Whittlewood PARISHES St Mary’s Church Services at St Mary’s Church COFFEE MORNING

Our vision in the Whittlewood Parishes is to know THANK YOU. God better, love one another and reach out with the good news of Jesus. On a cold and very windy Saturday many June 2019 villagers, friends and visitors attended our 2nd No service annual coffee morning held in St Mary’s Hoy Eucharist at Silverstone 10.00am Church. 9th Pentecost - Confirmation service at Paulerspury with Holy Eucharist; It was lovely to see so many old and new Bishop Donald officiating friends. Thanks go to everyone who helped 10.00am in any way (baking cakes, working in the 16th Holy Eucharist 11.00am kitchen, etc.) to raise the magnificent sum of 23rd Patronal Holy Eucharist at Slapton £286 for the church funds. As always your 10.00am continued support is much appreciated. 30th Patronal Holy Eucharist at 10.00am We hope to see you all again on Sunday 18th August for our afternoon tea/songs of July 2019 7th No service praise. Please look at the notices around the Holy Eucharist at Silverstone 10.00am village for details. 14th Morning Praise 10.00am 21st Holy Eucharist 11.00am Cheryl Evans 28th Patronal Holy Eucharist at Paulerspury 10.00am August 2019 4th No service Holy Eucharist at Silverstone 10.00am 11th Morning Praise 11.00am 18th Patronal Holy Eucharist at Whittlebury 10.00am Songs of Praise 5.00pm 25th Holy Eucharist 9.15am A concert by the Bradwell Silver Band will be held in St Mary’s on Saturday 29th June commencing at 7.30pm. Tickets available at the door. A Grand Summer Draw in support of the church will take place with the draw to be held during the band concert on Saturday 29th June. If you would like to sell tickets for this event, please contact The Whittlebury Magazine the churchwarden, Raymond Pearson on 01327 is produced quarterly and kindly printed free of 857236. charge by The Ferrari Owners’ Club. Afternoon teas will be served St Mary’s Church The next issue will be produced for distribution on Sunday 18th August commencing at 3.00pm by 1st September and it is requested that copy for followed by a service of Songs of Praise at inclusion is sent by 10th Ausgust at the latest to 5.00pm. [email protected] or [email protected] Your support of these events would be much Articles later than this date will not be included, appreciated. except in exceptional circumstances.

June2019copy.indd 1 27/05/2019 11:27 THE WHITTLEBURY June 2019 www.whittlebury.org.uk magazine

June2019copy.indd 2 27/05/2019 11:27 Whittlebury Reading Room LOTTERY

The winners of the April Draw were

1st J Small

2nd Virginia O’Dell

Editor 3rd N Wesley

Liz Jackson 4th Emma Kelly [email protected] Home: 858892 The next draw will be held on 21st June.

Brenda Stewart & Sharon Stimpson Lottery Promoters

Editor Roger Harrington [email protected]

Designer

Lesley Passey Front cover photograph of a Cruiser Butterfly by [email protected] Lesley Passey taken in Cairns Australia.

June2019copy.indd 3 27/05/2019 11:27 Support your local National Trust – CANONS ASHBY

will only go ahead in good weather due to grade conditions on the route. Please wear sturdy footwear and ask at reception on your way in. Not suitable for children under 12 years old. Normal admission prices apply.

Saturday 6th July

Sense and Sensibility performed by The Pantaloons

Elinor Dashwood has a lot of good Sense. Her sister Marianne Dashwood has an excess of Sensibility. Together they make a snappy title for Jane Austen’s classic novel of scandals, scoundrels and severely sprained ankles! This funny, fast-paced and faithful new adaptation from the critically acclaimed The wildflowers and grasses in the paddock The Pantaloons Theatre Company features are shooting up, and the gardeners are live music, audience interaction, romance and working hard to keep on top of everything heartbreak. Adult £15, Child £10, Family £40 outdoors, including pruning, mowing and (2 adults 2 children). Pre-booking essential. changing the bedding in the formal gardens. The bees and butterflies are getting busy all Check visitor opening hours, events and find over the site so the place seems full of life. out more about the work that’s going on to care for Canons Ashby on our website. www. Starting in June you can get access to a nationaltrust.org.uk/canons-ashby special area not normally seen by the public: the Stew Ponds. The Stew Ponds are a series of small medieval ponds which have recently been restored and have become a small wildlife haven away from all the people. See below and online for more details. Whittlebury Villager of the What’s on? YEAR

We have plenty of events and activities listed on our website. Here are just a couple of At the Annual Village Meeting on Tuesday highlights. 21st May 2019, Mrs. Cheryl Evans was voted villager of the year and was presented with Thursdays in June, July and September: the Whittlebury Cup by Mr. David Randall, chair of the Parish Council. This award was Guided visits to Priory Church and medieval in recognition for her work over a number of Stew Ponds - 2.00pm. years collecting door-to-door for the Royal Find out more about the medieval history of British Legion annual Poppy Appeal. the church and then to the recently restored medieval Stew Ponds; an area not accessible Cheryl and her husband Richard have to the public without a guide. An exclusive recently moved to and the village chance to see the beautiful area. The visit wishes them well.

June2019copy.indd 4 27/05/2019 11:27 Parish COUNCIL MATTERS

The next meetings of the Parish Council are on Buses 13 June and 11 July 2019. There will not be a The Parish Council has made a contribution to meeting in August. As usual, all meetings are held ABILITY Northants to provide a weekly bus service in the Reading Room starting at 7.30 pm. to Towcester and return on Wednesday mornings.

Users are required to register with ABILITY in the As previously advised, all agendas for the meetings first instance and then to book their journey. The and the subsequent minutes (when adopted) are contact details for ABILITY are 07799 522097 or available on the village website (www.whittlebury. email [email protected]. org.uk) and are displayed on the Parish Council

noticeboard at the Reading Room. These For the foreseeable future it is unlikely that there meetings are held in public, are open to all and will be any other bus services through the village there is a standard item on the agenda where and, therefore, the ABILITY service is the only one villagers are invited to raise issues. available. It will only be provided if it is used and so the message has to be - please USE IT or LOSE IT. If you are unable to attend a meeting, any issues of Play equipment concern may be raised with Linda Paice, the Parish

Clerk, email [email protected] or on 01327 At the meeting on 11 April 2019, the Parish Council 353622. As I have mentioned before, if you have a agreed to make an application to SNC for funding question or a concern, please ask and we shall do in respect of two new items of play equipment to our best to deal with it. replace the existing swing and slide on the playing field.

David Randall Chair of Whittlebury Parish Council

June2019copy.indd 5 27/05/2019 11:27 Whittlebury WHITTLER They jumped on the bandwagon but not the finished perhaps with a heavy bus shopping bag? The question has to be asked: “does Whittlebury And Whittler’s informants who really need a bus service?” This controversial attended the recent annual statement will be interpreted by some as heretical village meeting report that the given that there are one or two individual stories Good Neighbour Scheme is likely to come on of residents having to move away from the village stream shortly which should provide the facility because of a lack of public transport and of others for a lift to, for example, Silverstone to pick up a struggling to get to work or college especially if scheduled bus, Towcester for shopping or to a GP they have an early start. surgery appointment in Silverstone or Towcester. And this is not to denigrate the strength of public What were the intentions of those who signed feeling about the matter or the efforts of several the original petition? Did they genuinely feel in who raised a public petition some time ago and their heart of heart that a service was needed, which was signed by a substantial number of were they rebelling against the current general villagers – although, it has to be recognised that trend to reduce all sorts of rural services or did it failed to carry any weight when presented to they “just jump on the bandwagon” and sign out County Council. of kindness when asked? This is not meant to The saga of Whittlebury’s “now you see it, now sound disrespectful in the slightest but it has to be you don’t” bus service goes back several years admitted there is an obvious disconnect between culminating in Stagecoach Midlands withdrawing the number of petitioners and the number of bus the X88 service over 18 months ago citing the users. County Council’s removal of funding as the “Use it lose it” must be the village’s refrain for the reason. Several not-for-profit community bus rest of this year - but only time will tell. services operate in the county and currently Plans for a new Reading Room Whittlebury has a new service provided by Whittler was able to get to the Sunday drop-in ABILITY community transport although it is limited session in March at the Reading Room where the to Wednesday mornings and at the moment only plans for the new building were on display. And provides a round trip to Towcester and back, very impressive they were too – clearly a lot of hard although the organisers are apparently willing to work had been put in over a period of time by the look at additional routes and times – but only if team responsible for the project together with the there is the demand. architects. Refreshments were available and it was And that is the crucial point; with the Parish very commendable that a lot of effort had been Council paying £500 to aid the setting up of the made in an attempt to consult with the village. service which ABILITY has been running for a little Whittler took away a questionnaire which was over a month now, it appears that so far only two duly returned but the striking thing was the lack of or three villagers have used it each week. There villagers at the drop-in. Probably only six came in have already been exhortations from ABILITY while Whittler was there and talking with a member themselves and from the chair of the Parish of the project team a few weeks ago, it seems Council that if the service is to continue, it must only 50 odd questionnaires in total were returned. be used. Presumably, some people had visited the drop-ins But will villagers use it when many in Whittlebury and not completed a questionnaire, but the overall either have their own transport or the willingness impression was of a distinct lack of interest. of a neighbour or friend to provide a lift? Even The present Reading Room is pretty decrepit and with the best intentions, are we realistically going reaching the end of its natural life, and a brand new to register with ABILITY and then book ahead for building for the village sounds not only an attractive two hours in Towcester and be dependent on proposition but an increasing necessity - but what the bus to bring us back once our business is a pity that there seems to be, on the face of it,

June2019copy.indd 6 27/05/2019 11:27 a lack interest in the project and support for the The point about a unitary authority, Whittler team. understands, is that all the services will be under Northamptonshire Unitary Authorities one roof and the sole responsibility of that body, Whittler was advised politely by the Magazine but will that solve the severe financial problems that editors some months ago to steer away from Northamptonshire County Council faced until its political comment which is fair enough but, suffice scrapping last year? Wouldn’t it all work better if to say, has there every been a time when there the politics was taken out of it and administrators has been more division, frustration and anger ran the whole shebang? (Watch it - we told with world, European, national and local politics? you about political comments – Editors). Just Locally, it was announced recently that there would saying…………………….. be two unitary authorities in Northamptonshire, a West Northants and a North Northants authority but that neither would be operational until 1st April 2021. Until the next time…………………………

ABILITY (Northants) cic Community TRANSPORT

passes are accepted as well as cash fares and to register, telephone: - 07799 522097 The bus will pick up passengers from agreed locations in the village – usually from the bus stop on the Towcester Road just before Vicarage Close - and will allow a couple of hours in Towcester, dropping off at Aldi, After over 18 months with no public transport Tesco and Market Square, before returning to serving Whittlebury, the village now has a bus Whittlebury. service, albeit limited, that will take residents The first service ran on Wednesday 24th April to Towcester and return on Wednesday 2019 and to date only two or three people mornings. This is being provided by ABILITY have used it each Wednesday. The village is (Northants) cic – a “community interest grateful to Glynis Drinkwater and Dave Rihoy company” or social enterprise – and has who have put themselves forward as the local been facilitated by a start-up payment of co-ordinators but the overriding message £500 from Whittlebury Parish Council. is, if the service is to continue, Whittlebury It operates in a slightly different way to a villagers have simply got to use it. As Lynn normal bus service in that to use it, each and Nigel Hinch, who run the service, say in potential passenger will need to register in their publicity: – the first instance and then book their seat for Don’t miss out – register now – use it or their proposed journey. Concessionary bus lose it

June2019copy.indd 7 27/05/2019 11:27 Whittlebury ARCHIVES Some interesting facts about our village on the same side the road and was kept by towards the end of the Victorian era. a person by the name of Bennett, whose licence was withdrawn in about 1780 on The population varied between 400 and 500 account of his being involved with deer residents between 1871 and 1901 while stealing. the present day population is nearer 600. Whittlebury was self-sufficient, with a school, 2.“The Rose and Crown” - stood opposite pub, post office, butcher, baker, grocer, “The Horse & Groom” and was last kept by shoemaker, blacksmith, carpenter/coffin Humphrey Savage. This house had seats maker, wheelwright, tailor/dressmaker and placed outside the door for persons who carrier. wished to refresh themselves in the open air. It ceased to be a public house about 1800. In the 1891 census, the six stone cottages, now Nos. 13-23 High Street, were listed as 3.“The Fox and Hounds” - still remains Ridges Row and occupied by agricultural today, having been established beyond the workers. Were these cottages owned by memory of man. Kept in 1851 by William Fox, Henry Ridge, living at Lords Fields in the while John Tucker was the publican during 1881 census? the period 1861-1871. In 1881 his brother William was publican followed in 1891 by The area from the present Reading Room John Rawdon and William S. Miller in 1901. A (built in 1903) to No,1 Church Way is listed large ash tree stood opposite. as “The Square” which is believed to have included a row of houses (now demolished) 4.“The Horse and Groom” - was along the wall separating “Stag’s Head established about thirty years since and is House” from Vicarage Close. now 1851-1861 run by Henry Tucker (sic), publican and butcher (father of John Willian). There are still a couple of present day By 1871 he was just a butcher. The site, at residents whose parents, or grandparents present unknown, needs to be looked into. Does anyone have any information, please? and great grandparents are listed as being residents during this period. 5.“The Stag’s Head” - this was an Ale If you have any further information on the House, kept by Thomas Young (1841-1851- subject, I would love to hear from you. 1861) licensed, but not to be drunk on the premises. Thomas was also a baker. By 1891 Thomas Wacker was Beer House Another topic altogether Keeper. In 1901 Sidney Church was Keeper and Baker. He carried on until the 1950’s. It is It has been asserted that there were once recorded that, at the turn of the 20th Century, five public houses in the village, but with Sidney very kindly cooked the Sunday lunch what degree of truth, it would be difficult to in his ovens for those going to church - to be discover. In the 19th Century there appear to collected on their way home! have been three:

1.“The Shoulder of Mutton” - which stood a few yards north of the “Fox & Hounds” Denise Gale

June2019copy.indd 8 27/05/2019 11:27 The Whittlebury Education and Church CHARITY

This charity which is probably unknown to many A grant of £500 was made to a young resident in the village has funds available to offer grants of the village during the year to travel to Sri for educational purposes. The Charity’s Scheme, Lanka to assist in an area of the country badly January 1993, states that it is “in or towards affected by the 2004 tsunami. the promotion of education of persons who are resident in the Ecclesiastical Parish of St. Mary, Street, Whittlebury, NN12 8XH (tel: 01327 Whittlebury and who are in need of financial 857236). assistance in accordance with the principles of the Church of and in or towards the promotion of the religious and other charitable work of the Church of England within the said Parish.”

June2019copy.indd 9 27/05/2019 11:27 Did you KNOW?…. Whittlebury Youth CLUB

That the British Heart Foundation will collect all The youth club meets in the Reading Room on sorts of items from your home e.g. furniture, the first Friday of each month, from 7.30pm to TV’s, washing machines and small electrical 9pm for children aged 8 to 14 years. items. Donated items are sold in their shops to raise funds for life saving research. The service The entrance fee is £1.50 plus money for drink is free of charge. and tuck shop.

In order for the BHF to sell your items please In March we had 21 children in attendance. We ensure: made bath bombs which were a lovely treat for Mothers Day. • hat everything is in good condition, complete and works correctly A youth leader from Northampton Youth Club Association payed us a visit in April. The children • that each individual upholstered item has a fire had a great time playing team games. label attached We had 18 children enjoy an evening of Use their online form at www.bhf.org.uk/shop or Boxercise in May. They were put through their telephone 0808 250 0130. paces throughout the evening. We think they slept well that night! Did you know that by adding Gift Aid your donations are worth an extra 25% at no extra At our June meeting we are hoping for a light, cost to you. warm evening so that we are able to play outside.

In July we will be holding a water fight night and BBQ. This is open to families. Younger siblings must be accompanied by an adult.

There is no meeting in August.

Our meeting in September will be held on Saturday 7th. We are planning a trip to the Leisure Centre. More info to follow.

For more information please contact Dawn or Denise at [email protected]

Dawn Warwick and Denise Morson

June2019copy.indd 10 27/05/2019 11:27 Comment from “Whittlebury Whittler”

Social Media FRAUD What’s On at the VILLAGE Research undertaken has identified PUB? approximately 21 people a minute are defrauded due to oversharing of information on social media. Worryingly, 26% of people targeted by fraud due to oversharing didn’t realise they were JUNE targeted, 22% did nothing and 32% just Fri 7th: An Evening of acoustic music with Jack ignored it. Smith. You may have seen him on The survey also highlighted that 23% of the X-factor 2017. people used social media to show off Thurs 21st:Quiz Night - 8pm start. £1.00 per entry. about their holidays and 20% use it to let Max teams 6. £50 voucher to the connections know about life milestones such winning team. (Booking is advisable, to as buying a house. book call us on 01327 858048)

Risks to be aware of: JULY Different social media channels might require Tues 2nd: new summer menu launches. different levels of privacy. For example, Formula One Weekend: • Facebook settings should be on private as the way we use the platform is different to Outside Bar/ Late opening Twitter or Instagram where the platforms are hours/ BBQ / Live music and lots more. more suitable to being open. Fri 12th: Live music from The Red Onions. • Think twice about posts and photos you’re Sat 13th: Live Music from the one and only Craig sharing. Driving licences, passports, some Live. letters and other documents contain sensitive information that you need to prove your ID. Thurs 18th;Quiz Night - 8pm start. £1.00 per entry. Max teams 6. £50 voucher to the • When you enter your details to a website winning team. (Booking is advisable, to or app, always check terms and conditions, book call us on 01327 858048) and even then be careful what you’re agreeing to others knowing about you or your AUGUST account. Thurs 15th: Quiz Night - 8pm start. £1.00 • Posting and sharing photos of when per entry. Max teams 6. £50 voucher to you’re away on holiday or business could the winning team. (Booking is advisable, be signalling that your home is empty. to book call us on 01327 858048) Remember that today’s burglars are as social media savvy as you are. MOTO GP Weekend: Outside Bar/ Late opening hours/ BBQ/ • Turn off location services in app settings Live Music and much more…. on your and your kids’ mobile devices: that’s social media apps, cameras and any others Fri 23rd: Live music from Molly Makes Mistakes that might reveal location. This isn’t just about privacy, but also you and your family’s Sat 24th: Live Music from Rhythm Street personal safety. Did you know?…… We serve takeaway Fish and Chips every Tuesday Laura Weaver to Thursday evenings 6pm till 9pm.

June2019copy.indd 11 27/05/2019 11:27 The Welfare COMMITTEE The summer coffee morning will be held Everybody is welcome at the home of Audrey Littlewood, 7 The Crescent between 10am and noon on The annual summer outing this year will Wednesday 12th June. Apart from the be on Wednesday 7th August. We will friendly chatter there will be a bring and buy be visiting the beautiful Dorset seaside sale and a raffle, as well as tea, coffee and town of Swanage, situated on the cakes. south coast between Bournemouth and Weymouth. Invitations and times will be Hopefully it will be a nice day and you will be circulated nearer the time. Look out for able to enjoy a wander around the garden. details on the village notice boards.

All this for an entrance fee of only £1 which goes towards the annual outing and Christmas dinner. Sybil Boswell

June2019copy.indd 12 27/05/2019 11:27 The Forest CE Federation – Whittlebury C of E Primary

“Small enough to care, large enough to their Greek topic and Year 5/6 will visit Tiffield inspire” School for their Egyptian topic.

We continue to be a successful small, Sports day for the Federation is on Thursday village primary school and go from strength 27th June 2019 at Towcestrians Rugby Club to strength with our Federation. Early – to include a picnic – and the Federation’s indications for our September admissions annual end of year summer trip will be to are high with many people visiting and Woburn Safari Park on Friday 5th July 2019. looking for places for their children in our nurturing environment that produces On Thursday 18th July 2019, there will be excellent academic results. Our Ofsted the Leavers’ Show with a BBQ, from 5.30pm rating continues to be ‘good’ and as we to 7.00pm, the Year 6 Leavers’ Prom will be come towards the end of another successful held at Gayton Primary School on Monday academic year, we are looking forward to 22nd July 2019 and the school breaks up many exciting plans for the new 2019-20 for the summer holidays on Wednesday school year in September. 24th July 2019 returning on Wednesday 4th September 2019. Highlights of the past few months include two very successful residential trips that were held There will be a Holiday Club at Whittlebury in fantastic weather – Year 5/6 pupils stayed from Thursday 25th July to Friday 2nd August at Bawdsey Manor on the Suffolk coast for 2019 with all sorts of activities such as sport, four nights in March and Year 3 spent one particularly a FIFA football tournament, cake night at the Frontier Centre in Irthlingborough, making, a creativity competition and water Northants. fun, finishing with an end of club disco.

Lots of exciting events will be taking A reminder that there is BoxFit each Tuesday place in the second half of the summer evenings for adults and Thursday evenings term beginning with Bikeability – cycling for children at the school and that the current proficiency – for Year 5/6 on 4th June 2019 Year 4/5 children will have the opportunity with a new parents’ evening later the same to attend a Year 5/6 five day, four night day. Year 4 will be going on a three day residential trip in June 2020 on the Isle of Residential Bushcraft Adventure on 11th Wight staying at the Royal Pier Hotel in June 2019 at Boughton Woods, just north of Sandown and departing on 8th June 2020 – Kettering, and on Friday 14th June 2019, the more details later. school’s annual fete takes place from 3.30pm to 5.30pm.

Federation Day is on Thursday 20th June 2019 when Year 1/2 will be at Whittlebury for activities to do with their Fire of London topic, Year 3/4 will go to Stoke Bruerne for Vikki Napier, Admin. Assistant

June2019copy.indd 13 27/05/2019 11:27 Neighbourhood WATCH If you witness suspicious activity If an alarm is going off and you have witnessed suspicious activity around the property, call the Please do read this as it applies police on the non-emergency 101 number. to everyone In an emergency If you think a crime is in progress and the Scam telephone calls offenders may still be at the scene, please call A resident received a call claiming to be from 999 immediately. DO NOT put yourself at risk. It their bank and they even had details of their should be a judgement call for you whether you account number and sort code. The caller approach the property, depending on the time of claimed that the bank account had been day, whether you are alone etc. Often it can be a hacked and a large amount of money moved, false alarm (a spider, cat etc) but it has been the which of course is very worrying and sounds case in the village where a burglary was taking as if the caller is genuinely trying to help.Do not place which triggered the alarm. In that instance engage with such calls, whether it is the bank, do not approach the burglars but try to make HMRC, BT or any other service provider. a note of anything which may help the police, Terminate the call and if you are worried, such as a numberplate and person or vehicle telephone the bank yourself BUT either use description. a different telephone such as a mobile or a Keyholders neighbour’s telephone as the original caller As a result of nuisance alarms, it has recently could simply not hang up, leaving the line open been added to British law, under the Clean and then pretend to be the bank. Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 / Part 7 that anyone leaving their home with a Consider installing a telephone call blocker burglar alarm set should have a nominated key which will allow you to screen all calls before holder who is able to enter the property and turn having to speak to the caller. Often sales callers off the alarm if needed. Your keyholder should and scammers are put off by the recorded live close to your home and get to the property message and will not progress further. All safe within 20 minutes. They should have access to numbers can either be added at the beginning your property and know how to switch off the or can be easily accepted once the caller has alarm if it is set off accidentally. listened to your message and continued to hold whilst you check they are safe. They are not To register a keyholder you should contact your expensive and are part of a normal telephone local council who will have a form that you can and answer phone system. complete with the details of your property and your keyholder. These will only be used in the An alarm is going off - what should I do? event that your alarm sounds accidentally. Please do speak to your neighbours about your Due to the large amount of calls made to the arrangements for your alarm as it is distressing if police about house or business alarms that have one goes off and nothing can be done to check been activated accidentally or by mistake, they the house or turn it off. ask that in the first instance, wherever possible, you try to contact the homeowner or business Tina Morris to let them know their alarm is going off. Neighbourhood Watch Co-ordinator.

June2019copy.indd 14 27/05/2019 11:27 The new Reading Room UPDATE

The draft plans for the new Reading Room, we would be pleased to receive your views as soon together with background and supporting as possible - please complete the questionnaire documentation, were displayed in the Reading and put it in the post-box at the Reading Room. Room at drop-in meetings that were held on 21 Alternatively, villagers will find the questionnaire on March, 22 March (during the HUG Café) and 24 the website from where it can be downloaded and March 2019 as well as being uploaded to the printed off – and again we should be grateful if any village website where they remain. completed questionnaires could be placed in the post-box. The more responses we receive, the At the drop-in meetings, questionnaires were better our ability to engage with potential funding handed out allowing villagers to provide their sources in due course. Your support is much views on the plans – and the questionnaire was appreciated. also placed on the website. The meetings were advertised in the March edition of the Whittlebury More activities (including community events) and Magazine, by a household leaflet drop and on the more modern facilities would encourage villagers website – and as a result, all villagers have had an to use the Reading Room more and the main opportunity to look at the draft plans and to provide activities villagers would like to see are lectures / their feedback. meetings / social events, family parties and keep fit / dance. As regards the existing facilities, villagers About 80 villagers attended the drop-in meetings said they liked the sense of community and the and to date 53 completed questionnaires have central location, but many considered they were been received. A small minority have objected decrepit, old and outdated. to the plans arguing that the renovation of the Reading Room and the extension to the playing From the responses received a number of issues field are not needed, but over 80% of those were raised by villagers. Each of these has been responding rated the draft plans highly (rating 4 or considered by the Reading Room and Playing Field 5 on the questionnaire) with 84% agreeing that the Management Committee and, where appropriate, draft plans provided what was wanted. will be discussed with the architects. In the original 2012 consultation exercise which In order to implement these plans (with any many villagers will recall, responses were received amendments) planning permission will be required from over 40% of households with a clear majority from the SNC planners for the new building and for in favour of the complete renovation of the the change of use (from agricultural to playing field) Reading Room. The 53 responses in the current in respect of the leased land. As you know, this is consultation exercise represent about 10% of the a public process and, as a result, villagers will have electorate and about 20% of households. Whilst further opportunities to express their views – please we appreciate that villagers have busy lives, it look out for further announcements in due course. would be good to receive responses from more villagers if possible. David Randall So, if you collected a questionnaire from one of the Chair of the Reading Room and Playing Field drop-in meetings and have not yet handed it back, Management Committee

June2019copy.indd 15 27/05/2019 11:27 Whittlebury Good Neighbour SCHEME

who have remained engaged and interested despite it taking 18 months or more to reach this stage.

As has been mentioned before, the Scheme will run initially only on weekday mornings, Monday to Friday, 0900 to 1200 midday, and the process is that a resident needing help will ring –

07494 429570 At the recent Annual Village Meeting on Tuesday 21st May 2019, the Whittlebury Good Neighbour Scheme (WGNS) took a major step forward with a and speak to the duty coordinator who will then “soft launch”. This slightly confusing term means allocate a volunteer to assist with the requested that while it was confirmed at the meeting that task but at a time to be agreed between the nearly all the administrative requirements were resident and the volunteer and not just on a in place to have the Scheme up and running, it weekday morning. was likely to be mid-June before it was actually operational – the “hard launch”. The services that will be available at the start will be transport – for shopping, collecting prescriptions Grateful thanks are due to the Scheme’s secretary, or pensions - befriending, minor but necessary Glynis Drinkwater, who has done an immense household repairs, help with pets and garden amount of invaluable work and the 28 volunteers tidying.

Recreation Society UPDATE

By the time you read this the Whittlebury Ball 2019 The members of the Recreation Society Committee will have taken place. I am sure that, thanks to the have undertaken research into new play efforts of Faye Johnson, Rebecca Chapman and equipment, and this informed the recent decision Tony Peace, it will have been a great success and of the Parish Council to seek funding for some new over 100 people will have had a great evening. equipment to replace the existing swing and slide on the playing field. Thanks to everyone who has supported this event by buying tickets and to the organisations who From the recent consultation exercise on the plans have supported it through their sponsorship; these for the Reading Room, the responses indicated an include Whittlebury Hall & Park, , interest from villagers in having more social events the Fox & Hounds, Quercus Products, Josh Jenner, in the Reading Room. As we cannot continue to AP Garden Machines and Towcester Tyres. expect the same people to devise and organise these events, I should be pleased to hear from The Film Night season was completed in March anyone with a good idea who is willing to make a and many thanks to Chris Bent for organising the small contribution in this way to life in the village. films. We look forward to the start of the 2019-20 season in October. David Randall

June2019copy.indd 16 27/05/2019 11:27