Leigh

REPS: Philippa Toulson philippa.toulson@gmail.com Eddie Upton upton.eddie@gmail.com DISTRIBUTOR: Judy Tuke

Two bits of really good news to start with

Lots of people were worried about their car repairs and servicing when Steve Addison retired from Bridge Garage. Well, worry no longer. Matt, who worked as Steve’s right hand man, has stepped into the breach and has carried on working at the garage, undertaking vehicle repairs and servicing. The new contact details are: Matt Templeman 07813 687179 mtemplemanservices@gmail.com

And next door to the garage, the shop, The Little Leigh Store, is proving to be such a success that it is now open for six days a week, with the hours extended, as follows: Monday 9.00am–4.00pm (with mobile Post Office from 1.00–3.00pm) Tuesday 9.00am–6.00pm Wednesday 9.00am–6.00pm Thursday 9.00am–6.00pm Friday 9.00am–6.00pm Saturday 9.00am–2.00pm Sunday Closed I popped into the shop the other day and Sica said how much she is loving it, and a regular shopper called out, “And we’re loving it too!”. If you haven’t been in yet, do so – not only is it a good place to shop for all sorts of grocery, greengrocery and alcohol, you can also meet your friends for a delicious hot drink and choice of scrumptious cakes. It really is a minor miracle and a real service to the village.

The other massive village success, the Pop Inn, is taking a rest for February because of the alarming rise of COVID cases in Dorset, but the hope is that it will reopen for a slightly scaled down service (drinks and nibbles but no cooked food, and with an outdoor drinking area) on Friday 25 March. Look out for posters round the village.

Charlie and Michelle Read were planning to hold one of their celebrated Race Night events in the Village Hall on 11 February to raise funds for the church but, for the same reasons as the Pop Inn, it was felt that it would be more sensible to postpone until summer. Watch this space for a revised date.

Philippa Toulson & Eddie Upton

THE P PO OP P IIN NN N

Leigh’s Renowned Pop-up Pub. Dates for 2022

Unfortunately, due to Covid, the Pop Up Pub events for January and February are cancelled. We look forward to welcoming you back on Friday 25 March (at 7.00pm) with a covered outdoor space, and mask-wearing, LF-tested volunteers.

St. Andrew’s Church

Thank you to all of you who supported our Carol Service. We reckon about 80 of you braved the vagaries of the weather to come to our open air service on Christmas Eve. The children (18 of them performed) were brilliant, the band was great, the readers perfect and the communal singing was stout and sturdy – exactly as it should be for this very happy service.

We have been thinking about our pattern of services; in particular, about the timing of Evensong, which is currently at 6.00pm on the second Sunday of each month. No immediate change is planned but we are considering moving Evensong to 4.00pm when the darker evenings set in after the clocks go back again in the autumn, then reverting to 6.00pm when lighter evenings return. Please let us know what you think.

Our Coffee Morning for February is on the first day of the month, from 10.30am on Tuesday 1 February. Come along for hot drinks, a variety of delicious cakes and a selection of bring-and-buy items. It is a delightful social event and it helps raise funds for the church.

We have our customary pattern of services in February, with 8.30am Holy Communion on 6th, 6.00pm Evensong on 13th, 10.00am Holy Communion on 20th, and 10.00am Community Spirit service on 27th .

Looking slightly ahead, this year’s Women’s World Day of Prayer service will be at St. Andrew’s Church, Yetminster on Friday 4 March.

Alaistair Cumming & Eddie Upton

Churchwardens

Leigh Parish Council update

It was sad to see both ends of the village flooded so badly in late October, and again in November. With regard to Bridge garage/Stores, a series of ‘leaky dams’ were installed in 2017/18 a mile upstream of this choke point, with the aim of reducing the number of flooding incidents, and these continue to work as designed. But, as recognised at the start of the project, the constructs have a finite capacity and this was simply overwhelmed by the intensity and duration of the particularly concentrated wet spells. It might be possible to site additional structures (thus increasing capacity), but the topography and lack of availability of suitable timber onsite may make it financially unviable.

In the meantime, steps are being taken to ensure that any natural debris immediately downstream of Bridge garage/Stores does not cause spate water to back-up, thus constricting the flow under the bridge choke point. In working towards this goal, the PC is particularly appreciative of the co-operation of those whose land immediately downstream of the bridge abuts the river.

We are similarly considering possible options to reduce the incidents of flooding in the vicinity of Fudge’s bakery. The topography upstream on this west stream offers an option for constructing a leaky dam, although it would probably need to be quite large and thus beyond the capacity of the Parish Council (Dorset Council have said they will not help). The Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group (South West) were particularly helpful about the work done on the east stream in 2017/18; they have been contacted once more to advise.

In respect of the Bridge garage and stores, now called ‘The Little Leigh Store’, it is most encouraging that Sica has now greatly expanded the store’s opening hours – see above for details. Similarly, Matt is continuing to undertake vehicle repairs and servicing at Bridge garage. Leigh Parish Council wishes both these very welcome enterprises every success.

Alan Bennett

Farewell present to Brenda and Steve

We had originally planned to present Steve and Brenda with a gift at the Pop Inn last November but unfortunately, due to Covid, it was cancelled. So, I presented Steve and Brenda with a bouquet of flowers and a cheque for over £700 given by many grateful villagers outside the shop.

We are all very thankful that they both served the community so well, and for so long, and wish them a great retirement. With many thanks to everyone who so generously contributed. Regrettably, I cannot name everyone as some gifts were anonymous.

Rachel Graham

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR DECEMBER & JANUARY WINNERS.

Winners for the December draw:

1st Ball No 117 Mr T. Grant £100 2nd Ball No 30 Mr H. Jones £80 3rd Ball No 121 Mr P. Orchard £60 4th Ball No 197 Mr M. Clarke £30 5th Ball No 161 Mrs L. Fox £20

Winners for the January 2022 draw:

1st Ball No 23 Mr Steve Fudge £40 2nd Ball No 67 Mr David Tacon £20 3rd Ball No 47 Mr Alan Bennett £10 4th Ball No 174 Mr & Mrs Marriott £5

We wish you a successful 2022 and would remind you that we will be collecting for next year’s lottery in February.

Julian Turnbull & Alaistair Cumming

Bridge Garage, Leigh DT9 6HW

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