Burrator – Mathieu Twinning Visit A Group Photo outside Walkhampton Memorial Hall 2 Editorial Jenny Sharp Welcome to the Summer Edition of the Burrator Beacon. Hopefully the season of Summer will bring with it the summer weather we all long for, the rain we needed for the gardens has been around for the last few weeks, now we need some sun! Summer brings the usual round of Garden Society Shows - Meavy‟s is on 13th August and Walkhampton‟s on 27th August; Fun Days and Fetes – Sheepstor has a BBQ and Summer Fun Evening on 6th August and Walkhampton have their Fun Day on 18th September; our Churches are open to visitors with the added benefit of refreshments every Tuesday and Wednesday at St Mary‟s, Walkhampton and a walk followed by a cream tea at St Peter‟s, Meavy on 21st August. The beginning of September sees the 27th Annual Art and Craft Exhibition at Walkhampton where local artists display their talent. There should be plenty to keep people busy come rain or shine over the next few months. All these events are run by volunteers within your community. I know how difficult it can be to get people to volunteer their time or effort in helping out, we are all busy people with busy lives, be it jobs, families or both. You may not want to join a committee – I know that is not everyone‟s cup of tea, but all committees need extra bodies to help out on the day of the fair, the show, the exhibition, or the day before putting it all together, or the day after taking it all apart – your offer of just an hour‟s help will earn you a great big „thanks and yes please!‟. So while you are out and about this summer, take a moment to stop and think what goes on behind the scenes – there will be a few people paddling madly to keep things floating along smoothly! Enjoy what our local community provides – have a safe, restful summer with hopefully some sunshine! Publication dates of the Burrator Beacon are changing slightly; it will still be published four times a year, and will be delivered at the end of October, end of January, end of April and end of July. The copy deadline will be the 6th of the month each time. ‘TOTALLY WIRED’ - Electrician Local Electrician with 30 years Experience Electrical Safety Inspections & Certification Friendly Efficient Service, Free Advice & Estimates Part P Registered through NAPITS. Please call Alan on 07837 663575 or 01822 859021 See more details on my web page: http://www.totallywireddevon.co.uk/ Morris Bros. (Tavistock) Ltd Independent Funeral Directors est. 1870. Five generations of care in the Community. Elaine Morris & son, Simon Luke 24 hour service, private Chapel of Rest Golden Charter pre-paid funeral plan for your peace of mind. The Old Bedford Foundry, Lakeside, Tavistock PL19 0AZ 01822 612023 www.morrisbros.co.uk 3 Clerk’s Report Lucie A Luke – Parish Clerk The local Elections in May resulted in 9 Councillors being elected to the Parish Council: Tim MacDonald and Keith Scrivener for Sheepstor, Bridget Cole and Midge Wilkins for Meavy, John Howells and Jackie Moorhead for Meavy Dousland, Bill Andrew and Chas Symes for Walkhampton and Anita Bickell for Walkhampton Dousland. Two previous Councillors, Phil Cater and David Wright have also been co-opted back on to the Council at the end of June. John Howells has been appointed Chairman with Tim MacDonald as Vice Chair for 2011-2012. We thank David Hooper for his representation to Meavy Dousland Ward for many years. David was the Chairman of the Royal Oak Inn Committee and the Finance & General Purposes Committee. This leaves 5 vacancies on the Parish Council. Co-opting onto the Parish Council is very easy. Email or write to the Clerk with your details, complete two short forms that are then registered with West Devon and join us for monthly meetings. The Parish Council do not meet in August or December so you need only attend 10 meetings a year to represent your community. The Parish Council have recently instructed a full building survey of the Royal Oak Inn which has resulted in a 5 year maintenance plan being agreed. Works have now commenced on the exterior overhaul which will involve scaffolding being erected. For the duration of these works, the Parish Council have given permission to Stephen Earp to use the Village Green for his outside tables and we thank the residents of Meavy for their patience whilst this work is carried out. Friend’s of St Peter’s, Meavy Walk and Cream Tea Join us for an hour’s walk taking in the view of Meavy (departing 2pm) and then back to the Church for a cream tea at 3pm (or just join us for tea!) Donations for the Friend’s of St Peter’s More details contact Sarah Gordon - 854298 Terry Leythorne Dousland Fuels For all coal and smokeless fuel requirements Telephone 01822 890357 4 Meavy C of E Primary School Sue Blair - Headteacher It has been a busy term so far here at Meavy School, here are just a few of the highlights: Christian Aid Week - During May our children were involved in Christian Aid week and learned to appreciate the challenges faced by communities around the world We were particularly looking at the way Christian Aid helps to relieve the suffering caused by malaria. Induction evening for foundation children parents - In the last week before half term we held an Induction Evening for the parents of those children who will be starting school in September. The new intake will also be visiting the school on various dates during the summer term. It was a very enjoyable, as well as informative, evening Bird food - A huge thank you to Mr Paul Stubbs of the Devon Bird Watching & Preservation Society who has funded the bird food on the bird tables at school once again over the past year. We are hoping to see him during our „Out and About‟ week. PTFA sponsored bike ride - This was held on Saturday 25th June and was enjoyed by all despite the misty conditions. We are enormously grateful to our PTFA committee who work tirelessly on our behalf. Sports Day – Third time lucky – we were finally able to hold our Sports Day after the weather intervened on two previous attempts. It was a great morning and the children thoroughly enjoyed themselves as they raced for their house teams. It was very close with Raleigh and Drake both having exactly the same number of points and so being joint winners of the Cup. Grenville House - Our year 5 and 6 once again visited Brixham in May for the annual residential visit to Grenville house. The challenges, both mentally and physically, were met with great resilience and perseverance! Meavy Oak Fair – We are so pleased to be once again an integral part of the village and wider community at Oak Fair. The children really enjoyed performing the opening ceremony of “Noah‟s Ark and the Rainbow‟ and we were so pleased to have the special effects enhanced! The children in KS2 designed a cover for the programme with the winning design being used for the actual programme. The PTFA ran the bottle tombola and the Governors manned the plant stall. We had three members of staff, Miss Woods, Mrs Coupland and Mr Parkin, and a number of parents running in the Horseshoe – well done to them all. Leavers Service - This will take place at St Peter‟s Church Meavy on 21st July at 9.15 am. This is a really special time and all the parents are invited back to school to view the children‟s compilations of „My Life at Meavy‟ Out and About Week - During the week beginning the 27th June the school had a week devoted to learning in our local outdoor environment and the exploration of places of interest in the locality and beyond. It was a very interesting and diverse week, and many thanks go to all those who volunteered in any way. Sporting Tournaments - We have participated in a number of tournaments this term and we always feel that the Meavy spirit, of always having a go and trying your best, helps our children to achieve. Meavy came first in the Cricket tournament, our Hockey team came joint fifth out of a field of 60 schools from Plymouth, South Hams and West Devon and in the Athletics we achieved first place in West Devon with four of our children now going 5 on to compete in the Devon Athletics finals. Well done to all the children and to all the staff at school who devote so much time to ensuring that our children can take part in such events. Author in School – The children had an absolutely wonderful day working with the internationally acclaimed author Simon James who came into school this term. He particularly remembers Meavy in his early days as we were the first school that he visited and he based one of his characters on one of our past pupils! Have a lovely summer and enjoy the beautiful location where we are privileged to live and work. STOP PRESS – Congratulations to Meavy C of E Primary School for achieving a very good result after their recent OFSTED inspection. The school was judged „Good with some Outstanding Features‟ CLASSY K9’s Professional friendly dog grooming service. One to one personal care for every dog. All breeds/cross breeds welcome. Call Paula 01822 853446 NICOLA MOULE Carpets All Types of Carpets & Vinyls Supplied and Fitted The Complete Home Carpet Selection Service Kingsmead, Burrator Road, Dousland, PL20 6LU Tel.