Please email your entries for the May 2024 issue to: ThePennant@mail.com by 21st April 2024
Parish Council News
The replacement post box is now fully installed and working and situated further up in Church Rd on the opposite side of the road.
Bradford Abbas Variety Club – Variety Show 2024
It’s this month! Friday 12th April 7.30pm and Saturday 13th April at 3pm & 7.30pm.
Rehearsals have been going very well, so you will be sure to have an afternoon or evening of fun and laughter (at someone else’s expense!) There will be some of the old favourite characters and sketches, but some new talent too. Ticket sales have gone very well, but we do have some left for Friday evening and Saturday afternoon.
Refreshments and a raffle will be available, card and cash accepted.
Tickets can be purchased from the Rose & Crown or Lou.silk@hotmail.com
Look forward to welcoming you to the Village Hall for an afternoon or evening of laughter.
Neighbourhood Plan
The Bradford Abbas and Clifton Maybank Neighbourhood Plan working group continues to meet
monthly and also to meet with the government funded neighbourhood planning consultant adviser.
A government grant can be accessed with producing the plan, all the working group being unpaid volunteers.
We are now very close to producing the first draft of the Neighbourhood Plan which we will share with the community later this year when we will consult with our residents and value any further ideas and comments. If anyone would like to join us we would be delighted to welcome you.
The Neighbourhood Plan working group.
Wine Tasting Evening, Saturday 11th May
This fund-raising event in aid of the Village Hall will be hosted by wine expert, Bradford Abbas resident and owner of The Drinksmith in Sherborne, Jamie Wynne Griffiths. He'll take you on a blind tasting odyssey, sampling six wines from unusual grape varieties and lesser-known regions, accompanied by nibbles and a quiz.
This is an opportunity to sample wines you'll never see in the mainstream shops and will make for a thoroughly original tasting experience, with plenty of laughs along the way. Wines can also be ordered on the night if you fancy enjoying them at home. This event will take place in the Village Hall and as it has limited space pre-booking is recommended. To book please contact Tricia Chapman 01935 602279 orpcchapman18@gmail.com. Tickets are ÂŁ15.00 per person; 7:30pm start.
The Rose and Crown, Bradford Abbas
Key dates in April:
1st - Easter Monday - Open for drinks 12-4pm
Friday 5th - Greek Night 6-9pm
Saturday 6th - Leona Drayton performing 8-30pm
Thursday 18th - Pie night 6-9pm
Saturday 20th - Kelly Dale performing 8.30-10.30pm
Saturday 27th- Mr & Mrs Quiz 8pm For bookings please phone 01935 423199 or email roseandcrown@btinternet.com
Bradford Abbas Camera Club
Tuesday 9th April: You all know that the best camera is the one you have on you, and that is often your phone camera. Jeannette Lenden is an expert on phone photography and she will tell us how to get the best out of our smartphone cameras and release its full potential. On this occasion there will be a charge of ÂŁ5 for visitors but this does include tea/coffee and biscuits. If you would like to attend please contact our treasurer at sbacc.treasurer@gmail.com.
Wednesday 10th April: Following last night’s talk Jeannette will be running a safari around Sherborne so we can put into practice the methods and tips so spoke about last night. It will last about two hours at a reduced rate of £25 per person.
Tuesday 23rd April: Our speaker is Gary Golpin whose talk will present us with his experiences of walking The South West Coast Path as a backdrop for a photographic tour of the coastline of the South West, with a little excursion onto Dartmoor too, exploring some of the best photographic locations that Devon has to offer.
Ian spent many years operating commercial photo labs, tackling many technical photographic problems, including a time as the Manager of the Photographic Section at NASA's Langley Research Centre.
Our meetings are on the second and fourth Tuesdays in the month, taking place at the village hall, time 7.30pm. All are welcome. Further information at sbacameraclub.co.uk.
Bradford Abbas History Society
NEXT MEETINGS WILL BE IN THE VILLAGE HALL ON TUESDAY 23rd APRIL AT 2.30pm or THURSDAY 25th APRIL AT 7.30pm.
The presentation by BARRY BROCK will be on “PRISON FOR THE POOR” which will tell us about Sherborne’s old prison, also known as the bridewell, on South Street.
MEETINGS ARE OPEN TO ALL AT A COST OF ÂŁ2 BUT IS FREE TO MEMBERS AND THOSE UNDER 16, or ÂŁ10 ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION.
There are no meetings in May but two outings are planned for June and July…. Watch this space!
Telephone Box News
A huge thank you to all our residents who donate books to the telephone box. We have an extraordinary selection of fiction and non-fiction donated, which all prove to be enormously popular with young and old alike.
We are planning something special for the 80th anniversary of D Day (but it will be hard to eclipse the coronation coach!). If you have any books on D Day that you can spare we would be delighted to accept them.
Jenny Thomas and the telephone box team.
The Friendship Club
The Friendship Club meeting this month is on Tuesday 2nd April at 2.00pm at Bradford Abbas Sports and Social Club. There is Bingo, a small draw, Tea and Biscuits and a chance to have a chat and laugh with fellow villagers. New members will be warmly welcome. We always meet on the first Tuesday afternoon of the month. Next month will be on Tuesday 7th May 2024 (but no Bingo).
Monday Night Bingo
Every Monday at Bradford Abbas Sports and Social Club at 6.45pm with eyes down at 7.15pm. Everyone 18 and over is welcome to our weekly light-hearted evening which also includes a small draw a chance to win the SNOW BALL and of course a laugh and chat, we finish just before 9.00 pm.
Yeovil Railway Centre at Yeovil Junction
Easter 2023, Easter Sunday and Easter Monday: Steam Train rides with our Peckett 0-4-0 Pectin as well as an Easter Bunny and an Easter Egg Hunt. Passengers travel in our coach which is accessible with a standard size wheelchair Train rides start at 11.00am and run every 20 minutes with a break for lunch for both humans and Pectin. There are turntable demonstrations at 12.40pm and 2.30pmAdmission £!3.75 for adults with Gift Aid, otherwise £12.50 for children aged 5 -15 £6.60 (gift aid), otherwise £6. One child admitted free with a full paying adult. Under 5’s and members are free. No booking, just pay at the gate.
We have a shop, light refreshments, model railway layout and rides on the miniature railway (included in your entrance charge. There are exhibits and displays including the Chard Signalling Panel, see how trains are controlled. Parking is included (subject to availability)
Sunday 14th April: Steam Train Day with an appearance by a Character (TBA) otherwise details as above.
Please see our web site for full details at yeovilrailway.freeservers.com
Bradford Abbas and Clifton Maybank Village Hall
In order to book the village hall please go to the Parish Council website (https://bradford-abbas.uk/hall) to see if the hall is available and how to book, alternatively please email bacmvh@gmail.com or ring the Booking Secretary (Tricia Chapman) on 01935 602279. Please note the new telephone number.
Pop-up Market
Thank you to everyone who came to the market last month. The next one will be held in June and then every three months. But don't forget if you need sustainable gifts, cards and art before my Web site is madebyjules.uk.
Julie Swinnerton
St. Mary’s Church, Bradford Abbas
UPCOMING SERVICES HERE - EVERYBODY IS WELCOME.
SUNDAY 21ST APRIL 10am Holy Communion (led by David Dunning)
SUNDAY 28TH APRIL 10am Morning Service (lay-led)
The service on 28th April is followed at 11:30 by our Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM). This is the meeting when churchwardens and members of the PCC are elected and the previous year is reviewed. Everybody in the community is welcome to attend.
SUNDAY 5TH MAY 10am Morning Service (lay-led)
THURSDAY 9TH MAY 7pm Ascension Day: Service of Healing and Reconciliation. This service is for people across the whole Three Valleys Benefice (16 churches) and is likely to be well attended. It will be the last service taken in Bradford Abbas by Tony Gilbert who is soon to retire. Please do come along.
OTHER NEARBY SERVICES WHICH MAY BE OF INTEREST TO YOU.
YETMINSTER SUNDAY 7TH APRIL 10am Benefice Holy Communion (led by Anne Budgell)
FRIENDS OF ST MARY’S CHURCHYARD
The friends of the Churchyard group have appropriately been fairly dormant through the winter. We have now decided to fix a regular monthly slot for volunteers to come along and help keep the churchyard looking good. If you helped us in 2023 – or if you are willing to come along this year – please mark your diaries for the last Saturday of the month, starting around 10:30am. By the time you read this, there should have already been one session on 30th March. The next ones will be on 27th April, then 25th May and so on. Once we can rely on some evening sunshine, weekday sessions will be added in. For more information, please speak to Alan Fall.
FROM OUR ECO CORRESPONDENT
How are you getting on with trying to avoid single use plastics when you shop? It isn’t easy, is it? But a lot of fruit and veg can be bought without plastic wrappers, even in supermarkets. Although our refuse collections do not allow us to put plastic bags and other soft plastics into the recycling, many of our local supermarkets have a place for these items. It takes a bit of effort on our part to separate them out and remember to take them when we go shopping, but as one of the stores is so keen to remind us, EVERY LITTLE HELPS. (Other retailers are available.)
Let’s make 2024 a year for changing our deep-rooted habits and for caring for God’s creation whenever we can.