Reports to the Pulloxhill Annual Village Meeting – 3rd May 2021

AVM Report from the Chair of Pulloxhill Parish Council When I did my report last year, I was not expecting that we would have been in lockdown for most of the year. The village community has been more important than ever and many residents have supported others and some have made it their mission get villagers of all ages to smile – my particular highlight was seeing the Easter Bunny walking up the High Street. My heartfelt thanks do to everyone involved. Despite not being able to meet, our village organisations have kept going and we will hear from some of them during this meeting. We very much look forward to finding the “new normal” where we can all meet up and enjoy each other’s company again in person. The Parish Council has continued to meet via Zoom and we have made progress this year despite COVID restrictions – and I would like to thank all my fellow Parish Councillors and Parish Clerk for their support. We are in process of adopting the telephone box at St James Close and once that is finalised, the defibrillator donated by a resident will be installed. Thanks to Craig Prest’s and the rest of the project team’s perseverance, our Neighbourhood Plan – The Big , Greenfield and Pulloxhill Plan – is up for public vote this week and we ask all villagers to use their vote. Thanks to Brian Brown’s engagement with Highways over many years, the village now has both speed humps and two locations for a speed warning sign that can be moved between locations. As Brian has recently stepped down from his role as Parish Councillor and Deputy Chair, I would like to personally thank him for all his work and achievements during his two separate periods as Parish Councillor. I’m sure I speak for all the Parish Councillors, when I give a vote of thanks to Bob Cowell. Bob has been an excellent caretaker, looking after the Shelter and playgrounds for us for many years until recently. So we have a vacancy for Parish Councillor and are looking for one or two people to take on the roles of playgrounds inspector and Shelter caretaker. If you would like to help, please contact the Clerk.

Cllr Jamieson – Central Council CBC has had a successful year in implementing many Highway improvements. Cllr Jamieson wished to thank the great efforts of Brian Brown, and David Taylor (CBC) in bringing to fruition these local improvements. Further maintenance is planned for this year. The Local Plan was progressing and, whilst the Inspector had raised some queries on specific sites, these had been addressed and it was now hoped that the plan would be finalised within the next 12 months. CBC had approved the new A1/A5 link road and the business case was being put before the Department of Trade for approval. This may take another 12 months. Station is to be upgraded with much improved parking, bus terminus and cycle facilities. Network Rail have agreed to provide Disabled Access facilities to the station and platforms, although this is not likely to be scheduled until 2024. On an environmental front, work continues with a further round of matched funding grants towards the planting of trees. The council continues to pursue the growth of cyclepaths across the county and will be embarking on the installation of electric vehicle charging points.

Art and strollers - David Forrester The art group has been unable to meet for their regular Tuesday group in the Church Hall since March last year however, we hope that we can recommence as soon as the restrictions are lifted in June and groups are, again, allowed to meet indoors. Our meetings are held on Tuesday afternoons from 2pm in the Church Hall and have a typical attendance of 12 regulars. Our range of talents are from beginners to very proficient, and whilst we do not have a formal teacher, we have a very strong self help group prepared to offer support, advice and encouragement. If you feel you are a budding artist, please come along and join our friendly group – all our welcome.

It is also a similar picture with Strollers Golf with there being no events in 2020 and the first scheduled event being on July 2021 this year. We hope that we can have a further two events (September and October) this year. As for the evening dinner following the golf we still await confirmation that we will be allowed to gather at the Cross Keys without social distancing so we can have a full house. Around 20 golfers meet, with varying handicaps, to have a round at the local golf courses where Green fees are less expensive. We have been meeting for nearly 30 years and our objective is to have fun, socialise and raise funds for the Senior Citizens annual Christmas dinner, via a small premium on the green fees and the dinner raffles. Anybody interested in joining, you are more than welcome to contact me – details in PVN.

THE PULLOXHILL SINGERS Pulloxhill Annual Village Meeting Report Monday May 3 2021 The last 18 months has been a difficult time for all of us, and the Pulloxhill Singers are no exception. But in March 2020, we joined forces and created a Zoom Room practice session which we hold fortnightly, lasting approximately an hour. It is a whole new experience for our Musical Director who conducts a computer screen with 15 people on it from her study! Out of the 25 Singers, we are fortunate that about half regularly join the Zoom group. The rest of the group is kept up to date with what news there is. During this time, we have remotely created recordings of half a dozen songs, where we each record our part and send it to our accompanist John Hemmings, who, as if by magic, blends it all together. These songs will serve as a reminder of our happy and supportive group during these difficult times. Regular rehearsals will resume on Tuesday evenings at the Church Hall as soon as restrictions are lifted. In the meantime, the Zoom Room has enabled us to keep practicing about 30 songs, so when we are given the word, we will be fixing the date for a concert in the Church. We very much look forward to seeing you at this event. Hilary Parks Musical Director, The Pulloxhill Singers

Rushymeade Report for Pulloxhill Parish Council Annual Meeting, 3rd May 2021 All is well with Rushymeade. The area has been managed with the aim of maintaining a mixed environment which encourages a wide variety of birds and mammals, and is a safe and interesting area for the public. This is done by grazing with cattle along with selective cutting of thistles and brambles, and with selective hedge and wooded area maintenance. Careful spot spraying of brambles and thistles in difficult areas is resulting in good control without harming the wild flowers in these areas.

An annual grant from Natural is used to cover the maintenance costs. In 2020, this funding helped pay for the hedge laying along the bottom of Little Field. This was done largely by village volunteers, but a local expert (Colin Carpenter) was hired to help and give instruction on the process. This year, we hope to use these skills to manage more of the hedges around Rushymeade, with volunteer days to be organised.

COVID-19 lockdown restrictions continue, and as a result, there are a lot more walkers, from Pulloxhill and further afield, making use of Rushymeade and all of our footpaths. We are getting a lot of favourable comments from visitors, many of whom didn’t realise that Rushymeade existed as a public area, or just how many good walking routes there are radiating from Pulloxhill.

It has been a very wet winter up to late March, then April has been exceptionally dry, with warm weather for the first week which set the grass growing, followed by night frosts for 2 weeks to the 22nd which stopped grass growth and caused the new grass to die back. As a result, the cattle have not yet been brought back onto Rushymeade, but will be coming in early May – look out for the signs at each of the gateways for updates before and as the cows arrive. Last year, the first cattle were introduced on the 10th April, with plenty of grass available and the ground was dry. An advantage of this later date is that the footpaths and wetter areas of land which became trampled and muddy through Autumn and Winter, will have time to recover. They are already greening over and the soil surface is levelling out naturally as the biological activity increases with warmer weather.

Another reason why the cattle have not yet arrived is that this is a year when all cattle in the herd which ours come from must be tested for M. bovis, which can cause TB in humans. This is a legal requirement and must be done only once every 4 years for our herd as we are in a very low risk area. Assuming that all our cattle are clear of infection, they can then legally be moved from the farm and onto Rushymeade. This testing should be completed by early May, when we plan to bring about 15 adult cows.

As always, it is important to stress that care must be taken when walking in Rushymeade once the cattle return. Central Beds Council produce a Good Behaviour Guide - for the General Public accessing the countryside, which has been printed in the Pulloxhill Village News, and is displayed in the Rushymeade notice boards.

Paddy Schofield

Good Neighbours: The COVID pandemic has had some very strange consequences. Much to my surprise, our group only received 2 requests for support in the last 4 months. There has been so much immediate local support it would seem that, naturally, people prefer to seek assistance from their immediate neighbours and family, rather than rely upon volunteers from further afield. This has lead to a re- evaluation of our local Good Neighbours group and we may seek to merge with other local GN groups and share facilities and reduce costs. Andrea McCormack

Monday Coffee Club: The Monday Coffee Club is changing – we are thinking of changing our name to “Monday Coffee and Lunch Clubs”, to reflect our wider range of activities, appealing to all ages and genders. Our normal coffee meetings are held at the Shelter on Monday mornings (when restrictions are lifted) where it is not only tea, coffee and biscuits that are served, but an abundance of fun, laughter and friendship. We also enjoy trips out: afternoon teas, river trips, dog racing and any Cross Keys events; as well as sampling the food at peoples favourite hostelry. You don’t have to be a resident of our wonderful village, we accept interlopers. To join in – just phone Jackie Martin 01525 721922/ 07956 386310

Pulloxhill and Greenfield Brownies I'm afraid that Pulloxhill and Greenfield Brownies have not got much to report. We have been closed since March 2020 due to COVID restrictions and we made a decision not to do Zoom meetings as we felt that there was enough pressure and disruption in the girls' lives already. We have given them some challenges which they have been able to participate in with their families and some have worked on badges at home. Hopefully we will recommence activities in the near future and welcome both our existing girls and new comers. Jane Staff

Report for Parish Council on St. James' Church

In reviewing the past year, it is hard to resist saying the things that we've all been saying over the past twelve months – that it has been an unprecedented year; that we long for the return of the things we miss, and that we struggle to fully comprehend the extent to which lives have been affected.

For all those associated with St. James this has been a year of change and challenge. We have grown accustomed to offering online services with, until recently, only occasional acts of worship in the church itself. Social activities and fundraising events have been postponed, and many of the occasions which place the church at the heart of village life have been curtailed.

For all that, there has still been much to celebrate. The offering of recorded services (many featuring the scenic beauty of Pulloxhill!) have enabled us to reach people beyond our existing congregation, and brought closer ties with our sister churches in and Flitton. We have engaged imaginatively with the major festivals, as well as offering Bible groups and course via the ubiquitous Zoom! Major events such as Remembrance Sunday and the passing of the Duke of Edinburgh have been acknowledged at the church.

Throughout the pandemic we have sought to extend pastoral care to our local community which has included bereavement support and a number of funerals. We look forward to introducing weddings and baptisms again in the near future, and hope to resume our contribution to the life of the local School as soon as conditions allow.

On the fabric side, our building is in remarkably good condition, testimony to the care of the congregation and the Friends of the church. The addition of a beautiful pair of oak doors has been a practical and attractive addition between the tower and the balcony, whilst the churchyard has been kept in very tidy condition by the team of volunteers ably headed by Greg and Sue Smy.

In conclusion, huge credit must go to the small but dedicated team of volunteers who maintain the life and work of the Parish Church. Particular mention should be made of the role played by Brian and Linda Brown who will shortly be relinquishing the posts of Churchwarden and Treasurer respectively. It has been a privilege to work alongside them for the last six months, and I look forward to the coming year seeing a restoration of our full range of worship as well as a programme of social and fundraising events. Above all, I look forward to seeing, meeting and befriending members of the Parish Council and local community in a way that is more akin to what you expect from your Vicar!

Rev David Payne May 2021 Chairman’s Report – Pulloxhill Gardeners’ Club Last year saw the Club without a Village Show, probably for the first time in its history. However, we managed to set up a virtual photographic competition in September as an opportunity to continue with at least one of the Show’s sections - photography. It was a great success, with 27 different people participating and 73 images being entered.

Open Gardens planned for June last year was also a victim of the pandemic. We managed to move this online as well setting up a Gardeners’ Facebook page sharing images of eight of Pulloxhill’s lovely gardens. This received a good response and was also a useful channel to promote the results of the photo competition.

Due to the great response of the first virtual photographic competition, we have run another photography competition this spring with the categories: Winter; Spring; Shadows; Reflections; Leaves; Yellow; and Pulloxhill Life.

Once again this has been a big success, with 29 entrants and a total of 129 images. At present these are with the judge and the winners will be announced in the May PVN and on our Facebook page.

Unfortunately two of our long time members left his year due to moving house and I would like to say a big thank you for all their contributions to our success over the years. We’ve had one new member join and would always welcome other people getting involved.

We very much hope to get back into the swing of our normal activities and plan to hold the Village Show on 12 September if COVID restrictions allow and hold Open Gardens and celebrate our 40th anniversary next year. Jan Clark

Quiz Night The fortnightly village quiz night hosted by the Cross Keys has clearly been on a break. Generally there are about six teams who regularly play. The last time the quiz took place was at Christmas - where a socially distanced version took place alongside the Christmas Dinner. We hope that the quiz will be up and running again by the end of June. An announcement will be put on the community Facebook site and in the PVN.

Village Decorations and Events Following the overwhelming interest and participation in the Pulloxhill Advent Window Event at Christmas, Gill & Cherry decided to organise monthly 'distanced' or 'virtual' events during lock- down with the aim of nurturing the village community spirit in the absence of our more normal so- cial events.

So far this year, these have included:

 Pulloxhill Big Garden Birdwatch in January - top Pulloxhill Bird was the house sparrow  Love your Pulloxhill Neighbour - when villagers expressed their appreciation for neighbours by giving them small gifts, cakes, flowers etc on Valentines day  The 'Knitting Fairies' also left little gifts around the village for children to find during Feb- ruary  March was National Plant a Flower Day and we did this in our own gardens as well as creat- ing the Pulloxhill Flower Patch by the bus shelter on Greenfield Road, where folk planted beautiful plants, bulbs and seeds  At Easter the fabulous energetic Easter Bunny visited 99 children who each received eggs, chocolate Easter goodies and knitted delights, which were all very generously donated  May will be painted stones and spoons and the Biennial Midsummer Tree Fest will be held on 26th/27th June, when villagers will decorate trees in their own front gardens and the Oak on the Green. Whether it's possible to hold a fete, as in previous years, will be determined by Covid restrictions nearer the time.

We have been delighted by the enthusiasm and appreciation for these events and hopefully can re- turn to real-life social events soon.

Gill & Cherry

The Shelter Bob Cowell has done an admiral job looking after the Shelter for many years until he recently stepped down. I am sure the whole village would like to thank him for all his hard work, and friendly, cheerful face. The Shelter, like most community buildings, has been closed for over 12 months but is re-opening on 6th May to be used as a polling station for the Police and Crime Commissioner election and for the Referendum of the Neighbourhood Plan. Hopefully, not too long after it will be open for business as usual. For anybody wishing to book the room for meetings, socials or classes please contact Brian Green [email protected] or 07930 157757

Recreation Grounds Our village is lucky to have 2 playgrounds: 1 in Orchard Road (behind the Shelter overlooking Rushymeade) and the other in the Woodlands estate. Both are in excellent condition, with the older Orchard Road area receiving several new pieces of equipment to replace some that were showing their age. Like everywhere else this past year, the playgrounds had, for a period, been out-of-bounds, but are now back in use and I am sure are being enjoyed by all age groups. If you spot an issue please let me know immediately: Brian Green [email protected] or 07930 157757

Plodders Report to Pulloxhill Village AGM The Covid regulations over the last 14 months have meant that we have been unable to meet collectively for most of this time, apart form a coupe of occasions between lockdowns . Added to this, the wet weather and extremely wet field conditions have not made group walking pleasurable. The good news is that on the last Saturday of April, we celebrated the first part of the road map relaxations and held our first Plod. 16 villagers attended with two dogs and we had an enjoyable walk, full details of which are in this month’s PVN. Future Plods will be held on the last Saturday of each month, meeting at 10-30am on the village green. All welcome to join in. Peter Leatherland

PVN – ANNUAL VILLAGE MEETING REPORT The Pulloxhill Village News (PVN) contains news and events of interest to the village and is produced monthly, except for January, for a subscription of £5 a year. This, along with some advertising revenue, covers the costs of printing. Editorial, distribution and general management of finances is carried out on a voluntary basis. During 2020 there was a change in editor with Léonie Austin taking over from Martin McAllister. Many thanks to Martin for his 22 years of editing the newsletter. Thanks also to Val Kearney for managing the printing for the last 11 years and to Dee Budge for managing the distribution. Thanks to all the distributors who diligently deliver and collect subscriptions: Liz and David Coulson; Tina Schofield; Des and Gill Baggott; Sharon Richmond; Sue Smy; Phil Archer; Tony Revill; and Joy de Angelis. There are a number of regular contributors who are essential to the PVN’s success: Carol McCall for the Gardening column; Sue Miles for Then and now – a country life; Peter Leatherland for Plodders updates; Will Butterworth for View from the Green; and Whippet for the ditties. New items in the course of the past year have included regular updates from the school with thanks to Debbie Drawbridge the headteacher and Nicky Oxley the administrative assistant. The restrictions due to the pandemic have meant many village events have been cancelled or put on hold yet many other things have taken their place such as window displays, socially distanced activities and virtual events. This has meant there has still been a lot to report in the newsletter. If anyone wishes to contribute articles on an occasional or regular basis please contact the editor at [email protected]. Going forward we will continue to look at developing more content for the PVN in line with feedback. We will also look at options for free delivery to all homes in the village. Léonie Austin

Greenfield & Pulloxhill Academy Overview of Academic Year We were very excited to welcome the children back to school last September after what had been a very strange few months since March 2020. The children settled into their new year groups very quickly and we were enjoying some more ‘normal’ times. Unfortunately that was very short lived as in January schools entered a further lockdown which lasted until the beginning of March. We all had to adjust very quickly. Teachers had to move to setting and marking work remotely on a daily basis, while still teaching critical worker children in school, and our children had to adapt to learning in a completely different way at home. However, our children are very resilient and coped with the changes extremely well, they worked hard, submitted work and kept in contact with their teachers, and most importantly, kept the momentum of learning going. Now they are all back in school and although we are operating in ‘bubbles’, school is much more as we expect it to be. We have had very few cases of COVID due to the co-operation we have had from our families, for which we are truly thankful. Unfortunately, we have not been able to organise some of the lovely events that we would normally, such as, residential trips, day trips, community events etc. This is something we are really looking forward to recommencing next academic year, all being well. Our aim now is to keep the curriculum moving, giving our children the best opportunities to learn, so that they are ready for the new academic year. Mrs Drawbridge Headteacher

Contact details for most groups can be found in the Pulloxhill Village News.