Local News

Friends of St Mary's

The Friends of St Mary’s Wendover AGM is at St Mary’s Church on Sunday, 26 March, at 12.15pm. Wine and light refreshments provided.

This charity, no 104163, was formed in 1993, for those with an interest in the oldest building in Wendover, with the largest seating capacity. It has accepted subscriptions and given grants of nearly £300,000 towards repairs of the church over the last 30 years. To ensure its continuation it needs a new generation of supporters. It is not subsidising the worship in the church as they cover routine maintenance, but the building is over 800 years old and is in increased demand as a venue by the community of Wendover.

Road Farm Countryways

Extraordinary volunteers wanted to help at Countryways with its animals and outdoor learning proposition

Could it be you?

Countryways CIC, based at Road Farm in Great Missenden, is a local notfor-profit community enterprise which offers care farming interventions for young people and those vulnerable or facing life challenges. Currently Countryways has some fabulous people to support them, but the growing need means they are seeking more help.

They have two important part time volunteering positions, ideally for someone local:

Outdoor Learning Liaison Champion (Approx. 2 hours/week)

Help expand Countryways' offering to local schools and special interest groups. Countryways encourages outdoor learning and links the curriculum with the seasons, landscape, animals and nature. A number of local schools and Scout groups have already visited the care farm for outdoor learning sessions with great success. There is an opportunity for more schools and other groups to visit, but they need an Outdoor Learning Liaison Champion to help in coordinating these visits, gather feedback and widen the programme's reach.

Time required: Approximately 2 hours per week and if available, but not essential, more time to help during the visits. 6 months minimum commitment and 18 years+ please. DBS checks may be required.

Based: Home and at Countryways, at Road Farm in Great Missenden.

Livestock Champion (Approx. 4 hours)

To specifically be able to help with the evening livestock routine. Must have own transport and be respectful and competent with animals (especially goats and donkeys).

Time required: 4 hours per week over 4 days from 4pm. Could suit a competent BCA Animal management or Agri student or someone who has livestock experience. DBS checks may be required.

Based: Countryways, at Road Farm in Great Missenden.

If you are interested in finding out more about either volunteering opportunity, please do get in contact with the team at Countryways at vols. rfcountryways@gmail.com with your details.

Celebrate and remember loved ones with Forever ForgetMe-Nots at Waddesdon Manor

Florence Nightingale Hospice Charity has partnered with the magnificent Waddesdon Manor to launch a very special Forever Flowers event to celebrate and remember loved ones this spring.

A stunning, temporary display of 1,000 bespoke metal Forget-Me-Not flowers will be installed in the Aviary Gardens at Waddesdon Manor, near Aylesbury in April. Each flower will represent the life, love and memories of a loved one.

The charity is offering you the opportunity to be a part of this event by dedicating one of these limited Forever Forget-Me-Nots, which also includes an invitation to a private viewing of the display on Monday 17 April whilst the grounds are closed to the public. The Forever Forget-MeNots installation will then remain on display to the public for two weeks. Once the installation is removed, those who have dedicated a flower will be able to take it home to display as a forever keepsake.

By dedicating a Forever Forget-Me-Not you will be helping the charity to provide excellent local hospice care and be there for more patients and families across Buckinghamshire and its borders.

To dedicate a Forever Forget-Me-Not visit https://www.fnhospice.org.uk/ foreverflowers or call 01296 429975 for more information.

Walking in Wendover's Shoes

Aoife Mannix was the resident poet at Wendover Library for a month last year. Aoife worked with the local community to write a series of poems based around many of the photographs entered into our annual photography competition. There was an exhibition of the poems and the photographs in the library at the end of her residency. A book of Aoife's work has now been published and is available in the library.

Dr Colin Riley

Wendover News was sad to learn of the passing of Dr Colin Riley in February, just as we went to press. Our thoughts are with his family.

WAVUS

WAVUS will be providing English lessons for Ukrainian guests in Wendover & Villages on Wednesday evenings from 7pm to 8pm, starting 1 March and running for 10 weeks. Don’t worry if you’ve missed the first, you can still join us.

The lessons will be at pre-intermediate level, which aims for students to be able to talk and read about a wide number of subjects using appropriate vocabulary and fairly correct, if basic, grammar. They will confidently use all the main tenses, and begin to use phrasal verbs, modal verbs, and suchlike.

The lessons will be held at Tres Corazones, 4 Pound Street, HP22 6EJ in the middle of Wendover, which also provides an opportunity for social interaction straight after the lessonsfrom 8pm to 9pm. There will be no charge for the lessons.

Please let us know ASAP if you are interested and intend to join the course by completing the form at https://tinyurl.com/wavusESOL

We hope you are able to join us.

Rennie Grove Update

The Wendover Fundraising Committee for Rennie Grove Hospice Care have raised £5,814 from April 2022 to the present. This translates into 194 nursing hours for at home hospice care. Our next event is a talk about Nursing at Barts in the 1960s given by retired Barts nurse Cate Bowley at St Anne’s Hall on 10 March at 7.30pm. Please come and support us at this or another of our events. Tickets available from the Rennie Grove Hospice Care shop in the High Street.

Wendover Warm Café

Wendover Warm Café will continue in Wendover Christian Centre, Aylesbury Road, HP22 6JG to Easter in April. The times are:

Tuesdays 10am to 3pm

Thursdays 2pm to 5pm

Fridays 7.30pm to 10pm

Saturdays 10am to 12 noon

Churches Together in Wendover, supported by Wendover Parish Council, are looking at what other activities might be helpful to the wider community, as we continue to face the cost of living challenge. These might include debt management and budgeting advice, provision of ethical finance services (including establishing or working with an existing credit union), cooking classes for nutritional meals on a budget, provision of hot meals, other food related projects (for example establishing a community fridge or communal pantry).

If you have ideas about this programme or other ideas which could be helpful to the wider community, please contact via ian.sansbury@ stmaryswendover.org.

Youth Concern News

CEO Hannah was honoured to attend a Parliamentary Reception at the House of Lords, hosted by Lord Best OBE DL, to celebrate the tenth anniversary of StreetLink. Hannah highlighted Aylesbury Vale’s homelessness problem with Felicity Buchan MP and Minister for Homelessness and Rough Sleeping, local MP Rob Butler, Homeless Link Chair of Trustees Annie McLoughlin and other charities working in the homeless field.

StreetLink exists to help end rough sleeping by enabling members of the public to connect people sleeping rough with the local services that can support them. In its 10 years, StreetLink has received 500,000 notifications of rough sleepers’ locations and helped 86,000 homeless people across the country. Before StreetLink there was no easy way for the public to link rough sleepers to support.

Events for Scannappeal

Angling Spring Farm Open Garden, HP16 0BP

Back by popular demand this beautiful garden is not to be missed. Open on Thursday 20 April, 11am - 2pm. Tickets: £10 in advance and include tea, coffee and cake. Details & tickets https:// scannappeal.org.uk/events/

Easter at Dundridge Manor

Sunday 2 April, Scannappeal’s first open garden of the season is at the historic Dundridge Manor, an old Tudor farmhouse once owned by Henry VIII. Activities include an Easter egg trail with prizes, judging of Easter bonnet and colouring competition at 1.30pm, pony rides* and Easter crafts* (*minimal but additional cost). Tickets £6 for adults and £4 for children (under 12’s), ticket sales in advance only. Refreshments will be available to purchase including homemade cakes, hot drinks including hot chocolate, BBQ sausages and Easter treats. Details & tickets https:// scannappeal.org.uk/events/.

Wendover Easter History Hunt

with Kremena Dimitrova, Artist commissioned to complete art installation for new Library –Monday 3 April, Wendover Community Library Kremena returns for her second customer engagement session. Would you like to help shape the art work for the new library? Pop along between 10-1 for a day filled with lots of interaction, fun and prizes! This is a free event, all ages welcome.