A Berrylands Based Building Company

We're an in house team of local builders based in Berrylands specialising in all aspects of building including extensions and refurbishments. We have a portfolio of projects stretching across our 10 years of trading. From Landscaping to Luxury Bathroom installations, our team of local trades is here to assist with any project you have planned for 2023

Nearly one in five people (17.5%) aged 55 and over have been the victim of a financial scam, according to findings by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). Scammers often target people who are more vulnerable because they aren’t necessarily working fulltime, or are partially or fully retired.

The Financial Conduct Authority has an informative section on its website – www.fca.org. uk/scamsmart – giving advice on how to avoid both pension and investment scams, a list of the most-searched-for investment and pension scams, plus a useful link if you’ve been contacted about a scam or paid money to fraudsters.

• If you have been defrauded or experienced cybercrime, report it to Action Fraud. Report it either online at www.actionfraud. police.uk or by calling 0300 123 2040.

• You should also report what’s happened to the Financial Conduct Authority, either online or by calling 0800 111 6768.

• If you’ve lost money to a scam and you paid with a credit or debit card, or sent money through an account transaction, tell your bank or payment provider as soon as possible.

• Protect your PIN and OTP

Never share your PIN or one-time passcode (OTP), or indeed your password.

• Make sure they are who they say they are Fraudsters will pretend to be the police, banks, businesses or even friends to trick you. And they might even know personal details about you. If in doubt, hang up!

• Don’t be pressured

Fraudsters will try to put you under pressure to act quickly. Don’t let anyone rush you – always take a moment before you share any details and only click on a link when you know it’s 100% legitimate.

The ‘friend in need’ text

You’ll receive a text or WhatsApp message (from an unknown number) supposedly from someone you know, saying that they have a crisis and asking you to transfer money across to them.

You’re contacted and offered a free pension review. The supposed financial adviser will recommend that you move your money into another scheme or fake investments.

Your ‘bank’ calls to say there’s been suspicious activity on your account. They will attempt to obtain your private, sensitive information, such as banking details, PINs and passwords, supposedly to confirm your identity. They might also suggest your move your cash to a new account which you think is yours but isn’t.

Scammers pose as a major supplier and announce in an email that you are entitled to a refund on your energy bills because of a ‘miscalculation’. They then give you a link to click to provide your payment details.

Surbiton

Tuesday: 5.30pm & 7.30pm

Wednesday: 9.30am & 11.30am

Surbiton New Life Baptist

Church, 1 Balaclava Rd, KT6 5PW

Helen - 07402 234538

New Malden

Friday: 8am & 9.30am

Saturday: 8am & 9.30am

The Graham Spicer, 15 Dukes Ave, KT3 4HL

Vanessa – 07504 522453

Worcester Park

Tuesday: 7.30am, 9am and 5.30pm & 7pm

St. Marys Cuddington, The Avenue, KT4 7HL

Lynn – 07792 897455

Hinchley Wood, Esher

Thursday: 7pm

St. Christopher’s Church, Claygate Lane, KT10 0AQ

Helen - 07402 234538

Open to all Coaching available

Popular Junior Club

Mens, ladies and mixed sessions

Beginners and refreshers courses

Reasonable subscriptions

Great court availability

Celebrate spring with our selection of glorious garden-themed books.

Inspired by Monty’s BBC2 series, Adriatic Gardens, his latest book with Derry Moore is a sumptuous visual journey through the gardens of Venice. Starting in the heart of the city and working their way out to the Veneto, the pair celebrate the beauty of these places and tell some of their remarkable stories. With stunning colour photography throughout, readers will discover new insight into one of the world’s most beloved cities.

A month-by-month treasury of gardening advice, inspiration and knowledge, along with illustrations by Alan himself, who has written more than forty gardening books, twelve novels and three volumes of memoirs. As well as what to grown and sow, find out what wildlife to spot, projects to engage in, weather notes, gardens to visit, birds and flowers to celebrate and much more…

– Bridie Cotter & Tom Gaunt

A practical, fun and easy-to-read deck of cards by organic veggie farmers Bridie and Tom that will help you plant and grow your own kitchen garden. Divided into four sections (Gardening 101, Veggies, Herbs and Flowers), these beautifully illustrated cards will help you start your garden from scratch, offering helpful guidance and advice on everything from plant health to common pest management.

Gardens for the Soul: Sustainable and Stylish Outdoor Spaces

– Sara Bird & Dan Duchars

Whatever the location or size of your garden, a sustainable and ecofriendly ethos can be at the heart of creating a beautiful outdoor space to suit your lifestyle. From tiny spaces to larger patios, and to glean ideas, tips and inspiration, you’ll find suggestions for choosing garden elements from decor and lighting to furniture and accessories, as well as easy craft projects that add quirky personal touches.

Discover the intriguing world of wildflowers with this handy pocket guide, with each of the featured flowers delicately illustrated by printmaker Tom Frost to capture its individual characteristics and accompanied by information about the plant and where it can be found, plus associated facts and fables. Adding to the charm of this delightful book is an interactive spotter’s guide at the back, where you can tick off each flower you find.

From the Victorian grandeur of Tyntesfield and Cragside, to the Arts and Crafts simplicity of Rodmarton Manor and Charleston, from Scampston to new gardens by Dan Pearson and Tom Stuart-Smith, and with favourites such as Sissinghurst and Hidcote alongside new discoveries, this book takes a fresh look at the English country house garden, starting with the owners and the stories behind the making of the gardens, with glorious photographs capturing the gardens at their finest moments through the seasons.

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By Katherine Sorrell

Cosy yet minimal, luxurious yet understated – opt for pale colours and gorgeous textures for a home that looks and feels utterly inviting. Neutrals never go out of fashion, and adding a pale shade of a fashionable colour or two gives your interior a stylish edge. Include an array of delicious textures as well, and you’re really onto a dream combination. The ‘Vanilla Girl’ aesthetic is all the rage, a softly simple yet luxurious look that utilises creamy, neutral shades and textures such as chunky knitted throws, pampas grass and satin bedding. But there’s an almost infinite range of neutral colours, from pure white to earthy tones of grey and beige, and combined with pales such as blush pink, celadon and buttercup, for example, you can vary your look to suit your personality while still keeping that tranquil feeling.

Why neutrals?

A well-planned neutral scheme is good-looking, harmonious and inviting, and works well in old and new houses, and in small or large spaces. Neutrals are perfect for providing cohesion from room to room, and make a perfect backdrop for plants, works of art or collections of all types. Easy to live with, they provide a calming backdrop to daily life in any room of the house, and can easily be swapped when you feel like a change.

All white now

White is the ultimate neutral, and rooms painted pure, brilliant white appear bigger and brighter, fresh and airy. A clean white wall is a great background for vibrant paintings, books, rows of cacti or succulents, or a jug of fresh flowers. Pure white may be a little stark in north- or east-facing rooms that don’t get much direct sunlight, so try a shade with an added touch of yellow or pink to warm up the space. In period homes, such as old cottages, Victorian townhouses or barn conversions, slightly muddier off whites may be a good choice to complement original features.

There’s an enormous range of neutral colours from which to choose, varying in hue from cream to sand, beige to stone and more. Some contain more grey or green pigment, some more yellow, others more pink or brown. Use one everywhere, or use different neutrals in different rooms, but with a visual link – perhaps a very pale colour in a narrow hallway, with slightly darker tones in a living room and a warm tone in a dining room. Or opt for one colour ‘family’ (look at the vertical groupings on a paint chart) and use several sibling shades within a room –experts recommend darker tones for woodwork and lighter ones for walls. With features like cornices and dadoes, you may wish to paint lighter tones above and darker ones below the divisions. Avoid clashing hues of the same tone (slightly different colours with the same degree of lightness or darkness). Shiny gold or brass accessories can offset the subtle scheme, but a dash of black is often a good finishing touch.

The plainer the colour, the more important its surface becomes. Choose your finishes as carefully as your shades: ultra-flat, matt, eggshell, satinwood or gloss, bearing in mind that the shinier the finish, the paler the colour will appear, so you may need to compensate by choosing a slightly darker colour. Lighting, too, can make a difference, so look at test paint patches under different lighting conditions, because the appearance of the colour can change quite dramatically.

Attractively tactile

Textures bring a room to life and make a house a home. From the polish of smooth ceramic to the soft squish of cashmere, the nubbly weave of wicker to the homely warmth of felted wool, a variety of textural surfaces add visual appeal and feels comfortable and secure. Natural textures in particular come to the fore – sisal, shell, stone, brick, wicker, timber, leather, linen, wool, to name a few. Think of layering texture upon texture to create pleasing, subtle contrasts. So there you have it – an enormous variety of colours, tones and textures to explore and enjoy.

By Katherine Sorrell

Softly inviting and with a lavish feel, you can’t beat velvet as a means of adding classic chic and a warm welcome to an interior.

• A touch of velvet can transform a room in an instant. Its soft drape highlights the shape of upholstered furniture, looks and feels wonderful on a headboard, and makes a luxurious throw or cushion cover. Even a tiny accessory such as a trim on a lampshade contributes to the layering of texture that brings subtle pleasure to your space.

• Velvet is fabulous in intense, bold colours, but feels especially ‘now’ in secondary colours such as mustard, teal and fuchsia. It’s best not to mix these two palettes; take inspiration from magazines, online sources or even paint charts if you’re in doubt about combining two or more shades.

• Create interest by including varied types of velvet – such as crushed, embossed, chiffon or devoré – as accents in different parts of your decorative scheme.

• The name velvet actually comes from an old French word, velu, meaning ‘shaggy’, and doesn’t refer to the type of fabric as such, but to its pile weave. Velvet was originally made from silk (which looks and feels beautiful, and has a price tag to match), but these days it’s more commonly made from silk mixed with rayon, cotton or synthetic fibres, sometimes with added stretch.

For some of us, this time of year is when things start to get sneezy. That’s because the arrival of spring also means the arrival of the first of many pollens: tree pollens start to appear in late March, giving way to grass pollens around the middle of May. The good news is that tech can help remove pollens and other airborne irritants to help you breathe more easily.

Until very recently it wasn’t really possible to filter the air around you when you go outside, but Dyson reckons it’s solved that problem – albeit quite expensively. The Dyson Zone looks a bit like a motocross rider’s helmet and includes a built-in air filter as well as noise-cancelling headphones. At £749, though, it’s one for more affluent allergy sufferers.

In the longer term you might be able to get a digital inhaler to help you breathe more easily. A number of firms have developed smart inhalers for asthma and hay fever sufferers, although while they’re currently going through medical approval none are available to buy just yet.

The best tech to keep the air around you fresh

There are lots of options

purifiers, and once again Dyson is a big deal in this market: it makes a range of air purifiers for indoor use, starting with the Pure Cool Me, from £349, to the Purifier Hot+Cool Formaldehyde, which is £649. All the Pure models have built-in air filtering and highly efficient airflow, but it’s important to check the specifications: the Pure Cool Me is described as a ‘personal purifi er’ and isn’t powerful enough to fi lter an entire room’s air. Whichever fi rm you buy from, make sure the purifi er has enough power for the room it’ll be used in: too small and it won’t deliver effective fi ltration.

It’s worth looking at your vacuum cleaner too, because lots of irritants and allergens can live in rugs, carpets and upholstery. Many vacuum firms have models with HEPA filtration, which is very efficient at removing irritants from your home.

It’s not exactly subtle but Dyson’s wearable air filter is designed to remove all kinds of irritants and pollutants from the air around you. £749, dyson.co.uk

It won’t filter your whole room but the baby of Dyson’s purifier range wafts cool, clean air towards you with all the allergens removed. £349, dyson.co.uk

Designed for rooms up to 41 square metres, the BlueAir filters your room’s air nearly five times an hour to remove 99% of airborne particles such as pollen, dust and dander. £179, blueair.com

If you want to filter larger spaces this six-fan model from Shark is ideal, capturing 99.7% of pollutants in rooms up to 64 square metres. £349, sharkclean.co.uk

This cheap and cheerful air filter promises to remove 99.9% of bacteria and 99.97% of dust and microns and is suitable for smaller rooms.

£83, amazon.co.uk

Our independent car and van garage offers brand trained technicians using the latest diagnostic tools and equipment

We are a family run business established in 2009, providing excellent customer service, quality workmanship and repairs at a competitive price Ranked No 1 car garage in Sutton by Honest John

Downton Abbey is a historical TV series and two films set on a fictional Yorkshire country estate between 1912 and 1926. The beautiful stately home shown in the opening credits and most of the interior filming is actually a long way south of Yorkshire, being Highclere Castle in north Hampshire.

Highclere Castle is a Grade I listed property. It was built in 1679 and largely renovated in the 1840s, with a park designed by Capability Brown in the eighteenth century. It’s a significant 5000-acre estate and is the country seat of the Earls of Carnarvon.

Although best known for its role in Downton Abbey, this was far from the only time the house was used in film and TV. In Eyes Wide Shut, the film starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman,

Highclere was used for the masked ball scene. A 2017 documentary series called ‘Mary Berry’s Country House Secrets’ had its initial episode filmed there, and back in the early 90s, five episodes of Jeeves and Wooster, starring Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry, were staged at Highclere.

Downton Abbey, which brought the house international fame, increased the number of visitors to the castle and raised funds for much needed repairs to the turrets and its interior.

The house, Egyptian exhibition, and gardens are open to the public for self-guided tours during the summer months and at other times during the rest of the year, such as Christmas and Easter..

By Caroline Knight

Ask anyone what their ideal garden would feel like and the phrase ‘low-maintenance’ will likely be high on the list. Maybe even ‘no-maintenance’ from those with little garden knowledge. Does this type of garden exist? In the latter example, the answer is an easy ‘no’. But low-maintenance is definitely achievable. It’s largely down to the choice of plants and ratio of lawn or paving to beds and borders.

This is exactly as it sounds – gardening without digging. This allows mycorrhizal networks of fungi to spread. Plants require less water and fertiliser because the fungi, in effect, extend the root system of plants so that they have a wider area in which to source nutrients and moisture. It’s good for the environment as the soil develops better drainage. It also contains more carbon and is less prone to lose nutrients in water runoff during rainy periods. You can add mulch to the soil, when required (early winter is best). Plant directly into the soil – you will be surprised how quickly things become established and start growing.

Mind the gaps

Fill any blank soil spaces with plants to prevent weeds from growing. Nature fills a void! Plant shrubs for the easiest gardening experience, but be sure to select wisely.

A plant in the wrong place will always need attention. If you’re not sure what type of plants are suited to the soil in your area, take a look at your neighbour’s gardens. Evergreens provide year-round interest, but they are not necessarily those with the most interesting flowers. Watering is a high-maintenance requirement, as are the tasks of weeding and deadheading. Gardening is a balance between practical solutions and aesthetic interest, and much of your choice will be based on personal preference.

Some say that a lawn represents the most intensive maintenance requirement of any garden feature which explains why artificial grass has become so popular. But contrary to popular belief, fake lawns are not maintenancefree. Weed seeds will eventually take hold and weeding a lawn of this nature is not easy. Artificial turf also requires washing, on occasions, especially when used as a toilet by dogs and cats. Artificial grass is an emotive topic and there is still a lack of scientific knowledge and a shortage of research when it comes to assessing the environmental impact of such a relatively new product.

However, there’s no doubt that professionally installed artificial turf will cut down on maintenance when compared to a living lawn that requires regular mowing. The lack of biodiversity on a fake lawn is an obvious drawback, but some say that we should view them as another non-living component of a garden, similar to a patio.

This year marks Monty Don’s twentieth anniversary as the popular presenter of the BBC’s Gardeners’ World.

It was as a child at the family home in Hampshire that the seeds of his passion for gardening were sown. When the family’s gardener hurt his back and could no longer tend the five-acre plot, his mother put Monty and his brothers to work. Aged just seven, gardening then was a chore to the young Monty, but over the next decade it became part of his life.

He recalled in an interview for an episode of The Joe Gardener Show that he came home from school aged around 17 on a late March day and instinctively went outside to sow carrots. He could feel spring unfolding, and at the moment of pouring carrot seeds into his hand to plant into the soil he had just prepared, he was filled with a profound feeling of happiness. That night, he had a dream that he put his hands into the earth and his fingers grew into the soil like roots. He awoke feeling refreshed, at ease, and connected to the earth. “I’ve never really lost that feeling,” Monty says.

With more than twenty books to his name, his latest publication – “Venetian Gardens” - is a beautiful book and collaboration with acclaimed photographer Derry Moore, inspired by his recent BBC2 series, Adriatic Gardens.

“Gardens always tell you as much about the people that made and care for them as their plants. However often you visit its beauty never wanes, never fails to intoxicate,” says Monty. And the rest, as they say, is history…

Monty has been making television programmes for over thirty years and has been lead presenter of the BBC’s Gardeners’ World since 2003. From 2011 the programme has come from his own garden, Longmeadow, in Herefordshire. Looking at Monty’s garden today, it’s hard to image it as the two acres he and Sarah purchased in 1991 when it was basically a barren field.

“The best thing you can do when you take on a new garden is nothing. Instead, just pay attention. Learn which direction the rain comes from, for example, and where the garden is the warmest and coolest. You need that knowledge,” he says, “and then you start to create a space that is about you and your life in tune with what is happening.”

Monty’s ambition was to become a professional writer, although not specifically about gardens. Aged around 30, he and his wife Sarah were interviewed about their own garden for a newspaper, and he was soon offered the opportunity to write about other people’s gardens. One thing led to another resulting in an offer to be a daytime television segment host.

Venetian Gardens by Monty Don and Derry Moore (BBC Books) is out now, priced £40.

At Glenmore House, we understand that organising a wake reception for the passing of a loved one can be a difficult time for all involved.

With years of experience, our dedicated events team are

always on hand to help organise a fitting farewell in a discreet and understanding way.

A post funeral reception should be a celebration of a person’s life and so we feel that it is important to create a bespoke experience in which guests can reflect and look back on fond memories in an environment that feels personal through the little touches and attention to detail. Glenmore House offers a number of different rooms with suitable settings including beautiful period features for such an event. We can accommodate receptions of between 15-140 guests.

Packages start from £15.95 per person

This classic bake with a berry twist is the perfect finishing touch when the family gather for a celebratory Easter feast – or just when it’s time for tea!

• 500g ready-made marzipan

• 150g raspberries, plus 11 for the top (about 50g)

• 200g self-raising flour, plus 1 tbsp

• 175g butter

• 175g caster sugar

• 3 medium eggs plus an egg yolk, beaten

• 50g ground almonds

• 150g sultanas

• 1 egg white, lightly beaten to loosen

The Berry Best For more sweet and savoury recipes starring British berries – strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and cherries – visit www.lovefreshberries.co.uk.

1. Line a 20cm loose-bottomed baking tin with parchment. Roll out a third of the marzipan to a 20cm circle – you can use the base of the tin to cut round. Wrap the remainder and any offcuts and set aside.

2. Preheat the oven to 170°C / fan 150°C / gas mark 3.

3. Toss the 150g raspberries in the extra 1 tbsp of flour and set aside. Beat together the butter and sugar until pale and creamy, then gradually whisk in the eggs and the extra yolk. If the mixture begins to curdle add 1 tbsp of flour and mix in. Sift the flour over the mix and fold in gently until smooth. Fold in the ground almonds, sultanas and floured raspberries.

4. Scrape half the cake mixture into the tin and carefully lay the marzipan round on top. Add the remaining mixture, level the top and bake in the preheated oven for around 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes until golden and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 15 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

5. Roll out half the remaining marzipan to a circle and sit it on top of the cooled cake. Shape 11 balls from the leftover amount and arrange in a circle on top.

6. Preheat the grill to medium. Brush the cake all over with the egg white and then place under the grill or use a cook’s blow torch to brown gently. Remove from the grill, leave to cool and then decorate with the fresh raspberries.

7. The cake keeps well in airtight container for up to 5 days without the extra berries on top. Alternatively, freeze the cake before adding the marzipan top for up to a month.