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Govan
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MORE than 90 new homes could be built on a former school site in Swanage.
A planning application has been submitted to Dorset Council by Chapman Lily Planning Ltd on behalf of Harrow House International College (Swanage) Ltd to develop land at Harrow House, in Harrow Drive.
The scheme would see 93 properties built on the 1.6-hectare site, including 14 apartments within the former main school building.
“The land was previously occupied by the Harrow House International School, which was founded in 1969 and provided educational courses for international students on a residential basis,” the application said.
“The school has since closed
– you’re the hottest
A SHOW by legendary comedian Jack Dee in Swanage sold out less than 10 minutes after tickets went on sale.
The performance is set to take place at The Mowlem theatre on Tuesday, October 8. It is a warm-up ahead of a full UK tour for the star, known for Jack Dee’s Saturday Night and Jack Dee’s Happy Hour.
In 2009, Jack replaced Humphrey Lyttelton as chair of BBC Radio 4’s I’m Sorry, I Haven’t A Clue.
And after announcing the date, the theatre said the demand was enormous.
“What? Less than 10 minutes of the doors being open and Jack Dee sold out,” a spokesperson said.
“Thank you to everyone who
and the land is now owned by Westcoast Developments.”
It said since 2021, the plans had been developed in consultation with planners and the public, through consultations, resulting in the final submission.
“The proposals now put forward include new dwellings of a mixture of types as well as the refurbishment and conversion of the main original school building which has been identified as a landmark
Comedian Jack Dee’s tour warm-up show at The Mowlem in Swanage sold out in 10 minutes
purchased tickets, we can’t wait to welcome Jack to Swanage in October.”
Meanwhile, they said comedy fans could also catch award-winning comedian Maisie Adam at The Mowlem on Wednesday, November 6. Visit themowlem.com for a full programme of events and ticket details.
Harrow House International College closed in 2020 PHOTO: ACG Architects/ Dorset Council
building and non-designated heritage asset,” the application went on.
“The proposals are for a total of 93 dwellings on the site, including 14 apartments within the conversion of the main school building.
“The remaining 79 new homes include 38 apartments of 1-3 beds, split between three blocks, with the remainder of dwellings being 2-4 bed houses.
“These are formed into a mix of terraces, semi-detached and
link-detached homes. The overall density of the proposed masterplan is therefore 58 dwellings per hectare.”
Almost 10% of the new properties would be classed as “affordable” “first homes”, it added.
The main access to the development would be from Walrond Road, the plans said, with a total of 142 parking spaces on the site.
Each property would have a private garden, the application said, while around 0.3 hectares of public open spaces would also be created.
“This space has been consolidated around the centre and west of the site, where it benefits from the particularly unique views of the Purbeck valley beyond, as well as significantly enhancing the setting of the existing landmark schoolhouse building,” it added.
For more details, and to comment on the scheme, log on to dorsetcouncil.gov.uk and search for application reference P/OUT/2024/03253.
THE Music by the Sea festival is returning to Swanage for a fourth year at the end of the month to support local charities.
The family event was set up in 2021 to celebrate the life of young local man local Henry Searle who lost his seven-year battle with a brain tumour at Easter that year aged 25.
The town, family and friends from all around the country, and Cancare Purbeck and Swanage Railway, supported Henry over the years, along with local businesses.
Henry was a big music lover and played in bands with friends in and around Swanage.
This year’s Music by the Sea event in Prince Albert Gardens will feature an exciting line-up of artists performing music from
the 1960s to current, including soul, disco, rock ‘n’ roll and DJ sets.
Searle died four years ago at the age of just 25
A Freddie Mercury “party” is also in the line-up, providing an opportunity for festival-goers to join in and sing-along.
Music by the Sea has raised funds for a wide range of local charities, primarily Cancare Purbeck, which helped Henry and his family throughout his illness, and which this year celebrates 35 years of supporting the community.
This year the festival will thank the team and celebrate their hard work and support over the years – anyone who has been supported by Cancare is invited to go along and say “thank you” to a team of dedicated volunteers.
The festival has also raised funds for WillDoes2004, Save Our Ambulance Car Swanage, Swanage Drama Group, GoFundMe for local Emily McDonald, Jack Gillespie family support and local families in need.
This year the festival is helping Cancare Purbeck once again and the Swanage Railway Save Your Railway appeal.
The music acts will be performing free of charge – and event organisers would like to
thank all the acts who have supported the event since 2021, as well as the volunteers.
Visitors are welcome to take their own chairs and picnic blankets to the festival, but the event is plastic-free and visitors should take away their rubbish, if possible.
Local food and drink stalls and a bar will be at the event offering festival-goers plenty of choice.
The following organisations and businesses are supporting the event: Fine & Country, Isle of Purbeck; The Fonc Lounge; Corben’s; Country Foods; Travis Perkins; Biffa Waste; Purbeck Kitchens; The Pines Hotel; Blue Fish Plumbing; Regency Dental Practice; the Royal British Legion; The Royal Oak, Swanage; Bay View Holiday Park; Eliana Bingo Night; Vivian School of Dance, Lytchett Matravers; Swanage Carnival marshalls; Swanage litter buddies; Daish Holidays, Bournemouth; The Grand Hotel, Swanage; The Coventrian’s Quizzers (Coventry); Phoenix Rock N Roll Band Stand event; Cumulus Outdoors; Jack Gillespie memorial; Swanage Football Club.
The Music by the Sea Festival is on Saturday, August 31, from 11am-8pm, no entry after 6pm
Tickets are on sale in partnership with Swanage Railway and available online at www.swanagerailway.co. uk>events priced £10 adult, under-16s free – children must be accompanied by an adult.
Cash wrist bands are available from The Swanage School, High Street BH19 2PH; and Country Foods, 37 Station Road, BH19 1AD.
DOLPHINS thrilled Swanage sightseers recently, leaping from the water next to the town’s pier.
The pod of three dolphins played close to jet-skiers and tourist boats for around 20 minutes before following a City Experiences cruise out towards Old Harry Rocks.
The dolphins played in the wake of the boat before disappearing from view.
The captain of the cruise told tourists it had been a while since he had last seen dolphins visit Swanage Bay.
On arrival in Poole, he
apologised for the hour-long delay in Swanage, and hoped the dolphins had made up for it.
“It was quite a job arranging their visit,” he added wryly.
THE Swanage Skatepark Community Project (SSCP) has raised £20,000 for the reconstruction of Swanage Skatepark in a Crowdfunding campaign.
Generous community donations of £14,000 enabled the project to receive an additional £6,000 in match funding from Sport England.
Heidi Florence, from SSCP, said: “We’re so grateful to the community for supporting our fundraising efforts over the past few months.
“Thanks to this collective effort, we not only reached our Crowdfunder target but have succeeded in giving Swanage Skatepark a sense of identity, and skatepark users feel like they belong to something.
“Running the Crowdfunder campaign and hosting our first Community Day have laid the foundations for building the vibrant skate community we want to see in Swanage.”
The fundraising campaign
was initially planned to run for eight weeks but was extended to 12 weeks to allow extra time to reach the target.
Success finally came at a Swanage Town & Community Partnership (STCP) annual meeting when representatives from the town council and local groups came together and voted unanimously to give £4,000 to the Swanage Skatepark Crowdfunder.
The STCP aims to help create a vibrant, friendly community for townsfolk, supported by a thriving economy in a safe and healthy environment.
Recent meetings have focused on the development of a youth strategy, with the skatepark project a key piece of that puzzle.
The Crowdfunder campaign was a community effort with local businesses offering rewards as an incentive for donations.
In addition, Swanage
the springboard of community donations to apply for local and national grants.
SSCP is working on applications for three opportunities with deadlines in July and August, and business sponsorship packages are in development.
Badminton Club, Tilly’s Ice Cream and Skate Not Bored all contributed generously to the fundraising.
Heidi Florence added:
“Reaching our Crowdfunder target was crucial not only to secure match funding from Sport England but also to show grant-giving organisations that our community strongly supports the project.
“Potential funders will want to see that the skatepark is desired and backed by the community, and our Crowdfunder campaign clearly demonstrates this.”
The £20,000 from the Crowdfunder joins a pledge of £15,000 from Swanage Town Council, bringing the total raised so far to £35,000.
SSCP is aiming to raise £200,000 to fully fund a project to replace ramps that had to be removed and improve and extend the skatepark.
The Swanage Skatepark Community Project plans to use
The group also plans to host a follow up to the Skatepark Community Day held in June, which saw hundreds of people enjoying the vibrancy of skatepark culture.
The event is likely to take place this autumn and the group is seeking more volunteers to help make it happen.
The SSCP team would like to thank everyone who has donated already and all the businesses which offered rewards.
They would especially like to thank #Willdoes for funding the Skatepark Community Day.
The target to achieve match funding has been hit but the Crowdfunder will remain open for additional donations, as every penny counts.
Visit www.crowdfunder.co. uk/p/swanage-skatepark to donate.
More information is available on the website at www. swanageskateparkcommunity project.com.
Anyone who would like to join the team of volunteers, should email swanageskatepark @gmail.com.
THE Swanage School is staging Footloose at The Mowlem in February 2025, following its four-date sell out of Matilda the Musical at the start of this year.
Footloose is the story of Ren McCormack, a teenage boy from Chicago. He and his mother move to the small town of Bomont after his father abandons them.
Upon arriving, Ren finds himself at odds with most of the town, including the Reverend Moore. The Reverend has convinced the town to outlaw dancing, which Ren cannot understand.
becomes his best friend, Ren convinces the Reverend to let the teenagers dance, and in the process helps the town to heal from a tragedy that affected them all.
Peppered with pop classics such as Let's Hear it for the Boy, Holding Out for a Hero and the title song Footloose, The Swanage School is guaranteed to have audiences singing and dancing in the aisles.
With the help of Ariel, the Reverend’s daughter, and Willard, a country hick who
The show will be director of Performing Arts, Harry Peake’s, ninth annual musical show directed for the school.
Like Matilda, Footloose will benefit from a professional set as a backdrop for the student
performers and will feature the slick choreography audiences have come to expect from the school’s shows.
The team at The Swanage School said: “At recent auditions, when main roles were cast, some 85 students signed up to be in the show – the most ever – and that doesn't yet include the incoming Year 7s, who will be invited to join in September.
“That's roughly a quarter of the school, an impressive ratio by any standards.
“We are so excited to be bringing another fantastic show to The Mowlem for the town to enjoy!”
Rehearsals start in earnest in September and students will be working hard throughout the autumn and winter ready for the show to open with performances on Thursday and Friday, February 27 and 28, at 7.30pm, and on Saturday, March 1, with a 2.30pm matinee and a 7.30pm finale.
Tickets are now on sale –visit www.themowlem.com.
FIFTY climate and nature campaigners marched along Shore Road in Swanage on a recent Sunday afternoon in a “Funeral for Nature”.
The event, organised by Extinction Rebellion, was timed to take place the day before the EU Day for Victims of the Global Climate Crisis.
The “funeral” saw formally dressed pall bearers carry a coffin – topped with a wreath of single use plastic and a papiermâché bird – followed by a procession of mourners.
Stewards handed out “order
of service” pamphlets to onlookers urging them to ask their MPs to sign up to the Climate and Nature Bill.
The procession passed slowly along Victoria Avenue and the seafront to Prince Albert Gardens where the group assembled at the amphitheatre to hear a selection of speakers.
Karen Naylor, from Sustainable Wareham, said: “If we all choose to make just a few changes for nature we can ensure that Sunday’s mock funeral never actually takes place along our beautiful coast.”
by Julie Bradshaw
A WORGRET Road resident commented regarding the request to Dorset Council to transfer the playing field at the former Middle School site to Wareham Town Council. Was it not true, he asked, that the site had once been offered to the town council?
Councillor Holloway proposed that the town council write to the newly elected MP, Vikki Slade, to demonstrate its backing for the retention of the level crossing.
Purbeck Local Plan has been adopted by Dorset Council. Find it by searching for “Purbeck Local Plan” on www. dorsetcouncil.gov.uk.
The Purbeck Youth and Community Foundation Family Hub is up and running in the Youth Centre next to Purbeck
Sports Centre, behind Purbeck School. Phone 01929 552934 for more information.
The Lidl planning application has been rescheduled to go to Dorset Council’s Eastern Area planning committee on Wednesday, August 14, at 10am at the Allandale Centre, Wimborne. Repairs to play equipment at Hauses Field, which had been vandalised, cost more than £2,000.
The Museum is marking its 50th anniversary from Friday to Sunday, September 27-29.
In future any councillor will have the right to be mayor –that is, the office of mayor will not be awarded according to length of service on the council. In future the composition of committees and sub-committees will not necessarily reflect the proportion of the council’s political groupings, as has been the case since 1987. The chair of each committee will be appointed at the first meeting of that committee and not at the full council meeting as previously. These changes are part of the council’s new Standing Orders.
The town council is at the first stage of obtaining a Traffic Regulation Order from Dorset Council for Howards Lane car park in order that parking restrictions can be enforced. The second stage is public
consultation. Parking fines have until now covered the cost of enforcement in that car park. Now the town council will have to pay towards the cost.
The town council has a new administration officer and has appointed a deputy town clerk and seasonal groundsperson.
Gail Pettifer, the outgoing deputy town clerk, promised to return for the unveiling of the rebuilt toilets in Howards Lane.
The public is welcome to attend the next council meetings on Tuesdays August 27 and September 24 at 7.30pm in the council chamber. Further information is available on the council’s website, www. wareham-tc.gov.uk, or by phoning the town council office on 01929 553006.
OSPREY chicks from the only breeding pair of ospreys in the south of England have now all left their nest.
The ospreys were reintroduced to Poole Harbour in 2017 with the aim of restoring a breeding population of the birds of prey on the south coast.
The eldest chick (5R0) took off on July 14 at 9.08am, followed by 5R2 a couple of hours later, 5R1 on July 18 and finally 5H6 on July 22 at 3.28pm.
Conservation charity Birds of Poole Harbour says all the chicks are in great condition and are now learning to explore the skies.
A spokesperson said: “They’re still coming back to the nest for fish from the parents
and will continue to do so for the next few weeks before starting to think about making their migration in August/ September.”
The Woodland Trust says osprey numbers have dwindled over the years with persecution from gamekeepers and egg collectors pushing them to extinction in the early 1900s.
A combination of legal protection, natural recolonisation, reintroduction projects and the banning of organochlorine pesticides have allowed ospreys to make a comeback.
Birds of Poole Harbour is partnered with the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation to deliver the Poole Harbour Osprey Translocation Project, which
aims to restore a breeding population of the birds to the south coast.
The project, which started in 2017, involves the translocation of 60 juvenile ospreys from Scottish nests to the Poole Harbour area.
This process aims to create a bond between the young ospreys and their new local area, before they leave on their first
migration, usually to West Africa.
This bond draws the ospreys back to Poole Harbour on their return to the UK, when they will identify suitable nesting sites, after at least two years maturing in their wintering grounds.
To keep an eye on the nest, watch the live feed at https:// www.birdsofpooleharbour. co.uk/osprey/osprey-webcams.
Slimming World is the proud Sponsor for Race for Life and 9 members took the challenge and raised over £1500.
Split between the Bournemouth and Poole races some ran, some walked, but I’m so proud that each and everyone crossed the finish line!
Without Slimming World and losing over 18 stone between them this challenge would have never been a possibility! Some members struggled to walk even a short distance before losing weight but can now run 5k!!
If you would like to lose weight to support your health or mobility, come along to one of my Swanage Groups held every Thursday at Swanage Bay View Holiday Park. 9am, 5.30pm or 7.30pm
THE mountains of Snowdonia provided the setting for a Wareham man’s fundraiser in aid of the UK Sepsis Trust.
Barry Ashdown’s three-day trek-row challenge, walking the Welsh 3000s route from north to south, has so far raised more than £2,000.
Barry, 52, carried a Concept2 Rowing machine to the top of each of the 3000s mountains then rowed their height in metres above sea level.
The rowing machine weighed in at 26kg and with
the rest of his kit he was carrying in the region of 30-32kg.
Barry said: “I did nine out of the 15 mountains. I did not do five of them on Day 2 due to the potential of thunder and lightning.
“I also did not do one on Day 3 as it’s on a very exposed ridge and it was wet and windy.
“However, I want to go back to do the five I missed and maybe tackle the one on the exposed ridge.”
Barry set out to raise £1,000 and has more than doubled that total, but would still like to raise more.
Anyone who can help should visit his JustGiving page at www.justgiving.com and search ‘Barry Ashdown’.
WE are delighted to announce that people will benefit from improved NHS audiology services thanks to a brand-new facility in Weymouth. The new capacity and staff resources will help us provide quicker appointments so we can diagnose and treat conditions faster.
Our new base for the audiology team in the west of the county has opened in the Park Centre, next to Weymouth Community Hospital.
While some patients will still be able to attend clinics closer to home at sites in Bridport, Blandford, Sherborne and Dorchester, the new suite offers new, state-of-the art equipment to aid local diagnosis and treatment. More advanced balance
testing equipment enables the team to perform new tests which can aid diagnosis of problems such as dizziness and vertigo. There are also video screens for paediatric testing, giving more options when testing the hearing of young children.
In addition, the new audiology hub and its expanded team offer a significant increase in capacity, reducing waiting lists for patient appointments. We will also provide placements for apprentices and students, helping to train a Dorset
The Audiology team outside the Park Centre
workforce for the future.
The audiology suite has opened as part of the NHS England’s Community Diagnostics Centre (CDC) programme. In Weymouth this includes other new services and facilities such as a CT scanner, x-ray and ultrasound managed by Dorset County Hospital at the Weymouth Hospital site.
Dorset HealthCare’s capital planning team led on the
design, refurbishment and installation of the new audiology hub, as well as the installation of the CT scanner and suite.
For more information about Dorset’s audiology service visit www.dorsethealthcare. nhs.uk/audiology
Helen Williams Dorset’s audiology/ community ear nose and throat service manager at Dorset HealthCare
CARERS enjoyed a day at a beach hut in Swanage when they took a break from their regular routine, courtesy of Lewis-Manning Hospice Care.
The small group had the chance to unwind, laugh – and even dip their toes in the sea.
The carers first dropped off their spouses at the hospice at Poole, where the clinical team took over caring duties, and provided clinical support, games, arts and crafts and lunch.
They then used the beach hut as their base for the day, and location for their monthly support and bereavement carers group.
Family support and bereavement lead at LewisManning, Jo Sharkey, said: “What a wonderful day we all enjoyed – it was incredibly relaxing and just what the carers needed.
“We devoured delicious fish and chips, someone bought some Prosecco and another some fresh strawberries, it was such a treat.
“The loveliness of it all was just being able to sit and do nothing but enjoy each other’s company.
“There were lots of shared conversations about what is happening in their lives, but the day out provided time out for the carers not to be responsible for anything or anybody for a short time, have food put in front of them and do something normal!
“Things that so many of us perhaps take for granted but I was so mindful of giving these people some time out, which they’re not used to as many are 24/7 carers for their loved ones
at a particularly difficult and emotional time. The hours passed so quickly, too!”
One of the carers, Val, said: “When you’re a carer, it’s like you’re sitting in a hole, and you just want someone to come and sit with you. Lewis-Manning is my rock. The compassion and care are so special. I have been attending the group for around two years.”
Another carer, Alison, said: “As a carer, you are working 365 days a year, 24/7 with no support. There are no holidays.
Who would want that job? Lewis-Manning is the only part of my life that has stayed the same for the past six months.”
Carla, a carer, added: “We have no judgment, and it’s a safe space here on this day out. Hopefully, at the end of the day we will remain friends.”
Anyone interested in finding out about the Family Support and Bereavement Service at Lewis-Manning Hospice Care can visit www.lewis-manning. org.uk/bereavement-familysupport.
AT Margaret Green Animal Rescue, we understand how important it is to have the opportunity to pay tribute to someone special, and the love you shared together.
Choosing to support us in memory of a loved one or animal companion is a truly wonderful way to celebrate their life and keep that love going.
Our caring team can offer advice about how to create a collection through a funeral director. We can also provide special collection envelopes and containers, should you prefer to organise this yourself.
Asking family and friends to support us in lieu of flowers is a positive way to honour their life as an animal-lover and will enable us to continue to rescue and rehome many animals each year.
As we receive no government funding, we rely entirely on the generosity of our incredible supporters to help us to give animals in need the chance of happiness they
THE Mowlem in Swanage is staging a “Summer of Music” this month with bands and DJs in The Showbar after each live event.
Coming up are: Monday, August 5 – Supersonic Queen, Queen tribute; Wednesday, August 7 – Simon & Garfunkel Through the Years; Saturday, August 10 – Gary and Robbie Live; Monday, August 12 –Take A Chance On Us, Abba tribute; Wednesday, August 14 – The Carpenters Experience; Saturday, August 17 – Complete Madness, Madness tribute; Monday, August 19 – The Alter Eagles, Eagles tribute;
Wednesday, August 21 –Sundrunk, after party with DJ Flying ‘G’; Saturday, August 24 – Beach Boyz Tribute Show; Monday, August 26 – Soul Kinda Wonderful, Soul And Motown.
Further details on each event can be found on The Mowlem’s website at www.themowlem. com or by visiting the box office.
n ARTIST and illustrator Jessamy Hawke is exhibiting at The Mowlem until September 10.
She works in watercolour and gouache and is inspired by the Purbeck landscape.
deserve.
If you would like to find out more about how you could support us in memory of a loved one, please email our friendly team at comms@ mgar.org.uk, who will be delighted to help.
To donate online, please visit our website at www.mgar. org.uk/donate for further details.
With your help, we can continue to be there for the rescue animals who need us and guide them on their journeys to loving forever homes.
POPULAR tourist attraction
Corfe Castle is reaching out to people with hearing impairments this summer, adding British Sign Language interpreters to the National Trust team.
They will work alongside the castle’s popular 45-minute Keeper of the Castle tours on specific dates in August, including the 4th, 10th and 17th at 11am, 12.30pm, 2pm and 3.30pm.
The movement towards a more inclusive experience started last month with the opening of a new Changing Places toilet.
Information is available throughout the castle in British Sign Language via a QR code
and visitors can use a smartphone downloadable audio tour.
Visitor experience officer, Sophie Trenchard, said she is “delighted” to make these storytelling tours accessible. She said the tours are “wildly fun” and was excited the tours were “being enjoyed by a new audience”.
DURLSTON Country Park is celebrating after being awarded a Green Flag award – the international quality mark for parks and green spaces.
The park also achieved Green Heritage Site Accreditation, supported by Historic England, for the management and promotion of its historic features.
Dorset Council also achieved Green Flags for its Avon Heath Country Park, Stour Meadows, Milldown and Thorncombe Wood, Black Heath and Hardy’s Birthplace sites.
Councillor Jon Andrews, Dorset Council’s cabinet member for Place Services, said: “I’m over the moon to learn that Dorset’s country parks and green spaces have once again been recognised as some of the best in the country.
“Spending time outdoors and connecting with nature is crucial for our mental and physical well-being, it also gives us a chance to meet new people and helps reduce loneliness.
“We’re very fortunate to have not one, but five Green Flag award-winning sites. And I’d like to say a heartfelt thank you to the dedicated teams that look after these spaces, allowing us to enjoy them and the benefits
they offer year-round.”
Keep Britain Tidy’s Green Flag Award Scheme manager, Paul Todd MBE, said: “I would like to congratulate everyone involved in achieving these Green Flag Awards.
“Country parks and nature sites are vital green spaces for communities in Dorset to socialise, enjoy nature, for children to play safely and they provide important opportunities for park users to improve their physical and mental health.
“We know that staff and volunteers work tirelessly to ensure that they maintain the high standards of the Green Flag Award, everyone involved should feel extremely proud of their achievement.
“It is important that our free to use spaces are maintained to the Green Flag Award standard, making them accessible for all members of the community while ensuring the environment is protected.”
The Green Flag Award scheme, managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy under licence from the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green spaces.
A Living Trust, is a legal arrangement that allows you to protect your assets, including your home, from care costs along with potential inheritance tax implications. Here are a few key points to consider:
1. Asset Protection: By transferring ownership of your home and other assets to a living trust, can help protect them from certain creditors and potential claims, including care costs.
2. Care Costs: Placing your main home into a living trust can ring fence the property from any potential future care costs. Thus, protecting your inheritance
3. Inheritance Tax Planning: A living trust can be part of an estate planning strategy to minimize inheritance tax liability. By placing assets into a trust, they can be excluded from your taxable estate upon your passing, potentially reducing the amount of inheritance tax your beneficiaries would owe.
4. Reversable Nature:
One of the advantages of a living trust is that it is reversable, meaning you can make changes to the trust or remove your home from the trust during your lifetime. This flexibility allows you to adapt to changing circumstances or wishes.
5. Trust Administration: When you establish a living trust, you typically designate yourself as the trustee alongside one to three other trustees. Thus, maintaining control over the assets and allowing you to continue using and managing them as you did before. Surviving trustees take over the administration of the trust upon your incapacity or death. The effectiveness of a living trust in achieving your specific goals will depend on your individual circumstances. Oakwood Wills offer a free consultation in the privacy of our own home. Tel 07832 331594 email: info@oakwoodwills. co.uk
SUMMER is here at Durlston Country Park and we’re excited for what the month has to bring! We are hoping for a beautiful – sunny? – summer holiday, and Durlston has a jam-packed month ahead whether it’s for a visit to the park for a day-time picnic, a play on our woodland activity trail or an evening stroll at sunset. The Castle Visitor Centre is open every day 10am-5pm, so come in to find out the latest wildlife sightings and what’s on.
The summer holidays will bring our children’s activity trails, and this year Durlston will have not one but two during the holidays. From Friday, July 19, to Monday, August 12, join us for our “Pirates of Purbeck” Activity Trail that will take you on a trip around the park to find the treasure! Then, from Tuesday, August 13, to Thursday, September 5, Durlston will
have its first “Meadow Discovery” Trail to help you discover what makes the Durlston meadows so special. Each trail pack is £3.50, with a prize at the end!
If that doesn’t keep the children entertained, then we have a whole host of rangerled activities, drop-ins and workshops. Every Wednesday in the holidays, we will host our “Wild Wednesdays” drop-in activities running from 11am-3pm. Each Thursday – in the holidays – we will host a ranger-led session including “Dolphins and the Deep Blue Sea” and “Flower Pot Planting”. Make sure to visit
the website for more information on all events and to book your spaces!
In the Fine Foundation Gallery this August, we have an exhibition from local artist Sharon James running from Friday, August 9, to Friday, August 23. The exhibition “The Art of Motherhood” will offer a view into Sharon’s journey through motherhood with vibrant paintings of domestic family life. The exhibition is open from 11am-5pm daily and free to enter. With an events guide that is full to the brim in August, make sure to keep an eye on the website or pick up a copy of the events guide.
August brings us a whole host of wildlife and is a great time to see insects, with the meadows alive with the chirping of field grasshoppers and meadow grasshoppers, as well as the less common stripewinged and common green
grasshoppers. If you are lucky – or observant – you may well also see the magnificent great green bush-cricket. The day-flying six spot burnet moth and butterflies such as marbled white, gatekeeper, small heath and the brilliant blue adonis blue are all on the wing. While at dusk look out for the magical glowing green lights of the glow-worm.
August is also the start of the “autumn” migration, so look out for birds starting to return to their African homes, such as swifts and various warblers. Out on the downs, autumn gentian is starting to appear, while the first autumn lady’s tresses will be in bloom towards the end of the month.
For more information on events and more, visit our Durlston website, www. durlston.co.uk. Visit the Seventhwave café website at www.seventhwaverestaurant. co.uk.
by Chris Slade
START by visiting the church, then walk south, through the cemetery and take the path that weaves down to the B3071, which takes you south for a quarter of a mile to join a footpath on your right that takes you at first west, past the allotments and then curves to the left, south west, to the – not very – New Buildings.
Here you take a footpath on your right, heading north westwards, then north, at first along field edges, then between housing estates for about half a mile to meet a road.
Turn left and head west to a junction by Amber Hardware where a phone box is decorated with baskets of flowers.
Cross the road, the A352, and head west along a path for half a mile to Giddy Green where you join a road that takes you south to Burton Cross roundabout on
the A352.
Turn right and join the road leading west towards an industrial estate and the Police headquarters.
At the end of the road turn right, north west, along a footpath which eventually curves left, close to a railway line.
The path soon comes to a pedestrian level crossing over the line, then curves right, east, to join a road which takes you past the Seven Stars Inn and continues for a mile through East Burton to Wool village, giving you views over The Moors water
meadows to the north.
When you get to the A352, if you are interested, follow it north for a short distance to take a look at Woolbridge Manor, the Frome and old bridges.
Then turn back along the A352, cross the railway line at a level crossing, turn left and follow the B3071 east as far as Bindon Lane, then south as far as the Black Bear where you join the road to the left that takes you back to your starting point.
You will have walked a little over five miles.
n Chris Slade is a retired Dorset rights of way officer.
THEY have appeared in television shows Poldark, Victoria and Peaky Blinders –and now Atkinsons Action Horses are coming to next month’s Dorset County Show.
The horses and skilled riders have been performing stunts for television and film for over 25 years and are internationally known.
The equestrian performance team, from Yorkshire, came into being after Ben’s father diversified from dairy farming into equestrian.
Ben Atkinson rode his first
display when he was just 11 years old and since the age of 16 has performed at home and abroad.
Ben and his stunt riders are appearing in the main ring on both days of the show at
“Prepare to be stunned – we certainly have been!
“This is not just the first time Atkinsons Action Horses has displayed at the county show but also in Dorset itself.
“It’s going to a true county show highlight for years to come.”
The show celebrates life in Dorset and acts as an end of harvest celebration.
This year’s event has new
additions including the IMPs Motorcycle Display Team and an alpaca section.
It also has all the attractions that remain at the show’s heart with livestock, food and drink, the Heavy Horse Village, Axemen, Steam Section and much more.
For further information and to book show tickets, visit www.dorsetcountyshow. co.uk.
MORE than 500 blind and visually impaired people across Dorset will receive essential support and services thanks to a grant from Dorset Freemasons to the Dorset Blind Association charity.
The £36,000 grant will fund social and activity clubs for older blind people, who very often have difficulty maintaining an active social life. The association provides more than 20 social clubs and activity groups where individuals can meet regularly.
The three-year funding will
be primarily used to cover venue hire, transport and entertainment
Jonathan Holyhead, chief executive of Dorset Blind Association, said: “We’re immensely grateful to Dorset Freemasons for their generous support.
“This grant will allow us to relieve the loneliness and isolation that is all too common among blind and visually impaired people.
“Our charity provides help and support in ways that make a real, positive difference in those people’s lives.”
Stephen James, from Dorset Freemasons, said: “I’m very pleased we’ve been able to help the Dorset Blind Association with their hugely important project among visually impaired people from our community.
“Sadly, loneliness and isolation is all too common among people who have lost their sight and it’s great that this wonderful charity is able to organise regular social activities and entertainment for them on a long term basis.”
Independent Agency or Local Authority? Helping you to make an informed decision
We always suggest exploring all your options before making a commitment and find a fostering service that you feel is right and comfortable for you. Here are some hints on what to consider when choosing your foster care provider:
Training and Support – when setting out on your journey to fostering always bear in mind that everyone develops at a different speed and your confidence in fostering may grow greatly or require more support and training. Always seek a fostering provider that can fit your needs with training and support.
Age of placements – Local authorities tend to have more placements that are young children and babies, whereas independent agency although still have some placements veer on the side of slightly older children.
Fostering payment – Although fostering is not about the money, and we emphasise the will to care over the benefits. It is important to always consider your financial situation whereby an independent fostering agency tends to provide a higher reward.
Location – From placements to support, think about how far you would like to travel and check with the fostering provider which areas they serve for placements.
As an independent agency we, Footprints offer tailored training and support that suits your needs. Also as the agency is small, you bond close relationships with fellow foster carers meaning the training is great fun! The social workers have low caseloads so can provide you with 24/7 support. Finally we are local, serving the local community, someone is never far away and you will always be greeted upon visits to the office by one of our team.
Yes, independent fostering agencies and local authorities have key differences, but the main thing to remember is the child, and both options ensure that the well-being and safety of the child in care is at the forefront of service.
We would welcome you at footprints for a further discussion to help you make an informed decision, either give us a call, email or pop by the office!
A SAILOR from Dorchester has circumnavigated the globe in the 2023-24 Clipper Round the World Yacht Race,.
Joss Creswell, 24, was first mate on board Perseverance, which came second of the 11 teams competing.
The 40,000km circumnavigation was split into 14 races between ports around the world and took place over 11 months.
The final section was 850 nautical miles from Oban in Scotland to Portsmouth, where the race began.
Joss and his skipper, Ineke van der Weijden, coached, trained and led a team of 66 non-professional sailors, seven of whom sailed all around the world.
The sailors came from a range of nations and were aged 19 to 75.
Crew members faced everything nature could throw at them from storm force winds and waves the size of houses, to
freezing temperatures and searing heat, and waterspouts and wind holes.
The global sailing event is the brainchild of Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the first person to sail solo, non-stop around the world.
It features identical 70ft racing yachts each with a fully qualified skipper and first mate to guide the crews.
Crews had to complete four levels of ocean racer training before they competed.
This year, in addition to Oban, the race visited Puerto Sherry, Punta del Este, Cape Town, Fremantle, Newcastle, Whitsundays, Ha Long Bay, Zhuhai, Qingdao, Seattle, transited the Panama Canal and Washington DC.
LYTCHETT Minster & Upton Town Council has recognised the outstanding contribution of four pupils to their school communities.
Vivi Du Pont at Yarrells School, Freddie Wenzel at Upton Infant School, Ksawery Pasterz at Upton Junior School and Alice Suckling at Lytchett Minster School all won the new Mayor’s Award for Excellence after being nominated by staff.
They all won an engraved trophy to keep, a framed certificate and an Amazon voucher worth £20 to £50, depending on age.
Mayor, Councillor Ray Griffin, presented the awards, which will run annually, at end of year prize-giving ceremonies.
DORSET is in a “nature emergency”. The declaration came at a meeting of Dorset Council, when it was backed by members.
The motion, put forward by leader Councillor Nick Ireland (Lib Dems, Crossways), urged council members to recognise nature is in decline and urgent action is needed to reverse it.
The majority of councillors backed the declaration, with 54 voting to pass the motion, 20 against and four abstaining.
Speaking at the meeting, Cllr Ireland noted that the council would not be starting from scratch.
He said work is already underway to develop a Local Nature Recovery Strategy for the county, which has seen the council work closely with farmers, landowners, businesses and organisations to identify priorities, opportunities and actions to recover nature in Dorset.
The declaration commits to further supporting this work, as well as embedding nature’s recovery at the heart of the council’s plans.
Following on from its climate and ecological emergency declaration in 2019, the council said the new declaration will help strengthen ambitions to create a carbon neutral, nature positive and resilient Dorset as outlined in the authority’s Natural Environment, Climate and Ecology strategy.
Cllr Ireland, who is also cabinet member for climate, said: “The UK is now widely recognised as one of the world’s most nature-depleted countries and it is critical that we take steps to address this.
“A thriving natural environment not only makes Dorset a beautiful place to live, it also underpins our local economy and provides the essential things we need to
Cllr Nick Ireland, inset, put forward the nature emergency motion
survive like the air we breathe, the food we eat and the water we drink.
“Nature based solutions will also play a huge role in helping our county respond to environmental issues like flooding, climate change, and poor water quality.”
Other commitments in the declaration include removing and restricting the use of
PHOTOS: Dorset Council
glyphosate and other chemicals damaging to nature, reducing pressure on wildlife and wildlife corridors, and improving access to nature – particularly for those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
To find out more on the council’s plans for nature, visit www.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/ nature-recovery.
A NEW electric bike scheme is being rolled out in Dorchester, Portland and Weymouth later this summer.
Dorset Council has entered into an agreement with operator Beryl to bring 121 e-bikes for hire across the three areas, with
the idea to encourage more sustainable transport habits across Dorset.
The e-bikes will be hired from and returned to designated
“Beryl bays”, which will be located following consultation with key local stakeholders.
The scheme will be operated by Beryl on behalf of Dorset Council with the initial set-up costs being funded by the council.
reducing traffic congestion while improving air quality and public health.”
Cllr Jon Andrews, Dorset Council’s cabinet member for Place Services, said: “We’re looking forward to these new e-bikes arriving in Portland, Weymouth and Dorchester.
“They offer the perfect way to explore this wonderful area and, with the added electric boost, you’ll be able to make light work of the trip.”
Beryl chief executive and co-founder, Phil Ellis, said: “Dorset is not only a picturesque area with plenty to see and do, it also has a clear ambition to encourage more sustainable transport choices.
“Our e-bikes are a fun, easy and versatile way to travel and their extra power can really open up areas, enabling riders to tackle hills and undertake longer journeys.
“They’re also great for commuting, helping to reduce physical exertion and allowing people to arrive at work clean and ready to go.
“By encouraging more people to swap four wheels for two, we can hopefully contribute even more towards
Cllr Nick Ireland, Dorset Council’s cabinet member for Climate, added: “As a council, we are committed to addressing climate change, and we have an important role to play in driving our county towards net zero.
“This innovative scheme makes it easier for more residents and visitors to enjoy Dorset’s great outdoors while helping protect the environment, too.”
Users will be able to pay for their journeys in a variety of ways to suit individual needs and circumstances, with Pay-As-You-Ride, Minute Bundle and various pass options.
AT the packed hustings, held in Swanage before the general election, Lloyd Hatton – now our new MP – was asked, as were the other candidates, what he would do to “end the poverty crisis in South Dorset”.
Swanage Labour member Peter Jacobs, who asked the question, was one of those who masterminded the building of the London Olympic Village. He pointed out that Dorset Council figures reveal 11 areas in the county are within the top 20% nationally for multiple deprivation, up from 10 in 2015. In some areas of South Dorset, he said, the House of Commons Library Constituency
Dashboard reports child poverty exceeds 30%.
Food banks and mobile larders are accessed across South Dorset by hundreds of families. Along with other volunteers, drawn from across
the community, I volunteer at the two Swanage Mobile Larders. Come rain or shine, we are there for our members.
Lloyd’s response to Peter’s question cut straight to the heart of the matter. Over the last 14 years, he said, we had seen the “biggest fall in living standards in probably anyone’s lifetime”. This was why there were foodbanks and Mobile Larders in Swanage. “We were fortunate”, Lloyd said, to have among us those who were running such “an essential lifeline” – “but we shouldn’t need to be there in the first place”.
the Minimum Wage – such policies, Lloyd told us, were “in our DNA”. A new Labour Government would “reverse the fall in living standards” – and if he was “fortunate enough” to be our new MP, he “wanted to play a key part in that”.
Nationally, the New Deal for Working People would mean “people cannot be in work and in poverty.”
Lloyd outlined the achievements of the last Labour Governments in combatting poverty and reducing inequality – setting up Sure Start Centres, introducing Child Tax Credits,
Child poverty must be made “a thing of the past” – this would be a “national priority”. Unlike the Conservatives, who had let poverty and inequality “spiral out of control”, a Labour Government would make the reduction and removal of child poverty its “life’s work”.
As Lloyd spoke, I remembered the words spoken to me by a member of one of
THE Dorset Council elections in May this year were only three months ago but I imagine most of us perceive it to be longer than that due to the general election campaign kicking off almost immediately afterwards. What is clear, however, is that change has come to Dorset, with Dorset Council now run by the Liberal Democrats after May ’24 and the Three Towns Alliance controlling BCP Council since the local elections last year. And the general election results turned the county of Dorset from all blue to a palette of two Liberal Democrats, four Labour and the surviving two Conservatives.
The new mix of MPs, combined with the new Labour government, will it is hoped bring opportunities for Dorset Council through policies and funding that both recognise and genuinely reflect the needs of a largely rural community with
below average wages, above average house prices, below average pupil funding, no access to NHS dentists and a challenging age demographic which imposes huge strain on the council’s Adult Social Care services – and budget. While it’s early days, the initial impressions aren’t great so far with Labour voting to keep the two-child benefit cap despite this being the most effective and evidenced means of lifting families out of poverty.
Green Party councillor in Cabinet, through choice rather than need, and supporting an Independent to be vice-chair of the council.
The LibDem campaign for the local elections led with the assertion that “Dorset Deserves Better” and in the past two months since being confirmed as the new administration, we have been hard at work to kickstart a programme of change to make that happen. That started on day one with the inclusion of a
the two Swanage Mobile Larders. We were standing outside the new Focus Centre in Chapel Lane, formerly the Children’s Centre, waiting for the FareShare delivery. “I rely on this”, she said, “it makes all the difference to me”.
Former PM Gordon Brown estimates 7 million people in the UK endure “very low food security”. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation reports 3.8m Britons experienced destitution in 2022, a figure including 1m children.
Gordon Brown calls for a for a “coalition of compassion” to guide Britain out of poverty. Our new MP, Lloyd Hatton, at the Swanage hustings, echoed that call. The so often ignored and hidden poverty of South Dorset must become a thing of the past.
CHRIS BRADEY Chair, Swanage & Rural Purbeck Labour Party
We promised to look at car parking charges and now have three trial schemes up and running to gather evidence to feed into a full-scale review of the council’s current policy with the aim of genuinely supporting the needs of both our residents and businesses. In addition, we’ve changed the shopper’s permit to be available for three-hour stays rather than two – at no extra cost – and will introduce the ability to pay for it monthly alongside your Council Tax direct debit.
The Cost of Living support fund that the previous administration didn’t renew, despite continued evidenced
need, is now available again and the programmes it supports will be embedded into the council’s budget in the next financial year. The cost of living crisis hasn’t gone away and we need to be supporting those who are struggling to heat their homes, or feed themselves and their children.
Dorset’s housing crisis is going to take longer to solve but numerous constructive meetings have already taken place with developers and housing associations. Dorset Council owns a lot of land and policy is now in place to identify plots, which may otherwise be sold off, as locations for use by housing associations and community land trusts in providing genuinely affordable housing. And if they won’t build on it, then Dorset Council will! NICK IRELAND Liberal Democrat Leader of Dorset Council
I READ with some amazement a letter from Mr M Lucas –Purbeck Gazette, July 22 –complaining about the RSPB letting down birdwatching groups in the Middlebere Heath area.
I have been walking my dogs over Middlebere Heath for the last 25 years. I have gradually watched and been intimidated by the unelected dictates of eco-zealots and birdwatchers.
We are told to keep our dogs on a lead because of groundnesting birds. This is despite the fact that I have, at times, counted more than 100 cattle, horses and wild pigs roaming through the undergrowth. The cattle were reintroduced after a number of cattle grids were re-sited in the area a year or two back, but placed to keep cattle from RSPB land.
A number of signs have also been made from plywood in the shape of a dog forbidding dog walkers to allow their dogs off leads.
A couple of years ago, in Arne, I drove towards the car park but about 300 yards short parked at the side of the road near, but not blocking, a gate. I got out of my car to walk over the heathland leading down to the estuary when a woman on her way to work at Arne told me I could not park there as I may be damaging wild fauna.
I was parked on gravel, I explained. She added that I could not go over there anyway – the barren heathland – because it was being kept wild and dogs were not allowed.
While I was arguing with this woman saying my dogs –cockapoos – are wild – at a stretch – a young man stopped on his cycle and repeated the mantra about wild fauna. It was clear they had received the same brainwashing.
About six months later it was revealed that the RSBB, English Nature and the RSPB were and are carving up the salt marshes in the vicinity of Ridge to allow wading birds to catch worms
from the mud, as if that is in short supply.
This has been going on for almost a year now with as many as 20 diggers and heavy plant destroying the whole area – it makes my parking near the gateway rather insignificant. The damage being done to the environment in the destruction of millions of saltwater plants and other wildlife is outrageous.
We live in a country where people are genuinely struggling and waiting lists for the NHS are in many cases over a year, but we continue to squander vast sums of money on vanity projects.
Jack Badstock Wareham
ON Sunday I fell down the stairs!
On Tuesday I went to the Minor Injuries Unit at Swanage Hospital.
Within two hours I had my hand examined, x-rayed, plastered and x-rayed again.
All results then sent to Poole Hospital. Absolutely marvellous. Many, many thanks to all the staff concerned.
Diana Cook Via email
POOLE Maritime Trust has its headquarters above the Canford Cliffs library. We have been there since the 1970s.
We remain one of those well-known secrets, perceived as a small group of people who carry out research and do not welcome new members.
Yes, we do carry out research, but there is so much more. We have 240 members, mostly from the nearby area, but others from all over the world.
We have a series of winter talks held at the Royal Motor Yacht Club, in Sandbanks, with good parking and a bar available.
We offer a warm welcome to our talks. If you are interested in the history of Poole Harbour
sailing, natural history, maritime history from pre-Roman to the 20th Century, liners and cruising, model-making, islands, wildlife photography, yacht and boat design and more, then do join us to hear our talks and lectures.
Our headquarters houses several large collections. More than 6,000 photographs and other images and access to thousands more. 3,000-plus books on boats and information on the local area.
Our rooms are stacked with information on historic and modern-day maritime life. We have many models of sailing ships, paddle steamers, tugs, working boats and yachts of all sorts.
More than 300 box files of material on 19th and 20th century marine work, local boatyards and yacht clubs, now long gone.
We would be delighted to show you a world of interest in our local area. Come and have a coffee or a cup of tea and a biscuit on a Thursday morning 10am-12.30pm.
Our headquarters entrance is on the free car park side of the library. Look over the fence at the back of the new conservatory and you will see a sign to our front door – PMT.
You can find our website at www.poolemaritimetrust.org.
We look forward to seeing you.
Jan Marsh Poole Maritime Trust secretary
AS a Labour Party supporter, I was obviously pleased it won the general election but then dismayed that it’s keeping the long summer recess, which means that its “urgent” work won’t properly start for many weeks.
Most workers have three or four weeks holidays a year rather than several lengthy breaks and yet people like nurses are paid four times less than MPs.
Meanwhile, on the day of the
King’s Speech, I found the grotesque display of wealth obscene when 3,000 British people sleep on the streets each night and our 3,000 foodbanks are used by millions.
Later in the day, there were the usual long, self-indulgent speeches in the House of Commons which, in due course, will lead to voting by trudging through the lobbies, hardly a secret ballot and hardly efficient.
If Labour is serious about changing things it should certainly change all these archaic practices which stifle any true progress.
Some people don’t have the time or money to wait. Via email Name supplied
ALL eyes are now on the 2024 Paris Olympics.
While there are displays of impressive human athleticism and sporting prowess and tales of athletes overcoming adversity, a darker undercurrent lurks – the use of horses.
Equestrian sports are inherently cruel and have no place in a progressive society.
There are countless tales of abuse in the world of equestrian sports.
Horses being whipped, kicked, neglected, left with bleeding wounds after aggressive use of painful artificial aids – equipment used to maximise a horse’s “performance”, subjected to cruel – and outlawed – training regimes, pushed to their physical and mental limits and punished for not scoring highly enough.
In 2024, it is simply unacceptable and unnecessary for animals to be used in sport. Humans at their best are compassionate, respectful and willing to change for the better. These qualities are goldmedal worthy while the subjugation of an innocent animal is not.
Nina Copleston-Hawkens Animal Aid Campaigner
WELL, it’s here at last!
In case you hadn’t noticed, summer has arrived in Purbeck and with it the tents, caravans, busy shops and crowded streets which after such a long winter many of us thought we’d never see again. Let’s welcome our visitors with open arms and not just because they have full wallets – every morning when I look out of my bedroom window across the valley and see them pitched up, playing games and having their open-air breakfasts in the morning sun, I realise just how lucky we are to live here in beautiful Purbeck. They have it two weeks a year – we have it all the time.
It’s just when I wake up and see the rain pouring down and the wind battering the tents and awnings that I thank goodness I’m not out there fighting the elements and wonder why they haven’t all packed their belongings and gone home!
All the usual complaints about dog mess on the pavements, everyone blaming everyone else, and the 5% of irresponsible owners spoiling it for the 95% of people who clear up after their dogs. My heart goes out to the Swanage Oxfam shop which had to clean up floors, carpets and trodden-in dog mess on a busy holiday morning just because someone had allowed their dog to do its business on its front doorstep!
by David Hollister
I know I’m unusual and out of step with almost everyone else when I express a strong dislike of dogs. Can’t see why anyone would take on the added responsibility – not just pooclearing but the obligation to turn out morning and night in the pouring rain to “walk the dog”.
So much to see and do in Purbeck, not just at holiday time! Fetes, fairs, carnivals, festivals, live music almost every weekend, it’s easy to forget that summer is a busy time for criminals and that they are just waiting to help themselves to the contents of your car! Even though we are statistically one of the safest areas in one of the safest counties in the country, the Police advice is to leave nothing on display, lock the car and, where possible, take your valuables with you on that country walk. Don’t let the thieves ruin your holiday!
Yet it’s amazing what they get away with! Seems like each day a piece of agricultural equipment is towed away out of Purbeck apparently unseen! Last week, a complete tractor was taken! What, I wonder, do they do with all this stuff? Where do they store it? How do they get it out of the country? Is no-one watching the ports, routinely opening shipping containers bound for foreign climes? Or is it all being stripped down and sold on social media as “parts”. Who’s watching Gumtree or eBay?
SHOPLIFTING is thriving, and no wonder – lower-end crime seems to be routinely ignored. Anything under about £200 seems to result in a slapped wrist and a verbal warning simply because the overstretched police don’t have the time or resources. The courts are clogged up and there just aren’t enough prison cells to go round. Swanage traders all
know the name of the individual who comes over from Poole on the bus, fills his pockets and carrier bags, and goes home fully laden each evening. They have his photo, the police are fully aware, he just got banned from Purbeck for three months but now he’s back again!
Shoplifting reports rose by 28% in Dorset between April 2023 and March 2024. What does that tell you? It’s a country-wide problem. Locally, it’s being addressed by Dorset Police with a week of “action” which resulted in 22 arrests and hundreds of pounds worth of stolen goods being recovered. But what’s the point in improving communications and sharing intelligence between shops when there is no ultimate deterrent. Shoplifters can sleep easy tonight knowing full well that the likelihood of waking up in a cell tomorrow is minimal! Until proper punishment becomes a deterrent, until we have enough Police, enough magistrates and a proper legal system in this country, we’ll all be subject to the ever-increasing wave of petty crimes.
I suppose there’s something in my head that was implanted by my parents when I was very small, that tells me the difference between right and wrong, something which I believe we have passed on to our son and which he in turn will pass on to our granddaughter. Not a fear of punishment or retribution, just a deep-down reflex knowledge.
Lovely story this week from someone who turned up at Swanage Hospital after hurting their foot. Staff said they were busy but would “fit me in when they could”. 90 minutes later,
the writer was home after an x-ray with a surgical boot to wear for four weeks. What a great service we still have here. Where patients are names and not just numbers. Long may it continue.
AND finally! The new Government hasn’t taken long to flex its muscles against the motorist, has it! From April 1, 2025, electric vehicles will no longer benefit from the exemption from road tax that currently applies to cars, vans and motorcycles. The exemption for cars with low CO2 emissions will also be scrapped. The same rates of tax that apply to petrol and diesel vehicles will apply to electric vehicles. New electric cars will be eligible to pay the “higher rate of duty” commonly known as the “expensive car supplement”. EVs will no longer be exempt from the London congestion charge. In my book, that’s totally taken away any thoughts of “going electric”. The scarcity of public charge-points, plus the time to queue and to charge the car, plus “range anxiety” puts my regular trip to Gerrards Cross to see my family, right out of the question. Not to mention the astonishing initial outlay.
The radio office in Swanage is now about two weeks from the official opening and I hope in our next edition to be able to give you full details and invite you to drop in and see us. In the meantime, there’s more and more being added to our programme schedule each week, so tune in to www. purbecksounds.com and enjoy our varied output!
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.
Across
1 Drop pretence (6)
5 Satirical work on normal revolutionary party year (6)
8 A pair of books on a Swedish group (4)
9 Union perhaps lacking in loyalty (8)
10 A leading group in hot area in Caribbean capital (6)
Killer Sudoku Pro
11 Search thoroughly extremists in argument in struggle (6)
Down
2 Posh doctor with artist in shadow (5)
3 A very advanced party supporting Britain boastful display (7)
4 Promise a grant possibly to cover university and centres for new experts (9)
5 Friend found in pearls oddly (3)
6 Genuine money for kingdom (5)
7 Criminal male CID gets to harangue (7)
12 Thin pancake at a counter partly (4)
14 Digit from west presumably? (3)
15 Get rid of dilapidated place (4)
16 Look over casually lines penned by education graduate (6)
18 Conclusion of springtime flower festival (6)
20 Extra work covering US magazine (8)
22 Pair in suit employed (4)
23 Keep at distance from Anglican church in warm garment (6)
24 Hear about aim that’s in fashion (6)
Place numbers 1 to 9 once each into every row, column and bold-lined 3x3 box. 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.
11 Most intelligent young animal catching sun after cold (9)
13 Arab opponent is coming (7)
15 Hate unusual power in erratic side (7)
17 New or senior guards in a deteriorated state? (5)
19 Alter first person in final (5)
21 Reserve diamonds (3)
Bring your little monkeys along to meet their primate cousins at Monkey World- Ape Rescue Centre this summer!
*Advertising Feature
The sanctuary in Dorset is home to over 260 rescued and endangered monkeys and apes. Combining fun with conservation, half-hourly keeper talks explain all about man’s closest living relative. After visitors have seen the stars of TV’s ‘Monkey Life’, they can monkey around in the large playgrounds! Come and meet the new arrivals; Marcel, who was found in a conservatory in Wolverhampton, saki monkey Neevah, and little Lloyd- a baby woolly monkey who was only born in February!
Monkey World is open every day from 10am to 5pm. Book online to save up to 10% off gate prices.
purbeckgazette.co.uk
It’s a good idea to look ahead and schedule things like travel plans and holiday clubs – and even days for relaxation.
The holidays are a great time for visiting museums, historical sites and fun attractions – and Dorset is blessed with lots of them.
coding or photography and other skills in an organised setting.
They could write a journal to record what they have been doing over the summer – providing something to look back on at the end of the holiday or later in life – or write stories or a blog.
Summer is a good time to get together with family, for a ride out into the countryside for a picnic on a sunny day, or a family barbecue.
Lots of fairs, festivals and other events are also taking place locally and are great to visit.
Any number of outdoor adventures – hiking, camping and biking, and swimming at the beach or at a pool –are never too far away.
Monkey World Ape Rescue Centre is challenging your little monkeys to learn about primate rescue & rehabilitation this summer! With a huge list of fun challenges and activities to complete, there’s plenty to keep little mind’s busy!
Then, at the end of the holiday, parents can help their young ones get ready for the new school year –organising their study space and getting their school supplies.
Monkey World is home to over 250 primates of more than 25 different species. Many of the park’s residents have been neglected,
Parents can encourage their children to read – the Summer Reading Challenge at local libraries can be a help.
Children can express their creative side through painting or drawing or trying out other crafts. They could begin learning a musical instrument, join a theatre group or dance group. Youngsters may be able to learn more about cooking,
*Holiday programme running 29th July - 1st September
The Wessex Event Company are delighted to be holding our 7th Summer Fair in the beautiful house and grounds of Canford School on Saturday 17th and Sunday 18th August this year.
Bring the whole family for a fabulous day out, there is something for everyone.
After being inspired by over 100 stands selling a host of artisan foods, crafts, plants and garden accessories, both inside the magnificent school building and outside in the beautiful grounds, why not chill out in our Street Food Area, where you can enjoy mid morning snacks, lunches and afternoon treats, including Seafood, Bratwurst, Falafels, Greek, Indian, Hot Potatoes, Cheese Reclettes, Pizzas, Churros and Ice Cream all washed down with coffee, tea, soft drinks or something slightly stronger from the fairs Bar. While you sit and eat and relax you will be entertained by fabulous local artists including Steve Frapwell, Ian Roberts, Shannon White and Phil Smith.
There will be even more for children to enjoy including a Climbing Wall, Caving Tunnel, Craft Area ,Sand Art and Story Telling. Disney Princesses and Superheroes will also be joining in the fun.
Our children’s entertainments will also include rides, games and face painting. We again have the very popular Circus Skills Workshop on both days for children to participate in and learn some of the magic of the circus, as well as the Magic Man and
Watch the Falconry displays and marvel in the grace and agility of these wonderful birds or prey
The cost of entry is just £4 for Adults, £3.50 for concessions, with children under 14 just £1, making this one of the most affordable, family friendly, value for money days out you will find in the area this summer.
So come early, stay late and enjoy a wonderful day out in the most beautiful of settings.
We would like to thank our sponsors The Hendy Group, Meyers Estate Agents, Save Energy, Nationwide Building Innovations and Holt Recruitment for their support of our events.
*Advertising Feature
One of the standout features of the Park is it’s fantastic indoor swimming pool, which is open daily to non-residents. This facility provides a perfect spot for families to relax and have fun. Every Friday evening through the Summer, the pool hosts an inflatable fun night for children aged 6-10(booking required) promising an evening of laughter and excitement.
Monkey World Ape Rescue Centre is challenging your little monkeys to learn about primate rescue & rehabilitation this summer! With a huge list of fun challenges and activities to complete, there’s plenty to keep little mind’s busy!
the ambiance.
Monkey World is home to over 250 primates of more than 25 different species. Many of the park’s residents have been neglected, kept in unnatural conditions, or experienced unbelievable cruelty. At Monkey World, they can enjoy company of their own kind in a safe and natural environment.
Combining fun with conservation, self-guided audio tours and free keeper Q&As explain all about man’s closest living relative. Visitors can see the stars of TV’s ‘Monkey Life’, then ‘monkey around’ in the south’s largest adventure playground!
Adjacent to the holiday park, The Village Inn is a beloved local gem known for it’s exceptional food and drink. This cozy establishment boasts a charming outdoor beer garden, complete with a large screen TV showing all the major summer sporting events, including Wimbledon, and the Olympics. It’s an ideal spot to enjoy a refreshing beverage while cheering on your favourite athletes. For families, the extensive children’s play area ensures that the little ones are entertained, allowing parents to unwind and savour
Book online to save up to 10% off gate prices at www.monkeyworld.org/book-tickets
The Village Inn also hosts regular outdoor events, such as BBQ and Paella evenings, creating a vibrant community atmosphere. These events are perfect for mingling with locals and visitors alike while enjoying delicious food in the beautiful outdoor setting, it’s also a great chance to sample our guest ales and seasonal specials.
For the latest updates and event information, be sure to follow Ulwell Holiday Park and The Village Inn on social media or visit their websites. Whether you’re a local or just passing through, these two spots offer a warm welcome and a memorable experience.
Open Wed
Free garden
Less than 3
Saturday mornings
Sat 10th August
Sat 10th August
Sat 17th August
Sat 17th August
Sat 24th August
Sun 25th August
Sat 31st August
Sat 7th Sept
Sat 7th Sept
Wed 25th Sept
Fri 27th Sept
Sat 28th Sept
Sat 5th October
Fri 11th October
Sat 19th October
Sat 9th November
Women’s Yoga Group
Moth Mania Workshop
Beekeeping Experience
Beginners Macrame Workshop
Wild Celebrations Open Afternoon
Moth Mania Workshop
NGS Open Day - Salvia Spectacular
Cinema Under The Stars: Calendar Girls (15)
Beginners Macrame Workshop
Secret Gig in the Garden with Chris Packham & Martin Simpson, for Wild Justice
Careys Salvia Spectacular Day
Mushroom Foraging
Willow Basket Workshop
Beginners Macrame Workshop
Mushroom Foraging
Willow Handbag Workshop
Mushroom Foraging
Nestled in the picturesque Isle of Purbeck, The Blue Pool is a historic gem and the perfect destination for a summer day out with family, friends, and your canine companions. As you explore the scenic walking trails, you’ll be surrounded by nature and
New for 2024, visitors can now cross the UK’s longest rope bridge, offering breath-taking views of the Nature Reserve from high among the treetops. Children will also love the newly refurbished play area.
The Tearooms serve delicious breakfast, lunch, and sweet treats, including traditional afternoon teas, all of which can be enjoyed on the outdoor terrace. Open every day from 9:30am to 6:00pm, no booking required.
Oak Fair at Stock Gaylard is a celebration of countryside, woodland,
and above all, conservation.*Advertising Feature
The Oak Fair at Stock Gaylard is a celebration of countryside, woodland, timber, craft and above all, conservation. With over 200 exhibitors showing everything from handcrafted wooden furniture to industrial machinery, the Oak Fair provides a platform for rural crafts and countryside tradition.
and the daredevil stunts of the Adams Axemen display. Get involved with hands on activities including archery, willow sculpture and scything. Keep the kids busy with the many children’s activities on offer including bushcraft skills, face painting, circus skills, little Land Rovers and tractor trailer rides through the historic deer park. There will also be demonstrations of vintage and modern machinery and skills including logging, fine art foundry and wood chipping.
Monkey World Ape Rescue Centre is challenging your little monkeys to learn about primate rescue & rehabilitation this summer! With a huge list of fun challenges and activities to complete, there’s plenty to keep little mind’s busy!
Monkey World is home to over 250 primates of more than 25 different species. Many of the park’s residents have been neglected, kept in unnatural conditions, or experienced unbelievable cruelty. At Monkey World, they can enjoy company of their own kind in a safe and natural environment.
If you start to feel peckish head to the Market Square where you will find something to eat to suit all members of the family. With a strong commitment to local food and drinks producers this year there will be over 40 exhibitors across the Market Square and Food Marquee selling a wide range of delicious produce.
24th & 25th August, 10.00am
Stock Gaylard Estate, DT10 2BG
The heart of the Oak Fair has and always will be conservation, of the countryside and woodland, as well as traditional country crafts. Discover beautifully handcrafted furniture, homeware, baskets, jewellery, art, gifts and more, all created by master craftspeople. Learn more about charities who support our local countryside, woodland and nature and watch demonstrations of traditional hand working and country skills including the ever-popular chainsaw carving, coppice work, surfboard making, medieval reenactments, falconry, heavy horse logging,
Book online to save up to 10% off gate prices at www.monkeyworld.org/book-tickets
Combining fun with conservation, self-guided audio tours and free keeper Q&As explain all about man’s closest living relative. Visitors can see the stars of TV’s ‘Monkey Life’, then ‘monkey around’ in the south’s largest adventure playground!
Early bird tickets are now on sale: £14 adults, £2.50 children, children in prams go free, £10 concessions. www.theoakfair.com
Trainee bus drivers earn - £13.75 per hour (usually first 7 weeks of employment whilst you are passing your test and learning the routes)
• Bus Drivers Monday to Friday rate £15 per hour
• Bus Drivers Saturday & Sunday rate £16 per hour
• Monday to Friday overtime rate £20 per hour
•Saturday and Sunday overtime rate £21.33 per hour
Trainee drivers start on £13.75 per hour from the first day, increasing to £15 per hour Monday to Friday with higher rates at weekends and if you do overtime. We’ve got vacancies at our Swanage depot, which is ideal if
you are looking for a secure job close to home.
Our Purbeck Breezer bus services are very popular with tourists as well as residents. All you need is a smile and a UK driving licence, and our friendly training team will support you through the rest of your journey.
Local knowledge to help tourists with their enquiries is desirable. We’re looking for full and parttime drivers to join us. The first 5-6 weeks of your training will take
place in Poole then after that you will be based at Swanage with your local mentor whilst learning the routes.
There are lots of other benefits, including free bus travel for you and one other, plus many discounts at high street retailers, including the main supermarkets, helping your money go that little bit further.
APPLY AT
A TEAM of young trainee baristas from the charity Autism Unlimited are offering their new-found skills to the community.
The students, who attend the Portfield School Sixth Form in Christchurch, are part of the “Brew Crew”, an initiative set up by the charity to equip its young people with practical work experience as they transition into adulthood and employment.
Small teams of students at the Sixth Form are enjoying 10-week courses with tutor Tim Hewitt, a former barista with more than 20 years’ experience.
Lessons take place inside a former horsebox, which has been refurbished by the charity as a mobile coffee bar.
The students are learning about coffees from around the world and their unique flavours, as well as how to make and serve drinks including cappuccino, latte, and espresso.
Tim said: “The Brew Crew is a great initiative where students can gain valuable insight into
the world of work and enjoy hands-on experience, while developing and practising key life skills, including cash handling, following instructions, and cleaning.
“This boosts their CV and equips them with the tools and confidence they need for the workplace as they move towards adulthood.
“It’s also a lot of fun, great for their wellbeing, and you can see their self-esteem growing as they learn.
“It’s been good to see how students have embraced the challenges of making great coffee and it’s very encouraging that some of them are already taking what they have learned in our lessons and using it in their further work experience in local cafes.”
The Brew Crew has also been putting its training into action by serving coffee to their neighbours in Airfield Road.
Tim said: “Sixth Form is next to Beaulieu Garage, which has a monthly Coffee And Cars meet-up, and we were thrilled
THE Fire Service is urging older people in the Purbeck area to cook safely at home in a new campaign.
Statistics show that a third of kitchen fires that Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service (DWFRS) attended last year were in the homes of people aged over 65 and living alone.
The Cook with Care campaign aims to prevent cooking-related incidents and make residents safer at home. It has four key themes to help reduce kitchen fires: Prepare – Before you start
cooking, create a clear space to prepare your meals safely. Keep tea towels and cloths away from the cooker and hob, and take care if you are wearing loose clothing.
Prevent – Never put anything other than pots and pans on your cooker hob – even after you have finished cooking, the hob will remain hot for some time. Never put anything metal into the microwave. Saucepan handles left sticking out create a danger – they could be caught, leading to the pans being knocked off
when they asked us to provide the coffee for these events.
“This has enabled the students to learn how to manage their time and sell, make and serve drinks to a queue of waiting customers, which they have dealt with excellently.
“It’s been wonderful to see students engaging with people and everyone agrees their coffee is delicious.
Never leave pans unattended, says the Fire Service
the hob.
Focus – Do not leave cooking unattended. Avoid cooking if you are tired, have been drinking alcohol or are
“We are now hoping to attend other small events and would love to hear from event organisers who are interested in hosting us.”
To discuss whether the Brew Crew might provide refreshments at your event, email tina.flower@autismunlimited.org or Maureen. harrington@autism-unlimited. org.Visit autism-unlimited.org.
taking medication that leaves you drowsy.
Stay Safe – Keep the oven, hob and grill clean, as a build-up of fat or grease can catch fire when hot. Switch off the oven and/or hob when you have finished cooking and take pans off the heat.
More information about safety in the home is available on the DWFRS website – visit www.dwfire.org.uk/safety-athome.
Anyone with an older friend or relative who lives alone is asked to share this advice with them.
Anyone concerned for someone’s safety, can contact the DWFRS Safe & Well team – call 0800 038 2323 or visit www.dwfire.org.uk/safe-andwell-visits.
by Daisy Campbell
IT’S that time of year when more travelling and moving about happens. The slightly panicky packing of bags, washing of clothes that you haven’t seen in a year or more. Will they fit in the bag? Do I have those 100ml-sized bottles for the plane?
Coupled with excitement, this can also feel very unsettling and anxious making. Some of us who are lucky enough to go abroad, can find that this often involves getting on a plane or a ferry to somewhere far away, which can trigger even more
panic.
We stay rather nestled in our cosy, familiar nests during the winter months and get pushed out of them when the warm summer months begin. This can feel exhilarating, exciting and longed for, but for some, the creeping in of anxiety brought on by a change of routine and something different, as well as a potentially dreaded flight, can be horrible.
It seems to be that ultimately, if we look a bit further inwards, it’s a feeling that we won’t be okay, that we are at risk of being
in danger and therefore not safe and secure. We feel at the mercy of outside events or situations to push and pull us so that we feel rudderless, without our familiar things around us
. Of course, by venturing to another country and getting onto a plane, it can feel like we are raising the risk, but are we not just as vulnerable in our day to day lives with other things? Is it that we have built an invisible safety net which we call our own front door, our bed, our car and that this is in some ways just an illusion of safety?
Ultimately, we all want that feeling of safety to be within us and to travel with us. Finding ways to cultivate that, is I think, the beginning of more relaxed, happy travelling.
One way in which we can do this is to establish a consistent mediation ritual, or to do something that helps you feel safe and calm. Taking time each day to listen to relaxing music or do some breathwork can help to calm the nervous system, and if done regularly, can provide a feeling of inner security. Eating well, crucially cutting refined sugar, which can cause havoc with cortisol levels, is so important for the body to be physically strong and less susceptible to stress around us. It is not an overnight fix, but these little steps over time help us to feel that sense of solidity and safety within us, wherever we are or go. This enables us to enjoy and relish the beautiful world we live in, to break our safety net wide open and explore with courage and joy, knowing we are always safe within.
A wonderful travel companion is a flower essence called “shock release” a superior version of “rescue remedy” by www. saskiasfloweressenses.com, which is always a winner in helping you feel safe and secure.
n For gentle guidance and support to make changes, however small, email daisydundas@yahoo.com, phone 07740 864616 or contact via Instagram at @ daisycampbellcoaching. Daisy is a fully qualified, level 5 health coach.
by Susanna Curtin
WE visit many beautiful and interesting places in our lives. Mostly they are transient experiences, and we are happy to leave them behind in search of pastures new. There are other places, however, that remain in your soul long after you have left and call you back time after time. For me, the historical town of Ronda in the Sierra de las Nieves National Park of Andalucía is one such place. Not only because I love the evocative and intuitive sounds of Flamenco for which Ronda is famous and for which I come, but also because of its unique combination of art, culture and nature – all of which inspire my imagination. But the thing I love the most, is how this joyful, romantic town is blended seamlessly with the wilderness in which it sits. It is the only place I have visited where I can hear the cheerful bustle and chatter of daily life at the same time as hearing the shrieks and calls of the falcons who patrol the gigantic limestone pillars on which the town is balanced. Ronda is one of the oldest towns in Spain, and like other places, it has experienced periods of peace, unrest and invasion. Many civilizations have settled here over the centuries. Neolithic tribes, Celts, Phoenicians, Romans and the Moors have all claimed it as their territory, that is until the 15th century, when the town was eventually divided up among the Castilian nobility. Even then, it
was not secure from a French invasion in the Peninsula War and the atrocities of the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s. This turbulent history is apparent in the architecture and design of the town but also in the stories of old that sleep quietly below the romance and sophistication that greet the visitor. Today, Ronda is a welcoming, peaceful place where tourism and the needs of the local community are sensitively interwoven, and where life genuinely seems affable.
One of my favourite places in town is the Alameda del Tajo park. From here the view is arrestingly beautiful overlooking the El Tajo valley and the stark, craggy mountains of the Serranía de Ronda. I love to steal an hour here, just to watch the comings and goings of the kestrels, peregrines, choughs and crag martins that soar in the updrafts from the valley 300ft below the railings.
Like Flamenco, the wildlife here has its own distinctive sounds, dances and rhythms. In the early morning sun, bright green Andalucian wall lizards dart in and out of rock crevices, and songbirds such as redpoll, linnet and cisticolas are busy harvesting insects. As the light intensifies, swallowtail and southern blue butterflies dance effortlessly around the flowerbeds of agapanthus, lantana and oleander. When the midday heat arrives, it all goes rather quiet and still, that is until the late afternoon when the
Griffin vultures and Bonelli’s eagles, that have patrolled the mountain slopes for prey, make their return journeys. Eventually, in the cool of the evening before the setting sun, squadrons of swifts speed over the rooftops, and the occasional white stork glides silently overhead into the valley to roost. Then, as the sky turns crimson and the sun sinks below the mountains, the horseshoe bats and the geckos come out of hiding, and the tawny owls call an end to the day.
Time spent in Ronda slips away only too quickly and there is never enough time to cherish all that it offers. But today, I rose with the first songbird to join some fellow walkers on a short route to the church of the Virgen de la Cabeza – a 10th century Christian cave hermitage built into the hillside on a mountain ridge opposite the town. Stepping quietly through the
old, cobbled streets, the rising sun painted the mountains in a rosy alpenglow. Leaving the town behind us, we walk out into the countryside along a tiny section of the Camino de Santiago – a network of routes that would eventually lead the pilgrim to the city of Santiago de Compostela, 895km north west.
As we approach the church, we encounter a rather sad looking chap who is lovingly watering a young almond tree that has been planted in memory of his dear friend whose heart and soul will always remain in the town he loved. A tender moment and a fitting reminder of the intense relationship we can have with places. Walking back to our hotel for breakfast I think of how sad I will be to leave this wonderful part of Spain.
n Dr Susie Curtin (email curtin. susanna@gmail.com).
by A J Selby
“In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks”
– John Muir
COUNTRY walking. Just putting one foot in front of the other in a lovely environment – simple but bringing so much pleasure. Regular readers will know that every year I spend a few days rambling – well, ambling, actually – with my old school mucker Clive, who I first met in 1972. We love our annual perambulations and as the years fly by, we are going to do more while we still can.
This year we alighted on the River Avon in Worcestershire and Warwickshire, which meanders from Evesham to
had nests in the field. They came within 30 yards of us at about head height, opening their wings and chattering to us in an aggressive manner, presumably to deter us from going into the grass where their chicks were.
There were many more in the skies above on the entire walk, and as a species in decline, it was a joy to listen to them. Other birds charming us were reed warblers, and the noisy reed buntings who not only sang loudest but made themselves very visible along several stretches of the river. Much of the riverbank looks overgrown and unmanaged and, of course, this gives excellent nesting habitat to these birds and plenty of cover and food.
There are several weirs along the walk, and this would be a place for fish to congregate –perfect for the still and silent heron that can stand statuesque for hours at a time awaiting the ideal moment to strike. Occasionally they would take off as we came into view and with a crouch, a push off from those long legs, a spring into the air they were away – no fast and frantic wing beat with these birds but a lazy clap or two and then up and over the trees and down the river with hardly a sound.
apparent. The Ridgeway has lots of lovely wooden posts to keep you on track and enjoy the ramble without worrying about straying onto private property or dead ends. The Avon Way, by contrast, and despite following the river, still had us reaching for our trusty Ordnance Survey Explorer map, the wonderful 1:25,000 scale – 2.5 inches to 1 mile – more than we thought we would. It does pass through several lovely villages and the trail markers would be hard to spot without a map. Once we asked a local dog walker where the trail resumed when we crossed a village road – he said he didn’t know but it was virtually opposite and through a narrow gap in a hedge.
The Ordnance Survey Explorer series is a work of art. The detail is astonishing and once one learns to read the map and identify the features on it, it’s almost impossible to get lost. Once, we came upon a farm growing salads in huge polytunnels, and without the map we may not have ventured across the land between the tunnels and down a track through acres of lollo biondi lettuce under fleece, but the route was correct and we sallied on.
Stratford-upon-Avon and beyond. There are some named walks in the area, the principle one being the Shakespeare Avon Way. The vast majority of it offers good walking, mostly hugging the river but occasionally going off it and then re-joining it again.
The river itself is lovely and this July, when we walked, it was slow moving, languid and peaceful. Wildlife was abundant as you would expect when running water, farmland, hedgerow, forest and scrub all come together. One of the highlights was following the riverbank with a meadow to our right and being distracted by two skylarks, who must have
On the water were duck, moorhen and coot, bustling through the reeds and skirting the patches of water lilies and kingcups with their bright, open yellow flowers as though an inverse of the sun above. Along a difficult stretch where 4ft high nettles had enclosed the path from both sides, we were delighted to watch the flittering of dozens and dozens of damselflies whose iridescent blue dazzled in the sunshine – it made up for my tingling legs having chosen shorts for the walk.
Having walked several of these National Trails over the years from the South West Coastal Path, the Norfolk Coastal Path, the South Downs Way and the Ridgeway, to name but four, the differences in care, upkeep and signage are quite
Using a map helps understand the landscape and gives us much added enjoyment in both planning the trip and seeing what a short diversion may offer us – a Roman Villa, a ruined castle, a viewpoint. Today these maps can be downloaded onto a smart-phone with a small annual subscription and they come with many other features such as digital access to all the maps in Great Britain, recommended walks, including those by the Good Pub Guide, Country Walking and others, a plot your own route feature and the ability to download your maps at home so you have them on your phone or tablet whether or not you have a signal. As a lover of all things “mappy”, this is a great app, even for browsing. It adds so much more to a walk and educates at the same time.
by Sally Gregson
TALL, swaying grasses planted among perennials may be the “look” of the moment, but many gardeners are sceptical about the virtues of grasses. They point to self-seeding invaders with running roots that run riot through the garden. And, some grasses are riotous, it is true. But by no means all.
There are one or two that, like some perennials, have wayward, wandering ways. Gardeners’ Garters’ – Phalaris arundinacea – for example, can cause quite a problem. It’s
pretty, green and white striped leaves look attractive in a pot in the garden centre, but released into a border it shows its wicked, running ways. It’s best left on the shelf.
But its doppelganger, Miscanthus “Morning Light” is a beautiful, non-running grass that produces similar greenand-white leaves to about 1.5m and will not run. Miscanthus, in general, are good, architectural grasses. Miscanthus sinensis “Malepartus” has 2m tall leaves that support deep satin-red flowers in autumn. It
does not seed but it will produce bigger clumps over the years.
There is also a naughty, blue-bladed grass that should be avoided despite its beautiful foliage – Elymus or Leymus arenarius. It is related to couch grass with which it shares its propensity to run to cover up to 8m. And it’s difficult to eradicate once out in the border. There are plenty of other, equally beautiful, more polite, blue grasses:
Helictotrichon sempervirens, the “Blue Oat Grass” has elegant, steel-blue leaves and
tall, waving flowers in early summer whose skeletons stand until the autumn gales. It moves in the wind and loves a sunny place. And there’s a whole race of Festuca. They resemble little blue hedgehogs, and are perfect for a dry, bright place.
Not all grasses like the sun. There is a lovely bamboorelative, Hakonechloa macra aureola, that produces a fountain of gold-and-green leaves in summer and dies back in winter. It’s happy in a shady spot where it complements those pale woodlanders perfectly. Belying its bamboo blood it does not spread, merely becomes bigger and more like a little, inanimate fountain over time. It will look very beautiful in a shady corner, and still lovelier in a pot.
by editor@dorsetbiznews. co.uk
UNSCHEDULED cruise ship calls at Portland Port over the summer so far have boosted the local economy by a bumper £750,000.
Five ships – including Cunard flagship Queen Mary 2 – have visited the port at late notice after being unable to stop at their destinations elsewhere.
The Ambassador Line’s Ambience, Princess Cruises’ Regal Princess and SAGA’s Spirit of Adventure have also made last minute calls.
Latest to visit was the German line Plantours Kreuzfahrten’s MS Hamburg with 360 passengers.
It was the first time the cruise line and one its ships had called at Portland.
More than 8,500 passengers have arrived on these additional ships from mid-May to July as the port – and its Dorset hinterland – becomes established as a “go to” destination on the cruise map.
Based on industry figures from the Cruise Lines Industry Association (CLIA), the stops
were worth in the region of £750,000 to the local economy.
Ian McQuade, general manager Commercial and chair of Cruise Britain, said: “It is always a pleasure to welcome cruise ships on unscheduled visits.
“The unscheduled calls total five to date this year, out of 10 enquiries.
“They reflect the area’s increasing popularity for cruise calls and represent a further valuable boost of circa £750,000 for the local hospitality and tourism industry.
“Our location, new
deepwater berths which allow the largest cruise ships to moor alongside and our reputation for pulling out the stops to accommodate visiting vessels make the port an attractive proposition for cruise lines on both scheduled and unscheduled visits.
“Our thanks go to our dedicated and responsive team, including our contracted shuttle bus operators and welcome team, who have been able to help us accommodate the unscheduled ships and their passengers at very short notice.”
Cruise lines divert to
Portland after being unable to enter their destination ports for a variety of reasons, including weather conditions or industrial action.
Queen Mary 2 was on a short break cruise of French and Belgian ports when she was diverted to Portland due to strikes in Le Havre, France.
Ian said: “The feedback we have had is that the crew and passengers on the Queen Mary 2 were very happy with their visit which coincided with the popular Wessex Folk Festival on Weymouth harbourside.
“Although she has been to the port before, during Covid, this was her first transit visit and the first by a Cunard ship.
“It represented another milestone in the development of the port’s cruise business and its support for local businesses and the supply chain.”
Portland Port’s cruise calls bring in about £10 million a year to the local economy, based on statistics from the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) trade body for spend per head of passenger.
The figure includes expenditure in shops, bars, cafes and tourism attractions, along with transport and tours.
Portland Port expects to have welcomed 50 ships carrying more than 110,000 passengers by the end of 2024.
by editor@dorsetbiznews. co.uk
WIMBORNE BID has announced details of a new food festival which will be held in the town next month.
Organised by a group of local businesses, the festival will take place around the town on Saturday, September 14, between 11am-4pm, with Willow Walk and East Street already confirmed among the locations.
At Willow Walk, a marquee will host free food demonstrations and talks from
an array of food specialists and local businesses. There will also be deliciously tempting food stalls with samples to try before you buy.
East Street will be closed for the day to create a “buzzy” cafe culture with alfresco street dining, live music and food
tastings.
There will also be a self-guided food walk route featuring many of the town’s food outlets, organised by award-winning Salamander Cookshop.
Participants can eat their way around the town while meeting some of Wimborne’s specialist food retailers, who will be on hand to give a flavour of what they are about.
BID manager, Tammy Sleet, said: “This great idea has come from some businesses in the town who are working hard to
make this happen.
“There are so many opportunities for the wonderful eateries and food outlets in our town to still get involved and we would love to hear from more businesses with their ideas.”
If you are interested in taking part in the new Wimborne Food Festival, email Tammy at office@ wimborne.info
Look out for more details and a Food Walk map this month at pick-up points around the town.
by editor@dorsetbiznews. co.uk
HOLT United Football Club in Wimborne has celebrated the opening of its new supporters’ stand, sponsored by Pennyfarthing Homes.
Local football legend Harry Redknapp made a special appearance to cut the ribbon and officially open the facility, which will provide shelter for fans throughout the year.
The former Premier League manager and current football pundit said: “I am a huge supporter of local football and it is a pleasure to be here today
by editor@dorsetbiznews. co.uk
“WE strive to provide our guests with an exceptional experience and this rating validates our efforts.”
The words of Jamal Hilal, manager of The Crown Hotel –one of Weymouth’s landmark hotels – after it was awarded a three-star rating by the AA following a rigorous inspection.
The former Georgian coaching inn, which has been welcoming travellers for over 200 years, underwent an unannounced inspection by AA’s Hotel & Hospitality Services.
It follows recent investment in extensive renovations, enhancing its rooms and public spaces.
The 84 en-suite rooms now feature new soft furnishings, furniture and beds with each room equipped with flat-screen televisions, WiFi and other
to mark the opening of this new stand.
“Football clubs like these could not survive and thrive without the support of companies like Pennyfarthing Homes, and I give them full credit for funding and building this with Brooklyn Homes for Holt United.”
After the ribbon-cutting, Holt United’s adult men’s team delivered an impressive performance, drawing 2-2with local rivals from Bashley, where Pennyfarthing Homes is based.
Mark Adams, executive chair of Pennyfarthing Homes,
modern amenities.
Additionally, The Vaults Bar has been transformed into the Onyx Bar & Restaurant and is now home to one of Weymouth’s newest Sunday carvery venues.
Jamal, who has worked at the hotel for 41 years, said: “This award is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our entire team.”
The Crown Hotel has been part of the Kings Hotel Group since 1945 when the late Leslie King acquired it from Devenish Brewery.
Over the years, the hotel has expanded into the surrounding buildings, becoming the 84 en-suite-room establishment it is today.
The Kings Hotel Group remains a family run business, now led by Lynne King and her daughter, Fiona.
Lynne and Fiona said: “We are incredibly proud of what has been achieved over the last 50 years.
“This three-star rating is a significant milestone for The Crown Hotel and a testament to our team’s dedication, especially in overcoming the challenges of the Covid years.”
The AA inspection covered cleanliness, hospitality, service, quality of the bedrooms, bathrooms and food.
said: “Today has been a pleasure on so many counts. Adding social value to our local community is a passion for us at Pennyfarthing Homes, but we don’t often get to celebrate it with such a notable public figure.
“I’d like to thank Harry for joining us and officially opening this stand, which we hope will add great value to the club.”
Holt United FC, formed in 1966, is one of Dorset’s premier clubs. The club has now grown to 21 thriving youth teams, coaching boys and girls from as young as five
years old. Holt provides football training and summer camps, offering invaluable support for working parents in the locality.
“The addition of the new Terry Bradford stand is beyond our expectations,” said Lee Bradford.
“My father started Holt United with a lawnmower and a hosepipe as a shower, so we can see what a long way the club has come over the past 58 years.
“Mark and his team have also funded the new signage displayed today, which we are incredibly proud of.”
Its not the size that matters it’s the way you move it! Armishaws operate a fleet of small removal vans throughout Dorset, Somerset and Wilshire catering for those clients who only need a small removal but still want the expertise provided by a larger removal company.
With prices ranging from £300 for a local move our services are tailored to meet your needs.
THE number of drivers in England and Wales using a hand-held mobile phone has reached a seven-year high according to the AA, with 13,332 drivers found guilty at court of the offence in 2023.
This represents a 90% increase on 2022, when 6,990 drivers were found guilty.
The law surrounding the use of a hand-held mobile phone was tightened in March 2022, extending the type of devices contravening the law, and expanding the definition of “using” to include using a camera, accessing the internet and checking notifications.
The AA believes this, coupled with police forces across the country using roadside cameras, covert HGVs and targeted periods of enforcement, have contributed to the rise.
Analysis by the AA of figures released from the
Ministry of Justice also show that driving without vehicle tax rose to an all-time high of 99,694 convictions, a year-onyear increase of 94%.
Similarly, drivers failing to comply with red lights and signs were at a 12-year high of 11,940 guilty verdicts.
Elsewhere, court cases for speeding offences fell by 8%, with more than 203,500 guilty verdicts handed to drivers.
Driving a vehicle without insurance fell to 71,458 last year (76,390 in 2022) but keeping a vehicle without insurance reached a four-year high (58,690 in 2023 against 40,392 in 2022).
Drink and drug driving related cases, seatbelt offences and driving while disqualified also remained at similar levels to 2022.
In total, 732,758 drivers were in the dock for motoring-related offences with 672,901 being
MANY of the UK’s busiest airports have increased prices for drop-off parking since last summer, as the great holiday getaway begins.
Seven of the top 20 airports by passenger numbers have increased their prices, according to analysis by the RAC.
Four have increased drop-off charges by £1 compared to 2023 – London Gatwick (£6 for 10 minutes), Edinburgh (£5 for 10 minutes), Birmingham (£5 for
15 minutes) and Bristol (£6 for 10 minutes), with three –Glasgow, Leeds Bradford and Aberdeen – putting prices up by 50p since last year.
Fortunately for drivers on drop-off duties, nine airports have frozen their prices this year.
Just three airports out of the top 20 in the UK – London City, Cardiff and Inverness – retain free drop-off zones.
And while dropping off for up to 20 minutes at London Luton
found guilty – a conviction rate of 92%, showing that drivers sat in front of a judge or magistrate are unlikely to get away with it.
Motoring offences also took up the lion’s share of courts’ time, with three in every five cases being for driving misdemeanours.
Jack Cousens, head of roads policy for the AA, said: “Despite a high-profile change in the law, it seems many drivers are still falling foul when it comes to using a mobile phone behind the wheel.
“While our phones have become smart, it is dumb to
play with it when driving.
“The AA led the campaign for tougher enforcement and strong rules to stamp out this offence, but it seems too many fear missing out on their notifications.
“The best thing to do is convert the glove box into a phone box and keep the mobile out of reach.
“It is also concerning that driving without tax almost doubled in a year. While too early to tell if this rise is related to the cost of living, the high conviction rates should serve as a deterrent not to dodge paying for a virtual tax disc.”
Only three of the UK’s top 20 airports have free drop-off zones
is currently free in its Mid Stay Car Park – after last October’s fire forced the closure of the airport’s Drop Off Zone –travellers should be aware that the terminal is a 10-minute walk or shuttle bus ride from the terminal building. Last year, Luton charged £5 for 10 minutes
in its drop-off zone.
London Stansted – despite not increasing its charges this year, to the relief of drivers –remains the most expensive UK airport for dropping off, charging a whopping £7 for up to 15 minutes, the equivalent of 47p a minute.
by Amy Brenan, director of Heirlooms Jewellers, 21 South Street, Wareham
YOU may be aware that the price of gold has rocketed in recent months and this has had a significant impact on the antique jewellery market. In fact, 18ct yellow gold is currently more expensive than platinum! If you have inherited any gold jewellery, or have bought some as an investment, here’s how it could affect you:
THE intrinsic value of antique jewellery often includes a significant amount of gold. As gold prices rise, the market value of gold antique jewellery increases, making it more attractive to collectors and investors.
ANTIQUE jewellery, already valued for its historical and aesthetic significance, gains additional appeal as an
investment. High gold prices make owning a tangible asset that appreciates over time more attractive.
DEALERS and auction houses might see increased activity as sellers look to capitalise on higher gold prices. This could lead to more frequent auctions and private sales, with a heightened interest in highvalue pieces.
OWNERS of antique jewellery may be tempted to sell their pieces to take advantage of the high gold prices. However, the decision to sell is often balanced against the desire to preserve these items for their historical and sentimental value.
AS the value of antique jewellery rises, the demand for professional authentication and appraisal services increases. Buyers and sellers alike seek assurance that they are dealing with genuine and accurately valued items.
As a result of the gold price increase, a lot more variety is coming onto the market which allows a jewellery collector to be choosier about condition and quality. Buying the best you can buy at the time will really help build a solid future collection.
DUKE’S Auctioneers in Dorchester is inviting consignments for its forthcoming auctions, showcasing a diverse range of categories that cater to a variety of collectors and enthusiasts.
Among the highlights is the Asian Art segment, where exquisite pieces, from ancient relics to contemporary works, reflect the rich cultural heritage and artistic mastery of the East.
The quarterly Fine Art offerings promise to captivate bidders with exceptional paintings, sculptures and installations that span different styles and eras, allowing for a rich exploration of creativity.
In addition to these categories, the Art & Design post-1880 section will feature innovative pieces that exemplify the evolution of design through distinctive artistic movements.
Jewellery, Watches and
A ‘Big Red’ Rolex carries a presale estimate of £50,000-£70,000 at Duke’s Auctioneers. Consignments are now being invited for all Autumn auctions
Silver will present a curated selection of luxury items, combining craftsmanship with timeless elegance, making them perfect for collectors and those seeking special gifts.
Coins, a testimony to history and culture, will also be featured, providing insights into the numismatic world.
Moreover, the Sporting & Natural History auction will appeal to both hobbyists and serious collectors, offering rare items that capture the beauty of the natural world and the thrill of sports.
Duke’s Auctioneers invites consignors to participate in an exciting opportunity to connect with a global audience.
For a confidential and free auction estimate contact Duke’s at enquiries@dukes-auctions. com or on 01305 265080.
THE 1stXI at Swanage Cricket Club have won three of their seven matches in the second tier of Dorset's Premier Division to occupy sixth place.
The batting highlights have been two centuries, one by Ben Hodder and one by Mike Salmon. Charlie Dyke, Ben Hodder (two), Mark Stacey, Craig Wells (two) and Tom Wells have scored halfcenturies.
The bowling highlight has been Hodder's eight-wicket-haul against Martinstown, which included four wickets in four balls. The most consistent bowler has been Steve Ramsay, ably supported by Dyke, James Harding, Sid Nash and Freddie Long.
The other main highlight has been the debut by Lily Wood, who has also played for Worcester Rapids T20 side.
The 1stXI have also been competing in the South West Division of the T20 Cup and finished runners-up to Premier 1 side Bere Regis.
In Mike Salmon, the club had the leading run-scorer in the
competition after his sensational innings of 139 not out against Dorchester – which included 13 sixes. He also registered a half-century. Ramsay was again the leading contributor with the ball.
The 2ndXI have won six of their 10 games in Division 4 to sit fourth in a very competitive league, 14 points behind second place in their quest for promotion.
The principal contributions with the bat have come from Matt Beard, John Lewis, Mike Nash and Mark Stacey, who have all registered halfcenturies.
The leading wicket-taker in the side is Max Nicholson, but he has received invaluable support from Beard, Harry Long, Sam Marks, Ethan Stacey and Sam Wells.
The 3rdXI have a 50% strike-rate from their 10 matches in Division 5 to lie fifth, 20 points behind the second-placed team. Skipper David Alcock (two) and Simon
by Graham Howard DDAS junior secretary
THE sixth round of the Dorchester & District Angling Society Juniors points championship was held at Sharnhill Lake, near Buckland Newton.
The weather forecast reported the chance of heavy rain and thunderstorms, which would have made a tough day
even more difficult, and although the worst of the weather did not materialise, neither did the fish.
Ten juniors fished the little farm lake, which is rarely used for competitions, so the fish were not that keen to feed, keeping weights low. Three
Goldsack have both recorded half-centuries and enjoyed regular support from the Barry Brothers, Jernimain and Michael.
The bowling highlight has been Michael Barry's incredible spell against Wimborne in which he claimed six wickets, including a hat-trick. Useful contributions have also come from Jernimain, Josh and Mike Gould, Andrew Hancock and Sam Willcocks.
The 4thXI has been a fine breeding-ground for several of the Under-15s and the everexpanding Women & Girls Section.
Alex Alcock, Bradley
juniors failed to catch anything at all.
In changeable conditions,
Bulpitt, Tim Ives and Seb Wright have put up fine individual performances and Niamh's wicket-keeping is improving all the time.
The other main highlight of the first half of the season was Harry Long's maiden century against Cerne Valley.
The Women & Girls team have won three of their five games with useful contributions from Kirsty with the bat and Amelia, Faye and Sophie with the ball. They recently hosted a festival.
All of the club's youth teams from the Under-7s all the way through to the Under-15s have performed impressively.
Harry Cryer caught two “proper” carp and a few small tench to take the win with 12lb 1oz.
Second was championship leader Austin Scott-Kennedy, extending his lead with 10lb 13oz.
Third place went to Jack Cryer with 8lb 15oz, making it a double hit for the Cryer brothers.
For more information about DDAS Juniors, go to www. ddasjuniors.co.uk or contact the junior secretary at juniors. sec@d-das.com. For venue details visit www.d-das.com.
THE Laudemus choir will be led by former King’s Singer, choral director and composer, Jeremy Jackman, when it returns to Dorset next month.
The choir, which takes its name from the Latin for “let us praise”, has its roots in the Wimborne Arts Festival of 1991.
It has returned each year since then to bring cathedralstyle Evensong to country churches across Dorset.
It operates as an annual summer course, with singers coming from all over the UK and some from overseas.
The repertoire is wide ranging, with different music for
The Laudemus choir will be in Swanage and Wimborne
each service on the tour.
This summer, Laudemus will visit churches in Stalbridge
and the Minster in Wimborne (August 10).
The choir will be accompanied for most of the week by Dorset-born organist Sam Hanson, who works as a busy freelance conductor, accompanist and composer in Dorset and London.
On Saturday, the organist is Colin Davey, organist and director of choirs at Wimborne Minster.
Saturday’s service will also feature the first performances of two new choral works –the winning pieces in the recent Laudemus Composition Competition, written by John Sturt and David Harris.
(August 6), Swanage (August 7), Gussage All Saints (August 8), Symondsbury (August 9)
A presentation to the young composers will be held at the close of the service.
Diary entries are £6 plus VAT per entry, per month. The deadline for the August 19 issue is NOON on August 12. Call on 01963 400186 or email adverts@blackmorevale.net
Please call prior to attending events listed to ensure they are still on.
MONDAY
18:30 ADULT BEGINNERS LATIN AMERICAN & BALLROOM LINE DANCE CLASS
(you dance solo)
Starting 9th September at St Edwards Church hall, Swanage 6.30pm - 7.30pm
Limited spaces available – to reserve a place in the class contact
Donna Diebelius F.I.S.T.D
Tel: 07518 056149
Email: purbeckdancestudio@gmail.com
19:30 ADULT BEGINNERS LATIN AMERICAN & BALLROOM LINE DANCE CLASS
(you dance with a partner)
Starting 9th September at St Edwards
Church Hall, Swanage 7.30pm - 8.30pm
Limited Spaces Available – to reserve a place in the class contact:
Donna Diebelius F.I.S.T.D
Tel: 07518 056149
Email: purbeckdancestudio@gmail.com
WEDNESDAY
Church, Wm. Contact Julie 01929 558139, jbrad@uwclub.net.
SATURDAY
AT
MARY’S CHURCH, Rectory Classroom, Swanage. Every Saturday. Tea and coffee provided. Very friendly group. Contact Richard: 01929 553516
FANS of the Harry Potter books and films can see the first film in the series outdoors at Corfe Castle this August Bank Holiday weekend.
Purbeck Film Festival is screening Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone under the stars – and teaming up with Swanage Railway to allow fans to get to the castle.
The Railway’s special “Sunset Shuttle” service will provide transport from Swanage and Norden just for the screening at a discounted rate.
Claire Burns, festival director at the Purbeck Film Festival, said: “This event is designed to transport fans not only through the landscapes but through time, immersing them in the nostalgic experience of classic train travel, coupled with the magic of Harry Potter.
enchantment of J K Rowling’s wizarding world.”
“We’re thrilled to offer an unforgettable evening that combines the love for railways with the
THE fiery music of the Balkans, cool Brazilian sounds and a joyous selection of classical music will all be heard in a West Dorset village as the Burton Bradstock Festival of Music and Art returns for its 42nd event this summer.
Alongside a packed programme of music to suit all tastes, Burton Bradstock’s Village Hall hosts a high-quality exhibition featuring work by West Country artists, ceramicists and crafters.
The music festival attracts internationally acclaimed performers, many of whom are festival regulars, who are hosted by local families and are regarded as friends.
The art festival opens on
Saturday, August 10, when the village hall is transformed into an art gallery for nine days.
This year’s music festival features “Balkan Bradstock”, an electrifying performance from Paprika, the UK’s leading Balkan music blend, whose mixture of folk, rock and jazz styles is bound to set feet tapping.
The programme of concerts from Monday, August 12, to Friday, August 16, also includes Brazilian jazz with Sao Pauloborn singer, Carolina Lelis, a Viennese Soiree, chamber music by Schubert and Fauré, and a late-night performance of Olivier Messiaen’s iconic Quartet for the End of Time.
It culminates in a Gala
Film fans are encouraged to dress in their favourite Harry Potter attire and take blankets and chairs for comfortable seating during the screening. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (PG) is being shown on Friday, August 23, at 8.45pm with gates open at 8pm.
It is one of four family-
Concert with the full Festival Orchestra on Friday, August 16. Featuring star turns from renowned musicians, it will include a Bach triple concerto, a seldom-heard version of Mozart’s early masterpiece, his Sinfonia Concertante, and Dvorak’s Rondo for cello and orchestra.
There are also lunchtime concerts and late-night recitals, and in a special Castaway event, broadcaster and musician Sandy Burnett talks to the festival’s artistic director, violinist David Juritz, about the music that has shaped his life.
To launch the concert programme, a festival evensong will be held in the music venue of St Mary’s Church on Sunday, August 11, following a tea party that afternoon in the Rectory Gardens, accompanied by live music.
David Juritz says: “If it’s true that variety is the spice of life, then this year’s festival promises to be not only lively,
orientated films being screened in the Cinema Under the Stars summer programme with Barbie, Ghostbusters and Wonka also set to feature.
For more information and to book tickets visit www. purbeckfilm.com. Train times and tickets are available on Swanage Railway’s website, www.swanagerailway.co.uk.
Film-goers can still travel to Corfe Castle by car, with parking available at Castle View Welcome Centre, a 10-minute walk from the castle entrance.
but spicy too as Paprika open the proceedings with their super-charged rock and jazzinfused take on eastern European folk music from the Balkans.”
Chair of the festival committee, Jenny Malyon, added: “As always, we are delighted to see our much-loved regular musicians back in Burton Bradstock again.
“David has put together a wonderful programme of music with something to please everyone.
“We are so fortunate to have so many internationally acclaimed musicians who come to play in our village, and we are also extremely lucky to have so many highly talented artists and makers in our region to make the art exhibition the success it always is.”
Tickets are available through Bridport Tourist Information Centre. More information can be found at www.
burtonbradstockfestival.com.
