TRANSPORT
Review of subsidised bus services
The County Council will
be reviewing subsidised bus services in the Banbury area during the autumn. The review will also cover school bus
services, with the possibility that these may be used by the general public or
that services are combined. Any changes would take effect from July 2001. If
the timing of the consultation permits, I will give more details in the next
issue. The only subsidised service that affects Hook Norton is the 7.48am bus
to Banbury, due to arrive at the bus station at 8.25. Subject to any other comments I may receive and to what
the consultation document says when it arrives, I shall ask that this runs
later (about 20 minutes?). There is
already a bus from Hooky at 7.23, and the following one is 2½ hours later. Though not related to the subsidised
services, I shall point out the very poor connections when travelling by bus
from Hooky to Oxford via Chipping Norton, or when returning via Banbury. If anyone
has any comments on the local bus services, please let me know.
Cheney bus, Cherwell Villager and Moreton
market bus
The
Cheney (school days) bus to Banbury at 9.25am and the return trip at 2.05pm has
ceased to operate since 20 September due to lack of passengers. This maybe due to lack of publicity as I
have seen nothing about this bus except what I have published myself!
The
Cherwell Villager minibus, on Wednesdays only, leaves the Church at 10.05am and
Banbury bus station at 12.30pm.
The
bus to Moreton-in-Marsh market on Tuesdays is now run by Bakers and leaves the
village just before 10.00am for a morning’s shopping.
Bus route and timetable enquiries
A
new national bus enquiry service has been set up to enable people to ask about bus services in any part of the
country and about connections to another operator’s buses. The phone number is
0870 608 2608.
Shoppers’ bus
A
record attendance for recent times on 17 August, with 26 on the bus. It’s a full-size bus (not like The Villager)
so there is still plenty of room . Come and join us - it’s only £1 - why pay
more? The bus leaves The Bourne (Fire
Station end) at 9.00am, the Church at 9.15am and The Green and Austins Way on
its way out. It returns from Banbury
bus station at 12.00 noon and is back here by 12.30pm. It will run on Thursdays 12 and 26 October,
9 and 23 November and 7 December.
Anyone can use the bus, but must put their name on the list in the Post
Office first.
Visit Chatsworth
Virgin Trains have a promotion, running until 29 October on Mondays-Fridays only, offering a trip to Chatsworth by train and bus for £20 adults (£13 children, Family ticket £55). The fare includes admission. You can catch a train at 7.26am or 8.25am from Banbury station to Macclesfield, thence by special bus to and from Chatsworth. You must catch the return bus at 4.20pm and will be due back at Banbury just after 8pm. Tickets are limited, and must be booked at least 7 days in advance, either at Banbury station (ask for a leaflet) or by phoning 08457 222 333.
Peter
Fry 730509
OUT OF THE BLUE
Have you ever
thought of becoming a neighbourhood
watch co-ordinator?
I’m sure you
haven’t - well now is the time! You
will be pleased to know we are on a recruitment drive in an effort to set up
more active neighbourhood watch schemes within the village of Hook Norton. You may say that you do not live in a high
crime area and compared to some areas, you do not, but Hook Norton does suffer
from car crime, burglary and mindless criminal damage. We need your eyes and ears to help us reduce
crime and to this end, I hope to set up a neighbourhood watch evening on Wednesday 18 October 2000, at a venue
to be decided.
Please don’t
think that because you become a neighbourhood watch member you are chained to
your house, or will be inundated with paperwork. Modern technology has come to
the Thames Valley so we are computerised and as we like to keep watch schemes
small and manageable, you do not have to trudge the streets taking information
to all.
The scheme is
also a two-way path; you supply information to us and we provide information to
you. You will also receive a quarterly
magazine bringing you information from other areas as well as up to date crime
prevention news etc. Please - talk to
your neighbours and watch out for the venue of this not to be missed
evening. Thank you for reading
this.
Rosemary Dilsaver
WPC818
GUIDES
The summer holidays were a really busy time
for many of Hook Norton Guides and Leaders.
One highlight was the county international camp in Bromsgrove.
This
report is by Catherine Crick:
COSMIC 2000 12-19
August
Cosmic 2000 was a Guide camp for all the Guides in Oxfordshire (about 600 of
them) plus Internationals from seven different countries. Camps like this
happen every five years, but because it's the year 2000 the theme was space and
the cosmos.
Unlike normal camps (I hasten to add) the Guide leaders did all the work, while
we went off to join in a range of activities which included grass sledging,
archery, abseiling, international games, crafts, pioneering (making things out
of logs and rope), cooking and amateur radio. It was all really fun.
The camp was extra special for me because I won the competition to design the
camp badge. My design was printed on sweatshirts, tee shirts, neckers and
almost everywhere so I'm really proud of it. I was awarded the first camp
sweatshirt and had the job of lowering the flag at the closing ceremony, which
was very moving.
I made lots of new friends when I was at Cosmic, and also met up with people I
hadn't seen for years, which was great, we had a good laugh! I've kept in touch
with most of them too. We also had some Japanese guides staying on our sub-camp
and they were really friendly too. It was a wonderful experience and something
I'll never forget.
We have all returned after the summer holidays, raring to go and looking
forward to the great things we have planned for the next term!
and
this by Katie Wood:
From 12th-19th August, 600 guides from all over Oxfordshire went to
Blackwell Court, Bromsgrove, near Birmingham for the county camp which happens
every 5 years.
On our Cherwell Division, which was called Cassiopeia, we had 80, including 10
from Japan (14 guides went from Hook Norton).
I thought the food was ace, because Marianne is the best cook in the world with
her team of four!
The activities were really good. I liked the way we
got to choose which activity we wanted to do. We went to the Black Country
Museum which was great. At night we had a disco, line dance and a barn dance.
On the 2nd night we did orienteering and stargazing.
On the last night, we had a closing ceremony, where we had lots of fireworks
and a big camp fire. That was the end of a fantastic week with other Guides
from all over the world.
Queen’s
Guide Fund Raiser
We
would like to thank all those people who donated money and to those who came to
a tea and cake afternoon at 7 Beanacre on Saturday 25th August. A total of
£105.20 was raised towards the cost of a city visit by a group of Rangers for
part of the Queens Guide award. We had a great weekend in Cardiff, staying at
the Youth Hostel and travelling around the city finding out about the history,
visiting museums and the Castle. Those that went on the trip also supplied
cakes and paid their share, so thanks go to Jane Bruton, Gemma
Orchard and Vicky Taylor.
Abby Grandison.
BAPTIST CHURCH
As I write this the children are back at
school, we’re all struggling to find or conserve our petrol and the days are
noticeably shortening. Despite the lack
of really good summer weather we were able to enjoy a sunny week for the Holiday Club and are pleased to say
that everyone had a good time. A big
thank you to all who worked so hard, our helpers who turned up every day and to
those from the church who head up our children’s work faithfully week by
week. We were pleased to welcome so
many of you to the barbecue too and enjoyed meeting you all. Fantastic news! - Ian and Elaine are back
for Holiday Club reunion - it’s called ‘Lite
Nite’ and is on Tuesday 31st October
starting at 6pm, don’t let your kids miss it!
I wonder whether
you have been blackberrying this year?
What a wonderful bounty the hedgerows give us; you can usually find crab
apples, sloes and sometimes bullaces if
you know the right place to look and of course elderberries in abundance for
the wine makers among you. The harvest
is rich and farmers have been busy combining and gathering in their crops;
probably by the time you read this it will only be maize and beans that are still
standing. The glorious patchwork of
summer colour has gone from our fields and they too have taken on the feel of
winter, brown and a little drab. But
already the winter corn has been
planted and soon it’s green shoots will emerge, the promise of another harvest
to come. This is true in our lives too,
we all go through patches of ‘winter’, times that are hard to bear when we
can’t see clearly the way ahead, when perhaps we have no real hope for the
future. When God created the Earth he
caused the seasons to follow a logical pattern so that after the harshness of
winter there will always be Spring. So
too with us; in Ecclesiastes 3 v 1 we
read that God has ordained a purpose for every season under heaven. He knows if
you’re going through a ‘winter’ in your life at this moment and he will surely
bring you into a ‘Spring’ if you let him.
Other Services
to remember this month are the visit from Harry
Valence of the London City Mission on Sunday October 1st. For the children a Saturday Special on Saturday October 7th (10-11.30am). There will be a big welcome for Bobby Paralta and his family on Sunday
October 15th and the Saturday
Special for December is on the 2nd, again 10-11.30am.
Please join us
any Sunday for our morning service at 10.30am.
Julie P. Warren
FOHNCL
The recent AGM held at the Brewery Visitor
Centre was well attended and resulted in six new members being welcomed to the
Committee. More than 15 members of the Group and of the general public were
present, as well as four representatives of the Parish Council.
The Chairman's Report summarised the objectives of the Group and the activities
of the past year, which included fund raising, considerations on maximising the
use of both the library and the youth club space for the benefit of villagers,
and the developing of links with local schools, including the purchase of
appropriate CD ROMs for pupils' homework needs. Additionally a generous amount
of money had been donated by relatives and friends in memory of Betty Coppage
who had lived in the village for a number of years.
Friends and members of the Committee who had contributed to activities such as
Storytelling sessions held in school holidays were thanked for their
efforts. Any other villagers who wished
to be involved in such activities would be welcome.
Pauline Walters agreed to remain as Chairman for a further year, as did Sarah
Gardener as Secretary. Moira Dorey became Treasurer. Barbara Hicks who had
acted as Treasurer for two years was thanked for her commitment in this role.
She would be remaining on the
committee. There were currently 120 members of the Friends Group.
Following the AGM the meeting was addressed by County Councillor Norman
Matthews on the subject of use of the building. He explained the negotiations
which had been going on between Hook Norton Parish Council and Oxfordshire
County Council over the lease of that part of the building which is adjacent to
the library and is used by the Youth Club. The Parish Council would like to
take over that lease, but this is dependant upon whether the Parish Council can
afford to bring the building up to date. If this comes about then the building
could be used more widely by the village and it is possible that both the Youth
Club and the Library could benefit from this.
Pauline
Walters Chairman
FIREFIGHTING
There was an increase in over 50% of calls during the two months to mid October. Our firefighters responded to 39 calls compared with 27 the previous two months. There were twelve requests for standby from Banbury and three from Chipping Norton. One chimney caught fire and one water pipe burst. Two cookers needed attention, one field and one scrub area needed extinguishing. Quite a few vehicles were involved in incidents. One car transporter, one bulldozer, one combine and one car needed attention. There were three road traffic incidents, one between a coach and a car, one damaged by fire and a two-car incident where there were casualties. There was a serious chemical leak where someone died. Out of five alarms which came to nothing, two were to fires in neighbouring counties and were stopped on the way and one was to a bonfire which was done with good intent. Two were malicious false alarms. A large amount of straw bales was completely destroyed and our firefighters were called out twice to this malicious incident. A telegraph pole needed attention and this was also malicious.
It’s a
horrendous list and we might consider the risks that our firefighters take to
keep us safe in our homes and thank them for this great contribution to our
village life.
Barbara Hicks, Newsletter Box in Post Office
WI
Members had an enjoyable afternoon at the August meeting when Martin
Sirot-Smith the Curator of Sulgrave Manor was guest speaker, showing slides of
the Manor and outlining the history of the ancestral home of George
Washington. A visit to the Manor is a
must now! Alas the planned outing to
Warwick on September 19th was abandoned owing to lack of support and for a
different reason - lack of petrol - the Group twinning visit from the North
Ploughley Group of WIs had to be postponed.
A visit to Broughton Castle on 16th had been arranged, with tea provided
by Shutford WI.
However there was one very successful event on August 30th when Barbara and
Rachel hosted a garden party - the sun shone and £100 was raised for the
Lawrence Home Nursing Fund from teas, a raffle, sale and donations.
The speaker for
October had to cancel her booking but ex WI member, Gwenneth Edgington has
agreed to give a talk and to show some of her slides, so we very much look
forward to the meeting on Tuesday 17th
at 2pm in the Baptist Hall. Guests
very welcome as always. Also in
October, on the 26th several members will attend the Group meeting at Sibford,
when the speaker will talk about ‘The Great Train Robbery. The competition for the evening will be for
a child’s garment in any medium with a train motif. These will then be given to charity.
The annual ‘mini-show’ is on Tuesday afternoon November 21st.
Everyone should have a schedule by now and be beavering away to produce
their best exhibits for the various classes, cookery, floral art, photography,
needlework etc.
It seems a long
way ahead but Christmas lunch at The Gate has been booked for December 19th and arrangements for next
year’s programme are well under way.
Meetings are
held on the third Tuesday of the
month at 2pm in the Baptist Hall. New members and guest welcome.
Marion Roberts
HOOK NORTON COMMUNITY EDUCATION CENTRE
We have had a
very successful start to our autumn term with around 600 students joining our
classes so far. We still have
activities on offer starting later in the year so why not try out a new
activity in your village from the list below.
Flower Arranging Workshops - Hanging Designs 30 Oct, Swags 6 Nov, Xmas
Wreaths 13 Nov, Table designs 20 Nov and Christmas flowers 27 Nov.
The Idiots Guide to organic gardening starts in January with Val Bourne.
National Parks - not ours but ours to look at - an illustrated talk - 7 Nov.
Stay Supple starts at the Baptist Hall on Wednesday 1 November.
St John’s Lifesaver for Babies & Children runs on Thursday 9 & 16 Nov- £20.
Sugarcraft Workshops - Autumn Leaves & Berries on 2 Nov, Roses 9 Nov,
Carnations 16 Nov, Christmas Roses 23 Nov and Snowmen, Father Xmas and
penguins on 30 Nov.
24 Square Miles, an old film of life in rural Oxfordshire is showing
on 23 November.
Hook Norton local history walk - Sat
14 Oct 10-12 noon with Christopher Barry.
Our Saturday workshops take place on 25 November and places are still
available on Shiatsu, Textile Crafts, Body Dance, The Art of Painting Flowers
and an Introduction to the Internet. We
are hoping to offer Pilates workshops as well.
For more
information about any of these activities please give us a ring on 730052 or
call in to our office in the Primary School.
Sue and Carole
GARDEN CLUB
More support for the Garden Club is
urgently needed, not only at the monthly meetings but at the annual shows. This year’s Autumn Show in the Memorial Hall
attracted a lower than usual entry - 197 compared with last year’s almost
300. The reasons were the advancement
of the date by two weeks and members being on holiday. The entries were however, well up to
standard with the floral art section a mass of colourful exhibits.
Chairman David
Coates congratulated the members for their “wonderful display of exhibits” but
appealed to the village to turn out and see what goes on for themselves. “We want to see new entries. This year’s entry was disappointing when we
had nearly 300 last year. This year’s
show was brought forward by two weeks and it also clashed with Moreton Show and
was affected by holidays” he said.
Trophy winners
were:
Phil
Knight Cup for man with most points in show, Tim Burchell.
Debenham
Cup for woman with most points in show, Nancy Longmore.
Rose
Brown Cup for child with most points in Children’s Section, Charlotte Mair.
Edge and Bolton Cup
for floral art, Pat Fletcher who was
also awarded a Certificate of Merit in floral art.
W.I.Cup for Homecraft, Yvonne
Higgins.
President’s Cup for vegetables and flowers, Tim Burchell, who was also awarded
a Certificate of Merit in Horticulture.
Brewery Cup for highest number of points for photography in the Spring
and Autumn Shows, David Coates.
The Club’s annual meeting is in the Memorial Hall
on Wednesday October 18 and the
final open meeting of the year takes place on November 15 when Tom Williams will talk about the changes in
farming over the years.
Keith Wood 737443
RECYCLING BANKS
There
was a problem at the glass recycling banks at the school at the end of June,
when the green bottle bank became full and was not emptied for several days.
Bottles were wedged into the top of the bank and obviously some fell out,
leaving broken glass on the ground. This is not sensible, particularly as the
glass banks are by the school. Please
when any of the banks (paper, cans or glass) become full, do not try to
get more in. If the bank is full, please take your bottles
etc home until there is room, or to another site in Banbury or Chipping
Norton. During the summer, a number of
people have left cardboard boxes or carrier bags behind after using the
recycling banks. Please take these home
- it only means someone else has to move a soggy box or bag. The contractor
just empties the banks - he is not responsible for clearing any other
rubbish. If you can take a box or bag
there, it is just as easy to take it home and reuse it, or put it in your own
wheelie-bin.
The
new permanent recycling bank for paper at the Fire Station, has proved very
popular. It is there by courtesy of the Fire Service on trial, and the area
must be left tidy. Someone in August
responded to the notice asking people not to put Yellow Pages in the bank by
leaving their copy on the ground alongside it!
Words fail me!
Peter Fry (for Parish Council).
HOOK NORTON CHILDRENS’ CHRISTMAS PARTIES
Saturday December 2nd 2000
The festive
season is approaching fast and once again Santa will be calling in to see all
the boys and girls of Hook Norton.
Please see details below and note that as with the past two years we
have split the parties into three categories.
Party
1 (11.30am - 1pm) ‘Festive fun lunch’ with Bouncy castle for
all Pre School Children. £1.75 each
(including boxed lunch and present from Santa).
Party
2 (3pm - 5pm)
Christmas Magic with Paul Kybert for all children in years reception class 1, 2 and 3 (or
equivalent). £1.75 each (including
boxed lunch and present from Santa).
Party
3 (6.30pm - 8pm) Disco games and Prize Time for all children in years 4, 5 and 6
(or equivalent). £1-75 each (including
supper and present).
All parties will take place in the Memorial Hall. Tickets will be available week commencing Monday 30th October (first come first
served) from ourselves, Colette and Kerrie, outside Hook Norton School. (Non
school families only may call 737093 to reserve yours!!).
WILDLIFE NOTEBOOK
Mid-July to Mid-September 2000
It's been a mixed year for insects in the village but late summer proved good for butterflies with speckled woods a feature of sunny days along mature hedges and woodland edges. A few moved through village gardens in August joining gathering numbers of butterflies feeding on buddleias. A few painted ladies and red admirals were on most bushes and were often joined by silver Y moths, a dark grey moth with, not surprisingly, a silver y-shaped mark on the upper fore-wing. These moths readily fly by day and night and the large numbers suggest local populations have been supplemented by immigrants from Europe.
Two exciting migrant insects that occur occasionally in the village are the hummingbird hawk-moth and clouded yellow butterfly. The former was seen by Mary Quirk in Sibford road on 10 Sept and by Teddy Liddell in his garden opposite St Peter's church on 17 Sept. Clouded yellow butterflies are more orange yellow than brimstones and are smaller with dark markings on the wing-tips. Five were in a meadow in the south of the parish on 2 Sept and Geraldine Moore saw a couple in the village in late August. Equally impressive are the caterpillars or larvae of the elephant hawk-moth: large, dark green with a peacock eye behind the small head. They feed on willowherbs and can be found in gardens as Sean Daly in Down End and Debra Jewitt discovered. Rachel Johnstone saw a Magpie moth in her garden on Sibford Road in mid August.
The large slug and snail population in our garden and no doubt a few more(!) attracted several hedgehogs while the compost heap proved good for some large frogs and toads. Margaret Gardener found a dead toad in her Park Close that was enormous. I checked a book on amphibians which although a little out-of-date outlined a study in which only a small percentage of large female toads reach 100-120g in weight. Margaret's toad tipped the scales at 110g, one of the biggest you are likely to find!
A few bird records came in: Paul Pickering saw a female wheatear on 31 July and Christopher Barry saw both green and great-spotted woodpeckers on 14 July. Buzzards continued to be seen over the village and 3 hobbies were seen on 17 July. Bird migration was in full swing by mid-September when in a 2.5 hour period 250 meadow pipits, 83 swallows and 111 house martins flew south. Enjoy them while you can!
Records/sightings always welcome. Steve Holliday 8 Whittons Close Tel 737038
HOOK NORTON BRASS BAND
The cool and showery weather throughout the
summer months did not prevent the band from fulfilling its engagements, indeed
most of them seemed to take place on days that were good and pleasant and Vera
Jones’s Garden Party on 16th July was no exception. The sun smiled on the happy Sunday afternoon event after a very
chilly morning, with guests seated at tables outside on the lawn. The magnificent black walnut tree lent it’s
shade to the band as it entertained a relaxed and receptive audience,
contentedly partaking of all the joys that the occasion bestowed.
The Hook Norton
Beer Festival on 22nd July was another superb day weatherwise, when the band,
seated on the road outside the ‘Pear Tree’, gave a good programme of
entertaining music under the baton of Bandmaster Ron Glyn. Large crowds gave us their ears as they
spent a leisurely afternoon enjoying their favourite tipple and the warm sunny
weather in a friendly bustling atmosphere.
“Merrie England”
took place in the beautiful Broughton Castle grounds, organised by Banbury
Operatic Society, The Lions and Round Table, assisted by other charities. The Band’s contribution to this ambitious
millennium event took place on Sunday 6th August, with the lake in the foreground,
the setting adding to the enjoyment of those who sat to listen and picnic. Good weather again was a significant factor
in the success of the day. The Coleman
family again manned a bottle stall, the second time this year, which raised a
very pleasing amount for Band funds.
A welcome
breathing space before the next engagement when we played for the opening of
the refurbished Banbury Railway Station on September 9th. A bustling scene outside the Station
entrance was reminiscent of the first opening 150 years ago. Ladies and gentlemen in Victorian dress
strolled around and talked in groups or sold their wares from baskets or
stalls. Men on stilts strutted around,
mingling with the crowds and handing out balloons to the children. The town’s dignitaries and railway
representatives made speeches, cameras clicked and pens wrote furiously as
reporters tried to capture the happenings for posterity in words and
pictures. The band played for the
cutting of the large cake and the arrival of a train at a given time and
thereafter until midday. The good
weather ensured the success of the occasion, the whole event taking place
outside.
The band can now concentrate on preparing for the
Autumn and Winter engagements, the first on October 22nd which is the Bill
Clarke Memorial Concert at Hook Norton Church at 7.30pm. We hope to see as many
of you there as possible. JG
ST PETER’S CHURCH
On 3rd September, Archdeacon Stanley Ntgali
paid a return visit to us and preached and celebrated at the Benefice Eucharist. At the end of the Service, Nancy Austin was
able to present him with a cheque for £2750, collected by the Parish, for the
four wheel drive vehicle which he will buy when he gets back home to Uganda to
his Archdeaconry. A further small
amount has since been donated which will be sent to him, to go towards the
running of the vehicle. He went home on Tuesday 12th September, the same day
that Nancy left Hook Norton for Cambridge to be near her daughter.
From the Harvest
Festival, which took place on 22nd and 24th September, the offerings will go to
the charity ‘Children in Distress’, as last year.
On the fourth
Saturday in each month, Mary Powell is organising coffee and a cake stall in
the Church from 9.30 to 11.30am, to raise money for the Tower Fund Appeal. Do
support this. Other fund-raising events
for the Tower are listed elsewhere.
Also elsewhere is Jan Hughes’ information about the very popular Craft
Fair on Nov 4th. The Annual Bill
Clarke Memorial Concert will be on 22nd
October. On Wednesday 1st November, All Saints Day, at 7.30pm
there will be a Service of Commemoration in Church, giving us all an
opportunity to remember loved ones. If
you would like someone special to be remembered, names can be given to the Rector
(737223) or the Churchwardens, Marianne Joyce (730059) or Keith Fowler
(737657).
On Armistice
Day, Saturday 11th November there
will be an Act of Remembrance at 10.50am in the Church and the usual Service of
Remembrance on Sunday 12th, preceded
by a Procession.
ST PETER’S CHURCH TOWER PROJECT
St. Peter's Church has been at the centre of our village life since
Saxon times; look at the cover of the Hook Norton Millennium Book and there at
the centre of the picture is St. Peter's. Over the centuries, St. Peter's has
undergone structural change to meet the changing and developing needs of our
forefathers. Now at the beginning of the 21st Century, there is a growing need
for the Church to be used not only as a place of Worship, but also as a centre
for community based activities.
The project being undertaken is the development of the tower area at the west
end of the Church. The tower was added in the 15th century and at sometime had
another floor at a height just above the west door. The intention is to bring
this area into everyday use by adding some much needed facilities. These
facilities include:-
* a small kitchen complete with server
* toilets for both the disabled and able bodied
* a hoist to enable easy access to both facilities and Church for the less able
* the provision of baby changing facilities
* the addition of a first floor meeting room.
To ensure that there is no loss of light; to maintain the proportions of the
Church and to provide soundproofing a glass wall with doors is to be erected
between the tower and the nave. A similar wall was erected in St. Mary's in
Adderbury some years ago.
With these new facilities, the Church will provide a more amenable environment
for those attending both Church services and other activities.
It is hoped that as well as a place of Worship, the Church in future will be
used as a concert hall; for exhibitions; for folk and jazz concerts and many
other activities.
The total cost of the project is estimated to be in the region of
£120,000. Very shortly contractors will
be asked to tender for this work on a fixed price contract, with a view to the
work commencing next Spring and being completed by midsummer.
A Fund Raising Committee has been formed and they are looking to raise funds
from three different sources, namely:-
* grants from trusts and charities, a Lottery Grant application has been made
* specific fund raising events
* personal donations
A brochure concerning personal donations will shortly be delivered to every
household in the parish.
The specific fund raising events will be launched with a concert entitled
West End meets Hook Norton Sunday 8th October, 7.30pm at St Peter's Church Hook Norton. An evening of hit songs from West End musicals performed by some of the cast members of various shows including Jane Fowler, Stuart Pendred, Michael Rouse and Dane Preece. Tickets £10.00. concessions £8.00. Information and ticket sales from Keith Fowler 01608 737657 and from the Village Shop.
This will be
followed by other events which will be advertised on the village notice boards
and will include:
Coffee Morning Friday 13th October, 9.00am - 11.30am at
the Study Centre, Hook Norton Primary
School. Coffee and cakes,
raffle, good as new clothes sale.
Craft Fair Saturday 4th November, 10.00am - 5.00pm at St Peter's Church, Hook Norton. A wide variety of crafts and demonstrations. 40 different participating crafters.
Grand Christmas Draw. Entrance £1.00, Children 50p under 5s free Further information from Jan Hughes 01608 737900
HIC! Friday 24th November, 7.30pm at Hook Norton Brewery Heritage Centre. A light hearted history of wine & wine
making brought dramatically to life by Julian Curry.
Tickets £25.00 to include supper & complementary glass of wine. To book
tickets contact Janet Collins 01608 737515
Victorian Christmas Wednesday 29th November, 7.30pm Memorial Hall Hook Norton. An evening of flowers, readings and music.
Flowers by Pat Fletcher who is a
National Demonstrator. Tickets £5.00.
Information and to book tickets contact Rita Wheatley 01608 737097.
On the 4th Saturday of every month
there will be a cake sale and an opportunity to enjoy a cup of coffee (or tea)
at St. Peter's.
Information on any fund-raising event can
be obtained from Keith Fowler 737657 or Jo Bartlett 737867. Would
you hold a fund-raising event for the tower project? If you have any ideas,
please contact us. Many thanks.
Jo
Bartlett, Secretary for the Tower Reordering Project,
St Peter's Church, Hook Norton
THE NEW SURGERY
As most people
have probably heard by now we have been able to purchase the land on which we
are going to build the new surgery at Hook Norton.
At the moment
the date we have been given when the building contractors will start is the
18th September so hopefully by the time the newsletter is printed the first
turf will have been dug and work on the building commenced.
The plans of the
new surgery are currently on display in the surgery at Hook Norton. We have tried to come up with a design of
building which will accommodate fully the changing and growing needs of Hook
Norton and the surrounding villages.
The estimated
length of time that it is going to take to build the surgery is six months so
all being well, we should be ready to move into it in the Spring of 2001 and
hopefully we will not have to endure another summer in the oven-like
temperatures of the Portakabin.
We would like to
thank all our patients for their support and for standing by us in the last few
years, whilst we have been involved in all the negotiations of our finding a
suitable site, getting planning permission and now the building of the new
surgery. However I am sure that when
the Surgery is completed it will be something that both we as doctors and also
hopefully the village may be proud of.
We will keep you
informed of any further developments as they take place.
Doctor Tim Hurst
HOOK NORTON PLAYGROUP
Playgroup is now in its autumn term and we
would like to welcome all the new children and their parents. Before the holidays we drew the SUMMER
RAFFLE and would like to thank everyone for their support in raising £620. This term we also welcome new staff Mandy
Hughes, Max Shepherd and Teresa Hughes and welcome back Pat Lutter. Unfortunately, due to staffing levels, we
have had to close Teeny Tots but are still taking names on the waiting list as
it is hoped we may re-open it.
Fundraising events this term will include a
Quiz night in October, so watch out for details. Playgroup will soon be looking for parents to join the committee
and the AGM will be on 8th January. It is important that parents attend this, as the Playgroup is
dependant on their support. Many
thanks,
Fran
Machin
Do Something
Amazing - Give Blood ......
A big thank you to the 67 people that have already signed up to give blood
in memory of little Harry. We are planning to have a blood doning session in
the village during Spring 2001. To make this possible we need 130 people
willing to participate. If you would like to become a donor or like further
information either pick up a form from the school office or contact Rob &
JoBartlett on 737867.
LEUKAEMIA RESEARCH FUND
The Annual
Coffee Afternoon and Sale will take place this year on Saturday 18th November
in the Wing of Scotland End House at
2.00pm. There will be all the usual
stalls. The Clarke family look forward
to seeing you all at this established event.
It may be that this year we shall include a ‘garage sale’ but more news
about this will be announced in due course.
The Leukaemia
Research Fund is extremely grateful for the £5000 that we received as a result
of this year’s Beer Festival. The
continued support of Hook Norton Brewery, the Beer Festival Committee and
everyone in the village, really is appreciated and the money will go directly
towards our programme of research.
Thank-you, Hook Norton.
Cathy Gilman Corporate Fund-raiser
COTTAGE CRAFTS
Peter and
Margaret Whittle invite you to the 8th Annual Sale of Cottage Crafts on Friday,
Saturday and Sunday, 27th/28th/29th October at Malcolm’s Cottage,
Tadmarton, 10am to 5pm.
A whole range of crafts, jewellery and buttons etc. In aid of Katharine
House Hospice, Banbury.
Admission £1.50 including refreshments.
FILM SOCIETY
The season started successfully with the
hilarious ‘Imposters’.
On October 14th we welcome ‘It
All Starts Today’ France
1999 Cert 12- an uncompromising and
grittily realistic film - a study in despair and suicide - but with lovely
performances from children of a French Nursery School. This is followed on 4th November with Liza
Minelli 'exploding on to the screen in a cascade of sexual fireworks’ in Bob
Fosse’s ‘Cabaret’ Cert P.G. This is a Benefit screening - everyone
pays. ‘Temptress Moon’ Hong
Kong/China 1996 Cert 15, will be screened on November 18th. Opium, sex and the story of ‘the most popular gigolo
in Shanghai’ combine to make this a fascinating film.
HOOK NORTON CHARITABLE ASSOCIATION
The HNCA
AGM and Donations meeting will
take place on Wednesday, 4th October, 8pm at the Brewery Visitor
Centre. All village residents are invited to attend.
Donations will be presented to various local organisations and charities. The
election of next year's committee and officers (Chair, Treasurer and Secretary)
will also take place. Nominations for any of these roles should be sent to
Simon Mead at Hicks Lodge, Sibford Road (01608 730146), preferably before the
meeting. There will also be an opportunity for open discussion about plans for
next year's events.
CRAFT FAIR
The 5th annual
Craft Fair in St Peter’s Church will be held on Saturday 4th November 10am - 5pm. This popular event, will as always give plenty of scope for buying unique handmade
gifts for all occasions and many new Crafters this year will give an even
greater variety. Please do tell all
your friends and families the date! The
grand Christmas Draw
will take place
in the afternoon (for tickets ring Rita Wheatley 737097). 1st prize £100. Refreshments will be served all day.
Jan Hughes 737900
HELP 1!
Could someone
please enlighten me as to why two footpath notices in the village are now
marked d’Arcy Dalton Way?
Gweneth Edgington.
The d’Arcy Dalton Way is a footpath starting near
Wormleighton Reservoir north of Banbury and ending up at the Ridgeway Path near
Waylands Smithy. It was ‘specifically
designed’ to link up four long distance paths which cross Oxfordshire: The
Oxford Canal Towpath, the Oxfordshire Way, The Thames Walk and the great
Ridgeway Path. The Way was conceived,
surveyed and described by Nick Moon of the Oxfordshire Fieldpaths Society and
was named after Colonel W P d’Arcy Dalton - d’Arcy ‘the most noble defender of
the Oxford Fieldpaths Society in 1926’.
A booklet was published some years ago by the Oxfordshire Fieldpaths
Society which relates how the path came into being and has been loaned to the
Editor by Ray Gasson. It is a very
comprehensive booklet. The Hook Norton
part starts at Nill Cottages, comes down south to the village and leaves near
Gilden Farm and eventually strikes north along the road and runs along by
Fanville Head Farm towards Great Rollright.
I have not yet been able to trace the Oxfordshire Fieldpaths Society to
ask permission to reproduce the map.
Ed
HELP 2!
What is that noise? It’s a high pitched continuous whine, particularly audible at night and I only noticed it after moving from the centre to the Eastern edge of the village. It now keeps me awake at night and penetrates through earplugs and pillows. No one else seems to be bothered by it and no one I have asked has known where it is coming from. It must be something electrical or mechanical but what? Can anyone enlighten me? Suggestions welcome on 737266.
Dorothy
Smith
LITTER WARDENS
The Parish Council is concerned at the
increased amount of litter being deposited around the village and wants
villagers to act as volunteer litter wardens.
Villagers are needed to look after areas around their homes and collect
and deposit litter in the bins provided by the Parish Council. They should also
urge their children to stop throwing their crisp packets and drinks cartons on
the ground. If everyone picked up
litter as they walked to and from homes to the shops we would very soon have a
much cleaner village. K.W.
BEER FESTIVAL
A big thanks to all who braved the rain to come to the Donations
Evening. For those who didn't, the
donations were as follow:
Hook Norton
Newsletter £500 Katherine House
Hospice £500
CLIC £600 The Sargeant Fund £600
Leukaemia Research Fund £5000 Total £7200
This makes a running total for the Festival of around £40,000.
Jem Hayward
MISUSE OF SKIPS
In recent weeks
there has been flagrant misuse of the skips provided for household
rubbish. On one occasion sanitary
towels were found in sacks that had been opened and left around the skips and
bulky items are still being dumped when they should be taken to the District
Council recycling sites. Droppings from
rabbit hutches and bags of dog mess are also being left.
Out of date
medicines have also been dumped. Items
which can cause a health hazard should not be dumped - they should be disposed
of directly at the district council sites and out-of-date medicines should be
left at surgeries.
The skips are primarily for house and garden rubbish and the surrounds should be kept clean and tidy, not littered with opened sacks and items which should not be left there at all.
Keith
Wood 737443
OXFORDSHIRE VILLAGE SHOPS ASSOCIATION
O.V.S.A. is pleased to announce a new competition aimed at rewarding good service to the community from rural retailers. Shoppers are being invited to nominate their local store for the top prize of a magnum of champagne (and hopefully lots of free publicity). Nominations stating the store name and address, the nominators name and address and reasons for the nomination, should be sent to Helen Datson, Village Shops Fieldworker, 1 Church Lane, Spelsbury, Chipping Norton, Oxon, OX7 3JR. Closing date 30th October 2000.
Two ‘local
produce’ trade fairs are planned - October 3rd at Stonesfield Village Hall 2pm
- 7pm and October 5th at Sutton Courtenay Village Hall 1pm - 5.30pm.
OXFORDSHIRE’S CHARTER FOR ADULTS WHO NEED LONG-TERM CARE
For those interested this Charter was published in June this year and among the signatories are Oxfordshire County Council Social Services, Oxfordshire Health Authority and Cherwell District Council. It is aimed at helping people to live as independently as possible. I believe copies are available to read at Health Centres, Council Offices and Libraries. If not, I have a copy.
We are invited
to write to Cherwell with any comments on the charter or linked local services.
John Wheatley
DIALABILITY
Our Mobile
Information Unit will be in Banbury on Wednesday 18th October and Wednesday
29th November 2000. We will be parking
in Bridge Street outside Marks and Spencer and look forward to seeing you there
between 10.30am and 3.30pm.
We can offer all
sorts of advice and information on any topic to do with disability. It does not matter whether or not you are
disabled yourself, a carer, a friendly neighbour or a relative.....or, just
someone who wants to know what goes on in our van........we would really like
to meet you, so do call in and say ‘hello’.
SPECIAL POINTS TO NOTE
· Rebecca Ellen Joyner, daughter of Gillian and Peter Joyner was baptised at St Peter’s Church, Hook Norton on September 10th 2000.
· Helen Powell and Clive (Ginger) Long were married at St Peter’s Church, Hook Norton on 26th August 2000. Their wedding was the first to be celebrated in St Peter’s Church in the Year 2000.
·
BRITISH RED
CROSS Our famous Oxford Red Cross Christmas Bazaar will be
held at Yarnton Nurseries on Saturday 18th November 2000 from 9.30am -
3.30pm. Any gardeners who would like to
open their gardens in aid of the Red Cross please ring 01235 538811.
·
THANK YOU A big ‘thank you’ to all organisers and helpers at
this years Holiday Club, (Baptist Hall Aug 14th - 18th). We had a fantastic time once again! Well done and lots of love. Chloe, Sacha, Chelsea and
Bronte XXXX.
·
Parish Council News Flash
·
From October
1st 2000 the new Parish Clerk will be Mrs Linda J Chapman, BSc, CPFA 01608 737409 (office hours), ‘Pathways’ 10
Ironstone Hollow, Hook Norton, OX15 5NA
·
The newly
appointed Play Area, Safety and Village Environment Officer is Mr Doug
Marshall, 39 The Bourne, Hook Norton 737666
·
The Memorial
Hall Supervisor is Mr Ken Wise, 20 The Glebe, Hook Norton 737044 Memorial Hall
Bookings continue to be dealt with at the Post Office by courtesy of Mrs Isita
Pickering
·
MEMORIAL
HALL Just a reminder that the Memorial Hall is
administered by the Parish Council, and is available for hire by groups or
individuals. The hall has been redecorated recently, with new curtains and new
lightweight tables. The basic charge is £7.50 per hour. Tables and chairs may
be hired for use elsewhere. Full details and booking forms are available in the
Post Office. PF (for Parish Council).
·
VILLAGE
DIARY The village desperately needs a central Village Diary
so that dates do not clash. Any ideas
how this could be done? Where could it
be kept? Who would keep it and how would there be access to it? Is Hooky’s Web page the answer?
Barbara Hicks, Newsletter Box in
Post Office
· BANBURY GUARDIAN Please don’t forget your struggling old village correspondent!! Items of news from clubs and other goings on in the village are very much appreciated for the Hook Norton News in the Banbury Guardian. Please let me have them by Monday morning at the latest. THANKS - Marion Roberts, “Brambles”, Bourne Lane - 730214.