Chetnole

CHETNOLE with REP: Liz Tebbatt 873140 tebbatttowers@gmail.com Hamlet, Melbury Bubb & Stockwood DISTRIBUTOR: Stan Darley

We wish a fond farewell to Linda, Mark, Norah and Robert Overton-Fox who have moved from Mill Lane, as the first stage of their plan to downsize, prior to returning to live in Sweden eventually. We wish them good health and happiness in their new home.

There may not be much to do in the village at the moment, yet we can still get out for a walk and appreciate the autumnal colours of the trees and hedgerows. Fingers crossed that by the spring, we’ll all be feeling less weary of the restrictions and hope will be in sight. In the meantime, let’s just do the best we can to get through it. Take care everybody.

Liz Tebbatt

Royal British Legion

You can buy a special edition Remembrance face mask, made by Anna Matthews, at the Chetnole Inn to raise funds for the Royal British Legion. Call in and pick some up and do your bit for this amazing charity.

Photo: Liz Tebbatt

News from St. Peter’s Church

Nick Swann came to St. Peter’s in Chetnole recently to produce a short video of the church. He makes these videos purely as a hobby, hoping that they may prove interesting to others.

The video of church is now on youtube https://youtube/IHvaC_h9Ry0 and is well worth a watch.

We’d like to say a big thank you to everyone who contributed to the food bank at Harvest and to say how grateful the bank was. Thank you also to everyone who left flowers and decorations at the church for the Harvest service on 27 September – it looked beautiful.

The church remains open every Wednesday and Sunday from 10.00am to 4.00pm. We now have a food bank

hamper in place; please bring your donations of non-perishable foods and supplies. A larger choice of books and puzzles are also available at the back of the church for you to swap or take (for a small donation). We hope you will be able to stop by. Covid-19 rules are displayed in the porch for your continued safety.

Aly Kosowyk

St. Peter’s Annual Meeting Report for 2019

2019 saw the regular service pattern at St. Peter’s continue. Easter, Harvest, Carol and Christmas Services were, as always, well attended.

In addition to our regular services, we remembered the lives of those who have died with three memorial services. We also celebrated with two Baptisms.

In February, the Choral Evensong, led by John Summers and the Barn Choir, was an evening of beautiful music, with many able to attend.

In June we had our last service with John Summers before he left for his new post at Cambridge University. Also in June we had a very successful cream teas in the churchyard and teddy bear parachuting, despite a wind that blew in a difficult direction causing teddy bears to land on the hands of the clock.

During this year, The Friends of St. Peter’s Church was formed. A separate committee pledged to raise funds for the maintenance of St. Peter’s, with one member of the PCC attending their meetings. Their first fund raising was a successful stall at the Flower Show.

August saw the retirement of Olive Turner who, for many years, has lovingly cared for our church. Olive was born in the village and has been attending St. Peter’s all her life.

Following our Harvest Service we had a harvest lunch in the village hall. Thank you to all the kind people who helped provide the delicious food.

Our Carol Service was followed by mulled wine and mince pies kindly provided by “The Friends”.

This report is my opportunity to say an enormous thank you to the many people who keep the church and its surroundings running smoothly: to Olive, who kept the church immaculate; to Ned and the choppers who look after the churchyard and raise the flag; to Lyn and the flower arrangers; to Sue, our regular organist; to Dennis who winds the clock and does lots of DIY jobs; and to the people who lock and unlock the church, the sidesmen and bellringers and, now, our long list of church cleaners. Also the army of people who are always ready to make cakes, mince pies or anything else.

Thank you too, to The Friends of St. Peter’s and to those who contribute financially; and to Richard Frost who checks our accounts. Without all your help we couldn’t carry on. Finally, a special big thank you to the members of the PCC who keep me going.

Stephanie Fripp

Churchwarden

Photo: Liz Tebbatt

Greasy Spoon Cafe

Save the Children very much regrets that due to Covid-19, the Greasy Spoon Cafe will not be taking place this year. Christmas cards and wrapping paper will be on sale at Chetnole Mill. Please ring 872255 if you would like to peruse the selection with a cup of coffee!

Bee Grant Peterkin

Tired of searching for a source of dry logs that don’t require stacking? Chetnole has the solution!

For some years we have bought bagged logs at a discount. They come kiln dried in two sizes, suitable for all stoves/grates. Beautifully packed in large bags, they can be delivered to your log store in mid-November. The more bags we order, the better the discount per bag. The present price is £55 per bag but we would expect a discount off that. Each bag weight is c.80 kilos and measures 45 x 52 x 95, a tall cube in shape.

If you are interested or want further details, please call Rosemary on 01935 872256 BEFORE NOVEMBER 5th

Sunday lunch

With the wind howling around the house, I took out the rubbish during a break in a rainstorm that lasted all day. Fortunately, I glanced through the window, before turning the handle of the kitchen door, and saw this sparrowhawk enjoying his Sunday lunch.

Watching up close, as the windblown, merciless hawk tore apart and devoured the hapless wood pigeon, was my personal 2020 Attenborough Experience.

Gordon Ratcliffe

Chetnole Home and Flood Watch Scheme

My personal lockdown period was spent on long overdue DIY jobs, gardening tasks and de-cluttering, before my personal To Do List flagged up ‘Home and Flood Watch’. Why? Since the beginning of 2020, the population and demographic of the village has undergone changes which have not been reported for inclusion in the Scheme database.

Chetnole Home Watch (a simple version of Neighbourhood Watch) has always kept a low profile. It has been acknowledged as a useful source of local knowledge by Sherborne Police Safer Neighbourhood Team (SSNT) in times of emergency, especially since Flood Wardens became part of the scheme a few years ago.

Over the past 15 years our 11 area coordinators have focussed on making residents aware of any local incidents – suspicious vehicles, burglaries (only a few thankfully) and passing on police messages, always by email.

This could be viewed by younger residents (and IT-savvy older residents) as a slow, outdated communications channel, considering their ever-increasing reliance on smartphones and iPads.

In a small village setting such as ours, the term ‘Home Watch’ itself could even send out the wrong signals. People are rightly protective of their personal contact details and mindful of the legalities of the Data Protection Act.

Even the word ‘Watch’ could imply that homes are being monitored, under constant surveillance by a kind of sinister local vigilante group, ready to snitch or dob in perceived transgressors.

Not so! All that is, of course, the exact opposite of what our scheme is all about. A different title – ‘Home Network’ perhaps – might send out a more reassuring signal.

Chetnole is fortunate to have a wellestablished weekly e-Diary (thank you, Ian), as well as, from the beginning of lockdown, a group of volunteers willing to help anyone in isolation and in need of assistance. It seems that much instant socialising now happens via a Chetnole Facebook group, ‘Chetnole,Chat’ and other WhatsApp groups – maybe even Twitter (a la The Donald.....?).

Home Watch seems to have been surpassed, as a means of passing on news, good or bad.

Long ago when I volunteered, I and our team of 11 Home Watch area coordinators had to be registered individually to receive and pass on police messages. I learned only recently that any resident can register to receive Dorset Alert messages directly, via Facebook, Twitter or email. Could it be that this alone has made our village scheme redundant?

Residents’ observations, positive or negative, would be most welcome (by email of course).

Gordon Ratcliffe Village coordinator