Tarrington Tatler Volunteers and members of the Friendship Club had a garden party at the home of Graeme and Jeanette Forrester in August Deadline for submission for the next issue: Monday 23 November 2015 FOWNHOPE MEDICAL CENTRE Dr Alison Wood * Dr Mike Hearne * Dr Dinah Hawkyard * Dr Richard Kippax FLU CLINICS 2015 For patients of Fownhope Medical Centre eligible for flu vaccination: Friday evening, 9th October, 3.30pm – 6.00pm at Lady Emily Hall, Tarrington & Saturday morning, 10th October, 9.00am – 11.00am at Fownhope Medical Centre No appointment necessary For most people, flu is unpleasant but not serious. You will usually recover within a week. However, certain people are at greater risk of developing serious complications such as bronchitis and pneumonia. These conditions may require hospital treatment. The flu vaccine is offered to people who are at risk, to protect them from catching flu and developing serious complications. It is recommended that you have a flu jab if you: are 65 years old or over by 31 March 2016 are pregnant have a serious medical condition (see list of conditions below) are the main carer for an elderly or disabled person whose welfare may be at risk if you fall ill are a frontline health or social care worker – professional health and social care work- ers who are in direct contact with patients/clients should be vaccinated by their em- ployer as part of an occupational health programme If you suffer from any of the following conditions you are advised to have a flu jab: respiratory disease, such as asthma, COPD or bronchitis heart disease or heart failure chronic kidney disease chronic liver disease chronic neurological conditions, stroke or TIA, diabetes, a weakened immune system due to conditions or treatments such as chemotherapy 2 IS IT TIME TO SET YOUR WATCH? I have recently been contracted by the National Farmers Union and West Mercia Police as the Herefordshire Watch Scheme Coordinator. My role is to maintain and develop Neighbourhood Watch schemes across the County. What is a Watch Scheme? The aim of a Watch scheme is to bring together neighbours, businesses, farms, etc., to create strong, friendly, active communities where crime and anti-social behaviour are less likely to occur. It is ‘A Good Neighbour Scheme’. A Watch Scheme can help to promote a caring community that is focussed on trust and respect, in which people feel safe from harm and enjoy a good quality of life. A Watch Scheme is about making sure that no one has to feel afraid, vulnerable or isolated in the place where they live or work. It’s about people looking out for each other to create real communities that benefit everyone. The activities of Watch schemes are characterised by their diversity; there is not just one way to do things. Watch schemes are supported by the Police by way of newsletters, community alert messages, texts, emails, tweets and in fact the whole range of social media. There is also a national network with approximately 4 million households as members. Being a member of a Watch scheme keeps you informed, and in turn helps to build that safe and friendly community. In return, the Police will hope you will use that information and inform them about any suspicious persons, vehicles or activity, because before almost every crime or incident there is usually some suspicious activity. Today, the Police need your help, to help you. Where a Watch schemes exists, a place becomes more friendly and cohesive with re- search showing a significant fall in crime or the opportunities for crime. Herefordshire remains a safe place to live and work because ‘Crime cannot flourish in a community that cares’. May I ask you to consider the benefits of Watch schemes and should you require any further information, advice or guidance, please do not hesitate to contact me using the contact details below. Thank you Paul CRUMPTON Police Station Old Maids Walk Ross on Wye HR9 5HB Direct Dial: 01905 727402 Email:[email protected] 3 Flicks in the Sticks Films Lady Emily Hall All films start at 7.30pm, with refreshments and wine available both at the begin- ning and at a half-time interval. Tickets will be £4.50 (£2.50 U-16) at the door. If you need any help getting to the films, or could offer help to set up, serve teas etc., contact John Tallis. 17th October Woman in Gold (Cert. 12A) Ryan Reynolds and Helen Mirren star in this drama based on the real-life story of Maria Altmann and her legal campaign against the Austrian govern- ment. Mirren plays Altmann, who, since fleeing Europe during the Second World War, now lives in Los Angeles. When the death of her sister leads to Altmann finding out that a portrait of her aunt painted by Gustav Klimt was stolen by the Nazis from her family home during the war and now hangs in the Belvedere Palace in Vienna, she enlists the help of young lawyer Randy Schoenberg (Reynolds) and embarks on a legal campaign to reclaim her family's losses... Director: Simon Curtis Writers: Alexi Kaye Campbell, E.Randol Schoenberg Stars: Helen Mirren, Ryan Reynolds, Daniel Bruhl 14th November Timbuktu (Cert. 12A) This is a late substitution for the film originally chosen, which now won’t be available until January. This film brings the story (fictional, but influenced by real events) of how the Mali town copes with the 'liberation' by jihadis. As the movie opens, we see the jihadis having a shooting practice by destroying the local wood statues. The jihadis issue all kinds of rules (‘smoking is forbidden! Music is forbid- den!’), much to the irritation of the local Mali population. We get to know one local family in particular, a husband and wife with their 12 year old daughter. They live outside the city centre where the desert takes over, going about their daily business as best as possible. Then one day, one of the husband's cows accidentally destroys the fishing nets of the fisherman, who promptly kills the cow. The husband decides that he cannot tolerate this. Director: Abderrahmane Sissako Writers: Abderrahmane Sissako (screenplay), Kessen Tall (screenplay) Stars: Ibrahim Ahmed, Abel Jafri, Toulou Kiki 4 Disability Equipment Service Herefordshire (DESH) is a new local website which lists secondhand disability equipment no longer required and is being sold or given away by people who live locally. The site is administered and maintained by Herefordshire Carers Support. It is FREE to advertise and simple to use Visit www.herefordshirecarerssupport.org/desh If you prefer, you can call us on 01432 356068 Don’t forget to register with us as a carer if you care for a family member, friend or neighbour. We can provide you with the support you need via our support workers, a regular magazine, social events and groups. We recently had reason to take our cat to the vet due to a small lump un- der his armpit. It turned out that this lump was a pellet that was shot from an air rifle. Somebody in Tarrington has shot our cat! This has not only upset us dreadfully that any of our neighbours would do such a thing, it's also totally illegal to shoot a cat. We would like this to be printed to warn other cat owners, and to hopeful- ly bring this to everyone’s attention to see if we can get help to find out who did this dreadful thing. Lynn Lagor Faster Broadband in Tarrington Just to make residents aware, BT now has fibre-optic broadband availa- ble in Tarrington. I ordered it online a couple of months ago and was con- nected within a couple of weeks. There is a noticeable increase in the speed of my internet connection and I would certainly recommend it. For more information, visit www.bt.com and search for BT Infinity fibre broad- band packages. 5 COUNTRYSIDE JOTTINGS We are now enjoying Autumn, Keats’ ‘season of mists and mellow fruit- fulness’. The hedgerows are full of the last blackberries and wild dam- sons, the fields have been cleared of their harvest of wheat, barley, oats and field beans, in the orchards the trees are laden with cider apple fruit and the mist hangs heavy and spectacularly in the early morning. Spi- ders’ webs glisten in the sun and, sadly most of the swallows and house martins have started their journey back to North Africa. How silent it now seems. But now with the change in the season, the rooks are gathering, the starlings flocking together and flocks of geese graze in the stubble. This is the start of the arable year when farmers are planting their crops for harvest next year. They are gathering in and making sure that their stocks of winter feed for livestock are ready for use. It is the time of year for the ram sales. After a period of quarantine on their new farm home, the ram will be put in with the ewes to produce the next spring’s lamb crop. As beekeepers, we have taken off and processed our honey crop and have fed and prepared our bees in preparation for the coming winter. A local farm business has recently been successful at the Tenbury Coun- tryside Show of Hereford Cattle. This is the National Show of the Horned strain of Hereford Cattle. A 10-month old bull calf, Free Town Maelstrom, was awarded Supreme title, amongst other awards. The day was com- pleted with the herd being awarded Herd of the Year for 2015! Fly-tipping is a criminal offence and is an important issue in the country- side these days.