Beer Hackett

BEER HACKETT REP: John Parker johnwincanton@gmail.com DISTRIBUTOR: Susan Ferdinand

Ukraine

Beer Hackett, like every other community large or small, has been shocked and saddened by events in Ukraine.

Thanks to resident Jo Newton, villagers have been able to donate contributions towards the Yeovil based collection/delivery initiative transporting vitally needed items for refugees fleeing the conflict to Przemysl on the Polish/ Ukrainian border.

Photo: Newton Family

St. Michael’s Church

Good Friday Meet at 3.00pm by the noticeboard and postbox. Join us on our ‘Way of the Cross’ walk, finishing at Manor Farm, Higher Knighton, then sharing tea and hot cross buns, hosted by the Johnsen family. Easter Sunday Please see the benefice service schedule on p67. Diary note Maintenance/Working Party Day Saturday, 14 May. More details in the May issue.

John Bingham

“Come and Sing” One-day Classical Choral Workshop and Concert

Do you love to sing? Then don’t miss the opportunity to join this joyful one-day Classical Choral Workshop on Saturday 23 April at St. Mary’s Church, Bradford Abbas, from 9.30am–5.00pm. This

workshop will be under the expert musical direction of Alice Dicker BMus (Hons) DipABRSM(perf), Musical Director for the South Petherton Combined Arts Society Choir and the Mid-Wessex Singers, and with accomplished organist Kris Emmett BA (Hons).

It will culminate in an evening concert to be performed in St. Mary’s Church at 7.00pm; works include Vivaldi’s ‘Gloria’ and Handel’s ‘Messiah’.

The cost of the workshop is just £20 which includes a refundable deposit of £5 for music hire.

Tickets £5 on the door, or £4 in advance. Application forms for participants are available from retail outlets in Yetminster, Thornford and Bradford Abbas, or download from www. friendsofstmichaelschurchbeerhackett.org

Sponsored by Brotherwood, Beer Hackett, in aid of St. Michael’s Church, Beer Hackett. We look forward to welcoming you for an enjoyable day of singing, or at the evening performance.

Friends of St. Michael’s Church AGM

The 2nd Annual General Meeting of the Friends of St. Michael’s Church, Beer Hackett took place in the church on Tuesday 22 February. After the Chairman’s welcome from Simon Clothier, the Minutes of the last AGM were adopted.

The Chairman then gave a verbal report on the accomplishments of Friends during the preceding year, in particular the Village Get Together in September, which was well attended. He reiterated that the aim of the Friends continues to be to raise funds towards the upkeep of the fabric of the church building.

Our Treasurer, John Trench, circulated his report and the Income and Expenditure Account for the period. The year began with a balance of £806.60 and ended with £1629.77 as at 31 December 2021. Income was made up from subscriptions, events and donations whilst expenditure related to the running of the Village Get Together and the monthly website costs.

Subscription renewals are welcomed for the coming year, together with Gift Aid declarations as appropriate. Please download at https://www. friendsofstmichaelschurchbeerhackett.org

John touched on activities for 2022 which include a “Come and Sing” event to be held on 23 April at St. Mary’s, Bradford Abbas; a Platinum Jubilee celebration, and plans to revitalise the village lottery.

Agreement was obtained to adopt the Accounts and also the proposal of the Annual Subscription Amount remaining at £10 per person.

Regarding Trustee positions, Olive Davison resigned from her role as a Trustee last year. A replacement Secretary is sought. John Trench wishes to relinquish the role of Treasurer but is happy to continue as a Trustee. Simon confirmed that he was happy to carry on as Chairman for the forthcoming year, and Sylvia Whitman, Wendy Smith and Kathy Smyth also agreed to continue to serve as Trustees.

John commented that we should have a minimum of at least four Trustees, but preferably six in line with our constitution. No nominations were received at the meeting, but subsequently we are delighted to confirm that Helen Whitman has offered to join as a Trustee.

In Any Other Business, there was comment from the floor regarding the format of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations that Brotherwoods have offered to host in June.

The Parish Council website is being redesigned, and an offer was made to have a link to the Friends website. A reciprocal offer was made.

It was stated that possible limited funding opportunities exist via the Parish Council on completion of relevant documentation. This offer was welcomed and will be investigated further. There was discussion around the Quinquennial report and how best to achieve the urgent repair work and address several important health and safety issues. A Maintenance/Working Party Day is being proposed for Saturday, 14 May.

The meeting closed with light refreshments, courtesy of the PCC. With thanks to all who attended.

Thornford Halt (alight for Beer Hackett)

An update on the improvement plans for pedestrian access to our local railway halt. Pedestrian access to Thornford Halt has been much improved since the early 2000s with two phases being built: firstly, a footway between the layby on Longford Road and the top to the railway bridge at Thornford Halt; and secondly, a pedestrian access from Powell’s Garage to the layby, thereby connecting an offroad footway all the way from Thornford to its railway station.

These two projects combined to win a national railway project award for the person who inspired the scheme, Dr Terry Gough of Beer Hackett, and the Dorset County Council Engineer, Sue McGowan, when it was completed in the early 2010s.

There was always a third and final phase envisaged. This was to provide a level, DDA compliant access to the station, as the steps are quite steep for people with mobility issues.

Terry’s old neighbour, Thornhackett Parish Councillor Kevin Cheleda, took on the challenge to get this third phase delivered in memory of Terry, who sadly passed away in 2018. Just before Terry’s passing, the project was broadened to include improvements to the junction to Beer Hackett and provide some additional parking on the verge on the north side of the road to Beer Hackett, on highway land from a previous improvement in the 1960s.

An estimate to provide the final phase was sought from Dorset Council and a feasibility scheme was undertaken by the Sustainable Transport Scheme at County Hall in Dorchester in 2018. The project, as it was presented, did not rank high enough to receive funding by the then Dorset County Council, owing to a misapprehension that the project would be solely funded by them. However, Kevin and a fellow ex Thornhackett Councillor John Parker, had access to apply for grants for such projects from Great Western Railways (GWR), from their work with the Heart of Wessex Rail Group. If the project had additional funding, then it would more likely receive the green light from Dorset Councils Sustainable Transport Scheme.

The first application for this grant, put together in 2018, wasn’t successful but,

from feedback and through some good contacts that had been made within the Heart of Wessex Group a second application was submitted in late 2019, which was much more thorough.

Sadly, before any grants were considered from that year, Covid struck and GWR withdrew all funding for any minor schemes.

It is possible that the grant system will be reintroduced in late 2022; in the meantime, other funding ideas are being explored, including The National Lottery, as well as the possible use of some funds that Thornhackett can tap into following the development of the housing to the east of Thornford. So, there is renewed enthusiasm that something may come together to be able to fund and complete the final phase, maybe in 2023.

With the continued support of the Parish Council and adjacent landowners, it is hoped this project can be delivered to make Thornford Halt far more accessible and user friendly for many years to come. A polite reminder to all dog walkers – please bag up your dog’s poo and take it away to dispose of.