The Mallard Issue 333 July 2019 Arthur Is Biennial Mike Tilbury Award Winner

The Mallard Issue 333 July 2019 Arthur is Biennial Mike Tilbury Award Winner. ic Cross presented the biennial V Mike Tilbury Award to Arthur Allen at the Parish Council Meeting on Monday 17th June. Arthur, a long - term resident of Great Massingham, has been very much involved in bringing improvements to the village, for many years. He was chosen to be the recipient of the Mike Tilbury Award primarily in recogni- Vic (right) presents the Award to Arthur (left) tion of his involvement with the, now thriving, Village Tennis Club. Membership has increased from around thirty-five since Arthur first became involved and now has over two hundred members, with a good pro- portion of these being from Great and Little Massingham! With great foresight, Arthur made the decision to leave the tennis courts unlocked, with balls and racquets available, so that village youngsters could use the court at their con- venience. This led to a huge increase in the interest and participation of many youngsters and now there is a thriving Saturday Junior Club. Coaching is also now available for both youths and adults. Indicative of the success of the Tennis Club is the fact that it has been voted the Norfolk LTA ‘Club of the Year’ for three of the past four years . Although the Tennis Club was mentioned most in residents’ comments other aspects of Arthurs’s valued contribution such as the setting up and continued involvement with the highly successful Film Night were also cited. The Film Night has been running since 2011 and now enjoys large attendance numbers with people travelling from outside the village as far afield as Fakenham to enjoy the experience - not bad for a small village venture set up from scratch! Again it appears to have a solid future and is a valuable asset to the village. Finally, mention was also made of Arthur's involvement with the Village Hall. Having been a Trustee for about eight years, Arthur has been heavily involved in restructuring of the management and the development of the Village Hall, again giving valuable time, energy and experience to the benefit of the village. On receiving the award, Arthur said that it was an ‘Honour and a pleasure to be nominat- ed and presented with the award, especially as it was named after one of the great sup- porters and benefactors of the village’. Mick Wingell Arthur was congratulated by the members of the Parish Council and other attendees present at the meeting. The Mallard also adds it’s own special congratulations. Well done Arthur! Your contribution is very special. We are so fortunate to have so many hard working volunteers working tirelessly for our village, in many ways. Thank you to you all. 1

Mallard News This parish magazine is Great Massingham 11th Annual Village Yard Sale published every month for the th residents of Great and Little Sunday 19 August from 9am-1pm Massingham with the support of To be held again the weekend before the Bank Holiday. the Great Massingham Parish Council, the Parochial Church The pitch price remains at £5. Council and Massingham Don't forget – ‘One man’s trash is another man’s treasure’ so, Village Hall Trustees. if you are planning to throw something away, don't. Be honest www.greatmassingham.net e-mail: with yourself when pricing. Some items are valuable for every- [email protected] body while some not so much. A great tip is to combine a more

Editorial Committee valuable item with a less valuable one and sell them as a set.

Editor: Bev. Randall. Bottom line, try to make all of your belongings look like new 6 Abbeyfields with a bit of spit and polish! Great Massingham 01485 520 899 All monies raised from pitch fees go towards church funds.

Treasurer: David Baines Some people also donate all their proceeds to other charities. 01485 520 966 If you are a tax payer, you can gift aid

Website : Contact the your £5 fee to ensure the church receives an extra £1.25. Editor - Details above. Envelopes will be available from the church or direct from me. Deadline for the Contact: Penny Perry at 35 Walcups Lane, Great Massingham next issue Telephone: 01485 520978 E mail: [email protected] th Please get in touch & book asap so I can put you on the map. 20 July Maps for buyers, available a week in advance, 50p from me. In this issue First Dabbling Duck Charity Ball, 2019 - Thanks We want to thank everybody who helped or attended our first • Mike Tilbury Award th • Village Yard Sale Charity Ball on Saturday May 18 . It was a lot of extra work • Dabbling Duck Thanks but ‘putting something back in’ was what we wanted to do. • Parish Clerk The charity we chose, a small local charity ‘Pandora Project’, • Magpie Centre concerns a subject which is as unglamorous as it gets. This • ‘Histry’ Bits makes it difficult to raise the funds that it needs to survive. • Village Hall Events The charity helps family members suffering from domestic • West Norfolk Folk abuse - a problem more common than most people realise with • Quiz Night • Craft & Chat some shocking statistics of abuse - and is utilised by both the • Gert & Daisy police and social services. ‘Pandora Project’ is our chosen • Strimmers Appeal charity 2019, so we will continue to raise funds for them for • Historical Society the remainder of the year. • Store & Deli Update We are delighted to have raised £6,415 on the night and our • Ladies Night thanks extend to everybody - from the villagers and other • Hall Open Evening • Snooker Final guests who attended or bought raffle tickets to our brilliant • HC4U sponsors and staff and anyone who helped in any way. • Afternoon Tea THANK YOU, Sally and Mark x • Film Night • Film Night review Kevin Webb Steps Down as Parish Council Clerk …… • Village Clean Up After nearly nine years as Clerk he says, “Its been a challenging • Treasurer Needed role, particularly in the early stages, but has proven to be im- • Rev’d Judith’s Notes mensely rewarding from a personal achievement perspective. • Dogs in Churchyard Great Massingham is a unique village and it is blessed with • Church News able, committed and hard-working individuals who volunteer to • Church Services • Grassroots Malawi give their services, for free, both on the Parish Council and in • Biodiversity Project other ways. It’s been a pleasure working with them. I’m indebt- • Dates for your Diary ed to a number of people for all their help, support & advice.” 2

Mallard News

‘Histry Bits’.... The Lost House One day in the early sixties, my father Ken Miller and the late George Warnes were dig- ging trenches to lay the foundations for a new turkey unit facing onto Drunken Drove. In the days before JCBs, the job had to be done by hand and, at break time, they were taking a well-earned rest when George pulled something out of the pile of earth beside him. It was an oyster shell. He showed it to Dad who brought it in to show me when they’d finished for the day. It was clearly very old, its surface stained by exposure to the boggy subsoil. But what was it doing three feet underground and so far from any beach? We decided to investigate further. Next morning we dug a shallow trench close to where George had been working, and we struck gold – or at least oyster shells – with almost the first spade-full. There were scores of them, many of them showing cut-marks where a knife had been inserted between the two halves to prise them apart. As we continued to dig, we began to uncover pottery too. Lots of it and all of it broken. There were bowls, jugs, drinking cups and sections of what must have been large cook- ing pots, some blackened with soot from the fires that had been used to boil their con- tents. Many of the pieces had been decorated with a yellowy- green glaze, and some had crude designs scratched into their surfaces. The following week we took our finds to Lynn Museum and showed them to Miss Mot- tram, the curator. What we’d discovered, she told us, was a midden – a medieval rubbish pit. In the days before weekly wheelie-bin collections, garbage had to be disposed of by the householder, and the simplest solution was to dig a hole and bury it. The oysters would have come from Brancaster, carried by itinerant vendors, probably in baskets on their heads. And the pottery would have come from – yes, you’ve guessed it – Pott Row, then a major industrial centre, churning out vast numbers of glazed pots known as Grim- ston Ware, for sale nationwide. The presence of a midden was a strong indication that there was once a domestic dwelling nearby, most probably a two -roomed thatched cottage with an attached barn or cattle- yard, and a well to supply water. Our find would be record- ed, Miss Mottram told us, but unless circumstances changed, the site was not important enough to warrant further investigation. I remember being quite disappointed by her words, having developed a keen interest in archaeology but there was nothing more that could be done. It was only several years later, when the turkey buildings were being dismantled, that the digger-driver working on the site reported finding A Medieval several low flint walls just below ground level. These were Grimston-ware jug almost certainly sleeper walls, built to keep the lower sections of timber-framed buildings clear of wet and rot. The Lost House of Drunken Drove, complete with its medieval rubbish tip, had finally been located! David Miller

SUMMER ACTIVITIES HIT THEIR STRIDE AT THE MAGPIE CENTRE The Magpie Open Show, to be held on 7th July & The Craft and Country Fair scheduled for August 18th, both at Wallington Hall. See the website www.rda-westnorfolk.org.uk 3

Mallard News Village Hall VILLAGE HALL REGULAR EVENTS Craft and Chat Keep Fit Not during refurb. In the Village Hall Bar, Bingo Fridays at 7.30pm 2pm - 4.30pm Auction Sundays £1.50 includes refreshments. Coronation Club (4th Wed.) 2pm - 4pm Mondays 8th and 22nd July & W/Norfolk Radio Sundays 7pm -10pm 5th and 19th August st rd Craft & Chat (1 & 3 Mon) 2 - 4.30pm Please join us. Everyone welcome. Trefoil Guild 2nd Thursday, each month Film Night 3rd Thursday, each month Great Massingham Village Quiz Quiz Nights 4th Thursday, each month Thursday 25th July Bowls - Short Mat Back in October £2 per contestant Historical Society 2nd Monday 7.30pm Questions start promptly Youth Club Tuesdays 6.45- 9.15pm at 7.30pm in the Yoga With a Chair Not during refurb. Village Hall Bar. Please join us. Community Car Scheme West Norfolk Radio’s Live Show Village Hall Bar 7-10pm, FREE entry. DRIVERS 28 July The ‘Macarnos’ and ‘Head Rush’ URGENTLY www.westnorfolkradio.co.uk NEEDED Apply on line Change of Date for at massinghamcommunitycars.co.uk or Village Hall Refurbishment Open Evening Phone: 01485 520 823 It is now 10th July. See poster on p 9 Shop window TONY INWOOD Y O G A CREATIVE GARDENING EAST RUDHAM HARPLEY Specialist in pruning and training MONDAY 9.30-10.30AM HARPLEY BEGINNERS/ IMPROVERS Telephone: 07887 780 056 WEDNESDAY 6 - 7 PM EAST RUDHAM VINYASA FLOW All sizes of work undertaken 7.30 - 8.30PM HARPLEY BEGINNERS/IMPROVERS 9 Crossing Cottage, Little Massingham King’s Lynn, PE32 2JZ Mobile: 07909 586 993 [email protected] EMAIL: [email protected] www.santoshayoganorfolk.com Bliss Healing Naturally gifted healer Helping people and animals. Powerful energy healing, aiding recovery in many ailments. Also offering massage at ‘Chapel Beauty’. www.healingbyamanda.co.uk email: [email protected] or call for advice on 07584665742

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Mallard News Gert & Daisy...... Well, here we are agin. We’ve both hed buthdays and we wud like ter thank yew awl fer the cards and presents. Daisy and Sid hed their 45th Wedding Anniversary but she dint git a sapphire! Mind yew she do’t look auld enuf enyway. We’ve hed an anonymous letter giving us details of an incident concerning sumwun who we write abowt quoite ofen. As yet, we hint bin able ter find owt who the ‘respected pensioners’ were who wus on the receiving end of the inappropriate conversation! We ownt close this case til we hev got ter the bottom of it even if that takes as long as Brex- it! Did yew notice awl them bikers gawn thru the village? We wus gawn ter dew the 100 mile one but we wus worried we wunt get back in toine ter mek the tea. We nearly went on the Tractor Rally but Mr Brun wunt lend us a tractor (can’t imagine why not). There is another wun afore yew read this but we ownt be on that wun either. We hope your gardens hev hed enuf rain now. We herd the lifeboat came down Walcups Lane and arsked if enywun wanted anything from the Shop. Mark sed he wud dew deliv- eries in his dingy. The grass is growing so farst we will soon need a combine harvester to clear it – don’t suppose he will lend us wun of those either! We would loike ter sen our luv and best wishes ter Peggy after her recent hip operation – she is now more bionic than she wus afore! That’ll soon be the school harvest holidays. We’re really looking forward ter being on call fer babysitting. Mind yew Gert has already booked her holiday with Bert so she’s gitting owt of it fer a cupple of weeks. As yew ken see, we’re still short of gossip so please keep us in mind when yew’re owt and about. Dew yew keep atroshing. Gert and Daisy. A little joke from Keith Skipper – a proper ol’ Norfolk boy! Charlie rushes indoors to tell his Dad: “Mum reckons someone’s pinched a pair of your Y-fronts off the linen line”. “The cheeky beggars!” exclaims Dad. “She says she’s not bothered about the pants,” says Charlie, “but she wouldn’t mind getting the 20 pegs back!” Strimmers Wanted! Many villagers might not be aware but three of our village stalwarts; Richie Fanneran, Martin (Jim) Twite, and Pip Brown regularly strim the churchyard to keep it neat and tidy. They provide the strimmers and the fuel at their own expense and, up to now, they are pleased to do so. However, the strimmers are doing a lot of work and are taking a lot of time to maintain and repair. So, if you have a decent strimmer that you don't need.. and.. that works please consider donating it to this worthy cause ! Please contact any of the strimming team or Andre Wilding on 01485520053 if you would like to donate a strimmer. Great Massingham Historical Society Primary School Our next meeting is on 8th July, 7.30pm, at the Village Hall 100 Club - May 1st prize - Tony Haley Advance Notice…. August Guest Speaker 2nd prize - Dave Butterworth Gilly Gould will give a talk about ‘The First World War’ 3rd prize - Ruth Doherty th 7.30pm, Monday 12 August, in the Village Hall To join, Call Joules Members free, guests £2. 07761 983212 6

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Mallard News What’s new in Massingham Stores & Post Office? We now have new chilled food ranges helped by the intro- duction of new chilled food cabinets. The new ranges include but are not limited to: Fresh single and double cream Onken bio yoghurts Childrens yoghurts A range of over 7 fruit juices including small bottles if you’re on the go and ……. An extensive range of over 15 ready meals and ranges of milks including soya, almond, coconut and hemp. We have a new deli with new and improved ranges including Pork pies and sausage rolls from National award winning Brays Cottage. Fancy an onion marmalade, piccalilli or a black pudding pork pie anyone? We now also stock fresh chicken, steak mince and rump steaks to complement our fresh meat offer. We can now boast over 600 new lines in recent months and the most recent additions include: Starbucks chilled latte Crush oils Candis chutneys Breakfast bars Belvoir cordials Gluten fee ale

Also - we are now a proud partner of Currylicious, based in Fakenham and providing authentic Indian ready meals that you can takeaway 7 days a week. ….and, finally, just in time for summer we now have a beer and wine fridge serving you with ice cold drinks when you need them. Mobile Post Office Service… Many of you will know that we are operating a mobile Post Office service in 14 villages including East Rudham, Bircham, Harpley and Hillington, to name just a few of the local villages. If you wish to know more, then please pop in or visit our website www.massinghamstores.co.uk for more details.

Ladies’ Night Last year we had a fun evening playing against the men. This will be repeated if Bowls Challenge enough people sign up. Look out for the posters in the social club Monday from July 10th. July 22nd It is Ladies’ night at the Social Club from 7pm Come and join us. Massingham This is for Female Club members- £2 sign in fee for non-members, or join for the year, Social Club on the night. It is only £10. 8

Mallard News

Mike Tilbury Snooker Final Besides the Mike Tilbury Award mentioned on the front page, the village also holds a snooker competition in Mike’s memory. The final of this year’s event took place at the Village Hall on June 6th. The two finalists were John Harris and Danny Chase with Danny being the even- tual winner. (See picture below)

John Danny

The raffle raised just over £100 and will be used to help buy another high backed chair at the Massingham surgery. A big thank you to Ian Crisp for organis- ing it again. Mel Whitmore

Holiday Club for you AFTERNOON TEA at Little Massingham HC4U House Gt MassinghamVillage Hall th th st By kind permission of Mr Oliver Birkbeck July 29 , 30 & 31 In aid of St Andrew’s Church, Little Massingham 10am - noon August 17th 2019 Now in its fifth year, a small team from our 2pm to 4pm churches (led by Kim Frazer & Tickets £10 each to include entry into prize Rev’d Judith) run a FREE draw for a luxury hamper available from: Children’s Holiday Club aimed at children Michelle West (520612), Angela Fordham from Reception to Year 6. (520162) or Ruth Swithenbank (520275) or FUN & Friendship email: [email protected] Bible Stories, Craft Activities, Games, Raffle on the day also Singing, and more. Tell your friends - even better- BRING your friends. FILM NIGHT More info: Rev’d Judith (01485 601251) Thursday July 18th Registration forms will also be 7pm for 7.30pm, £4 per person available at schools Gt Massingham Village Hall ‘Mary Queen of Scots’ th th Houghton Festival (8 to 11 August) Starring Saoirse Ronan and Open evening for Residents - 12th July, Margot Robbie as rival queens. 5-8pm, Tearoom Marquee, Houghton Hall.

Mallard News Great Massingham Film Night Review 90 performances, 4,000 tickets and going from strength to strength! Seven and a half years ago, the Village Hall and Community Cars got together to start the Film Club. Now rebranded as Film Night and with audiences in the mid-fifties – that’s the number coming, not their age – the organisation held its eighth Annual General Meeting on 3rd June. Film Night screens a film every third Thursday of the month, except December, choos- ing a mix of well-known box office hits and more unusual gems that our audience is unlikely to see elsewhere. Our next film - the 90th we have screened - is on 18th July: ‘Mary Queen of Scots’ starring Saoirse Ronan (see more on page 9). This is a special benefit evening for Creative Arts East who do much to foster the arts in this part of Eng- land and who, like the Mallard, helped Film Night get up and running. About five evenings a year, Film Night also runs very sociable Members’ Evenings, at the Village Hall, where members are welcomed with a glass of wine, a two course meal that matches the following film. Coming up in September is the wonderful French box- office hit ‘Intouchables’ with coq-au-vin and other French delights. All this for £16 per head. Membership is £5 for life. Over the years, Film Night has contributed to the purchase of the new sound system, the new chairs, banqueting tables and linen and recently made a contribution of £2,000 to the Village Hall refurbishment. At the AGM, the members re-elected committee members Dave Butterworth, Fiona Cutts, Dave Davies, Gill Davies, Arthur Allen (Chair), Phil Ward, Maggie Prue and two others from outside the parish. The Chairman thanked the Mallard, the Village Stores and Listawood for their help with publicity. Email [email protected] to get on the mailing list for forthcoming films. You’re missing out if you don’t. Arthur Allen A Boost to our Village Clean-up amount of rubbish discarded. We now Great Massingham is one of a number of know of the damage caused to our planet villages chosen by the Borough Council to by discarded plastic, so it is even more receive their own ‘Clean-up Kit’. Now with important to continue our good work. our own kit we will be better placed to keep As well as the annual spring clean I am on top of any litter problems in our village. hoping to have an autumn clean-up to When we first started our annual spring which you are all invited! clean, about twenty years ago, we filled a As a member of the litter bin emptying trailer with heaps of rubbish that had accu- team, could I please ask all dog walkers to mulated over many years. Since then, with deposit dog waste bags in the dog waste the installation of litter bins, annual clean-up bins or take them home. We are not paid to events and regular litter picking by residents, deal with dog excrement - we are volun- there has been a noticeable reduction in the teers! Andrew Bickerton Your Historical Society needs YOU! The post of Hon. Treasurer has become vacant, so we need a willing volunteer to step up please & take over the monies! The duties are not very onerous, could you help? Alternatively, our existing clerk is willing to move posts, so could you act as Hon. Sec? Here the duties involve producing the agenda & taking the minutes at meetings as well as helping the Chairman with the odd correspondence. Nearly all the duties are conducted electronically, so both internet access and a printer are essential. For more details, please contact the Chairman, Peter James. Massingham 521706 or [email protected] 10

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Message from Reverend Judith Love Ois... ? LL ARISHIONERS DoT you remember A Pthose gentle ‘Love is…’ cartoons from a few years ago, perhaps more innocent times? There was a time when you couldn’t avoid them! At the moment we - older and younger generations alike, often female – are glued to our TV screens once more for our annual dose of Love Island, medicine(?) for the amo- rously challenged. Although this TV reality show is filmed on an island (Mallorca) I doubt if love will be found there - plenty of splashy emotions certainly but not love - even though this microcosm of relationship fun and frolics is filmed 24/7 – there is no hiding place, even when sleeping. In some countries this would be deemed torture, not cynical mass entertainment where hell is other people. Love is complex. The Beatles say love is all you need; a 1970 film, Love Story, tells us love is...never having to say you’re sorry. Does that mean never doing anything wrong or never apologising if you do? Love is in the air, that’s official. Summer is the season of weddings, especially church weddings when ancient buildings are not so cold. With many picturesque and exotic/ historic places now licensed for civil weddings both at home and abroad, competition for where to tie the knot has never been more intense. And yet, we are told weddings are on the decline - Church weddings in particular – but that has not been my experience. It is always a particular joy to be alongside a couple as they plan their wedding. And I genu- inely believe that the Church of England offers so much more than a public legal commitment. ‘God is love and those who live in love live in God and God lives in them.’ The love of God will sustain and strengthen a couple who marry in church throughout their married life together. Nothing can separate us from the love that God has for each one of us through Christ Jesus our Lord. God is love. As we congratulate those couples who will choose to marry this summer, let us share in their joy and give thanks that our churches are privileged to be at the heart of our com- munities, willingly accompanying us on all our major life journeys – of both joy and sadness - with commitment, integrity, generosity - and, of course, love. After all, God is love. Have a brilliant, fun and frolic-filled summer, Love is all around us. With my love and prayers, Judith xxx

Please Keep the Churchyard FREE of Dog Fouling! Reverend Judith writes: “Recent incidences of dog fouling in our churchyards have caused distress to mourners and will not be tolerated. Please supervise your dog on a lead and, if required, clear up afterwards. Thank you. Reverend Judith.”

NEXT MOBILE LIBRARY VISITS GRASSROOTS MALAWI 2nd & 30th July- As timetabled. The dates for the next ‘Stall on the Green’ Please view new timetable on: is Saturday 27th July. From 9am. www.greatmassingham.net The June 1st stall raised £390 for Malawi. Amazing! Thank you for your continued Fitness Mobility Every Thursday support. Lots on sale. Come and see for 11.30 to 12.30 at Docking Surgery yourself. Cancelled if wet. Jenny Borley 12

Church Services July 2019 Date Time Service Location 3rd July 9.00 am Holy Communion Harpley 7th July 8.30 am Holy Communion Ashwicken 9.30 am Family Service Harpley 10.30 am Holy Communion Grimston 10.30 am Morning Praise Gayton 11.00 am Holy Communion Great Massingham 6.00 pm Evensong Congham 14th July 10.30 am Group Holy Communion Grimston 4.00 pm The Gap Pott Row Methodist 17th July 9.00 am Holy Communion Grimston 21st July 8.30 am Holy Communion Roydon 9.30 am Holy Communion Little Massingham 10.30 am Holy Communion Gayton 10.30 am Morning Praise Grimston 11.00 am Family Service Great Massingham 11.15 am Sung Holy Communion Harpley 28th July 8.30 am Holy Communion Congham 10.30 am Family Service Grimston 11.00 am Holy Communion Great Massingham 3.00 pm Celtic Service Gayton Thorpe 4th August 8.30 am Holy Communion Ashwicken 9.30 am Family Service Harpley 10.30 am Holy Communion Grimston 10.30 am Morning Praise Gayton 11.00 am Holy Communion Great Massingham 7th, 14th, 28th July 9.30 am Lay Services Little Massingham Benefice Prayer Meeting, Sunday 7th July, at 3pm at All Saints, Ashwicken. For more news please visit our benefice website at www.ggmbenefice.uk CHURCH NEWS helped and supported the coffee morning th Wednesday Teas, held every week, in St on June 8 . We raised the amazing amount Mary’s Church, from 3pm to 4.30pm. Lots of £535. Thank you to everyone. of chat and delicious cakes! Please join us. Walks Through our Parishes. Living On a Prayer. Our July walk, a walk round Ashwicken, on th The next session is on 25th July and the Saturday 13 July, will be led by Rev’d subject is Intercession. Held at Pott Row Sue Martin.

Village Hall from 7.30pm to 9pm. Please For information contact meet at Rosemarie Bowers on 01485 600 485. 3pm at A Huge Thank You from Little Massing- Ashwicken ham St Andrew’s Church to all those who Church.

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Membership applications can be obtained CALL TODAY from the club bar 01485 521888

Useful Numbers Organisation Contact Phone No. Allotment Association Gill Goold 0750 824 2223 Biodiversity Project Mike Jackson 520 056 Borough Council James (Jim) Moriarty 07879 492400 Bell Ringing Dale Gagen 520 024 Bowls Club Peter Wadham 520 796 Church Contacts Revd Judith Pollard 01485 601 251 Community Car Scheme Office 520 823 Coronation Club Jill Whitmore 520 609 County Council Stuart Graham Dark 07450 679 355

Doctors Massingham Surgery 520 521 The Film Night Arthur Allen 520 628 Fishing Warden Paul Smith & Ken Perry Sue Nash 07802 670 711 Guide Trefoil Guild Shirley Rae 520 259 Massingham Historical Society Peter James 521 706 Tennis and Multi-Sports Club Arthur Allen 520 628 Parish Council Clerk (Vacant Position) Vacant position Mick Wingell (Chair) 520 369 Pre-School Pip Armitage 07807 185 746 Police Non-emergency 101 School Ann Beardall 520 362 Village Hall Hall & Bar & Vic Cross 520 588/520 387 Village Stores and Deli Mark and Kerry Eldridge 520 272

MASSINGHAM STORES & POST OFFICE FOOD - WINE - DELI OVEN CLEANING Mark, Kerry and staff welcome you to your local shop, 7 days a week. CARPET CLEANING Monday to Saturday 7am to 7pm Sunday 9am - 4pm SOFA CLEANING Tel: 01485 520 272 Call the local experts now Our Post Office is open from 9am - 5.30pm Monday to Friday & 9am -1pm on Saturday. Clean Tech It offers euros on demand as well as holiday insurance & other foreign currency. We have a huge number of new lines such as 01485 609223 a new range of newspapers, magazines, DIY, stationery, cakes and biscuits…….. Card, cheque and cash FREE HOME DELIVERY, FRIDAYS, 1 - 5 PM www.massinghamstores.co.uk payments accepted Email: [email protected]

Biodiversity Project News Recently, Kew Gardens reported that 20% of the world’s plant species are threatened with extinction and, last month, a United Nations science report told us that nature is in trouble with 1 million species of plants and animals at risk. In March, thousands of pupils in 2,000 cities worldwide missed Friday school to protest against our collective failure to act against global warming with the Swedish schoolgirl Greta Thunberg proclaiming, “I want you to panic. I want you to feel the fear I feel every day." Following demonstrations on Parliament Square, by ‘Extinction Rebellion’, even the House of Commons caught the current mood declaring the impact of climate change to be a national emergency. I’m sure these and other similar announcements and actions will have motivated many in the Village to try harder to lighten their personal contribution to our environmental woes. After-all, most people want to feel like they’re doing something and, with seven billion people on the planet, ‘every little helps’ could be transformational. I hope this also applies to our village Biodiversity Project volunteers who, little by little, have transformed a little -known and unattractive part of the Village into somewhere worth a visit at any time of year (see photographs below). It’s home to an increasingly diverse range of plant species and, hopefully, of animals too, especially birds - now we have two feeding stations and over a dozen nesting boxes. Our Parish Council provides a small annual grant to help with the inevitable costs and you could help put that grant to best use by lending a hand at one or more of our regular 10 am Saturday morning working parties. Mike Jackson The next working party will be on Saturday 6th July. Please come if you can. You are also invited to our OPEN AFTERNOON on Sunday 14th July, 2pm to 5 pm. It will be held at the Biodiversity site in Weasenham Road. You will have the opportunity to be shown round by volunteers, learn from several displays while enjoying light refreshments. There will be no charge. Everyone is welcome. Please join us. Mike Jackson 520 056 Dates for your Diary – July Date Event Time Place 8,22 July Craft & Chat 2 - 4.30 pm Village Hall Bar 8 July Historical Society 7.30 pm Village Hall 10 July Hall Refurbishment Opening 6.30 - 8.30 Village Hall 14 July Biodiversity Open Afternoon 2 - 5 pm Weasenham 18 July Film Night 7pm for 7.30 Village Hall 22 July Ladies Night Bowls Challenge 7 pm Village Hall 25 July Quiz Night 7pm for 7.30 Village Hall Bar 27 July Stalls on the Green From 9 am Near the Well 28 July West Norfolk Live 7 - 10 pm Village Hall Bar 29,30,31 HC4U 10am to 12 Village Hall 16