Village News

September 2020

local MP’s about the disgraceful Parish Council decision by Council to Welcome back to our Newsletter ignore their well-reasoned and though we are still in a covid Neighbourhood Plan and allow restricted environment some house building outside the agreed aspects of our lives are slowly boundaries on the Filands site. This recovering. The village hall group happened because Wiltshire of Francis, Rick and Fred are Council themselves failed to meet working hard to get activities up their 5-year housing supply quota and running there and they need and was then our full support. The church is also vulnerable to speculative builders planning the start of some carefully and landowners. We have also controlled services. Our school is suffered similarly as Wiltshire going back and I know the staff Council has ignored our Plan over a have worked very hard to make number of issues. This is a that experience as safe as possible. complete betrayal by Wiltshire The one very sad piece of news is Council and the Government of the that Michaela and Mikey at the assurances given that the NP Wheatsheaf have told us they are would be important in future leaving at the end of the year. They planning decisions. There is of have new plans for their careers course massive pressure from the and I’m sure we all wish them the Government for new homes and very best in that. They will be even the controls that exist are missed. We hope that Enterprise now being over-ridden. are able to replace them. Speculative land owners and developers are currently creeping Malmesbury Town Council is all over the countryside. We hope leading a campaign to lobby all that Oaksey is already developing compared to alternative energy sufficiently to keep our Parish free renewable systems. from them and our NP will be We are already doing more than respected in the future. our bit in this area- for example in Talking about the loss of Wanborough and Rodbourne. The countryside to speculative ‘pain’ of renewable energy sites developers and following on from needs to be shared more the PC’s opposition to the massive strategically and not be led by solar farm at / Charlton (see speculative landowners who are the notice board on our web site) interested in pounds not the and its enormous battery housing environment and food production. unit , we now discover that Finally, this will catch your eye. We Bathurst estates are trying to caught this driver on camera destroy even more countryside recently and having informed the with acres of solar panels and this company and police, serious is much nearer on the county warning action was taken. Please border at Kemble Wick with about photo any other HGV’s you see three quarters in short cutting illegally through the and one quarter in . The village (or note number, Company site isn’t in Oaksey but borders it and time) and let me know and we (see the notice board on our web will make Oaksey safer and protect site). our old rail bridge for a bit longer! I don’t regard this as a NIMBY issue, because with just the enormous Minety development our North Wiltshire area is already massively over providing energy - it’s become a sort of powerhouse for other parts of the country. We will also be permanently losing more food producing capacity. Are we to believe that we have plenty of spare agricultural land to house solar panels which need such massive amounts of space

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Richard Moody a costly project and it has been Chairman – Parish Council made possible by Grants from Hills Landfill Fund, Crapper and Sons and the Oaksey Parish Council, Oaksey Village Hall through our friends at Community First. We are also commencing a We are pleased to announce that programme of re-painting the we are able to commence some outside of the Hall. The Hall is a activities at the Hall. Palate classes great asset to the village, and we take place on Mondays at 9.15am are determined to ensure that it is and Tuesdays at 6pm, details can maintained to a high standard. be obtained from Norma Liversidge on 07427 644350 or Fred Price 01666 577955 [email protected]. Yoga classes are on Wednesdays at 7pm and Fridays at 9.15am, details from Jess Thomas on 07727 688791 or [email protected]. Minety Dance are also back in Oaksey WI operation and details are available by phoning Debs Evans on 07894 On 9th July we held our meeting via 991545. General enquiries about Zoom. This time we tried virtual hirings at the Hall can be obtained Bingo with Liz as the caller. from Fred Price on 01666 577955 Winners Margaret and Di will be or [email protected]. In awarded their prizes when order to keep us all safe, activities possible. Members who were at the Hall will be subject to certain unable to take part in Zoom have Covid 19 restrictions, so please been sent good wishes cards with a read the notices as you enter the photograph of our zoom hat Hall and follow the instructions. evening. During the lockdown we have Our garden meeting in August was taken the opportunity to insulate to have been a ‘picnic in the park’, the ceiling of the main hall. This but unfortunately the should mean a warmer hall during unpredictable weather thwarted the winter months - and keep our this, although frustratingly the heating costs down. This has been afternoon turned out to be dry! Submit articles for future Parish Newsletters to [email protected] by 20 September

We are pleased to announce that dozen newspapers he brought we will be starting meetings again back from his travels round the in September. This meeting will be world. There was an interesting at 7.15pm on Thursday 11th general discussion afterwards with September in The Village Hall when everyone. A member had made a Rowena Palser will be giving an number of cards which were sold amusing talk “Duck chins and and had raised £65 for the Thank karaoke – becoming an air-hostess You Key Workers Appeal so at 50”. The meeting will be held another £50 was sent to the using Covid secure conditions. Mothers’ Union central office making £100 in all from the North If you would be interested in Wilts branch – well done our very joining our local WI and like to small branch. come to the meeting, please contact Jean Our next meeting will be on Secretary Jean Bennett – 577485 Monday, 7th Sept, with Pam [email protected]. Osborne at 10.30 a.m. – this is not on our usual day as it is our appointed Wave of Prayer Day when we pray for all our linked Dioceses worldwide and they will be praying for us - so the Mothers’ Union keeps in touch. We do Mother’s Union hope to be there. On Thursday, August 13th, a small Jane Gibbs number enjoyed a most interesting 577282 short talk from our Diocesan

President, Aurea Hart, about the end of the war in Europe based on North Wiltshire the letters sent between her Villages Flower parents at the time. As the Club meeting was just before VJ day and the end of WW2 Pam Osborne said Although a little about her father-in-law unfortunately the serving in the Royal Navy and Flower Club has been unable to showed the Fiji Times, one of the meet for six months, behind the Submit articles for future Parish Newsletters to [email protected] by 20 September scenes work has continued on 7.30pm (with some exceptions for planning future events as social events/visits as outlined in lockdown measures continue to our programme). We are a friendly ease. The committee met in late and enthusiastic group with July (socially distanced, outdoors) members from throughout the to discuss how best to move area. Visitors and potential new forward during these difficult members are guaranteed a warm times. Given the current welcome at our regular meetings, uncertainty over the opening of so please do come along if you’re venues, and the necessity of social interested. We really look forward distancing, it was felt that the to welcoming back both our remainder of the programme current members and any guests at planned for 2020 wasn’t feasible our next meeting which is planned and sadly would have to be for Wednesday 20th January 2021 cancelled. This includes our major (regulations permitting). Save the event for the year planned to be date! held at the Sundial Theatre In the meantime stay safe and well. in November. The only If you’d like to get in touch we can exception is our September AGM be contacted by email – which will be held via Zoom. [email protected]. We hope to actively re-start the Liz Parker Club from January 2021. A full [email protected] programme of events for next year has already been arranged, incorporating several originally planned for this year. As usual the Cirencester programme is very varied and Eating Disorder includes a good mix of workshops, self-help demonstrations, social events and support group visits. As with all mental health problems In 2021 we very much hope that this current crisis is having quite an Flower Club meetings will once impact on sufferers and carers of again take place at Crudwell Village eating distress. I am trying to keep Hall, SN16 9HB, on the third in touch with as many of my Wednesday of the month, 7pm for contacts as possible but as it is a

Submit articles for future Parish Newsletters to [email protected] by 20 September confidential service sometimes I Please contact your local GP if only have a Christian name. you feel unwell There are online forums and so GPs in Wiltshire are reminding you much info to access that at the that while practices remain open, moment that is all I can offer. first contact should always be The National BEAT and F.E.A.S.T made by telephone, at which point websites are a good source and I the most appropriate appointment have contact too with ABC type will be offered. Anorexia and Bulimia Care based in If you have any concerns about Bristol who also offer a free online your health, especially if you're support hub every Thursday. showing symptoms that could be https://www.facebook.com/abcch the early warning sign of a serious arity/ condition such as cancer, do not https://www.instagram.com/anor hesitate to contact your local GP exiabulimiacare/ practice. I hope this extra info helps. Remember you can always contact me for a one to one chat too! The group has recently had an acknowledgement of support from St. James Place in Cirencester/A donation from the Soroptimist International of Cirencester and Services also being nominated as one of the charities in Waitrose who will Our Harvest Festival service will, benefit from the Caring Matters this year, take place earlier than scheme during August. normal, on Sunday, 13th Contact Pat in confidence for September. Please note that the further details about the local service will be at 10am instead of group. the usual 11am. Further details of the service can be found in Tonya’s Pat Ayers 01285 770385. message below.

Submit articles for future Parish Newsletters to [email protected] by 20 September

Sunday, 27th September – Holy like to donate via your church, then Communion service at Oaksey at please let me know. 10am. This service is for the Cluster I recently had a conversation with 2 Churches i.e. Oaksey, Charlton & an old friend, who all her life has . lived in a city. She said: ‘Harvest Greetings from Revd. Tonya festivals are out of date, they are not needed, as so many people I wonder how your summer has have little contact with the land’. been? Have you gone away or have Well, perhaps you can imagine my you stayed at home? What a reply! Harvest is a significant strange spring and summer it has festival in the lives of many people, been and who knows what the whether you live in the countryside autumn and winter will hold. or in a large city. Harvest is a time where we ought to say thank you Our churches are open, some for to those who work on the land and prayer and one for Sunday thank you to God for all that he worship. However, it is now the gives us. It is also a time where we season of harvest and it was ought to think about those who do agreed with myself and not have enough to eat and Churchwardens to have our perhaps ponder on how food can Harvest Festival Services early this be distributed more fairly. year. In some of our churches in the past, we have held Harvest For many of us, when we have later in the autumn. This year it’s enough, it is so easy to take that for different, they are early, as we do granted. Covid-19 has robbed not know what will happen later people of so much and the on. vulnerable in our society have been hit the hardest. Sadly, there will be no Harvest lunches or suppers and we will not To not have a Harvest Festival be bringing any actual gifts into service in each of the six churches church. Instead though, I’m asking in Braydon Brook Benefice would people to bring along a monetary be wrong. Why don’t you come donation to the Food Bank in and be a part of it and join in the Malmesbury. It would seem that celebration where we give and their need is great, and their don’t count the cost? And why finances are lacking. If you would don’t you come and take a Submit articles for future Parish Newsletters to [email protected] by 20 September moment to give thanks to God for 27th Cluster 1, Holy Communion all that he does provide? at Minety Church (Ashley, Crudwell & Minety) A Happy Harvest to everyone. Cluster 2, Holy Communion Blessings to you all. at Oaksey Church Tonya (Charlton, Hankerton & Church Planter Oaksey)

You may have noticed by now that Services on Zoom/You Tube a ‘new’ Planter has been placed to 6th Morning Worship service on the left of the North door of the You Tube at 10am Church. The Planter has been made & up-cycled from the old Church 13th BCP Evening Prayer via gates which were replaced a while Zoom at 6.30pm ago. We are sure you will agree 20th F&F Harvest service via that this is a great example of up- Zoom at 10am cycling made possible by the skills and efforts of Mike Martin of The F&F Harvest service on You Green. Our grateful thanks go to Tube at 6.30pm Mike for this wonderful and 27th Morning Prayer via Zoom at enduring addition to the 10am Churchyard. Jerry Falkingham Braydon Brook Group Church 01666 577956 services – September 2020 [email protected]

Services in Church at 10am

6th Charlton, Harvest Festival Hankerton, Harvest Festival 13th Oaksey, Harvest Festival Crudwell, Harvest Festival with Archdeacon Christopher Bryan 20th Minety, Harvest Festival Ashley, Harvest Festival

Submit articles for future Parish Newsletters to [email protected] by 20 September