January 2023

WOODBURY NEWS JANUARY 2023

EDITORIAL

Christmas Day and New Year’s Day both fall on a Sunday in 2022. Monday 26th December is as usual a Bank Holiday, but so too this year is Tuesday 27th. You are advised to check your regular medications, and to request them in enough time for collection (page 11).

Some residents will already have returned the Parish Council’s own questionnaire about EDDC’s Emerging Local Plan. But the closing date for comments on the EDDC’s online consultation is 15 January – leaving time over the holiday period to peruse the 300+ page document. This is an opportunity to consider the future of our villages and nearby towns, and to make your own feelings and opinions felt (see map on page 26).

Katharine Wheeler wrote very succinctly last month about the anomalies of the new bus timetables, and the Parish Council is taking this vexed matter up with the relevant parties. Gill Selley explains on page 29 that lack of finance is often the root cause of the problem, and she reminds us that ‘if we don’t use it, we will lose it anyway.’

With the weather suddenly turning much colder, we are reminded on page 18 of the welcome warm spaces available both at Christ Church and the Maltsters. Everyone is welcome – perhaps you could tell someone you think might benefit from warmth and company, or add your name to the rota of volunteers.

We are particularly grateful to the volunteers who will be doing their best in cold times to deliver your copy of Woodbury News in time for a Christmas read. And we offer grateful thanks to Sandra Huish, who has so ably chaired the Woodbury & District branch of the Royal British Legion for many years. Maybe you could step into her shoes next year (page 10)? Or even become a school governor (page 14) or a member of the Dumbutu committee (page 21)?

Woodbury News sends best wishes for a Happy Christmas and a peaceful and healthy New Year to all our readers.

Cover: Chris Sheppard watches over the recently gilded cockerel (page 6/7).

Woodbury News is a Private Company Limited by Guarantee No. 5263356

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ST SWITHUN’S CHURCH, WOODBURY

Vicar: Reverend Bill Lemmey 01395 232161 revbillwhitecross@gmail.com

Administrator: Jill Dupain dupain@hotmail.co.uk

CHURCH SERVICES including joint services in the Mission Community.

18 December Advent 4

Christingle at St Swithun’s, 16.30. Carols on the Green, 18.00.

Saturday 24 December - Christmas Eve - Midnight Mass at St Swithun’s 23.30.

25 December - Christmas Day - Holy Communion at St Swithun’s, 11.15. Holy Communion at Aylesbeare, 11.15.

1 January Christmas 2

Holy Communion at St Swithun’s, 11.15. Evening Worship at Exton 18.00.

8 January Epiphany

Holy Communion at Exton, 09.30. Holy Communion at St Swithun’s, 11.15.

15 January Epiphany 2

Morning worship at Exton, 09.30. Evensong at St Swithun’s, 18.30.

22 January Epiphany 3

Café Service at St Swithun’s, 10.30.

29 January Epiphany 4

Mission Community Holy Communion with Baptism at St Swithun’s, 11.15.

Further information will be available on the church noticeboard and in the monthly Digest. To receive this by email please send your email address to st.swithuns.digest@gmail.com.

FLOODLIGHTING ST SWITHUN’S CHURCH

16 December Derrick Mead: Happy Birthday Marian - keep going; with love from Derrick and all the family.

For your special event, contact Mike Jeans on 01395 232544. Floodlight dedications are displayed on the church noticeboard at the lych gate.

CHURCH ALTAR FLOWERS - DECEMBER

4, 11 and 18 December - Advent, no flowers.

25 December - Christmas Day. Please note we will decorate church for Christmas from 19 December. Barbara Hill

Woodbury News attempts to represent a variety of views within the community, but does not accept responsibility for anything but editorial comment. While it may publish unacknowledged material, nothing is included unless the editor knows the name and address of the author(s).

FoSS (FRIENDS OF ST SWITHUN’S)

The FoSS committee met at the end of November to agree that the AGM will be held on Saturday 21 January at 19.00. It will be followed by a concert featuring Woodbury Handbells, Woodbury Whalers and Bel Canto choir, with a chicken casserole supper and mulled wine. Tickets @ £10 will be on sale from committee members after Christmas. We limit the number to 60, so entry will be by ticket only.

There will be a full concert in St Swithun’s on Saturday 29 April featuring Devon County Junior Choir under the direction of Andrew Downton (an organ scholar), who will also make the organ sing. We will also have our own Bel Canto choir joined by Catherine Luke as soloist. We also hope to host a concert in July, yet to be confirmed.

Pat Browne

ST SWITHUN’S ANNUAL WINTER FAIR

It was a delight to see so many at this year’s winter fundraising fair, held on Saturday 3 December in St Swithun’s. There were various stalls selling gifts, books, cakes and biscuits. The red-and-green stall did particularly well, selling hand-crafted Christmas items and burnable cards, which could be recycled on a fire once read. The organ being played and carols sung by the choir added to the festive atmosphere.

Two competitions were popular: guess the name of the doll and guess the weight of the cockerel. The doll’s name was the same as the winner’s mother –Maud.

The cockerel, which is normally perched on the tower, has been repaired and re-gilded, thanks to Chris Sheppard.

It seemed a good opportunity for people to see him close up before he flies back to the top of the tower and continues his life as a weathervane. His loud crowing reminded everyone to have a go at guessing his weight, which was 8.8 kg. The son-in-law of the Freemans was the winner, rewarded with a chicken dinner for four. Hot drinks and mince pies were on offer, just what was needed on a very cold morning. As always, the grand raffle attracted a lot of interest and plenty of tickets were sold in anticipation of winning super prizes, which included hampers and vouchers. The overall total raised was £1,085. A big thankyou to everyone who made the morning so successful and enjoyable.

Lin Milsom and Sue Hudson

WOODBURY TENNIS CLUB

Although we have had a very wet November, club sessions and matches were played, ensuring that members had sufficient outdoor exercise. The mixed team came across strong Budleigh opposition and have had to relinquish their top spot in the division, but the team is still well placed in third position. The men’s team recorded the first win away against the Golf and Country Club. With a series of home games over the next four weeks, the men should pick up valuable points. To ensure that competitive play can continue during the wet and cold winter months, members of the tennis club along with badminton players have embraced the latest import from the Americas, pickleball. This was introduced to us by member Lesley Chudley, who has lived in the States and had played the game. She was most insistent that Woodbury should play pickleball. The Exmouth U3A had the same idea and booked the village hall for their use. Pat Browne and Lesley soon met up with Bob Nicholls of U3A and arranged to share equipment to enable some 20 players to play the game on Thursday afternoons. There have been three very successful sessions, with novice players becoming expert in a very short time. Unfortunately, to enable everyone to play as space is limited, we have no vacancies at the moment.

Pat Browne

WOODBURY COMMUNITY ORCHARD

2022 Newsletter

We were very excited to enjoy a moonlit Wassail amongst the trees again in 2022. Special thanks must go to our very own green man (aka Kate) and the wonderful singers from Woodbury Community Choir. As with previous years, the committee did a superb job of lighting up the pathways and trees with tea lights to guide the wassail procession around the sleeping trees. Our wassailers made much noise and sang out to give the trees a healthy start to 2022. Save the date: Sunday 8 January 2023 – WCO Wassail. Procession to the orchard starts at 17.00 from Woodbury village hall car park. Check Facebook for updates.

Annual Spring Pruning

Late February, on a dry and bright weekend we were lucky to have Matt, the Lead Arboriculture Instructor at Hi-Line Training, the Arboriculture training company, to show us how to tackle the annual pruning our young trees require. He is a qualified arborist with around 20 years’ experience working with trees. In his role as instructor, he teaches chainsaw use, tree climbing, tree pruning, tree felling and specialist first aid. He is described as a complete ‘tree geek’ with a vast knowledge and passion for everything ‘tree’. Thank you Matt! During the session he showed us where to prune the branches, what tools to use, how to shape the trees and explained why we were pruning them.

New Orchard Bench

You may have noticed the beautifully hand-crafted Woodbury Community Orchard bench at the top of the orchard. The very talented Murrough has created us a truly unique bench from a felled oak tree for everyone to enjoy. Please sit a while and enjoy the trees and views towards Dartmoor. The bench was unveiled in April along with our new orchard sign, designed by our talented local illustrator, Linda.

Platinum Jubilee

How lucky we were to have our very own Prince Charming, the Queen and her corgis to plant our tree, donated by the Wildlife Trust, to honour the Platinum Jubilee. A great turnout and, as promised for our Mad Hatter’s Tea party, some very odd sandwiches indeed.

Pathway Maintenance

We are very grateful to Rhys who has been busy keeping our pathways mowed this year. His work has really made a difference to the orchard. It is a real pleasure to use his walkways to enjoy the trees and beautiful space around the orchard.

Community Apples

The Maytree PreSchool has been making the most of the orchard this year with regular visits being enjoyed by all the children. With a bumper apple harvest this year, we have also been able to donate apples to Exmouth Food Bank.

Alex Thiemann

WOODBURY AND DISTRICT ROYAL BRITISH LEGION

Important announcement and appeal

It is with great sadness that Sandra Huish, chairman of our Woodbury and District Royal British Legion, is retiring from the position. Sandra has been a committed and hardworking member of our branch for many years. Now we need your help. Sandra`s retirement leaves the branch without a chairman. Our Branch cannot exist without a chairman; therefore Woodbury and District will have to close, which would be a great loss to the community. If you feel you would like to stand as chairman or require any further information, then please contact Sean at woodbury.secretary@ rbl.community. Please note: you don`t have to have served in the armed forces to be a member. Sean Kiley

The Annual Royal British Legion meeting took place on Saturday 19 November, attended by our guest Kevin Jeffery from Devon County. The Poppy Appeal raised £3,032.02. This year we were able to run two weekends at Greendale Farm Shop, raising the fantastic sum of £1,102.47. Thank you Maggie and Tom for having us.

This wonderful gentleman, Brian Davis, donated a pot of coins in a Maltesers tub for this year's Poppy Appeal. Wishing all members and friends a very Happy Christmas and a Healthy and Peaceful New Year. Sandra Huish, Chairman

WOODBURY C OF E PRIMARY SCHOOL

To enhance and enrich the learning experiences that we give the children at Woodbury, we try to arrange a trip or visitor for each half term linked to a topic that the children will be learning about. Autumn 2 saw no exception to this, with the children enjoying an array of trips and visitors.

Chestnut Class really enjoyed their school field trip in Exeter. In the morning, they explored what makes Exeter a good city by visiting and evaluating different amenities, such as the bus station, Princesshay, the train station and the library. In the afternoon, they had a knowledgeable Red Coat tour showing them the medieval parts of Exeter in preparation for their history topic in the new year.

Willow

Beech Class had a visit to St Swithun’s Church where Revd Bill kindly showed them around. They had to hunt for the different important aspects of the church, such as the altar and font. They also had to think about using their senses: what they could smell and hear and how the church made them feel.

Class visited Tiverton Museum as part of their history topic, Toys. They enjoyed looking at the toys from the past and had a workshop where they learnt how toys have changed over time. They also made their own peg dolls.

Ash Class have been learning about what life would have been like in Woodbury during World War Two. Part of their learning focussed on Dalditch Camp on Woodbury Common, and they were fortunate enough to have local historian Simon Fogg meet up with them for a guided tour of what remains of the camp. This proved to be a very exciting morning: finding their own WW2 artefacts in the form of used bullet shells, identifying the various mess halls and Nissen huts they had researched from original photos, and learning all about what life would have been like for the men training up at Dalditch Camp.

Oak Class had a visit from Revd Sid and Revd Bill to discuss what advent means to the children. Then they held an advent service in the class to support them in understanding the meaning behind advent.

WOODBURY C OF E PRIMARY SCHOOL cont’d/...

We would like to say thank you to Kings Garden Centre who donated our beautiful Christmas tree this year. The Ethos group helped Miss Hogan decorate it and it looked superb in our school hall.

Would you like to be

a governor?

We are looking for school governors from the community. Do you have some time to spare? Serve with joy as a school governor! A great opportunity to give something back through our fantastic Church of England schools! You don’t need lots of experience and you don’t need to be a parent. All we ask is that you value Church of England education, share our passion for making our schools the best they can be and have the commitment and skills needed.

As a governor, you’ll get the opportunity to lead, serve and develop to make a positive difference to the educational experiences and outcomes of children and young people. There is nothing more satisfying and the Diocese of Exeter will support you every step of the way.

To indicate your interest in becoming a governor, please complete our expression of interest form on our website https://exeter.anglican.org/ schools/be-a-governor/ and email beagovernor@exeter.anglican.org, and we’ll be in touch. If you prefer, you can speak to our education team on 01392 294950. We’d love to hear from you.

By the time this edition reaches you we will have enjoyed the build-up to the festive season with our Nativity, Carol Concert, Christmas Fayre, Christmas lunch, card and calendar making and plenty of glitter galore!

Gillian Pyle

Happy New Year to the Woodbury Community from all at Woodbury C of E Primary School.

WOODBURY TWINNING ASSOCIATION

On 15 November, a group of Twinners visited Sheppy’s Cider Brewery and had a most interesting tour of the site and enjoyable tasting session, followed by a delicious lunch. We start the New Year with our AGM on 18 January in The Church Rooms at 19.30. Jan Owen

WOODBURY WOMEN’S INSTITUTE

Members of Woodbury WI had a workshop to make colourful pompoms for the WI Christmas tree. Around 100 pompoms were made in a couple of hours.

Then on a frosty Friday morning four members of the WI decorated the tree on the Green Spot with pompoms and lights.

Lin Milsom-Ashby

Have you got an interesting photo to illustrate your article?

If so, we'd love to see it, but please remember that we need high resolution photos - not too dark, but clear and sharp - as low resolution photos do not reproduce well on nonphotographic paper. Please remember to ask permission from any people included in your photos, and that photos of children require parental permission. Send all submissions to karensquires100@gmail.com.

Woodbury 26/15 - Climate & biodiversity action

Only a few weeks ago the world was talking about COP27 and now they are talking about COP15 - what's that all about? The naming of the events is unfortunate and has caused a lot of confusion. Both events are huge conferences hosted by the United Nations and involving hundreds of world leaders. COP27 was about Climate Change (Egypt, Nov 2022), and COP15 is about Biodiversity Loss (Montreal Dec 2022)

The COP27 Climate Change conference was very poorly reported by the press, who claimed to be disappointed that no new targets had been set. Setting new targets was never the aim of the conference (The 1.5 degree global warming target was set back in 2015 and is part of the Paris Climate Change agreement). COP27 was all about planning how to implement the actions agreed in Glasgow at COP26 in 2021. COP15, the current Biodiversity Loss Conference, is all about agreeing on a global framework to reverse the massive decline in species of plants and animals. All the above sounds like something very detached from our tiny parish in Devon both in terms of location and timescale. That is not the case - climate change and biodiversity loss is happening here and now, and it affects us all. The changes in the weather and the disappearance of numerous species of plants and animals is already highly visible and quantifiable, and this is just the tip of the (melting) iceberg. It's no longer possible to avoid the changes and losses; they are here and we are going to have to adapt and deal with them. It's not a situation that we can ignore and we have to be realistic. We all need to take actions to deal with weather conditions that are going to become more extreme as the planet continues to warm and the atmosphere becomes more volatile. Combatting the results of climate change and biodiversity loss will go handin-hand at a local level. Around the time of COP 26 (Glasgow 2021) we started Woodbury 26/15. The most cost effective actions to slow the rate of global warming involve changes to the ways we use land. Reversing the deline in biodiversity will also involve changes in the way we use land. By taking a holistic approach to the two problems, we can come up with solutions that deal with both issues at the same time. We started along this path back in 2016 when Wild-Woodbury was formed. Although our main focus was tackling biodiversity loss, it soon became apparent that many of our actions would be beneficial in the battle to reduce atmospheric CO2 and would help to combat flood risk in times of extreme rainfall.

In 2021, around the time of COP26, Woodbury Parish Council set up a fund to finance projects that would tackle loss of biodiversity and help to tackle the effects of climate change (The Woodbury 26/15 Fund). The council have now set up a Woodbury Parish Council Environment Committee that will work alongside local groups and support projects that will help tackle the problems we are facing. The future is going to present a lot of challenges. The current decline of the natural world and biodiversity is tragic but reversible. Frequent heavy rainstorms will mean that potholes will open up in the roads more often and that there will be more localised flooding. Droughts will result in contraction of soils leading to rapid swelling and expansion when we get sudden storms - this will lead to landslips and damage to buildings. Just as we have experienced periods of extreme heat, we need to prepare for more times of extreme cold. There is no need to despair or to give up hope. Human beings are very adaptable and we have ways to deal with all of the above, but we will need to be clever and flexible. All of our actions need to take flood prevention and biodiversity into consideration first and foremost. We can't carry on ripping out hedgerows and gardens to put up fences, plastic lawns and hardstandings. These structures just exacerbate the problems of habitat loss and water runoff. All of our future construction will need to make the parish more resilient and we cannot afford to permit any development that doesn't benefit those aims. We have numerous projects and events coming up that will help us to deal with or understand the problems that we are facing. Together, as a community, we will be able to cope with anything that comes our way. Tony Bennett Tel: 07971-082384 info@wild-woodbury.org Website: http://www.wild-woodbury.org/Facebook: Wild-Woodbury

WOODBURY NEWS to your door … If you are a new resident to the area, or would like your Woodbury News to be delivered to your door monthly, just call Chris Bowers on 01395 239338 or email chrisbowers88@yahoo.co.uk and she will put you in contact with your local deliverer. Any queries regarding delivery of Woodbury News within Exton to be directed to Ann Morris on 01392 875666.

WOODBURY SALTERTON NEWS

HOLY TRINITY

Thanksgiving for the Birth of a Child

The Family Service in November, conducted by Revd Sid Humphries, included one of thanksgiving for the birth of a child. Charlotte and Steve Mearing had brought their younger son, Noah, to church for a blessing and to thank God for his birth. The words of the second hymn, He’s got the whole world in His hands, were changed from ‘little tiny baby’ to ‘dear little Noah’ and the choir sang a special song which ended ‘Noah we welcome you’. We pray for them and for their elder son, Albie.

Carol Service

It had originally been decided to repeat last year’s experiment of having the Carol Service outdoors just as it started to get dark, as people seemed to like that. However it then became apparent that this was going to clash with the final of The World Cup! The Carol Service will therefore take place in church at 18.30 on Sunday 18 December. Mulled wine and mince pies will be served after the service.

Carol Singing Around the Village

As usual some members of the church choir plus other volunteers will be going round the village singing carols and collecting for The Children’s Society. This will take place on Wednesday 21 December. Please meet at the lych gate at 18.00. If you have never done this, please join us - with your dogs if you wish! All are welcome.

Children’s Film Night

It was so good to see a large number of happy and excited children coming to church in pyjamas or onesies and carrying duvets and sleeping bags on a Friday evening in late November. Some parents also stayed with them to watch the film Paddington 2. Debbie Jung and Jill Dupain sold a lot of popcorn, sweets, crisps, soft drinks and hot chocolate, and Katharine Wheeler sold many small knitted Paddington bears and other items. The evening raised over £265 for church funds.

Coffee Mornings

These continue on the first Saturday of each month in church from 09.30 until 10.30 and bacon butties are available. The January event will therefore take place on Saturday 7 January.

Craft Afternoons

These afternoons, arranged by Gill Bricknell, are proving very popular. Seventeen people came to the December meeting. Bring your knitting or other craft project to the village hall on the last Wednesday of each month from 13.00 to 16.00 and have a sociable chat and enjoy coffee and the delicious cakes kindly made by Louise Lee. All are welcome even if you just wish to sit and chat and watch the various crafters at work. The next date is Wednesday 25 January. cont’d/...

Monday Morning Coffee

People walking their dogs together, or others who just joined them for company, used to meet for coffee at The Digger’s Rest. Now this has closed, coffee will be served in the village hall on Mondays at 11.00 and anyone is welcome to come along. Donations are invited for village hall funds. Katharine Wheeler

THE WOODBURY SALTERTON DUMBUTU LINK

"If

Looking

forward

African proverb

2023 marks a new chapter for the Woodbury Salterton Dumbutu Link. After three years of fully virtual meetings, we are now looking to revive the community with our link. We are truly grateful for our passionate committee members and valued sponsors continuing their support for the children of Dumbutu, and we now look forward to the world slowly but surely opening back up.

In Woodbury Salterton, the committee has taken time to reflect on its internal processes. We have been updating our constitution, establishing a code of conduct, and moving our accounts online to make them more secure and organised whilst more accessible to trustees. We are now seeking a new treasurer – more info below.

In Dumbutu, our key contact Lang K Darboe is busy establishing a new committee in the village and we are awaiting news of the members. In September last year, Amadou Darboe was elected as Dumbutu’s new secretary.

Current status and planned projects Sadly, the passing of Dumbutu’s previous secretary Modou Jammeh, the covid pandemic and the struggling economy of The Gambia created a perfect storm for the link, and prevented funds sent from Woodbury Salterton from reaching Dumbutu. For the moment, the charity has halted sponsorship payments to Dumbutu while this issue is resolved. This hold on transfers is assumed to be an anti-money laundering initiative by the Central Bank of The Gambia. The Woodbury Salterton committee has sent proof of payment to the Dumbutu committee (as requested) and are awaiting news. Once this issue is resolved, we are planning to support some critical maintenance in the village for education and agriculture. This includes repairing broken fences for the women’s vegetable allotment, a femalefocused agricultural project previously co-funded by BOAT and the WSDL. The broken fences are permitting local wildlife to destroy the hard-grown crops.

you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together."

Dumbutu has also asked for support to expand the school by adding a threeclassroom block to the current school area. The school has been teaching on double shifts (morning and evening classes) which started during the covid pandemic, but since the school has expanded in recent years the class sizes can only be reduced with extra classrooms. The committee are currently awaiting quotes from the village and will review this item in 2023.

Longer term, we in Woodbury Salterton are in the early stages of planning a trip to Dumbutu between 2024-25. This trip will mark 35 years of the link, an exciting milestone! It will be an opportunity to reestablish relationships with our friends in Dumbutu and will allow us to have conversations about what the next decade of the WSDL will look like and achieve. Members and trustees will be invited to join - watch this space for updates. Call for members – new treasurer needed!

With more exciting projects in the future - made even more important as we move past the covid era – we can start reviving the community feel and vigour of the link. As such, we are looking for new trustees and members to join, especially those who see themselves joining for at least the next couple of years.

Most urgently we need a new treasurer. Experience is desirable but not essential as training will be provided. We are looking for someone local, who can make occasional visits to the bank once every 3-6 months. Please contact Gemma (details below) for more information.

Virtual AGM date

The WSDL annual AGM will be held on the evening of 25 January, online. More details will be sent via email. If you wish to join and are not currently on our mailing list, please contact Gemma via email (below). Please note, this date may be subject to change. If needed, the new date will be announced by email to our mailing list.

Support our children in Dumbutu and the women’s project

As ever – we are seeking sponsors to support the education of our friends in Dumbutu. An annual sponsorship is typically just £25 a year. Alternatively, quarterly, monthly, or even one-off donations can make a real, meaningful impact on our brothers and sisters in Dumbutu. If you have someone in your life who is impossible to buy gifts for, you could always donate in their name instead! Please contact Gemma if you would like more information. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Gemma Bennett Chair of the Woodbury Salterton Dumbutu Link gemjoyben@hotmail.com

WOODBURY SALTERTON

C OF E PRIMARY SCHOOL

'Inspiring one another to live life in all its fullness' John 10:10

We extend a warm welcome Mrs Katherine Clarke as part of our office team and we hope that she enjoys working in our amazing community. The children have had a busy time learning about persuasive texts, World War Two and how to write a postcard, linked to the text Meerkat Mail. The children have sporting activities planned as well as a visit to the Narnia Experience and of course our end-of-term Christmas celebrations. The children have been learning about how to use technology safely. Class 1 have finished writing their own version of the story Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain. They generated some fantastic ideas and used some great vocabulary for expanded noun phrases. They are now moving onto the story Meerkat Mail and looking at writing their own postcards. In Maths, Class 1 have been learning about addition and subtraction. In particular, they have been working hard to apply their number bonds when solving addition and subtraction problems. Class 1 have been doing some fieldwork in Geography. They went out to collect data about the buildings in our local area. They created tallies of each type of building and then talked about their findings.

Key Stage Two have continued to learn about WW2 from the eyes of a child. The children have enjoyed finding out about the different experiences of evacuees. They have used this knowledge within their literacy lessons to write a secret war diary as though they were an evacuee who had been sent to live in Woodbury Salterton. The children enjoyed their first Ready, Steady, Write day where they listened to the poem They’re Changing Guards at Buckingham Palace by A.A. Milne. They then decided that they would also like to write a poem in this style but to write their poems about the blitz or VE Day. The children were able to choose if they wanted to work independently, in pairs or in a group and the poems that they wrote were fantastic and captured life at that time. It was wonderful to see so many pupils representing our school in the cross country event that was held at Bicton College. More than half of our Key Stage Two pupils took on the challenge of running in the race, which was well attended across the learning community. We are very proud that every child gave it their best attempt as it was a long and difficult race. Several of our Years Five and Six pupils attended a touch rugby tournament at Exmouth Rugby Club where they not only learnt a new game but developed their teamwork and sportsmanship. This half term we have been exploring the value of Trust. The quote from the Bible that we are basing our learning on is from Psalm 18.2 My God is my strength in whom I trust. We will be learning about who we can trust and how we can be trustworthy.

MTA (Meal Time Assistant) Job We have a vacancy for an MTA position at the school for Thursday and Friday lunchtimes, between 12.00 – 13.00. If you are interested, please email or telephone the office for more details and an application pack. Clare Rooke, SEND Governor

EXTON NEWS

ST ANDREW’S CHURCH SERVICES

Sunday 1 January Evening Prayer, 18.00 with Revd Bill Lemmey. Sunday 8 January Holy Communion, 09.30 with Revd Sid Humphries. Janet Atkins

EXTON GARDEN CLUB

We were pleased to welcome Peter Cantrill back again as he always brings a good selection of unusual plants to talk about and hopefully sell. Peter is a wholesale grower of herbaceous plants with a nursery at Farringdon. This year has been difficult with the drought and of course greatly increased water bills. He has been busy supplying plants for Dartington where the gardens are being re-vamped after 20 years of neglect. He brought a good number of plants to choose from and the first one was a grevillea named Victoria, very attractive with deep coral flowers which had been in bloom for nearly six months; sadly, it is not fully hardy. There were also several new varieties of nerines, a new yellow cosmos, salvias and miscanthus. Amongst the ferns, there was an attractive polystichum which produces baby plantlets along the fronds. Watch this space as a few of us were given one! Peter always brings plant lists of all the plants he talks about, which is very helpful for everyone, and I’m sure there will be quite a few more of his plants in our gardens.

Eileen Pratt

WOODBURY PARISH COUNCIL

Woodbury Parish Office

Greenside, Greenway, Woodbury, Devon EX5 1LP.

Telephone: 01395 233791. Email: clerk@woodburyparishcouncil.gov.uk

The Parish Office is open: 09.30 - 12.30, Mon, Tues, Weds and Thurs. Clerk to the Council: Anne-Marie Bates

Woodbury Parish Council Newsletter PARISH COUNCIL BUSINESS (December 2022)

Woodbury Parish Council would like to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Woodbury Living Advent Calendar Trail

Thanks to Liz Dunne for organising the event; all funds raised will be donated to Woodbury School PTFA and Maytree Pre-school. Our Parish Council window was revealed on 1 December; special thanks to Kate Turner for leading the art project and running a children’s art session.

Thank you, Chloe Harris, Naomi Ware, Imogen Morris, Sam Maynard, Thomas Harris, Harry Henderson, Lucus Harris and Max Hookway who were all busy making things for the display, which is themed on Nature and Climate Change.

Thanks to all those who turned up and enjoyed the refreshments very kindly donated by Chris Lear.

The Christmas lights on the Green, sponsored by Woodbury Parish Council, were also turned on. Thanks to Graham Joyce and his team at Dartmoor Tree Surgeons for putting them up.

EDDC Local Plan

Thank you to all those residents who attended the Consultation Events across the parish. There was an excellent turnout with many questionnaires returned, which we are now processing. We will release a report of the outcome and we will be formalising a response to East Devon District Council. We urge as many residents as possible to take a look at the online East Devon Local Plan Consultation which is running until 15 January 2023. Please Have Your Say! You can view it by this link: http:// www.eastdevon.gov.uk/local-plan

This is the icon you need to go into to view proposed development

There are a number of proposed development sites for Woodbury and Exton, as well as in the surrounding villages and Exmouth town, which could have an impact on this Parish (eg traffic).

Options for a new town of around 8,000 houses are also in the Local Plan; there are three proposed locations: Clyst St George/Oil Mill Lane, Crealy/ Greendale, or north of Hill Barton and south of Exeter airport.

The Local Plan has a number of Policies that you can also comment on, which cover numerous topics including infrastructure, green wedges etc. Residents can email any comments to planningpolicy@eastdevon.gov.uk or write to EDDC if they do not have an email address or computer. At our November Full Council Meeting, Members discussed the difficulties of the Commonplace EDDC Consultation website. It was not user-friendly and took a long time to make comment on potential sites, as well as the site crashing. The potential sites rankings were misleading, especially those sites listed as rejected, and descriptions/reasons were not consistent. The time period of the Consultation, with 15 January the closing date, gave little time for people and Parishes to respond especially during the Christmas period. These observations will be forwarded to EDDC.

Members discussed the CIL funds that would derive from the potential site on the Boundary of Woodbury and Lympstone LP_GH/ED/72.

Members agreed that the below Recommendation be approved: Woodbury Parish Council formally agrees that there is an agreement between Lympstone PC and Woodbury PC in reference to LympstoneLP_GH/ED/72 that development contribution from this is site is designated for this site and its residents. Decisions will be in conjunction with Lympstone PC on how it is spent.

Buses – Following receipt of a number of complaints regarding the new No 58 service, members agreed to formally write to Stagecoach and Devon County Council expressing the concerns raised about the new timetable and routes.

The timetable can be found on our website or a copy can be collected from the Parish Office. https://woodburyparishcouncil.gov.uk/council-services/ community-transport.

Another option is Exmouth & District Community Transport Group which provides services for people of all ages who are unable to access public transport, are rurally isolated and for those with mobility problems. For more info/timetable https://www.exmouthringandride.org.uk/timetable.

King’s Coronation (May 2023)

Members formally agreed to sponsor events across the Parish. Details to follow.

General Parish Office

We welcome Debbie Thomas who has joined the Parish Council two mornings a week as the Admin Assistant. We wish Debbie all the best in her new role.

The Parish Office will be closed from Thursday 22 December 2022 until Tuesday 3 January 2023.

Normally the Parish Office is open to residents Monday to Thursday 09.3012.30, so please, pop in and say hello or raise any ideas or concerns that you may have.

WOODBURY PARISH COUNCIL cont’d/...

Our New Website / Facebook / Twitter

Please follow our Facebook page for up-to-date information - https:// www.facebook.com/Woodbury-Parish-Council-110020645153509

Planning Woodbury Parish Council is a consultee for all planning applications within the Parish and applications are considered by Members at a Full Council or a Planning Committee meeting. Results can be found on the East Devon website: https://planning.eastdevon.gov.uk/onlineapplications/.

Our Meetings

Our Full Council meetings are on the second Monday of each month excluding August and December and our Committee meetings usually the last Monday in each month. A schedule is on our website. Meetings are held at the Church Rooms in Woodbury and start at 19.30. All residents are welcome to attend.

Below is a direct link to the Minutes of our Full Council Meetings, which can be found on our website along with other committee minutes - https:// woodburyparishcouncil.gov.uk/parish-council/council-business/councilmeetings/full-council.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

From Murrough MacDonnell

It is worth pointing out how free of litter Woodbury is. People should look around and appreciate it. It is too easy to just assume that the same applies everywhere; that is not so. We have the good fortune here that there are several people in the village who quietly pick litter up and put it in the bins. Thank you for your efforts, they show.

Perhaps others who walk dogs, or walk themselves around the village, could assist by taking a plastic bag and picking up the beer can or crisp packet that they might otherwise just leave there. It costs so little, and saves one little bit of the planet which helps make Woodbury special.

ADVANCE NOTICE

Woodbury, Woodbury Salterton and Exton residents

We are holding two days of celebrations on SATURDAY 6 AND SUNDAY 7 MAY for the upcoming coronation of King Charles III

From Gill Selley

Concerning the new bus services

Most rural bus services have been cut mainly because they are too expensive to run unless they are well supported. The 58 bus is run by Devon County Council and has given people in Woodbury the route that they asked for from Woodbury to Exeter – now taking just over half an hour, with access to other places which was not possible on the old route. There is not enough money to run buses (with very few passengers) as often as we would like, and it is distressing that the authorities have not understood that many parishioners shop in Exmouth. Amongst other pressures on council funding there is a major reduction in government support for public transport in rural areas.

Could I suggest that, instead of grumbling about it, be thankful we do have a bus service, as many places have lost some of their services, and do use the buses as much as possible. Grumbling to ‘someone else’ does not solve the problem. Why do not those who find fault contact the DCC authorities and put forward their complaints directly to them. I have been in touch several times with the principal transport officer for DCC requesting that pensioners should be allowed to use their bus passes on the 09.01 bus from Woodbury to Exmouth during the week. The replies I have received state that their priority is getting people to work and home again, and so with the current financial situation and lack of drivers, the times of the buses were arranged mainly with workers in mind – this I think is reasonable. Perhaps if everyone contacted DCC individually, instead of leaving it to just ‘one voice crying in the wilderness’ the authorities might begin to realise that there is a problem for the elderly. I now shop in Exmouth on Saturday mornings when pensioners can use their bus passes on the 09.01 bus. Many people asked for a bus to Topsham, and the authorities listened. I have been on it several times to Darts, Topsham and Exeter, but hardly anyone is using it from Woodbury. The T bus continues to Exeter and stops outside the Guildhall and in front of the old House of Fraser building. The first one leaves Woodbury at 09.30 and arrives in Exeter about 10.15, leaving plenty of time to shop or go to appointments in both Topsham and the city.

Though the 58 bus does not now go to St David’s station, it is a short walk to Central station for several train routes, and there are regular services from the High Street to St David’s. Could I entreat people to use these buses otherwise, if they are still running fairly empty, we will end up with no buses at all.

Editor’s Note : In order to maximise submitted copy and photographs into Woodbury News, it may be necessary to reduce the size of some items. The Editorial team will attempt to do this as carefully as possible.

NOTABLE TREES OF WOODBURY VII

It’s that time of year again and I’ve written another festively-themed piece for this tree article. This year I’ve chosen to focus on ash (fraxinus excelsior). Not an obviously Christmassy tree you think, but bear with me, dear reader, and all will be revealed. Ash is most easily identified out of leaf by its large black buds, carried on shoots that arise in pairs from the parent twigs. It crops up in all three of the villages within the parish but significant ash trees aren’t particularly common. Most are found in hedgerows or in the damper valley bottoms. Very few are found on the Pebblebed Heaths. There are some younger specimens growing proud of the flailed hedgerow along the road out of Woodbury to Pink House Corner, on the left as you drive up from the electricity sub-station. I remember Tony, the farmhand at Venmore Farm, purposely leaving these to grow on as individual trees when he was cutting the hedges here in the 1990s. Further up, on the right-hand side of the road, are two much larger rather battered-looking mature specimens. Both of these trees have lost limbs in past storms and both sport decay fungi within their crowns. Other larger trees crop up along the lanes leading up to the Common. We want to retain these older, apparently decrepit trees, wherever it is safe to do so. They can host flora and fauna that will only thrive within the particular habitats associated with these ageing trees. Some larger groupings of ash are found in the valley bottoms. Tree surgeons recently cleared away a tree that fell across the footpath past the scrap yard and further ash trees can be found if you follow this path to Exton. A few of the wetter woodlands in the parish can also have quite extensive patches of ash. Unfortunately much of this woodland ash is currently succumbing to Ash Dieback Disease (ADD), a fungal disease originating in the far east and spread within the UK from imported plants. In its home area the fungus has reached an equlibrium with other species and appears not to cause widespread damage. In Europe the native ash has few defences against this fungus and many trees die rapidly once infected. All is not lost however! Individual trees appear to be less readily infected than trees growing within a woodland setting and the species presents a subtle genetic variability within the native population. Thus it is hoped that, in time, a strain will develop from surviving trees that is resistant to the disease. In the short-term though, ash is largely disappearing from much of the landscape. Enough of death and disease you say, let’s have a bit of Christmas cheer. Ash trees are considered native to the British Isles, so have been growing here since before the land bridge with the continent became submerged by the sea after the last Ice Age. As a result, ash trees don’t just have an extensive biodiversity associated with them, but have also garnered a fascinating cultural history, particularly in northern Europe.

One ancient custom, at one time common in East Devon, Dartmoor and Somerset, was the burning of the Ashen Faggot on Christmas Eve. This wasn’t a pagan sacrifice of a hapless victim, but involved the ritual burning of a huge bundle of ash branches, securely tied with nine flexible bindings of ash or other plants. The faggots could be 5 or 6 feet in length and often needed two people to manhandle onto the fire. Once large old open fireplaces disappeared from most homes, the ceremony become largely confined to old village inns. Near to us, the Harbour Inn at Axmouth has burnt one for many years. The New Inn at Northleigh (no longer in existence) and the White Hart at Wilmington also used to observe the ceremony. Possibly some ancients in the villages may remember it occurring closer to home.

The huge bundle would be lighted with a piece of charcoal saved from last year’s faggot. Unmarried girls would each choose a binding and she whose band burst first would be the first to marry. At each burst of a band fresh jugs of cider would be passed around with much cheering and singing. Once all the bands had been consumed the evening would end with singing, story telling, and yet more cider.

Not surprisingly, the burning of the Ashen Faggot was looked forward to with great anticipation all year! Some sources say that miniature faggots are occasionally prepared for burning on domestic hearths; let’s raise a cup of cider to that. I hope you have a happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year.

Graham Joyce Email: gmj@dartmoortreesurgeons.co.uk

THE EXETER PUDDING

A dinner was arranged by the committee of the Royal Agricultural Society for 18th July 1850 in Exeter, and the Frenchman, M Alexis Soyer (the most famous chef in Victorian England) was invited to contribute his recipes and arrange the dinner for 1,000 persons. He was the first person to cook with gas at an outside event at The Royal Agricultural Show at Exeter. He cooked a baron of beef on a stove he had built in the grounds. The meat weighed 535 lbs and took 4½ hours to cook. People were very impressed with this cooking with gas, as previously they had used charcoal burnt stoves or the open fire, and so it was a clean way of cooking. He also wrote a cookery book to promote his new ‘Magic Stove’.

Bill of Fare: 33 dishes of ribs of beef, 35 dishes of roast lamb, 99 dishes of galantine of veal, 99 dishes of ham, 60 dishes of pressed beef, two round of ‘beef a la pies’, 198 spring mayonnaise salad, 264 tarts of cherries, gooseberries, raspberries and currants, 33 Exeter Puddings, 198 dishes of hot potatoes. When the dinner was over it was found that the quantity of cooked meat, poultry, etc, and other provisions was rather large, so M Soyer suggested a dinner for a thousand poor of the town, the extra expenses to be defrayed by subscription. The dinner, as proposed, took place amid the cheering of the population, and with three time three cheers for the ‘Gastronomic Regenerator’.

M Soyer’s presence at Exeter gave a new impetus to his popularity, and altogether raised his social position. Invitations poured in from all quarters, seeking the honour of his company. ‘It was no longer the mere contractor for a dinner, however eminent, who was thought of, but a man of genius, in the person of that lively and sociable Frenchman, whose company you could never leave without regret.’

Soyer contacted the Woolmers Exeter & Plymouth Gazette newspaper thus: "When in my culinary department in London I mean immediately to perfect the Exeter Pudding, which has already given such universal satisfaction, and send you a correct receipt of it, which I shall esteem a great favour if you would give it publicity.” To this the editor slyly added: “Why not send the pudding? We will cheerfully insert it in the proper quarter.” What follows is the recipe which was included in the edition of the newspaper dated 10 Aug 1850: Monsieur Soyer has favoured us with the following correct recipe for making his famous EXETER PUDDING, which is an improvement on the former recipe:

The Exeter Pudding

Put into a proper sized basin ten ounces of fine bread crumbs, four ounces of sago, seven ounces of suet (chopped fine), six ounces of moist sugar, the peel of half a lemon (grated), quarter of a pint of rum, and four eggs; stir for a few minutes with a spoon, add three more eggs, four tablespoonfuls of clotted cream, and mix well – it is then ready to fill the mould. Butter the mould well, put in a handful of breadcrumbs, and shake the mould well until the greater part sticks to the butter, then throw out the remainder. Have ready six penny sponge cakes, two ounces of ratafias, and half a pound of raspberry or strawberry jam; cover the bottom of the mould with a layer of the ratafias, just cover them with a layer of the mixture, cut the sponge cakes lengthways, and spread thickly each piece with some jam; place a layer in the mould, then a few ratafias afterwards, some mixture, and so on until the mould is full, taking care that a layer of the mixture is on the top of the pudding. It will take about forty minutes baking. The sauce: put in a small stew pan three tablespoonfuls of currant jelly, and two glasses of sherry, warm on the fire, and pour over the pudding. Serve hot.

Such a lavish banquet indicates that there were plenty of wealthy people in Exeter in contrast to the 1,000 poor people in the city who Soyer wanted to feed. It is likely that some of the Woodbury dignitaries attended this banquet, such as Sir Trayton Drake, General Lee of Ebford, the Hon Mark Rolle, and Dr Robert Brent.

The Royal Agricultural Show was held on the grounds of Whipton Barton Farm, becoming later Exhibition Fields. Presumably this is where the banquet took place. So which Woodbury culinary experts are going to attempt to make this pudding to celebrate the coronation of King Charles III? Gill Selley

CHRISTMAS GREETINGS

Anna and Paul Crafer would like to wish all our friends and neighbours a very Happy Christmas and a wonderful New Year. We will be making a donation to Hospiscare.

Bryony Giles would like to wish everyone a merry Christmas and a healthy, happy New Year. I will be making a donation to a local charity in lieu of sending local cards.

Peter and Christine Grist wish all our friends and neighbours a very blessed Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy, peaceful New Year. A donation in lieu of Christmas cards will be made to Devon Air Ambulance.

Joyce and Mike Jeans would like to wish their friends and neighbours a peaceful Christmas and a healthy 2023. Also, a huge 'thankyou' to this lovely community in which we live. In lieu of sending local cards, we are donating to Save the Children.

Carolyn and David Keep send Christmas greetings and good wishes for 2023 to their friends in Woodbury. They have made a donation to the Trussell Trust.

A Happy Christmas to all our friends in Woodbury, and Good Health through the next year. Let us hope the world settles down to a kinder and more peaceful place. We have sent a donation to St Petrock’s Exeter in lieu of cards. Marian and Derrick Mead.

Ros and Warren Wright would like to wish all their friends and neighbours a very Merry Christmas and a happy & healthy New Year. In lieu of Christmas cards we will be making a donation to ELF (Exeter Leukaemia Fund).

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

17 Dec. Clyst Valley Choral Society Carol Concert. 16.00, Exmouth Methodist church (Littlemead)

18 Dec. New date for Holy Trinity Carol Service, 18.30.

21 Dec. Carols around the village, meet at WS lych gate at 18.00.

22 Dec. Carols around the village; meet on Woodbury village green at 19.00.

26 Dec. Woodbury Surgery closed (see page 11). 27 Dec. Woodbury Surgery closed (see page 11). 28 Dec. Exton Christmas Pub Quiz, 18.00 for 19.00 start. Puffing Billy.

2023

1 Jan. Woodbury Surgery closed (see page 11).

2 Feb. History Society AGM. 19.30, WVH.

3 Jan. Hospiscare coffee morning. 10.00-12.00, Church Rooms.

4 Jan. Woodbury Craft Group. 10.00-13.00, Christ Church.

8 Jan. Woodbury Community Orchard Wassail. 17.00. Meet at village hall car park.

10 Jan. Woodbury Garden Club. 19.15 for 19.30 Members’ Evening.

18 Jan. Woodbury Craft Group. 10.00-13.00, Christ Church.

18 Jan. Twinning Association AGM. Church Rooms. 19.30. 21 Jan. FoSS AGM and Supper Concert. 19.99, St Swithun’s.

27 Jan. FNF Friday Night Flix. 19.00 for 19.30. WVH.

1 Feb. Woodbury Craft Group. 10.00-13.00, Christ Church.

2 Feb. Woodbury History Society AGM. 19.30, WVH.

7 Feb. Hospiscare coffee morning. 10.00-12.00, Church Rooms.

18 Feb. Sausage and Mash, WVH. In aid of Handbell Ringers.

22 Feb. Woodbury Craft Group. 10.00-13.00, Christ Church.

24 Feb. FNF Friday Night Flix. 19.00 for 19.30. WVH.

28 Feb. Woodbury Residents Association AGM. 19.30, Church Rooms.

2 March Woodbury History Society The Lower Otter Restoration Project. 19.30, WVH.

4 March H4K Barn Dance.

8 March Woodbury Craft Group. 10.00-13.00, Christ Church.

22 March Woodbury Craft Group. 10.00-13.00, Christ Church.

24 March FNF Friday Night Flix. 19.00 for 19.30. WVH.

28 April FNF Friday Night Flix. 19.00 for 19.30. WVH.

29 April FoSS Concert.

6&7 May Two days of celebration for coronation of King Charles III.

26 May FNF Friday Night Flix. 19.00 for 19.30. WVH.

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Welcoming