The New Blackmore Vale Magazine - Issue 110

What’s inside this issue…

emailing newsdesk@blackmorevale.net or calling 01963 400186

Kye Harman Sports Editor sports@blackmorevale.net 01963 400186

Debi.thorne@blackmorevale.net 07714 289409

07714 289411

Almshouse work continues with £22,000 window conservation

A £22,000 plan to conserve Victorian windows at Sherborne Almshouse has been completed.

The scheme has seen windows removed for conservation work to fragile glass and leaded frames.

It comes as work to convert part of the building into a tearoom, as well as a centre for young people, and a community space continues, as part of a joint venture involving the Almshouse and Sherborne Abbey.

Some rooms will remain as affordable accommodation, as the property was previously used.

Chair of the Almshouse Trustees, Richard Hunt, said: “The task has been carefully managed by Holy Well Glass, a specialist company that has worked in Winchester and Wells Cathedrals, Penrhyn Castle and St Michael’s Mount, and other prestigious locations across the country.

“Visitors to the Abbey Close might have noticed that some of the Almshouse windows have been boarded in recent weeks. The only way to complete repairs to the windows was for the glass and frames to be carefully removed and repaired before being replaced.

“Before too long we hope that our building will provide more much needed

affordable accommodation, and with the cooperation of the Abbey, prove to be a real community asset for the town.”

Once completed, the work will see the Abbey use downstairs space for a traditional tearoom and a suite of rooms upstairs to provide a support centre for young people and separate space for community projects.

“Such a historic listed building does provide challenges, however, and we are asking for support to meet the costs of this essential conservation work,” Mr Hunt added.

Any individual or organisation, interested and able to contribute towards the cost of the repairs, should contact the Almshouse on 01935 813245 or via housewardens@stjohnshouse.org

For more details, visit www.stjohnshouse. org

They came, they saw, they spent: Winter Fair raises a record £30,000

A WINCANTON charity will receive a cash boost of £30,000 this winter, thanks to the success of an annual fundraising initiative run entirely by volunteers.

Dubbed ‘Somerset’s most exclusive charity jumble sale’, the Winter Fair raises funds for The Balsam Centre’s work in and around Wincanton.

A record number of shoppers attended the fair at Wincanton Racecourse last month, which beat the fundraising record set in 2023 by almost 50%.

The keenest bargain hunters queued for over 90 minutes before the doors opened.

Many were there for the pre-loved clothing stall, which has become well known among vintage clothing aficionados for its curation of high-quality second-hand pieces at fair prices.

The ‘trash and treasure’ stall was similarly popular with vintage lovers, while others

made a beeline for the beautifully presented goods on the deli and plant stalls.

Almost everything sold on the day had been handmade, donated, upcycled or repurposed, a sustainable approach that has become the Winter Fair’s hallmark.

Speaking on behalf of the volunteer-run organising

committee, Suki Posnett said: “We cannot believe the amazing results this year.

“But this is only possible because of the generous donations from so many in the community and the dedicated hard work and enthusiasm of the committee, who prepare, polish and plump up donated items to sell on again to the

almost professional bargain hunters, who came, saw and spent in their droves!”

Fellow volunteer Pilla Dingle added: “We are lucky that we have a happy, energetic committee and lots of support from friends.”

Commenting on the recordbreaking sum raised this year, Balsam Centre chief executive, Sue Place, said: “It is a phenomenal achievement, and one that will make a real difference to the health and wellbeing of the many people in our community who use our services.

“We never take for granted the generosity of the volunteers who give up so much of their time to make this happen. We are in awe of their commitment and energy.”

The Balsam Centre is hoping to secure one final boost to its 2024 fundraising total before the year is out by participating in the Big Give’s Christmas Challenge.

Every pound raised by the centre before noon on December 10 up to the value of £8,000 will be doubled by local patrons and Big Give champion the Reed Foundation.

Visit tinyurl.com/ BigGiveBalsam for further information.

10 years of teaching adults to read

by Colin Higgs

THE Read Easy team from Blackmore Vale North convened its first meeting in November 2014. In November 2024 the team is still fully active and celebrating 10 years of success.

Many adults, almost one in 14 nationally, cannot read, either at all, or to a level needed for everyday life and work.

Read Easy is there to help. A dedicated team of co-ordinators and coaches works with adults who have contacted them to improve their reading skills. It’s private, one to one and the coaches work at the pace of the reader – it takes as long as it takes.

Initially, all the sessions were face-to-face, and while most people still prefer that, since lockdown readers have been able to choose meeting by Zoom or other online platforms as well.

There have been many changes in the 10 years. The team started by covering Gillingham and Shaftesbury. It has since added Mere, Wincanton, Sherborne and,

most recently, Sturminster Newton.

The team has changed and grown, although three of the original members continue to promote the service. The charity started with one co-ordinator and is now looking for its fourth.

In the first year eight adults had come forward wanting to learn to read. In every case they really wanted things to change for them and Read Easy was able to help. Three of those first readers graduated in the space of three years. They worked hard to get there and were justly proud of their achievements.

The group still distributes

leaflets. But, of course, you can’t give a leaflet to someone who can’t read, so its latest effort to recruit readers is a series of seven very short films, Real People, Real Stories, which are available on YouTube.

Read Easy Blackmore Vale North is still here in North Dorset and taking calls from adults who come forward to learn to read. The bravery of that first step is always remarkable.

If you know someone who finds reading hard, someone who never quite ‘got it’ at school, help them to come to Read Easy and it can help. Its number is 07510 250365.

Shoppers at the record-breaking 2024 Winter Fair PHOTO: Charles Gervais

County hospital’s new £2 million operating theatre

A £2 MILLION project to convert a procedure room at Dorset County Hospital (DCH) into a full operating theatre has been completed.

The new theatre at the Dorchester hospital will be used for Special Care Dentistry and other surgeries.

The project was jointly funded between DCH and NHS Dorset, which commissions the Special Care Dentistry service provided by Somerset NHS Foundation Trust at the main hospital site.

The space within main theatres was originally used for smaller procedures carried out under local anaesthetic.

However, upgrading the room allows DCH specialties to

perform ear, nose and throat, gynaecology and orthopaedic procedures, and general surgeries, as well as giving Special Care Dentistry additional theatre capacity for operations, reducing waiting times.

The service provides dentistry care for adults and children with additional needs, including people with learning disabilities and mental health, medical or physical health issues.

Anita Thomas, chief operating officer at DCH, said: “We’re committed to reducing our waiting times for surgery and treating patients as quickly as we can.

“We’re delighted to have

worked with NHS Dorset and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust to create additional operating theatre space in the main hospital.

“It will give our specialty teams more general anaesthetic theatre time and Special Care Dentistry more space for procedures, which will ultimately help improve people’s quality of life.”

Daniel Rawles, Somerset NHS Foundation Trust’s deputy service manager for primary care dental services (Dorset and Somerset), said: “We are pleased to be working with our NHS colleagues in Dorset to increase the capacity of our

dental operating space, which will benefit some of our most vulnerable Dorset patients who need dental treatment under general anaesthetic.

“We know that, for various reasons, dentistry has been a hot topic nationally for some time, and our patients in Dorset have also experienced these challenges.

“While this additional capacity will not solve all the challenges of waiting lists for our most vulnerable patient groups, or prevent them from needing a general anaesthetic in the first place, we’re confident it will make a difference to those who are currently waiting.”

Dorset County Hospital staff in the new theatre in Dorchester

Amateur drama group takes a final bow

AMATEUR dramatics group

SHAMDRAM officially trod the boards one final time at Shillingstone’s Christmas Fayre when, with one last act of community spirit, it took its final bow.

The group ended as it began, by donating funds to the village – this time, the Portman Hall Trust.

Shillingstone Amateur Dramatic group was born from the Action Group Save Our School, formed in 1979 by then Shillingstone resident and concerned school parent, Myra McDadd, to raise desperately needed money to keep the original Shillingstone Primary School open.

The Action Group’s first foray into the theatrical world was a review, in which many of the ‘actors’ were facing an audience for the first time. They must have enjoyed the

before-show butterflies and applause as the curtains closed, because they followed this up with yearly reviews and then a Musical Nativity, Follow That Star.

In 1984 the Action Group decided it was time to change its name, and so SHAMDRAM was born.

The newly renamed amateur dramatics company worked with the same principles, to raise money for the village.

Over the next three decades the enthusiastic and fun-loving group produced more than 50 shows, including pantomimes, theme nights, entertainment nights, comedy shows and even murder-mystery events.

Many of the members have gone on to other amateur dramatic groups, including SNADS and the Drama and Music Group at Shaftesbury Arts Centre.

the

SHAMDRAM has itself performed at the arts centre, when participating in One Act Play competitions, winning many awards to add to others accumulated over the years.

SHAMDRAM has performed in various venues – even marquees – but most of the productions were staged at the group’s ‘home’, the Portman Hall.

That is why members chose the charity to donate the sum of its final accounts, in aid of improvements to the stage, lighting and sound equipment, so others may continue to enjoy the stage for years to come.

Sadly, a few years ago, the number of those involved had dwindled due to people moving away, increasing work commitments and other life reasons.

It was hoped that more

interest could be generated to reinvigorate it, but it was not to be, so on a sad day in 2021, Myra, helped by original and long-term member Gary Ridout and final chair Kay Ridout, cleared out the costumes and props that had adorned the stage for nearly 40 years from the group’s store at the Portman Hall. More than a few tears were shed that day.

At the Christmas Fayre, long-time member and audience favourite Alan Long – who appeared as God, a Dame, a naughty children’s TV presenter and a member of ‘the local Full Monty’ – presented a cheque to the chair of the Portman Hall Trust, John Paul. Mr Paul was surprised but grateful to receive £1,402.

The presentation ended with the final applause that SHAMDRAM will ever receive.

Repair Café date

SHERBORNE Repair Café is holding its last meeting of the year next Saturday (December 14).

The Repair Café normally meets on the third Saturday of the month, 10am-12.15pm, at Cheap Street church hall.

The next meeting of the Climate Café is on Thursday (December 12), 5.30pm-7pm, at Café D’Urbeville.

The Climate Café is planning to host a talk by Professor Dave Goulson, called Saving Our Insects, on Thursday, March 13.

In

picture (from left) Vikki Angell, Ann Povey, Richard Angell, Kay Ridout, Alan Long, Pauline Long, Bill Ellis, Nicky Stanford (SHAMDRAM), John Paul, Celia Paulley, Margaret Shackell and Mary Crabb (Portman Hall Trust) PHOTO: Katy Smith

School welcomes new headteacher

ST GREGORY’S CofE

Primary School, Marnhull, has a new leadership team.

The school welcomed a new leadership team in September, with Jill Farndale joining the school as executive headteacher over both St Gregory’s Primary School and St George’s Primary School, Bourton.

Both schools are part of Pickwick Academy Trust – a primary only collaborative Multi Academy Trust based in Wiltshire and Dorset.

Mrs Farndale brings a wealth of experience in education and expertise in school leadership. For the last six years she has served as headteacher of St George’s Primary School, Bourton.

Now working across both schools, she is supported by a new executive leadership team – Kelly McCall as executive deputy headteacher and Hayley Shears as inclusion leader and SENDCO, helping both schools

to continue as strong community hubs within each village.

One of the new leadership team’s plans is to extend the wraparound care offer for all families following a successful grant bid from Dorset Council.

Anyone who would like to look around the school and meet the leadership team, should visit www.stgregorymarnhull.dorset. sch.uk, email office@ stgregorymarnhull.dorset.sch.uk or call 01258 820206.

Jolly good stuff: Christmas market and concert

IN Jolly Good Company hosts dementia-friendly entertainment and activities for older people across Dorset.

Its festive Christmas market is at the Forestry Bar, Wimborne St Giles (BH21

5ND) today (Friday, December 6), 5pm-10pm.

The Jubilate Choir will perform a special Christmas concert on Friday, December 13, from 7pm at Wimborne St Giles Church (BH21 5LZ). Entrance is £10 on the door.

This will be the last chance to buy a ticket for the Jolly Christmas Raffle.

Prizes include two weekend tickets to the End of the Road festival – including camping – a two-night stay in a Pepper Pot Lodge at St

Giles House estate; lunch for two at The Smokehouse at Compton Airfield; a Spring Cider Tour from Dorset Star Cider; and a £150 John Lewis voucher. Tickets are £2. To find out more, visit www. injollygoodcompany.com

Beerex raises a glass to real ale

REAL ale lovers are in for a treat with Dorchester Beerex 2025 set to provide some cheer in the depths of winter.

The event at the Corn Exchange, organised by members of the West Dorset Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) and Dorchester Casterbridge Rotary Club, is on Friday and Saturday, January 31 and February 1.

The festival’s main sponsor is Cerne Abbas brewery, which will have representatives at the event ready to chat to visitors and offer a chance to sample some of its brews.

Brewery manager, Mark Wingate, said: “Cerne Abbas Brewery are proud to be continuing our sponsorship of Dorchester Beerex and looking forward to catching up with old and new faces.

“Time to get our thinking caps on to create a special beer for the occasion!”

About 84 cask ales from around the UK and a large selection of ciders will be on offer at Dorchester Beerex.

The festival’s main

beneficiary will be Yeovil Free Wheeler Blood Bikes.

Its public relations officer, Kris Knapton, said: “We are truly honoured to be the nominated charity for this year’s event.

“For those who may not be familiar with us, it’s understandable, as the dedication of our volunteers often goes unnoticed.

“Since 1978, the Yeovil Freewheelers have been providing a free, rapid and reliable emergency medical motorcycle courier service to our local NHS, making us the oldest continuously serving group in the UK.

“Our service is utilised daily by the NHS, and, last year alone, we completed over 2,000 deliveries, with our riders covering more than 122,000 miles.

“Our unwavering commitment to being available for our local NHS when they need us is made possible by events like this and the ongoing support from our community.”

Funds raised through the raffle will go to the Dorchester Youth & Community Centre in King’s Road, which provides a place for youngsters to safely meet and take part in activities with volunteers and youth leaders.

Speaking for the Beerex committee, chair, Gemma Scott, said: “The event is full steam ahead with regards to the organisation. The committee are busy working with some great sponsors.

“Without the sponsors the event would not be what we know and love, so thank you to all the sponsors already onboard and should you like to help support the event please contact one of the team.”

Any local businesses, companies or individuals who would like to support the

festival through barrel sponsorship, should contact Dave Harris on 07977 918130 or via the festival website, www.beerex.org.uk

The first 100 people to order Beerex tickets at www.beerex. co.uk will be entered into a prize draw, with the winner to receive a Dorchester Beerex 2025 polo shirt, with this year’s logo.

Tickets for the festival are available from the following outlets, priced £11, which includes a free pint, souvenir glass and programme with full beer menu and tasting notes: Dorchester – the Convivial Rabbit, Tom Browns and Copper St Brewery Tap; Poundbury – The Brace of Butchers; Weymouth – The Globe Inn; and online at www. camrawdorset.org.uk.

Free parking for Christmas shoppers

PARKING will be free in a number of car parks managed by Dorset Council on various dates in the run-up to Christmas.

The offer is running in the council’s car parks in Beaminster, Blandford, Bridport, Corfe Castle, Dorchester, Ferndown, Gillingham, Lyme Regis, Shaftesbury, Sherborne, Sturminster Newton, Wareham, Weymouth and Wimborne.

This includes Small Business Saturday tomorrow (December 7), when the council takes part in the national campaign to support small businesses.

Details of all the car parks and free parking dates can be seen on the council’s Christmas parking webpages at www. dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/freechristmas-parking

In the participating Dorset Council car parks, the JustPark

Fairfield car park in Dorchester will be one of the Dorset car parks offering free parking

app and ticket machines will be set to no charge.

Cllr Jon Andrews, cabinet member for Place Services, said: “We’re bringing our own slice of Christmas cheer to Dorset this November and December. You’ll be able to

enjoy free parking in many of our car parks on selected days and spend extra time in Dorset’s delightful shops.

“This offer includes Small Business Saturday on 7 December, the national campaign to support local businesses by shopping locally.”

Other providers, such as town councils, may also offer free parking in the run-up to Christmas – check the car park’s charges boards/ticket machines for details.

On-street parking charges and private car park charges will still apply.

Locals Rebecca Parry, Joel Ashley, Andrew Kerr, Phil Oates and Harry Little on a works outing at the 2024 festival PHOTO: Rich Gabe

Craft events for kids

CHRISTMAS crafts events for children are on offer at Shaftesbury Library this month.

Youngsters will be creating festive gift tags, decorations and bookmarks on Saturdays December 7, 14 and 21 between 11am and noon.

The events are suitable for children aged four to 11 and children under eight must be accompanied by an adult.

For more information, call Shaftesbury library on 01747 852256 or email shaftesburylibrary@ dorsetcouncil.gov.uk. Booking is advisable via Eventbrite to guarantee a space.

INDIVIDUALS in Shaftesbury and Gillingham with digital and technical experience are needed to help get more residents online.

Dorset Council runs a volunteer digital champion programme across the county which gives advice about technology and digital to anyone who needs it.

Nearly a third of Dorset’s residents are digitally excluded in some way and with more essential services moving online, many need more help.

The council needs patient and kind volunteers who can offer face to face help at its libraries in Shaftesbury and Gillingham.

Those with a background in IT or digital are ideal, but anyone with a good all-round knowledge of software, website services, online services like shopping and banking, devices – laptops, printers, smartphones, tablets – social media and apps is also very welcome to apply.

Full training and on-going support is provided for anyone who successfully applies to be digital champion.

To apply to be a digital champion visit https://dorsetself.achieveservice.com/service/ digital-champion-application

For more information, email digitaldorset@dorsetcouncil. gov.uk

Volunteers take turn in spotlight

VOLUNTEERS from across Dorset, and guests, came together in Dorchester for the Volunteer Celebration Evening 2024, hosted by Volunteer Centre Dorset.

The evening is an annual event recognising volunteers’ contribution to local communities.

Local poet and author, Laurence Lagrue, compered the event, sharing the stories and personal achievements of each volunteer who attended.

Volunteers were celebrated across four categories: Young Volunteers, Teams, Volunteers, and the Andy Jacobs award for Mental Health and Wellbeing. Each category certificate was presented by one of the special guests: The Lord-Lieutenant of Dorset, Michael Dooley; Dorset High Sheriff, Anthony

Woodhouse; Joe Langtree, from Room to Reward; and Phil Cooper, Volunteer Centre Dorset’s newly appointed chair of trustees.

Mr Cooper said: “I am always surprised by the sheer breadth of volunteering, and I love hearing about the variety of roles available to anyone –young and older.

community.

“We heard about the Freewheelers Blood Bikes volunteers who give their time providing motorcycle transport delivering essential samples and equipment to hospitals.

“There are volunteer illustrators at the Bank of Dreams Nightmares, helping inspire creative writing in young writers; and Health Champions at local doctor’s surgeries, helping patients find help and social activities within the

“As a society, we literally couldn’t do without volunteers.”

This year’s youngest volunteer to attend was just eight years old. Hali-Rai was nominated by her lifeboat family after raising £468 for the RNLI by walking every day in the month of May.

Marie Waterman, chief executive at Volunteer Centre Dorset, said: “We are lucky to have such a vibrant, caring community in Dorset where people volunteer and give their

time to make life better for others.

“This was our 18th celebration evening and, as always, it’s been humbling and inspiring listening to the fantastic stories of Dorset’s volunteers.”

With more than 400 opportunities online, Volunteer Centre Dorset can help anyone find a special role.

For more information about volunteering, visit www. volunteeringdorset.org.uk or phone 01305 269214.

Volunteers were celebrated across four categories:

Town pair launch children’s picture book series

TWO creative talents from Shaftesbury have got together to produce a series of children’s picture books, the first of which is being launched at the FOLDE Dorset independent bookshop this Christmas.

The Lightbulb Family Stories is a series of books put together by Tony Deyes and illustrator Anne-Louise Richards under the banner ‘Laugh, Learn and Love the Planet’.

Tony says the books are suitable for children aged three – being read to – upwards.

Each book tells a fantasy story around a question young children might ask – his own grandchildren did – such as: ‘Who is the Man in the Moon?’, ‘What makes the waves come

and go on the beach?’, ‘Why do the leaves fall off the trees in autumn?’.

Each story is followed by Mr Lightbulb giving the answer to the question and then helping his daughter, Brightie, to understand the importance of the theme for the future of the planet.

The stories are brought to life through illustrations by AnneLouise Richards, which bring a lightness to the fantasy, a colourful background to the facts and an insight into the real world in the final sustainability section.

Tony and Anne Louise first got together at the ‘Fiction is Fun’ festival in Shaftesbury 2023, where they both gave presentations.

Tony sneaked into AnneLouise’s session on book illustrating, not because he wanted to improve his illustration skills – which are pretty amateur – but to see if Anne-Louise offered a style of illustration that would enliven

his stories. “The rest” as they say, “is….well, the stories!” Who is the Man in the Moon?, the first of the series, is on sale from early December at FOLDE Dorset in Shaftesbury priced £10.99 (hard cover) and £7.99 (soft cover).

Coffee morning

COLEHILL Methodist Church is holding a coffee morning tomorrow (Saturday, December 7) with homemade cakes, a tombola and so on.

The church is in Lonnen Road and the event runs from 10am to noon.

Everyone is welcome to go along and enjoy friendship and Christmas music from The Jukebox Ukes.

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Book author Tony Deyes and illustrator AnneLouise Richards

SHERBORNE Repair Café

volunteer Peter Bradish-Ellames was impressed with locals’ ingenuity when he spent two weeks this summer in Malawi teaching deaf teenagers how to repair bicycles.

He was working with two local charities – Hooke Court in Malawi, which provides educational resources to schools, and Prodigal Bikes, which upcycles old bicycles and provides them to teachers in Africa.

Peter said: “These bicycles are an absolute godsend, prized and ridden to their absolute limits.

“The Bandawe School for the Deaf teaches the older children life skills with the aim

of making them self-employed mobile bicycle repairers.

“I worked alongside a local bike mechanic, Christopher, three deaf boys and some eager teachers in the dust and under the semi-shade of a tree.”

He added: “Malawians are remarkably resourceful and their ingenuity impressive. Parts I deemed fit for the bin apparently had plenty of life in them yet.

“While I used a special chain-splitting tool I’d brought out with me, Christopher used a rock, a hammer and a driving pin. He was quicker.

“I tried to locate some detergent to clean ball bearings with – there wasn’t any.

“Their approach – tip out ball

THE parish church of St John’s in Tisbury is about to reveal a new East Window after work was completed last month.

The original Victorian window had deteriorated and fundraising for the project to replace it started in 2009.

The new window has been designed by internationally renowned stained glass artist, Tom Denny, and the unveiling will take place tomorrow (Saturday, December 7) in

On two wheels: Volunteer’s Malawi mission Church set to unveil new window Trust’s 100 years

THE Mere Lecture Hall Trust celebrated its centenary on Friday, November 22, with an open evening.

Visitors were able to enjoy an exhibition, which also ran the following day, illustrating events past and present at the hall, and including historical documents and information

bearings straight onto the ground and rub vigorously with your foot.

“Try to find them all again and rub over with a bit of cloth. Highly effective. They called it ‘Indigenous Technology’!”

Peter said they fixed bikes for local children, too, and mended a disabled boy’s wheelchair.

The overall upgrade included

window’s

two new sports wheels and spongy faux leather upholstery – foam and gaffer tape.

The boy was delighted as he could go back to school.

Peter said: “We saw 92 bicycles and repaired 60 within the two weeks. Only one was broken beyond repair.

“Simon became our first mobile bicycle repairer with his own bike and toolbox.”

about the hall’s current users. Trustees recently decided to allow the limited consumption of alcohol at the hall and in the picture hall manager Sally Johnson is shown serving a glass of prosecco to trustee Andrew Bristow and treasurer Chris Wood.

Photo and text George Jeans

arrival.

Individuals raised funds for the project by sponsoring glass in memory of a loved one, a family or just to be part of the project.

The names of the people remembered and those of their sponsors will be collated in a memorial book which will be on permanent display in the church.

The church hopes as many people as possible will visit to see the window.

time for visitors to a Christmas market, ‘Tis the Season’.

The parish communion on Sunday at 9.30am will celebrate the new

Peter Bradish-Ellames taught deaf teenagers how to repair bicycles

The new East Window at St John’s church in Tisbury

Three Week to go: Dazzling new Light Artworks set to Sparkle at Stourhead This Christmas

W

ith just over three weeks to go, excitement is building as Christmas at Stourhead returns from 29th November to 1st January – promising to be bigger, brighter, and more magical than ever before.

This year’s illuminated after-dark trail, created by Culture Creative and produced in partnership with Sony Music and the National Trust, will feature an array of dazzling new light installations that are guaranteed to enchant visitors of all ages.

This year’s trail is set to sparkle with new artistic innovations from internationally renowned creators, ensuring a festive experience like no other.

Among the new must-see features are:

Sea of Light by ITHACA Studio: An awe-inspiring large-scale display, where thousands of individually controlled LED light balls animate in harmony with a bespoke soundtrack, creating a mesmerizing and immersive experience.

Light a Wish by OGE Design Group: Capturing the whimsy of dandelion seeds floating through the air, this piece symbolises wishes taking flight, adding a touch of wonder to the trail.

This playful and emotion-evoking installation by artists Merav Eitan and Gaston Zahr has captivated audiences worldwide.

Snowflake Show by Scot Gianelli: Huge snowflakes, up to five metres tall, will light up in time with festive music, casting a magical glow across the grounds.

Designed by Scot Gianelli, a Los Angeles-based lighting designer known for his work across theatre, fine art, and architecture, this display is sure to wow visitors.

These dazzling new artworks will join Stourhead’s already beloved illuminated trail, featuring a spectacular array of twinkling lights, sparkling tunnels, and vibrant woodland and lakeside displays.

The historic landscape will be filled with the scents and sounds of Christmas, offering visitors the chance to step into a winter wonderland like no other

Whether you’re exploring with family, friends, or loved ones, this festive trail

promises to create new memories against the breathtaking backdrop of one of the UK’s most iconic gardens.

There’s even a chance to catch a magical glimpse of Father Christmas as you stroll through the sparkling grounds.

With over a million twinkling lights transforming Stourhead’s stunning grounds, this is an unmissable event for your festive calendar.

For more information and to book tickets online please visit www.christmasatstourhead.co.uk

Stourhead Sea of Light by ITHACA Studio

Community Champion presents cheque to

Residents and the care home team were pleased to welcome Emma Sleeth, Community Champion at Asda in Gillingham, to make a

Emma handed over £1,000 to the volunteer team at Dementia Friendly Gillingham to go towards providing live entertainment and other support they offer at Fern Brook Lodge’s weekly free Memory Cafe meetings, which take place every Thursday from 10am to 11am.

The sessions, which are open to everyone, are run by Deb Wiltshire, Home Manager, who is a Dementia Friends Champion, and the home’s activities team. The Memory Cafe aims to raise awareness and offer education and support to people living with dementia and their carers.

Earlier this year, Care South’s Chairman’s 2020 Fund donated £1,000 to Dementia Friendly Gillingham. The fund was set up to give back to community groups, services and organisations which benefit Care South’s residents and staff, and their Care at Home clients. Dementia Friendly Gillingham estimates that dementia impacts the lives of one in 12 people living in Gillingham.

Fern Brook Lodge, which is part of not-for-profit charity, Care South, provides residential, respite, and dementia care. A dedicated activities team organise a daily programme of events to bring residents together to socialise and build friendships. The care home features individual rooms for residents which benefit from several large communal lounges overlooking the landscaped garden offering peace and tranquillity.

The Fern Brook Lodge care home team are encouraging local residents and their families to join their free-entry Christmas Fayre on Saturday 14 December from 11am to 3pm featuring vintage cars, stalls, ponies, a raffle, and live music. There is no need to book in advance, just turn up.

THE popular The Walnut Tree Inn in Mere has changed hands with twin brothers Simon and Will Friend-James taking over the reins.

Mark and Sam Cassidy stepped away to enjoy semiretirement after a packed farewell at the pub, but are delighted the hostelry will continue as a family-owned business.

They said they would like to take thank everyone who had supported The Walnut Tree Inn since it opened in May 2006.

They faced tough times during the Covid-19 pandemic and said the encouragement, loyalty and generosity of staff and customers had been appreciated over the years.

They said the business they were proud to hand over had an excellent team of people who would continue to look after guests as they always had.

Bookings, Christmas party deposits and gift vouchers will be unaffected by the change in ownership.

Photo and text George

Jeans

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Simon and Will FriendJames have taken over from Mark and Sam Cassidy at The Walnut Tree Inn

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A Bramley Caring Christmas

We believe in making the festive season a truly memorable experience with our festive respite stays.

Bramley House in Mere, The Old Rectory in Stalbridge and Millbrook House in Child Okeford are each adorned with twinkling lights and elegant decorations, creating an atmosphere of magical holiday cheer.

The culinary experience is a highlight, with our chefs preparing an array of delicious festive meals, from our traditional Christmas dinner

to our special New Year’s feasts, splendid celebrations that bring everyone together. The tables, with their festive theme, create a delightful and heart-warming setting.

The menus, meticulously planned and prepared, cater for varied tastes and dietary needs, ensuring that every resident can indulge in the traditional flavours of the season. This is more than just a culinary delight; it’s a focal point of communal joy, shared stories, and laughter, fostering a sense of belonging and

Bramley House

togetherness.

For families, knowing your loved one is in a nurturing, festive environment provides immense reassurance. Our homes buzz with festive activities and celebrations, ensuring residents feel the Christmas spirit throughout their stay. Families have the chance to give their loved ones a break away filled with care, joy, and the warmth of a community, while also taking a much-needed respite rest themselves. This festive season, let us be the home

from home for your loved ones and let us spoil them! Vacancies are limited so please get in touch to find out more.

Bramley House in Mere, unlike modern purpose-built care homes, has been tastefully converted from a former rectory. Carefully adapted to enable professional care within an environment that really does look and feel like a real home.

Elegant ensuite bedrooms, beautiful gardens, relaxing spaces, engaging activities, delicious food, and most importantly real loving care.

Lewis-Manning Hospice Care Launches Christmas Tree Collection & Recycling Campaign to Fund Patient Well-being

Lewis-Manning Hospice Care is kicking off the new year with its annual Christmas Tree Collection & Recycling Campaign, taking place on 9th, 10th, and 11th January 2025 across postcodes BH1–BH23. By recycling your Christmas trees, you and local people in your community can make a truly meaningful impact, helping local hospice patients whilst promoting sustainability and supporting the environment.

If you are planning to have a real Christmas Tree this year Lewis-Manning invites you to join them in this recycling campaign and register and donate online today at www.lewis-manning.org.uk/trees, where a suggested donation of £15 will allow the hospice to deliver a virtual exercise and well-being session run by one of the hospice Occupational Therapists. This vital service helps the growing community of housebound patients achieve a more active, fulfilling life and remain connected to each other A Win-Win for your Community and the Environment

Head of Fundraising, Vicki Gray advised, “Our Christmas tree recycling initiative is so much more than raising funds for an important local hospice - It’s an opportunity for the community to support crucial well-being services for Dorset hospice patients, whilst championing the environment.

“All trees collected are recycled into chippings and mulch for use in our local parks, gardens, playgrounds, and other community spaces across Dorset.”

Generous Community Support

Lewis-Manning Hospice Care extends special thanks to corporate partners Stewarts Garden Centres, Katie Fox Estate Agents, United Taxis, and Eco Sustainable Solutions, whose sponsorship and support makes this initiative possible.

How It Works:

• Register & Donate: Sign up online to book your collection.

• Confirmation: Once booked via Lewis-Manning’s website, you will receive a confirmation email. When the bookings close on 6th January, the team will be in touch to let you know when your tree will be collected.

• Collection dates: All trees will be collected on 9th, 10th, and 11th January. Leave your tree in your specified location and let Lewis-Manning do the rest!

Vicki concluded, “Lets kick off 2025 with purpose and compassion, turning your tree into hope and support for local families in need, and help make a lasting impact.”

For more information and to book: Visit www.lewis-manning.org.uk/trees

THE Blandford Yuletide Festival is taking place today (Friday, December 6), despite the disruption in the Market Place.

The event will as usual include a fair, steam engines, band, stalls, lantern display and Father Christmas, but new for

this year are snow machines.

Visitors are invited to make a lantern, take it along to help Santa light the tree, then visit him in his grotto.

They can also join in with a few Christmas carols.

The organising committee has adapted the festival, which gets under way at 5pm, to overcome the loss of space in the Market Place.

For more information, visit www.blandford-yuletidefestival.org.uk

Music and laughter Yuletide festival

A MAGICAL evening of music, laughter and holiday cheer is promised when A Very CODAlele Christmas comes to Bourton Village Hall.

The event features classical comedy duo Opera-lele – Mandi Hackett and George Bartle –and musical theatre pair CODA – Gemma Ashley and local singing teacher Mark James.

The audience will enjoy

hits, Christmas classics and a festive sing-along as the finale.

Anyone who plays the ukulele – or any other instrument – is invited to take it along to join in at the end of the event.

A Very CODA-lele Christmas is on Friday, December 13, at 7.30pm and tickets are available online at www.musicalcoda.com or from

Baa humbug?

FARMER Ian Baggs, from Wareham, gave members of Cerne Sheep Group an informative talk on conservation farming at the group’s November meeting.

The group lost their skittles match against the Rare Breeds Survival Trust by one pin.

Christmas supper is at The Fox at Ansty on Monday (December 9) at 6.45pm for 7pm.

Team Morgan will entertain with ‘Call My Bluff’, followed by the Christmas hot buffet.

Donations for the raffle are welcome, with proceeds to the air ambulance.

Members will contribute £6 towards the cost of the supper; non-members pay the full price of £15.

Anyone who would like to go along should phone or text 07816 291103, so the The Fox knows numbers.

The New Year starts for Cerne Sheep Group with member Howard Payton’s illustrated talk at The Fox on Monday, January 13, at 7.30pm.

Helping you go green

THE Climate Cafe Sherborne has produced a free Green Guide.

It lists places where products from batteries to bubble wrap and Tetrapaks to vapes can be recycled or re-used.

It suggests options available to repair rather than replace, or to give someone else a chance to love a pre-loved item.

It also lists local shops where individuals can shop package-free and source environmentally friendly products.

The Green Guide was devised and compiled by Kathryn Phelps.

Matt Murphy was responsible for the booklet’s design with the artistic input of children from Sherborne Primary School.

The guide’s cover and other illustrations used throughout the text were chosen from more than 50 pieces of artwork.

A printed copy will be given to each family whose children attend the school. Other copies will be made available at local outlets around Sherborne.

For online copies, to update content or to suggest the inclusion of a local business in future editions, email climatecafesherborne@gmail.com

Plant tips

TALENTED speaker and horticultural journalist Sally Nex is giving a talk at Morden Village Hall.

In it she will discuss how to handle plant pests and bothersome bugs.

The talk at the hall (BH20 7DT) is on Saturday, December 7, with doors open 1.30pm for 2pm start.

Admission is £5 on the door and includes tea or coffee.

The event is organised by the Plant Heritage Dorset Group – email martin. plantheritagedorset@btinternet.com for more information.

Calendar takes journey through town’s past

THE South Somerset Heritage Collection, managed by Yeovil Town Council, has officially launched its 2025 calendar – a fascinating journey through Yeovil’s past.

The calendar offers a blend of images and artefacts that spotlight local industries, shops and restaurants, while commemorating 80 years since the end of the Second World War in Europe. Each month pairs a main photograph with a complementary image.

One image is a wartime photograph of the Royal Observer Corps group stationed at Court Ash, Yeovil, where its headquarters was located during the Second World War. Accompanying it is a rare

Bakelite headset and receiver.

The Cottage Café – pictured – a cherished Yeovil landmark once run by the Banfield family, is also included. The image, believed to be from 1972, marks the cafe’s final year in operation. Alongside is a menu card and a glimpse of the dining room interior.

The Banfield legacy is again seen in images of the Banfield Restaurant, and a postcard of Sidney Gardens, Yeovil, sourced from Christine Banfield’s 1956 homework album.

Cafes remain a recurring theme, with a nod to the Camel Cross Café at West Camel. The calendar begins and concludes with Denners, featuring the

Denner and Stiby ironmongery shop in High Street – possibly photographed by Henry Stiby himself – and a 1995 Christmas display from Denners Department Store – pictured. Heritage coordinator, Joseph Lewis, said: “Each year, we strive to capture the essence of the collection through a mix of photographs and objects, ensuring it resonates with our community.

“This year, we’ve included newly donated images and thought provoking moments from Yeovil’s history.

“We also use the calendar to seek answers – such as why a Scammell lorry seemingly took a wrong turn on Princes Street in the mid-1970s. If anyone has insights, we’d love to hear them!”

DORSET Wildlife Trust is looking for volunteers to join its visitor centre teams at The Fine Foundation Wild Seas Centre in Kimmeridge and Wild Chesil Centre at Portland.

Open sessions will be held at both visitor centres in January, when staff and other volunteers will be available to talk about what is involved in the roles.

Wildlife trust in volunteer appeal Soup, songs, service and sewing

Community ranger, Abi Mustard, said: “From rare scaly crickets to thousands of overwintering brent geese, Chesil Beach and Fleet Lagoon form an internationally important nature reserve and Kimmeridge Bay lies within the stunning Purbeck Coast Marine Conservation Zone.

friendly and approachable volunteers to join our teams, both inside and outside our visitor centres.

“By volunteering for Dorset Wildlife Trust, you will meet like-minded people, receive regular training, learn new skills and have the opportunity to attend the social events arranged for our volunteer teams.”

Volunteers must be aged 18 or over and all training is provided free of charge. The role is designed to help inform visitors how they can make simple everyday changes to tackle pressing environmental issues.

“With the current climate and ecological crises and increasing pressures from human activities, wildlife on land and in the sea is under threat, so our conservation work has never been more important. And we need help.

“We are looking for keen,

For roles at Wild Seas Centre at Kimmeridge, email Julie Hatcher, kimmeridge@ dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk, or for Wild Chesil Centre at Portland, email Sarah Hodgson or Abi Mustard, chesilbeach@ dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk

For more information about volunteering, visit www. dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk/ volunteering-opportunities.

THE Ladies of Blandford Evening WI have had a busy last few weeks.

Harvest Supper in October saw a variety of homemade soups served with crusty bread and entertainment provided by the Witchampton Eukers.

The WI wreath was laid at the town Remembrance Service

by Diane Beasley and Jenny Wise, and WI members and town councillors Sheila Chapman and Maggie Putt, along with fellow WI member and town crier Liz Rawlins, took part in the parade.

The November meeting is traditionally a Christmas craft evening and this year the Ladies produced a mini Father Christmas to be hung on the tree.

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Fast broadband coming soon...

MORE than 2,500 residents and business owners in Wincanton are set to enjoy an early Christmas present with engineers set to complete work to extend a full fibre broadband connection to them this month.

Work to connect the town began in 2022 when telecoms company Gigaclear started extending its network using fibre optic cables.

It has been going street-tostreet either digging new trenches or using existing infrastructure such as poles and ducting to reach each property.

Senior project manager, Glynn Richardson, said Gigaclear is working hard to ensure rural communities such as Wincanton can access the same fast and reliable full

fibre broadband enjoyed by larger urban areas.

He said: “Taking our full fibre to rural communities that might otherwise have copper or an inferior partfibre broadband connection fundamentally changes them for the better because it creates choice for the people in those communities about how they work and how they live their lives.”

Engineers are completing fibre optic cabling in Wincanton

S HOPPERS can enjoy two nights of late-night shopping in Shaftesbury over November and December.

The events serve as the perfect opportunity to get a start on Christmas shopping and support the many independent businesses in the town.

The first late-night shopping event takes place until 7.30pm on the same day as the ever-popular Christmas lights switch-on, Monday, November 25.

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This will be followed up with more late-night shopping at the Cygnet on December 12 again until 7.30pm.

Road closures will be in place from 4pm.

“It’s the place to be for sheer interest and variety,” a spokesperson said.

“What’s more, all our artists, from sculptors to ceramicists, through painters to jewellers to textile and felt artists, will each give you a friendly welcome and tell you about their latest creations.

“The super Cygnet offers a veritable cornucopia of creative delights.”

Shaftesbury Christmas market is also taking place this year on Sunday, December 8, and shoppers can expect artisan stalls, craft makers, present ideas, plus street food and music.

The High Street will be closed all day, with parking for Blue Badge holders at the top of High Street.

Come along to Shirley Allum Fashions and Lingerie in Shaftesbury for late night shopping on Thursday 12th December.

We have lots of festive savings with our amazing 25% off across the store*, including Fashions, Nightwear, Jewellery, scarves and much, much more!

With so many gift ideas at great prices, you will find the perfect gift for that special person in your life.

Choose from cosy Cashmere, sparkly jumpers for Christmas day or a snuggle up in one of our super soft dressing gowns and a pair of pyjamas from Cyberjammies.

If you cannot decide on any of these wonderful gifts, why not buy a Gift Voucher that can be used across the store.

From socks to the most luxurious Jumpers, we will help you find something and make this Christmas extra special.

We look forward to seeing you all, Shirley and the Team.

*offer excludes Gift vouchers, Bras, vests, and pants.

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From 25th November

Until 24th December (excludes

School fair raises £16,000 for good cause in Nepal

BRYANSTON School raised more than £16,000 at its annual Christmas fair in aid of Nepalbased non-governmental organisation Right4Children.

The weekend, organised by school prefects, included everything from a mixed sixth-form netball match to live music performances, and fete games to bingo.

Pupil-led stalls showcased crafts, food and Nepalese goods, with many stalls run by boarding houses or Year 10 (C) pupils who had pitched their ideas during a Business Studies

10X Challenge.

The event culminated in a fireworks display on Sunday evening, which lit up the skies above the school grounds.

The prefects also organised an online auction, featuring generous donations from

Lions support school music

THE Songbirds, a Stalbridgebased singing group, entertained Blackmore Vale Lions and their guests at their annual Charter Lunch in the summer.

The singers generously donated their fee to Stalbridge CofE Primary School outdoor music area, a cause the Lions have also supported.

The Songbirds and Lions met at the school recently to hand over a cheque to celebrate the opening of the music area. They saw classes 4 and 5

by Chris Slade, retired

Dorset rights of way officer START on the Stour Valley Way opposite Hanford House, a magnificent historic manor house, which is now a prep school for girls.

Follow the Way a short distance north and east to meet the road.

Turn left and follow the road uphill until, on a bend, you join a bridleway on your right that heads south east for a short

perform a short musical piece accompanied by Sam Hurst on guitar and their fellow students on the drums and other percussion instruments.

A spokesperson for the Lions said: “It was a wonderful performance much enjoyed by us all and the pre-school class, who also raised money.

“The opening only represents the opening part –overture – and first movement of this particular longer orchestral piece.

“The young musicians

distance, then turns left and heads very steeply uphill to the north east, following the parish boundary. Be warned that the clay soil can get rather sticky and slippery. Further up, it’s chalky and easier.

You’re heading up the edge of Hambledon Hill, but before entering it, the Stour Valley Way meets a Cross Dyke which turns it back, heading south east then east along a gentler slope downhill, still following the

Bryanston families and local businesses.

Right4Children (R4C) aims to improve the lives of disadvantaged children, young people and their families.

Proceeds from the charities weekend will specifically support R4C’s Sports in Schools programme.

Charities and outreach prefect, Tamara H, said: “Involvement in a variety of charities is an important aspect of life at Bryanston and we are most grateful for the generous contributions we received.

“Thank you to everyone who supported this wonderful cause. We look forward to continuing our efforts for meaningful initiatives and charities such as R4C.”

Hannah Fearnley, head of charities and outreach, added: “Once again, the charities fair demonstrated the incredible achievements a school community can accomplish when working together.

“We are extremely grateful to parents, staff and pupils for their support, and overwhelmed by the funds raised for such an important cause.

“Special thanks go to our school prefects for their hard work and dedication in organising such a fantastic weekend.”

really enjoyed performing and were delighted with the instruments. We all hope for more.”

Anyone who would like to add to the funds should contact Karen at office@stalbridge. dorset.sch.uk.

To join or book The Songbirds, contact beckymitch05@gmail.com or phone 07957 133317; to join the Lions visit www.bvlions. yolasite.com or leave a message for Ian Simpson on 0845 8337423.

parish boundary. After nearly a mile you come to a junction where you turn right, south, alongside a steep wooded slope.

At the bottom of the slope, cross a road and follow the bridleway south, then south east, then south west along the edge of Hod Hill, which is topped by a fort which you don’t enter as it’s in the next parish – you can if you like as it’s Access Land.

When the bridleway meets

another one, take that, turning right and heading anti-clockwise around the edge of the hill fort. Eventually, at the north west corner of the Roman fort, you meet another bridleway that takes you north west, down the hill to meet a road.

Turn left and the road will take you back to the village and your starting point.

You’ll have walked about four miles and seen some wonderful views.

Bryanston School’s fundraiser was in aid of Right4Children

Lions president Peter Oswick (right), with Becky Peckover-Mitchell from the Songbirds, and Lions Julie Otter and Bill Brown, and head teacher Simon Elledge (left) with the pre-school class

Top prize for camera club

by Brian Stubbs

THE club season is well under way for Wincanton Camera Club.

On October 2, the club hosted internationally renowned landscape photographer, Charlie Waite.

An audience in excess of 100 guests – including a number of professional photographers– thoroughly enjoyed the evening.

The Disabled Photographers’ Society benefitted from a share of the proceeds from the evening.

Our first internal competition of the season had an open theme and included some stunning photographs on a very diverse range of subjects.

These events are always fun and educational. Two images scored the maximum mark of 20: Meyrick

Griffith-Jones’ “Winter Walk at Burton Bradstock” and Brian Stubbs’ “Black and White Springer”.

Another popular speaker was professional commercial photographer Charles Gervais, who specialises in timelapse photography.

Charles was able to show us his equipment and talk us through the processes behind his work. A particularly stunning sequence of images showed the Northern Lights in all their glory when they were viewable from Windmill Hill, Wincanton.

During the summer, club members enjoyed a photographic studio session with a professional model. This was great fun and a new experience for most of the participants. It was decided to try and

use some of the images from this session to enter a Western Counties Photographic Federation (WCPF) competition. To our surprise, our panel of three prints was a winner!

We are thrilled, coming as this success does after back-to-back wins in the WCPF Small Club Championships in 2023 and 2024, and demonstrating the level of skill we have among our members.

We are an inclusive group for photographers of all abilities, from absolute beginners to aspiring competition winners.

We meet in Wincanton Memorial meeting room every other Wednesday at 7.30pm and have a full programme of events planned.

Find out more about this thriving photographic club at www. wincantoncameraclub. co.uk.

Letters to veterans spread Christmas cheer

CHRISTMAS cards with seasonal greetings from children will be delivered to veterans this year thanks to a partnership between The Tank Museum at Bovington and Help for Heroes.

Children visiting the museum’s A Dorset Christmas event last month were invited to write a letter to veterans in a specially designed tank-themed Christmas card.

In total, 300 cards were ‘posted’ at the museum and they will be given to veterans

at a Help For Heroes coffee morning in December.

Events and partnerships manager at museum, Tom Holmes, said: “As the regimental museum of the Royal Tank Regiment and the corps museum of the Royal Armoured Corps, it is important to us to help support veterans by working closely with other charities like Help for Heroes.

“This season can be a difficult time for many, so we wanted to ask families

Crafty gifts

by Janet Way

THE streets of Mere were buzzing during the third Creative Mere weekend this November.

Twenty-two artists and craftspeople exhibited and demonstrated their skills to over 500 appreciative visitors, who stocked up on unique gifts, Christmas decorations and cards.

Jackets were re-waxed, jewellery strung, hair braided and even fishing flies made. Members of the youth group, ‘Seeds for Success’ created many a novel snowman for customers.

The Railway Club demonstrated one of their layouts, the PennyBank Writers sold their newest anthology (created especially for the weekend) and everyone was kept fuelled by the Mothers’ Union and WI.

What talent we have in our busy little town!

We are hoping that, now established, Creative Mere will be a permanent fixture in the town’s busy social calendar.

enjoying our Christmas event to take time to write a special message for a veteran.

“We are delighted to have collected so many cards and look forward to delivering them in December.”

“Winter Walk at Burton Bradstock” by Meyrick Griffith-Jones

“Black and White Springer” by Brian Stubbs

Christmas and New Year rubbish and recycling

Remember:

1. We will collect up to two extra sacks of rubbish beside your bin on your first rubbish collection after Christmas Day.

2. No garden waste collections will take place from Christmas Day until Wednesday 8 January.

3. Household recycling centres are open from 9am to 4pm daily, except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

4. Extra recycling, including glass and food, will be collected on your recycling collection day, provided it has been separated correctly and placed in a suitable sturdy container (no bags) that can be easily lifted by one person.

5. Please help our crews by putting your glass out for collection before Christmas. This ensures you have as much space as possible in your glass box going into the festive period, helping prevent overspilling containers.

Save £50 this Christmas!

These tips can help you make savings on your Christmas food budget. It can save you time as well!

• Plan your meals over Christmas fortnight - make a shopping list and stick to it

• Check your food cupboards before shopping

• Use the portion calculator at lovefoodhatewaste.com/ portion-planner

• Use up foods in your freezer beforehand to make room for Christmas leftovers

• Store food correctly – check pack instructions

• Keep an eye on “use by” dates

• Use up leftovers in delicious recipes

• Freeze leftovers that can’t be eaten

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See what items can be recycled at the kerbside at dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/which-bin

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Bin collection days

These are the dates to put out your bins over Christmas. You can now put any items made of carton or foil in your recycling bin.

Thursday 26 Dec

Friday 27 Dec

30 Dec

Monday 30 Dec Tuesday 31 Dec

Tuesday 31 Dec Thursday 2 Jan

Wednesday 1 Jan Friday 3 Jan

Thursday 2 Jan Saturday 4 Jan

Friday 3 Jan Monday 6 Jan

Monday 6 Jan Tuesday 7 Jan

Tuesday 7 Jan Wednesday 8 Jan

Wednesday 8 Jan Thursday 9 Jan

Thursday 9 Jan Friday 10 Jan

Friday 10 Jan Saturday 11 Jan

Monday 13 Jan No change

Refer to your calendar or visit dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/bin-day to check your collection days.

Recycle more

This Christmas, recycle as much of your waste as possible. If you live in Dorset*, you can recycle:

• All cooked and uncooked food waste

• Wrapping paper**, cardboard and Christmas cards (no glitter)

• Plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays

• Glass bottles and jars (Please keep glass separate)

• (New) Carton and foil***

We’ll collect extra recycling in your own boxes.

Thank you for recycling!

If you live in Dorset*, check for changes to your collection

* Doesn’t include Bournemouth, Christchurch or Poole. Check your council website for details.

** Scrunch your wrapping paper! If it stays scrunched, it can be recycled. If it doesn’t, or it’s foil-based or glittery, it should go in the rubbish bin.

*** Rinse foil trays and wipe sheet foil clean. Scrunch sheet foil or wrappers together into a tennis-sized ball.

Santa at the station

by Hilary Daniels

YOU wait all year for Santa –then lots of them come along at once!

The Santa season starts at Shillingstone Station on Sunday (December 8) with volunteers expecting a host of red-robed runners hot foot from Sturminster Newton in need of a hot drink and something delicious from the popular station cafe.

Or they might just have been attracted to the café’s cosy log burner!

The Santa Stride follows the track of the former Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway, which closed in 1966 and links the lost station of Sturminster Newton with the now lovingly restored Shillingstone Station, one of the few station buildings to have survived.

North Dorset Railway, the charity based at Shillingstone, wants to restore a line between the two towns, and track laying has already begun.

The following Sunday (December 15), Santa will be paying his annual visit to the station between 11am and 3pm.

Children are invited to meet Santa and receive a special Christmas gift, though parents and carers must book in advance either by visiting the station or phoning 01258 860696 during station open hours.

The cost is £4.50 per child, with proceeds going to the North Dorset Railway, but other visitors will be as welcome as ever to explore the station, the museum and shop.

Not forgetting the cafe –soup, pasties, home-made cakes and that tempting log burner! The views are stunning, too.

Shillingstone Station and cafe are open Wednesdays and weekends, 10am-4pm, all year. Entry is free, but donations are welcome, to support restoration work.

Brunch with the Mayor

THE Mayor’s Brunch at the The Olive Branch in Wimborne raised money for good causes and provided a platform for talented local people.

Mayor of Wimborne Minster, Councillor Jeff Hart, and guests were treated to performances by Jubilate, St Michael’s Middle School, Dumpton School and Queen Elizabeth’s School.

Speaking at the event, he

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said: “I am delighted with the success of the Mayor’s Brunch event, which not only raised funds for local charities but also celebrated the extraordinary talent in our community.

“All four performances were splendid, with an age range spanning from eight to 80! It was a true community morning, with guests loving the entertainment and the tasty brunch.”

Pupils from Queen Elizabeth’s School with Wimborne Mayor, Cllr Jeff Hart, and town crier, Chris Brown

How to broach the subject of getting

live-in homecare for a loved one

At GoodOaks we understand that starting a conversation about care options for your loved one can be challenging. Whether you are concerned about elderly parents needing extra help and support or you are a care professional for a young person with complex disabilities, it can be a tough subject to talk about.

We firmly believe in enabling individuals to keep their independence in their own home for as long as possible, which is why we are dedicated to providing the right care options tailored to each person’s needs.

Let’s face it, no one likes to think of their parents or loved ones getting older and starting to struggle, but it is far better to talk about their preferences sooner rather than later. Then, if a crisis occurs, you and they will know what they would prefer to do.

Taking those first steps to talk about getting live-in care can feel daunting, you don’t want to upset your loved one, but you feel their lives could benefit from assistance. So, how best to do it and keep an open discussion going? Below you will find some useful information and resources to help you make the process as easy for everyone as possible.

Why might you need to talk to a loved one about the option of live-in care?

• You may have noticed your loved one is starting to struggle with things like housework, gardening or laundry – perhaps they have always been very house-proud, but it is getting harder to do as they get older.

• Perhaps they are starting to have mobility issues and are struggling to get out like they did before.

• Perhaps health conditions have made them lose confidence in their

driving ability. Perhaps they aren’t getting out to the shops as much or struggling to make food. Perhaps you have noticed they have started to be more forgetful and often miss medication or appointments.

• There are a huge number of factors that could lead you to this conversation about care, but the important thing is to be honest, kind and helpful.

How can GoodOaks help my loved one?

We work with you, your loved one, their GP and wider care team to create a bespoke care plan to help them stay in the comfort of their home for as long as possible.

At GoodOaks Homecare, we offer homecare to:

• Help people with their morning routine

• Prepare meals

• Administer medication for people who can forget or have an impairment

• Provide companionship and support for people living alone

• Help people to regain their independence after a stay in hospital (reablement)

• Provide personal care

• Help people visit the shops, attend doctor’s appointments or meet friends

• Provide respite care

• Help with cooking, cleaning, gardening, laundry and other household tasks

We offer a free call, where we can talk about our services and how we can support.

Town turns out to remember the Fallen

by Steve Lee, Secretary Wincanton & District RBL

WINCANTON once again ‘Remembered’, the Fallen on Sunday, November 10.

The High Street was lined with those wishing to pay their respects in an incredible turn-out.

Wincanton Silver Band led the parade and played It’s a Long Way to Tipperary, followed by members of the branch, veterans and serving personnel.

1 Regiment Army Air Corps (AAC) and its new commanding officer, Lt Col James Somerville, also joined the parade.

The AAC were followed by members of Wincanton Town

Council, Somerset County Council, Avon & Somerset Police, Wincanton Fire Crew and Fire Cadets, Wincanton Brownies, Beavers, Cubs and Scouts, along with their leaders. All three of our schools were present – King Arthur’s, Wincanton Primary and Our Lady’s.

Wincanton’s ACC Army Cadets were also present.

Following the parade, a Service of Remembrance was held at the parish church, led by the Rev Hilary Jalland. Following the service, the parade formed back up and marched back to Churchfields.

Both the parade and service were attended by so many, which continues to show

everyone how important Remembrance is to the town and its people.

A big ‘thank you’, to the many people and organisations that come together each year to organise the commemorations.

On Armistice Day, Monday, November 11, Wincanton & District Royal British Legion branch held a Service of Remembrance at the war memorial in the grounds of Wincanton War Memorial Hall followed by a second at the Old Faithful Memorial at Bayford viewpoint.

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Penny Ashton led the opening and closing prayers and wreaths were laid at the war memorial by the Royal British Legion, town council, county council and an HMS Belfast wreath by a Korean War veteran.

Penny then led the prayers at the Old Faithful and in a moving act one of the last surviving witnesses of the Flying Fortress’s crash, Jill Carswell, and Margaret Watts, representing the Watts family who lived at Snag Farm at the time of the incident, both laid wreaths.

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The Remembrance parade in Wincanton PHOTO: Isaac Reeson 1 Regiment Army Air Corps

The big switch-on!

THE grey skies and drizzle didn’t dampen the Christmas spirit in Wimborne Minster when thousands flocked to the town to enjoy an afternoon of free Christmas events to celebrate the start of the festive season.

In preparation, more than 25,000 LED bulbs and 2,000 metres of string and rope lighting were installed to decorate the town, along with a huge Christmas tree as the centrepiece in the town square.

The honour of the big Christmas lights switch-on was given to local school children, Alice Graham and Jemima Cripps, who were joined by the Mayor of Wimborne’s official Scout escort Madeline Morris and three-year-old Finley Wasiak.

This was the first time Wimborne Mayor, Councillor Jeff Hart, had presided over proceedings. “In my new role, this is one of the events I have been looking forward to

most in my mayoral calendar,” he said. “What a fabulous atmosphere and a great day for families and friends to enjoy.”

Crowds were treated to live performances on a stage in Wimborne Square which featured community and school choirs, the Quarterjacks Marching Band and Footlight Dance Academy. Snow was even provided on cue, with a huge snow gun showering the delighted audience.

No event in Wimborne is complete without Wimborne Militia. The town’s 17th century reenactment group fired a finale volley of muskets on Wimborne Minster green, an age-old custom to ward off evil winter spirits.

Festivities continue in the town right up until Christmas. This weekend sees Small Business Saturday with street parties tomorrow (Saturday, December 7) to

Poems offer glimpse into the minds of the young

YOUNGSTERS in year 8 at Bryanston Prep, who have been studying First World War poetry in their English lessons, have written their own poems of remembrance.

Their work, says head of English, Beth Robins, reflects events which have happened during their own lifetimes and which they feel should be remembered and learned from.

Their poems have been put together into an anthology – Poems of Remembrance for 2024

Their work offers, Beth said, “a wonderful and humbling glimpse into the minds of today’s young people.”

Ukrainian Maternity Ward, by Liana

My beloved, lost Ivanna

Your face still embedded in my heart,

As you opened your eyes to a world full of smoke and drama, Death and failure tore us part.

My beloved, lost Ivanna

Two certificates in one day, Tears rolling down cheeks like lava,

If only I had been there to tell you it was okay.

My beloved, lost child

Coffins the size of shoeboxes, I returned home to see the pink clothes still piled,

And you not in my arms.

You will forever be in my heart

School Shootings, by Juliette

So sudden it all happens

Cries of children coming from all directions

Helplessly trying to survive

One last time saying goodbye to your mum in the morning

One last time telling your dad that you love him

Loving families forced to be parted from their daughters or sons

So many innocent lives stolen How could anyone be so

celebrate Wimborne’s array of small businesses. The town’s annual Save the Children parade with floats and a funfair is on Saturday, December 14, and on Friday, December 20, people can enjoy Carols in the Cornmarket – a chance to sing along to much-loved Christmas carols in the ancient setting of Wimborne’s Cornmarket.

stories and dreams, In a world of friendship, where laughter gleams.

For in their hands, the future can grow,

heartless?

One last time petting your dog before bed

One last time playing with your friends

There was nothing that could have ever prepared anyone for that

No matter how many practice drills that were put into place

Gun shots still echo through survivors’ heads

Social Media: The Downfall of a Generation, by Alex

In a world of screens, where time flies fast, Kids lose their thoughts, their joy won’t last. With every scroll, they drift away,

Missing the magic in games they play.

Curious minds once bright and clear,

Now chase quick moments, not stopping to cheer. But if they pause and look around, Adventure and wonder can still be found!

Let’s spark their hearts with

A brighter tomorrow, if they choose to glow!

Every new child born is a child with a chance to make an impact.

County Lines, by Poppy

Tied to the industry, Travelling home shamefully behind a shield of bruises, Lies preparing to escape about where they were,

Enticed by gifts that should never have been given,

Tied by chains that will never be lifted.

Tied to the industry, Before life has merely properly begun, The rewards of cocaine before candy,

The punishment of not delivering before the freedoms of childhood, Innocence held at gunpoint.

Tied to the industry, With no escape.

No way to recover, No way to become free, No way to lift the chains bound to the industry of lies.

Tel: 07969 869774•graham.craftwork@gmail.com

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Animal blessing

AN Animal Blessing Service took place in Wimborne Minster, organised by Diann March.

The Rev Canon Andrew Roland, rector, assisted by Rev Marianne Mangham, assistant curate, took the service, which included a Shetland pony, a guinea pig, a

Silkie chicken, cats and, of course, lots of dogs.

This year’s charity was Cats Protection and the collection raised £120.50.

A week later, Kate Bevan, of the Mid Dorset branch of Cats Protection, visited and was presented with the cheque.

Diann March with the Rev Canon Andrew Roland, rector, and Rev Marianne Mangham, assistant curate.

Our loose canon

by Canon Eric Woods

THE season of Advent began last Sunday – did you notice? ‘Advent’ is from the Latin word adventus, which means ‘coming’. So it is partly about preparing to celebrate the coming of Jesus Christ into our world – preparing for Christmas, in fact.

But how do you prepare for Christmas? I would love to think that you use the weeks of Advent as a time for reflecting on the past year – on your sadnesses as well as your joys; on your failings as well as your successes. By sifting everything 2024 has brought, for good or ill, you can then ask God to help you put the bad stuff behind you, and joyfully carry the good stuff into Christmas and the New Year. And that way, you will discover that you really are prepared in heart and mind for

This Advent, in your heart, build a big fire, pile food on the table and leave the door on the latch

Christmas. It will be a season of love and light, and not the tired and flat experience which so many people have come to dread.

But it doesn’t usually work that way, does it? For a start, we don’t have time. There are all the cards to be written – or emailed, to save on the horrendous cost of postage –Christmas markets to visit, presents to be bought. The tree has to be decorated and the house given its festive makeover. There are the drinks parties and staff lunches and family gatherings. And the next few weeks will be one long

spend, spend and spend again. Is this really what it’s all about? No, of course it’s not. Christmas is above all a feast of the spirit and of the heart. It’s about love. It’s about God’s love for us, and that love entering into our world as a little baby thing who made a woman cry. It’s about God’s love for us taking human shape. And if Christmas is about God’s love for us, it’s also about our love for God, our love for one another and our commitment to those less fortunate than ourselves. I remember one of my colleagues at Sherborne Abbey telling me

how, in her native Ireland, on Christmas Eve people used to build a big fire in the hearth, pile food on the table and leave the door on the latch. And then they went to bed. They left everything in readiness in case the Holy Family should pass by. To our modern, English sensibilities that sounds quite crazy, totally ‘Irish’. But try thinking of it as a piece of Christmas poetry, a lot closer to truth than much of our reality. It was a symbolic way of telling Jesus that he was welcome in their lives. And although I don’t expect you to do it in your home, can you not, this Advent, in your heart, build a big fire, pile food on the table and leave the door on the latch? For only if you do, will you know the true meaning and heart and blessing of Christmas. Otherwise, you might think you have everything ready for Christmas and, in fact, not be prepared at all.

A feast of festive lights at Stourhead

STOURHEAD officially welcomed the festive season with the launch of its after dark Christmas Lights Trail.

Visitors to the National Trust site can experience the magic of Christmas walking through the festive-themed gardens and enjoying the light installations created by award-winning, internationally acclaimed light trail producers.

This year’s trail features several new additions, including the Sea of Light by ITHACA Studio and the Snowflake Show by Scot Gianelli.

The Sea of light is a largescale display of thousands of individually controlled LED light balls animated in harmony with a bespoke soundtrack,

creating a mesmerising and immersive experience.

The Snowflake Show sees huge snowflakes, up to five metres tall, light up in time with festive music.

Another new feature to this year’s trail is Light a Wish, by OGE Design Group, in which dandelions seeds are captured floating through the air to symbolise wishes taking flight. Santa can be found on the trail, providing a good opportunity for little ones to meet him.

Visitors can also enjoy a hot drink, including mulled wine and hot chocolate, as well as a marshmallow roasting area and seasonal snacks from street food vendors.

Christmas at Stourhead runs until New Year’s Day.

Tickets are allocated by staggered trail start times and digital or printed tickets are accepted.

The trail is about one mile

CHRISTMAS AT THE STATION, Sunday 15th December at the Old Railway station in Spetisbury, Dorset from 10am to 2pm. For the chance to buy last minute presents. Live entertainment provided by the Quayside Choir (at midday) and Blandford Ukulele Group at 1pm. If wet find us at the Spetisbury Village Hall

‘TIS CHRISTMAS TIME! PRESENTED BY: THE PILGRIM SINGERS

With Marta Fontanals-Simmons Sunday 8th December 2024 at 7pm St Peter and St Pauls Church, Wincanton, BA9 9AF. A charity concert in aid of: The METHODIST HOMES ASSOCIATION

Tickets £12, under 16 free to include mulled wine and seasonal refreshments, Contact: 01963 33695 https://pilgrimsingers.co.uk/@dev/

Light a Wish by OGE Design Group

long and visitors should allow around 90 minutes to see it, walking at a regular pace.

For more information and to book tickets visit www. mychristmastrails.co.uk/events/ christmas-at-stourhead

XMAS BINGO 13th December at the Royal British Legion Hall, Coppice Street Shaftesbury. Doors open 6:45 p.m. Eyes down: 7.30 p.m. Light refreshments. Raffle. Proceeds to the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal

ARTISAN CHRISTMASSUNDAY 15th DECEMBER 10-1600

SHAFTESBURY TOWN HALLGILLINGHAM HANDMADE

A last minute Christmas shop perhaps, come along and browse the wonderful handmade stalls, all selling unique products

STURMINSTER MARSHALL

INVITE you to get in the festive mood as well as raising some money for charity at their Christmas Tree Festival on Saturday 7th and Sunday 8th December from 10.00 until 4.00 in St Mary’s Church. Children’s activities and refreshments.

Town lights night

THE crowds turned out in force for the Christmas market and lights switch-on in Wincanton.

BINGO, Hazelbury Bryan Primary School, Friday 13th December, Eyes down 7.30pm

DORSET BRIDGE CHOIR

present ‘It’s Beginning to Look Like Christmas’ a concert of Christmas songs and stories on Sunday 15th December at 6.30 in St Mary’s Church, Sturminster Marshall. £5 on the door, Mulled wine and Mince Pies.

SHAFTESBURY EMPORIUM FESTIVE SHOPPING under one roof! 6, 14 & 20 December 9-4.30pm Town Hall, Shaftesbury Supporting Weldmar Hospice and Dorset Somerset Air Ambulance

SIXPENNY HANDLEY COMMUNITY CHRISTMAS CRAFT FAIR

Village Hall, Common Road SP5 5NJ

Saturday 7 December 10am2pm, FREE entry Crafts / Lunch / Cakes / Children’s Carols Information: 6dhandleyhall@gmail.com

SHERBORNE DIGBY HALL MONTHLY MARKET

Saturday 7th Dec 10-3 Antiques, Arts, Crafts & More

STONE CARVING WEEK AT BREWHAM 16 - 20 DEC - ALL AGES & STANDARDS WELCOME See www.stone-carving.co.uk

LYN’S BINGO at Marnhull

Royal British Legion on Monday December 9th Eyes down 7pm

FESTIVE STUDIO POP UP SHOP

Local art and Handcrafted creations

November 29th & 30th

December 6th & 7th

Higher Green Farm, Twyford, Shaftesbury, SP70JF 01747 812593

Visit Bournemouth Pier for an eventful fun packed family Christmas experience!

B

ournemouth Pier is promoting an eventful, fun packed Christmas experience which will run from Friday November 15th until Tuesday 31st December. It promises to delight and entertain visitors of all ages and make the Victorian Pier a ‘must visit’ Festive season destination! Themed decorations promise to delight and there will be an abundance of activities, events and musical entertainment.

• A Christmas Trail along the Pier will include over 100 six-foot trees, all adorned with lights, from the Pier Approach entrance to the pier and will continue along to the end of Pier, finishing at the Key West Bar & Restaurant entrance. A further 3 twelve- foot trees will be placed outside RockReef Activity Attraction & Key West on the Pier and at Coffee Reef on Pier Approach and there will be a decorated twenty-foot tree inside Key West as it is transformed into a Winter Wonderland. A fun, Festive themed quiz will keep visitors entertained as they walk along Bournemouth Pier with questions and answers placed on boards between the trees.

• The Pier Kiosk will be full of Festive treats all available to take away so you can enjoy the Festive pier atmosphere.

• Scrooge Immersive Dining Experience On Saturday 21st December, step back in time and dive into Charles Dickens tale of ‘A Christmas Carol’ and a 3-course meal. Tickets are available on our website.

• A Christmas Letter Box will be installed to collect children’s letters to Santa.

• ‘Breakfast with Santa’ events will take place on the 15th, 21st, 22nd & 23rd. Santa with two of his elves personally greets children at their tables. Tickets are selling fast!

• Selfies with Santa will be provided with a life size Father Christmas and a custom-made Christmas bench which will provide the perfect backdrop to capture those memories for posting on social media!

• Day time Christmas music will add to the Festive atmosphere with choirs performing on various days.

To find out more about the 2024 Bournemouth Pier Christmas Experience, visit https://www thebournemouthpier.com/christmas

Saturday 14th December

Breakfast with Santa

Sunday 15th December

Breakfast with Santa

Saturday 21st December

Breakfast with Santa

Saturday 21st December ‘Scrooge:

Sunday 22nd December

Breakfast with Santa

Monday 23rd December

Breakfast with Santa

Events

Tuesday 31st December New Year’s Eve Masquerade Party

Saturday 25th January ABBA Stars Tribute

• Anglican High Mass at Wimborne St Giles: First Sunday of each month at 11am. BH21 5LZ.

• Blandford Methodist Church: Sundays – everyone is invited to services at 10.45am and to stay for refreshments. Thursdays – coffee and a chat from 10am-noon. Fridays –lunch club for over-55s from noon at £5 per meal. Phone Joyce Wild on 07817 505543 to book. The church is anxious to offer help to all those in need – call church steward John Cornish on 07799 516735 or leave a message.

• Blandford Forum United Reformed Church: Sunday, December 8, 3pm carol service; Sunday, December 22, 3pm Advent Worship; Tuesday, December 24, 11.30pm Midnight Communion Service. All services led by Rev Andy Hall.

• Chalbury Church: Fourth Sunday of the month, 10.30am Holy Communion.

• Chatty Café Scheme: Pear Tree Café, Half Moon Street, Sherborne, Mondays 2-3.45pm.

• Cheap Street Church, Sherborne: Prayer time –9.45am Thursday; Thought for the Day – 10.30am Thursday; Sunday service at 10.30am; Monday Music – second Monday of the month at 6.15pm with a bring and share supper; Taizé Service the second Sunday each month at 6.30pm. Further details from 07522 509868.

• Christmas Appeal for Sherborne Primary Schools’ Families: Donors welcome to the launch party on Friday, December 6, at 11am, Sherborne County Primary School with guest, Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes. To donate by BACS: Barclays a/c 00403733, 20-99-40, Friends of Sherborne County Primary School TA PTA.

• Sherborne Churches Together: Christmas Tree Festival ends on Saturday, December 7, with a carol service at 5pm.

• Digby Memorial Church Hall: Sherborne Quakers meet Sundays 10.30am in the Griffiths Room. Everyone welcome. For

more information, phone Nick on 07870 192599. Sherborne Churches Together Christmas Day lunch from 12.30pm-3pm for anyone on their own or without family at Christmas. No charge. To join in and/or volunteer fill in the form(s) at the Parish Office. Volunteers required for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

• Hinton Martell: Second Sunday of the month, 10.30am Holy Communion.

• Horton Church: First Sunday of the month, 10.30am Holy Communion.

• Horton & Chalbury Village Hall: Third Sunday of the month, 9am Breakfast Church.

• Kingston Lacy: Second Sunday of the month, 9.15am Holy Communion. Fourth Sunday of the month, 9.15am Family Service.

• Lillington: All morning services at Lillington now begin at 9.30am.

• Longburton Village Cafe: Held in the village church of St James. The cafe provides tea, coffee – free refills – and great cakes for just £2. Tuesday, December 17, 10.30am-noon.

• Lufton Church: BA22 8SU, just to the west of Yeovil. Prayer Book services every Sunday at 6pm. Sung Mass on the third Sunday. See www.lufton.co.uk for details.

• Our Lady’s RC Church, Marnhull: Mass Sunday, 9am and 6pm. Sunday, December 1, First Sunday of Advent, services at 9am and 6pm. Thursday, December 12, Advent carol service, 6.30pm. Monday, December 16, Penitential service (no mass), 6.30pm. Tuesday, December 24, Christmas vigil, carols 7.30pm, Holy Mass 8pm. Wednesday, December 25, Christmas Day, 9am service, no evening mass.

• Sacred Heart, Tisbury, and All Saints’ Wardour Catholic Parish: Sunday Mass times –Sacred Heart, Tisbury, 9am, coffee after Mass; All Saints’ Wardour 10.30am.

• Shapwick: Third Sunday of the month, 9.15am Holy Communion.

• Shaftesbury Quakers

(Society of Friends): Meets for one hour each Sunday from 10.30am at the Quaker Meeting House, Abbey Walk, Shaftesbury SP7 8BB.

• Sherborne Abbey: Monday to Saturday, 8.30am Morning Prayer; The Sepulchre Chapel. Mondays, 9am CW Holy Communion; The Lady Chapel. Tuesday, noon CW Holy Communion; The Lady Chapel. Wednesday, 10.30am Holy Communion with Homily; The Lady Chapel (alternates CW and BCP). Thursday, noon BCP Holy Communion; The Lady Chapel. Friday, 9am Ecumenical Holy Communion; The Lady Chapel. First Friday of the month, 9am Requiem Holy Communion; The Sepulchre Chapel. Third Friday of the month, 11am Remembering the Fallen. Saturday, 9am CW Holy Communion; The Sepulchre Chapel.

• St Benedict’s RC Church, Gillingham: Sunday, 11am. Sunday, December 1, First Sunday of Advent, service at 11am. Wednesday, December 18, Penitential service (no mass), 6.30pm.

• St Gregory’s, Marnhull: Sunday services 8am and 10am. Other services, visit www. stgregorysmarnhull.org.uk.

• St John’s Church, Enmore Green: Service every Sunday at 11.15am; parish communion on the first Sunday of the month; prayer services every other Sunday.

• St Margaret’s, Margaret Marsh (Shaftesbury Benefice) SP7 0AZ: Alternating first Sundays Mattins and Holy Communion, 11.15am. Everyone welcome.

• St Mary’s, Motcombe: Evening worship (BCP) – every first Sunday 6pm; parish communion – every second and fourth Sunday 9.30am; evening worship – every third Sunday 6pm.

• St Mary’s, Sturminster Newton: First, third and fourth Sundays – 11am Holy Communion; second Sunday – 9.30am Morning Prayer; fifth Sunday – 11am Benefice Holy Communion; second and fourth

Sundays – 6pm Evensong; Wednesdays – 10am Holy Communion.

• St Peter’s, Hinton St Mary: First, second and third Sundays, 9.30am Morning Prayer. Fourth Sunday, 9.30am Holy Communion.

• St Thomas’, Lydlinch: Second and fourth Sunday, 11am Holy Communion. Third Sunday, 6pm Evensong.

• Witchampton Church: Third Sunday of the month, 10.30am Holy Communion.

• Two Rivers Benefice: Saturday, December 7, 10am3pm – church windows event – Blandford St Mary Church is open for everyone to enjoy displays on the theme of Recycled Christmas, children’s artwork and refreshments. Sunday, December 8 – 9.30am Communion at St Mary’s Church, Blandford St Mary; 11am Communion at All Saints, Langton Long; 11am Christingle at St Mary’s Church, Tarrant Rushton. Thursday, December 12 – 7pm Concert at St Mary’s Church, Charlton Marshall. Sunday, December 15 – 9.30am Communion at St John The Baptist, Spetisbury; 9.30am A Story For Christmas at St Mary’s Church, Charlton Marshall; 11am Communion at All Saints, Tarrant Keynston; 3pm Carol Service at All Saints, Langton Long. Tuesday, December 17 – 6pm Carols by Candlelight at St Mary’s Church, Blandford St Mary. Wednesday, December 18 – 5pm Family Carols with school choir at St Mary’s Church, Blandford St Mary. Coffee and cake – Spetisbury 10am-11.30am first and third Monday each month; coffee and cake – Blandford St Mary 10am-11.30am December 19; coffee stop – Charlton Marshall Parish Centre 10.30am-12.30pm – Tuesday to Friday.

• West Camel Independent Methodists: Meeting at All Saints Church BA22 7QB. Sundays, December 8 and 15, 3pm – afternoon services; Sunday, December 22, 3pm –United Carol Service. Phone 01935 850838 or email Geoff. mead@yahoo.com.

Tenant farmers could get land

MANY people are pleased that the children of large landowners will have to pay some inheritance tax.

It will mean that estates worth more than £2 ½ million may have to consider selling a block of land.

Tenant farmers would at last be able to own a piece of land.

News from the Friends of the Yeatman Hospital

THE trustees of the Friends of the Yeatman Hospital (FOYH) see their role as twofold. First is to support the work of the staff and enhance the lives of patients within our local hospital in Sherborne. Second is to provide support to key causes and initiatives within the community.

Examples of recent work in the hospital include a new outpatients clinic that is about to be completed. We have also funded the conversion of an unused bathroom into a store room and will soon be making improvements to the staff room. Not huge projects, but all practical and useful things that make a real difference to all those who use the Yeatman Hospital.

Within the wider community, we have just agreed to fund new gym equipment for the Gryphon School as part of its mental and physical health and welfare programme. This is a really exciting upgrade for the pupils and wider community to use.

We have also recently funded a new community hub outbuilding at Sherborne Primary – some readers may have been to events there already.

Our work continues also in the Rendezvous in Cheap

For smallholders this would be a great opportunity.

Large industrial scale farming has changed the landscape of Dorset and if we see a return to smaller farms innovation will follow.

Look at the range of vegetables and fruit grown by smallholders – they do not

Street, helping its vital work with young people as well as other outreach projects – read more at www. friendsoftheyeatman.org.uk.

How do we fund all this? A large part of our fundraising is through legacies, for which we are always immensely grateful and humbled by.

We also run fundraising events – a recent talk in the Digby Hall by ex-SAS soldier Jamie Hull being an example. Events planned for 2025 will be available shortly. We hope to run three key events and three car boot sales.

If you would like to run your own event in aid of the FOYH, please just let our administrator know via the email address below. We can always provide you with leaflets about our work and one of our ‘Pound in the Pot’ pots to display at your event.

If you would like to support us longer term by becoming a Friend, you can find out more by emailing our administrator at admin2@ friendsoftheyeatman.org.uk.

All ages are very welcome. Alice Johnsen, Trustee

benefit from massive subsidies but instead make every corner of their property productive, selling fresh produce locally, without damaging the environment in the process.

Jane Rose Bridport

Bridge accidents: Council should act

I RECENTLY passed some workmen erecting a temporary wooden barrier to fill the gap in the parapet of Durweston Bridge where – presumably – a lorry had damaged the recently repaired stonework.

Next time I went over the bridge a week or so later, the wooden barrier had been severely damaged by –presumably – another lorry strike.

Now the damaged parapet has had a piece of HERAS fencing jammed in the gap. This will take a rather more committed lorry driver to dislodge.

I wonder if Dorset Council has some cumulative target of incidents of damage to exactly the same spot in mind before the thought occurs to them that it might be more cost-effective to widen the eastern approach to the bridge a bit?

Jonathan Robson Sturminster Newton

Time for action on pavement parking

FRIDAY, November 22, marked four years since the previous Government’s consultation on pavement parking in England closed.

Cars parked on, and sometimes hogging the whole pavement, will be a familiar sight to many.

Pavement parking is dangerous, especially for

families with young children, people with sight loss and disabled people.

A recent poll found that 87% of parents have had to walk in the road because of a vehicle blocking the pavement. It damages pavement surfaces, too.

Living Streets has been campaigning on this issue for over 50 years and it is high time we saw an end to the problem.

Pavement parking has been banned – with exemptions – in London since the 1970s.

Scotland adopted a similar approach to London, which came into force earlier this year.

The Welsh Government has indicated it will take action on pavement parking, but England is way behind.

We hope readers will join Living Streets and supporters like me, in urging the new Government to deal with the troubling legacy of pavement parking once and for all.

Everyone will be the better for it.

Anthony L Morton-Jones Swanage

Salute to village’s snow helpers

I WOULD like to thank the many residents of Winterborne Whitechurch who rallied around to help the unfortunate motorists caught out in the recent heavy snowfall.

They included the man who went from car to car checking the occupants were alright, the scaffolders from Solent Scaffolding working in the village who helped push numerous vehicles to safety and used spades to move snow and ice from under wheels, the gentleman who invited us into his home for hot drinks and warmth, and the man with the bowls of hot water attempting

Inside the new community hub outbuilding at Sherborne Primary

to melt the ice. We salute you! The community spirit shown to total strangers was extremely touching and I for one am very grateful, thank you.

Karen Winsor Blandford

New bus stop for medical centre

SHERBORNE has a new bus stop at Wootton Grove, placed to give access for patients at the Grove Medical Centre to the 58 and CR4 services.

We hope this will be appreciated by potential passengers.

Mike Keatinge Sherborne Transport Action Group

£1,000 grants on offer to charities

BENEFACT Group’s Movement for Good Awards is giving away £120,000 as part of its annual 12 Days of Giving Christmas campaign

For 12 days in the lead up to Christmas the specialist financial services group is giving £1,000 to 10 charities each day – with 120 charities in total benefiting from a festive financial boost.

Nominations are now open and Dorset residents are being encouraged to nominate a cause they care about to give them a chance of receiving a share of the award money.

Draws will take place every weekday between December 5-20 and nominating is easy using the online form at www. movementforgood.com

Winners are drawn at random and the more times a charity is nominated the more chance it has of being selected.

Last year more than 8,100 people from Dorset nominated good causes to receive an award.

Benefact Group has donated more than £200 million to charitable causes since 2014 and last year was recognised as the third biggest corporate giver

in the UK.

It is owned by a charity and all its available profits go to good causes.

Earlier this year, 370 £1,000 awards were donated followed by £250,000 of special grants. Up to £500,000 was also given in larger grants in October.

Movement for Good is funded by EIO plc, part of the Benefact Group.

Movement for Good Via email

Let’s not deny natural process

CLAIRE Macdonald, director of My Death, My Decision –Letters, New Blackmore Vale, December 22 – maybe asked to be born! As such she is rather misguided, I’m afraid.

No one asked to be born –life is a gift. Even her life. Gratitude for our lives as we look back changes our perspective and helps us die well.

Those who feel they are in control get frustrated when doctors are not able to make all things right.

Yet medicine is an art –every individual is different and many letters to the newspapers have told of how those who might expect to die within six months are still going strong years later.

Even Esther Rantzen, it seems.

I suggest those who think they are in control of their lives give God a good laugh! None of us know what is coming down the road.

When my late wife was dying of cancer, aged 63, she commented: “At least I won’t have Alzheimer’s at 91, like my aunt.”

I am all for letting nature take its course and not asking doctors to keep me alive at any cost.

But to defy the natural process, no thanks. May I commend Kathryn Mannix’s book With the End in Mind

Ross Coad Zeals

Bridge is just brilliant

AT the northernmost tip of Dorset, just a few hundred yards from where Dorset, Somerset and Wiltshire meet, is a Site of Nature Conservation Interest.

It is an area of very marshy grassland nestled under the scarp slope of the edge of the Cranborne Chase and West Wilts National Landscape.

Once upon a time it was not so. A footpath led from the ancient Sandways settlement in Bourton up the hill towards Kite’s Nest and the border with Somerset.

Until five years ago, this footpath was in disrepair and effectively unusable due to the perils of deep black mud.

Supported by Dorset Council’s Rangers, the local community Bourton Wildlife and Habitat Group has set about pushing through a series of boardwalk sections to make the path navigable once more.

The Rangers have supplied designs and material. Bourton delivered the manpower and oomph to make it happen.

Everyone knew, though, that until an old sunken track could be bridged, the project would remain half done.

In the wetter months this

steep-sided gulch has been a significant obstacle.

The answer? A near fivemetre bridge, partly constructed at the Rangers’ workshop and then manhandled in and completed in situ

That happened in a single morning. It is secure, safe and entirely brilliant.

Thanks are due to Rangers Stuart, Yorgos and Luke for their effort, good humour and passionate interest.

Of more than passing interest is that by undertaking this project in-house and with direct community engagement, the Rangers have cut the cost compared with an external contractor by four-fifths, have delivered learning and experience for their own team and have cemented a strong relationship with a capable local group who have plenty more ideas for future activity.

Treading the boards now on Footpath 11, a visitor can see ponds and the life they attract, marshy slopes, some rough grassland – ideal for barn owls – there is a new box in one of the big oaks – and many mature native trees before continuing to the glory of the downland above.

Mike Chapman

Rangers supplied the designs and material for the bridge and Bourton delivered the manpower and oomph to make it happen

Sudoku 3D puzzle

Across

PLACE 1 to 9 once into every black-bordered 3x3 area as well as each of the 54 rows indicated by the coloured lines. Rows don’t cross the thick black lines.

Killer Sudoku Pro

1 Church with test regarding band of singers (6)

5 Insect I see by retired US lawyer in California (6)

8 Poster showing programme of entertainment (4)

9 How some litter is found incidentally (2,3,3)

10 Discovery made by international bloc about Cambodia and Austria (6)

Down

2 Excited sound of surprise, we hear, in Japanese poem (5)

3 Take the place of rector, priest and first woman (7)

4 Professional in charge of public titles? (9)

5 Divided economy (3)

6 The very best addition to coffee maybe (5)

7 Determined late group (4,3)

11 Greek island with area for Indian food (6)

KILLER Sudoku Pro

12 Parasites left by diamonds (4)

14 Club not right to make charge (3)

15 Stake held by Asian temporarily (4)

11 Cadet say lacking bit of authority in suspect association (9)

13 Come into popular woman’s site essentially (7)

16 By the sound of it, lavatory is dislodged (6)

18 I, say, love to eat after one (6)

Place numbers 1 to 9 once each into every row, column and bold-lined 3x3 box.

15 A university backed offer by the French characterized by spoken words? (7)

17 Award extremists in state with a large pot?

20 Inexperienced side restricted healthy drink (5,3)

22 Bachelor facing trouble gets security (4)

23 Wait on a nurse carrying first of tablets (6)

24 Team beginning to exercise by Scottish loch (6)

No digit may be repeated in any dash-lined cage, and all the digits in any cage must add up to the value shown in that cage.

19 One entering body of church is ingenuous

21 Regular characters in Strand? A little bit

Excited sound of surprise, we hear, in Japanese poem (5) 3 Take the place of rector, priest and first woman (7) 4 Professional in charge of public titles? (9)

Divided economy (3) 6 The very best addition to coffee maybe (5)

Determined late group (4,3)

(7)

Regular characters in Strand? A little bit (3)

Holiday on the inside

LOCK up your inmates –Cornwall’s Near-ta Theatre is bringing bucketloads of Christmas spirit and festive cheer to Dorset this December as it returns to the county with its hit festive comedy, Christmas. Time.

Charlie and Toby are feeling low, and why wouldn’t they?

And so, they set off on their festival of carols, Claus, Christ and custody!

Christmas. Time. Is a fantastical adventure through Dickens, pantomime, musical, Christmas dinner and Christmas films!

They build a wonderfully Merry Christmas around them with songs, snowmen and lots of laughs in this festive show that puts the ‘cell’ firmly back in ‘celebration’!

This festive musical comedy for all the family is written and performed by

It’s Christmas Day and they’re serving time at His Majesty’s pleasure.

But why shouldn’t they be having a Merry Christmas despite their incarceration? What’s stopping them from creating Christmas around them? Absolutely nothing!

Daniel Richards and Ciaran Clarke, and directed by Simon Harvey. Christmas.

Time. is at the village halls in Halstock on Thursday, December 5, Corfe Castle on Friday, December 6, and East Stour on Saturday, December 7.

For more information and tickets, visit www.artsreach. co.uk

Journey through nature

MUSICIANS from Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra are inviting families to join them for a journey through the natural world at The Exchange in Sturminster Newton.

Members of the audience will be invited to embrace the wild with a catchy Mancini tune and Elgar’s spirited The Wild Bears, and explore the elements with Williams’ ode to the sea and de Falla’s frenzied Ritual Fire Dance

They will also be able to enjoy an orchestral adaptation of a popular work by Björk with music that delves into emotions of the heart through the crystallisation of minerals and rocks.

The sing-a-long favourite from the blockbuster Moana and Vaughan Williams’ musical flight of the lark completes the programme.

Lucy Warren, head of BSO Participate, said “Our Curious Creatures BSO On Your Doorstep family concerts are designed especially for children and families – giving the youngest audience the opportunity to connect with music and musicians of the BSO.

“With a programme journeying through a rich tapestry of sound worlds inspired by our magnificent planet, from elephants and bears to wild oceans and crystals, we can’t wait to connect – and perform with – an audience of all ages in Sturminster Newton.”

The concert, featuring an ensemble of 14 musicians, is on Sunday, December 15, at 3pm.

Tickets and further information are available from 01258 475137 or online at www. artsreach.co.uk

Arts & Entertainment

Filmmakers bring light-hearted Hardy to screen

THE Wessex Drama Project has released its third film in three years based on Thomas Hardy’s novels – The Well Beloved

The non-profit community group’s latest offering is based on the novelist’s light-hearted story set on Portland about a sculptor and his romantic forays into the lives of the fisherfolk who live there.

The Well Beloved is made by local volunteers, led by young co-writer/director/ cinematographer Rose Goldthorp.

She works as a chambermaid in Weymouth but hopes to make her living as a filmmaker in the next few years.

Rose says she has “problems believing that so many kind Dorsetians make so many efforts to get these local Thomas

Hardy stories made.”

That included those “getting sodden under umbrellas to trying to stand up in full Victorian skirts in high spring winds.”

She also hopes, one day, to be able to raise sponsorship for the Wessex Dramas Project, to help pay the charities that help out with locations, costumes and so on – and possibly feed her volunteers who are so patient being videoed by her old iPhone!

The Well Beloved was set to be premiered at The Royal Manor Theatre in Portland last month but will be screened at Sherborne House, Sherborne, tomorrow (Saturday December 7) followed by Kingston Mauward House, near Dorchester, on Saturday,

One-man take on Dickens’

festive classic

VETERAN Cornish actor

David Mynne is bringing a solo performance of Charles Dickens’ festive classic A Christmas Carol to Dorset. Audiences will journey back in time to the dark, dismal

streets of Victorian London to spend an evening with Ebenezer Scrooge, a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, clutching, covetous, old miser – and watch as he is haunted by four creepy ghosts, each one more terrifying

January 4.

The Wessex Dramas Project, founded in 2022, is run by Ann-Marie Goldthorp, of Weymouth, and is supported by organisations including the Pennsylvania Castle Estate, the New Hardy Players, the RM Theatre, and Weymouth Civic Society.

Rose and Ann-Marie start will start next year producing the second in their Hardy ‘Seaside Trilogy’, The Trumpet Major, set in Weymouth.

The project also records its seventh Hardy audio drama podcast season, The Romantic Adventures of a Milkmaid, next year. These podcasted audio drama seasons can be found on podcast platforms including Soundcloud and iTunes, and on wessexdramas.org/podcasts To find out more about The Wessex Dramas Project, and buy tickets for the Sherborne and Dorchester screenings, visit wessexdramas.org

than the last.

David Mynne has toured the UK with popular adaptations of Great Expectations, Dracula and The Odyssey, and is a founder member of Kneehigh Theatre Company.

A Christmas Carol is coming to the village halls

at Marnhull on Friday, December 13, Milborne St Andrew on Saturday, December 14, and Burton Bradstock on Sunday, December 15, all at 7.30pm.

Tickets and further information are available online at www.artsreach.co.uk

Dorset Chamber Choir at church

DORSET Chamber Choir is staging it 2024 Christmas concert, Carols for Christmas, at Wimborne Methodist Church next week.

Carols will be sung by the choir and by the audience, but the main item will be A Ceremony of Carols by Benjamin Britten.

A Ceremony of Carols was written in 1942, originally as a version for three treble parts. A version for full – male and female – choir was published in 1943, which the Dorset Chamber choir will be singing.

Originally written with accompaniment by harp, its

performance will be with piano played by well-known local musician Chris Dowie.

Musical director, John Watkins, will conduct.

The concert is on Monday, December 9, starting at 7pm, at the church in King Street (BH21 1DY) and tickets cost £15, free for students and

children. Tickets can be ordered through the choir’s website, and are available from choir members, and at the door. Refreshments will be available during the interval.

For further details, visit the choir’s website at www. dorsetchamberchoir.com.

Lights, camera, action: Filming The Well Beloved PHOTO : Gary Adams – Langton Photography

David Mynne will be appearing in A Christmas Carol

Arts

& Entertainment

The Messiah and more in festive concert

THE festive season is fast approaching and Christmas would not be complete without hearing the Messiah sung somewhere, by a good choir, sometime in December.

Well, The Athenaeum Singers’ are staging their Christmas concert at Christ Church, Warminster, tomorrow (Saturday, December 7) at 7pm.

The programme will be conducted by the singers’ talented young music director, Thomas Mottershead, who has planned the programme with local music lovers in mind, offering a selection from Handel’s ever popular Messiah, frequently associated with Christmas, in the first half.

After the interval the choir will present a selection of less well known Christmas carols, interspersed with readings, and familiar traditional carols,

giving the audience the opportunity to join in the singing.

Messiah was written by German-born composer, GF Handel, whose career blossomed after moving to London in 1712.

Messiah was first performed in Dublin in 1742 where it was a resounding success.

The oratorio tells the story of Jesus’ life in three parts –Part 1: Awaiting the Messiah, Part 2: The Passion of Christ and Part 3 The Resurrection.

A selection of arias for soprano soloist and choruses for the singers from all three parts will be included, with such favourites as For Unto Us a Child is Born and the Hallelujah Chorus linked together by readings.

The selection of carols presented by the singers will include Harold Darke’s

Singers evoke an old fashioned Christmas

THE Ridgeway Singers & Band will evoke an old fashioned country Christmas when they perform three concerts in the run up to the festive season.

They promise audiences an evening of West Gallery carols, Dorset songs, dance tunes and local poems and stories to celebrate the coming of midwinter and the holiday.

The group specialises in performing Dorset music old and new, in the tradition made famous by Thomas Hardy in

Under the Greenwood Tree

The singers are accompanied by musicians playing stringed and woodwind instruments.

The group are led by renowned serpent player and member of the Mellstock Band, Phil Humphries, and the popular actor and folk musician Tim Laycock.

New to the repertoire are a Christmas Anthem from an old book found at a car boot sale in Bridport, and a setting by Phil Humphries of William Barnes’s

wonderful setting of Christina Rossetti’s poem, In the Bleak Midwinter and The Shepherds’ Farewell by Hector Berlioz.

Professional musicians performing on the evening include a soprano soloist, a string quartet and piano accompanist.

Australian soprano, Joelene Griffith, will present the solo arias. Joelene started her operatic career with the Sydney-based opera training company, Pacific Opera, but in 2017 seized the opportunity to study advanced vocal technique in Wales. Since then, she has

forged her professional singing career in the UK.

She will be joined by The Alauda Quartet, who continue the international flavour with players from Canada, Portugal and Wales, who also studied in Wales. Closer to home, the singers’ esteemed rehearsal accompanist, Dr Douglas Stevens, will join them with piano accompaniment.

Tickets for this concert are available via www.athenaeum singers.com or on 01985 840830.

Wine and mince pies are included in the £20 ticket price.

poem Rustic Childhood, as well as arrangements for the band of more tunes by the late Nick Dunckley.

The concerts begin on Friday, December 6, at a new venue for the Ridgeway Singers & Band at Sturminster Marshall Village Hall. They return to St Mary’s Church in Bridport for a

matinee performance on Sunday, December 15, with the final concert at the Dorford Centre in Dorchester on Thursday, December 19.

Tickets, priced £12 adults and £6 under-18s, are available from www.ridgewaysingers andband.org, Ticketsource or phone 01305 262159.

The Ridgeway Singers & Band are playing concerts at three local venues in the run up to the festive season

The Athenaeum Singers are at Christ Church, Warminster

Labour champions British farming

I’VE learned that, often in politics, it’s best to wait to see how a topical issue pans out before wading in and trying to make some capital out of it.

That’s been the case with the confected furore around Inheritance Tax (IHT) on agricultural estates. The issue has been appropriated by tax-avoiding right wingers who have manipulated small farm owners into thinking they were being impacted by the reduction in Agricultural Property Relief (APR). Farmers were marched down to London, to protect the inheritance of a Singapore-based vacuum manufacturer’s children.

Large scale inherited wealth has always been a cause Tories have championed. It’s where a lot of their party funds come from. I sense the Lib Dems might want to think again about rallying to the Clarkson and Dyson flag though.

Let’s look at some of the facts. Most of those claiming

Williams, on behalf of Dorset Labour

will not be affected by these APR changes. Depending on people’s individual circumstances, up to £3 million can be passed on by two joint farm owners free of IHT.

Only 520 inherited agricultural estates a year will be impacted by these changes. It’s the top 7% of wealthiest claimants – the largest 117 claims – that account for 40% of the total value of APR. This

costs the taxpayer £219m. It’s a tax benefit that Labour believes is better repurposed towards fixing our NHS, rather than ensuring wealthy landowners’ children can stay wealthy.

And if some of these large, celebrity land bank farms are broken up and sold back into the hands of smaller, more productive farmers, that’s a positive outcome.

Labour champions British farming. Our support for farmers includes:

• £2.4 billion for the farming budget next year – with the largest ever amount directed at sustainable food production and nature recovery in our country’s history, with the continuation of the ELM scheme.

• £60m through the Farming Recovery Fund to support farmers affected by unprecedented extreme wet weather last winter.

• 50% of food bought for hospitals, army bases and prisons being locally produced

Tories failed on immigration

MY sincerest thanks to the various front-line service providers who have braved the varied and extreme weather mother nature has thrown at them over November. To see the Dorset Waste Collection Teams out in heavy snow across the county, while most of us were hunkered down, only furthers our deep appreciation for what these critical members of our society do for us all on a daily basis. Our nurses, police, firemen and farmers never stop working even when the elements stop the rest of us. Thank you.

On November 28, the Office for National Statistics (ONS), released the immigration figures for the last full year of the prior Tory Government to June 2024. They were absolutely shocking, 728,000 net, with non-EU making up 86% of the figures, Indian (240,000), Nigerian

Reform UK Dorset county organiser Thomas Gargrave

(120,000), Pakistani (101,000), Chinese (78,000), Zimbabwean (36,000). To put the insanity of these figures into context, the Tories allowed 80,000 people to come just as dependants to those studying, not even working. Not even half of the overall figure is for those coming to work.

Even more astonishing was

or certified to high environmental standards

• Seeking a new veterinary agreement with the European Union to get our great food exports moving again.

Living in rural North Dorset, I’ve seen how hard a profession farming is. But I also want to draw attention to small retail businesses across the county.

The Budget included an announcement that from 2026-27, Labour will permanently lower rates for high street properties in retail, hospitality and leisure. The measure aims to protect local businesses against inflationary pressures and competition from e-commerce, with a higher tax on large distribution warehouses partially funding this initiative.

The consultation on these changes runs through to March 2025 and I would encourage as many businesses as possible to participate. Search for ‘transforming business rates’ on gov.uk

the revision to the 2023 figures.

The ONS revised these up by 166,000, taking the revised figure for the penultimate year of the Tory government to 906,000. That is the net figure, 1.3 million people came to live in the UK in that one year alone.

The last three years of the prior Tory Government saw net migration of 750,000 (2022), 906,000 (2023) and 728,000 (2024). Even Labour, which unlocked the immigration floodgates in the first instance, defined the Tories as ‘running an open borders experiment’, which is exactly what it is, an experiment in which the British people are forced participants in.

We need, as a nation, to understand what has happened. We need a full inquiry into what the Tory Government was doing during its administration with regards to our borders, and how

the numbers were ever allowed to reach anything like the levels seen during its administration. We cannot simply brush off such systemic failures.

Both the Tories and Labour have normalised mass migration, particularly the Tories, but even 200,000 net per year is simply far too high. We need to get back to net-neutral levels of migration, if not have periods, as we have historically had, where we have net negative levels of immigration. Reform UK’s immigration policy is crystal clear, net-neutral numbers and a sole focus on high-skilled migration only. No more excuses, no more inaction, we will be the trusted party to end mass migration into the UK and end decades of failure by the Tories and Labour.

As always, we welcome your contact at, dorset@reformuk. com

Greg

Reservations over assisted dying

AT the time of the General Election I wrote in some of my election literature that I thought that this Parliament would see a debate on the issues of Rights and Responsibilities. The rights and responsibilities of the State, the rights and responsibilities of the individual and the intertwined relationship between the two. Little did I think that this area of public debate would be thrown into such sharp relief as the last weeks in November in Parliament.

I spoke and voted in favour of the Tobacco & Vapes Bill understanding as I did that the Bill curtailed the right to smoke over coming generations. I said in my speech that if Queen Elizabeth l had been aware of the harms and early deaths tobacco would cause she would have thanked the merchant adventurers for their trouble and then banned it. Successive governments have tried public health and advertising campaigns and yet many youngsters still smoke. The

Conservative MP for North

Dorset

Simon Hoare

vaping sector has grown massively. Initially, vaping was seen as the gateway to stop smoking. For some it has been. However, the data is too compelling that vape manufacturers are creating colours, flavours and shapes to encourage youngsters to take up vaping and it becoming a pathway to tobacco. We are all aware of the enormous costs that tobacco smoking creates for

our nation. It harms personal health and often shortens life. Smoking places a huge financial drain on the NHS at the expense of other conditions which have not been self-induced. Many have argued that the Bill was liberty-reducing overreach. I did not agree. We make laws because we believe in regulated rather than unfettered freedoms. We have speed limits, must wear seatbelts, have a drinkdrive limit, there are ages of sexual consent. All constrain freedoms but all done for a solid reason emanating from a benign rather a malign State. Future generations will now, we hope, be healthier.

Having received a huge amount of correspondence and undertaken detailed research I voted against the Assisted Dying Bill. My ‘postbag’ told me that the split was 60:40 against the Bill. My principal reason for objection is that I do not believe the State should have the ability to end life – I am opposed to the death penalty – because I believe the State can

READER’S PICTURE OF THE WEEK

make mistakes. I was not convinced that two doctors and a Judge could with 100% accuracy say someone only had six months to live. I was also not sure about the six months –supporters of the Bill argue that we deserve the right to die with dignity at a time of our choosing. The Bill does not create such an environment. By prescribing a physical terminal condition with six months left to live – a right reserved only for adults – it precludes mental health and the rights of youngsters below the age of 18. It also says yvou can be in terrible pain for any length of time but you can only do something about it in the last six months. All of this is open to challenge in the domestic Courts or the ECHR. Judicial activism could take the legislation to places MPs do not wish to go. Other countries where assisted dying has been introduced have found exactly this happen. We need only look at the Abortion Act to see a precedent of policy-creep.

Farming the most important job

THE farming inheritance tax furore is surely an unnecessary self-inflicted wound for the Government that will only bring in a relatively small amount of tax. Far better to have targeted the genuinely wealthy landowners, some of whom joined the street protest in Westminster, keen to express their indignation at being expected to share some of their excessive wealth to help fund the vital public services our society needs. Nigel Farage for example, who turned up but didn’t take the opportunity to discuss all the ways in which UK farmers have already been hit so hard by Brexit. And, of course, the ever-vocal Jeremy Clarkson joined in, though the force of his argument was somewhat diminished when an interviewer reminded him that in 2021 he was reported in The Times as having said that

Ken Huggins

on behalf of the Green Party in North Dorset

avoiding inheritance tax was a ‘critical’ part of his decision to buy his own 1,000-acre farm. It was illuminating to see how much media coverage the farmers’ protest received, compared to environmental protests. Huge media coverage for the 15,000 farmers seeking to protect their family’s inheritance, but not for the 50,000 protesters at the Restore Nature Now march in June and

the 15,000 at the March for Clean Water in November.

That’s not to say that farming isn’t vitally important, because it patently is. Farming, as I’ve said before, is simply THE most important occupation of all. Bar none. For far too long now this simple fact has been largely ignored, and farmers have been sidelined as major supermarkets chase profits and squeeze their suppliers remorselessly. Imposing much needed environmental and animal welfare requirements on our farmers is well and good, but it’s madness to then agree international trade deals that undercut our farmers by allowing food to be imported from countries where there are lower environmental and welfare standards.

After Brexit, ministers pledged to slowly phase out the EU’s Common Agricultural

Policy of payments based simply on land area. Instead, a new system of payments rewards farmers for taking action on nature, such as protecting the soil and restoring wildlife habitat. However, the recent Budget included a huge cut to these payments, which is another big mistake.

Increasingly extreme weather events are already heavily impacting harvests, and in some places also reducing the area of land that can be farmed. If we are to improve our food security, then it’s not just our treatment of farmers that needs to change. We also need to change what we farm, and how we farm, to make farming more sustainable and greatly reduce our need to import 40% of our food. A challenge in areas where much farming is livestock based, but it needs to be addressed, nevertheless.

Support small, local businesses

AS the Christmas season approaches, there’s no doubt that winter is truly upon us – with heavy frost already on the ground, a few flurries of snow, and, of course, Storm Bert wreaking havoc a short time ago. But, despite the challenges the cold weather brings, it also heralds the festivities ahead and on Saturday, December 7, we have the opportunity to deliver some festive cheer by supporting Small Business Saturday. This is a brilliant opportunity for us to show our appreciation for the shops, cafes and other small businesses that make our rural communities so special. Somerset is a predominantly small business economy, with 99.76% of businesses being SMEs, so it’s critical we do support those businesses where we can. Here in Glastonbury and Somerton, small businesses are the lifeblood of our towns and villages, providing jobs, keeping our high streets vibrant, keeping money in the local economy and

Lib Dem MP for Glastonbury and Somerton

Sarah Dyke

fostering a sense of community. So, I’m urging everyone to think local this holiday season. Shopping at a local business, buying presents from a local artisan or simply enjoying a coffee at a local cafe can make all the difference. Supporting local businesses isn’t just good for rural economies – it’s about sustaining the unique character of our rural communities and keeping that community spirit

alive.

Since I was first elected in July 2023, I’ve had the privilege of meeting many hardworking local small business owners, and I’ve seen firsthand the challenges they’ve faced from declining footfall, spiralling energy costs and now the Labour Government’s Budget adding to the load. One business owner in the constituency described the Budget’s impact as a triple whammy of increased employer’s National Insurance contributions, wage rises and business rates increases, which as a combination may prove unsustainable for some businesses to survive.

He told me that Labour promised not to raise taxes on working people, but what it has done is to raise taxes on working people with businesses instead. A good point, I think. I’ve spoken in Parliament on this several times since the Budget, pushing the Government to rethink how it structures this

NIC tax hike, calling for it to exempt NHS and social care providers, and demanding more support for local rural businesses, services and infrastructure, and I will continue to make my voice heard.

Amid these very challenging times, Small Business Saturday is a chance to celebrate the incredible resilience and creativity of our local entrepreneurs and family firms. So, this weekend, I encourage everyone to shop local. Every purchase we make is a step towards a stronger, more connected community this Christmas.

As always, I want to hear about what matters to you. If you would like to share your views on a subject, have an issue I can help with, need my assistance or wish to register your interest to attend one of my regular advice surgeries, please don’t hesitate to contact me at sarah.dyke. mp@parliament.uk

2,000-plus lots in three days

CLARKE’S Auctions is busy preparing for its last auction of the year on Friday, Saturday and Monday, December 27, 28 and 30, when more than 2,000 lots of interesting antiques and collectable items will be on offer over the three-day period.

There is something for everyone from stunning designer watches to 200-plus lots of beautiful jewellery, including diamond rings, gold

Albert chains, a Chinese carved rock crystal pendant on 18ct gold chain, bracelets, pendants and gold coins set pendants.

In the furniture section, prospective buyers will find traditional 18th century and later pieces, and mid-century modern furniture.

Lots include a Victorian Hepplewhite design serpentine sofa, a delicately ivory inlaid Pier cabinet and a 19th century

A leather cased set of 10 peg marker shot flasks , by James Purdey & Sons. Estimate £250-£300

mahogany cellarette, and more modern furniture such as a mid-century design modular teak wall unit by Peter Hayward for Vanson and a Danish design Svend Dyrlund teak sideboard with tambour doors.

The Christmas sale historically consists of many small and interesting items – if you feel you have something you would like to enter, please get in touch.

Clarke’s is launching the sale on Friday, December 13, so sellers should call them before then to consign.

The colour catalogue will be online on Friday, December 13, and Clarke’s is open for viewing on Thursday, Friday, Monday and Tuesday, December 19, 20, 23 and 24, from 9am to 5pm.

It is also open for viewing and live bidding on each of the sale days.

Clarke’s is also taking entries for future sales and enquiries for consignment into its 2025 sales or for probate or insurance valuations, part and full house

clearances or home visits should be made to Richard Clarke or Karen Marshall on 01747 685592 or 01747 855109 at its salerooms at The Old Glove Factory, Buckingham Road, Gillingham SP8 4QF.

Friday 27th, Saturday 28th & Monday 30th

Old Glove Factory, Buckingham Road Gillingham, SP8 4QF 01747 685592 enquiries@clarkesauctions.co.uk Viewing Thursday 19th, Friday 20th, Monday 23rd & Tuesday 24th Colour catalogue available at the-saleroom.com and easyliveauction.com A Murano Pulegoso for Bisazza Art glass vase. Estimate £400-£600

e Old Glove Factory, Buckingham Road Gillingham, SP8 4QF 01747 685592 enquiries@clarkesauctions.co.uk

Units 1 & 2 Kingsettle Business Park, 01747 855109 enquiries@clarkesauctions.co uk Antiques & Collectibles Sale Friday 9th & Saturday 10th August

A bronze group depicting Pan. Estimate £350- £450

Lalique large leaf dish sells for £1,300

ACREMAN St Auctioneers & Valuers achieved some good prices in its November auction.

A Lalique large leaf dish sold for £1,300 – hammer; nine Chinese antique temple figures £950; Heals Arts & Crafts table £550; a collection of nine Ian Fleming hardback books £550; and an antique leather and brass club fender £650.

The December auction is on Monday, December 30, at 10am.

Viewing is by appointment only before December 22.

Acreman will not be open on Mondays, December 9 and 16,

Advertiser’s announcement

and Monday, December 23, to December 29.

It is now holding regular valuation days at which prospective sellers can take in items to its premises at 121 Acreman Street, Sherborne (DT9 3PH) for its specialists to evaluate.

Valuation days, 10am-3pm:

• Jewellery & Watches –Tuesdays and Saturdays

• Silver & Obje't D'art –Tuesdays and Saturdays

• Toys & Collectables –Wednesdays and Saturdays

• Oriental & Asian – Thursdays and Saturdays

Pearl necklace could make £6k

SEMLEY Auctioneers will be selling this natural saltwater pearl necklace estimated at between £4,000-£6,000 at auction tomorrow (Saturday).

It has 110 pearls graduated from 2.8mm to 8.4mm and one small beaded cultured pearl –first from tongue end.

The square clasp is set with a step-cut sapphire within a pierced border set with 24 faceted diamonds.

The necklace is 23in –58.5cm – long and is accompanied by a pearl report from The Gem & Pearl Laboratory dated October 15, 2024, stating that the pearls are natural saltwater pearls – except the one small cultured pearl next to the clasp tongue.

It is one of 381 lots of watches, jewellery, coins, objets de vertu, silver and 20th century decorative arts.

• Coins, Stamps, Books & Ephemera – Fridays and Saturdays

• Militaria – Fridays and Saturdays

• Textiles & Fashion –Saturdays

• Paintings & Contemporary Art – Saturdays

Alternatively, phone or email to make an appointment if you are unable to go in on the allocated days.

Acreman is also happy to make house visits if required.

It is now accepting consignments for upcoming sales and is happy to advise

prospective sellers on anything they may be considering for auction.

Photographs can be emailed to auction@ acremanstreetantiques.co.uk or take in items for its experts to take a look at.

Acreman is open Monday to Saturday 9am-4pm. It can take in everything from single items to complete collections.

Acreman is happy to help with advice or valuations to anyone downsizing or who needs to deal with a whole house and can arrange a full house clearance at competitive rates.

Anyone who has anything they would like to consign can contact Gill Norman on 01935 508764 or 07908 333577 or by email at the address above.

BUSBY

Auctioneers & Valuers

Saleroom’s rare white glove sale

WHEN all the lots in an auction sell, it is known as a white glove sale, and it was a white glove auction for a west country collection of medals sold by Charterhouse on Wednesday, November 27.

“I can count on one hand the number of white glove auctions I have conducted over the past 40 years,” said Richard Bromell.

The collection had been amassed over several years, but the owner sadly passed away earlier this year.

Top lot was a Naval General Service Medal 1793-1814 –pictured – which sold for £5,500.

“There were plenty of buyers in the room, many of whom had stayed overnight, and one even flew in from Ireland, but it was the internet buzzing with bids from across the UK, Isle of Man, Australia, France, Switzerland, Canada and Austria who fought hard battles to win the medals.”

Overall, the collection totalled just shy of £230,000 from 294 lots, with a staggering average of over £780 per lot.

Richard Bromell and the Charterhouse team can be contacted for home visits, advice and valuations on single items, collections and complete house contents at The Long Street Salerooms, Sherborne; phone 01935 812277; or via rb@charterhouse-auction. com

Rolex watch may sell for £12,000

SEE the turning circles and hands of golden timepieces, brilliant diamonds of empyrean quality, and rare spirits and wines, once of epochal production.

An abundance of fine jewellery, watches, accessories, spirits and wines await within Duke’s upcoming auction on Thursday, December 12.

The sale features iconic names, including Cartier, Bremont, Rolex, Bulgari and Patek.

A Rolex Oyster Perpetual Datejust – a gentleman’s steel and gold bracelet watch, carries a pre-sale estimate of £10,000£12,000.

Its gold hands circumnavigate a golden bezel, striking past the glistening golden Rolex crown.

The auction offers a

customary selection of precious gems and marvels – diamonds, rubies, sapphires and emeralds mounted on gold, platinum and silver.

Nestled among its number is the iridescent charm of an A D Colour, VVS2 clarity rose cut diamond pendant necklace in platinum, set with a rose-cut diamond of 1.12 carats, held in a stylised setting set with onyx and round brilliant-cut diamonds, suspended from a trace chain necklace, secured with a bull ring clasp. It is estimated at £6,000-£8,000.

Viewing begins on Monday, December 9, with bidding available on three online platforms.

Find more information, including a fully illustrated catalogue, at www.dukesauctions.com

Shotgun made well over estimate

HOLTS is proving that the value of sporting and antique guns remains high worldwide, despite fears of a drop in the UK market.

This was demonstrated again recently by two locally consigned guns.

A pair of James Purdey 50-bore percussion rifled target pistols, which sold for £12,000, and a WW Greener 20 bore shotgun built in 1904.

achieves the highest possible values, even for the more average guns.

HOLTS is now accepting consignments for its next auctions with valuation days throughout the region.

The latter, in its lightweight leather ‘violin’ case – pictured – is an attractive and still very ‘usable’ shotgun, and sold for a staggering £5,000 against an estimate of £700-£900.

Selling guns on the international market certainly

The next local ones are next month at the GWCT Burgate Manor, Fordingbridge, on January 7 and at the NFU Sturminster Newton on January 14.

For a full list of south west venues, see the Holts website, www.holtsauctioneers.com

To book an appointment or discuss a valuation or home visit, contact David Thurgood on 01297 306123 or by email at westcountry@holtsauctioneers. com

Tuesday 7th January

The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust Burgate Manor Fordingbridge Hampshire, SP6 1EF

Tuesday 14th January

NFU Mutual

The Creamery Station Road

Sturminster Newton Dorset, DT10 1BD

To book an appointment, arrange a free valuation or home visit please contact: David Thurgood 01297 306123 westcountry@holtsauctioneers.com

Home & Garden

by Sally Gregson

ONE of the joys of the late autumn garden must be the flowering of hardy chrysanthemums. These are not the show-girls of the plant world, primped and preened – every flower having a good-hair-day. These are toughies. But they are very beautiful.

In a light soil they can be planted out in a sunny spot and they will flower away throughout November – and in a cold greenhouse, until Christmas. But a greenhouse is not a pre-requisite for achieving stunning blooms – just a sunny spot. In the ground happy, hardy chrysanths extend their crowns throughout the summer, pushing up flowers from the middle of October onwards. If the chrysanth is potted into

Cold greenhouses in winter Chrysanths are tough and beautiful

by Sally Gregson

THESE days the cost of heating a glasshouse is a bit beyond most gardener’s pockets. Unless the over-wintering plants will eventually be for sale, it becomes far cheaper simply to replace anything that dies from the effects of frost and cold, than to keep it warm.

We hardly seem ever to have a degree low enough to kill tender plants under glass, unless their root systems are too wet. One of the tricks of keeping ‘sleeping’ plants alive is to ensure there is not too much moisture at their roots. This is particularly relevant if you are keeping dahlias overwinter.

In autumn, either allow the frosts to ‘drop’ the top growth of dahlias in pots, or simply cut it all back to the soil level and place each crown – well-marked with variety and date – in an old

a large container during the summer, it will be ready to bring out in autumn. Many gardeners use an ornamental pot as an outer container and pop in large plastic pots of ‘specials’ as they come into season.

There are several that win every gardener’s heart. C. ‘Clara Curtis’ is a delight of large, single daisies in palest apricot pink. And C. ‘Emperor of China’ is an old cottagegarden favourite. It’s been in cultivation for over 4,000 years, if the stories are true. It will require a stake – it’s nearly 1.5m tall and bears large, quilled, baby-pink double flowers all autumn.

Chrysanthemum ‘Bronze Elegance’ is another old cottage favourite with lots of small, double bronze flowers and there are many other small-flowered

varieties – the smaller the flowers the better they seem to survive cold, wet winters. Hardy chrysanths are not grown as often as they should be these days. Perhaps it’s because no-one goes to garden centres looking for flowers in November. But a specialist nursery should stock a good selection in rich shades of red, bronze, gold, pink and white. Hardy chrysanths can suffer

seed tray or something similar, lined with newspaper, and put it under the benching in the greenhouse. Unless we have an exceptionally cold winter, the crowns will tick over until March with just an occasional splash. Once spring seems to

arrive, bring the crowns out into the light, pot them up roughly and water them well. They will spring back into growth.

Cuttings taken in late summer and potted up are especially vulnerable to frost. Keep them well wrapped up in

during a wet winter. It’s judicious to take a few cuttings or divisions of the crown during the growing season as an insurance policy and keep them in a cold frame.

But next year those beauties will shake their curls, flutter their long eyelashes and every gardener will be entranced. They are so welcome at a time when our gardens are beginning to fade.

fleece on especially cold nights. Or they could be kept for a short time in a heated propagator on the greenhouse bench, while the world outside freezes. But keep it ventilated during the day, and switch it off or remove the cuttings, once the frosts pass.

And be scrupulously clean. Mould can quickly decimate soft, young cuttings. So, keep the air circulating and grow the cuttings as tough/hard as you dare. And use a dry, powder fungicide if you can, to help keep the moulds at bay, and maintain healthy growth.

In late February, as soon as the sun warms, remove the cuttings and young plants to a cooler environment. So long as they are kept frost-free with overnight fleece, the resulting plants will be short-jointed and tough, ready to flower for another summer.

Trays of seeds and cuttings in Sally Gregson’s greenhouse

C. ‘Clara Curtis’ is a delight of large, single daisies in apricot pink

Christmas at Plantworld

One thing that horticultural businesses get used to is change – change in the weather, change of season, change of Government amongst others. After 34 years running Plantworld we have been through many but now, due to a change of fortune, we are looking forward to an exciting new future.

After many years of trying and many months of effort we have finally been given approval to make changes to the Plantworld site here at Milton on Stour. This allows us to build our long-awaited coffee shop, plus a workshop unit for an independent but complementary local business. The investment this requires will be facilitated by building a small number of houses on the unused part of the site, including a number of low cost homes for local people.

The owners and staff at Plantworld would like to say a big thank you to all those people who helped to make this happen, including all the customers who have supported us over the years. But Rome wasn’t built in a day and equally the development work will take time, however we do hope to make a start on construction in the near future.

We feel that these changes will make a big difference to Plantworld but not change it too much – we will still offer the same choice, service and value for money, but one day that can be accompanied by a cuppa and a lovely slice of cake!

Best wishes to all our friends and customers for Christmas and the New Year!

Huge selection of quality cut and pot grown Christmas trees!

Fresh holly wreaths and mistletoe

Bare root and rootball hedging

Hundreds of plants for Winter colour

Monday - Saturday 9am - 5:30 pm and Sunday 10am - 4pm

Milton on Stour, Gillingham SP8 5QA. 01747 824015

Home & Garden

Choosing and looking after your Christmas tree

IT’S that time of year again, Christmas is nearly upon us and with it comes the task of choosing a Christmas tree.

The perfect Christmas tree is the focal point of the home over the festive season but with so many sizes and varieties available, selecting the ideal tree can be overwhelming.

British Garden Centres has some helpful hints for choosing and looking after your tree. Which variety of real Christmas tree?

THE Nordmann Fir is a popular choice for Christmas trees, thanks to its symmetrical shape, well-spaced branches and soft, dark green needles that stay on the tree for a long time.

This makes it ideal for families with children and pets.

For those who prefer a more traditional look, the Norway Spruce is a great option.

It has a strong, long-lasting fragrance and plenty of branches for hanging ornaments.

The Fraser Fir has dark blue-green needles and a fresh scent, while the Blue Spruce is a striking tree with attractive blue-green foliage.

How to choose your tree

WHEN choosing a real Christmas tree, give it a gentle shake to check for needle drop.

Fresh, healthy trees have green, shiny needles while yellowing or loose needles

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indicate an older tree.

To test the freshness of a cut tree, lift it by the trunk.

A heavier tree is generally fresher as it’s full of water.

Consider the space between branches when choosing a tree.

If you plan to add many ornaments, a tree with wider spacing is ideal.

For a denser look with just lights or tinsel, a fuller tree is the way to go.

Trees can often look smaller in a garden centre. To guarantee

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a perfect fit, measure the height and available space where you plan to place it.

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Caring for your real tree at home

ONCE you’ve purchased your Christmas tree, it’s best to keep it outside for as long as possible.

Before bringing it indoors, trim 3cm off the trunk to allow for better water absorption.

Place the tree in a stand with water and position it in a well-ventilated area, away from radiators.

Real Christmas trees typically last four to six weeks.

To ensure longevity, it’s crucial to keep the tree hydrated with fresh water.

In the initial days, the tree may drink a significant amount of water, possibly up to two to three pints – one to two litres –a day which should gradually decrease.

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LANGTON NURSERIES (C W Abbott & Son) Christmas Trees- Pot Grown and Cut, Bare Root Hedging, IOW Garlic and Onion Sets. Fruit Trees and Ornimental Trees, Perennials & Shrubs, Large selection of; stoneware, terracotta and glazed pots, Wild Bird food 20kg £14.50, Stockists of Kings, Franchi and Fothergill Budget Seeds, Potting Compost. Open daily 10am– 3 pm. Langton Long Blandford Forum Dorset DT11 9HR. Telephone 01258 452513

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WOODBURNING STOVES, new Eco, at discount prices. Previous and ex-display model bargains. Wessex Woodburners. 01747-853110

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Get in the Garden

Home & Garden

EARLY January isn’t always the best time for gardening outdoors, but it’s the perfect time for making plans. Firstly, make a list of all of the things you would like to achieve in the coming year. Have fun with this and be ambitious! There’s no need to put any financial or physical limits on it at this stage and that makes it even more enjoyable!

My list might include the following:

Dig less – no dig gardening is environmentally sound and could be a whole lot easier. The latter may not be true, but the former is and it’s something that large scale agriculture is doing, too. Many farmers now don’t plough between crops but over-sow the next crop on top of the stubble or debris of the one before. The advantages are many fold and include a reduction in fuel costs associated with ploughing and a gain in terms of soil structure. And, when we get torrential rain, less soil is lost to run off. No dig also means that carbon is left in the soil, whereas cultivation releases carbon into the atmosphere contributing to climate change.

The question is, though, how do you improve your soil without digging and the answer is to lay onto the surface of the soil materials, such as your own garden compost, well-rotted farm manure and/or soil improvers like Bloomin’ Amazing. Such materials will break down over time and will get dragged into the soil by microorganisms, worms, woodlice and the like, improving the soil structure and boosting fertility, too.

Save water – rainwater is loads better for your plants than tap water and it’s cheaper, too. And you might also be

helping to reduce localised flooding if you can collect torrential rain rather than let it go straight down the drain or out into the road. I was speaking to a developer recently who was telling me that they would be incorporating water storage tanks on new housing developments from now on, which is very encouraging and long overdue. When visiting a wildlife gardener a couple of years ago, he showed me an extraordinary array of water butts and a huge collection of two-litre milk bottles that he’d used to collect water during the winter. He hadn’t used tap water for several years and had a beautiful well-watered garden. You may not want the milk bottles, but a water butt can look neat and tidy and is very useful.

Leave a wild area – a small corner of your garden can be left to get a bit out of hand to provide a sanctuary for wildlife. They will love it and in return they will help you control pests in your garden and give you additional enjoyment as a result. Whereas it would be great to find hedgehogs and see that slow worms have moved in, you will definitely start to get ladybirds, lacewings and hoverflies, as well as ground beetles in your abandoned area. Butterflies and moths will also appear, as well as more birds. The beneficial insects will improve the pollination of flowers in the garden leading to bigger yields from your crops, but some will also head out and chomp away at insect pests, such as greenfly that may otherwise cause you problems.

Try something NEW – have a look at the displays of seeds and have a go at growing something you haven’t before.

The latest gardening news, hints and tips, with Mike Burks, MD of The Gardens Group

Home & Garden

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Local Services

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JOINERY

Health & Wellbeing

Meditations in nature: Mountains, moonlight and mist

by Susanna Curtin

I AM writing this, once again, from the Cumbrian mountains. It is mid-November now and the autumn colours are drawing to a close. But still the burnt-orange leaves of the beech trees and bracken, and the golden fronds of larch are spicing the foothills in a glorious finale before winter truly sets in. The Lake District is magnificent this time of year.

Armed with hot drinks and plenty of food, I set off from New Dungeon Ghyll car park to explore the Langdales. My route is to start beside the waterfalls and rock pools of Stickle Ghyll stream and ascend to its source at Stickle Tarn. From here, I will head around the tarn and ascend Pavey Ark up through the gulley of the East Ridge. Then, crossing over the moorland of Thunacar Knott, I plan to take a short diversion to climb Pike of Stickle. After enjoying its peak, I will head across Langdale Combe to see the glacial moraines, and follow the path to Mansey Pike, and then scale Rossett Pike to glimpse the hidden shores of Angle Tarn. Finally, I will take a long, steep descent into the Mickleden valley and back to Dungeon

Ghyll.

With the sun on my back and the clearest of skies, the weather forecast is good until late afternoon when mist and rain is likely to prevail. As I begin my first 400-metre ascent beside the waterfall, my heart pumps harder and my legs begin to ache, but it is not long before both my legs and heart fall into a steady rhythm as I gradually gain height and stamina. Ever since I can remember I have been captivated by mountains. Although they are hard to climb, it is a humbling experience to be in their company. Any preoccupations are stripped away as the size of the landscape, its utter magnificence and its timelessness makes personal concerns seem so small and insignificant. Then, of course, there are the mountain tops. These are always something to behold and if weather permits, a place to linger. They feel so far from humanity, so remote and wild, and on reaching them I feel an enormous sense of achievement, resilience and endurance, but most of all, perspective.

I am clearly not alone in loving the mountains here. The Lake District is the largest of England’s National Parks and attracts 18 million visitors each year. Although it is not an entirely wild landscape having been altered by humans since neolithic times, as I reach the still, dark waters of Stickle Tarn, and look around me, I see only the result of volcanic eruptions 500 million years ago and the last glacial period that have carved out these rocks. Despite humans, it is still a uniquely scenic part of our Isles, and a place where you can still feel a deep connection to nature.

Climbing the gulley of Pavey Ark, my fingers touch the soft black moss as I clasp for handholds. Fungi and lichens decorate the spaces between the rock falls and there

are hundreds of fine gossamer cobwebs that streak from rock to rock, glinting in the sunshine. It is completely silent apart from the calls of the Canada geese as they fly in a long skein formation above me.

The boggy wet ground of the high moors leads me across to Pike of Stickle, a short, sharp ascent to the top of this iconic mountain affords views across to the volcanic plug of Great Gable, and the pyramid-shaped summit of Bowfell, poking out from increasingly sulky, low clouds. By the time I eventually ascend Rossett Pike, the sun has sunk away, briefly casting a crimson sky. I suddenly feel the change in mood and temperature cast by the threatening shadow of Bowfell. It is time to begin the long and zig-zagging descent.

Something deeply profound happens to even familiar landscapes in darkness – they become more wild and untamed. Although the shape of the landform remains the same, it is void of colour and appears ancient, powerful and slightly frightening. With my eyes cast downwards to mark my careful steps, it is a while before I notice the full moon slowly emerging above the sheer, triangular shape of Pike of Stickle. The light it casts bathes the path in platinum and the darkness lifts. Mickleden Valley is cast in a silvery light but still looks a long way down. Step by step, I eventually reach the valley floor. Pausing to look around me, I watch as an eerie mist spills over the mountain tops and creeps horizontally along their flanks. It is simultaneously wonderful yet haunting. The moon, too, is eventually swallowed by the clouds. Finding my head torch, I make haste before the rain descends, sad that my adventure is nearly over.

n Dr Susie Curtin (email curtin.susanna@ gmail.com).

Food, herbs and more for winter

by Fiona Chapman

AS I write, I am looking out at snow, which started off very wet and slushy and is now settling heavily on the trees and ground. It does also make me realise that winter has well and truly arrived, and it is time to make sure I keep myself and loved ones healthy and bug free.

I always think the most important thing in winter is to get outside every day, walk, get the blood going and fresh air into the lungs. Make the heart race a bit with strenuous exercise up a hill. It is usually much better being out in the weather than

sitting inside looking at it! Sleep with the window open at night to make sure you have fresh air circulating.

Eat lots of dark green leafy vegetables and roots like beetroot, squash, celeriac, sweet potatoes – have a rainbow of vegetables on your plate. Try and avoid turning to sugar for comfort – it plays havoc with blood sugar and moods.

I always want to hibernate in winter. As soon as it gets dark, I start yawning and long to go to bed. It is not a bad thing to do. Try and get enough sleep, listen to your body and conserve

energy, live with the seasons to a certain extent.

Herbs that are excellent at this time of year: plenty of fresh garlic – sprinkle raw on cooked food. Ginger tea keeps the circulation going. Fresh lemon juice in warm water first thing in the morning gives your kidneys and liver a clean and alkalises the system.

Have some echinacea to hand if you feel the start of a cold and take it acutely for a day or so. Tinctures, in this case, I feel are best and 2.5ml in water every couple of hours or so will help to knock a cold on the head.

If you feel ‘fluey’, peppermint, elderflower and yarrow tea and a hot bath and bed to sweat it out is a good idea. For those who like making jams, wild rose hips, boiled down and sieved then mixed with local honey will provide lots of vitamin C.

Most of us need to supplement with Vitamin D during the winter as well. Loneliness is also a killer in the winter, so try and get out and have some fun.

n Fiona Chapman is a naturopathic herbalist (email Pellyfiona@gmail.com).

Support yourself, supporting others

by Danielle Goshawk

AN unpaid carer is someone who provides support for a friend or family member without being paid to do so. The UK has an estimated 10 million unpaid carers and they play a vital, often overlooked, role in the health and social care system. Unpaid carers are often juggling the multiple responsibilities of work, family life and their caring role all at the same time.

My very first counselling role was at a carers support service and one of the main challenges that many carers experienced was that when you are just about coping day to day and responding to the needs of others it is easy to neglect your own needs, you get left at the bottom of the priority list. The trouble is that when we neglect our self-care we are at risk of burning out, and ultimately that makes it much harder to care for

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others. It is understandable that you may feel guilty or stressed at the thought of making time for yourself, but it isn’t a luxury, it is a necessity.

If the idea of taking care of yourself is hard, here are some suggestions of small steps and changes that you could work towards:

• Take regular breaks – these don’t have to be big, even 10-15 minutes to rest or do something for yourself is a great start, perhaps a short walk or a mindfulness exercise or meditation.

• Your physical health – it’s important to prioritise your own health, even just a short walk can be helpful to stay physically active and potentially get a break at the same time. It can be hard to eat well when you’re so busy and short on time. If possible, think about batch cooking and freezing some

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nutritious meals. Could this be an area where others could support you?

• Seek emotional support – try to be open with friends or family if you’re struggling, see if they can support you to take breaks, help with any practical tasks or just be there to listen so that you don’t feel so alone. You might consider joining a local carers support group found through organisations such as the Leonardo Trust, Carers UK or Carers Trust, these are also good places to find counselling services for carers.

If you are not a carer but know someone who is, perhaps consider what you might be able to offer them in terms of support.

Taking small, consistent steps towards self-care is vital for your own wellbeing and for those you care for, but there may well come a point where you need to access professional

support and need more of a break than the smaller daily suggestions above. This is where respite care could help. There is no shame in asking for help, respite care is there to help you to recharge and properly rest in the way you need to. Local councils or charities can assist in accessing respite care and can also help you get ongoing support and breaks. Useful links and resources can be found through NHS Carer Support, Carers UK, Carers Trust and the Leonardo Trust. n Danielle Goshawk is a counsellor working with adults and couples, based in Lytchett Matravers and also online –www.acaciacounselling.net. She is also the co-founder of Dorset Employee Wellness Support which provides local businesses with counselling and wellness services. For more information email DorsetEWS@proton.me.

Items for sale

CLASSIFIED ADS

1930’s INFANT SCHOOL DESK with tip-up seat, lift up lid. £150ono buyer collects. 07903-169618

NEW. SHEEPSKIN HIPLENGTH JACKET. £100. Tel: 01749-830241

Deadline to place your advert is the Friday before publication.

OO GAUGE RAILWAY Layout ten by four. Rolling stock, five locomotives, transformer. Tel: 01935 825023 £380.

MYFORD ML7 LATHE. Superb original condition. 3 and 4 jaws, plus gears for thread cuttings with many extras. 3 phase, can be seen working. £900. Tel: 07717-820629

Shillingstone

FREE CLASSIFIED ADS

PINE WARDROBE 90cmx170cm. £40 ONO, GC 07487-605434.

STOVE GAS ELECTRIC UNDER WORKTOP double oven cooker. £50 01258-452118.

SAMSUNG FLAT SCREEN TELEVISION VGC. 30” £50 with stand and remote control. Sherborne. Tel: 01935-815648.

VERY HEAVY DUTY STEEL CABINET 6x3, not DIY tat. Ideal mancave/workshop. Further details call 07809-260886.

STAG DRESSING TABLE very good condition £50. 07971-042490

4 SLIDING WARDROBE PANELS

W31” x H87” 2x mirror 2x plain. NO track. £40 ono. 01747 824482

WARDROBE MIRROR 15”x48” £10 - Dressing Table Mirror (triptych design) £20 - 01747 853942

CITRONIC DIRECT DRIVE TURNTABLE (sim to Soundlab DLP160) Complete with head shell, cartridge and stylus. Good condition but no perspex cover. £50 Shaftesbury 01747 854850

DINING TABLE & 6 CHAIRS mahogany 1920s vgc seats new pads reupholstered, matching cabinet (optional), photos available £50 01747 825614 Gillingham

KONG TWO DOOR DOG CRATE, Intermediate size. As New & Boxed, 93.9 L x 59.3 W x 70 H CM.£20 Tel: 01963 33160

2 NEW ELECTRIC FIRES for sale. £18 each. If interested Tel: 01722-335258 after 4.30pm

MAC ALISTER, ELECTRIC LEAF BLOWER/VACCUM, with bag. 2800watts, GWO. £30. Tel: 01935-507375. Sherborne

LAKELAND SMALL BREAD MAKER. excellent condition. £20. Tel 07403-638035

CHILD’S WOODEN COT, no mattress, £5.00 Tel: 01963 351106

OAK FURNITURE LAND Solid Oak Coffee Table 110Wx61Dx40H. Excellent condition £35. 01258-821394

JACQUES-VERT, Ladies 3 piece suit, size 12, £50. Tel: 01749-830241

DUVET, SUPERKING. Fogarty 13.5 tog polyester filling. Very excellent condition. Covers & slips available. £30.00 or £35.00 for all. 07770 402626 Shaftesbury

DISPLAY CABINET with cupboard at bottom, H: 6ft L: 18” W: 14” £20 ono. Tel: 01747-840835

CHESNEY REAR FIRE BRICK, for Salisbury 5 (formerly Flatford/ Beaumont) Stove/111-005, 40 x 17cm. New bought in error, half price £25. 07786-306268 Sherborne.

FLIGHT MAGAZINES 1942-1945, 59 copies in total. Practical Motorist 1936-1938, 55 copies £50 each. 07747-098126

VINTAGE AUSTRALIAN SMOCKING AND EMBROIDERY MAGAZINES. Most quarterly editions, 1993-2012, for sale. Choose any 6 for £7.50p each. 01747-841366

KENWOOD CHEF PREMIERE with glass blender. Hardly used £50 Tel: 07510-516222

GRANDPARENTS, Selling travel cot and mattress (bought separately) hardly used very good condition. Yeovil 01935 421313

DELUX HEATED FOOT BATH, with accessories, £20. Tel: 01747-826427

DINNING CHAIR, Ladder Back, Light Weight, Strong and Comfortable £9 Gillingham 01747 824 240.

SKI BOOTS, Ladies size 4 1/2, LOWA silver as new £50, Tel. 07534-524337

2 PARKER KNOLL STYLE CHAIRS. Need TLC. £10 each or £15 for both. Buyer collect, 10 miles out of Sherborne. 01935 872680

3 PINE CHAIRS (sound construction - stretcher bars but worn antique varnish) £20 the three. Tel: STREET 01458-443264

NEW BED AND MATTRESS never used, child’s 6ft x 3 ft . £30. Shaftesbury, mobile 07760 776792

PORTABLE TREATMENT COUCH for sale, £50. Seldom used. VGC. Tel: 01935-592843

OLD BOOKS BOUGHT. Will call by appointment entirely without obligation. Bristow & Garland 07392-602014

How to make the perfect sausage roll…

IF you have friends popping in for drinks and nibbles this Christmas, along with little people and perhaps hungry carol singers, make your own sausage rolls – they go down a storm and are so easy to make and so much more juicy and delicious straight out of the oven.

You will need:

Shop-bought fresh puff pastry

Butcher’s pork sausage meat

Dried mixed herbs

Maldon salt – everything tastes better with Maldon salt and it’s worth investing in a box Pepper pot grinder

One egg and an egg wash brush

Fresh rosemary or thyme sprig

Grated onion

Apple

Shallow baking tray

Method

TAKE the pastry out of the fridge or freezer to bring it to room temperature.

Put the sausage meat in a mixing bowl and add the grated onion, apple, dry mixed herbs, a very good pinch of salt and some really good screws of black pepper – add some smashed garlic, too, if you like – and let the flavours infuse.

Roll out the puff pastry onto a clean surface.

Give the sausage meat a really good mix with your hands and then tip it onto the pastry and eke it out into a long sausage shape on the pastry’s edge.

Now roll tightly and egg

Sausage rolls are juicy and delicious straight out of the oven

wash the far edge, so it sticks on the last turn, and give the seam a gentle push all the way down so it doesn’t unravel.

Time to celebrate!

Join us for your team and family celebrations as we ring in the season. Tempting flavours and the warmest hospitality. 2 courses £39 // 3 courses £45 Festive Set Menu served Wednesday – Friday at lunch and Wednesday – Thursday at dinner, from 27th November.

Last few tables remaining for Christmas Day - give us a call today.

Food &

Lift the sausage roll carefully onto a flat baking tray – it may need to go in on the diagonal, with the seam on the bottom.

Fork the edges, including the ends and pinch them together.

Beat the egg and brush the egg wash all over the visible surfaces.

Scatter salt from a height – so it’s even – and then scatter some rosemary of thyme leaves over, too.

Put in the fridge or freezer until needed.

If you freeze, it must be defrosted thoroughly before cooking.

Heat the oven to 200 degrees – or equivalent – and put the sausage roll in the oven on the middle shelf for 20-25 minutes, depending on how generous you were with the filling. I prefer small bites and when cooked slice the roll into 2cm bite-sized pieces.

n Annie des Forges, DirectorChef, The Table Bruton; Annie Austin, Director-Host & Concierge, Somerset Roadtrip.

Time for music

In a smooth start to the holidays, our final jazz night of the year falls on Thursday 19th December. Make sure you join us for a memorable evening!

Time for tea

Take a break from shopping for a delicously bite-sized taste of the festivities. Our stunning Festive Afternoon Tea is served between 2pm and 4pm on Saturdays and Sundays from 30th November to 22nd December.

£40pp // Book online or give us a call

HONEYBUNS POP-UP SHOP

Saturday 7 December 9.30am-12pm

Stock up on gorgeous gluten free cakes for festive entertaining.

Join us for fuss free tea and coffee, a cake and a catch up. www.honeybuns.co.uk/popupshop

Open first Saturday of each month, March to Dec. Honeybuns, Naish Farm, Stony Lane, Holwell DT9 5LJ.

Enford Farm Shop

Durweston DT11 0QW

Now taking Christmas meat orders!

Free range turkeys, beef, pork, lamb, game, hams and more.

Home reared and locally produced meats, game, deli, fruit, veg, free range eggs and lots more.

Follow us on Facebook for all our latest meat pack deals and what’s in fresh that week.

Chicken feeds etc available.

Open Wednesday to Saturday 10am-5.30pm.

01258 450050

Warmer Spa Day

Includes afternoon tea, hot chocolate, candle massage, pedicure, and use of towels and robe. From £99 per person

Village pub wins award

THE Queen’s Arms in Corton Denham has been named Pub of the Year by south west Food Lifestyle magazine.

It was announced as the winner at an awards ceremony at Nancarrow Farm in Cornwall after being picked from a shortlist of five following two rounds of voting.

Corton Denham is well known for scenic walks along Corton Ridge and nearby Cadbury Castle, with the dog-friendly pub a popular stop-off for walkers.

It also caters for those from further afield with 10 bedrooms.

The Queen’s Arms, now operating for three years, has a reputation for good food and friendly service.

All components of every dish are made in-house, overseen by head chef Rich Townsend and his team, from the freshly baked milk buns for the burgers through to black garlic ketchup.

The menu includes a selection of fresh pub classics such as fish and chips and The Queen’s Arms burger through to more elevated food such as lightly cured sea bream and tor dry aged Denver steak.

In the bar, freshly made cordials of ginger are used for home-made fiery ginger beer, and celery salt is made by hand each week for the signature bloody Mary’s popular on a Sunday.

The Queen’s Arms now attends the monthly Sherborne market, selling freshly made focaccia, baguettes, tomato relish and more.

state-of-the-art gym for all ages and abilities, with spacious workout areas, classes, a heated pool, spa, steam room, sauna, and corporate memberships.

824466

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A Year to Remember for Shroton Fair Gin®

024 has been a whirlwind. Our signature gin ranked in the top 5% at the IWSC — an incredible honour that’s driven our growth. We’ve handed out over 10,000 samples and attended events 29 weeks in a row. Sharing our Gin with all the “Gin-tellectuals” out there has been a true joy!

A New Flavour on the Horizon?

Exciting news! On 16th December, we’re launching a bold new Gin, brimming with exotic fruits and berries. Find it online from the 16th via our website at: www.shrotonfairgin.co.uk or on Amazon, with FREE DELIVERY.

Christmas Opening Hours

Celebrate our Gin(s)! From 16th–23rd December, visit us 9:00–12:00 (Mon–Sat) for Christmas gifts, tasters—or bring an empty bottle for us to refill and get £5 off. Where to Find Us

We distil at: Ash Farm Courtyard, Stourpaine, DT11 8PW.

Drivers urged to beware deer

AS the annual rutting season comes to an end, AA Accident Assist says that collisions involving deer have increased 42% since the 2021 season.

Between mid-September and early November this year, 276 AA members hit a deer, compared to 195 over the same period in 2021.

There has been an annual increase in deer strikes throughout the rutting season, with 195 incidents in 2021, 222 incidents in 2022 and 242 last year.

As well as an increase of deer strikes during rutting season, there has been a year-on-year increase of drivers hitting deer.

There were 1,054 incidents in 2021, compared to 1,304 in 2023. So far 1,200 drivers have crashed into deer this year.

In a poll of 10,000 drivers carried out recently by AA Accident Assist, only 51% of drivers say they slow down and are more vigilant when coming across a deer warning sign.

Two fifths – 39% – of drivers continue at the same speed, while trying to be more aware, 6% slow down and one in 30 –3% – carry on driving as normal.

These findings are concerning, not just for the unnecessary loss of life to wild deer, but because of the financial cost to drivers.

Due to their size, hitting a deer at speed can cause significant damage to a vehicle, including smashed windscreens, broken front wings and bumpers, as well as engine and bonnets being broken.

Aside from the physical

damage to cars, deer strikes can prove fatal.

Between 2021 and 2023, six people died due to their vehicle hitting an animal or swerving to avoid it, with 302 people being seriously injured and 659 slightly injured.

AA Accident Assist is reminding drivers about the dangers of animals, especially deer, in the road.

It is also informing drivers what actions they should take if they hit a deer, including stopping safely and getting help for the animal if needed.

Tim Rankin, managing director of AA Accident Assist, said: “Deer are wonderful animals, yet sadly too many are

needlessly hit or killed on our roads.

“With half of drivers not taking animal warning signs into consideration, we need to better understand the realities of animal strikes.

“While clearly shocking and distressful for both animal and driver, deer strikes can cause hundreds, even thousands of pounds worth of damage.”

“Rutting season has come to an end, but throughout November and December, we will still see deer run across the roads.

“Drivers need to slow down and look out for wildlife to protect both the animal and themselves.”

FORD FIESTA 2004. 85k, £1,250 ono. 07949-871623

FREELANDER, 04reg, MOT till June 2025, £1,400. Tel: 07879-060338

PORSCHE CAYENNE 2007

11 months mot 112400 mils silver with black int . £3,500 ono call 07767-267691

FREELANDER 2, Commercial, 08reg, £1,200. Tel: 07879-060338

VAUXHALL VECTRA, 1796cc, 2008, MOT August 25, £750 ovno. Tel: 07850-999899

UNWANTED VEHICLES

bought for cash ●Mot failures ●Nonrunners ●Unfinished projects ●end of life scrap vehicles ●minimum of £200 paid for complete vehicles. Call Ryan on 07474 737577

OLD, INTERESTING & CLASSIC CARS wanted pre 1990s Any condition including unfinished projects Cash/Transfer. Please Phone Paul 07890 096907

STORAGE FOR CARAVANS, boats and cars at Enford Farm near Blandford.

01258 450050 / 07704 813025

2021 (71) Dacia Sandero Stepway 1.0TCe Comfort 5dr. New Shape, 90bhp, petrol, 6 speed manual gearbox, sat nav, reverse camera, cruise control, auto lights & wipers, hill hold, 50mpg economy, 25,300 miles .....................................£10950

2017 (17) Ford KA+ 1.2 Zetec 5dr. 85bhp, petrol, 5 speed manual gearbox, parking sensors, cruise control, hill hold, air con, Bluetooth, upto 56mpg economy, small exterior with a spacious interior, 76,900 miles ....................................£6450

2014 (14) Ford Kuga 2.0TDCi Titanium X AWD 4x4 SUV 5dr. 163bhp, diesel, 6 speed manual gearbox, 4x4, high seats, leather, heated seats, heated screen, sat nav, park sensors, auto park, reverse camera, sunroof, auto lights & wipers, cruise, lane aid, sign recognition, hill hold, electric tailgate, cambelt replaced, 92,500 miles ...........................................................................................................£7450

2020 (69) Ford Tourneo Custom 2.0TDCi Titanium 320 L1 H1 Automatic 9 Seat Minibus 5dr. 130bhp, diesel, 6 speed automatic gearbox, 8 seat plus driver, reversable seats for conference or forward facing, auto lights & wipers, cruise control, heated front seats, park sensors, cambelt replaced, 97,000 miles ..................................................................... £21500 + VAT = £25800

2020 (69) Ford Transit 2.0TDCi Trend 350 MWB MR L2 H2 11 Seat Minibus 5dr. 130bhp, diesel, 6 speed manual gearbox, 10 seat plus driver, 2 front seats, 9 rear seats, auto lights & wipers, cruise control, parking sensors, heated front seats, hill hold, cambelt replaced, 90,200 miles ........................£19500 + VAT = £23400

2014 (64) Kia Venga 3, 1.6 Automatic (Sat Nav) 5dr. 123bhp, petrol, 4 speed automatic gearbox, sat nav, park sensors, camera, sunroof, ½ leather, heated seats, cruise control, sign recognition, hill hold, 38,800 miles........................£7850

2016 (66) Mazda 3, 2.0 SE-L Nav Automatic 5dr. 120bhp, petrol, 6 speed automatic gearbox, sat nav, auto lights & wipers, cruise control, parking sensors, sign recognition, heated seats, hill hold, 75,900 miles...................................£8450

2006 (06) Mercedes-Benz CLK200 1.8 Kompressor Sport Automatic Convertible 2dr. 163bhp, petrol, 5 speed auto gearbox, recent new roof & shocks absorbers, full history, 15 stamps, heated leather, electric roof, auto lights & wipers, cruise, park sensors, MOT June 25, private sale on behalf of a customer, 77,500 miles ...........................................................................................................£4250

2015 (65) Peugeot 308 1.2THP Allure Automatic 5dr. 130bhp, petrol, 6 speed automatic gearbox, sat nav, parking sensors, reverse camera, auto lights & wipers, cruise control, hill hold, £35 road tax, 50+mpg, cambelt replaced, 68,800 miles, available soon..............................................................................................£7250

2017 (17) Vauxhall Astra 1.4 SRi 5dr. 100bhp, petrol, 5 speed manual gearbox, auto lights & wipers, parking sensors, cruise control, pre-collision assist, sign recognition, hill hold, Bluetooth, 63,600 miles ..............................................£6950

2018 (67) Vauxhall Mokka X 1.4T Design Nav SUV 5dr. 140bhp, petrol, 6 speed manual gearbox, high seating, sat nav, parking sensors, cruise control, hill hold, auto lights & wipers, 31,100 miles ...............................................................£9650

2016 (66) Vauxhall Mokka

History

A strange event in the Sahara…

by Colonel John Blashford-Snell

ON a Saharan expedition I made a resupply run from our survey teams on a remote plateau to our base at Kufra in southern Libya, 100 kilometres away.

Three of us in my Landrover set out before the sun rose to destroy the glorious cool of dawn. Quite why we went with only one vehicle I cannot recall, but it was an easy run on a well-trodden trail, and we had a radio.

In the afternoon, we were bowling along at about 70mph on the flat, hard sand. The Landrover was piled with kit and, to make more space, the panniers of wire-mesh filled with personal gear, hung out of both sides.

In the back of the Landrover were a dozen tightly packed jerricans of petrol, and water was carried in the jerricans at the front. Smoking near vehicles was strictly forbidden for obvious reasons.

The army issue boiled sweets were great thirst-quenchers, and John, my navigator, turned about to locate some.

“Fire!”, he screamed the dreaded word. If you stop a moving vehicle suddenly, the flames may come back and ‘woomph’, but by keeping going, one might keep the fire away from the fuel cans.

“In the pannier – the bedding’s alight!”, yelled John. The wind was blowing from behind, so I pulled the wheel over to keep the flames away from the cans and we halted gently to avoid spilling fuel.

Hurling survival gear clear, we pulled away the burning bedding. “Get the water from the front,” I shouted, but John had already dragged out the precious liquid and placed it in safety, in case the vehicle blew up with all our supplies.

Using the fire extinguisher

Colonel John Blashford-Snell CBE is a British explorer, former British Army officer and author. He founded the Scientific Exploration Society and Operation Raleigh, which later evolved into a global youth development programme

and hastily dug sand, we smothered the fire.

A hard bump had damaged our exhaust, pointing it upwards into the pannier. The only loss was a sleeping bag, but it had not been a pleasant experience. We repacked, had a few gulps of water and drove on in silence.

As dusk fell, we reached some low rocky hills. There were numerous narrow passes running through. The map wasn’t precise, so I chose one at random, which turned out to be west of the usual route.

My weary crew readily agreed that it was none too soon to call it a day. None of us felt like cooking, so we ate a few hard-tack biscuits smothered in raspberry jam.

The night was clear, and before turning in, I went out with the shovel to commune with nature. Squatting beneath the stars I swore I twice heard a voice calling me. The first time, I looked back to-wards the black outline of the Landrover.

The second time, I said loudly: “Just a minute,” because I thought one of the men had called out. On return to the car, I asked: “What’s the matter?”, John was already asleep but his colleague looked up and said: “‘Nothing, why?” “Didn’t you call?”, I said. “No,” he replied. “Funny,” I yawned. “Must have been the wind.” Exhausted, I fell asleep.

Waking just after dawn, with a shiver and a bursting bladder, I shook off the sand and stretched my stiff limbs. Only partly awake, I caught sight of something odd. Sixty yards away were the remains of a truck. Around it was scattered bits of equipment.

I walked over to the Chevrolet, for even at this distance I recognised the familiar shape of the legendary Long Range Desert Group's (LRDG) raiding vehicle. The debris consisted of cartridges, unexploded grenades and broken weapons.

30ft to one side lay a small wooden cross and pieces of splintered wood of another. Other similar wrecks lay along the wall of the pass.

Combing the area, we made an interesting discovery high among the rocks and found a faded canvas British Army haversack, containing the rusty fragments of a Kodak folding camera and a toothbrush. Nearby were scattered a pile of empty British .303 cartridge cases.

I believe it was here that the LRDG’s ‘T’ Patrol was destroyed by its Italian opposite number, the Auto-Saharan Company based at Kufra. Apparently, a running fight developed on January 31, 1941, when the Italian motorised patrol and three aircraft caught ‘T’ Patrol at Gebal Sherif.

Following the battle, a New Zealander, Trooper RJ Moore, and three colleagues remained undetected among the rocks of

the waterless hills. Almost everything they needed for survival had been destroyed in their vehicle, three of them were wounded and, as all the wells within 200 miles were in enemy hands or blocked with rocks, the situation seemed hopeless.

However, somehow they managed to salvage a twogallon tin of water and, scorning any idea of walking a few miles north-east to surrender at Kufra, they buried the dead and marched south to-wards their allies, the Free French Army, several hundred miles south across arid desert.

Their remarkable escape is a worthy tribute to soldiers of one of the finest special forces ever raised. Three of the men survived and their leader, Trooper Moore, was found by the French walking steadily after 10 days, 210 miles from Gebel Sherif. He was awarded the Distinguished Contact Medal for his leadership and courage.

We re-erected the crosses, saluted and drove off towards Kufra. I reported the matter, and the Imperial War Graves Commission visited the site. But I never did discover the origin of the strange voice I’d heard while squatting in the dunes that night.

n Signed copies of John Blashford-Snell’s recent book, From Utmost East to Utmost West, are available for £19 including UK postage. Contact jenny@ses-explore.org for further details.

The LRDG Chevrolet wreck and (inset) John Blashford-Snell’s Landrover in the desert

60th BIRTHDAY

60th BIRTHDAY KEITH YATES

Happy Birthday on the 15th December Love from Mum and all the family

THANK YOU

GERALD WHITE

would like to thank everyone who came to his 80th Birthday party and for the lovely cards and presents. Thank you all.

Margaret Elsworth

The family of Margaret would like to express their thanks to everyone who attended the funeral service. Carol Hibbert for conducting such a personal and thoughtful service. The staff of Fernbrook Lodge for all their care. A total of £400 was raised in memory of Margaret for Weldmar Hospice.

Michael Pike

will not be sending Christmas cards this year. Instead a donation will be given to the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance.

Christmas Messages

Frances (Dot) GALE

Sadly, died on the 18 November 2024, aged 92 years. Loving Mum, Nan and Great Nan who will be deeply missed. Funeral to be held at 11 am on Monday 16 December 2024 at Salisbury Crematorium, Salisbury. Dress Code-Pale Colours. Family flowers only with donations to the Stars Appeal c/o I N Newman Ltd, Funeral Directors, 55 Winchester Street, Salisbury 01722 413136

HALL

Howard Arthur Buckingham

Peacefully on 21st November, aged 75 years. A dearly loved Uncle, Cousin and friend to many. Funeral service will take place at Yeovil Crematorium on Friday 20th December, at 11:20am. Enquiries c/o Brister & Son Funeral Directors Tel: 01935 812647

PAMELA STURMEY

Passed away suddenly but peacefully at home on 13th November aged 95. Much loved mother, grandmother, sister and friend. Funeral service will take place at Poole Crematorium on 11th December at 11.00am. Donations if desired for R.N.L.I. c/o Colin J Close Funeral Service, Salisbury Rd. Blandford. DT11 7JU Tel 01258 453133

MILES

Lynn Margaret

With great sadness, Lynn Margaret Mills peacefully passed away on the morning of 25th November. She will be deeply missed by her daughter Clare, son Gavin and grandchildren Kyle, Connor, Chloe, Ditso and Karmen. The funeral will take place on Tuesday 10th December at 11.30 am at Weymouth Crematorium. All are welcome to attend and pay their respects. There is no dress code. Family flowers only please, but if desired donations for Marie Curie may be made via: www.cottonfunerals.co.uk or enquiries to Cotton & Son: 01305 767676

Gladys Samways

passed away peacefully at home on the 28th November age 87 after a long illness, she will be sadly missed by husband Michael, Julie, Ian, Paul, Grandchildren, Great Grandchildren and all the family. Private Cremation

DEATHS

Winifred Davies ‘Win’

Passed away in her home in Blandford on 11th Nov.

Aged nearly 98 years.

A very much loved Mum, Grandma and Auntie. She will be dearly missed. The funeral service will be held at Lesley Shand Service Chapel in Blandford on 6th Dec @ 2pm. Family flowers only. Messages of condolence and donations to Friends of Blandford Hospital. C/o Lesley shand www.funeraldirector.co.uk/funeral winifred-gladys-davies

WHITMARSH KEITH “SNOWY”

Keith Whitmarsh of Gillingham sadly passed away at home on the 19th November 2024, aged 90 years. Loving husband of his late wife Jan and a beloved father and grandfather. Funeral Service to be held at Christ Church, East Stour on Thursday 19th December at 11.30am. Family Flowers only please, but donations if desired for either Teenage Cancer Trust or Alzheimer’s Research, may be sent c/o Grassby and Close Funeral Service, 4 Innes Court, Sturminster Newton, DT10 1BB, Telephone 01258 471024 or made online by visiting www.grassbyclose-funeral.co.uk

Colonel Timothy Clive Lewis Drake

ex-RTR, RAPC, AGC, Old Wellingtonian, Churchill College alumnus, Liveryman, Freeman of the City of London, Freeman of the Town of Gillingham and former President of Dorset & Wilts RFU. Died peacefully at home on Thursday 21st November aged 78. He will be greatly missed by his entire family and the North Dorset community he served for so many years. Funeral service at midday, Thursday 19th December at St Mary the Virgin, Gillingham. Reception at North Dorset RFC. All welcome. Donations if desired to the ABF, Marie Curie, or Bowel Cancer UK. C/o Peter Jackson Funeral Services, Harwood House, Newbury, Gillingham, Dorset, SP8 4QJ

Jean Florence Stone née Rolls

passed peacefully in her sleep on the 20th of November. Sadly missed by Elizabeth, Christine, Christopher and the family. Funeral to be held on Friday 20th December, 11am at St Rumbold Church, Pentridge. Please wear bright colours. Enquiries to Chris White Funeral Directors, Wilton, 01722 744 691

LEVER

Kathleen Mary

Peacefully on 23rd November 2024 at Maiden Castle House Care Home, aged 99 years, of Marnhull. Almost reaching her 100th birthday. Dearly loved Mum of Malcolm and Carole.

Much loved Grandmother of Leanne, Joe, Vikki and Shane. Private Cremation.

Donations if desired, for Cancer Research UK. Cheques made payable to the charity may be sent:

C/o Peter Jackson Funeral Services, The Old Reading Room, Shaftesbury Road, Henstridge, BA8 0PP. Tel: 01963 362570

HENRIETTA DAVYS

Passed away suddenly at home on Wednesday 13th November 2024, aged 67 years. Much loved wife to Graham, mother, grandmother, sister and friend to many.

Funeral Service will take place at All Saints Church Kington Magna on Wednesday 11th December 2024 at 12:30 pm. Family flowers only, please wear something bright or blue. Donations in memory of Henrietta are for Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance and All Saints Church, Kington Magna. All donations and enquiries to A J Wakely & Sons, Funeral Directors, 16 Newland, Sherborne, Dorset DT9 3JQ. Tel: 01935 816817.

SHARP

Kenneth Brian

Of Sturminster Newton died peacefully on Sunday 17th November, after a short illness. Much loved father to Joanna and Katy, grandfather to Oliver and a friend to many over the years.

A service will be held at Sturminster Newton Methodist Church at 11am on Friday 13th December. Family flowers only. Donations, if desired, to Dorset & Somerset Air Ambulance, c/o Colin J. Close Funeral Services Tel: 01258 453133.

Bottrell - Hope Marian

of Yeovil formerly of Stalbridge. Passed away peacefully in Beechwood House Care Home, Yeovil on the 25th November 2024 aged 92 years.

A much loved Mum to Simon and Toby and wife to Neil. A beloved grandmother and great-grandmother. Funeral Mass will take place on Monday 16th December 2024, 12.30pm at The Church Of The Holy Ghost, Yeovil. No flowers, donations in memory of Hope for Parkinson’s UK may be given online at www.ajwakely.com or sent c/o A J Wakely and Sons, 33 Sparrow Road, Yeovil, Somerset BA21 4BT. (please make cheques payable to the charity)

DEATHS FUNERAL

THELMA DAGGETT

Passed peacefully on 17th November 2024 aged 82. A much loved wife, mother, Grandmother and by her many friends. There will be a private cremation. Donations to Crohns and Colitus UK can be made via www.peterjacksonfuneralservices.co.uk

Rita Martha Bargery

Passed away peacefully on the 30th November 2024, aged 87. Much loved wife, mother, nanny and sister. Private cremation. Celebration of life to be arranged.

JOYCE JEPSON

On 23rd November 2024, peacefully in Salisbury District Hospital aged 88 years. Of Shaftesbury. Formerly of Accrington.

“Rest in Peace”

Funeral service takes place at Salisbury Crematorium on Friday 13th December at 3.00pm. No flowers please but donations, if desired, for The Stars Appeal at Salisbury District Hospital may be made online at www.mhfd.co.uk or sent to Merefield & Henstridge F/D, Ridgemount, Pitts Lane, West Melbury, Shaftesbury, Dorset SP7 0BU. Tel: 01747 853532.

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J Wakely& Sons Independent Family Funeral Directors

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Choice of Hearses available including our Land Rover Hearse

Choice of Hearses available including our Land Rover Hearse

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Choice of Hearses available including our Land Rover Hearse

Sherborne Tel: 01935 816817 Wincanton Tel: 01963 31310

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Wincanton Tel: 01963 31310 – 24 Hour Service –

Sherborne Tel: 01935 816817

Sherborne Tel: 01935 816817

Sherborne Tel: 01935 816817

Wincanton Tel: 01963 31310 – 24 Hour Service –

Sherborne Tel: 01935

Sherborne Tel: 01935 816817

Wincanton Tel: 01963 31310

Wincanton Tel: 01963 – 24 Hour Service

Please contact Richard Wakely, or a member of our dedicated team for any advice or guidance. Pre-payment plans available

Pre-payment plans available

Pre-payment plans

Pre-payment plans available

Please contact Richard Wakely, or a member of our dedicated

Please contact Richard Wakely, or a member of our dedicated team for any advice or guidance.

Please contact Richard Wakely, or a member of our dedicated team for any advice or guidance. Pre-payment plans available

Please contact Richard Wakely, or a member of our dedicated team for any advice or guidance.

Recruitment

‘Skilled’, ‘organised’, ‘responsible’ – words to avoid on your CV

A NEW study has revealed the most overused words on CVs, with ‘skilled’ coming top, which features more than 3.1 million times.

QR Code Generator compiled a list of 50 commonly used words and phrases on CVs and then ran each of these through Indeed’s Resume Search to find which featured the most across CVs updated in the past six months.

‘Skilled’ was found to be the most frequently used word, featuring in 3,193,157 CVs, and was the most-used word on CVs in 72 UK cities.

The second most-common word was found to be ‘organised’ which featured in

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1,696,706 CVs.

Closely following in third is ‘responsible’, which featured in 1,632,929 CVs.

‘Trained’ placed fourth being used 1,630,002 times.

‘Motivated’ ranks fifth, featuring on 951,857 CVs.

The next most used words were ‘Educated’, ‘Informed’, ‘Social’, ‘Adaptable’ and ‘Confident’.

using an ‘a’ rather than an ‘e’. While ‘confidant’ is a word, it is likely to have been used incorrectly in the context of a CV.

The analysis also looked at the most misspelt words on CVs.

‘Confident’ was the most commonly misspelt word, which was found to be spelt as ‘Confidant’ on 728,561 CVs within the past six months, with many jobseekers incorrectly

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The second most misspelt word was ‘independent’, with 624,622 CVs using an ‘a’ rather than an ‘e’, spelling it as ‘independant’ instead.

Following in third, was ‘refered’ rather than ‘referred’ which cropped up in 171,927 CVs and missed the second ‘r’ from the word.

In fourth was the misspelling of ‘preferred’ as ‘prefered’ which misses out the double ‘r’ and featured in 112,062 CVs.

The fifth most misspelt was

the word ‘definitely’, where jobseekers often confused their vowels instead spelling it as ‘definitaly’ in 70,196 CVs.

Marc Porcar, chief executive of QR Code Generator, said: “For those looking to advance their careers, improve work-life balance, or explore new roles, the language you choose on your CV is essential in catching an employer’s attention.

“Using the same tired buzzwords as everyone else makes it challenging to truly stand out.

“Instead, job seekers should focus on providing concrete examples that illustrate their strengths, rather than simply listing traits like ‘skilled’ or ‘responsible’.

“By doing this, you demonstrate to potential employers that you can substantiate these qualities with real experiences, setting yourself apart from candidates who may rely on generic descriptors.”

Port Regis is a delightful preparatory school, for day and boarding children aged 2-13, in Shaftesbury, Dorset.

We are seeking to recruit to the following roles:

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Applications are invited from candidates who are forward-thinking and big-hearted, who model great drive and enthusiasm. The successful candidates can expect competitive rates of pay and benefits; and to join an exceptional working environment and staff team.

The role of Finance Governor is an unpaid position on the non-executive Board of Governors. The successful candidate would be joining an already strong team of Governors within the School’s Finance Committee and be required to attend two Governor meetings per term (Finance and the full Governing Body).

For full details of the roles and application procedure, please visit our website - portregis.com/vacancies

Early applications encouraged

Port Regis (Charity No: 306218) is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. The successful applicants will be required to undertake an Enhanced DBS and safer recruitment vetting checks.

Youngsters brave Storm Bert in final match

THE last points match of the year for the junior section of Dorchester & District Angling Society was held on Charlotte’s Lake at Harbourbridge Lakes, near Chickerell.

All focus was on the two title contenders, Austin ScottKennedy and Jack Copp, in the deciding match of the year.

But it was Josiah WellsParkes who stole the limelight, catching an impressive 38lb 15oz of carp in very difficult conditions.

Storm Bert did its best to

ANGLING

disrupt the day, but eight brave juniors sat it out for the threehour match, two of whom only came for ‘fun’!

Jack Copp came in second place with 29lb 3oz, with Austin Scott-Kennedy just behind with 26lb 14oz in third.

Austin’s third place was enough to win the 2024 Junior Points Championship on 258 points.

Graham Howard, DDAS juniors secretary, said:

“Congratulations to Austin, Jack and everyone who has competed this year, winners or not.”

For more information about the club, email Graham on juniors.sec@d-das.com or visit ddasjuniors.co.uk. Fishery information is available at harbourbridgelakes.com

School sports teams hit the heights

SOUTH Wilts Grammar School’s (SWGS) sports teams had a super Saturday of sport with the Inter and Senior cross-country teams both qualifying for the Nationals, and the Under-14 and Under-16 netball teams qualifying for the South West Championships.

The cross-country teams travelled to Taunton Racecourse for the English Schools Cross Country Cup A team competition where all runners’ finishing positions contributed points to a team total.

Elara won the Inter Girls race with her teammates not far behind, ensuring that SWGS qualified in first place for the English Schools National Championships in Leeds tomorrow (Saturday, December 7).

The Senior Girls team, led by Sophie, who came third in the race, finished in second, also qualifying for Nationals.

In netball, the SWGS Under-14 and Under-16 teams competed in the Wiltshire Schools tournament for places to go to the South West Championships. Both teams played

consistently well and were rewarded with top two places and qualification for the regional finals in February.

Jo Hole, joint head of PE, said: “The PE department is very proud of the achievements of our students.

“It is fantastic that their hard work, enthusiasm and commitment to training has been rewarded and they deserve everyone’s congratulations.

“We must also thank parents for their support at both competitions. I wish our athletes good luck going forward.”

Austin Scott-Kennedy with his championship winning catch of 26lb 14oz

Josiah Wells-Parkes with his match winning weight of 38lb 15oz

Blandford ride the storm on day of ‘pinball’ hockey

HOCKEY

Blandford & Sturminster

Newton 1

Romsey 3s 1

STORM Bert was raging all around when Blandford took to the pitch aiming to rectify the wrongs of the previous week’s loss.

A combination of the storm and mechanical issues forced Romsey to start the match short-handed.

Blandford pinned them inside their 23 but could not capitalise on the pressure before Romsey returned to full-strength.

The conditions played havoc with Blandford’s usual slick passing and the game at times more closely resembled a broken pinball machine than hockey.

Blandford consistently applied pressure, only to be rebuffed by a combination of valiant defending and a lack of composure in the D.

20 minutes in and Blandford were punished for their sloppiness.

A clearance was picked up smoothly by the Romsey midfield and a bullet pass was immediately drilled into the D.

A first-time touch deflected the ball past Clint Thrower and into the back of the net, giving Romsey a shock advantage.

Blandford attempted to claw their way back into the game, but their usual fire seemed to be drained by the storm.

Blandford continued to press, but the Romsey keeper stepped up, making a fantastic diving save from a short corner and coming bravely off his line twice to block efforts.

At half-time, Blandford attempted to pick themselves back up.

As the second half

developed, Blandford upped their intensity and began to put some good sequences together.

After 50 minutes, Blandford moved the ball into the D.

A smart save from the keeper was calmly controlled by Theo Browning, who brought the ball onto his reverse and swept it over the keeper to level the scores.

Blandford surged forward, finally showing how they had played in previous weeks, looking for the victory.

But Romsey held firm and the game ended in a 1-1 draw.

CONTRIBUTED

Rockies beat form horses

FOOTBALL

Pitching In Southern League Division 1 South

Westbury United 0

Shaftesbury 2 by Avril Lancaster

THE Rockies withstood the pressure from in-form Westbury United to win at Meadow Lane, gaining a result not many would have seen coming and which moved them out of the relegation places.

Toby Bailey fired Shaftesbury ahead after 12 minutes and substitute Remus Nixon broke

Blandford weren’t at their best until the closing stages

Shaftesbury bagged goals through Toby Bailey and Remus Nixon

Pets

How to get rid of fleas

by Lynn Broom Longmead Veterinary Practice

IF you have a dog or cat, then it is likely you will have fleas at some point. Even using regular flea treatment, new fleas can survive for 24 hours or more. Understanding their lifecycle helps with getting rid of them. The flea as we know it is the adult. The adult arrives in your house on your – or someone else’s – pet or on contaminated clothing/bedding. The adult flea feeds on your pet but spends most of its time in carpets or upholstery. Here it lays eggs and these progress thorough several stages to the new adult generation.

If your pet has been treated with an effective flea treatment, adult fleas will usually be killed before they can lay eggs. Using a product that prevents eggs from developing, such as certain spot-ons or an effective household spray, will add an extra level of security for any adults that survive to produce eggs. The spray will also kill

adults.

Larvae are the first stage after the egg hatches and effective household sprays will also kill this stage. But the next stage is the pupae and these are a resistant stage of the flea’s development which can lie dormant for at least one year. Household sprays will not kill them. The only way to reduce their numbers is thorough daily vacuuming – they are ‘sticky’ and attach to carpet fibres. Even hot washes and steam cleaning carpets won’t eliminate them. Increasing room temperature and humidity, such as occurs after an empty house becomes occupied, causes pupae to develop into adults and these can then be killed with an environmental spray.

Not all spot-on products are equal! Some are just flea repellents, some have very limited flea killing ability and some are highly effective and long lasting. The same applies to household sprays – ones that contain permethrin and a flea growth regulator are the most

effective. Care should be taken because permethrin is toxic to cats and fish. Air rooms well after use before allowing cats access and avoid using in rooms with fish tanks.

If you just treat your pet with an effective flea treatment, a flea infestation can take months to clear because the various life stages already present continue to develop. Household sprays and thorough vacuuming can significantly reduce the time

taken to resolve the problem, but nothing will make it go away overnight. Pets with a flea allergy will be itchy even if there are only one or two fleas present because their immune system overreacts to any bites.

If you are struggling to control a flea outbreak, speak to your vet. Short term ‘aggressive’ treatment will clear the problem more quickly and will be cheaper than buying multiple ineffective treatments.

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Understanding the flea’s lifecycle helps with getting rid of them

Empowering a reactive dog: Advocacy tips for owners

by Raychel Curson

ADVOCATING for a reactive dog involves understanding your dog’s needs, ensuring their safety and comfort, and communicating effectively with others in a way that respects both your dog and the people around you.

Reactive dogs often exhibit behaviours like barking, lunging or growling when exposed to certain stimuli, such as other dogs, people or unfamiliar environments.

Understanding & managing triggers

KEEPING a diary can help you clarify your dog’s triggers, as cortisol levels can take 72 hours to return to baseline and knowing these helps you avoid or desensitise them to these situations – please get in touch if you need help with this. Think more proactively rather than reactively with keeping your dog under their threshold so they don’t become overwhelmed. Clear signals/ communication DON’T be afraid to let others know that your dog needs more space through your own body language and/or politely but firmly telling others ‘my dog

needs space’ etc. Visual cues such as yellow lead, vest or lead slip that says ‘Reactive Dog’, ‘Training in Progress’ or ‘Needs Space’ can also be useful. Make sure everyone in your dog’s life knows how to handle them appropriately. Teach them to respect your dog’s space and triggers. Provide them with a sense of safety

TAKING your dog out when the environment is less crowded like early mornings or late evenings can be useful to reduce encounters with other dogs or people. Never force your dog into interactions that might overwhelm them and have a plan for where they can retreat to if they get overwhelmed and help them decompress – this may be a quiet part of the home or a secluded area during walks. Stay patient and calm STUDIES have suggested that dogs of anxious owners may make more pessimistic choices so we want to be as positive and confident as we can. Also, reactive dogs need time and consistency to improve. Progress can be slow, and setbacks are normal, but persistence and patience are key – if you need any assistance, please do get in touch with me to see how I may help you and your dog enjoy walks together again.

n Raychel Curson BSc (Hons) MA CCAB APBC-CAB FABC ABTC-CAB is owner of Pet Peeves Animal Behaviour & Teaching; email raychel@ petpeevessomerset.co.uk

For more details, please call our helpline 01258 858644 or visit our website: cats.org.uk/blandford (Formerly Blandford & Sturminster) Sponsored by Longmead Veterinary Practice Ltd

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, 11 years, delightful boy looking for a retirement home

n For details, please call our helpline on 01258 858644 or visit our website www.cats.org.uk/middorset

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If your cat has gone missing, Cats Protection offers practical steps to help bring them home safely. Start by searching your local area thoroughly, checking sheds, garages, and outbuildings where they might be hiding. Create posters and share them in your neighbourhood and online communities. Inform local vets and animal rescues in case someone has found your cat. Ensure your cat’s microchip details are up to date, as this can be a vital tool for identification. For a detailed guide and additional advice visit the Cats Protection website or call us on 01258 858644.

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Field & Stream

My country life in books – part two

by AJ Selby

So please, oh please, we beg, we pray,

Go throw your TV set away, And in its place you can install, A lovely bookshelf on the wall. Roald Dahl

AS my interest in country matters increased into the teenage years, I was gifted Culpepper’s Herbal, a fascinating look at the use of plants and spices for health and illness. With 400 pages and a first publication date of 1653, just a year before he died aged 38, Culpepper wrote it to make herbal remedies available to all and not just the physicians of the day.

I started to learn about the plant species I had identified and their place in human medicine, and often the origin of their names. The lesser celandine, for example, with its knobbly roots, is known by country dwellers as pilewort and was used to treat that uncomfortable condition. This book also gave me a yearning to learn more about plants that were edible from forest and hedgerow, as I was keen to find out what I could pick and eat on my daily walks.

Two books helped me with this. One from the mother of a school friend who let me have one of her two copies of a book written for the wartime generation whose weekly rations could be enlivened by gleaning wild foods from the countryside and even waste ground. It is called They Can’t Ration These by a French nobleman, the Viscount De Mauduit, and while the recipes for some foods were useful and practical, others were desperate with ways to eat sparrows, rats and grass!

Then, a book for the ages. In February 1974, in heavy snow, I walked the usual one and a

half miles to get the school bus in a larger, neighbouring village, but the bus never arrived. Most of the other boys drifted away to return home, but on a whim, I saw a public bus to another local town about seven miles away, so I hopped on board. There was a wonderful bookshop in that town that was almost entirely stocked with countryside, natural history and gardening books – just my cup of tea.

Browsing the shelves I suddenly came upon the book I had been searching for. Food for Free by Richard Mabey. Here at last was all I needed to clarify the information from Culpepper and De Mauduit. All the wild foods that I wanted more information about were in here with a brief history of usage and cooking methods, from leaves to roots, flowers and berries. I must have read half the entire book on the journey back on the bus despite the beauty of the snow-covered landscape.

1920s collecting plants to sell but living in a rat-infested, derelict cottage in Sussex with no windows or services, and only his dog for company. The overriding theme of the book is his love of the countryside and how the freedom to walk and explore gave him a happiness that trumped the discomforts.

Then I picked up the book that many will have read and that probably influenced me at that time more than any other – The Fat of the Land, by John and Sally Seymour. Leaving his nomadic lifestyle in the mid-1950s to start a family and settle in a near derelict and remote Suffolk cottage, John was ‘forced’ into a life of self-sufficiency to avoid a daily slog on foot to the village for provisions. Starting with fruit and vegetables, he then bought a cow to help feed his family of five, but still had surplus milk, so bought two pigs to drink the excess, and the whey from cheese and butter making. He then needed more land to feed the pigs and cow, so he bought a horse to work the land to grow the crops to feed the stock and the family.

my doorstep I was getting some free milk and making some soft cheese in summer, and I threw myself into our kitchen garden with my father after school – my grandfather was a professional market gardener – to keep us in fresh vegetables. Seymour helped me to do more and improve my skills.

In my spare time I kept up my interest in natural history and bought the Concise British Flora by W Keble Martin –mentioned in previous Diaries – as well as one of the best nature books ever written that has never been out of print since its first publication in 1789 – The Natural History and Antiquities of Selbourne, by Gilbert White – White and Martin were both vicars. This work, written as an exchange of letters about country matters, was said to have been an early influence on Charles Darwin. I read hundreds of books over the following years, and I still have well-thumbed copies on my shelves. As the world changed and agriculture and nature came under the spotlight, so I read, and thoroughly enjoyed, Wilding – the return of Nature to a British Farm by Isabella Tree. A book many will be familiar with – I have also visited the estate and I can highly recommend it.

The following year I spent a month at my godparents’ house in the Cotswolds in a small village near Andoversford, which afforded me the opportunity to walk miles daily exploring a new type of countryside and some different species of plants and birds. I read Copsford by Walter Murray – one man’s year in the

And so he is drawn into a peasant economy – but he does make some money by writing and broadcasting – but his enthusiasm for curing his own bacon, making cheese and butter, and pickling and preserving fruits and vegetables shines through – there was no electricity at The Broome, so preserving was done in jars, cans and salt crocks. By helping out on a dairy farm on

As the past becomes more distant, I see more clearly how the world has changed – and little of it for the better to this writer – and I am fortunate to have spent my childhood and youth in the pre-internet age when life was more carefree and nature more abundant – although even then, on a downward curve. Books have given me knowledge, pleasure and comfort in nearly six decades of reading. I could write about many more great books but some of these titles over the last two Diaries will be quickly stored into my packing case if I am ever to be marooned on that mythical desert island.

Four of AJ Selby’s beloved books

Why we won’t be feeding our cows Bovaer...

By Ruth Kimber

THE farming community is still reeling from the aftermath of the Budget. Then there’s the employer National Insurance contribution and wages going up. And a speeding up of the closing of the Basic Payment Scheme without rolling out details of its replacement. ELMS is a ‘public money for public goods’ environmental, soil and water management scheme – the work farmers have already done remains largely unpaid.

A news item brings questions to our retail business.

Needless to say, we are not part of any trials and do not intend to use Bovaer.

Bovaer is an additive being trialled by a Dutch/Swiss company to reduce the carbon footprint of cattle.

Why should an animal’s natural digestive system be interfered with to mitigate its normal emissions to offset other industry man-made emissions?

(Justin J Frampton) R.F.D.13D New or Secondhand Shot & Air Guns, Rifles and Repairs. Game, Coarse & Sea Angling Equipment

Cows burp, that’s all there is to it – the cycle of methane’s relationship with the land is a short one and has been going on since time began. Most vegetarians burp.

The idea is to feed an additive which will reduce methane from cattle. To include the recommended dose as an additive of 1 gram per 20kg of feed when feeding 200 or so cows through a diet feeder will mean it is difficult to make sure all the cows have the prescribed dose. Some will have too much and others none in their diet –during summer when cows graze, how will it be administered then?

This additive has to be handled by the farmer using protective clothing, gloves and masks, raising alarm bells.

A trial has been going on for two years in 150 herds, with scientific research over 15 years. They operate in 60 countries across the world. This

‘Turkey time’ is coming round

multi-billion company has not had enough time to assess the unintended consequences. Cows’ health, farmers’ health, produce from these animals, effect on the land and so on.

The agriculture sector so often has been the guinea pig to address other parts of society’s problems. Building homes on flood plains, now farmers are asked to flood their fields to offset very stupid planning. Several health scares in the past have had a similar history, many led by in the ever-increasing cry for cheap food.

We are gearing up for our very busy ‘turkey time’. The turkeys have had a great life in the fields and tucked safely in the barn at night away from the ever-watchful fox!

We have a team of helpers, many coming back from previous years, to help with the work. The turkeys are dispatched here by trained family members, so no transport

challenges, then hung to mature the flavour and texture.

Roast turkey is often only an annual treat, but we sell turkey all through the year, as whole birds, joints and so on.

I love to roast a big turkey, hot for Christmas, cold for Boxing Day, sandwiches thereafter, curry, turkey and ham pie, soup, then finally stock. We give some skin and odd bits to our collie and burn the bones in the wood burner – it prevents the foxes raiding the bin!

Don’t forget to order your Christmas meats, our order book is looking good, but there’s still plenty of room for more!

Thank you to all my readers and customers this year. n Kimbers Farm Shop, Kimbers Kitchen, Somerset Trading Barn (BA9 8HD) is on the B3081 Wincanton Racecourse Road. Visit www.kimbersfarmshop. co.uk; phone 01963 33177. Open Tuesday-Friday, 8.30am5pm, Saturday 9.30am-4pm. Christmas and New Year opening: Sunday/Monday, December 22/23 shop open and collection of orders 9am-6pm; Christmas Eve 9am-1pm; New Year’s Eve, Tuesday, December 31, 9am-4pm. Business as usual Friday, January 3, 2025.

3 West Street, Blandford Forum, Dorset DT11 7AW jay@conyers.biz www.conyers.biz

Tel: 01258 452307

Mob: 07973 642278 Est 1886

Highland cows just love the snow

by Tria Stebbing WINTER

arrived with only a few days’ warning.

The long dry spell looked as though it was going to end and, with that in mind, we raided the barn and moved a substantial amount of hay back to the home village.

Last year after Christmas it got so wet that we couldn’t get across the field, except on foot, and, determined not to make the same mistake, we hitched up the trailer and loaded up. The hay still smelt beautiful, and we managed to haul a good load back.

Which was just as well, because four days later it snowed.

I believe in the Blackmore Vale area it was very hit and miss, but we were on the ‘hit’ side of the precipitation. It came down in just a few hours, and beautiful as it was, it quickly covered any grazing up, leading to some very confused looks from the sheep.

Grabbing my camera, I yomped through the village with some ginger biscuit treats in my pocket for the ewes. There is a hush, a silence and an empty echo-type sound when snow has freshly fallen, and that Narniatype wonder.

Sebastian, Belle and Babybel, the Highland cows, were clearly living their best life on the hillside. Stood in their magnificence, they looked very at home. That long fringe, the

Dossan, doing what it is meant to do, and keeping the snow out of their eyes.

They were very curious and wanted to lick the snow before

playfully skipping about in it and playing ‘zoomie’-like games with each other. It was a joy to watch.

The sheep just stood, very

still, almost statue like, letting the snow fall on them. Their fleeces are very dense at the moment and a good protection.

Some of the sheep were lying down on their stomachs faced away from the blowing snow. After a while, they stood, turned around and proceeded to graze on the patch of grass, now thawed, that their stomachs had melted.

Sheep have a reputation for being pretty stupid, but that was a wow moment for me. The hay went down very well, both sheep and cows enjoying it thoroughly.

It thawed two days later, to be replaced by Storm Bert. The Narnia-like winter wonderland fast became a torrent of mud relentlessly running across the field. If animals could talk, I would like to think they preferred the snow, but who knows?

The weekend will be spent moving paddocks, as Humphrey has finished his special job and will return to the group of rams. The ewes will be regrouped to, it is hoped, have a few weeks of good grazing days. Clover and Cupcake will return home.

The current outbreak of Blue tongue is getting closer, so movement on and off the land needs to be where it should be, in the event of lockdown.

The feet need attention again, so they remain keeping us busy, fingers crossed the ewes are now expecting.

Sebastian, Belle and Babybel looked at home in the ‘white stuff’

The sheep lay on their stomachs, then grazed where the snow had melted when they got up

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CONCRETE GROOVING SERVICE.

Cowco Southern. Call Ted: 07970-965040

SHEEP KEEP WANTED. for a small flock of ewes. 15 mile radius of Wincanton. Tel: 07495-423751

RELIEF MILKER, available afternoons. Tel: 07425-811817

CARAVAN REMOVAL

SERVICE, old, unwanted caravans, cars, trailers, vans etc. Garden machinery, tractors, scrap metal. Yard, garden, garage removal clearances undertaken, dismantling and gas cutting service. Please call 01935 873169 or 07368-380477.

ALLIS CHALMERS TRACTORS wanted for parts. 01935-873169.

Meadow

MOBILE CRIMPING AND ROLLING. All cereals, pulses and maize, up to 20 tonnes per hour. Call Andy 07979-758907.

SHIPPING CONTAINERS FOR SALE

Tel: 01258 472288 / Mob: 07977 936109

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EVERY WEDNESDAY WEEKLY SALES OF PRIME CATTLE CULL CATTLE DAIRY CATTLE & CALVES. PRIME, STORE & CULL SHEEP

FRIDAY – SALE OF STORE & BREEDING CATTLE

WEDNESDAY 11th DECEMBER FORTNIGHTLY SALE OF PIGS

WEDNESDAY 18th DECEMBER SALE OF REARED CALVES

MONDAY 16th DECEMBER SALE OF TB RESTRICTED CATTLE

WEDNESDAY 27th NOVEMBER CHRISTMAS FATSTOCK SHOW CLASSES FOR HANDLED & UNHANDLED PRIME CATTLE. BARREN COWS. PRIME LAMBS. PRIME PIGS & CALVES

WEDNESDAY 18th DECEMBER - LAST MARKET BEFORE CHRITSTMAS SALE FOR ALL SECTIONS INCLUDING REARED CALVES, PIGS & STORE CATTLE

27th NOVEMBER CHRISTMAS FATSTOCK SHOW CLASSES FOR HANDLED & UNHANDLED PRIME CATTLE. BARREN COWS. PRIME LAMBS. PRIME PIGS & CALVES FATSTOCK SHOW DINNER FRIDAY 29th NOVEMBER

FATSTOCK SHOW DINNER FRIDAY 29th NOVEMBER

MONDAY 30th DECEMBER SALE FOR ALL SECTIONS EXCEPT PIGS

WEDNESDAY 4th

2024 FATSTOCK SHOW RESULTS

WEDNESDAY 4th DECEMBER SALE OF REARED CALVES ********************************************************************

Handled Champion 420p/k (£2617) from Lucy Gould

WEDNESDAY 11th DECEMBER FORTNIGHTLY SALE OF PIGS

Handled Reserve Champion 477p/kg (£2740) from S & R Stamp

16th

Un Handled Champion 362p/kg (£2422) from H G Perkins & Sons

MONDAY 16th DECEMBER SALE OF TB RESTRICTED CATTLE ********************************************************************

Un Handled Reserve Champion 360p/kg (£2336) from H Weaver

Champion Barren Cow 240p/kg (£2337) from H G Perkins & Sons

Champion Lambs 536p/kg (£260) from S & R Stamp

Reserve Champion Lambs 425p/kg (£170) from AGF Lockyer

Champion Pigs 316p/kg (£340) from SJS Loveless

WEDNESDAY 18th DECEMBER LAST MARKET BEFORE CHRISTMAS SALE FOR ALL SECTIONS INCLUDING REARED CALVES, PIGS & STORE CATTLE ********************************************************************

WEDNESDAY 18th DECEMBER LAST MARKET BEFORE CHRISTMAS SALE FOR ALL SECTIONS INCLUDING REARED CALVES, PIGS & STORE CATTLE ********************************************************************

Reserve Champion Pigs 281p/kg (£281) from K Lye

Champion Calf £500 from M Carver

MONDAY 30th DECEMBER SALE FOR ALL SECTIONS EXCEPT PIGS ******************************************************************** FOR ADVICE ON ALL CLASSES OF STOCK PLEASE CALL

Reserve Champion Calf £398 from M & P Watts

FOR ADVICE ON ALL CLASSES OF STOCK PLEASE CALL

BRADLEY TOWELL 07496 263916 TOM ROGERS 07384 462288

BRADLEY TOWELL 07496 263916 TOM ROGERS 07384 462288

TREVOR ROWLAND 07968 480401 LESTER WILLIAMS 07778 646031

TREVOR ROWLAND 07968 480401 LESTER WILLIAMS 07778 646031

ROSS WHITCOMBE 07815 985737 CLIVE PEACH 07970 620859 ANDREW FRIZZLE 07977 136863

ROSS WHITCOMBE 07815 985737 CLIVE PEACH 07970 620859 ANDREW FRIZZLE 07977 136863

Frome Livestock Market, Standerwick, Somerset, BA11 2QB 01373 830033 info@fromelivestock.com www.fromelivestock.com

MONDAY 30th DECEMBER SALE FOR ALL SECTIONS EXCEPT PIGS ******************************************************************** FOR ADVICE ON ALL CLASSES OF STOCK PLEASE CALL BRADLEY TOWELL 07496 263916 TOM ROGERS 07384 462288 TREVOR ROWLAND 07968 480401 LESTER WILLIAMS 07778 646031 ROSS WHITCOMBE 07815 985737 CLIVE PEACH 07970 620859 ANDREW FRIZZLE 07977 136863 Frome Livestock Market, Standerwick, Somerset, BA11 2QB 01373 830033 info@fromelivestock.com www.fromelivestock.com

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PPROPERTY AUCTIONS FRIDAY 25 OCTOBER 2024 & FRIDAY 15 NOVEMBER 2024 AT THE DIGBY CHURCH MEMORIAL HALL, SHERBORNE AT 2:00PM AND VIA LIVESTREAM

North Perrott Guide £45,000

3.01 acres (1.22 ha) of gently sloping pasture land with direct road access. Freehold.

Hilton Blandford | 01258 452670 Guide £10,000

0.17 acres (0.06 hectares) of garden/ amenity land with vehicular access and a range of broad leaf trees situated 2 miles from Milton Abbas. Freehold.

Yeovil | 01935 432526

Shaftesbury

Guide £150,000

Witchampton Guide £50,000

0.19 acres of amenity land with scope for a range of uses (STPP/consents), adjoining residential properties. Freehold.

Clayhidon Ilminster | 01460 200790 Guide £50,000

A traditional stone and flint barn with full planning permission for conversion to a dwelling, set in 1.29 acres in the Blackdown Hills with lovely views. Freehold.

Wimborne | 01202 843190

Radstock

Guide £300,000

12.37 acres (5.00 hectares) of undulating pasture land enjoying an elevated position to the south west of Shaftesbury with far-reaching rural views. Freehold

29.15 acres of gently sloping pasture land with vehicular access, offered in two lots. Lot A 24.59 acres: £225,000. Lot B 4.56 acres: £75,000. Freehold.

Pallington Guide £350,000

38.42 acres (15.55 hectares) of fertile, workable arable land with good accessibility. Conveniently split into three workable parcels. The land has previously been used to grow salad crops and is understood to be very productive, more recently the land has been in a combinable crop rotation. This Autumn, the land has been drilled with a cover crop. Freehold.

Salisbury | 01722 334323

Dorchester | 01305 236237

Devizes | 01380 710535

Dorchester

Guide £280,000

Wimborne

Guide £295,000

Batcombe, Dorchester Guides £40,000 to £115,000 20.70 acres (12.01 ha) tucked away in a quiet rural position in 3 lots.

A charming 4 bedroom Grade II

Lot A – 15.02 ac arable capable pasture land with a gentle south facing slope£115,000

Blandford Forum

Guide £95,000

Verwood Guide £125,000

Bridport

Guide £125,000

A ground floor 2 bedroom property for refurbishment with parking and garden close to the town centre. Leasehold/ share of freehold (105 years remaining).

1.38 acres with a derelict barn in a residential location falling within the main urban development area on the Local Plan. Freehold.

Blandford | 01258 452670

Wimborne | 01202 843190

Poole

An end of terrace 2 bedroom cottage in need of renovation. A large lock-up garage (£7,500) and a single garage (£5,000) are available as separate lots. Freehold.

Winfrith Newburgh Guide £170,000 20.42 acres (8.26 ha) of level, productive permanent pasture land adjacent to Tadnoll and Winfrith Heath. Freehold.

Bridport | 01308 422313

Dorchester | 01305 236237

A former supported living HMO with 3-4 bedrooms with scope for conversion to 2 flats (STPP), or for use as a single dwelling. Situated close to the hospital. Freehold.

Wimborne | 01202 843190 Guide £250,000-£275,000

Shepton Mallet

Guide £275,000

Winterborne Houghton Guide £400,000 42.94 acres (17.38 ha) of productive arable land. Free draining loam soil over chalk, two road access points, a cattle handling race, outstanding views and private water supply. South east aspect suited to vines and solar. Freehold.

Sturminster Newton | 01258 472244

An exciting investment opportunity comprising 3 maisonettes and a commercial premises in a historical building in the heart of the town. Freehold.

Yeovil | 01935 423526

Guide £300,000

Shaftesbury Guide £95,000

East Orchard

Guide £350,000

Listed townhouse situated within the heart of the county town with character features and a private, walled courtyard garden. Freehold.

A Grade II Listed mixed-use property comprising a ground floor retail unit producing £11,495 p/a and a vacant 3 bedroom property with off-road parking and a garden. Freehold.

Lot B - 3.57 ac pasture and woodland including an old brick pumphouse - £40,000

Lot C – 11.11 ac pasture and strip of woodland with stream frontage - £90,000 Sturminster Newton | 01258 472244

Dorchester | 01305 261008

Wimborne | 01202 843190

Guide £395,000

Chilcompton Guide £195,000

A development site measuring 3.25 acres with full planning permission for a detached dwelling. In an elevated position close to the town centre.

A partially built 5 bedroom detached house, with double garage and gardens. PP was granted under application reference 2022/1683/FUL. Freehold.

Sturminster Newton | 01258 473766

Bruton Sturminster Newton | 01258 473766

Hurcott Guide £200,000 A period detached cottage in need of general improvement throughout, set in spacious gardens of 0.21 acres (0.08 hectares). Freehold.

Guide £450,000

An attractive 4 bedroom farmhouse in 2.64 acres with potential to create an annexe surrounded by gardens and backing onto an amenity rich strip of woodland. Freehold.

Iliminster | 01460 200790

Wellington Tiverton | 01884 218911

A prime development opportunity (STPP) in a strategic location comprising a generous sized plot with buildings and a concrete yard area extending to 2.19 acres. Freehold.

A charming 1 bedroom property forming part of a Grade II* Listed building, ideal as a buy to let investment or bolthole. Leasehold with 50% share of freehold.

Sturminster Newton | 01258 473766

Wellington Tiverton | 01884 218911

Milborne Port Guide £150,000 An attractive period property for renovation enjoying a generous garden sitting on the outskirts of Milborne Port. Freehold.

A rare opportunity to purchase a former farmyard measuring 2.00 acres and buildings with Class Q consent for three dwellings in a peaceful, rural setting. Freehold.

Sherborne | 01935 814488

Sturminster Newton | 01258 473766

Bayford, Wincanton

Guide £575,000

A handsome 4 bedroom period house in need of restoration throughout with a detached former coach house and dairy buildings providing potential. Set within partwalled, mature gardens and grounds of 0.57 acres, conveniently located for nearby road and rail links. Freehold.

Tarrant Gunville Guide £225,000-£250,000 A detached 2 bedroom cottage for complete renovation, situated in this highly sought after village within Cranborne Chase. Freehold. Blandford | 01258 452670

Sturminster Newton | 01258 473766

Belchalwell Guide £250,000 A detached bungalow on a 0.30 acre plot for modernisation/replacement (STPP) with a positive pre application response for a 4 bedroom house. Freehold.

Sturminster Newton | 01258 473766

Freehold.

(retail/offices with parking.) Oakleigh Court, Newbury, Gillingham Dorset SP84HZ, near the town centre. Approx. 1500 sq. ft.

£11,000 pa. 01747-840773 / 07502-132193

Hollytree Cottage a

‘do-upper’

THE aptly named Hollytree Cottage is going under the hammer at auction next week.

The detached three-bedroom house at Horn Ash, near Crewkerne, sits on a sizeable corner plot and has planning permission for an extension.

It is among 146 lots in Clive Emson Land and Property Auctioneers’ December sale.

Senior auction appraiser, Audrey Smith, said: “Hollytree Cottage is well located close to the Dorset-Somerset border and has outstanding views of the River Axe valley.

“Requiring refurbishment, it has a mature garden, driveway parking and a garage.

“The cottage also comes with the benefit of planning permission for an extension.

“It is likely to appeal to builders for onward sale post works or owner-occupiers looking for a lovely family home.

“With its somewhat apt name for our final auction of the year in December, it might make a wonderful Christmas present!”

Clive Emson Auctioneers, which has offices in Essex, Kent, Sussex, Hampshire and the west country, holds auctions eight times a year.

Bidding for the latest auction, the final one of the year, goes live on Monday, December 9, and ends on Wednesday, December 11.

Visit www.cliveemson.co.uk for more details.

& REPAIR LEAKS FROM £150

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