June/July 2011

Crunch Time for the Core Strategy

The Examination in Public (EIP) is to start on 12 July with the session on Wallingford on 27 July. If the pre-hearing meeting is anything to go by, there will be intense argument at the start of the EIP between the developers targeting the District and SODC planners over the number of houses to be built. The developers claim too few houses are planned: SODC will defend the numbers they have allocated to Didcot, Thame, Henley and Wallingford. There is a serious danger of the figure for Wallingford reverting from 400 at present, to an earlier figure of 850 or even 1100.

In the Service of the Parish – Carole Dennis

Villagers who contribute to our community do so in various ways: through sport, the church, the British Legion, helping their neighbours, the school and so on. Carole has served the parish in many of these ways since she and her family settled here some 40 years ago.No doubt she will continue to be active in village life. However, Carole’s biggest contribution has been through the Parish Council, but she is standing down and relinquishing her position as Chairman, a post which she has held for the past year.

This bald statement hides the fact that she has been a councillor for 37 years - the longest serving member of parish councils during this century and probably in the last. Villagers who remember Tom Everex and Eric Howard will recall that they each served on the Parish Council in excess of 25 years. They are Carole’s only rivals for longevity.

During her 37 years Carole was elected 9 times, she worked with 7 different Clerks and was Chairman for 3 terms. She must have attended well over 400 Council meetings and dealt with countless planning applications. In fact her knowledge of planning has been invaluable to the Council: she has a wide understanding of the niceties of the planning guidance issued by Government that seek to regulate development, as well as a fine appreciation of the structure and form of Brightwell-cum-Sotwell. This has led, naturally, to her opposition to the Core Strategy, particularly to the proposed expansion of Wallingford on Site B and the inevitable loss of integrity for our village.

There are other facets of council activities where Carole has played an important role. She has had strong contacts with SODC officers over a wide range of issues and similar links to the County Council, such as those relating to roads and potholes. Matters relevant to health and social welfare have been her concern, as well as those concerning the environment and youth. She has been supportive of the initiatives that led to the construction of the Jubilee Pavilion and to the launching of the Village Stores.

Importantly Carole has always been anxious that the small amount of money the Council has at its disposal from the Council Tax, is spent to the greatest benefit of our community.

Flower and Produce Show 2011

Bunting - according to Wikipedia, that mine of disinformation, bunting can refer to a bird, an infant sleeping bag, a type of offensive play in baseball or a term of endearment that may imply ‘plump’, as in ‘Bye, Baby Bunting’. However, in most people’s minds, bunting is more normally associated with flags and a wonderful way to liven up a party.

With another royal event in the offing – the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in June 2012 – we thought we should produce (!) something the whole village could use. So, our Popular Vote category is devoted to bunting: a metre or more made from fabric, plastic or something recycled.

This year’s Men Only cookery class is Tiffin – otherwise known as chocolate biscuit cake – which was chosen by Prince William for his wedding. Still on the wedding theme, flower arrangers can try their hand at a cake decoration or bridal bouquet. There’s a class for an alcoholic fruit drink (anything from to sloe gin to cider) – and in the junior section, we hope to get lots of entries for the competition to design a flag for Brightwell-cum-Sotwell.

We were very sad to hear of the death of Win Glendenning, who has been a stalwart of the show since long before any of us can remember.

Sally Dugan

Parish Church: ‘Wills ‘n Kate’

Going into school this morning I was reminded of the difficulties which a variable date of Easter and a Prince & Princess can pose to our hard-pressed teachers who now have to somehow shoe-horn six weeks work into four before the term finishes and a new one looms. We seem to be forever catching up with ourselves these days as time becomes an acutely precious commodity.

But I can’t help feeling that ‘Wills ‘n Kate’ have done us all a massive favour by getting us to stop for a moment and ponder some of the deeper currents in our own lives and in the life of our Country. Now, when wedding couples come to me and ask for reading suggestions I can happily point them to Paul’s letter to the Romans, Chapter 12, and remind them how well the bride’s brother read the passage on that day; ‘let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good’. The Bishop of London, who knew the couple, was able to remind them in his sermon that; ‘marriage should transform, as husband and wife make one another their work of art. It is possible to transform so long as we don’t harbour ambitions to reform our partners. There must be no coercion if the Spirit is to flow; each must give the other space and freedom.’ As for a marriage, so for a church; the Extension we’re striving for at St.Agatha’s should give us the space to transform and renew our church life and, in doing so, the life of our community too. It was with a real sense of excitement that I learned that Tony Lascelles and his team have helped us reach the half-way mark in our fundraising (some £85,000). In these hugely difficult times for the economy and for every family, I’m very grateful indeed that there are people in and around this village who believe it is still possible to strengthen the ties that bind us – be they School, Shop, Church, Parish Council, Cricket or whatever we give our time to.

So…having turned a few cartwheels down the nave, I sat down to ponder how it might be possible to encourage the widest possible use of our new room once it finally gets built! The School will certainly be invited to use it, not just at key festivals but for any of the other parts of their curriculum. There will be opportunities for different clubs, for mums & toddlers, for youth groups, to name a few. In order that we don’t miss anything, I’m hoping to convene a group in the next few months to help us discover who we should be making our new Extension, and indeed the Church as a whole, available to. If you would like to join this group, or just add your suggestions, please do contact me on 01491 837626.

The royal wedding helped us to ‘suspend our disbelief’ that good things don’t happen any more in these seemingly dark days. The freshness of the green trees lining the nave of the Abbey reminded me that there are times when we are all called to look at life and the world around us in new ways, and of some of my favourite lines from a Welsh priest-poet about the Kingdom of God, which we hint at each time we pray the Lord’s Prayer…

The Kingdom

It’s a long way off but inside it

There are quite different things going on:

Festivals at which the poor man

Is king and the consumptive is

Healed; mirrors in which the blind look

At themselves and love looks at them

Back; and industry is for mending

The bent bones and the minds fractured

By life. It’s a long way off, but to get

There takes no time and admission

Is free, if you purge yourself

Of desire, and present yourself with

Your need only and the simple offering

Of your faith, green as a leaf.

R.S.Thomas

I look forward to seeing you at one of our upcoming events, or just around the village. Blessings,

Jeremy Goulston.

Allsorts PreSchool: Goodbye to Sandra

At the end of the Easter term Allsorts said a fond farewell to Sandra Sherwood who retired after an impressive twenty nine years at pre-school. During her time at Allsorts Sandra has seen many changes, including a move to a new building, and has helped literally hundreds of local children to embark on their early years education. We would like to wish Sandra a very happy retirement and to thank her once again for her unstinting commitment to Allsorts. We will not be saying goodbye to Sandra as she will continue to be a part of the pre-school by coming in occasionally when we need extra help.

The children had a lovely surprise when they returned to pre-school after the Easter break: the long awaited canopy had finally gone up! The benefits were immediately apparent as the doors to the decking area were left wide open and the children could move freely from inside to outdoors whilst remaining protected from the strong sunshine. It really has opened up the whole playroom area and will be invaluable on wet days too. We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has contributed so generously to making the new canopy a reality. It really has been worth the long wait!

As we move into the summer terms some of the older children at Allsorts will be aware that their move up to 'big school' is not too far away. The children are already familiar with the primary school from going in for weekly PE sessions in the hall. We have also been incorporating phonics into the pre-school day so that the children will be familiar with the system used at school. Hopefully, these small preparations together with the planned visits into school will mean the children will start school with confidence in September.

Paula Moulton