsh, the council's portfolio holder for planning, conservation and building control, closed the evening, saying: "These awards celebrate all that is good about the planning, design and building industries in North Dorset.

Planners, designers and builders are custodians for the future of the built environment and from what I have seen tonight, the future of North Dorset is in good hands."

Winners of the North Dorset Building Excellence Awards at The Exchange in Sturminster Newton

New bid for solar farm REVISED plans have been submitted to East Dorset District Council by renewable energy company Good Energy to build a 24MW solar farm at Mapperton which will provide green electricity to thousands of homes.

The plans have been amended to take on feedback from the local community and are for an installation a third smaller than the previous proposal.

At two well-attended local exhibitions, people were given the opportunity to comment on the possibility of receiving discounted local electricity tariff and the chance for the community to invest in a financial stake in the scheme in addition to an annual £25,000 community fund for local parishes already pledged by Good Energy.

15

May 2015

Extra space brings joy to care home A NEW extension, giving muchneeded extra space for residents at Castleman House Care Home in Blandford, has been officially opened by the longest resident Miss Joan Nelson.

The event was marked with a tea party at which residents, visitors and guests, who included officers from Dorset County Council, friends of the home and members of staff.

The extension was completed last December to provide a large dining area, TV lounge and quiet seating area for Cherry Cottage, one of five cottages into which the care home is divided, each with its own lounge and kitchen area, for the 48 residents aged 65 and over.

Julie Thorne, manager at the home, said: "We are so proud of this new extension which has given the much-needed extra

space. It has given our residents a new space to socialise, watch TV in comfort and enjoy a spacious, light-filled zone at the home.

"We're thrilled to bits with the new facilities which have made a real difference to the lives of the ladies and gentlemen who live here."

She said that when excavations for the extension were made, the contractors found foundations for the Blandford Workhouse which once occupied the site, adding an interesting historical twist to the story.

Head of Dorset County Council adult services, Andrew Archibald, said: "We're delighted to have been able to create this muchneeded extension for the residents at Castleman House. Many of them require a range of complex specialist equipment to

Resident Joan Nelson opens the new extension at Castleman House.

assist them in daily living.

"The new facility is a testament to all the hard work and commitment from the staff at the home, who have been the driving force behind the project, and I was delighted to be able to share this happy moment with them."

Village homes anger PROPOSALS to build five more houses with access off a narrow lane in Shillingstone have horrified residents who fear they will make use of the lane by cars, pedestrians, horses and children even more dangerous.

Thirty members of the public attended the meeting of Shillingstone Parish Council at which the application for land at Hine Town Lane was discussed, and it was agreed to submit a strong objection on a number of grounds to North Dorset District Council.

There was considerable bewilderment that DCC Highways had no objection to the proposal in view of the inadequacy of the singletrack lane, which already serves a number of houses and the village recreation ground, to handle additional traffic.

But other grounds included the character of the site, an important open or wooded area within the conservation area, and the conflict with the village's developing neighbourhood plan favouring access from the Blandford road to a site further south which might be suitable for development, and the lack of demand for more four-bedroomed homes locally.

www.forumfocus.co.uk

Tracy in GB team A LOCAL competitor was one of the British team competing in the IFCS World Championships at Cowboy Ranch near Milan, Italy, in April.

The IFCS is the International Federation of Cynological Sports relating to the study of dogs and runs the dog agility championship.

Tracy Runyeard, of Okeford Fitzpaine, was last year a bronze medallist and part of Team GB which won two gold and three bronze medals at the championships in the Netherlands.

This year, with her two dogs Tizzy, a previous medal winner, and Rumba, she was again part of the team of 11 handlers and nearly 20 dogs which between them won one gold and four bronze.

An international and national competitor at venues such as Olympia and Crufts, Tracy has been doing agility for about 20 years, and is also an experienced trainer.

Tracy Runyeard, who competed in the Dog Agility World Championships in Italy, with one of her dogs Tink.

16

May 2015

Museum reopens after a winter of improvements

Flick Baker, Tessa Pearce and Rachel Lee with the new medieval exhibit in the Blandford Museum.

Festival to be revived?

THE woman who organised an arts festival in Blandford as part of its Charter400 celebrations in 2005 is hoping to revive the event next year and is seeking volunteers to give her a hand.

Kate Seeger, of Damory Court Street, said: "Since the Charter celebrations I have often been asked when I would do it again. With my children now at school and a reshuffle in my business, I felt it was time to bring the free expression arts festival back to Blandford and my aim is to tie it in with Dorset Art Weeks around May and June 2016."

Kate's aim is to showcase local talent and also allow people to have a go at different areas of the arts.

"Much has changed since 2005," says Kate, "when there was no Facebook or Twitter. I am not that good with social media so I hope there is someone out there who is and would love to get involved. I really need volunteers to help me to make this an exciting event for Blandford."

Anyone interested can contact kate@free-expression.com.

BLANDFORD Museum in Bere's Yard may have only just opened for the season, but over the autumn and winter a tremendous amount of work was done to better present its massive collection of items of local history.

Work has also been carried out to photograph the pages of books kept under cover to make them available for viewing, and to number items on display so that details can be given on information sheets.

The medieval exhibits have been rehoused in a new 'gallery' modelled on a medieval chapel which nestles in an alcove where a window has been opened up and decorated in stained glass style to shed light on the display.

It is the work of artist Flick Baker and designer Tessa Pearce, assisted by volunteer Rachel Lee, and with the help of Mark Lilley in making the window, and features the history of St Leonard's chapel and other medieval artefacts found locally.

At the museum opening Nessa Hickish welcomed guests and trustee Haydn White, of the museum's landlord the William Williams Trust, who cut the ribbon praising the remarkable change in the educational offering of the museum over the years.

Tribute was paid to museum stalwarts Tony Harrocks and Ted Green, who had recently died, and thanks expressed to all

those working on archiving and curation, and in the railway and garden clubs.

The museum is continuing its series of free first Thursday talks, and from this month will be holding a last Friday evening in the Museum garden, a chance for people to enjoy a relaxing evening in a lovely, flower-scented garden. The first is scheduled for Friday 29th May, starting at 4.30, and they will continue until August.

Students from local schools and youth organisations have also put in a huge amount of time, on the military exhibit, the Alfred Stephens display and on a display next to the dolls house of the Woodhouse play farm donated by the family of the daughter of Frank Woodhouse.

Education officer Sylvia Hixson Andrews said: "We have a very active education programme for young people and children who come into the museum to work on a variety of projects, documentaries and exhibits and learn about the Blandford fire, history, WW1 and WW2, local archaeology and other subjects.

"We are soon going to be starting an afternoon for people with memory loss and their families and carers."

Anyone interested in working with primary age children, young people or adults and helping with the education programme can contact Sylvia at 01258 458911 or sylhixsonandrews@gmail.com.

17

May 2015

A life-saving visit ALMOST 100 people went along to the Corn Exchange for Blandford Rotary's annual Know Your Blood Pressure morning.

Local GPs Dr David Burlton and Dr Jonathan Evans, working with personnel from the Stroke Association, gave up their time to measure the blood pressure of people keen to know if they were in danger of suffering a stroke.

Nine men and nine women were recommended to see their GPs within a month for further investigation because their BP was abnormally high. A further two men and two women were advised to see their GP without delay because theirs was dangerously high.

"Every year a significant number of people are identified who have no idea their blood pressure is raised," said Rotary President Steve Adamson. "This valuable service helps to reduce the incidence of strokes and we thank the Stroke Association and the local GPs who give up their spare time to support us in this work."

Tracie Palmer, Stroke Association co-ordinator for Dorset, said: "We thank Blandford Rotary for organising another successful event that helps to save lives."

Railway Club makes tracks to new venue THE Blandford Museum Railway Club has relocated, lock, stock and scale model layout, to the Scout Headquarters in Eagle House Gardens where members have more room to work on their model-making.

Blandford Town Council last month agreed to give the club, founded and chaired by David Cash, a grant of ÂŁ1,000 to assist with the setting-up costs of forming a new club and provide modelling materials to build detailed working models of the Somerset & Dorset railway stations in the area.

They will also be setting up a library of over 100 maps relating to the Somerset & Dorset railway.

In their application they pointed out that they had hosted two large transport exhibitions in the past which attracted over 2,000 rail and transport enthusiasts to each event, and now had 38 members, the majority of whom live in the town.

The new base will be open to the public on the afternoon of

Sunday 24th May when the Blandford Railway Arches Trust, who are working on a project to restore the railway flood arches on Langton Meadows, will be hosting a 'Celebrate the Railway Day' between 1pm and 5pm.

The Trust, established when there were fears that the arches might be demolished because of their deteriorating state, is seeking support for a ÂŁ40,000 scheme to refurbish the structure, one of the last remaining remnants of the railway in the town.

The Blandford Museum will also be open, and there will be a railway heritage trail walk up the Trailway.

The project includes providing access so that it can be used as a vantage point over the meadow for interest groups, a potential venue for arts and educational activities, and the opportunity to appreciate more fully the North Dorset Trailway and its history as the route of the Somerset & Dorset Railway.

Cycleway work delayed HIGHWAYS officers have agreed to reschedule the proposed second phase of work on the Black Lane cycleway from Wimborne Road to Hambledon Gardens after town councillors raised concern that it should not be done during the school term.

It is now scheduled for the week starting 20th July, during the school holidays.

Town councillors withdrew their objection after hearing that the money for the scheme could not be spent on anything else since it was allocated specifically for the purpose, and that it was part of a county-wide plan to improve walking and cycling facilities.

However, they raised the issue of the lack of cycle parking and signage in the town centre and how the Blandford cycleways might be linked with the cycle route beyond the bypass to Pimperne.

Tracie Palmer, of the Stroke Association, and Blandford Rotarians invite people into the Corn Exchange to have their blood pressure checked.

Go-ahead for homes plan DETAILED planning permission has been given by North Dorset District Council for the redevelopment of the former Milldown Primary School with 43 homes.

They also approved a temporary footbridge over the Trailway while the work is being carried out so that pedestrians can avoid the construction traffic using the former railway bridge.

Concern was expressed at the April Town Council meeting that work appeared to have started but the bridge was not yet in place.

18

May 2015

Caravan landmark for Teddy charity

Above: Teddy 20 supporters gathered on the balcony of Ted's Shack in Weymouth. Below: The Newton family at the launch.

THIS year's Teddy Rocks festival at the Greyhound in Blandford kicks off on Friday 1st May in the knowledge that the charity it supports has now purchased a luxury holiday caravan named Ted's Shack, based in Weymouth.

It will be used to give respite breaks to families with children with life-threatening illness, and has been bought as a result of years of fundraising by Teddy 20, originally established for ten-yearold Ted Newton, of Westbury Way, Blandford, who died aged ten in 2010.

His family pledged to support childhood cancer charity CLIC Sargent and the Kingfisher ward at Dorset County Hospital, which supported them during his illness.

But it has blossomed into their own charity which will now also support the provision of the caravan.

Thousands of pounds have been raised over the year, not only by the annual Teddy Rocks festival organised by Ted's older brother Tom, which is hoped to expand on a larger site next year, but also by a range of activities.

They include the Teddy 20 charity cricket match which takes place on the late May Bank Holiday Monday at Park Road recreation ground, and a number of sponsored events involving other family members and supporters.

They gathered on 3rd April at the Waterside Caravan Park in Weymouth to celebrate the launch of the caravan holiday home.

Ted's mother Kim Newton said:

"Oncology patients will have first dibs but we are also taking referrals for other people having a horrible time with life-threatening conditions and in need of a holiday.

"It will also be available for private lets because we still have to raise the ÂŁ6,000-a-year ground rent."

Staff from the Kingfisher ward were among the guests, who also included Jan Boyd, licensee of the Greyhound, and Tim Hill of the Dorset Cricket Board, who have been involved in the fundraising events.

A meeting place for new group A NEW social club for young people with Asperger's or other autistic spectrum conditions started on Thursday 23rd April in Blandford.

AteenS is for youngsters aged 13 to 19, and aims to provide a relaxed and comfortable, nonjudgemental meeting place for members only, giving them a chance to make new friends and share interests, feel supported, included and understood.

Facilities at Treads in Bere's Yard, under the archway off the Market Place leading towards the town museum, include rooms for Xbox and games, a large smart TV, DVDs and books, drinks, snacks, PC internet access and gaming, including tabletop and card games.

For more information call in to Treads young people's advice and information centre at 28b Market Place, email AteenSblandford@gmail.com or phone 01258 455448.

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May 2015

19

Farmers market relaunch brings a boost for trade A RELAUNCH of the Blandford Farmers Market alongside a craft fayre in the Shambles heralded what it is hoped will be an answer to the desire in the Town Team survey for more specialist markets in the town.

The Farmers Market is no longer part of the Dorset series but is run by Alex Cooper of Hunnybears, who produces honey products from his hives, including one in the Blandford Museum Victorian Garden.

Many of the traders are members of the West Dorset-based Dorset Farmers Market, but Alex has taken on responsibility for booking new stalls and collecting fees for Blandford. Since the new year there has been an increase in the number of producers from four to 16.

The relaunch on Comic Relief Day was decorated with a few red noses to celebrate the occasion.

Equally thriving are the fortnightly craft fairs in the Shambles, run by Angie Adams and Nikki Hooker, now augmented on farmers market days every second month by the Corn Exchange Challenge (CEC) Group with more stalls inside the Corn Exchange.

Music educator Terry Quinney on saxophone added a musical flavour to the relaunch proceedings which will continue at the next one with Sam Ryall and Jemma Clunies-Ross.

Helen Cooper of the CEC group said: "The story behind the relaunch is simple: in November it was clear, when we held our Christmas craft fair in the Corn Exchange, that the Farmers Market outside was failing.

"This prompted a brief discussion and decision to relaunch in the spring. More stalls bring more people into the town to visit other shops and meet friends for coffee, raising the profile and focus of the Corn Exchange as a community hub.

"We visited other markets in the south-west - Wells, Bridport, Poundbury and Frome - and invited traders to join us in March, and emailed those on food festival websites."

New stalls included Sam's Fudge, Dorset Herbals (tea) and Purbeck Ice Cream, and Devon Fish Cakes made a welcome return, with all stallholders reporting a good day, and local shops also reporting a busy day trading.

Next month they are looking to introduce street food as well as Dorset Dog Treats.

The market is open to all who make or grow their own produce, and there are plans to hold food-based competitions over the summer months, with prizes from the stalls.

The March event was followed in April by a return visit of the popular Vintage in the Village Hall, and the CEC Group is also planning a ceramics fair in July.

Bad parkers warned MOTORISTS who park obstructing the raised kerb in West Street, Blandford, designed to help people access public transport, have been warned that enforcement action may be taken against them.

Dorset County Council is looking at options for putting a raised kerb at the East Street bus stop to help elderly or infirm passengers board and leave buses, but the solution may be expensive because of the need to use Purbeck stone in the conservation area.

North Dorset District Council is considering a request to convert the coach parking space on the Marsh and Ham to a bus terminus, relieving the pressure on East Street and redirecting visiting coaches to the four spaces available in the Langton Long car park.

Above: Alex Cooper and fellow stallholders in the Farmers Market.

Left: Terry Quinney and his sax provide musical accompaniment to the craft fayre in the Corn Exchange.

20

May 2015

War claimed more of Blandford’s sons

The story of the poppy of remembrance In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders fields.

T was in May 1915 during the second battled of Ypres that Canadian medical officer LieutCol John McCrae penned 'In Flanders Fields' which was to become one of the iconic poems of the war years.

He sent the poem anonymously to Punch and it was first published in December 1915 with no title or named author. Col McCrae's identity became known later as a Professor of Medicine at McGill University, Canada.

Gravely wounded in 1918, he is buried in the Canadian War Cemetery near Wimereux east of Boulogne.

In New York in November 1918, Miss Moina Michael was working for the YMCA and, after reading the poem in Punch, decided to always wear a poppy. A collection in appreciation was held by the secretaries with whom she worked and she bought 25 further red poppies.

In 1921, one of the secretaries visited the headquarters of the

I

British Legion which had formed in May that year and asked whether they would be interested in buying poppies made to support French ex-soldiers. By August the Legion had adopted the idea and suggested the wearing of a small red poppy as a token of remembrance.

The first poppy day on 11th November 1921 raised £106,000, and in 1922 the poppy factory, employing disabled British ex-soldiers, was founded by Major George Howson.

CORPORAL Stephen Harold Brown was born in 1893 in Blandford, so was 16 when he enlisted in 1909 at Dorchester, and 23 when he was killed by gas on 2nd May 1915 in action in Belgium whilst serving with the Dorsetshire Regiment H Coy 1st Battalion.

He had become a machine gunner 1st class in 1911, and lance corporal, first unpaid and then paid, in 1912. He became an acting corporal seven weeks before his death.

He was the son of builder's labourer Charles and Sarah Ann Brown, whose maiden name was Riggs. He had four older sisters, three older brothers and one younger brother. He had married Ida Evangeline Howe in 1914 at Stinsford, but they had no known children, and after his death she was remarried to Charles A. Atkins in Dorchester in 1918.

Albert Hiscock was a rifleman, killed in Belgium two days later while serving with the Rifle Brigade 4th Bn, and is named on the Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial. His father George Stephen Hiscock was a leather cutter who had married Sarah Ann Robbins of Shroton in 1875.

Albert was born in 1888, the seventh of their 12 children, and they lived in Whitecliff Mill Street. In 1911 he was serving with the Rifle Brigade in Egypt, and in 1913 he was serving in India.

Percival George Tanswell was also a rifleman with the King's Royal Rifle Corps 3rd Bn, and died of wounds in Belgium aged 21, less than four months after the funeral had been held, with full military honours, at Blandford Cemetery of his 20-year-old brother Reginald Charles Tanswell.

Reginald's body had been recovered and returned to Blandford after the explosion of HMS Bulwark off Sheerness in November 1914.

Percival, remembered on the Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial, had previously worked as the town postman while living in Alexandra Street.

His father, William Albert Tanswell, of Tarrant Monkton, a posting groom who died in 1907, had married Alice Catherine Eyers in Blandford in 1885, and the family lived in Salisbury Street. Percival was the fifth of their 12 children, and Reginald the sixth.

Tragic prophesy in Stanley’s card WINIFRED and Nellie Conyers are pictured (right) with their friend Marjorie Joyner and two men of the Royal Naval Division, sitting on the wall of Charborough Park during a

cycling expedition in March or April 1915.

On 17th May 1915 a postcard (left) was sent from Devonport to Marjorie's sister Winifred Joyner (pictured below right in her nurse's uniform), who at the time was working at the Isolation Hospital in Blandford.

It was sent by 'Stanley', who was about to embark on the first trip of the new boat 'Kalyan' and somewhat prophetically wrote 'I hope she will not be on her last'.

Stanley is believed to have been part of the ill-fated Collingwood Battalion which sailed from Devonport to Gallipoli.

Winifred Joyner continued nursing in London at Guys and Colindale Hospitals for the remainder of her career and never married.

Marjorie Joyner married Douglas Conyers, the brother of Winifred and Nellie, in 1917. Their grandson Nick lives in Spetisbury.

ANYONE who would like to share with our readers pictures and details of events relating to relatives who played a part in World War One is invited to contact Forum Focus by calling 01258 459346, emailing editor@forumfocus.co.uk or writing to 18 Tudor Gardens, Blandford DT11 7PL. Forum Focus would like to thank the Blandford 14-18 Group for their help in researching this material.

SCHOOLS

May 2015

21

Pancake plan proves a flipping good fundraiser THE Parent Teachers Association of Durweston Primary School were astonished at the response to a sponsored pancake flip staged on Shrove Tuesday at the school in support of maintenance of the neighbouring play park on the village playing fields.

A total of ÂŁ747 was raised, which was presented to Christine Newton, vice-chairman of the playing field committee, by Seahorses class teacher Nicola Brooke at a school assembly.

Ms Brooke said the event had been very well supported, reflecting the considerable use of the play park and its equipment by the school's pupils on an almost daily basis.

Ms Newton said it could be used for repairs to the roundabout or perhaps the provision of a new

slide, and warmly thanked the children and their parents, some of whom attended the presentation, for their efforts.

The cheque presentation followed an assembly prepared by members of the Year 6 Porpoises class, illustrating some of the work they had been doing during the term, including studies on the European Union, represented by the flags of the 28 member countries, and studies on Greece, represented in a 'Weakest Link' quiz.

There was also an art display, gymnastics display, a musical performance on xylophones, a mathematical exercise, and a short literacy lesson illustrated by a scene from Macbeth in which the three weird sisters deposited grammatical constituents into the cauldron in place of the usual

Durweston Primary School class representatives with Seahorses class teacher Nicola Brooke who presented the proceeds of their sponsored pancake flip to Christine Newton, vice-chairman of Durweston Playing Fields Association.

Guild’s birthday month BLANDFORD Townswomen's Guild celebrates its 28th birthday this month after forming a new committee at the AGM. Chairman Wendy Steele reported on a year which had seen activities including the social studies group on the first Wednesday of the month, Scrabble on the second Tuesday, a lunch club on the second Wednesday, and fourth Wednesday monthly meetings with talks, activities and entertainment covering a range of interests, and visits including to Christchurch and Silkhay House in Stalbridge during the summer and a Christmas lunch in Poole.

The next general meeting on Wednesday 27th May will feature a talk on the life of Susannah Wesley by Sheila Curtis, and starts at 2pm in Williams Opportunity Hall, Whitecliff Gardens. Visitors will be welcome.

Pancake flippers at Durweston Primary School get ready for action. 'eye of newt and toe of frog'.

The school is celebrating the news that the bus bringing pupils from nearby Stourpaine has been saved after an investigation into the adequacy of a proposed 'walk to school route' which parents claimed flooded and crossed two main roads.

In the absence due to ill-health of

head teacher Mrs Wesley-Barker, the governing body and local authority have appointed school evaluation partner Mike Randall to monitor, support and lead the school on a part-time basis. Mr Randall has worked with Ofsted and in a number of schools between Southampton and Devon.

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May 2015

May 2015

SCHOOLS

New pitch boosts community sport THE opening of a new synthetic turf pitch at The Blandford School has already resulted in further community use of the facilities.

Blandford United Football Club are using the pitch for training and matches and are strongly committed to attracting new participants, particularly among women and girls. Overall, football participation in the area is set to

Four schools prove too popular PIMPERNE Primary was one of four schools in the Blandford area which were oversubscribed when parents made their choice of place of education for their children.

The others were Milldown in the Blandford pyramid, and St Nicholas Child Okeford and Shillingstone in Sturminster Newton.

Places with vacancies included, in Blandford: Blandford St Mary; Downlands Community Primary School; Dunbury Church of England Academy; Durweston Primary School and Spetisbury Hall and Slopers; in Dorchester: Milborne St Andrew’s First School; and in Shaftesbury pyramid St Andrew's Fontmell Magna.

Children due to start school next September at a primary or middle school in Dorset found out on 16th April if they got their first place choice.

Dorset County Council has seen a total of 5,424 applications for its infant, junior, primary, first and middle schools, a 3.7 per cent increase.

Overall, 93.5 per cent of applicants got their first preference.

Four per cent got their second preference, less than one per cent their third preference and the remaining two per cent were allocated an alternative school place to their three preferences.

Anne Salter, head of strategy, partnerships and performance for children's services at the County Council, said: "We are delighted that almost 94 per cent of families have been offered their first choice of school. This is a positive reflection on the number of good and outstanding schools in Dorset."

increase by 69 per cent over the next five years as a direct result of the new facility.

The launch of five- and six-a-side football with the Soccerpitch Blandford Monday League saw a total of 24 teams sign up to take part in trial games.

The school worked in partnership with the Dorset FA to secure a £350,000 grant from the Premier League and The FA Facilities Fund. Dorset County Council also provided a grant of £420,429 towards the new 3G pitch and a further £77,000 to upgrade The Blandford School's netball and tennis facilities, including installation of floodlights.

The official opening of the new pitch also represented the culmination of a 12-year £16 million capital project to bring the school into the 21st century.

Marieanne Spacey, assistant manager of the England Women's Football team and former England, Arsenal and Fulham player, was invited to christen the ground and give a coaching session to members of the school sports teams.

She was introduced to students, staff, governors and representatives of all those involved in the construction, by head teacher Sally Wilson after an opening vocal entertainment from sixthformer Ellie Failes.

Mrs Wilson welcomed funders, sponsors and others contributing to the project, with particular thanks to the school's business manager and project leader Liz Bishopp.

Above: Marieanne Spacey (back row, grey tracksuit) joins pupils from The Blandford School to celebrate the opening of their new full-size 3G pitch.

Right: Marieanne Spacey, left, and head teacher Sally Wilson on the new pitch.

She said: "Today is a landmark day for The Blandford School, and many here today have been an essential part of the journey in the project. We now have a state-of-the-art secondary school with exceptional facilities inside and out.

"Competitive sport goes from strength to strength, and the synthetic turf pitch will give us much more flexibility and continued sporting excellence. From next season we hope to host local competitive hockey games.

"Our students, children of the Blandford Schools Network and all members of the wider community are the beneficiaries of this wonderful facility."

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24

SCHOOLS

May 2015

Top marks again for Knighton

Speech and drama at Knighton House.

PUPILS and staff of Knighton House School are celebrating some of the school's best-ever scholarship results.

Out of a class of 14, seven girls have won eight awards, a remarkable achievement especially a nonselective school like Knighton House, and only adds to its long-term record of 100 per cent of leavers winning places at their first-choice senior school.

Headmistress Sarah Wicks said: "These results are a testament to the hard work of the girls and teachers but they also show the magic of a small school, where individual attention, not pressure, helps girls reach their full potential. It is particularly pleasing to see academic, music and sports awards - as well as our all-rounders being recognised."

Eighteen pupils have also all done extremely well in

the recent London Academy of Music & Dramatic Arts speech and drama examinations, all achieving a merit or distinction.

A recent charity fundraising activity at the school was a sponsored seven-hour skip in support of the British Heart Foundation which raised ÂŁ1,058.

The focus on raising money for charity is used to raise awareness and widen the teaching of the pupils, as well as to have fun and raise crucial funds.

The school holds regular Wednesday activity afternoons where girls aged 7-11 can, free of charge, try something new. Dates during May include Spectacular Science on Wednesday 6th, 'Have a go at hockey' on Wednesday 13th and 'Amazing Art on Wednesday 20th, all from 4.15 to 5.30pm.

An unforgettable Peter Pan at Clayesmore A PRODUCTION of Peter Pan by Clayesmore Prep was handled beautifully by the young performers under the expert direction of English teacher Suzanne Chinnock.

Oliver captured Peter Pan's playful innocence perfectly, Lucy M was a wonderfully sensible Wendy and Lucy S was a delightfully mischievous Tinker Bell.

Edward was a particularly menacing Hook as he prowled across the stage with his not-soscary sidekick Smee, played by Robert, and Jessica gave a moving portrayal of the storyteller, later revealed as the grown-up Wendy.

There was hardly a dry eye in the house when she told Peter he must return to Never Land without her as she was now old.

The band of gormless pirates were a big hit, as were the gutsy lost boys - in fact, the whole troupe of supporting cast members and the chorus added to the success of this magical production.

Two magnificent storybooks, designed by Richard Chinnock and beautifully painted by Caroline Ritchie, created a stunning backdrop, and Nigel Moore provided some great touches with Marooner's Rock and the infamous pirate

barque, the Jolly Roger.

A team of choreographers, including several of the children, organised the dancers and a talented technical crew included the calm presence of Conor in the lighting box, ably assisted

by Toby Yarwood. Head of Prep Music James Smith also kept the marvellous music flowing with his amazing band.

Just like Peter Pan's eternal youth, this glorious production, using the Styles/Drew script based on the original book by J.M. Barrie, will remain ever present in the memories of everyone involved.

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May 2015

Seeds of hope for the people of Sudan AN Arts and Plants show at the Crown Hotel in Blandford on Saturday 30th May is aiming to plant seeds of hope for the future of the people of the Rokon Diocese in South Sudan.

The Milton and Blandford Deanery has a long-standing friendship with the diocese through its leader Bishop Francis, sharing news, visits and prayers, and supporting the people in becoming self-supporting after years of disastrous civil war.

Internal strife is still present in South Sudan, although the Rokon area in the south of the new country, which became independent in 2011, is not directly affected.

But progress in lifting the 11.3 million people out of poverty since independence has been very slow and the government has had to focus on conflict over oil resources on their northern border and on inter-tribal conflict.

Local people first met Bishop Francis when he came to this country for the Lambeth Conference in 1998 and then again in 2008.

He also visited last year when the Salisbury Diocese celebrated the 40th anniversary of its link with the Episcopal Church of Sudan and South Sudan.

His priorities in meeting the needs of his people are education, agricultural development and health and nutrition; the average life expectancy is 54 years and maternal mortality is the highest in the world.

Over the past few years people in this area have supported the development of schools, the degree studies of a young man who lost his parents during the civil war, and the provision, through the Diocesan Medical Link, of basic medicines.

But the need to develop beyond subsistence

agriculture is very pressing. Even in a year of good harvests around one in five people require emergency assistance and most food is imported even though the land is fertile.

Anything that can be done to improve food security, enable a more varied diet and offer the possibility of some cash crops will be very significant, and a pilot project has already successfully grown trees. Plans are now being drawn up to work with the people of Rokon on developing this activity.

To find out more about the link or request a stall at the show, contact Ian Pinder on 01747 811253 or email ian.pinder@sky.com; to support St Joseph's School in Rokon call Rod Swift on 01747 811755 or email roddotuk@aol.com, and to support the Sudan Medical Link call Caroline Tory on 01258 452452.

Support for London coach?

THE DT11 Transport Action Group is asking people to let them know if they would support a National Express coach service from Blandford to London.

The company has said it may provide a service leaving early in the morning to get to the capital and back in a day.

Contact Julie in the DT11 Office to support this proposal. Email julie@dt11forum.org.uk or call 01258 489998.

The Inner Wheel club of Blandford celebrated their 69th Charter birthday with a grand lunch at a local pub. The club were delighted to welcome their new honorary member Nicci Brown, chairman of Forum Focus, to the festivities.

Village show will mark a 70-year milestone BLANDFORD St. Mary horticultural, craft show and fete returns to the Manor House, Blandford St Mary, this year to celebrate its 70th anniversary on Sunday, 16th August.

This year's show will have a touch of nostalgia with some exhibits being staged as they would have been in 1945, and the organisers have appealed for photos and memorabilia from past shows to form part of the display.

Subjects in the photography section include 'My Dorset', 'Arches' BLANDFORD could be the venue for the launch of the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal in Dorset in 2016. Town councillors supported a request for permission to host the event, possibly in the Market Place.

and 'Wild Animals', and in handicrafts, an item of patchwork or quilting or a 70th anniversary card.

Children planting a sunflower now could proudly scoop a 'first' if nurtured to amazing proportions, and a novice class will request three of any kind of vegetable.

The full schedule will be printed soon and distributed in Blandford and surrounding villages.

Other attractions in the superb garden and grounds of the Manor House will include a fete with a variety of stalls, homemade teas and refreshments, and a fun dog show in a separate arena.

Information will be updated regularly on the village website and is available from the organisers by emailing bsmvillage@gmail.com.

26

FARMING

The View from the Hill

by George Hosford More from George on viewfromthehill.org.uk N the lovely spring weather we have got most operations on the land fairly well up together. Most of the spring barley and all of the poppies were sown in March. The barley is up and away, looking beautiful in its vigorous straight lines marching across the fields.

The winter barley we grow is a particularly sought-after variety, named Maris Otter, which this year celebrates its 50th year since being bred. A popular malting variety with farmers and brewers alike in the 70s and 80s, it was superseded by higher yielding and more disease-resistant varieties and nearly died out.

But its flavour in the brew and reliability in the brewing process could not be surpassed, and it has slowly crept back into popularity with a small band of growers who have a passion, led by the new owners of its breeding rights, Robin Appel, for growing something special for craft and micro breweries established recently in the UK and US. The oilseed rape is bursting into

I

Above: Sheep in the turnips. Below: Spraying the fields. Right: Oilseed rape bursting into flower.

flower. You can't fail to notice the bright yellow fields at this time of year. This year the flowers are crawling with pollen beetle which can cause the flower to abort and produce no pod or seed if they attack before the flowers have opened. We can spray if numbers reach a certain threshold too early but must use chemicals that

do not harm other insects.

The sprayer has been busy out in the fields with pre-emergence weed killer on the spring barley.

The wheat has had a dose of fungicide to keep Septoria disease at bay, plus a growth regulator to ensure the crop stays upright.

This season's thinning of spruce

May 2015 is complete and a huge pile of logs is being taken to a sawmill in Wales to be turned into fence posts and garden fence panels, among other things.

The hen and chicks who have featured over the last couple of months are thriving and have long fled their stable, and the chicks flit about the yard in a happy troupe.

We had our first school visit of the season during March when the children had a lesson in hedge-laying and a description of how to make hurdles and thatching spars. We visited the yearling cattle, and our orphan calf from last year, Mookie. There are now plenty of calves to entertain - for video of calves playing in the straw, please see the website.

We have another orphan this year, the only ginger calf of the season so far.

He is a robust little fellow, and after a day or two of bottle feeding was pinching milk from other mums and is now growing well like the others.

The sheep, some of whom are still clearing up the last of the turnips at Thornicombe, will be brought back this week, in preparation for shearing in a couple of weeks. We shear early and lamb late, a system that has worked well for the last 15 years. The lambs arrive just as the grass growth gets into gear on our steep hills and valleys behind Durweston, and we always ask people to take great care walking on footpaths as sheep are easily upset by noisy and bouncy dogs, causing lambs to lose their mothers.

Plea to public for a blitz on litter THE Clean Up Blandford Campaign and the Town Team, along with many others who responded to last year's Town Team survey, wish to see improvements in the levels of litter across the town.

They will this month be carrying out one of their regular litter picks in the worst areas and have urged residents to join them to help.

But their leader David Rose says there is more that everyone could be doing every day of the year.

"We are all culpable for the current situation," he said. "The Dorset Waste Partnership could do better, and all readers must complain when they fail. Report litter or overflowing bins to enquiries@dorsetwastepartnership.gov.uk or write to the NDDC

chief executive to find out what they are doing to hold DWP to account.

"If you think the Town Council should employ a litter orderly, then tell them - we are the only town in North Dorset that does not have one. Dorchester has a 'keeper of the walks', a man with an automated street-cleaning machine who keeps the streets in the shopping areas clean. This is partfunded by local businesses and we could do the same.

"What we need is for the shop owners and managers to take pride and responsibility for cleaning up outside their premises. If it is not good enough, we should all let them know.

"Public houses could do more to clean up cigarette butts outside

their premises; if you are a regular complain to the landlords. Parents and schools should regularly remind children not to drop sweets and drinks litter but put it in a bin or take it home."

Mr Rose said many people regularly picked up other people's litter as a matter of course, and urged them to become anti-litter champions to make the town and their street more appealing.

"CUBC has a number of litter-

pickers it will give away if you agree to give your street a regular clean. We can lend litter-pickers to groups if you wish to run a cleanup and give you advice on what you need to do.

"Email cleanupblandford@hotmail.com or join us on Saturday 16th May for Big Blandford Clean Up at 10am, at the Mortain (Blue) bridge on the Marsh and Ham, from where we will go around the town and clear the worst areas."

NORTH Dorset's second Open Ecohomes event will take place between the 15th and 17th May. Owners of properties, community buildings and businesses who have installed energy efficiency, renewable energy and other environmental improvements, are being recruited to take part in the scheme by contacting Kathryn Flint, Environment and Community Services, North Dorset District Council on 01258 484372 or emailing openecohomes@north-dorset.gov.uk.

May 2015

SPORT

27

Gatting lends a hand as village cricket club starts new season THE cricket season started for Shillingstone Cricket Club with new nets and a pavilion undergoing refurbishment as part of the recreation ground programme of restoration launched in 2014.

Sessions in the new nets started on 17th April for juniors aged from 8-16, with matches beginning at the end of April. They currently have four adult and two junior teams, a developing girls' side and coaches working in several local schools.

Nearly 100 people turned out on the ground on the last Sunday in March as part of the 14th annual NatWest CricketForce day to renovate and improve the facilities.

Teams of club and community members were hard at work trimming the boundary hedges, redecorating the pavilion and scraping moss off the pavilion roof, sustained by refreshments supplied by local companies.

They were joined by English Cricket Board ambassador and Ashes-winning captain Mike Gatting, who officially opened the new nets at the ground and helped with the painting, decorating and work on the cricket pavilion and perimeter of the ground.

Mr Gatting thanked all the volunteers, saying: "We couldn't keep cricket going without you."

David Leighton, club programmes manager for the English Cricket Board, added: "Where you have come from and to in a relatively short space of time is absolutely phenomenal."

A signed bat was presented by Sam Elger of NatWest Shaftesbury, and ground watering equipment was presented by David DeCunha of Bow Dry. Tribute was also paid to the tremendous support from Jewson, represented by James Bugden and Brian Yeo, to the parish council which is paying for kitchen and sanitary improvements, to villagers who have fundraised to pay for the roof, and to the Dorset Cricket Board for a grant of

Mike Gatting and CricketForce volunteers at Shillingstone. £1,500, as well as to club members and local companies.

Shillingstone Cricket Club chairman Clive Nelson said: "Being selected as a showcase club for the NatWest CricketForce weekend has been a major boost to our project to refurbish and upgrade the facilities on Shillingstone recreation ground. The total cost

is between £40,000 and £50,000, but half of it is coming through volunteer labour.

"We were honoured and delighted to welcome ex-England cricket captain Mike Gatting as part of the CricketForce day, and also express our sincere thanks for the support of the English Cricket Board and Dorset Cricket, as well

as the significant contribution of the parish council, in moving things forward."

The nationally accredited cricket club, which this year won Team of the Year in Dorset, with players winning both their Saturday leagues, has been an integral part of the village since it was founded in 1910.

Jake makes the grade FORMER Pimperne Pirmary and Blandford School pupil Jake McCarthy (left) has been tipped for a bright future by AFC Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe after being handed a new two-year contract.

A product of the club's youth ranks, Jake was fast-tracked to the Championship club's first team at the start of this season after impressing with the development squad. The 18-year-old was handed his first professional contract in December 2013 while still a second-year scholar.

He has gained valuable experience by training regularly with Howe's squad and, although currently recovering from a back injury sustained before Christmas, he is tipped by Bournemouth's coaching staff for a bright career.

Jake had a fruitful loan spell with Southern League AFC Totton last season and was elevated to the development squad.

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May 2015

Forum Focus - forthcoming meetings & events MAY Friday 1st to Monday 4th May: Teddy 20 rock festival fundraiser for childhood cancer, Greyhound, Blandford Saturday 2nd May: Flower festival and open day, St Nicholas Church, Child Okeford, 11am to 5pm Sunday 3rd May: Micky Parker and Gordie Jones Memorial Shield Darts, Blandford Royal British Legion, 2pm, blind pairs followed by singles, proceeds to the British Heart Foundation Round Robin Ramblers meet centre of Fifehead Neville 2pm for 4.5-mile walk, details 880044 Monday 4th May: Hamdinger, Marsh & Ham, Blandford (Corn Exchange if wet), 12 noon to 5pm free music and sports entertainment and miniflotilla, fun dog show, details 01258 480756 Food Fayre, Crown Hotel, Blandford Tuesday 5th May: Macular Society Blandford Group, Blandford Parish Centre, 2pm, Jackie Counter on Eccentric Viewing, details 01258 454149 Wednesday 6th May: Bus2Go trip to Portland and Jailhouse Cafe, details 01258 837759 Thursday 7th May: General, district and parish council elections, polling stations open 7am to 10pm Blandford Museum First Thursday talk, Dave Stewart on Hod Hill, Museum 7.30pm Friday 8th May: Blandford Farmers Market and Craft Fayre, 9am to 1pm, Market Place Saturday 9th May: Blandford Bowling Club Open Day for potential new bowlers, 10am to 4pm. Details www.blandfordbowlingclub.com or 01258 451375 Dorset Coppice Group's Open Day, Bonsley Wood, Durweston near Blandford Quiz Night and supper for new village hall fund, Charlton Marshall village hall, 6.30 for 7pm, to book call 01258 488432 Charity fundraiser, Blues Brothers & Motown & Meet Loaf, Crown Hotel, Blandford, for tickets call 07887 728318 Durweston Choral Society Come and Sing Day, registration from 9am for 10am to 5pm Sunday 10th May: Blandford Ladies’ Day, Sealy Suite, Crown Hotel, from 2pm Open Gardens for NGS, Old Smithy, Ibberton DT11 0EN 2-5pm and Manor House, Lower Blandford St Mary DT11 9ND 2 to 5pm Tuesday 12th May:

Entries in this diary are free of charge. If you have an event you would like included, please send details to Nicci Brown, 01258 459346 or email s.n.b@btinternet.com. This page is available and regularly updated on our website at www.forumfocus.co.uk Blood Donor Sessions, Crown Hotel, Blandford, 12.50 to 3.30pm and 4.30 to 7.15pm Ready Steady Garden! Talk by Susie Edwards and lunch at Aller Farm, Ansty Wednesday 13th May: DT11 Forum meeting, Pimperne village hall, 5.30 for 6pm Thursday 14th May: Blandford Museum AGM, United Reformed Church Hall, Whitecliff Mill Street, 7pm Friday 15th May: Shillingstone Barn Dance Club with the Rum Kidney Band and caller Steve Cunio, 7.45 to 9.45pm The THE Blandford branch of Save the Children received a boost when a cheque for £450 was presented by retirement home Spetisbury Manor. It was raised at an open day.

The family-run retirement home, which has operated since 1999, was nominated for its excellence under training and development in finals of the Blackmore Vale Business Awards last year.

A further fundraising event for Save the Children took place on 9th April in the new Mark Elder Concert Hall of the Music School at Bryanston School, where the Cambridge Singers were in concert in support of the charity. All proceeds helped support the Ebola Appeal and a Families and Schools Together programme.

Portman Hall, Blandford Rd, Shillingstone, details 01258 861184 Friday and Saturday 15th and 16th May: Forum Drama presents Nude with Violin, Corn Exchange, Blandford 7.30pm Friday 15th to 17th May: North Dorset Ecohomes, see northdorset.greenopenhomes.net Saturday 16th May: The Big Blandford Cleanup with Cleanup Blandford, meet 10am at Mortain Bridge, Marsh and Ham, equipment provided Dorset Wildlife Trust Dawn Chorus Walk, 5am, and farmhouse breakfast, call 01258 471339 to book and pay in advance Cats Protection Coffee Mornings and stalls at Woodhouse Gardens Pavilion, Blandford 10am - 12:30 pm Community May Fayre, Milborne St Andrew First School, Hopsfield,

2pm Bus2Go trip to Clarks Shopping Village, details 01258 837749 Saturday and Sunday 16th and 17th May: Three Okeford Steam Rally, Shillingstone Sunday 17th May: Pound Puppy Animal Rescue Fun Dog Show, Parish Field, Iwerne Minster, 10am to 4pm. Details www.poundpuppy.org Monday 18th May: Blandford Blind Club meets Williams Opportunity Hall, 2 to 4pm, Allens folk and fun Tuesday 19th May: Blandford Book Club, 2pm on the

Activities organiser Janette Purdy, left, and manager Sophia Potgieter, right, at Spetisbury Manor present a cheque for £450 to Anne Dearle, chairman of the Blandford branch of Save the Children. third Tuesday of every month, Blandford Library. Contact Blandford Library or lijawiacek@hotmail.com Wednesday 20th May: Bus2Go trip to Galton Garden Centre, Owermoigne, details 01258 837749 Blandford Carers meet Durweston village hall 2 to 4pm, Founders Day and speaker from Health Watch Blandford & District Civic Society guided Heritage walk, meet 7pm Marsh & Ham car park, details 01258 459346 Thursday 21st May: Lunchtime concert, Blandford Parish Church, 12.30 for 1pm Sam Ryall and friends Blandford Heart Forum, The Studio, Common Lane, (off East Street), Blandford, 2.45pm, speaker Robin Miller, "Laughter the Best Medicine"

Saturday 23rd May: Open Gardens for the RNLI, Stour House, East Street, Blandford, 25pm Sunday 24th May: Celebrate the Arches, Langton Meadows, Blandford Museum, Scout Hut and North Dorset Trailway, Blandford, 1 to 5pm Milton Abbey Great British Wedding Fete, 11am to 3pm Shapwick County Fair, Shapwick Village Green DT11 9JZ, 12 to 4pm Open Garden for NGS, Coombe Cottage, Shillingstone DT11 0SF, 2 to 6pm Monday 25th May: Teddy 20 Cricket Festival for childhood cancer, Park Road, Blandford Blood Donor Sessions, Crown Hotel, Blandford, 12.50 to-3.30pm and 4.30 to-7.15pm Wednesday 27th May: Bus2Go trip to Wolfeton Manor, Dorchester, details 01258 837749 Blandford Forum Townswomen's Guild meets 2pm, Williams Opportunity Hall, Whitecliff Gardens, 'The Life of Susannah Wesley' with Sheila Curtis Thursday 28th May: Open Garden for NGS, Anderson Manor, Blandford DT11 9HD, 2 to 5pm Blandford & District Horticultural Society meeting. Blandford United Reformed Church, 7.30pm, speaker Brigit Strawbridge "All about Bees" Friday 29th May: Blandford & District Civic Society AGM, United Reformed Church Hall, Whitecliff Mill Street, Blandford, 7.30pm Saturday 30th May: Arts and Plants Show, Sealy Suite and Garden of the Crown Hotel, Blandford, 10am to 5pm for the Blandford and Milton Deanery Sunday Link, stallholders contact 01747 811253 or ian.pinder@sky.com Saturday and Sunday 30th and 31st May: Tarrant Gunville Open Gardens Cream Teas and homemade cakes, The Old School, Sturminster Marshall for SSAFA (Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association) Sunday 31st May: Classic Car Show, Melway House, Child Okeford DT11 8EW 10.30am to 4pm for Wessex Heartbeat and Child Okeford village hall, details 01258 861055 Turnworth in May and gardens open at The Old Rectory, Turnworth, DT11 0EE. 11am to 5pm. Free entry and parking. For Thomas Hardy related village church