OTHER NEWS

Chetnole Village Hall and Artsreach present:

DIY Chef: George Egg Friday 25 March at 7.30pm

Following sell out runs at the Edinburgh Fringe and extensive touring in the UK and beyond, award-winning comedian George Egg presents his unique and utterly absurd comedy show, packed with ingenious live cooking and laugh-out-loud stand-up.

Citizens Advice

Beware Pension Scams

The last few years have seen a rise in the number of people who have been defrauded out of their pension savings by scammers and, until now, pension schemes have been powerless to stop them. Fraudsters frequently offer ‘too good to be true’ incentives such as free pension reviews or early access to pension cash. Lured by these offers, people are then tricked into transferring their pension into bogus schemes and defrauded out of their hard earned savings. Fortunately, the Pension Scams Industry Group has worked with the Government and new regulations have been introduced aimed at providing better protection for pension savers. The new regulations mean that pension scheme trustees and managers now have powers to prevent a request for a transfer taking place by raising a ‘red flag’ where there are tell-tale signs of fraudulent activity taking place. Where suspicions are less clear, an ‘amber flag’ will pause a transfer until the scheme member can prove that they have taken scam specific guidance from the Money and Pensions Service. The Government has committed to reviewing the new regulations within 18 months to ensure that they remain as effective as possible in targeting the evolving methods used by scammers.

This is welcome news but serves to remind us of the need to be vigilant about the possibility of being scammed in almost all areas of life today where money is involved. Remember that if anything seems too good to be true, then it almost certainly is.

If you would like advice and help with this or any other problem. telephone the free Dorset Adviceline number 0800 144 88 88 or visit our website www. citizensadvice.org.uk

Alternatively, call into our Sherborne office at the Manor House, Newland, on Mondays, Tuesdays or Thursdays between 10.00am-2.00pm.

Wriggle Valley Women’s Group

Hoping it’s not too late to wish all our lovely members a happy and healthy new year. We will have more gatherings in 2022 but we have got to stay safe and healthy. Best wishes to you all.