Burrator BEACON Winter 2010 A snowy Sheepstor, January 2010 photo: Bev Mears 2 Burrator Beacon Editorial Jenny Sharp Welcome to the Winter Edition of the Beacon. As I write this, it is cold but sunny afternoon and the frost is still there where the sun has not reached it. Snow is forecast much to the excitement of the children but not the grownups who have to try and get on with important things like getting to work and doing the shopping! There is some information about driving in winter conditions on page 13. Yes it is common sense but it is always worth checking what you have in your car – did you eat that chocolate that was there for emergencies? Whatever the weather, winter is here and that means the traditional Carol Concerts and Services in our Churches (page 15), Pantomime time (oh yes it is on page 7) and winter walks (page 11). Details of all events over the next few months can be found throughout this edition, keep the Dates for your Calendar on page 23 as a handy reminder. Also in this edition you will find information about the proposed Conservation area for Walkhampton (page 6) and details of the emerging Burrator Parish Plan (page 12). This is your chance to inform those who might be able to do something about things – please take time to think about what is good about where we live and things that you grumble about. May I take this opportunity to wish you all a happy and peaceful Christmas and a good start to 2011. SCB Building and Landscaping Services Bathroom Fitting Kitchen Fitting Patio Construction Timber Decking Fencing Renovation Work Foundations and Ground Work Quality and Reliability from a Local Company Scott Bowden – Calisham Farm Tel: 01822 852377 Mob: 07909 814996 Morris Bros. (Tavistock) Ltd Independent Funeral Directors est. 1870. Five generations of care in the Community. Elaine Morris & son, Simon Luke 24 hour service, private Chapel of Rest Golden Charter pre-paid funeral plan for your peace of mind. The Old Bedford Foundry, Lakeside, Tavistock PL19 0AZ 01822 612023 www.morrisbros.co.uk Burrator Beacon 3 Clerk’s Report Lucie A Luke – Parish Clerk Please read the Briefing Note from DNPA in this Edition to get an update on the position of Yennadon Quarry, Dousland. Please do not hesitate to contact Dan Janota on 01626 832093, Cllr John Howells 01822 853865 or the Clerk Lucie Luke on 01822 614278 with any queries. Councillor Mike Tozer has regrettably tendered his resignation from the Parish Council. We thank Mike for his contribution to the Parish Council in particular his assistance with speeding concerns on the B3212 at Dousland. As a result of this, Devon County Council have acknowledged that speeding is an issue on this road and advise us "We have agreed with the Police that some enforcement action should be undertaken by the Safety Camera Partnership" and that "the site will be approved in the near future and once this is done, enforcement action can be undertaken". We welcome Councillor David Wright, who will sit on the Walkhampton Ward for the Parish Council. Dartmoor National Park Authority recently held a presentation afternoon for their Proposed Conservation Area for Walkhampton and at the time of this report, are waiting for an update from them. The Parish Council will then consider what the next step could be; do the local residents want a Conservation Area? if so, what boundaries should be agreed? Devon County Council have been liaising with land owners and their representatives regarding the long awaited proposed footpath on the B3212 from Dousland to Woodman’s Corner, to gain their current position. However, it appears that lack of funding will likely delay this further. With regard to cuts to public services, the Parish Council have been advised that Devon County Council will not be providing additional grit bins to those existing throughout the Parish. However, Councillor Philip Sanders (County Councillor), is liaising with Highways to use his locality budget to fund some essential grit bins. We have provided a list of required locations throughout the Parish and wait eagerly to see if any bins will appear before the cold weather sets in again.. The Parish Council wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!! Landscaping – Traditional Stone Walling J. T. P Landscapes Tree Surgery – Traditional Hedge-Laying Paving – Fencing James Pattison- Vegetation Clearance Tel: 01822 870256 Mob: 07980 901860 Mowing – Strimming www.jtplandscaping.co.uk Public Liability Insured 4 Burrator Beacon Meavy C of E Primary School Sue Blair - headteacher The new term has been a busy one and the school’s Harvest Festival at St Peter’s Church Meavy was enjoyed by all. The church was beautifully decorated and the service was well attended. Many parents were very appreciative of the service. The children performed most enthusiastically and £69 was raised to give to ‘Seeds for Africa’ Our year 6 pupils enjoyed their participation in the Junior Lifeskills event and, as usual learned much from it. Many of us know what we should do in an emergency, in theory, but how many of us remember that and are able to carry it out in practice? A very productive day. Class HLRA had a super educational visit to Lydford as part of their Saxon work. What a rich experience for the children and the resulting follow up work in school has been very rewarding and exciting. Our Year 2 children visited Morwellham Quay as part of their Victorian studies and have been asking very thought-provoking questions about the lives of children in the Victorian era. Our Sports teams are once again participating in tournaments with the other local schools and we were very pleased to win the netball tournament for the fourth year running. We are continuing as a school to collaborate closely on joint curricular projects with Princetown, Horrabridge and Lady Modiford’s schools. We held once again a Remembrance Day service in the church and we gathered around the memorial to pay our respects. I feel it is vital that children experience this important ceremony and they always respond very well to the solemnity and dignity of the occasion. We also, as usual, collected and contributed to the poppy appeal. We had fun collecting for the Children in Need Charity and various people helped in various ways according to their strengths. Our School Council have been busy looking for ways that we can improve our school grounds and other resources we have in school. As Christmas approaches we are once again very busy rehearsing for Christmas productions, entertainment for our senior citizens and the School Carol service. The latter is also attended by the villagers who are invited to come back to school afterwards to share Mince pies and mulled wine with us. The children and staff are also looking forward to the very special Christmas dinner cooked by Mrs Brown and the Christmas fair organised by our very committed PTFA (Parents, Teachers and Friends Association). WALKHAMPTON DRAINAGE COMPANY FOR ALL ASPECTS OF HIGH PRESSURE DRAIN CLEARING AND ROOT CUTTING NO DIG SOLUTIONS AND DRAINAGE REPAIRS, CCTV SURVEYS, HIGH PRESSURE CLEANING OF HOUSES, DRIVES, CONSERVATORIES AND PATIOS TANK LOCATING AND DRAIN DETECTION SERVICE GRAFFITI AND CHEWING GUM REMOVAL 15 Church View, Walkhampton, Nr Yelverton, PL20 6JS Keith Bowen 01822 855451 or 07547 421704 Burrator Beacon 5 The Bells of Saint Leonard's Tim MacDonald – St Leonard’s Church, Sheepstor There have probably been bells in the tower of Saint Leonard's Church at Sheepstor since it was built in around 1450. They have certainly been there for 450 years. In the church records for 1558, the year the first Queen Elizabeth came to the throne, there is an inventory which lists four bells in the tower. In 1769, the year when Richard Arkwright built the first cotton spinning frame, the four were replaced by five new bells. They were cast, almost certainly on site, by the Cornish Pennington family, who in the same year replaced the bells at Walkhampton and Shaugh Prior. The tenor bell carries the name of the incumbent vicar and the fifth that of the churchwarden of that year. In 1904 the existing five bells were rehung in a new frame made by Harry Stokes, leaving space for a sixth bell in the frame. This, the treble, was cast in London by Mears & Stainbank and was added to the frame in 1906. In 2000 the Parochial Church Council had the bells surveyed and were advised that the wooden headstocks, from which the bells hang in the bell frame, were suffering from age and worm attack and the bearings and other fittings needed replacing. Never ones to rush, the people of Sheepstor discussed the problem for 9 years and finally decided that repair was necessary. They raised £25000 in a year thanks to the generosity of many people and organisations including our parish council (but not West Devon Borough Council, who apparently consider bell ringing to be a religious activity). In the last week of September the bells were lowered by a bellhanger from Nicholson's of Bridport, with considerable effort and help from a number of local assistants. The largest bell, the tenor, went out through the church door touching the granite door frame on both sides. Having been up to Bridport and on to the Whitechapel Bell Foundry for tuning, they are now back in the bell works at Bridport. The work will hopefully be complete in time for the bells to return to the church tower and ring out for Christmas.