Gaydon Parish Magazine October 2025
index of magazines
Gaydon Gazette for October
Parish Council Tues 7th at 7.30pm Village Hall
Mobile Library Fridays 3rd & 31st Phone Box
Wine Tasting Thursday 9th at 7.30pm Village Hall
Coffee Morning Sat 11th at 11am Village Hall
Tai Chi Mons & Weds at 7pm Village Hall
Something to look forward to: Over-65s Christmas Lunch on Sunday 7th December
Gaydon Parish Council News
Next Meeting: Tuesday 7 October at 7.30pm in the Village Hall
Churchyard Thanks
The Parish Council would like to thank everyone who turned up on Saturday 27th and cut down undergrowth and brambles and cleared ivy from trees and walls. Special thanks to those who later moved the heaps of greenery to the bonfire on the allotments.
October Christmas Lunch Coffee Morning
Our Fundraising coffee morning will be on Saturday 11th at 11am. Big Raffle and White Elephant. Refreshments £2.00: coffee or tea and cake! Book stall: only 50p per book or jigsaw. Please donate prizes, cakes, knick-knacks and bric-a-brac. Proceeds go towards the Over-60s Christmas Lunch.
Mobile Library
This month the Mobile Library will call at the Telephone Box at 2.25pm for half an hour on Fridays 3rd and 31st.
Tai Chi
The Tai Chi group meets every Monday and Wednesday evening at
7 o'clock in the Village Hall. Please text 07514 011406 so that we can look out for you. After a month, please donate a coin for the hire of the hall.
October at the Motor Museum
Monday 6th Mellow Mondays
Tuesday 14th Gaydon Gathering
Monday 20th Mini Motorists for Toddlers
W/E 25th-26th Great British Model Railways
Sat 25th-Sun 2nd Nov Half-term Adventures
Information and tickets at www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk
Carers4Carers
Friday 24th October: 10:30am to 12 noon at Kineton Village Hall.
This month, therapist Anita returns with her popular hand massages, and the Kineton Manor team will lead optional small group discussions on advance care planning in a gentle, supportive environment. If you would like to take part in a group it would be helpful to let us know in advance. For further details about our group or help with transport arrangements to/from our meetings, please contact Gillian on 07947 893504, send an email to kcarers4carers@gmail.com, or explore our website www.carers4carersonthefosse.org.uk
Flag Days in September
6th - Happy 60th Birthday Sharon! Congratulations!
8th - Anniversary of the Accession of HM The King.
If you have something to celebrate or commemorate, ring Siobhan on 07780 689582, and she will raise the flag for you in return for a £5 contribution to Church funds.
Hello from the Village Shop
As autumn gently settles over Gaydon, we are truly grateful for your generous donations of produce to the shop. Thanks to you, our shelves have been bright with fruit of all kinds.
Cooler days drawing in, we think about hearty soups, stews and casseroles. The Village shop is here to help: we stock fresh and frozen meats, vegetables, spice and sauces, along with all the essentials to make warming meals for the season ahead. If you would like to join our volunteer team, we would be delighted to welcome you.
Looking ahead, pumpkins will be arriving soon, ready for the end of October. If you'd like something special, please place your order in advance. As always, thank you for your continued support and custom which means so much to us all. With warm wishes, Siobhan and the Village Shop Team
Nature Notes for September
A sudden drop in temperatures today in late September although dire predictions of heavy rain have not materialised. The Horse Chestnut trees as usual are the first to start shedding leaves and turning yellow,
revealing the familiar 'conkers'. Apples are very prolific, along with damsons and plums, huge crops that exceed those of many previous years.
The House Martins started to gather on the 17th. They were all gone by the next day, heading back to Africa for another year; and large flocks of Linnets and Goldfinches have arrived - by contrast - probably from Northern Europe.
I'm still concerned that this early in the year the blackberries have already finished in many hedgerows. My friends living in the New Forest have already remarked on the return of turtle Doves this year and even Nightjars. A recent News commentator was under the illusion that this latter species was a bird familiar to most people; but sadly it is not. They were widespread in Warwickshire once, but not for thirty years now.
Whilst it is very pleasing to see that there is a lot more concern for wildlife these days, perhaps it is only because we are losing it so fast? Today I saw a group of Cygnets being shepherded to safey from off the Banbury road. Numerous woodpigeons are being 'rescued' - from road accidents or falls from nests...
As I walk around my garden I perceive a young Robin trittering alarm calls, its concern a Kestrel perched in the tree above me, probably seeking respite from being mobbed by our local Ravens, which never fail to notice any Red Kite or Buzzard that glides over the village.
Grey Squirrels are back in the village, too, storing nuts purloined from my Walnut tree. Red Admiral Butterflies are feasting on the fallen figs and Speckled Woods are still skipping around my shady paths, even on dull days.
Another early appearance is the profusion of fungi. Today, I collected some field mushrooms and if you have access to a field that has not been treated by chemicals, or even only a verge, keep a look out as they are delicious compared to shop bought ones. 'Chicken of the woods' often has fresh brackets on dead branches; and the attractive Dryad's Saddle appears early, too, often known as 'pheasant-back' owing to its scalloped markings but it is not that edible. The predicted rains and drop in temperature may produce a bumper crop by activating the dormant spores after a long dry spell.
I hope that the frosts mentioned in the weather forecasts today will stay away from Gaydon for a few weeks yet!
Bernard Price
Gaydon Development Update - October
Ten Good Reasons why the development should be rejected: Each have equal weight… (Whatever the decision on ‘Determination Day’ 30th September, the following hold true as the principal reasons for objecting to the development.)
Fear of Flooding: This is not theoretical. We have experienced flash flooding on numerous occasions – notoriously in 2007 when 17 homes were inundated. One household in the village has had the misfortune to be flooded 7 times. If the proposed site – elevated over the village – goes ahead the capping of the existing fields which have, to some extent, acted as a ‘soakaway’ will make Gaydon exponentially vulnerable to the ‘severe weather events’ about which meteorologists ominously say are an inevitable consequence of global warming. It is not news to anyone in the UK that we have the worst water companies in Europe to deal with serious drainage and sewage issues as a result of the neglect and inadequacies of our antiquated pipework. To add to the crisis, further ‘infilling’ house building around the village has put so much pressure on sewage elimination that regular visits by lorries to take away the excess are required!
Pollution: Already subject to the M.40 fast-flowing ‘river’ of particle pollution, Gaydon residents would have a regular provider of diesel distillates, ‘carbon black’ particles and other chemicals to add to the atmospheric cocktail, if the development is approved. CEG (Malta) Ltd’s own forecast of 55 lorry movements per hour at peak times will also supply a regular cacophony of vehicle noise pollution 24/7 (The all-electric vehicle nirvana is many decades into the future…) The light pollution created will be not so much a ‘shining city on the hill’ but a gaudy, Blackpool illuminations tribute act.
Loss of precious agricultural land: A new report “UK Food Security: Outlook to 2050” (pub. Science for Sustainable Agriculture) warns that up to 24% of Britain’s farmland could be lost to housing and commercial development and renewable energy projects by mid-century, significantly reducing food production and self-sufficiency. As a consequence, the UK would risk a greater reliance on food imports, leading to higher prices, supply chain disruption and shortages of previously UK grown products. Some people may say: “It’s not top-quality farmland…” In fact, going back many decades, the evidence is clear that it has grown abundant crops year on year. Councils and planners, if they allowed the development, would be giving a signal that our farmland can be seen as just another potential building plot – creating an increasingly dangerous precedent - and thereby helping to threaten UK food security incrementally.
Irretrievable loss of our ‘green lungs’: the hilly fields which comprise the site (and which CEG (Malta) Ltd’s latest visual plans manage to flatten out!) have provided an oxygenating ‘filter’ to counteract the multiple sources of pollution which have grown up around Gaydon over the past 40 years. It would be going against the principle of a ‘zero-carbon’ environment to not only eliminate the fields but to create a new source of pollution as well. Furthermore, everyone who travels south along the road from the Heritage Centre traffic lights can experience the emotional uplift – recognised by psychologists – when viewing a pleasing, landscape, such as this: the Warwickshire hills rolling away to Oxfordshire. This would be gone. Forever.
Most over-developed rural area in the UK?: Gaydon must be close to being the most overdeveloped rural areas in the UK without being transformed into a small town. No one in Gaydon would be too surprised if Temple Herdwick continues its march north to the boundary of the village, turning the whole area into an urban sprawl with a disastrous lack of infrastructure and services to cope with it. Housing, commercial and road developments have all been built up during the past 40 years without significant opposition - negating any idea that we are NIMBYs. We even have added ‘stripes’ in the form of mile long solar panels adorning the south facing ‘test-track’ escarp-ment for zero benefit to Gaydon residents! It seems, sometimes, as if we are in some development version of the “Squid Game”: we are being tested to see how far things have to go before we flinch! If there are any notions of fairness and equality in sharing out disruption and despoilation of communities, when developments are being decided: Haven’t we had more than is justified - already?
Excess vacant warehousing and commercial/industrial sites?: Cherwell District Council have resisted (twice) similar efforts by a developer to carpet North Oxfordshire farmland with huge hangars to accompany the many million square feet of – already existing - vacant warehousing. There is ample evidence that the South Warwickshire/North Oxfordshire region has an abundant excess of commercial/warehousing space and one wonders whether the urge to build more is as much to do with increasing the capital value of such developers rather than fulfilling a genuine need for working premises?
An alternative, ‘brownfield’ site? There exists, on a similar scale, an area, opposite the JLR main gate, known as ‘Swallowfields’ which is available and topographically level (unlike the elevated inclines of Gaydon) and does not impinge on residential housing. This ‘brownfield’ site is being proposed by Wychbury developers for similar constructions to be built to replace its former use as a JLR vehicle exchange area. While this does not mean that we should recklessly endorse such a development, just because it’s further away from Gaydon, it does animate the whole question about the necessity to check the availability of formerly used land before despoiling greenfield sites. Developers find greenfield sites to be more profitable and have fewer construction issues: Councils should resist being wowed by developers’ glossy proposals and focus on why is it really necessary to despoil precious farmland and landscape?
The alleged involvement of AML? This is a red herring or an exercise in kite-flying if you prefer. The alleged involvement of Aston Martin Lagonda (AML) is couched in ‘ifs’, ‘coulds’ and ‘maybes’ about their possible presence in the development. By all accounts they are more focused on consolidating their business and servicing their substantial borrowings (Hargreaves Lansdown report – see August ‘Update’). This comes at a time when the international car market is struggling from month to month with the erratic, unpredictable effect of Trumpworld tariffs and the continuing worry of predatory cyber-attacks affecting large companies and their component suppliers. The key USA market in luxury cars is precarious and AML have cut back from a target of 10,000 vehicles last year to a figure closer to 6,000 this year.
The figure of 4,000 potential jobs is risible… All of us are aware of the staffing levels in these elevated, cavernous buildings around the country: they are staffed in multiples of dozens rather than hundreds. If the figure was in any way credible, the exponential increase in traffic on our already over-subscribed local roads should cause alarm bells to ring for SDC: At peak times it would bring traffic and all the associated pollution and inconveniences to levels to be found in city centres. Even if the potential staffing was in the hundreds, the associated traffic movements and their attendant multiple problems, should be a sufficient deterrent to it being approved in this specific traffic-heavy location.
Speculative development - not part of any future plan: From the outset, this proposed development on the part of CEG (Malta) Ltd. was a speculative project rather than being initiated by necessary regional planning by SDC, WCC or, for that matter, Westminster (Dept. for Business and Trade). The plain truth is that if the proposal was accepted it would make a great deal of money for a small number of people. Many similar developments are registered in tax havens for the financial ‘advantages’ they bring. The downside of this for the UK tax-paying population is twofold. Firstly, those corporate companies who pay a lower rate of tax means that the average UK tax-payer will have to pay more tax to pay for the inevitable shortfall! Secondly, those companies who prefer to be, effectively, based abroad can enjoy their lucrative (5% tax?) lives. Meanwhile UK tax-payers have the continuing, indefinite costs of financing and servicing the associated infrastructure which is necessary for such developments but somehow gets passed on to the public purse. Can we truthfully say that this particular development is financially, fair? Tony Hughes
School Admission Appeals
Warwickshire County Council is seeking volunteers to become Independent Panel Members to hear school admission appeals. Independent Appeal Panels consider appeals by parents against school admission decisions in relation to schools within Warwickshire and some neighbouring counties. This is an important role, and panels are required by law.
The County Council is looking for:
Lay Panel members - people without personal experience in the management of any school or provision of education in any school.
Non-Lay Panel members - people with experience in education (such as current and former headteachers) who are acquainted with educational conditions in the area; or parents of a registered pupil at a school.
Panel Members need only dedicate as much time as they are willing to offer to this voluntary role, and exercise good judgement and demonstrate sound reasoning skills to ensure fair consideration of every case.
To find out more, please email: schoolappeals@warwickshire.gov.uk<mailto:schoolappeals@warwickshire.gov.uk>
October Church Services
5th 9.30am Harvest Festival Gaydon
10.00am Holy Communion Burton Dassett
12th 9.30am Holy Communion Gaydon
10.00am Morning Service Northend
6.00pm Evening Worship Farnborough
19th 9.30am Morning Service Gaydon
10.00am Morning Prayer Northend
26th 9.30am Morning Service Gaydon
10.00am Morning Worship Northend
Roman Catholic Church of St Francis, Kineton: Sunday Mass 11am every week
October Memorial Book
1992 1st Rhoda Lovesey
2012 14th Christopher Wrighton
2022 15th Frederick William Morgan
2020 18th Alan Povey
2010 20th Joan Hare
2014 22nd Margaret Diston
If there is a special entry that you would like to see, let me know and I will try to make sure that the Book is open on that day. Julie Rickman
Thanks
With the threat of rain forcing the fête into the village hall and garden, we still had a fantastic day. In the afternoon there were games, circus workshops, regency dancing, local produce and plenty of food and drink - with a BBQ and dance in the evening. Despite having fewer stalls and lower attendance than planned, we raised an impressive £807! This will be shared by Myton Hospice and the Village Hall Kitchen fund.
There are too many people to thank, but in particular:
Kids of Gaydon, the Millennium Group and Colebrook Seccombes for their generous donations; and the Village Hall Committee for their help and support. Tracey and Dave Livingstone for providing the games and manning them all afternoon. Lisa from Bloon & Co's catering - we could have sold three times as many sausage rolls! The team at The Malt Shovel - particularly Paddy and Paul for BBQ'ing in the dark.
Thanks to everybody who came along and last but not least, the Gaydon Sundowner Fête committee! MS
Something to Think About
Growing Community
One of the privileges of being a rural vicar is that I get to be a part of several village communities… and they are all awesome!
When I pause to think about it, I’m impressed by the positive life in our communities… the many different social activities and events; the way that people greet friend and stranger on the streets; the care that people show for friends and neighbours; the pub staff, restaurant owners, shop keepers and business owners that don’t just run businesses in the community, they also want to do what they can to help bring community together. Scout groups, the W.I., parish councils, our schools, the village hall committees, sports clubs, village churches, book groups, and many other organisations all work to bring people together: helping them make new friendships and strengthen old ones.
I don’t know the statistics for other organisations, but I’ve worked it out for our churches, and every year thousands of people come to the events and activities we organise: tea/coffee mornings/afternoons, breakfasts, lunches, suppers, games nights, curry nights, village fetes, flower festivals, craft fayres, concerts, etc. When you add in all the events and activities that the other organisations put on, the rich tapestry of interconnections we develop is what helps to knit us together as a community.
And I love the wonderfully diverse nature of the people who come to those events and activities… Men and women working in so many different jobs; from farms to factories, from surgeries to schools, from shops to pubs, from desk jobs to manual ones, from hospitals to care homes, and so on. Some are wealthy, some are just getting by, and some are struggling. Some are outgoing and friendly, others are more reserved. People of so many different ages, races, nationalities, religions and political affiliations all coming together for celebrations, meals, games, displays, concerts, etc. There are even Man United/Man City, Liverpool/Everton supporters coming together in the mix!
In a society that prizes the individual and where people in towns and cities can live without even knowing their neighbours, our wonderfully diverse and many-faceted village communities are precious gems that need to be treasured and cared for.
And those communities do need caring for, they need ongoing investment to help people see past conflict and remember that the ties that bind us are greater than the things that can threaten to pull us apart. I’m grateful to the many people who serve our communities in this way. They help us remember that key commandment: to love our neighbours as ourselves. Their continued efforts help counter the fear and suspicion that is often part of the diet we receive in the news and on social media.
So, thank you to the people (many of them unseen and unrecognised) who help to make our villages such warm and welcoming places. I pray that we might all notice what they do and find ways in which we, too, can do our part to help grow community.
Rev Barry Jackson