Hartbeat

Autumn 2015

Hartbeat is published twice each year by Hartwell Parish Council. Whilst every effort is made to ensure that the information in it is accurate, the Publishers accept no responsibility for any errors or omissions. All content must be attributable to an author: non- attributable material will not be published. Tony Barker is guest editor for this edition. He can be contacted by email at [email protected]. The next edition will be produced towards the end of March 2016.

Advertising in Hartbeat helps keep your business in people’s minds. Current rates are: Back cover (in colour), £40.00; Full page inside, £30.00; Half page, £17.50; Quarter page, £12.50. There’s a 10% discount for repeat advertisers. Send your copy electronically to: [email protected] or provide hard copy to the Parish Clerk at 1 Hazel Close, Hartwell. Payment is required when you submit your advert either by BACS transfer directly to the Hartwell Parish Council bank account (details will be provided when you submit your advert) or by cheque to the Parish Clerk.

On the cover: Nigel Huckle (on the left) receives the Bisdee Challenge Cup from Terry Boss at the Hartwell Homes and Gardens Produce Show held at the Community Centre on Sunday 13 September. Full report on pages 31 to 33.

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In this issue:

Page Hartwell Parish Council: who and when 4 Editorial 5 Arrangements for Remembrance Sunday 6 Men of Hartwell, Angela Malin writes 7 Our District Councillor, John Budden writes 8 Our County Councillor, Michael Clarke writes 9-10 Our MP, Andrea Leadsom writes 11-13 St John the Baptist Church 14-15 Office of Faith-based and Community Initiatives 16 PCSO Tara Cooksammy writes 17-19 Village Watch 19-22 Appeal for exhibition of Wedding Dresses 22 Parks Medical Practice 23-24 Library Services 25-28 Area Door-to-Door (TADD) appeal 29-30 Hartwell Homes and Gardens Show 31-33 Barbershop singers needed 33 Hartwell Primary Church of School 34-35 Centre fold contacts list 36-37 Community Centre news 38-42

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Pre-school group 43-45 Beavers, Cubs and Scouts 46-47 Youth Club 48 Women’s Institute 49 Tuesday Circle 50 Pocket Park 51-53 Allotments 54 The Hartwell Club 55-56 Health Walks 57 Church to church walk 58-60 Sulos 61 Local History Society news 62-63 Advertisers’ section 64 onwards

This is your magazine and we welcome feedback about the presentation, balance and coverage of topics in it. In particular, if there are issues that you feel have been missed out, we’d like to know about them so they can be included in the future. You might even be invited to write a piece! Any comments can be addressed to the Guest Editor at [email protected] or to the Chairman of the Parish Council, Simon Smith at [email protected].

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Hartwell Parish Council

Parish Clerk: Sarah Fuller 1 Hazel Close, Hartwell, NN7 2LA Email: [email protected] Tel: 07947 723200 Website: www.hartwellvillage.org.uk

The Council is:  all are area code 01604 Simon Smith (Chairman) 864968 Deborah Barker (Vice-Chairman) 861295 John Budden 862015 Stephen Dawson 863802 Graham Harris 863439 David Heron 863622 George Jones 864100 Scott Turner 864771 Emma Webster 864538

The Council meets on the second Thursday of each month except for August. Meetings are held in the Lounge at Hartwell Community Centre, School Lane and start at 7.30 pm. All meetings are open to the public and include a public participation session at 7.35 pm. The agenda and minutes for each meeting are posted on the village noticeboards.

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Hartwell Parish Council

Welcome to another edition of Hartbeat, a great source of information about all the wonderful things going on in the village of Hartwell!

First of all, I must thank our staff for their continuing hard work keeping the village clean and tidy: Mr Jaquest (Cemetery), Mr Wain (Litter picking) and Sarah our Clerk. Also a big thank you our guest editor Tony Barker.

The Parish council is responsible for a number of services, including lighting, verge grass cutting, youth club, dog bins, bus shelters, cemetery and keeping the village free from litter. This year replaced the old noticeboards and next year we have a number of the 140 street lamps that need replacing!

We continue to support local groups with grants, supporting them to thrive, and it’s great to see so many things going on in the village. Have good read of Hartbeat and find out more!

You are all welcome to come along to any meeting and see what’s going on and have your say at the start of the meeting during the Public section. We’re a friendly bunch of volunteers, elected by you to represent you, so please come along and help us keep our village a great place to live!

Simon - Chairman

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Remembrance Sunday

Sunday 8 November at 10.55 am at the War Memorial followed by a service at St John the Baptist church

Please note that Forest Road will be closed to traffic between School Lane and Church Close from 10.55 am until 11.10 am whilst the service takes place

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Men of Hartwell - have you bought your copy?

This book commemorates the men whose names appear on the Hartwell War Memorials and includes the other men known to have served. Over 60 pages of information including photographs of many of the men. The book costs £6 and can be obtained from: Angela Malin, 17 Swyncombe Green, Hartwell (862017) or Richard Wain, 3 Hillside, Hartwell. All profits will go to St John the Baptist Church Fabric Fund.

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John Budden, District Councillor for Salcey Ward writes: When Martin Wilson (my predecessor) asked me if I would consider taking over as District Councillor, I thought long and hard about it. Ashton and Hartwell (Salcey Ward) are both good places to live, work and bring up children, so the question asked was can I maintain the standard or even improve it? Ashton and Hartwell have effective Parish Councils and the more I learn about Parishes throughout the your Parish Councils are shown to be very effective. We do not owe money to suppliers or traders and our meetings are well attended. South Northants Council (SNC) likewise has an excellent reputation. Some facts you may not be aware of – it has the lowest rate of unemployment in the UK, it collects 99.1% of all Council Tax when it is due, SNC is in the top10 Councils for recycling. Your Council Tax has remained static since 2010 (except for Government methods of operation). South Northants was voted among the top five best places in the UK. As everyone is aware, all government bodies must reduce costs over the next four years. SNC has a budget of approximately £10 million. They are reducing costs by working jointly with other Councils; saving money by sharing costs and personnel. The new Council Offices in Towcester called The Forum is a cost effective building which is intended to be paper free, ie. everything is completed on a computer. The Councillors don’t even have written minutes or agenda; it is all on a tablet – I am of an age when you swallowed tablets but not any more! If anyone has any matters they would like to discuss please contact me either by email at: [email protected] or phone on: 01604 862015.

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Michael Clarke, our County Councillor, writes:

Speed of communication plays an increasingly important part in our lives. County Council has teamed up with BT to deliver Superfast Broadband to over 95% of the County’s Broadband users by 2017. This ambitious project is progressing well and one of my priorities as Hartwell’s County Councillor is to ensure that our parishes are offered the Superfast Broadband service as early as possible. This, I am pleased to report, has been delivered to Hartwell residents and I think those users who have taken advantage of it will have noticed an appreciable improvement in the speed of doing things online. Highways maintenance is also very important to us. Due to underinvestment over several decades and some record cold and wet winters over the past few years, the challenge is formidable. But the highways budget is one which I am determined to protect even in difficult budgetary times. We should not lose sight of the fact that we all need to use the roads, whether we travel by car, bus or bicycle. Highways works are ongoing in resurfacing and patching the road network. However, the work is like painting the Forth Bridge – for every three potholes that are dealt with, another two appear in other places. We have improved the quality of the work done in line with the Highways Maintenance Initiative of getting things right first time and delivering an improved standard of work, which is more durable. However, due to the significant backlog of work, we have to ask for people’s patience. Problems that are reported on the County Council’s “Street Doctor” web site get inspected and logged. It takes time to get everything done.

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The role of the County’s libraries is changing. The libraries have evolved into local hubs to deliver a raft of services. Internet services and advice on things like business start-ups now complement the more traditional services of lending books, music and films. So despite the financial pressures and constraints placed upon us, we are working harder than ever to maintain and improve front line services. I aim to attend all the Hartwell Parish Council meetings to deliver a report on what is happening at the County Council. However, if you have any comments or questions and wish to contact me, my email address is: [email protected] NCC Cllr. Michael Clarke

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Andrea Leadsom

Member of Parliament for

It is a pleasure to once again be asked to contribute to Hartbeat, - so much has happened since my last update that it’s difficult to know where to begin.

I was delighted to be re-elected as your Member of Parliament in the General Election in May, and look forward to continuing to help constituents with their particular issues, to support local businesses and charities and of course to try and show our young people the importance of the democratic process!

One issue that has been crucially important to Hartwell has been the threat of wind farm developments, which I have supported residents across South Northamptonshire in fighting wherever they have been unwanted by local communities. During the election campaign, one of the key pledges I gave on the doorstep was to work to scrap the subsidy for new wind farm developments, and so I was delighted when the Prime Minister invited me to take the role of Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change in the post- election reshuffle. Among the first things we did in the department was to deliver on that pledge; the subsidy which has fuelled the spread of wind turbines, the Renewables Obligation, will now be closed in April 2016, a year earlier than originally planned but importantly, local communities will have the final say on whether or not they want a wind farm. Wind energy has a strong role to play in our energy mix, but not at the expense of local opinion.

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I have set out my personal priorities in my new Ministerial role, which is to find the balance between reducing our carbon emissions while keeping the lights on at the lowest cost to the bill payer. It will be a challenging brief and I’m looking forward to making progress on moving the UK to a low carbon economy.

Back in South Northamptonshire, I have now opened my new constituency office, the details of which can be found below. I am always keen to offer the best possible service to constituents, and so an office right on the high street in Towcester will enable me and my team to support you even better. This office will be the point of contact for you if you with a problem I can look into, a policy question you would like to raise, or a surgery booking you want to make. Hilary Edwards will be the new office manager there and she will be delighted to respond to your calls during the week while I'm in Parliament.

I’m very proud of the successes across the constituency and in Parliament that I have been part of in my first term as your MP, which you can read all about on my blog or my regular newsletters. Looking ahead to the next five years, I have put together my ‘Manifesto for South Northamptonshire’ – a list of thirteen campaigns, published on my website, which were raised as priorities for local communities. These range from broadband provision and action on potholes to improving sport and leisure facilities for our young people. This is not an exhaustive list and I intend to add campaigns to it, hopefully completing others as I do! MPs have no official power on most of these issues, but I will do my best to deliver the results you want.

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I am first and foremost here to serve you, and so if you have ideas for campaigns you would like me to take up or if there is any other way I can help, please do get in touch. I will be starting my local ‘action days’ again in 2016, and so I look forward to seeing you out and about or on the doorstep!

With best wishes,

Andrea

Constituency Office:

Office of Andrea Leadsom MP 4a Victoria House 138 Watling Street East Towcester Northamptonshire NN12 6BT

Tel: 01327 353124 e-mail: [email protected]

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St. John the Baptist, Hartwell

St John the Baptist church is part of the Salcey Benefice, the other churches being Ashton, , Courteenhall and Roade Service patterns for a month are as follows: 1st Sunday All Age Service 10.30am. 2nd Sunday Morning Praise 10.00am. 3rd Sunday Holy Communion 9.15am. 4th Sunday Morning Praise 10.00am. 5th Sunday this will be a benefice service at one of the five parish churches in the Benefice. Special Services coming up 4th October 10.30 am Harvest All Age Service, the church will be decorated for this service. 20th December 6 pm Carols by Candlelight Full details of our services can be found on our notice board, in SHARE or on the web site http://www.achurchnearyou.com/hartwell-st-john/ . If you are not a subscriber, new subscriptions to SHARE can be obtained from Alvin Barby, 2 Hartwell Road, Roade, (863470). The Parochial Church Council (PCC) is embarking on a project to make repairs to the outside stonework of the church as required

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under our Quinquennial inspection. It is hoped that this project will be under way by the time of this issue of Hartbeat is delivered. If you have any concerns please contact the churchwardens, details on the contact pages. We would welcome any fresh ideas that you may have to help us fundraise, or if you would just like to make a donation, for the upkeep of our Grade II listed church in the heart of our village. Please contact either of the churchwardens, you can find the details in the contact pages. Future Dates 5th December Christmas Fayre 2.00 to 4.00 in church.

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Adam Simmonds, Northamptonshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner writes: “One of my achievements whilst working as the Police and Crime Commissioner for Northamptonshire is the creation of the UK’s only Office for Faith Based and Community Initiatives (OFBCI). Established in January 2014, the aim of the OFBCI is to help Northamptonshire become the safest county in England, by helping faith based and community organisations to:

 Champion Change by becoming more effective at preventing and reducing crime, and increasing community safety.  Become Change Makers by starting innovative initiatives that positively change people and communities.  Evidence Change by measuring the positive impact they are making to people’s lives and their communities.”

If you would like to learn more about the work of the Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives across Northamptonshire, please visit the website at www.ofbci.com, or you can follow us on Twitter using the handle @HelenOfbci.

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South Northants Towcester Safer Community Team Ward Update September 2015

Our Police Community Support Officer (PCSO), Tara Cooksammy, pictured left, has provided an incident update which covers the villages in our area including Alderton, Ashton, , Courteenhall, , Hackleton, Hartwell, Heathencote, Horton, Little Houghton, , Piddington, Preston Deanery, Pury End, Quinton, Roade, Shutlanger, and Yardley Gobion. In it she lists 23 ‘main crimes’ which occurred in August. These range from burglaries in buildings, of which there were 10, and the resultant theft of items, to theft, largely from motor vehicles. There was just one ‘crime against the person’, being an assault with injury, committed in Roade. None of the ‘main crimes’ were committed in Hartwell. She also gives details of 12 Anti-social Behaviour incidents and notes: “I do have quite a few calls which come straight through to me and will not be recorded anywhere but I will always investigate and update the caller”. She asks: “If you want an incident recorded can I please ask that you ring 101 to get an incident number/crime number.” Currently, there is a scheme in Northamptonshire to recruit more Special Constables and a target has been set to “more than treble their number to 900 by May 2106”. A new category has been added called Parish Special Constable who will work with regular police officers, parish councils and community groups to make sure that issues that are important to the local community are resolved. They patrol the area in uniform, speaking to people, providing reassurance and discouraging crime and anti-social 17 behaviour. Sarah Ross is the project co-ordinator for the Specials Campaign. If you would like to explore this way of “Making a difference where you live and becoming a special constable with the ” she can be contacted by email at [email protected]. Email: [email protected]. We are also looking for Police Support Volunteers, for more information visit: www.northants.police.uk Police Station front counter services Following the recruitment of a new enquiry desk officer, Towcester station front counter is again open on Monday, Wednesday and Friday between 10 am and 2 pm. Alternatively, the front counter at the Guildhall, is open between 10 am and 4 pm, Monday to Saturday. All front-counters are closed on bank and public holidays. People will still be able to contact police on the non-emergency telephone number 101 or report a non-urgent incident online at www.northants.police.uk, where they can also find a range of advice and information. TIP OF THE MONTH: Awareness of the dangers of Nitrous Oxide or ‘Laughing Gas’. Police are asking young people and parents to be aware of the dangers of nitrous oxide after a number of discarded canisters have been found at various locations in South Northants. Nitrous Oxide, which is often called laughing gas, can be very dangerous when inhaled. It can cause oxygen starvation to the brain, leading to premature death, and the risk increases if it is taken with alcohol and when it is taken in a confined space. Nitrous Oxide is not illegal to possess in the UK, however it is illegal to sell it to anyone under the age of 18 if the seller thinks it is going to be illicitly used. Other common street names that parents or guardians should be aware of are ‘whippets’, ‘hippie crack’ or ‘chargers’. 18

More information on all types of drugs, legal highs and their effects can be found at www.talktofrank.com Telephone: 101 [email protected] www.northants.police.uk In an emergency, call 999

Village Watch

Village Watch is about people working together to make the community a safer and friendlier place to live and work. The aim of Village Watch is to help people protect themselves and their properties, reduce the fear of crime and improve the local environment. Sharing Village Watch Information It is very important in the fight against crime to be able to inform residents of any criminal activities in the area as soon as possible. To enable Village Watch to spread the word efficiently, we are asking residents to contact Judy with their email details (or phone number if you don't have email) so that she can pass this on to your street contact. This will enable us to ensure you receive any relevant information as speedily as possible. These details will not be used for any other purpose than Village Watch. Thank you. Village Watch Co-ordinator - Judy Webster : 01604 862809. Mobile: 07801 345232. email: [email protected] 19

Keeping Safe Online Beware of free trials for unapproved or misleading pharmaceuticals or supplements.

The scam usually involves a ‘pop up’ on your computer or a text message advertising a free 14-day trial. In signing up to this trial you are asked for your credit or debit card details and after the 14 days have elapsed, recurring payments are taken. In most cases, victims are finding it extremely difficult to cancel the subscription and the products are either not delivered or are inferior. Common pharmaceuticals or supplements being advertised are teeth whitening products, food supplements and slimming tablets. Beware of any emails and letters that say you have won a lottery A lottery scam takes place when criminals pretend that you have won a prize, often a lottery. The people most likely to fall victim to this tend to be over the age of 60 (although younger people do fall victim too) – but we know that it is often close family members of victims who spot the tell-tale signs of the fraud. Criminals will normally get in touch by letter or email and will try to engage you into dialogue with them. Once they have convinced you that they are “genuine”, they will ask for a fee to be paid to release your winnings. This fee could be to pay taxes or duty, or for a solicitor, banker or judge to authorise the transaction. NO GENUINE LOTTERY WILL EVER ASK FOR ANY SORT OF FEE TO BE PAID. Often this first fee will be small, but once they know you are willing to pay it they will ask for more and more money, with ever- changing excuses as to why they need it. Victims can end up losing tens of thousands of pounds over the course of months or even years.

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Use strong passwords on line Make sure passwords are memorable so that you don’t have to write them down. Make sure they are unique. • Th!nk about how you could change the letters in your normal passwords to make them more difficult to guess! • Use long, non-dictionary words and use different ones for each of your personal accounts and online banking. Make sure you change them regularly. • Make sure passwords are not stored on devices that have shared access by other people, for example in internet cafes and when using other public Wi-Fi. Elderly and vulnerable people in Northamptonshire are being warned about a phone scam which involves con artists pretending to be police officers and tricking residents into giving away their bank details. During the scam, the offender calls the residents claiming to be either a police officer investigating a fraud on their bank account, a fraud investigator from a bank or a bank official. They then ask the caller for account information, including their card numbers, security number and pin number. The victim then calls police, but does not realise the conman has not hung up so goes straight through to them again. In some cases another conman comes on the line and pretends to be working in the police control room and states that they can verify the officer’s details. In some of the cases, the criminals have sent couriers immediately to the victim’s property to pick up their cards which are then used fraudulently. Another ploy used by the criminals is to persuade the victims to make an online transfer of cash. 21

In two other incidents the caller claimed they had the victim’s grandchildren in custody because they had been caught using their bank card. The police have pointed out that banks will never ask for your PIN or bank card and will never suggest that you hand your card to a courier. Police are reminding people that, under no circumstances, should they give their bank details to anyone who has phoned them, no matter who they claim to be. In no circumstances will police officers call you and ask for your bank details. The police never use couriers to collect evidence from victims of crime.

Do you still have your wedding dress? asks Susan Cross We are on the search for wedding dresses for an exhibition in the church at Hartwell at the beginning of September 2016; this is to coincide with Heritage weekend. If you do have your wedding dress (and perhaps a photograph of you in it), and would loan it to us for the weekend, we would be very grateful. We know it seems a long time away but in order to organise the staging we will need to know how many dresses we are exhibiting. Please contact Susan Cross or Denise Brack as soon as possible if you can help us out, we promise that we will look after your dresses very carefully.

[email protected] Tel: 01604 863653 [email protected] Tel: 01604 862531

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The Parks Medical Practice at Roade Surgery

Surgery opening times Monday to Friday 8.00am to 12.30pm and 2.30pm to 6.30pm Tuesday late night 6.30pm to 8.30pm. (alternating with Grange Park Surgery. Please check to find which is open which week)

One in four 8.30am to 10.30am Saturday mornings Surgery Telephone Numbers: 01604 863 100 Appointments 01604 862 218 Emergencies/ General Enquires Surgery address: 16 Road, Roade, Northants NN7 2NN Out of hours: NHS Direct 111. Life Threatening: Call an ambulance 999. Local Pharmacy Opening Hours When we are closed you can access pharmacy services at these and many other locations. Please call and check opening times before you make a journey. Boots Pharmacy, Sixfields, Northampton 01604 751 800 Monday—Friday 8am to 12 midnight, Saturday 8am to 9pm, Sunday 10am to 4pm.

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Tesco Pharmacy, Mereway, Northampton 0845 677 9502 Monday— Saturday 8am to 8pm, Sunday 10am to 4pm. Roade Pharmacy, 5 South View, Roade 01604 864 665 Monday— Friday 9am to 1pm and 2pm to 6pm.

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Roade Library

We have enjoyed a busy summer at Roade with lots of children’s events running alongside this year’s Summer Reading Challenge. As well as the usual crafts we were also visited by Owls to Behold, Princess Elsa, Animal Edutainment and had a Harry Potter themed Magic Show in the library. We had an increase in children participating in the challenge and this year a new Top School trophy for schools in our area was kindly provided by the Friends of Roade Library (FORL). The trophy was won by Ashton School this year. So make sure you sign up to the reading challenge and help your local school to win next year!

Visiting Authors In September we were lucky enough to be visited by local author Judith Allnatt who was invited by Roade Library Book Group. This was a well attended and popular event. On Thursday 15th October local author Geoffrey Iley gave a talk at the Methodist Church Hall based on his book 'A Schoolboy's Wartime Letters'. An extract from his book was read by Bernard Cribbins during the 'Party to Remember' broadcast on BBC1 on VE Day 70.

For Children

We have regular craft events for children every weekend and a homework club running on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month, 3.30pm-4.30pm.

We are pleased to offer a Play and Learn Session for Under 1’s every Thursday 2.00pm-3.00pm and Rhyme-time for Under 5’s every

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Friday 11.30-12.00. From the 7th October until 16th December we will be running a Messy Play every Wednesday from 2pm-3pm.

For Adults

For adults we offer a Book Group which meets every 4th Wednesday 2.00pm-3.00pm, an Afternoon Tea Group which meets every 3rd Wednesday 3.00pm-4.00pm and a Creative Writing group which meets every 2nd Wednesday 3.00pm-4.00pm. You can see what events are going on at the library by looking on the Northamptonshire County Council Website or looking on Roade Library’s Facebook page.

For more information about our events pop into the library or email [email protected]

Volunteers

Unfortunately Hartwell resident Judith Bowen who has been doing an amazing job in tending the library garden has had to step down. We would like to say a massive thank you to her for all her hard work.

If you would like to take over from Judith then any help would be gratefully received, please contact myself (Sam) or Sarah Ruse the FORL Chair to discuss further.

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There are many volunteering opportunities at Roade Library so if you would like to gain new skills, meet new people and support your local library do come in and see what volunteering options are available or alternatively visit the Get Involved Hub www.northamptonshire.gov.uk/getinvolvedhub

We have gifts available for all ages so do pop in and check out the library shop. DVD’s are available to hire only £2.50 for one week’s hire including the latest releases.

Library Opening Hours: Wednesday-Friday 2pm-6pm Saturday 10am-2pm Sunday 1pm-4pm Sam Williams Library Manager

Friends of Roade Library

The Friends of Roade Library (FORL) supports the library by raising funds and promoting the library in the community. The money raised goes towards buying those little extras for Roade Library, as well as funding events.

This Summer Holidays FORL have funded lots of exciting events for children! Including Owls to Behold, Animal Edutainment, Meet Elsa from Frozen and finishing with a Harry Potter themed Magic Show!

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We meet once a month, except August and December. If you are interested in helping or joining the committee, please contact the Chair, Sarah Ruse: [email protected]

Mobile Libraries are more than just books...... Audio Books Council Enquiries Bus Pass Applications Information Points Large Print Books Library Shops Children’s Books

Join for free!

The Mobile Library calls once every month in Hartwell by 11 Blacksmiths Way between 4.35 and 5.00 pm. Dates for the next six months are: Wednesday 11 November Wednesday 9 December Wednesday 13 January Wednesday 10 February Wednesday 9 March Wednesday 13 April

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Voluntary transport for medically related appointments has been available to residents in South Northamptonshire for almost a decade before it became a registered charity in July 1990 and became Towcester Area Door to Door (TADD). TADD now operates in 60% of the 27 wards of South Northamptonshire, providing a service for 51 villages with a population of over 50,000 residents. Keith Rippon, on behalf of the TADD Trustees reports that more drivers are urgently needed for what has become an essential service to enable people to get to their medical appointments. At the end of March 2015, TADD had a ‘panel’ of over 800 drivers, nearly three-quarters of whom were over 75 years of age. Between them, they carried out 13,612 journeys or 52 a day on average. Now they have experienced a sustained 20% increase in demand for taking residents to their medical appointments. The trustees are concerned that for the first time in the last seven years they have been unable help a small number people over the last few months attend their medical appointments due to a lack of driver. The number of drivers has increased by 10% but, to cope with the increased demand, they need to increase it by at least another 30% - 40%. The volunteer drivers use their own vehicles, but their fuel and a contribution towards their running costs are paid for. You can contribute as much time as you would like, the choice is yours.

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If you have some time to spare, would like to help sustain this vital service and help your local community, please contact TADD. They are at Ground Floor, Suite 7, Plum Park Estate, Watling Street, Paulerspury, Towcester, NN12 6LQ.  01327 810300 or email [email protected].

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Hartwell Homes and Gardens Produce Show Sunday 13 September

The gardener’s never changing whinge that “It’s been a funny old year” didn’t stop a really good standard among the 460 entries for the 43rd edition of the annual show. While the number of entries for the fruit and veg classes was a little down this year, that was more than compensated by a fantastic range in the crafts and home produce sections, causing the judge for cookery to declare it to be the best supported show she had seen this year and the standard in her section was excellent throughout. So well done to you all! As show organiser, Nigel Huckle was delighted not just to lift the coveted Bisdee Challenge Cup again† but commented that “we were delighted with the day; the show was well-supported and the large organising team made it a slick operation which is a pleasure to be involved in”. The Children’s sections brought their own magic where any lack in culinary finesse was more than made up by the sheer boldness and imaginative interpretation of the brief and included some truly amazing cup cakes!. Lexie Barnell came out the winner with 23 show points to clinch the Brian Hosking Memorial trophy.

† there must be a way of ending his reign. Come on gardeners; next year!

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Simple but effective. Thought and imagination go into turning this courgette into a penguin for Amelia Smith. The judges thought it merited a First-in-class!

Keeping it in the family! Steve Huckle wins the All Comers cup awarded to the non-Hartwell resident with the highest number of show points

Simply triffic! Black and white really doesn’t do justice to this First-in-class vase of cactus dahlias.

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With the emphasis firmly on the ‘anything you can do’, the Men’s Victoria Sponge Sandwich class is a popular perennial at many village shows. Peter Marshall (pictured left) triumphed this year from amongst the nine entrants.

Finally, Terry Boss and his willing band of young helpers was on fine form throughout and with his encouragement, the post-show auction raised over £600 to be shared equally between the school, the Community Centre and the Pocket Park.

Andy Johnson asks: Can you sing? Have you ever fancied singing in the Barbershop style?

If the answer to both these questions is Yes, Andy, who lives in Roade, would be keen to hear from you. He can be contacted on 01604 862420

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Hartwell Primary School

Admissions – do you have a child approaching school age? The first half term has passed so quickly! The children are now well-established in their new classes and the new starters have settled into Class R. Sadly we were unable to offer places to all the families who applied for them this year. With this in mind Governors are keen to try and establish a picture of the number of families in the village who have children due to start school over the next 3- 5 years. We would like to enlist your help in doing this. If you have a child/children who will be requiring a school place in Hartwell over the next 5 years please could you e-mail the following information to the school:  Child’s name  Date of birth  Year he/she is due to start school  Whether you are a resident in the Parish of Hartwell Primary School E-mail address: [email protected] We would like to collect as much information as possible so please pass this message on to any families to whom you think it relates. New Parent/Toddler coffee morning It has been a pleasure this term to welcome members of the Archway trust into school on a Monday morning. They are using our staffroom as a base for a coffee morning for parents and 34 toddlers. Coffee/tea, toast and plenty of smiles are on offer and the session ends with a bible story and song. The group has grown over the half term and it would be nice to welcome even more members of the community to join in. Playground equipment fundraiser Our outside play equipment has almost reached the end of its lifespan and we are keen to replace it with some wonderful new equipment to engage our children in keeping healthy and playing creatively together. Projects of this kind require a significant amount of funding. Governors have agreed to a portion of the school budget being used but we still need to raise further funds. In September we held skipping workshops for all of the children and towards the end of October we will be holding a sponsored skip to raise money for this worthy cause. School Council have also written to local businesses to see whether they would be prepared to make a donation towards our project. Please support our children by sponsoring their efforts. Harvest In the summer term School Council agreed that they wanted our chosen charity to be closer to home this year. They chose to support the Hope Centre in Northampton which provides services for the homeless of our town. The children have brought in a wonderful array of tinned produce, pasta/rice and toiletries all of which will help the centre over the coming year. Our children recognise that it is a time to be thankful for all we have and to help others in a less fortunate position.

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 General services and utilities area code is 01604 except where otherwise given

Anglian Water 0800 771881 Emergency health advice 111 Mailing list preference service 08457 034599 National Gas 0800 111999 Police 101 Royal Mail 08457 740740 Trading standards 707900 Education Hartwell Church of England Primary School Headteacher: Jayne Clancy 862880 School Business Manager: Lara Bruce 862880 Elizabeth Woodville School: North Campus 862125 Willison Centre 864581 Hartwell Pre-school group: Liz Smith 864968 Baby Clinic @ The Lounge: Liz Smith 864968 Government MP: Andrea Leadsom 859721 County Councillor: Michael Clarke 367813 District Councillor: John Budden 890832 Northants County Council offices 0300 1261000 South Northants Council offices 01327 322322

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 Village amenities area code is 01604 except where otherwise given

Ashwood Acre (Pocket Park): Derek Hawley 863169 Community Centre Hall bookings: Liz Smith 07931 327656 Footpaths and Highways Warden: George Jones 864100 Hartwell Club 862497 Hartwell PO and Store 862205 Hartwell Village Watch: Judy Webster 862809 Poor’s Trust (Allotments): Sarah Marshall 863655 Rose & Crown public house 862393 St John the Baptist Church Rev Mike Burton 862284 Churchwarden: John Buck 862911 Churchwarden: Lynda Newman 862059 Village groups Hart & Soul Community Choir: Alex Preston 07787 928101 Hartwell 1st Scout Group: ‘Skip’ Anderson 07506 374583 Hartwell Beavers: Kerry Brayshaw 862397 Hartwell Cubs: Jane Taylor 01908 511828 Hartwell Health Walks: George Jones 864100 Hartwell Produce Show: Nigel Huckle 863329 Hartwell Youth Club: Simon Smith 864968 Tuesday Circle: Claire Griffiths 862708 Women’s Institute: Liz Manning 862630

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Hartwell Community Centre Committee Update

It’s been quite a year since the new community centre committee was formed in September 2014. We’ve had some people move on this year; many thanks Scott for your work as Secretary and Natalie as our point of contact with the Pre-School. And welcome to Gareth, Evelyn and Andy who joined at the AGM in September 2015.

The current committee are, Roy (Chair), Lynne (Treasurer), Nathan (Secretary), Alison, Simon, Gareth, Evelyn, Andy and Liz; plus support from User groups including Vicky, Skip and James.

Those of us new to this are struck by one thing more than any other; money is important. Running a building like this is not cheap; lighting, heating, insurance, cleaning, licenses, equipment testing, general repairs, all add up. In 2014-15 we started addressing the costs of running the hall and this year are continuing that work to try to keep the cost to our user groups as low as possible. But, for this to work the few of us on the committee are not sufficient to make that happen – we need help from the Hartwell Community to do a little bit; the sum of lots of little bits of help will ultimately be a lot. Which brings me to a huge thanks to all of you who have helped during the last year – whether serving behind the bar, putting up gazebos, cooking burgers, lending us a horse(!),

38 sweeping a floor, painting a door, etc,. etc,. – your help is very much appreciated.

So what have we been up to in the last 12 months? Well......

 We’ve got to grips and on top of all the administration and finances. There really is quite a lot to do!  Put on our first panto in many years – “oh no you didn’t”. Thank you so much to Oakleaf for sponsoring the event - your support made the event financially viable. It was such a success that we’re putting one on again this year.  Held a frozen themed film night – “you can’t hold us back any more”…  Had a new floor put in the hall, including giving the room and the entrance hall a bit of a brightening up. Remember the brown stage? – no more! Come and see for yourself.  Hopefully by the time of reading this, you all should be enjoying watching the chidren playing football in the MUGA (multi user games area) and “burning” around the BMX track. A special thanks to Nathan, who has been a constant driver of this project.  Also, at the time of reading, you should have been entertained with the play “Sherlock Holmes: the Hound of the Baskervilles”; thanks to Piroto for supporting us. If we keep filling the hall, we’ll look to bring more events like this.  And the SUMMER FETE. What a fantastic event! Well done our newly-formed Events Group. o We have been so blown away by all the lovely comments we’ve received. A massive thank you to

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all the supporters on the day. It was a long hard day but very much worth it. o In total we raised £7,000, which has bought new chairs and tables for the hall, gazebos for future events and ensures that the community centre has finances that mean we can keep supporting all the users. o We could never have done this without the help of local businesses also, so a big thank you to: Salcey Precision, Oakleaf, Piroto, Imprinted Paving Systems, Ruth Dodd’s childminding and Bannister Builders. Your donations meant that the Fete was a low financial risk event – and that the organisers didn’t have too many sleepless nights!! Also thanks to Santander and Barclaycard, who, with matched donations, helped us reach the £7000 figure.

So why is what we do important? Without the Hartwell Community Centre we wouldn’t have:  the educating Pre-School that provides a great feed to our excellent local school.  the energetic Youth Club, Beavers, Cubs and Scouts that help entertain and instil the right ways in to our children.  the vibrant Lounge, where parents can meet at school drop- off and pick-up times for a natter, coffee and piece of cake.  a place for community get-togethers such as the Tuesday Circle or the WI.  a place you can hire for your parties (did we mention the new floor?!).

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Recently we’ve extended what’s on offer:  The first Hartwell Scout troop has started (Tuesday eves)  The ladies in the village meet once a month (last Thursday of the month) to discuss current affairs ……… and drink wine.  The inner geeks in the village meet and are trying to build a robot (first Thursday of the month)!

Unfortunately, for now, the brilliant Hart and Soul choir have had to give up their Friday evening slot and relocate to the school. They will be missed, but remain a part of our team. It does mean that Fridays are currently vacant, so if you have a group, or idea that the community centre could be used for on a Friday evening, contact us.

So please support us when you can – we will really appreciate it. If you’re interested in joining either the committee or being part of the events group, please contact us. You can get us at [email protected] or our FaceBook page (Hartwell Community Centre) and thanks to Ewe Designs, our fully revamped website www.hartwellcommunitycentre.co.uk.

And finally some dates for your diaries:-

- Shopping at the Hartwell Christmas Market. 6.30-8.30pm Friday 27 November. A chance to support local and small businesses. Get started on the Christmas Shopping while enjoying a glass of wine or a cup of tea and entertainment by the Hart and Soul Community Choir.

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- Monday 21 December. An evening of fabulous Christmas songs from the very talented Community Choir, Hart and Soul, that will get you well into the Christmas Spirit.

- Monday 27 December – The Hartwell Christmas Panto. Back by popular demand, the Looking Glass Theatre present Sleeping Beauty... Oh, yes they will!

Here’s to another great year

Roy Sparks

Community Centre Committee Chair

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Hartwell Pre-School

The last academic year has been most eventful and has flown by.

I am very pleased to say that our fundraising events broke all previous records; the Easter Egg Hunt raised the most ever raised at an Easter event. This was down to the dedication of the Committee and the staff who all helped and ran a fantastic event. We have also been lucky enough to receive match funding from Santander for our involvement with the Hartwell Village Fete. We must extend our sincere thanks to Roy Sparks, the Chair of the Community Centre Committee for this.

We finished in July with the highest number of children on the roll than we have ever had; 52 of which 31 moved onto primary school. We have started this academic year with 33 on the roll which is also a higher number than ever before. We have now begun to receive registration forms for children born as recently as this April for places as far in advance as 2018. This all reflects the hard work of the staff in building and maintaining our excellent reputation. If you have a child or children and wish to secure a place, then please register now – demand is high! Registration forms are available from our website – www.hartwellpreschool.com.

Through the fundraising efforts we have been able to purchase six Samsung tablets for the keyworker members of staff which avoids squabbles over one laptop! These were purchased to coincide with the introduction of the Tapestry system, which is an online record

43 also used in Class R at Hartwell Primary School. In time, this will save time and money on printing costs particularly with photograph printing in the old style paper files. This system also means that parents can have a greater involvement in the records and have access to them at all times.

We received a grant from the Parish Council enabling us to purchase six LeapPads for the children to use to ensure we are meeting the needs of developing their technical skills. These have proved very popular with the children.

The staff are to be commended on retaining the ‘good’ Ofsted rating. This was no easy feat given our ‘pack-away’ setting, the increasingly stringent levels of inspection and that the inspectors arrived on our Sports Day!!

On a personal note I would like to extend my thanks to the staff for their dedication and thanks must also be extended to the Committee for their tireless efforts and the results achieved.

I’m sure many parents and residents are unaware that without an active committee, under the constitution, PreSchool would not be able to remain open. It has been my pleasure to be in the position of Chair for the last year.

Vikki Jewell, Chairperson, Hartwell Pre-School

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Hartwell Pre-School

Monday Pre-School only 9.15am to 3.15pm Tuesday Playgroup 9.15am to 12.45pm Wednesday Playgroup 9.15am to 3.15pm Thursday Playgroup 9.15am to 3.15pm Friday Playgroup 9.15am to 3.15pm

Half day sessions are available every week day and full day sessions are available on a Monday (Pre Schoolers only on a Monday afternoon), Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Lunch Club is available everyday.

The 2½ hour sessions are £11 each, with Lunch Club at £3.60.

Free places are available for 2 and 3 year olds.

We accept childcare vouchers.

If you are interested in sending your child to us, please feel free to come along and see us in action.

For more information, please call Liz Smith 01604 864 968 or email [email protected]

www.hartwellpreschool.com or find us on facebook

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We have three, age-related groups linked to the scouting movement operating in the village

Beavers is for boys and girls aged between 6 and 8 years. They meet on Wednesday evenings from 5.45 to 6.45pm at the Community Centre. Kerry Brayshaw, the Beaver leader writes: “We aim to make Beavers an exciting, stimulating adventure with activities based around making things, outdoor activities, singing, playing games, investigating nature, listening to stories, helping the community, learning how to be safe and most importantly, making new friends and having fun.” If you would like to join Beavers, Kerry can be contacted on 01604 862397 or [email protected].

Cubs is for boys and girls aged between 7½ and 10½ years. They meet on Wednesdays between 6.45 and 8pm at the Community Centre. Jane Taylor, the group leader writes: “We aim to make Cubs a stimulating, exciting adventure for all those that join and will encourage the children to try new activities and sports in a safe environment. Cubs can join at any time”. Jane can be contacted on 01908 511828.

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Scouts is the senior of the three groups and the 1st Hartwell Scout Troop was re-launched in January 2015. It is the group for 10½ to 14 year olds and Skip, the Scout leader, writes that: “it's going very strongly and now has 19 Scouts. We go camping 3 times a year a long way from home, have a varied and structured programme and take part in many adventurous activities. We are looking for more young people to come and join the fun!”

1st Hartwell Scout Troop pictured setting off on their way to camp earlier this year

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At Hartwell Community Centre in School Lane every Monday between 6.30 and 8.30 pm during term time

This is an activity-based project for young people aged between 10 and 14 aimed at promoting and developing social, emotional and physical well-being through the delivery of structured activity. We run optional structured activities ranging from creative projects, sports, cooking etc. We aim to provide a safe and supported environment for young people to meet and relax with their friends, encouraging peer support and allowing for additional 1-1 support, advice and guidance from youth work staff. If you would like more details about the youth club please contact Jenny Evans via e-mail at [email protected]

‘I enjoy youth club due to the fact that all of my friends come here and it’s nice to get away for a bit. Also, the leaders are kind and listen to what everyone has to say’ Chloe

‘I enjoy coming to youth club because it gives us time to be around our friends also the staff are fun and organise good activities’. Daisy

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Hartwell WI

Sue Hamilton writes to say: “We have had another active and interesting period with our members enjoying some meetings in the Community Centre and others out and about.

We have subjects such as “The English Country Lady”, Dan Gordon from “Oakleaf” telling us about the aims of “Oakleaf” and slides and information about Jordan which our speaker visited last year.

In April, the meeting topic was “Squires and Spires” of Northamptonshire which many of us recognised. We visited 78 Derngate in May which was fascinating; a well-known house designed by Charles Rennie Macintosh.

We had a lovely evening for our annual barbecue in a member’s garden and in August we took our refreshments and met in the Pocket Park on a lovely summer’s night and had a good chinwag.

September saw us wandering by the canal at Stoke Bruerne, enjoying the outdoors and the history of life on the barges for the people who worked on them.

We also organised a jumble sale in the Community Centre in February, a cake stall at the Pocket Park event and manned the tombola stall for the Community Centre at the fête in July.

So why not come and join our lively group of ladies in the Community Centre on the first Thursday of the month. You can be sure of a very warm welcome.”

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The Hartwell Tuesday Circle

How would you like to meet up twice a month to be entertained and offered cups of tea and biscuits (sometimes even cake!). Well, why not come along to the Hartwell Tuesday Circle at 2 o’clock in the Community Centre on the first and third Tuesdays of each month. We charge £2 for members (£3 for guests) which is to cover the cost of the activities and refreshments. We are a friendly group and aim to provide a wide range of entertainment and outings throughout the year. We have a meal out twice a year and a fish and chip lunch in October. We have parties in July and Christmas with some form of musical entertainment. And all this for a mere £2 per session. Already this year we have had talks about dogs for the disabled, how to grow and show dahlias (we were each given one to nurture and mine is still going strong despite lack of attention) and the boot and shoe industry in Northampton. We have also had tea out at a garden centre as well as being entertained by the choir and orchestra from our own junior school and in October the headmistress will be talking to us about her role. In November we will be hearing about Christmas past and present and in December we will be having a meal out and our regular festive party. Last year we were dancing to La Mamba(!) when a delivery driver wanted a signature for a parcel for the play group. He was asked to dance for it and did it with great enthusiasm. I am sure he wondered what on earth he had walked in on. If any of these activities appeal to you and you are a senior citizen then do just come along or ring or e-mail me. We would be very pleased to see you. Claire Griffiths (01604 862708 or [email protected]).

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Ashwood Acre – Hartwell Pocket Park Green Flag Community Award 2015/16

Ashwood Acre has continued to thrive in 2015. Our community pocket park – established in 2008 for people and wildlife - is in constant use. As the seasons change so does the park and now in Autumn there are seeds, fruit and berries to provide a winter larder for the birds and enterprising (human) blackberry pickers. If you are new to the village you may need to know that the park is just down the lane alongside the Ashton Road allotments next to the cemetery. Look for the brown sign on the Ashton Road. The park was again successful in achieving the Green Flag Community Award in 2015. This national award shows that Ashwood Acre is a well-managed and welcoming place valued by the local community, a ‘high quality green space in the village’. The Green Flag judge inspected the park in July, gave it a high score and sent congratulations to all those involved. Many people in Hartwell have contributed to the park’s success over the years and this community involvement of helpers and supporters is recognised by the award. So grateful thanks to the many people who have helped to make the park what it is. You can see the full Green Flag report at www.hartwellpocketpark.weebly.com

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In May our main community event in the park included a successful village plant sale, a hands-on display by the Northampton Amphibian, Reptile and Insect Association, a WI stall and several other activities. It was made all the more pleasurable by cream teas, cakes and the welcome appearance of a vintage ice cream van. It was a fine afternoon and lots of people came. Plant stall business was brisk and the event raised over £350 towards park maintenance expenses. Thanks to all who came and especially to the many people who took the trouble to donate plants. We hope to hold a similar event in 2016. The logs we installed in 2008 for the log ring and the information boards have not lasted well and we have begun to replace them. We would like to thank Keith Smith (K G Smith and Son) for the generous donation and delivery of what we expect to be long lasting replacement oak logs. The park was mown in September and we’ve done the annual Hay Rake. Once again a good number of people turned out to do this important job, including many children who seemed to have a great time. As we rake all the grass away each year the grassland in the park becomes less fertile, which is good for wild flowers. There are more wild flowers in the park each year and this year the fruiting thicket at the cemetery end of the park has done particularly well. In October and November we aim to plant more bulbs in amongst the trees and shrubs so that the thicket looks as good in spring before leaf burst as it does as the year goes on. The speed at which the trees and shrubs have grown over the years has been a surprise. Last winter, as a trial, we cut down for the first time a few trees in the coppice near the path at the bottom of the park. They have grown back well so we’ll do many more in the coming winter months. Coppicing is an ancient process of 52 harvesting timber practiced for centuries in Salcey Forest. The time has also come to lay the curved hedge alongside the path near the coppices. Hedge laying is an ancient and skilled craft and we hope to get an expert in during the winter to lay the hedge and instruct us in how to maintain it. If you would like to be involved in this session please give the secretary a call. The park has been developed and kept in good condition by a group of regular supporters and Friends of Ashwood Acre since 2008. The pocket park group greatly appreciates the contribution of all who have helped over the years. These regular volunteer working parties keep the park going through the seasons. The sessions last just a couple of hours in most months of the year, usually the third Saturday of the month in the afternoon unless that coincides with a school holiday period. We are always glad to welcome new people to help. There are working parties on October 17th and November 21st starting at 2 p.m. After a break, working parties resume in February 2016. We welcome new Friends of Ashwood Acre who would like to keep up with what is going on (via email) and perhaps volunteer from time to time. Our website has been redesigned this year and can now be found at www.hartwellpocketpark.weebly.com.

If you would like more information, to volunteer or become a Friend of Ashwood Acre please email [email protected] or ring Derek Hawley on 01604 863169.

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Hartwell Allotment Poors Trust

ALLOTMENTS Sites on Ashton Road and in Folly Lane

If you are interested please contact: Janet: 01604 863413 (Chair) or Sarah: 01604 863665 (Secretary)

The 2015 Annual General Meeting is being held on Tuesday 10 November at the Hartwell Conservative Club, starting at 7.30 pm. The meeting is open to current and prospective plot holders and anyone else who has an interest in allotmenting. 54

Hartwell Club 10 Forest Road, Hartwell. NN7 2HE 01604 862497

Committee Members Alan Rogers (Chairman), Alison Hefford (Secretary) David Passmore, Robert Passmore Ricky Harding, Kim Drewery, Shayne Watts

Welcome to the Hartwell Club, writes Alan Rogers. Most of you will have noticed we have changed our name omitting the Conservative element. We felt it was more a community feel to a club and we are pleased to say it has had a positive acceptance rather than negative. Nearing the end of another year and l am glad to say we are doing well, making the changes we have made all worth while. In August we had our most successful Beer Festival ever, putting on extra for the kids including swing boats and a coconut shy, and the ever popular Bouncy Castle. And a variety of entertainment both on the Friday and Saturday evening. We not only decorated most of the inside and are looking to finish it completely before the end of the year. We finished the damp

55 proofing, painted the beer cellar and most noticeable the car park which has a nice new fence and the border area cleared of tree stumps and weeds to give a good view of the fields beyond. We still have entertainments on a regular basis plus SKY And BT Sports, Wi-Fi, Bingo on Tuesday Nights (Fortnightly), Quiz Nights on Mondays (Opposite Week to Bingo Fortnight), Friday Night Meat and Sunday General Raffle. Don’t forget you can keep up to date at www.hartwellvillage.org.uk

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Hartwell Health Walks

This group was set up nearly four years ago with the aim of encouraging people to take part in the healthy activity of walking. Walkers meet outside the Hartwell and District Conservative Club in Forest Road which, if you are using SatNav to find us, is at postcode NN7 2HE, on the first and fourth Saturday of each month, at 11.00 am. The walks are all circular and are designed to take about an hour and a half. They range between three and four miles in distance, returning for tea and biscuits at St John the Baptist church. We aim to walk all the year round (depending on the weather), so suitable footwear and clothing is required to cater for a variety of weathers.

All the walks are FREE, you just have to fill out a registration form. I have trained as a walk leader with South Northants Council at Towcester, so that I am able to the lead the walks.

The areas we visit are, Ashton, Roade, Salcey Forest, etc, giving a variety of walks using footpaths/bridleways. Sometimes we use the roads, but only when necessary.

Forthcoming dates for Health Walks are on Saturdays: 24 October, 7 November, 28 November, 5 December, 2 January, 23 January, 6 February, 27 February, 5 March and 26 March.

Contact George Jones on 01604 864100 (after 6 pm)

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Church to Church Walk

George also reports that, on Sunday 20 September, a team of 20 walkers aged between four and 82 years of age met at Hartwell Community Centre at 9.30 am at the start of a 14 mile hike between the churches of Hartwell, Ashton, Stoke Bruerne, Roade and Courteenhall.

Starting at St John the Baptist in Hartwell

It was a typical autumnal day, with the sun making a late appearance.

The team was made up from all walking abilities, some from the Nordic Walking Group of Towcester and Brackley, and colleagues from GE in The merry band on the road Towcester.

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First stop was Ashton

Then it was off to Stoke Bruerne

Swans and cygnets on the cut at Stoke Bruerne

The event was an opportunity to raise funds for the Help for Heroes charity and we raised £193 which was a really excellent outcome.

Being met at Stoke Bruerne 59

Over half of the team managed to complete the six hour long march over field and stile, stopping off for the occasional drink and photo opportunity, and returned to the Community Centre at 3. 30 pm. The interior at Courteenhall

Of particular note was the great effort from the two youngest members of the team aged 4 and 7 who managed almost two thirds of the route. But, all in all, it was a superb effort by all who took part.

The total time taken for the event was 6 hours, including stops. The total distance walked was 14 miles and the time taken, excluding stops was a very creditable 4 hours 40 minutes.

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Useful they are, but pretty they ain’t!

That’s what your Parish Council has concluded on the subject of our Sulo Wheelie bins. South Northants Council require us to put our Sulos out the night before collection so on Wednesday mornings a lot of the village has lines of them along the pavement. There’s not a lot we can do about that.

But, to keep the village looking as tidy as we can, let’s make sure they are brought back into our properties as soon as possible once they have been emptied. For quite a lot of us, that’ll be when we get home from work on Wednesday evening. But, there really should be no reason why they are left out for any longer than that. If you are going to be away from home after collection and have kind neighbours, you could always ask if they would retrieve your sulo(s) for you.

It’s your village. Let’s keep it as tidy as we can!

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Roade Local History Society

Roade Local History Society talks cover a wide range of subjects of general interest and are open to all. Unless otherwise indicated, all events take place at 7.30 pm at St. Mary’s Church Hall, Roade, where refreshments (wine and fruit juice) are available. Admission charges are £2 for members (annual subscription £5), £3 for adult non-members, 50p for children (up to 16) of non-members. Members’ children up to 16 are admitted free. The Society also organizes outings and exhibitions and is involved in a variety of interesting projects, which are described on our website: www.roadehistorysociety.org.uk. We always need volunteers to assist with projects and events. If you are interested, please contact any Committee member (see end of article) for details. We already have some members who live in Hartwell and would welcome more. Forthcoming events:

Wednesday 28th October

The Gunpowder Plot: a Midland Conspiracy - Malcolm Deacon

Wednesday 25th November

An American Eye View of Northamptonshire - Gary Shaeffer

Wednesday 9th December

An evening of Archives and Christmas Cheer including film, photos and music by Jinx

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January 2016

RLHS Members’ New Year Lunch

Wednesday 24th February

The Recorder of Northampton - HH Judge Rupert Mayo

Wednesday 23rd March (date subject to change)

World’s First Night Navigation Flight, Roade, 1910 - Alastair Inglis

Full details will appear in Roade News and on our website: www.roadehistorysociety.org.uk

Committee  Bill Hudson (Chairman) 863388 Alastair Inglis (Secretary) 862369 Chris Denton (Treasurer) 862300 Sheila Fitchett 863389 Ron Johnson 947934 Peter Mawby 862735 Vivian Blyth 864498

Publications are available at T&H Newsagents and at our events.

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JpJ PLASTERING All types of Plastering: Skimming, Patching, Rendering by clean professional Tradesman. Also some decorating & small building requirements. Free estimate call: JOHN 01604 863929 or 07762 67209

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Re-Vamp Do your trousers hang at half-mast? Is your waistband far too tight? Is your skirt too baggy on the hips? And your silhouette far from right? Would you like your curtains shortened? And cushions made to match? Most re-vamps are possible, Just phone me and we’ll chat

Telephone Sue on 01604 862392

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All building and garden maintenance works carried out including Roofing, Brickwork, Pointing, Guttering & Drainage, Gravel Driveways, Patios, Fencing, General Repairs, External & Internal Painting also can provide quotes for small extensions, garage conversions, conservatories and windows Tel: 01604 674610 or Mobile: 07973 420876

John White

Funeral Directors Independent Family

Courteenhall is now available to hire Owned Private Chapels exclusively for your special occasion including: of Rest 24hr Service Weddings , Corporate Events , Private Parties , Filming & Photoshoots Pre Payment Plans Available

We currently have a small number of dates available for 2016 188 Watling Street East Towcester Tel: 01604 864 290 Email: [email protected] Northants NN12 6DB Web: www.courteenhall.co.uk Tel: 01327 359266

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01604 420057

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