Number 632 June 2021

NADIA LEAR We would like to express our thanks to all our friends and neighbours for their kind help and support throughout Nadia’s long illness and following her death on 27th April. We have been overwhelmed by so many touching messages. She will be sadly missed. Jeff, Adelina, Adrian and family SCHOOL APPOINTS A NEW HEAD Blewbury School is delighted to announce Miss Jo Reeder as its permanent new Head of School, who will join the School from September 2021. Jo Reeder will for her first year be working alongside Miss Lisa Austin who will continue as the School’s 0.5 Executive Headteacher. See page 7 for full story. BLEWBURY MARKET Our first Blewbury Market was held on Sunday 16th May. It was a great success with many visitors attending from Blewbury and the surrounding villages. The weather was very kind to us and there was a real buzz from everyone including the stall holders. We have had some lovely feedback from people. Due to the success of the market we have set a date for the next one, which will be held in the car park at Blewbury Village Hall on SUNDAY 13th JUNE from 10-2 pm. We are hoping to make it a regular event. The money raised each time (minus costs) from the stall holders fees will go to a chosen Village Charity or club each time. This time we raised £100 for Blewbury Pre-School. Please note that there will be very limited parking at the hall as we are increasing the number of stall holders for the next one as there is such popular demand for the stalls. We already have a lot of the stalls booked for the June Market, including Sweet Daisy, Creative Catering selling burgers, pork rolls etc, Sustainable Blewbury (plant stall), the WI (Cake stall), Blewbury Bread Company (Breads and savouries), and lots of arts and crafts including Damselfly Designs (beautifully handmade crafts), to name but a few. The Blewbury Players will also be there, complete with laptop computer, offering help with online booking for Romeo and Juliet for anyone who wants it (see their article on page 5). At the time of writing we do have a few spaces left for stall holders to book so if you are interested in booking a stall or have any other queries regarding the market please email [email protected] We would also like to thank Bruce Gibson (Village Hall) and Roger Murphy for their time and effort in helping to make the Market possible, and also Blewbury School for letting us use their car park. We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible on Sunday 13th June. Sheila Austin and Donna Bushnell (Market Organisers) YOU’RE INVITED TO BLEWBURY PRE-SCHOOL’S 50th ANNIVERSARY PARTY! Blewbury Pre-School is 50 years old! On Saturday 17th July 1.00 – 4.00 pm, please come and celebrate with us the wonderful achievement of 50 years’ care and education for the children of Blewbury and surrounding villages. We welcome you all back to have a look around, reminisce about those happy Pre- School days, look at old photos, and see what we have been doing recently. There will be afternoon tea, ice-creams and light refreshments on sale. ANY OLD MODS OR ROCKERS OUT THERE? The Blewbury Players' production of Romeo and Juliet is to be set in the 1960s. We are looking at Mods and Rockers, rather than hippies. Has anyone kept their leather jacket, their winklepickers, their khaki parka? Or their long jacket, with narrow lapels? And would you be prepared to lend them to us? We would be most grateful. Please call me, on 01235 850701. Thank you! Vanessa Fox RED LION UPDATE Our preparation for the reopening is going well, but there’s a ton more to do before we can welcome you in safely and in compliance with the regulations. Our aim is to open by June 21st, when all restrictions are due to be lifted. In the meantime, you can follow our progress at https://www.instagram.com/redlionblew where we will announce if we can open any earlier. All enquires: Annabel Cochrane [email protected] 07870 999 604 or [email protected] BULLETIN STOP PRESS SERVICE If you would like to receive urgent village news and information by email, you can sign up to the Bulletin Stop Press service at www.blewbury.co.uk. Powered by MailChimp®, all emails are blind copied so no addresses are shared.

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2 SUMMER DANCE AND OTHER BVS NEWS The BVS are delighted to announce that McFunky will be entertaining us with funky pop and rock from the ’70s to the present day at this year’s Summer Dance on Saturday 17th July. The dance will be held in the stunning gardens of Ashbrook House by kind permission of the Barretts. Tickets are £12 and can be purchased from the post office, by emailing [email protected] or on the gate. All profits will go to local causes. To note, this event is subject to Covid restrictions and full refunds will be provided if the dance cannot go ahead. In other news, we will not be holding a firework evening this year but we are busy planning an alternative event so watch this space. We are also hoping to hold our monthly BVS meetings in the Red Lion pub - these are usually held on the last Tuesday of the month and would be open to everyone to drop in, whether you want to be a member of the committee or just get involved in a particular event. Blewbury Pre-School Lottery membership is now open to anyone aged 16 and over! For £5 per month members will be entered into a monthly lottery with a chance to win one of three cash prizes. There will be a 50:50 split between prize and fundraising money. It’s an annual membership, and we plan to sell a maximum of 200 lottery numbers each year. We’ve had a great response so far but there are still plenty of numbers available. Our ambition is to hold the first ever draw on Thursday 1st July. In order to go ahead with the draw we need to have a minimum of 100 lottery numbers sold by mid June. The more numbers sold means a bigger prize pot and more support for Pre-School. The sooner we can launch the lottery the sooner we can start generating funds for this much loved village institution. Sign up now so we can confirm the draw date asap. Find your form in THIS Bulletin! If you know of anyone, outside the village, who would like to support Blewbury Pre-School, please spread the word! Point them to our website www.blewburypreschool.co.uk where they can download the sign-up form and see full terms and conditions. If you have any queries, please email [email protected] 2021 DUCK RACE Wings crossed the ducks are hoping, Covid restrictions permitting, to take to the Playclose Stream as planned on Sunday 4th July at 12 noon. Tickets £1.25 a duck are on sale at Blewbury Post Office, there are still some waiting to be purchased, if you haven’t got yours yet, please hurry to avoid disappointment. This event is open to everyone, and the Bell Ringers look forward to seeing everyone on the day to cheer the ducks on and to hopefully celebrate life beginning to return to normal after months of restrictions. All proceeds will go to St Michael’s Tower and Bell Maintenance Fund. NEW VILLAGE HALL AND CLUBHOUSE BOOKING SYSTEM To coincide with the post-lockdown reopening of both the Village Hall and the Clubhouse (Melland Room) we have started using an online booking system called Hallmaster to handle all our bookings. As well as streamlining the booking process this gives up-to-date online visibility of venue availability. Details of the two venues are on the Blewbury website at https://blewbury.co.uk/venues/overview/. Separate pages describe the venues and contain links to each of their charges, user guides, policy documents and Terms & Conditions. The new booking system can be accessed either from a link on these pages or directly at https://v2.hallmaster.co.uk/Diary/ViewWeeklyDiary/9770. This brings up a weekly Diary view, defaulting to this week. Use the navigation buttons to look at the date you are interested in. Using this link to check availability is open to everybody without registration. However, to make booking requests, or to view your existing bookings, you will need to register for a customer account on Hallmaster. This can easily be created from the Diary view by pressing the “+” button against the date you are interested in. New requests will be reviewed by the booking administrator who will contact you for any necessary clarification before confirming the booking. The system will also generate invoices and receipts. If online booking is not for you there is a booking request form you can use. This is available from the Blewbury website and should be emailed to the booking administrator. It will also be available at Blewbury Post Office. This is all very new so please be patient whist we refine the way in which we use Hallmaster and the processes around it. If you have any questions or problems, you can contact the booking administrator by email at [email protected]. Tony Salter, Blewbury Village Hall Executive Management Committee

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Romeo and Juliet 19-24 July The Blewbury Players are delighted to announce that they will be performing Romeo and Juliet in the Garden Theatre, Orchard Dene, this summer. The production, postponed from last year, will be directed by Christopher Staines, who has previously directed A Servant to Two Masters and Cider with Rosie for us, and the cast from last year is now even more enthusiastic to perform. As we come out of lockdown, we are taking steps to keep our cast, crew and audience safe and to comply with all Government guidelines for live performances. Being outdoors is a big advantage. We are planning seven performances from Monday 19 July to Saturday 24 July, with a smaller than normal, socially distanced audience. BOX OFFICE opens on 4 June. We are asking people to book tickets on-line by visiting www.blewburyplayers.co.uk. If you have any queries about the booking process you can send them to [email protected] or by phone on 07498 943785 and we will aim to respond within 48 hours. We also aim to have a ‘Help Desk’ for making online bookings at the next Blewbury Market on June 13th (see p 1). We will be taking orders for drinks in advance, to be delivered to your seats, rather than having the usual bar. We will publish more details nearer the time. There is a lot to do, but we are excited to be getting back into the swing of a production. Rehearsals have begun, set construction is underway and we can’t wait to get off Zoom and back in front of a live audience. We hope you are as excited as we are, and we look forward to seeing you back in the theatre. POST OFFICE NEWS As restrictions are slowly being lifted, please still take care; we are still only allowing one person (or family) in at one time. Please still use the hand sanitiser and try not to lift it off the wall (just hold your hand under it), and don’t come in if you are unwell. PLEASE don’t bring your COVID tests into the Post Office, they MUST go in the PRIORITY POST BOX in Church End. This box is emptied every day, and the COVID tests are segregated and sent on their way swiftly. (I don’t care what it says on the website or on the label, our Head Office tells us NOT to accept them.) Paul McCartney stamps are on sale from May 28th, and we are expecting the Prince Philip ones in soon. We are closed for the Bank Holiday weekend, including the Saturday morning. The old £20 notes are still legal tender and we have received no withdrawal date (the Bank of have to give six months’ notice) but we have started to take them out of circulation anyway. We are also still accepting old £10 notes and £1 coins, but only if banked into an account. We now accept TSB business account cash and cheque deposits, along with most other personal bank accounts, so you can save a journey into , Abingdon or Oxford. We have Duck Race tickets, Summer Dance tickets, Kitty’s eggs, local honey, beautiful homemade jewellery, summer scarves, ice cream, sweeties, packaging, local greetings cards. We’ve sent off a consignment of pill packets for the Marie Curie charity, and still have books and jigsaws. Love from Karen, Maggie, Katrina & Michael NATURE NOTES If the weather plays fair, June, the start of the meteorological summer, can be a wonderful time for man and nature alike. For the most of June the day length is increasing and this extra warmth from the sun can start to power up some of the bigger invertebrates in the village. In early summer we start to see Hawkmoths emerge. We are fortunate in Blewbury that we have recorded seven of the nine resident species in our parish. The biggest of these is the Privet Hawkmoth with a wingspan of up to 12cm! Which makes it the UK’s largest residential species of moth. The caterpillars feed not just on Privet (very abundant along Rubble Pit lane) but on Lilac and Ash. The adult moth likes nothing better than to feed on night scented flowers such as Honeysuckle and Jasmine. Next up is the grey, puffed up fluffiness of the Poplar Hawkmoth. Unlike its privet cousin as an adult it does not feed, in fact it cannot feed as it has no functional mouthparts. Instead it relies on fat reserves stored when it was a caterpillar, hungrily munching on Aspen, Sallow and, of course Poplar trees. Perhaps my personal favourite though is the Elephant Hawkmoth. It has such a psychedelic, sherbet pinkness and olive green to it that it never fails to delight. The caterpillar feeds on Rosebay Willow herb and Bedstraws. You may also find them on your Fuchsias! The start of summer should also see the beginning of the Pyramidal Orchids flowering. A trip to the Chalk Pits or the wildflower area on Tickers Folly will reward the observer. The word Orchid is derived from the Greek for ‘testicle’, because most varieties have a pair of spherical tubers. One they use during the growing season and the other then stores food for next year and vice versa. In days gone by the tubers used to be dug up, dried and turned into a nutritious powder called ‘salep’ and often made into a tea, popular still in parts of Greece and Turkey. Quick things to look for in June; Those lucky enough to have a pond, look for emerging Dragonflies. The Summer Solstices, the beginning of the astronomical summer, 21st June. ‘Strawberry’ moon on the 24th June. Glen Meadows

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6 BRIDGE CLUB It seems my comments about a cautious approach to a return to F2F bridge last month may have been quite prescient, given the surge in cases of the 'Indian Variant'. Ongoing monitoring of the national and international situation is the key. It also seems that any bridge movement of players around a room with the intention of holding some sort of meaningful duplicate bridge session will not be in accordance with the current 'Rule of Six' Regulations. Even if not a legally enforceable provision, this could still provide difficulties in providing insurance cover for club officials and officers in the event that we went ahead with bridge sessions, even with the use of protection such as plastic screens, disciplined movement in the room, etc. So, we will wait to see what change to the Regulations might be announced later in June. Michael Allen 851870 BLEWBURY WI NEWS By the time you read this, we hope to have had our “May Social “ meeting (with wine) outside the Melland Room on the 26th May from 7pm (though this will have been cancelled in the event of bad weather). Provided the “Roadmap out of Lockdown” doesn’t change we will for the first time in 18 months have a real live meeting indoors in the Melland Room on Wednesday 23rd June, also a Social. Our meetings will continue to be at the Melland Room for the next few months, including 25th August, which will be our annual Garden Party (outside if possible). The coffee mornings will continue at Style Acre, the next one being on 9th June. Lyn’s Walk Unfortunately the May walk had to be cancelled but the next one is on June 1st, leaving the Village Hall Car Park at 9.30am. It will be a field walk unless too muddy in which case Lyn has an alternative planned. Bring your own refreshment and/or cash/card in case we find somewhere for coffee en route. Mah Jong We hope to re-start Mah Jong on Monday 7th June at 2.30 pm. Please contact Sharon Pegram in advance if you plan to attend. Telephone 01235 850412 or a note through the Door of Dragonwyke For more information please contact our Secretary, Joy Boness on 01235 850543 or visit our web page http://blewburywi.wordpress.com Jill Allen BLEWBURY SCHOOL APPOINTS A NEW HEAD! Blewbury School is delighted to announce Miss Jo Reeder as its permanent new Head of School, who will join the School from September 2021. Jo Reeder will for her first year be working alongside Miss Lisa Austin who will continue as the School’s 0.5 Executive Headteacher. There was a lot of interest in this position and Jo Reeder emerged as the successful candidate from a strong field of a large number of applicants. Everyone involved in the process was delighted when Jo accepted the post and confirmed her availability to start in it in September. Jo herself has said that she is thrilled with this new opportunity to work with Lisa Austin and the rest of the School’s staff. She already lives nearby in , where she completed her own secondary education at King Alfred’s School. She is currently Deputy Headteacher at St Philip and St James’s Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School in Oxford. Prior to moving to that school in 2015 she was a class teacher at Brightwell-cum-Sotwell Church of England Primary School, so she is very familiar with the local area. Jo states that she sees the School as being on an exciting journey, and when she visited it recently could already see the fruits of the hard work the staff have put in during this difficult time. She is keen to support the staff to further this when she joins them. She also comments that the School is set in beautiful surroundings and she is aware of the strong community spirit that surrounds it. She is looking forward to drawing on what the local area has to offer. She is passionate about teaching and her ambition is for Blewbury School to flourish. She enjoys baking, music and going to the theatre, and in lockdown she took up yoga and building giant Lego models. Jo will be visiting the School and the village before she starts in September and we will I am sure all look forward to welcoming her and wishing her every success in her new position. Roger Murphy, Blewbury School Community Governor DAMAGE TO COB WALL Two boys have been seen (but not yet identified) causing deliberate damage to the cob wall that runs between the Red Lion and the Playclose. Perhaps people could keep an extra eye out when in the vicinity of these unique bits of Blewbury’s heritage. – Editor

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8 FROM OUR CANADIAN CORRESPONDENT There are lots of famous Canadians, but where to start? Should we begin with the people who discovered North America (believing it to be Asia) such as John Cabot (Italian) in 1497 for Henry VIII, and Jacques Cartier (French), who made three journeys, the last in 1541-2 when he named his find Canadas from the Iroquoian names for two big settlements at Stadacona (now Quebec City) and Hochelaga (Montreal Island); so technically he could be called the first resident of Canada! Commander George Vancouver arrived on the Pacific coast much later, in 1791, on board the HMS Discovery, and named many places after himself and members of his crew. And let’s not forget Alexander Graham Bell who invented the telephone in 1881 (he has a lot to answer for!) He was born in Scotland in 1847 but moved to Canada in 1870 with his parents. It was his work with deaf children that led to his experiments that eventually resulted in the invention of the telephone. Fascinatingly, though, he also learned and wrote down the Mohawk language, for which he was made an Honorary Chief. In the world of science, Dr David Suzuki is a popular television celebrity with his long running programme The Nature of Things and founder of the David Suzuki Foundation, ‘dedicated to finding ways for society to live in balance with the natural world that does sustain us’. And Sir Frederick Banting became the youngest recipient of the Nobel Prize for physiology and medicine for his work on diabetes and the joint discovery of insulin which has benefited millions. There have been 14 Canadian astronauts! Ten of these (including Chris Hadfield) have now retired but there are four on active duty, one of whom is scheduled to be on the next flight to the moon. There are also a couple of much admired disabled athletes, Terry Fox who walked across Canada with a prosthetic leg and whose statue can be seen in one of Victoria’s parks on Vancouver Island, and Richard Hansen, who suffered a spinal cord injury at the age of 15, in spite of which he undertook his Man in Motion World Tour, participated in the Paralympic Games and was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in 2006. The Arts/Entertainment field deserves its own article, perhaps next time! Angela Hoy ([email protected]) LETTER FROM DAVID JOHNSTON MP We’ve had two Cabinet Ministers visit the constituency in the past month. First up was Priti Patel, Home Secretary, in support of Matt Barber’s (successful) campaign to be the Police and Crime Commissioner. She visited Great Western Park, where residents have had considerable problems of unauthorised traveller camps. This is something I have raised in the House of Commons on more than one occasion and something that Matt has campaigned against with people like Cllr Ian Snowdon. GWP residents appreciated meeting her as she is bringing forward the new laws on this problem. The second was Kwasi Kwarteng, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. This came about after I told him about Johnson Matthey’s new flagship site at Milton Park to develop and test the next generation of electric vehicle batteries; he said he’d be pleased to visit. After the official opening I took him to Greencore Construction’s Springfield Meadows development in . I have already brought the Minister for Science, Research and Innovation to see their impressive homes and set up Greencore to meet the Government’s Net Zero Champion, too, but I am keen for as many in government as possible to see how they’ve built not just net zero but carbon-positive homes. While on the subject of the environment, I am holding a pre-COP26 summit for constituents on 1st July at which we’ll talk about some of the key issues we need to make progress on, showcase some of the great local organisations we have locally – including Greencore – and agree ideas to send to Alok Sharma, President of COP26, ahead of the summit. It has been good to be able to have more face-to-face meetings and visit more places as lockdown has eased. I have had very enjoyable visits to all sorts of shops, pubs (such as the Radnor Arms in Coleshill) and restaurants (such as the Fish in ). Other highlights have included Tom Brown’s School Museum in Uffington, still in its original 1617 school building, and Flowers from Molly in , which allows you to nominate someone to receive a bunch of flowers or a letter of hope if you think they could do with a lift. I have secured the cross-party support I needed to be able to hold a debate in parliament on the performance of Royal Mail; it is clear we are not the only area that has been having problems. It is now just a question of when the debate can be scheduled. I read in the paper that in Wantage and Grove some residents have just received post from up to 13 years ago as a former postal worker had it in their home this whole time, but I don’t think that accounts for the problems we’ve had! As ever, if I can help with anything then do let me know via [email protected]

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News from St. Michael’s Rector - The Revd Jason St. John Nicolle BENEFICE OFFICE - 01235 850267

During the current situation provisional bookings for Weddings, Baptisms etc. may be made by contacting the office via email.

You can contact the clergy & staff on: - Revd Jason 01235 850267 [email protected] Revd Louise 07837 009730 [email protected] Dawn 850267, 07434 686044 or [email protected] is in the office from 12-4pm Monday & 9am-5pm Tuesday to Friday.

Please note: all Services and Events are subject to last minute changes or cancellations if Government social restrictions change due to Covid 19.

Food Bank Collection Saturday 29 May - 7 June

St. Michael’s Action Group regularly collect items for the Didcot Food Bank. Drop off at the Old School House between these dates or at the Post Office anytime.

Midweek Communion Choral at Blewbury Church Evensong This will take place on the 3rd Thursday of the month at 10am. Sunday 27 June - 6pm Bells, choir & congregational singing The next service is on Thursday 17 June. All welcome For the safety of others, please wear a face covering. NB: this event is subject to step 4 restrictions being lifted on 21 June.

Confirmation Service by Rt Revd Gavin Collins, Bishop of Dorchester Sunday 13 June - 10.30am at St. Andrew’s Hagbourne Please pray for all the candidates who will be confirmed: Henrike de Ridder, Beatrice Elsmore-Wickens, Jasmine Gover, Tabitha Goyder, Poppy Inglis & Charlotte Kieft

DAWN HAS GOT A NEW JOB!

Dawn Saunders has recently been offered and accepted an exciting new full-time job working in the Treasurer’s Department of Christ Church, which is one of the Oxford University colleges.

We very much want to congratulate her on this and wish her well with this new job. She has worked as the Administrator in the Churn Benefice Centre in Blewbury for 19 years, so this is going to be a big change for her and for us.

Her last day in the Churn Benefice Centre is likely to be Friday 11 June and she will be starting her new job just over one week after that. It is planned that there will be a presentation for her on Sunday 13 June at around 11:30am in the churchyard of St Andrews Church, immediately after the Confirmation Service which will be there and involve the new Bishop of Dorchester the Right Reverend Gavin Collins.

Anyone wishing to contribute to her leaving present and/or attend that outdoor presentation is welcome to do so, as it won’t be number limited in the same way as the actual indoor Confirmation Service.

Contributions to Dawn's leaving present can be made electronically to the Churn Benefice Bank Account (Sort Code: 40-52-40 Account No: 00006301 marked 'Dawn Leaving Present') or by cheque or cash to Rev Louise Butler or Roger Murphy (Churn Benefice Treasurer) ideally by 6 June.

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Saturday 5 June - 10am - 4pm Blewbury School Exhibition - Tree of Life St. Michael’s Church Blewbury

Sunday 6 June - 3pm Open Air Service for all ages - Trees for Life Blewbury Play Close

Bring a rug - some chairs provided.

June Pram Service Hosted by The Churn Mothers Union Our MU Pram Service team invite you to their half-term PICNIC with PLAY + PRAISE + PRAYER 12pm on Wednesday 2 June outside St. Michael’s Blewbury All ages welcome - join in or sit and watch. Bring your own picnic and rug. Some chairs available. Extra DRINKS & CAKE will be served. Revd Louise Butler 07837 009 730

Funeral 19 May at West Berks Crematorium Jane Sutcliffe (Blewbury) Aged 91 May she rest in peace and rise in glory.

Grace before meals

Is it your custom to say a short prayer of thanks before you sit down to eat? Some people do, and some people don’t. I can remember one occasion on which everyone present sang the grace, using the following words:

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow, Praise him, all creatures here below, Praise him above, ye heavenly host, Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

I wonder if these words ring a bell? They come from a hymn, “Awake my soul, and with the sun”, written by a 17th century Englishman, Thomas Ken. Thomas was born in 1637, and in 1685 he was appointed Bishop of Bath and Wells. Three years later, there was a political revolution, and the then king, James II, fled to France. William of Orange was invited to become the new king, and in due course he was crowned as William III, and his wife Mary as Mary II. However, the previous king, James II, was still alive. Many people were placed in a difficult position. They had sworn their oaths of loyalty to James II: did they keep their oath to James, or did they take a pragmatic view, and swear a new oath to the new King William? Thomas felt that he could not in good conscience take the coronation oath to King William, and in due course he was deprived of his bishopric. Thomas spent his retirement living at Longleat, a guest of his friend Lord Weymouth. Thomas was a very godly man and is often regarded as one of the saints of the church. His saint’s day is 8 June, and that’s why I’m writing about him this month.

I’m thinking of Thomas words, which I have quoted earlier: Praise God, from whom all blessings flow, praise him, all creatures here below. We enjoy so many blessings in our life, and more often than not we take them pretty much for granted. God must look at us and say to himself: what ungrateful creatures they are! I think it would be good for us to pause, from time to time, and say a prayer of thanks to God. We might even be tempted to sing the four lines of Thomas’s hymn! But it doesn’t have to be anything so formal or elaborate. I’m sure God will be happy with a simple “thank you”! Father Jason

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12 Read our most recent newsletter at sustainable-blewbury.org.uk/newsletter_latest.pdf Sustainable Blewbury home heating group For many of us, heating our homes is the biggest contributor to our carbon footprint. Lower-carbon solutions such as heat pumps are available, but each home is different, and it can be a challenge to find what’s most suitable and affordable in each case. We’ve formed a new group within Sustainable Blewbury to improve our own knowledge and help others to find out what could work for them. Seven people came to the first (virtual) meeting of the group on 4th May, bringing a lively mix of knowledge and experience – we learned quickly that we all have unanswered questions and none of our homes are perfect! Ideas came forward about installing underfloor heating in old houses, insulation, air source and ground source heat pumps and more. We plan three main activities: (1) to arrange outside speakers with specific experience; (2) to collect information, especially personal practical experiences that complement the official and commercial literature; (3) to share the information and help anyone to find ways to make their heating more sustainable. Anyone is welcome to bring information, ideas and questions – no knowledge or commitment is required. Please contact Neville Hargreaves: [email protected] for more information. Blewbury Garden Market We are off to a flying start this year, with several record-breaking Saturday morning sessions (9.15 to 11.15 am) and with a big boost from the Blewbury Bread Company. The main interest so far is mainly plants and seedlings, but we expect to get more produce as the season progresses. We also have ample supplies of local honey and jam. If you have surplus produce, fruit, vegetable or flower seedlings, or preserves or baked goods, bring them along at 9.00 am on a Saturday and we can try to sell them (you keep 90% of the price). If you would like to volunteer to help on the stall (in a COVID-safe way), please contact either Eric (850558 or 07935 232 296) or John (850372). BLEWBURY FREECYCLE E-MAIL TEL NO. FREE ITEMS TO A GOOD HOME A pair of retro/ vintage wood case Japanese Lafayette SK-300 Nick Forder 01235 850744 decoretteV 25w 8 ohm audio speakers [email protected] 5ft Airsprung king size bed with 4 drawers underneath. Comes from Susanne Booth 850856 spare bedroom so not used much. [email protected] 07504 070324 If you have any items to freecycle please email a short description (using ‘freecycle’ as your subject), and include your email and phone number. Lydia Inglis ([email protected]). Getting involved in Sustainable Blewbury can contribute to the village and its environment. To participate, or to receive our free bi-monthly Newsletter, email [email protected] or phone 850372. BLEWBURY AND UPTON VILLAGE PRODUCE ASSOCIATION – Your village gardening club CANCELLATION OF THE 2021 ANNUAL SUMMER SHOW The VPA Committee has been required to give serious thought as to whether the Summer Show should go ahead in July, the main concern being the current status of Covid-19. Will it ever come to an end? Things start to look up and then another Variant appears on the horizon. A big worry now is the Indian Variant which is proving more virulent than any other so far. The Government continues discussions on lockdowns, easing, and more recently, suggestions of ending social distancing and no more masks, etc. Many decisions and arrangements will not be confirmed by the Government until the end of June. Careful consideration has been given by the VPA Committee to various problems, including the limited time left to organise the event, the entrants having only five weeks to prepare their exhibits by the 10th July and most importantly, the currently unknown safety aspects required relating to Covid-19. It is therefore the decision of the Committee to cancel the 2021 Annual Show. We will keep everyone updated over the coming months with regard to the future of the VPA. A couple of Did You Know? to cheer you up: 1. Dried nasturtium seeds were ground into a powder during the Second World War as a replacement for pepper. 2. Claude Monet (1840-1926) said “I perhaps owe having become a painter to flowers.” Eileen YOUR EYES 2 Your eyes are for the gods to weep for they would love but cannot keep what I have found that they all seek. - Jedi Dave

13 F DONKATHON! You may be puzzled as to what a Donkathon is: it’s like a Marathon but with donkeys! Polly Vacher MBE, who was the first woman to fly solo round the world twice including over the polar regions, is taking on a new challenge when she drives her donkeys Wizard and Muffin on an epic 200 mile journey from North Moreton to North Wales starting on Friday 25th June. They will travel approximately 8 miles a day and the journey will take one month finishing on 25th July. Everyone is invited to see Wizard and Muffin on their way as they leave North Moreton for the Donkathon Challenge. Turn up at Melhuish Farm, Wallingford Road at 10.30am on Friday 25 June – ALL WELCOME. There will be hot drinks Photo Bernard Mattimore and bacon butties to purchase from Tim's bus, two pipers to send them on their way and two outriders and of course the celebrity donkeys Wizard and Muffin (not forgetting Nelson the dog). To quote Polly: “The Donkathon is a 200 mile journey from North Moreton to St Melangell in the Pennant Valley, North Wales. This is first and foremost a challenge for the donkeys and for us as well! We want it to be something positive after a year of Covid restrictions and the aim is to encourage anyone who is interested to come and join the fun. It is also raising funds for research into the progressive debilitating disease of the Central Nervous System – Multiple Sclerosis.” Please see www.donkathon.org for more details and the full route. HAVE YOU BEEN RESCUED FROM AN ELECTRICAL, PLUMBING OR OTHER NON-MEDICAL EMERGENCY? It has been suggested to the Bulletin that we might consider putting together a short list of local qualified professionals who have a proven record of providing a 24-hour emergency call-out service. Electricians, plumbers, locksmiths, glaziers: whatever it might be, if you have recently experienced a domestic emergency and have been impressed by the service provided, we want to hear from you! Local suppliers only please – not national organisations. Please email your recommendations to [email protected].

14 PARISH COUNCIL Notes of the Annual Parish Council meeting held at 7.30 pm on Wednesday 12 May 2021 by e-conference. Present: Mark Blythe (Chair), Jane Gibson, Lydia Inglis, Michael Penington, Miriam Jacobs, Vaughan Humphries, Phil Kilroe, Dermot Matthias and Mark Shayler. Also present Elizabeth Cooper (Clerk), David Hollick (Lengthman), County Councillor Sally Povolotsky and District Councillor Hayleigh Gascoigne. The PC voted to co-opt Dermot Matthias as a new councillor. Mark Blythe was elected Chair for the meeting. Lydia Inglis was elected Vice-Chair of the PC. Post-flood repairs are complete at Blewbury Clubhouse, which is now open for bookings. The PC welcomed newly-elected Lib Dem County Councillor Sally Povolotsky, who is happy to hear from villagers on any OCC-related issue. PLANNING APPLICATIONS All Blewbury planning applications, decisions and Parish Council responses, including items under consideration, can be found in the ‘Parish’ section of the Blewbury website (http://blewbury.co.uk/parish/planning/), which is updated monthly. Links are also provided to the main Vale Planning site, where full details can be obtained. Responses to the District Council: P21/V1029/HH The Bungalow, South Street - Replacement of windows and front door. Painting of external walls. BPC has no objections P21/V0717/FUL Blewbury Riding Centre, Bessels Way - Construction of steel frame barn. BPC has no objections. P21/V0959/HH Tylers, Bessels Way - Alterations/extension to existing private dwelling to convert/extend existing garage to bedroom. BPC has no objections. Decisions from the District Council: P21/V0431/HH Grove House, Bessels Way - Proposed single storey rear extension. Granted. P21/V0801/HH 32 Eastfields - Replacement rear extension (larger) and front dormer. Granted. P21/V0652/HH 7 Millbrook Close - Erection of new rear single storey extension. Partial conversion of existing storage space into new ensuite. Granted. P21/V0537/HH Lyvennet, Bessels Way - Loft conversion with hip to gable alteration and elevated roofline, single storey side extension. Granted. P21/V0338/HH Beavers, South Street - New self-contained incidental room/office in garden. Granted. Enquiries regarding planning in the parish may be sent to [email protected] The next meeting of the Parish Council will be held at 7.30 pm on Wednesday 9 June 2021 at the Village Hall. NEED TO CONTACT YOUR PARISH COUNCILLORS? Mark Blythe The Manor, Berry Lane Phil Kilroe, Middle Paddock, Berry Lane Jane Gibson 5 Westbrook Green Dermot Mathias The Old Mill, Berry Lane Vaughan Humphries 3 Cossicle Mead Michael Penington Cleve Cottage, Chapel Lane Lydia Inglis Chapmans, Nottingham Fee Mark Shayler 2 Eastfields Miriam Jacobs Tudor Cottage, Rd Elizabeth Cooper (part-time Clerk) 07968 772935 You can also email the part-time Parish Clerk at [email protected]

The next dates for donations to the Didcot Food Bank are SATURDAY 29th MAY until MONDAY 7th JUNE 2021. The boxes will be outside the Charity School House (opposite the Church) during these dates. Please do not leave any donations if the boxes are not there. If you can give even one item of dried goods, tins, UHT milk, toiletries or household cleaning items, soap and toiletries, pet food or items for babies - all donations are accepted with sincere thanks. There is always a Food Bank donations box at the Post Office. You can now also make a cash donation online at https://didcotbaptist.churchsuite.co.uk/donate/ Thank you for your continued support. St Michael’s Church Action Group and Didcot Food Bank. THANKS TO JIM GOODING If you have been walking round the village recently you may have noticed that many of the wooden benches have been cleaned and freshly wood-stained. The two on the Pound and some in the Playclose; one of which was covered in lots of foliage which has been carefully cleared away, cleaned and repaired. Thanks go to Jim Gooding of Dibleys who has done an excellent job and undertook this task voluntarily and diligently. Many thanks Jim. Pat Mattimore

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16 BLEWBURY CLIMATE ACTION County Council Elections We now have a new County councillor representing the Hendreds and Harwell district of . I am very aware that some people reading this article may have a very different point of view as to the success or not success of these elections. But it has to be regarded as promising for the climate and for biodiversity that our elected Lib Dem County Councillor, Sally Povolotsky has said she is committed to working to ensure that OCC adopts a target of 30% of land being well managed for nature by 2030. Sally is an award winning Female Engineer who runs her own business. Our VWHDC District Councillors (Sarah Medley and Hayleigh Gascoigne) are also committed to tackling the climate emergency. All three ladies are Lib Dems, so I think we can assume that working together they will make an excellent team. 1st–12th November UN Climate Change Conference UK 2021 (COP26) hosted by UK in Glasgow. There are now less than six months to go to COP26, which could be the most important climate conference ever held. The UN calculates that greenhouse gas emissions must drop by 45% in the next decade to limit global temperatures to 1.5℃ above pre-industrial levels. Climate change and violence in Africa: no time to lose Read at bit.ly/3vfoVTT what African journalists are saying about the correlation between violence and climate change in some of the world’s poorest countries: “The African Union is the first international body to tackle the problem head-on, and it needs global support”. And “Eighty percent of current United Nations-led peace operations are deployed in countries ranked most exposed to climate change” Ban on sale of peat compost to gardeners should be brought forward, campaigners say Read at bit.ly/3f0o6II The Independent reports that campaigners say that the ban on the sale of peat compost to gardeners by 2024 is not ambitious enough and should be brought forward to the end of this year. A group of 46 wildlife conservation charities has urged the government to commit to ending sales before the COP26 climate summit in November. Jo Lakeland Email [email protected] DISTRICT COUNCIL UPDATE A full version of this abridged article can be found on the Local Government News page of the Blewbury website - Editor Hello! We hope that everyone has been able to enjoy the latest easing of restrictions, as we continue on the roadmap out of lockdown. The Covid-19 infection rates remain at low levels in Oxfordshire as the vaccination programme is rolled out. However, Covid-19 still presents a real risk, particularly with the emergence of new variants, so we need to keep doing everything we can to control the spread of the virus. Local elections took place at the start of May, so we’d like to take this opportunity to thank Mike Fox-Davies for his work as our county councillor, and we wish him well for the future now that he has stepped down. Congratulations and a warm welcome to Sally Povolotsky, who was elected as the new county councillor for the Hendreds and Harwell division. Many of you already know Sally from her involvement in numerous community activities and sustainability groups in the local area, and we have no doubt that she will bring the same passion and dedication to her new role. We look forward to working closely with Sally to tackle the key issues facing our local communities, such as healthcare provision, sustainability and active travel. Covid-19: Our residents seem to be coping well as we come out of lockdown, but our Community Hub remains on hand to provide support and advice for anyone who needs to self-isolate as a result of a positive test. There are supermarket vouchers still available and help with fuel bills, but the scheme closes on 20 June so anybody who needs help should email [email protected] before then. Business Support: For details of the support grants available to businesses, please visit svbs.co.uk. White Horse Community Lottery: Local charities and good causes in the Vale of White Horse will soon be able to get a funding boost from the forthcoming new White Horse Community Lottery. The lottery will have a weekly jackpot of £25,000 and will be available for residents to play online. Any charities or voluntary and community organisations wanting to register interest, please contact Alison at [email protected]. Councils offer chance to win a Micro scooter in their air quality superhero competition for primary school children Vale of White Horse and South Oxfordshire district councils have launched a competition for primary school children to design a superhero to tackle air pollution. The councils will be giving a new Micro scooter* as a top prize to one winner in each district. Children can draw their superheroes or create them as models. The judges are looking for a hero who can easily get about without using cars and whose superpowers can help make our air cleaner and clearer. To take part in the competition visit https://bit.ly/3f25VT6 Getting active across the districts: With restrictions lifting, most of the activities run by the Active Communities team are now returning with more to come, including the family Xplorer events in Wantage next month. You can find out more at whitehorsedc.gov.uk/activecommunities or southoxon.gov.uk/activecommunities.

17 Autumn Leaves All Autumn Leaves activities are on hold until further notice. In the meantime keep well and stay safe. For any further information call Norman Webb (850700) or Doreen Tyrrell (850332). Free and friendly help for computer users every Tuesday morning from 10:00 to 12:00. We provide help remotely using telephone, Facetime, Skype, Zoom, Teams, WhatsApp or whatever is best for you. Book a 30 minute appointment by emailing [email protected] or by phoning 07780 958249. Our next online meeting will be 10:30 – 11:15 on Tuesday 15 June on the theme of “Try something new”. What would you like to do online but haven’t yet? Join in to hear what others would like to try. Book a place via the email address above. For more details visit www.astonsonline.uk. BLEWBURY GOOD NEIGHBOURS If you live in Blewbury and are self-isolating due to COVID-19 we can help with: • Urgent supplies • Picking up shopping • A friendly phone call • Other essential errands • Free hot meal delivery service • Help (by phone if necessary) with setting up Skype, WhatsApp, Facetime etc – just ask! Please text/call one of the following three phone numbers and a volunteer will arrange to help you: 851777 (Blewbury Post Office), 07825 154842, 07801 932393. If you would like to volunteer, please also call or visit the Blewbury Good Neighbours Facebook page.

BLEWBURY FLYING SQUAD The Flying Squad service is suspended until further notice. BLEWBURY POST OFFICE OPENING HOURS Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays: 8.30 am - 12 noon and 2.30 - 5 pm (Last mail acceptance time: 4.30 pm) Wednesdays: 8.30 am - 12 noon (Last mail acceptance time: 10.00 am) Saturdays: 9.30 am - 12 noon (Last mail acceptance time: 10.00 am)

June Bin Collection Days: Food waste bin: *Wednesday 2nd, Tuesday 8th, 15th, 22nd and 29th. Grey bin or pink sack: *Wednesday 2nd, Tuesday 15th and 29th. Green bin or sack, and brown bin: Tuesday 8th and 22nd. VILLAGE DIARY for June 2021 Page Wednesday 2 12 pm Pram Service and picnic, outside St Michael’s church 11 Saturday 5 10am-4pm Blewbury School Tree of Life exhibition, St Michael’s church 11 Sunday 6 3 pm Open air service, Playclose 11 Wednesday 9 7.30 pm Parish Council meeting, Village Hall 15 Sunday 13 10am-2pm Blewbury Market, Village Hall car park 1 Wednesday 16 7.30 pm Deadline for July/August Bulletin – Swallows, Church Road Wednesday 23 7.30 pm WI Social Evening, Melland Room 7 Friday 25 10.30am Donkathon send-off, Melhuish Farm, Wallingford Road, North Moreton 14 HOW TO ADVERTISE IN THE BULLETIN The Bulletin welcomes advertisements from organisations and individuals based in Blewbury and immediately neighbouring villages. Space permitting, we also welcome ads from further afield if they do not duplicate existing local services, are not widely advertised elsewhere and are likely to be of interest to residents. Acceptance of advertisements does not imply endorsement of the products or services offered. Display advertisements must be submitted in one of three rectangular sizes: • 60mm wide x 40mm high (cost: £2.00) • 60mm wide x 85mm high (£4.00) • 90mm wide x 65mm high (£6.00) Artwork should be in black and white only. You can also send plain text for us to fit into an appropriately sized box. If you are advertising a village event you can also present it as plain editorial, i.e. not highlighted in a box, for no charge. All advertisements should be submitted to the Editor in the first instance, either emailed to [email protected] as a Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint, JPEG or PDF attachment, or typed/handwritten and delivered to Swallows, Church Road, Blewbury OX11 9PY. If your advertisement is accepted, please note that payment must be received before the Bulletin goes to press. If you require repeat insertions over multiple months, you will be referred to the Advertising Manager to make the appropriate arrangements. WRITTEN CONTRIBUTIONS We are always happy to receive editorial contributions. Text and images can be submitted in the same way as advertisements – see above. Anyone supplying information for publication must be responsible for its accuracy. We require name and contact details in all cases, although if requested these will not be published. The editor reserves the right to reject submissions. Opinions expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the Bulletin. To see the Bulletin online visit www.blewbury.co.uk. The Blewbury Bulletin is published at Swallows, Church Road, Blewbury, OX11 9PY. While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of published information, the Editor and Officers accept no responsibility for the consequences of any errors. Problems receiving your Bulletin? Call 01235 850337. Editor: Chris Whatmore, Swallows, Church Road, OX11 9PY tel 851055 [email protected]. Local Distribution Manager: Kathy Edmunds, Wayside Cottage, Westbrook Street, OX11 9QA tel 850337 [email protected] Postal & Email Distribution Manager: Helen White, Southbourne, Bessels Way, OX11 9NJ tel 850483 [email protected] Advertising Manager: Elizabeth Murphy, The White House, London Road, OX11 9PD tel 851244 [email protected] Treasurer: Rachael Richardson, Robinsons, Church Road OX11 9PY Webmaster: Peter Willison, Fleetwith, Nottingham Fee, OX11 9PG tel. 850936 [email protected].

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