Letters

Check your water and sewerage bills!

My father recently died and, having sold his property, I then needed to deal with the final utility bills. I received both water and sewerage bills through the post at the same time. I was able to compare these in detail and found that the sewerage bill was being charged on a lot higher usage of water than had actually been used. The water bill showed usage of 13 cubic metres and 12 cubic metres but the sewerage bill showed usage of 34 cubic metres and 31 cubic metres; so an overcharge of 40 cubic metres. I queried this over the phone with the sewerage company; they could not give a reason why this had occurred but I will be receiving an amended bill for the correct amount which will be over half the original amount claimed.

Ian O’Hare Wimborne

Beautiful county is rapidly becoming a concrete jungle

Reading the letter from CPRE I would like to add my view. As far as I am concerned Dorset has NO planning policy, apart from ruining East Dorset. In seven years they have built at St Leonards Hospital, and now at Verwood, Three- Legged-Cross. We now have more factories and houses. Wimborne has been completly trashed with back garden grabbing in St Leonards and close by. (When the Tories came into power they said there would be: ‘No back garden grabbing’. We now hear West Parley and Alderholt are next. East Dorset is being ruined by those who have no policy or understanding of how many grasshoppers, crickets, butterflies, insects, reptiles amphibians’, etc, homes they are destroying to allow mostly outsiders into the areas. We have a council the leader of whom, Mr. Flowers, asked ‘would you like to work from home or work in the office?’ Well we know the answer and it means to get through by phone is sometimes impossible, including queries about planning. We also had a letter to say that council would not put up planning applications on boards, instead it was up to the applicant to tell locals! Please tell us why we should vote for this lot, or any of the others who are ruining our areas and our wildlife. But of course the bottom line is Government and their immigration policy, a policy which, when they came into power, stated only tens of thousands would be able to come here instead of 250,000 to 400,000 a year. So our beautiful East Dorset country side will become a concrete jungle. Thank goodness I will not be around to see it.

G Brown Ashley Heath

OFF THE WALL...

Cartoon by Lyndon Wall justsocaricatures.co.uk

Beware of wayward cyclists

A young mum was on the zebra crossing carrying her toddler across the road from the beach to the cafe opposite. My heart was in my mouth as two cyclists whizzed along without due care or consideration to the pedestrians. My husband shouted out but the cyclists didn’t even slow down. Whilst on a road, cyclists are vehicles and should stop at a zebra crossing when

pedestrians are actually crossing! I asked the mother if she was okay and thankfully they were - although I was a little shaken! On a more positive note it was lovely to see a beautiful clean beach after the mess left by all the visitors at the weekend. My thanks to those who work hard clearing up all the muck.

S Finch Ferndown

Coffee mornings suspended for now

The weekly Wednesday coffee mornings at West Parley’s Community Sports and Social Club have been suspended whilst repairs are undertaken at the building. Meanwhile, Parley Health Walks are also not meeting at the clubhouse but informally continuing until the Community Sports and Social Club re-opens. More details from westparley-pc.gov.uk/

Ferndown fete is the finest

The Mayor of Ferndown, Councillor Lawrence Wilson, opened the Fete On The Field in the town, writes Tom Scrase. The Verwood Concert Brass Band gave us all a great day of entertainment and they took part in the first Verwood Carnival which still continues the tradition today. Holly Copse Molly Dancers put on a great and colourful display. Molly Dancing originated in the English Midlands and East Anglia and is associated with Plough Monday (the first Monday after Twelfth Night). The Fete on the Field Classic Car Show put on an amazing variety of the finest classic, custom, commercial and agricultural vehicles. Along with so many side shows and food outlets it made for a great day in Ferndown.

Pictures: TOM SCRASE

Last chance to take part in big bike ride

People are being urged to watch out for cyclists this Sunday, July 3, as riders take to the Dorset lanes to raise funds for Macmillan Cancer Support in the annual Macmillan Dorset Bike Ride. Cyclists will leave Corfe Mullen Recreation Ground between 8am and 10am and head towards Wimborne, and then return throughout the day via Lytchett Matravers. Motorists are asked to be particularly vigilant as cyclists cross the main roads especially at Red Post and the A350 at Lytchett Matravers. This year’s ride will once again offer a choice of four distances of 38, 48, 63 and 100 miles for cyclists to choose from, taking cyclists along the Stour Valley, Winterbourne Valley and to some famous Dorset landmarks such as Bulbarrow Hill and Milton Abbas. Thanks to sponsors Sunseeker International and support from Primera Sports, the Hendy Group and Coles Miller Solicitors all the money raised and donated by the cyclists can go directly to help support people living with cancer. Cyclists can still enter the ride on the day. For more information and directions, visit: macmillanbikeride.co.uk.

A team of talented dancers from Dorset have been setting the world stage alight after they fly to Spain to compete in the Dance World Cup finals. Eighteen dancers from Poole’s Steppin’ Out Academy are competing against the best in the world at the competition in San Sebastián which ends on July 2. They earned their place after finishing in the top five in the national heats last year. The young ‘Steppers’, aged from 12 to 18, have been entering both solo, duo and large group sections. Principal of Steppin’ Out Academy, Angela Taylor, said: “This is the ultimate and most prestigious competition dancers of this age can compete in. “To say I am proud is an understatement... this is the pinnacle so far in their young dance careers. “Not only have they been working incredibly hard on their dance routines, but they have also been very busy fundraising to make this trip of a lifetime possible. Eighteen year-old Thomas Parkes has been competing in the Senior Boys’ Show Dance, Lyrical and Contemporary solo categories, along with Charlotte Serle in the Senior Duet section in Contemporary dance. Also doing their bit for showcasing boys dancing is 17 year-old Ben Hoole who is competing in the Boys Show Dance and Contemporary solos. The whole Steppin’ Out team have come together for the Senior Contemporary Large Group, Song and Dance Large Group and Senior Ballet Large Group categories. Team captain Ruby Whitmarsh said: “We are incredibly excited to perform our dances on the world stage and are still pinching ourselves that this is actually happening. “We’ve promised to do Steppin’ Out, Dorset and England proud!”.

County dancers fly the flag

stouravonmagazine.co.uk

by Faith Eckersall

‘Dear Ukraine – we are here for you...’ These are the heartfelt words of an Edmondsham teen who has penned a song for the people of the war-torn country. Daisy Turner, 13, who attends Bryanston Knighton House School in Durweston, wrote her acoustic piece after watching the recently televised Concert for Ukraine. “As I listened to the concert, it gave me the idea to write the song for them,” says Daisy. “When I was helping my mother at work, I’d think of different chords that might work.” She also used her free time to consider various chords and lyrics, including some in Ukrainian, which she worked out with the help of a translation programme, experimenting until she hit on a winning formula. “After coming home from school and practising a few nights a week and weekends, I got the rhythm and lyrics then thought of the title Dear Ukraine,” she says. “It took me about a week to write and compose it, then I continued to practise until I knew it off by heart.” So far she has only performed the song in public twice, first at Edmonsham’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, and also on Forest FM. “I did Dear Ukraine and a couple of others solo with no backing, and people seemed to really like it,” she says. Her school has also put her recording on its YouTube channel. Musically, she says she’s been influenced by two things: Ed Sheeran and her father, Andrew, who used to play guitar to her each evening when she was younger. After penning Dear Ukraine, plus other songs, including one for her mother, Daisy still hopes to train as a vet in the future, but also to progress her singersongwriting career.

Dear Ukraine... Daisy’s here for you

SINGING OUT: Daisy Turner

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THERAPY: Natasha Hunt with sons Alfie and Joshua... then and now

By Faith Eckersall

Sixteen years ago, Wimborne mum Natasha Hunt was praying she’d live long enough to see her new baby take his first steps. Now she sits beside him as he practises for his driving test. “I can’t believe he’s old enough to learn to drive,” she says. “It’s wonderful to spend time with my sons as they become adults.” During the intervening years, Natasha has done all the mum things she dreamed of as she underwent six months of gruelling chemotherapy and treatment at Poole Hospital. She was isolated from everything and everyone – even fresh air – as she and baby Alfie, who was just three weeks old when she was diagnosed, stayed in the room while she underwent treatment. “For a good year or so after I came out of hospital I slept next to the open window, even though I was freezing, just to feel the breeze and the air on my face,’ she says. “It’s silly things like that, you literally take fresh air for granted but when it’s taken away, that’s when you start appreciating it.” During the past 16 years, however, she’s also been the main fundraiser and focal point for her own charity LEAF – Leukaemia Educating And Fundraising. Over the years the charity has helped pay for training that the NHS budget didn’t cover, for a leukaemia patient’s sperm to be frozen, to give him a chance at becoming a dad, and for care packs for patients. Natasha also visits isolated leukaemia and blood cancer patients, bringing care packages or providing a listening ear. “I went to see a lady who has terrible nausea from the treatment so I put together one or two things that I’d found had helped me,” says Natasha. “I’ve also been shaving quite a few ladies’ hair recently. I think having it done by someone who has been through it themselves makes it a little bit easier.” However, she is fearful that much of LEAF’s work may have to stop, due to a lack of funds. “Everyone’s struggling and it’s a sign of the times but, for a small charity like us, it can be very daunting,” she says. “Covid hit us hard and I thought it would pick up after the Pandemic, but it hasn’t. “People haven’t been so willing to come out to events because of this – we had to cancel our golf day because of lack of numbers.” To save money she runs the charity from her own home and says she will always try to be there for individual patients, but doesn’t want to see the assistance side fade away. “It’s really hard to do alone; I’d love to have a couple of volunteer fundraisers and to attract a bit more money so we can continue to give this vital help,” she says. LEAF has paid for cleaning ladies, or for services such as laundry for patients who have no one at home to help them. And she hopes that just by seeing her, it will give patients hope that they can beat the disease. “I don’t want to give false hope, and there’s also an element that you don’t want to sound insensitive, but you do want to get the message out there that it’s not all bad news,” she says. She’ll be saying this loud and proud when she carries the Commonwealth Games torch through Dorset on July 4. “I was privileged to carry the Olympic torch in 2012 and was amazed to learn I’d been nominated to bear the Commonwealth torch in this Platinum Jubilee year.” However: “I was even more amazed and so touched to learn that the person who nominated me was Joshua, my eldest son,” she says. “It’s a huge honour, both for my family and for LEAF.” Natasha is hoping her torch bearing will help raise awareness of her charity and act as a beacon of hope. “When the boys were little, we were photographed all together when I was discharged from hospital” she says. “We recently recreated this photo at Kingston Lacy and I couldn’t believe how time has flown. “I want people to know there are longterm survivors and that we are out here. “I also want people to know you can survive and thrive and that LEAF may be able to help them.” Find out more about how to donate to LEAF at: leafcharity.com/

Natasha beat the test of time to help others

Owners of established jewellers Portique, of East Street in Wimborne, have announced the shop’s closure. To celebrate many successful years of business, the store is hosting a spectacular closing-down sale which will see all jewellery, including diamonds, coloured stones, and gold pieces, reduced by 50 per cent. Portique was established in 1971 by the late R E Porter, great uncle of the current owner Neil Harkness. Husband and wife Neil and Elizabeth Harkness, pictured, took the reins in 1997 when the business was located in Bournemouth’s Criterion Arcade. The store was relocated to Wimborne in 2003 when the arcade was redeveloped. A family business in the truest sense of the word, Portique quickly became a popular store in the heart of the Wimborne retail community. Neil and Elizabeth have run Portique, with help from a dedicated team of staff and their three daughters, for more than 25 years. Renowned for a personal service and exceptional quality, its knowledgeable team is headed up by Neil who has worked in the jewellery industry for more than 50 years. His extensive experience has included working for luxury retailer Mappin and Webb where he was based in their London stores, including their Harrods concession. From there, Neil went on to establish himself as a respected independent buyer and seller of fine jewellery and silverware. The couple eventually settled in the South West where they made the decision to purchase Portique due to its longstanding family connections. Said Neil: “The decision to close the business hasn’t been easy, but after such a wonderful career, I am ready to retire and spend more time with my family. “It’s been a privilege to be involved with so many special occasions in our customers’ lives and that really has been the most special part of my career.” Elizabeth added: “Portique has been a great place to be, with a fabulous customer base and hugely supportive staff who are an integral part of the Portique family. “We will be very sad to say goodbye.” The retirement sale at Portique will continue until all stock is sold. All jewellery in the sale will be reduced by 50%, giving customers old and new an opportunity to bag a real bargain. Sale items will include diamond pieces, engagement rings, necklaces, coloured stone pieces, wedding rings, earrings, bracelets, pearl jewellery and more. All stock will be sold on a ‘first come, first served’ basis, with all items available to take away on the day. Portique is located at 42 East Street, Wimborne.

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The fabulous folk fest that really delivers

Words and pictures by Tom Scrase

Wimborne Folk Festival 2022 was a great day, with nothing but the best in entertainment. There was so much to see and do, there was hardly time to visit all the stages. And in the Allendale was an event where teenagers all dressed in black, performing in the completely blacked-out stage and theatre, put on a wonderful illuminated show. With the spectacular procession in the afternoon it was just a great day out. Thank you all to those involved in putting on a great festival.

Night sky events with Bob Mizon MBE of the Wessex Astronomical Society

Summer nights are short, so late-night stargazing is now the rule. If you’re lucky enough to live in a place with little light pollution, look south-east to see the Milky Way rearing up from the horizon, looking like a pearly stream across the night sky. Dark-adapted eyes will see that it seems to be divided into light and dark patches. The light ones are simply the combined glow of countless stars in the plane of the galaxy in which we live; and the dark smudges should stir our imagination as they are the dust and ashes of long-dead stars; and the elements those stars have made are what we ourselves and everything around us is made. We are truly stardust, the old 1970 song was right. Clear skies!

Surfing the Milky Way