Gaydon Parish Magazine June 2021
index of magazines
Parish Council News
It’s a cold May and everywhere has been drenched these past weeks. It really highlights a rural area as farmers cope with the weather every year, not sure what the result of their labours will be as even livestock can be weather dependent. For the Council it is the annual rush as end of year finances have to be prepared and we re-start our face-to-face meetings under a controlled environment.
Changes at the Parish Council
From the 1st June we welcome our new Clerk, Lydia Cox, who will be taking the rôle of Clerk and Finance Officer. She will be taking over from Jo, who has stood in as our Temporary Clerk quite a few times over the past years whenever needed. Huge thanks for all she has done; and amazingly minutes were always produced within 24-48 hours of the meeting.
We also welcome David Faulkner as a new co-opted Councillor and by the time you read this there will probably be another new Councillor. We are just waiting for the official time frame to come to an end and then we will have a full set of councillors for a change.
*Meetings in St Giles Church
Our next Council meetings will be held in St Giles Church while the Village Hall is still closed. Legislation inhibits the PC from supporting the church in general but we can do so only in specific ways, such as paying its hire for meetings (same cost as Village Hall).
Dog Control
After yet another dog incident on the field, can we remind dog owners and walkers that their pets should be always kept under control; we have had many years of no problems in that department, so why is this on the increase?
Next Meeting
Our next ordinary council meeting is on the 1st June at 7.30pm in the Parish Church. Covid guidelines apply, so please sanitize your hands on the way in, follow directions given to you as where to sit, and wear a mask. If you could advise the Clerk that you wish to attend it would be most helpful, as we do have a maximum number (20 I think).
*Meetings in St Giles Church
St Giles is the village church and part of a larger group of churches working together under one vicar. It is maintained by the income from the regular small congregation.
I doubt if many villagers realise that although the church has stood in the village since 1852, on the site of a previous structure, its future is in doubt. Ultimately, it could face closure and pass out of the hands of the village.
The stonework is deteriorating at a pace and cost that is unsustainable for a small congregation - and contrary to what people may think, there is no financial help from the Diocese for a church like ours. There are a few historic grants that can be applied for, but, as churches are a specialist project, the costs involved in any work are high.
The church clock is the Village War Memorial and that item is maintained by the Parish Council. If the church closes, I am not sure what the future will be for our war memorial either.
NB Next PC meeting will be on 1st June at 7.30pm in St Giles Church.
June Church Services
Covid restrictions remain - wear a mask and keep social distance
Sunday 6
9.30am Morning Prayer Gaydon
11am Communion (BCP) Burton Dassett
11am Morning Prayer Fenny Compton
10am Holy Communion Farnborough
6pm Songs of Praise on ZOOM
Sunday 13
9.30am Communion (BCP) Gaydon
11am Holy Communion Fenny Compton
11am Morning Prayer Northend
6pm Evensong Farnborough
Sunday 20
9.30am Morning Prayer Gaydon
10am Communion (BCP) Farnborough
11am Morning Prayer Fenny Compton
11am Holy Communion Northend
6pm Songs of Praise on ZOOM
Sunday 27
9.30am Holy Communion Gaydon
10am Morning Prayer Farnborough
11am Communion (BCP) Fenny Compton
11am Morning Prayer Northend
Zoom Services every Week
9.30am Monday to Friday Morning Prayer
6pm Monday to Friday Evening Prayer
11am Sunday Service
6pm Songs of Praise 6th & 20th June
Go to www.dassettmagnagroup.com and click the link halfway down the page.
Roman Catholic Church of St Francis, Kineton
Sunday Mass 11am. We welcome everyone who is able to attend and will ensure that safety protocols keep everyone safe. For further information please go to our website at www.stfrancis-kineton.co.uk
The Vicar Writes:
I have been in so many digital meetings in the last year I’m almost goggle eyed. Initially, I had to make some modifications to my setting. The way my desk was positioned in the room I was back-lit by a big glass window and while the view through the window was beautiful, the light made video quality very poor. So I decided to make a change! I actually moved out of my study at the front of the house and into the dining room at the back of the house. The lighting was different and by facing the window I also had a wonderful view of the garden which has been very uplifting.
That decision meant that not only did I have to move furniture around in both rooms but in moving the computer I noticed all the dust and had to be careful with all the cords. It ended up being a much bigger project than I originally intended. That’s when I realised this is what ministry is like, it’s what life is like.
We go with the flow so often and it just keeps going even if it isn’t exactly excellent. It could be better, but it’s working at least a little bit. It’s not until somebody decides, “We’ve got to do something better; we can do something better,” and just does it, that something really good happens.
Yes, it’s messy and it often ends up being a bigger job than we intended, but in the end it’s worth it! It’s going to be better. It’s going to be more excellent, and in the church context, hopefully we are going to reach more people. That was certainly the case with our zoom church services. Maybe not with changing my desk around, but when we change something about the way we’re doing ministry, hopefully we’re going to reach more people.
The same may be the case with our lives. When lockdown came my husband and I looked at new ways of keeping in touch with family we usually saw half a dozen times a year. We now have a weekly zoom chat with my sister-in-law and her husband and do the weekend Times and Telegraph quiz together. It’s fun, we’ve learned lots and realised how much we do know and it’s brought us closer together.
So, I want to encourage you today have a look at your life and go ahead and make a change today. Try! See the things that are not exactly excellent; that could be better, and just try! See what God does when you open yourself to one small change the Spirit is leading you to make. Rev. Nicki Chatterton
Nature Notes for May
The weather is still unseasonably cold though a hint of warmth to come during odd sunshine breaks in the clouds. A few days ago, I glimpsed a solitary swallow and today a group of Swifts, so migration from Africa has begun albeit rather gradually this year.
Some early butterflies: a worn Peacock, Green-Veined Whites and Orange tips taking advantage of the sunny intervals. The first Brimstones, seen last month, will still be on the wing too. Butterflies were observed and recorded as early as the 15th century by the profuse illustrator Moses Harris in his book 'The Aurelian'. Many of the names of familiar species may well be mediaeval and draw on Greek and Latin Mythology or long-departed occupations. Hence moths like the Miller, Hebrew Character, Footman, Coachman; and names like Brimstone, 'Red Admiral' (aka ‘Admirable’) and Gate-keeper, have long ago been designated traditionally. A rare species 'The Glanville fritillary’ was named after Lady Glanville who discovered it on the Isle of Wight, its sole habitat in the British Isles.
I am yet to hear a Cuckoo in the dawn chorus around Gaydon - hope somebody may have though? But did see a Hobby on the Bishops Road last week, a migrant from the same area of Africa. I notice that Owlets near here have now fledged; and nest-building Robins and Blackbirds in my own garden have taken advantage of Ivy-clad areas to compensate for lack of leaf cover.
Trees like Ash, Oak and Walnut are still ‘slow off the mark’ due to the low temperatures. A magnificent Laburnum tree is in full blossom opposite my house and has many nests in it: a refuge, as it is also clad in Ivy. One day a large Sparrow Hawk swooped after a goldfinch but was stuck flapping on the outside of this retreat, unable to follow - a scene observed through my front window.
The bluebells are of course taking advantage of the lack of leaf cover and are even on verges, where once there was woodland, along with Cowslips, also in great profusion. Churchyards like Chadshunt also have the rarer Oxslip. Other plants such as Red Campion, violets and, of course, the ubiquitous Dandelion are at their best now and are vital pollinators. I do not, however, share the desire to have the latter in my salads, as rather bitter though packed with vitamins.
Like many in the UK I have joined the 'No mow in May’ campaign and so I have what might be described as a ‘verdant sward’ rather than a mown lawn. I shall need to sharpen my large Old fashioned scythe to cut a crop of hay if the weather dries up: ideal for lining the hens' nest boxes now they are laying well. Bernard Price
Plant Sale
Saturday 5 June 11am at the Allotment Gates. There will be a variety of plants for sale including tomatoes, beans, lupins and Livingstone daisies.
Gaydon Village Hall News
Gaydon Village Hall will open on Monday 21 June (Government Restrictions permitting) after its long dormant period under Covid restrictions. Bookings may be made with Eirwen Hughes on 641889 from 14th June.
Coffee Morning
Gaydon Village Hall looks forward to the first coffee morning since lockdown began last year. Please bring some cakes to share.
Put out the Flags! Coffee Morning 11am Saturday 10 July, Coffee and Cake and Biscuits, Donations to Church Funds Please.
Barnfield Fundraiser
I am walking the length of Hadrian's Wall (84 miles) at the end of June to raise money for Barnfield, for items for our garden (new furniture, sensory items etc). By the time this parish magazine reaches you on July 1st, I should be nearing the end of my walking challenge somewhere near Bowness-on-Solway.
Here is the link if you would like to donate/share the link: https://gofund.me/af0246bf Many thanks, Helen.
Gaydon Glitterati
Fed up with litter and fly tipping in our parish? Me too!
Many of us "do our bit" regularly and it can be lonely out there in all weathers. Most of all, it can be so frustrating when a footpath you cleared yesterday is just as litter-strewn today. So much of what is picked up can be recycled. We have finite resources left on this planet and we owe it to future generations to act now, to preserve them.
I've set up a Gaydon Glitterati Facebook Group so that we can concentrate our efforts, organise litter picks, protect our environment and share resources. We are currently running a poster competition with some small prizes.
We would be delighted for children and their parents to join us.
Please feel free to get in touch. We even have stickers, too! Gilly Bolton
Flag
The Flag on the Green flew on 27 April to celebrate the 10th Wedding Anniversary of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. It marked the Anniversay of Victory in Europe Day 1945 on 8 May and the 100th Anniversary of the Royal British Legion on the 15th. On 16 May we raised the flag and wished Gilly Bolton many Happy Returns of the Day; and on the 21st it flew for Craig Moore's 50th: 'Happy Birthday, Dad!'.
If you have something to celebrate, contact Siobhan Hannan on 07780 678582 and she will raise the Flag for you. The cost is a donation of £5 to Church funds.
Kineton and District Local History Group
We meet every 3rd Friday in the Kineton village hall at 7:30pm and have been zooming but hope to be back to normal soon. We would like to welcome Gaydon folks. The next date for visitors to come along is Friday 17 September and the topic is The Leamington and Warwick Tramway. For more details please contact our chairman David Freke on frekejdj@globalnnet.co.uk Catherine Petrie
Neighbourhood Watch
It has been a quiet month for crime in Gaydon but we are happy to announce that Chris Pickering has joined Gaydon Neighbourhood Watch as a Co-ordinator. IM
Phone Box Library
Anyone who wishes to help look after the phone box can email: jomstrike@outlook.com Recently, someone was seen leaving a box of discarded books which had to be disposed of. Please don't do this, whoever is responsible! SN
Dog Scoops
Who likes picking up dog excrement? There are two scoopers on the market that are recommended: Dog Buddy and Waste Cleaner. They make the job less unpleasant and keep everyone happy. SN
June Allotment News
Slugs, Weeds and overgrown Lawns are the result of the 'April showers' that have arrived in May. We have been desperate for rain but looking at the sodden fields around, it seems we have had more than we prayed for. Time will tell whether the plants and crops can survive having wet feet but I do know, however, that the weeds always manage. A major benefit when compared to last year is that we have avoided water haulage to date (Phew!). These mild and wet conditions have helped to kick off the growing season even if we are a few weeks behind 2020. Importantly, a celebration is needed now that that the risk of frost is behind us and warmer conditions are on the horizon. Hooray!
The list of April jobs has been delayed into recent weeks and as a result plots have seen a hive of activity, with most available spaces being filled with either seed or young and delicate seedlings. As you read there is still time to nip down to your local nursery and procure some veggie delights that are desperate to fill every nook and cranny of your garden. Do not plant stuff randomly though! There is a useful strategy in the form of 'companion' planting in which you place different crops in proximity for several beneficial reasons such as: Pest control, pollination, and crop productivity, etc. There are helpful guides available on the internet and a particularly useful one can be found on 'Westcoast Seeds'. It may be daunting at first but there is method to the madness and the local bees and insects will thank you for it also.
Jobs for June:
Harvest early potatoes, peas, broad beans, onions, beetroot, strawberries, cherries, and gooseberries;
Sow seeds for vegetables, salads, and herbs that you will pick later in the summer/autumn;
Plant out seedlings;
Weed often;
Net peas, cabbages, and fruit bushes against hungry birds;
Keep a close eye on slugs, snails, blackfly, caterpillars, carrot fly, etc. Andrew Smith
Compton Verney Open
Mary Newcomb: Nature's Canvas showing now until 5 September.
This exhibition will be the most extensive survey of Mary Newcomb’s work to date. Works by Ben Nicholson, Winifred Nicholson, Alfred Wallis, LS Lowry, Milton Avery and Mary Potter will provide context.
Rebecca Louise Law: Seasons on show till 30 August.
Rebecca Louise Law will use flora foraged from the Park and her own home in rural Wales to create a spectacular, experiential installation and film that explores our relationship with the natural world. Inspired by Mary Newcomb and the Compton Verney experience, it is made especially poignant and relevant through the Covid-19 crisis.
New Caterers
We are delighted to launch our gallery restaurant. Lulu Curtis-Smith was the General Manager at Prince Charles’ Royal Highgrove Estate for more than 10 years; chef Louise McCrimmon was at Harvey Nichols Bristol and winner of Bristol's best chef competition.
Gift Shops
Our new spring ranges include jewellery from local designer Elin Horgan and an extensive range of Kew Gardens natural beauty products. Upgrade to an Access All Areas Member and receive 10% discount on any purchase. https://www.comptonverney.org.uk
Bio hazard In our children’s play area!
On Sunday evening a blood-covered facemask was found discarded in our children’s play area. Luckily, it was picked up and correctly disposed of. Littering a soiled item is unacceptable, illegal and foolish especially with the covid risk as well. Please do take a bag out with you and dispose of your discarded rubbish at home. SN
Millennium Group News
We are unable to plan any events yet owing to the uncertainty about the lifting of Covid restrictions. We hope that by October we will be able to relaunch with Apple Day. We would like to thank Julie Rickman for organising sales of ‘The Postman’s Tale’ and donating the proceeds, £75, to our group. DP