Harvest Festival Sun 6th 10.30am St Giles
Harvest Festival Sun 6th 3pm Chadshunt
Coffee Morning Sat 12th 11am Village Hall
Battle of Edgehill w/e Fri 18th-Sun 20th Kineton Club
Friendship Club Tues 22nd 2.30pm No 1 Cottage
Pilates Tuesdays 6.30pm Village Hall
Mobile Library Thursdays 10th & 31st
Lighthorne Heath/Gaydon New Settlement
The Parish Council has responded to this consultation and a copy of their response is available on the website and the noticeboard.
Flooding
Following advice from the Flood Officer at the County Council we have applied for a grant for the ditch behind the Kineton Road houses to be dug deeper and the soil to be placed on the village side of the bank. This will create a mound to force the water to the other side of the ditch and also allow the ditch to hold more water.
Mowing of long grass in cemetery
Thanks to a recent visitor to our village the cemetery long grass has been cut.
Litter pick
A group of over 200 people from a geo-caching event held a litter pick on Saturday 3rd August. They reported that our village was very clean and it was tough for some people to find much (Quote: "one of the tidiest villages that many of us had ever seen"). Nevertheless, a collection of both recyclable and other waste was made from around the footpaths which was removed by Stratford the following Monday.
Play Area
The refurbishment continues with a team from JLR helping by stripping and re-painting the climbing frame. It looks very smart and we are most grateful.
Next Meeting: Thursday, 7th November at 8pm.
Gaydon Island Closure
The traffic island on the B4100 will be closed from Monday 21 to Wednesday 23 October for road repairs. The work is expected to be carried out mostly at night, with the roundabout open in the day time.
Warwickshire County Council proposes to make a Temporary Traffic Order closing B4100 Gaydon Island, Gaydon (Gaydon Road Gyratory) to vehicular traffic. The closure is required for carriageway resurfacing.
The Order will commence on 21 October 2013 and will last for a period of 18 months, or until the works are completed, whichever is the earlier. However, it is anticipated that the works will be completed by 23 October.
Pedestrian access to and egress from properties and land situated adjacent to the length of road to be closed will be maintained at all times. Vehicular access will be maintained where possible.
An alternative route will be signed and is available via: Gaydon Road, Kineton Road, Warwick Road, Banbury Road, Fosse Way, Evesham Road, Bowshot Island, Compton Hill, Spring Hill, Combrook Road, Pittern Hill, Warwick Road, Banbury Street, Banbury Road, Arlescote Road, Camp Lane, Southam Road (and in reverse order).
The Contractor dealing with this matter is Greg Lawrence for Balfour Beatty (Tel: 07837 319215).
The Council regrets any inconvenience that may be caused. The person dealing with this matter at Warwickshire County Council is Michael Rogers, County Highways (Tel: 01926 412515).
*NB The majority of these works will be carried out overnight and the island will be opened during the day.
6th
9.00 Holy Communion BCP Burton Dassett
10.30 Morning Prayer Fenny Compton
10.30 Harvest Festival Gaydon
3.00pm Harvest Festival Chadshunt
6.00pm Evensong Farnborough
13th
9.00 Holy Communion BCP Farnborough
9.00 Holy Communion Gaydon
10.30 Holy Communion Fenny Compton
10.30 Communion by extension, Northend
6.00pm Evening Service Burton Dassett
20th
9.00 Holy Communion Farnborough
9.00 Holy Communion BCP Gaydon
10.30 Family Service Fenny Compton
10.30 Holy Communion Northend
6.00pm Songs of Praise Burton Dassett
27th
9.00 Holy Communion BCP Fenny Compton
10.30 Holy Communion Farnborough
10.30 Prayer and Praise Gaydon
10.30 Morning Prayer Northend
Weekday Service
There will be a service of Holy Communion at the Church of St Giles on Thursday 24 October at 10.30am.
Sunday 8 December has been chosen for the Christmas Lunch this year. Please ring me on 640349 or call at the Old Bakehouse if you would like to help with cooking or serving this year. Julie Rickman
The new exhibition for autumn is A Fantastical Animal Alphabet opening on Saturday 5 October. It presents a newly-commissioned animal A to Z by artists from Leicester Print Workshop.
Visit www.comptonverney.org.uk or telephone 645500 for details.
Since we started FORSE and canvassed you for your support we have been asked many times what has been happening with our campaign. September 13th was the deadline for your individual comments on the proposal. On that day we delivered an impressive pile of responses to Stratford District Council (SDC). Supporters turned up in FORSE (sorry for the pun), the press were there and SDC were pretty taken aback by the commotion. Photos have appeared in the press - spot the FORSE yellow T shirts - you can't miss them. Thanks to all who took the time to respond - the support has been pretty overwhelming.
However; we need to keep the pressure on. On Saturday (14th) members of the FORSE team attended Jeremy Wright MP's open surgery in Wellesbourne. He too has many questions that need to be answered by SDC about the proposed development and is pressing for answers. The three Parish Councils (Gaydon, Lighthorne and Lighthorne Heath) will have submitted their responses to SDC by 27th September.
SDC's Cabinet will meet on 7th October to review the final Draft Core Strategy Plan, and then it will be considered for adoption at a meeting of the full Council on 21st October. At that Council meeting the Parish Councils and objectors will have a time limited opportunity to speak. Should the full Core Strategy Plan (CSP) be adopted at that meeting there will be a period of 6 weeks when the public will be invited to comment. The CSP will then be submitted to the Secretary of State (if it gets that far!). Bear in mind that these timescales/dates are chosen by SDC and could be changed at will.
So what can you do to help? Keep spreading the word. Between 7th and 21st October, canvas Councillors so they are all fully aware of the breadth and depth of resistance to the proposals. A list of councillors can be found at https://democracy.stratford.gov.uk/mgMemberIndex.aspx? Or ask SDC for the list. Write to your MP Jeremy Wright MP, House of Commons, London, SW1A 1AA email: jeremy.wright.mp@parliament.uk
Write to Nick Boles MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Planning, House of Commons, SW1A 1AA
email: nick.boles.mp@parliament.uk
Write to Eric Pickles, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Eric Pickles MP, House of Commons, London, SW1A 1AA email: eric.pickles@communities.gsi.gov.uk
FUNDRAISING events are being planned so look out for opportunities to help raise funds for the cause. Donations can be made by cash or cheques made out to FORSE, or you can donate online at www.forse.org.uk
Keep your eye on the website as it is growing all the time with information about the campaign. You can contact us at info@forse.org.uk and follow us on Facebook or Twitter; or call 01926 651516.
The yellow FORSE T Shirts (£5) and Car stickers (£1) can be purchased by calling Cathy Stacey on 01926 651613. Proceeds go to the appeal.
Sunday 6 October
Harvest Festival service at 10.30am at Gaydon; All Saints' Church, Chadshunt, service by candle-light at 3pm.
Saturday 30 November 2pm in Gaydon Village Hall: Father Christmas, Mulled Wine, Teas, Raffle, Gift Day.
See next month's magazine for more details.
Messy Church
There will be a Messy Church at Fenny Compton on Sunday 13 October at 3.30pm; and at Temple Herdewyke on Sunday 27th.
Although there is a distinct chill in the air, we are promised an "Indian Summer" by the long-range weather forecasters. Some indications would point towards this, notably the mass of green foliage rich in sugars showing little sign of autumnal leaf-fall.
The local woods and hedgerows are indeed exceptional. The brambles, Crab apples, Wild Plums and sloes almost weigh down the branches in their profusion. Walking the dogs along the perimeter of Itchington Holt a few days ago was a delight. Sunshine, albeit a little weaker than late, was filtering across a dry crop of Linseed, reflecting on the wings of hundreds of newly emerged Crane Flies.
The bright gold of the crab apples in the hedgerows and the dappled patches were alive with swarms of newly emerged Speckled Wood butterflies: possibly a third brood of this attractive species with cream markings on dark velvet wings. Males defend their own patch of sunlight against all rivals until a larger female arrives. Late Dragonflies and darting Swallows hawking for flies added to a glimmering scenario.
In contrast was the previous day when I opened an upper cupboard at home to find around a dozen Small Tortoiseshell butterflies which had decided to hibernate inside. I released them carefully as it was still sunny outside - but perhaps they had predicted colder temperatures.
Many butterflies come in through open windows at this time of year and remain unnoticed until central heating is turned on; when, if you find some fluttering around, you should gently tap them into a jar with a bit of card and move them to a cold place, preferably free from spiders. They will emerge again in spring to start a new generation, so make sure they can get out too!
I was delighted to see a Hummingbird Hawk Moth around the Balsam flowers in my front garden this morning. This is an African migrant and has been recorded as overwintering in the UK. I hope you will have seen them too around your gardens. They are very distinctive and resemble a hummingbird when they hover over flower throats, extending their long tongues to take the nectar.
There is much talk around the village of the "New Town" that is planned near Lighthorne Heath. The objections are numerous and I was most interested to read an excellent and informative letter in the Stratford Herald "concerning an area nearby known as Lighthorne Rough". This is the site of an old quarry and is in itself an incredibly diverse habitat for many rare and even migrant species.
A few years ago I was able to see two crucially endangered (RED DOT) species, the Small Blue and Grizzled Skipper there. It is also a famous nesting site for Skylarks and is in fact a sort of mini site of Scientific Interest.
All this could be destroyed by making it a "Country Park": the fact that this area is quite remote and used only by walkers and locals has preserved it for the wildlife. The same applies to Itchington Holt and Chesterton Wood. Let's hope we can enjoy our wildlife for generations to come. Bernard Price
The Library will be here on Thursdays 10th and 31st October. The van will be at the Telephone Box at 1.50-2.10pm and at St Marks Close from 2.15-2.35pm.
Saturday 12 October at 11am in the Village Hall with Cakes and produce; raffle.
This month's meeting will take place on Tuesday 22nd at 2.30pm at the home of Mrs Jan Ewers, No 2 Cottage, Gaydon Hill Farm.
Sealed Knot Re-enactments and Demonstrations on 18-20 October at Kineton Sports and Social Club, Bridge Street. Entry fee £2 for adults, £1 under-16s and OAPs Includes Beer Festival, Pig Roast on Saturday, Live Music
More info from Mel on 640121.
Vintage and Second-hand Clothes Sale on 26 October at 9am. Our Clothes Sale at the Sheldon Bosley Hub in Shipston is always a great place to grab a vintage bargain - the early bird catches the best!
If you are interested in having a table, £20, please call Rebecca on 01608 674929.
The funeral of Bill Arnold, who died on 3rd September, was held at St Giles' Church on Monday, 23 September. Canon Norman Howse officiated and the burial took place in Gaydon Cemetery. There was a large congregation at the church service and refreshments were served afterwards at the Malt Shovel Inn. We offer our condolences to his family and friends.
The following events will be held this autumn at our local National Trust stately home.
Autumn Walk in the woods Sunday 13 October, 12-4pm; Civil War Camp with Fairfax Battalia 26 and 27 October, 11am-4pm; Halloween Trail Monday 28 October to Sunday 3 Nov. 11- 4pm. Telephone Upton House & Gardens on 01295 670266 for details.
If you enjoyed the fabulous Folly Flowers this summer, look out for the Wreaths that will be available to order for Christmas. Barbara makes them herself.
Don't forget that on Fridays we have a selection of delicious and different delicacies from Boo of The Loft Kitchen, Kineton.
Prescriptions
Would it help if you could collect your prescription from the village shop? The committee is looking into offering a prescription collection service from the surgeries in Kineton. They would be picked up on one day each week and would need to be collected from the shop on the same day. There may be a nominal charge. If you might be interested in using this service just let someone in the shop know.
We are always looking for volunteers to help in the shop. If you have some time to spare or know someone who does, then call in or contact the shop on telephone number 641805.
Something to sell or a service to offer? Send us your small ad and we will print it free of charge!
Regular or one-off service. Will collect and deliver. Non-smoking house. Ring Julia on 641839 or 07543497171
Lecture: The History of RAF Gaydon with John Bishop on 2 November 2013 10:30 am - 03:00 pm.
This lecture, by local resident John Bishop, will give you an insight into the history of RAF Gaydon with an opportunity to visit the old Control Tower (1954 onwards), now part of Jaguar Land Rover's site.
Gaydon was one of several RAF airfields in the Midlands which enjoyed two separate periods of existence: one as a wartime training base, the other when it was rebuilt and put back into service for very different aircraft.
From 1942 until 1974 RAF Gaydon was home to Wellingtons and WWII V-Bombers and Cold War RAF at-Home days - Varsities, Valettas and Navigation school.
The Lecture, which must be booked, costs £30.00 per person and includes:
A Visit to the Observation Tower; Lunch (one course including tea or coffee); and entrance to the museum.
To book or for further information, please ring 645029 or email museum@heritage-motor-centre.co.uk
We have welcomed our new reception class and they are settling into their new routines very quickly. They have been exploring the outdoors and harvested a huge crop of fruit from the school gardens. They have also been finding out about the caterpillars and grubs that enjoy the fruit too.
Years 1, 2 and 3 are learning about transport from the past, present and future, whilst Years 4, 5 and 6 are exploring all kinds of natural disasters, such as floods, tornados and volcanoes, and how they impact on the landscape, environment and people in different countries.
One of our special curriculum activities is Forest Schools and developing a love of the outdoors and nature, promoting teamwork and co-operation and boosting self-esteem. This year one of the projects is creating wood carvings that we hope will decorate our school grounds. Find out more at www.lighthorneheathprimaryschool.co.uk
Juliette Westwood (Exec. Headteacher) and Michelle Cragg (Associate Headteacher)