Cople News April 2023

Letter from the Vicar

Dear Friends,

During this Lent, local churches have been meeting weekly to think about the importance of Belonging. We have used the recent Stephen Spielberg remake of West Side Story to help focus our minds.

It is a challenging story of two rival gangs, the Jets are native New Yorkers, the Sharks recent arrivals from Puerto Rico. In the midst of conflict there is an unlikely tale of two young people from rival gangs falling in love, & trying to plan some kind of escape, to a place where they can be together without the gang pressure. Of course, it ends tragically, with the death of Tony, & Maria discovering that deep love can lead to deep hate. If we are not careful our ‘belonging’ to one group can mean that we reject all those who are not part of our ‘gang’.

As we celebrate Easter this year, the theme of belonging is an important one. For the first disciples, belonging to & following Jesus during his life & ministry was certainly challenging. And then even among this group we are witness to a great betrayal. After enjoying their Passover meal together on Maundy Thursday, Judas, one of those twelve, led the soldiers right to Jesus & identified him with that most intimate of weapons, a kiss.

Many of the disciple’s simply fled when Jesus was arrested. Peter denied ever knowing him & only a few remained to watch his crucifixion. Fear of facing the same fate meant many just disappeared, full of disappointment as the hopes & dreams they had invested in this man were shattered.

Belonging is great when the going is good, but can be hard when things turn ugly. But then the greatest miracle of all time occurred. Jesus rose from the dead. For Christian’s, after we have witnessed his death on Good Friday & after we have experienced the emptiness of Easter Saturday, we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus with great joy. And in this joy, we fully recognise the importance of our belonging to Jesus. After the resurrection Jesus appeared to the disciples & they belonged once again. This Easter why not pay a visit to your local church service, you will receive a warm welcome & you may find a new place to belong.

Wishing you all a very happy Easter!

Lynne

Editor’s Notes

Bit of a change round at the front end of the magazine this month. The Coronation Celebrations have taken over pages 2 & 3 this month. Seems we were given ‘duff’ information previously on the proposed date for the Coronation Celebrations in the village. These will now take place on Saturday 6th June and not Monday 8th .

It seems our plea for additional advertisers has been successful. The Sports & Social Club have taken up 2 pages to re-launch the Club and list up-coming events. See pages 22 & 23 Plus a further page (page 21) with their Membership form. Please support them if you can.

In addition Piggott’ Butchers in Biggleswade will be taking a full page advert with effect from next month. I think they are going ‘Up-to-date’ with a QR code within their advert. We’ll see how we cope loading that into the magazine!!

Another ‘old friend’ SJ Tax & Accounting has returned, so if you need any help to make sure you are claiming all the tax allowance due to you, please contact them.

Friends of Cople Church following the success of the Safari Supper, are arranging a few more fund raising events following the success of the Safari Supper. See page 31 for more details.

We ran out of room this month, but look out for an article on Sheerhatch Rotakids ’Empowering Kids in Kenya’ in next months edition.

Regards

Libby & Linda

Roy Tombs funeral 30th March

Friends of All Saints Church, Cople

The Friends of Cople Church would like to thank everyone who participated in the Safari Supper on Saturday 25th February. Fifty-five people traipsed around the village in fairly pleasant, dry weather for the time of year & all the feedback on the night & subsequently indicates a good time was had by all, & the event raised a little over £1,230.

We would like to thank all those who provided raffle prizes, desserts, or hosted a starter or a main course. Without hosts, the event simply could not take place, but everyone who came provided something for the evening. The biggest problem we had all evening was trying to get people to go home!

Our coffers are running very low at present, so we have several events planned to cater for different tastes, thus we have three dates for your diary: -

Saturday 22nd April 7:30 in the church – Music Bingo and Quizzes. See advert in this magazine.

Saturday 24th June, Barn Dance at Oak Farm. Details will be in the next edition of the Magazine.

Mid to Late July one Saturday evening – a farm walk hosted by Charlie Porter at Wood End farm. Details will be announced in a future edition of the Magazine. Miles Tetley

DOWN ON THE FARM 25—Charlie Porter

As of the 1st March, Spring is officially here, and things on the arable side of the farm are just starting to happen. As I have mentioned before, all our arable land was drilled last autumn, so we have no drilling to do this spring. The crops, Beans and Wheat have fared well, both having benefitted from the hard frosts that we have had this winter, which have killed off any frost susceptible weeds, fungal diseases and aphids that were around last autumn. The first job that needs to be done now is to give all the wheat crops a feed of Nitrogen (N) and Sulphur, the beans not needing any N as they make their own. This feeding is usually given in two applications, one in Feb/March, and the second in April, being split roughly 1/3 now and 2/3 later, when the crop is in its rapid growth stage and therefore needing most food. We use a liquid formulation which is applied by the same machine that applies the weedkillers and fungicides that the crop needs later on in the year.

Fertiliser can also be applied in a granular form, but this has its downsides. Firstly, if it doesn’t rain, like last year, the fertiliser just remains on top of the soil and hence is unavailable to the roots of the hungry crop, secondly, these granules have to be spread by a machine that throws them to the required width, which is not particularly accurate, and finally N pellets that are on the surface are more likely to lose some of their N to the atmosphere in the form of ammonia, which is a bad gas for global warming.

Our N will be applied by a machine with booms that are 40m wide, and the liquid N will trickle out of nozzles a foot apart directly onto the soil, where it will be rapidly absorbed and used by the plant.

The amount of N that we are allowed to apply per hectare is strictly controlled according to your estimated yields and the quality of wheat that you are hoping to produce. This ensures that by the end of the growing season all the N that you have applied has been used up by the crop and is therefore not at risk of ending up in the watercourse, and that I have not wasted money putting on fertiliser that the crop did not require.

Some years, if the crops are very patchy and uneven, we can vary the amount of N applied to different parts of a field according to what the crop actually needs in a particular area. This is done by using the satellite technology that is now available to us. The farm will have been scanned from above using Ultraviolet technology. The scanning will have identified the thickness of the crop below. This information will then be held in the spraying machine’s computer, and as the sprayer knows exactly where it is in the field, thanks to GPS technology, varying amounts of food can then be applied to the wheat crops, more being given to the thick parts and less to the thinner areas. You won’t be using less fertiliser; you will be putting it where it is most needed and will be used and not wasted.

Now is the time of year when we all become aware that the birds around us are bursting into song. The purpose of these songs that are normally sung by the male birds is twofold. Firstly, to announce your presence and to say look at me because I am very handsome and will make an excellent father for your babies, and the second is to tell any other male birds in the area that you are here so don’t mess with me or chat up the ladies around here, because this is my patch.

Identifying birds by their song is undoubtedly difficult, but it is not impossible to learn a few of the simple ones. Now is a good time to start as there are not too many singing yet. In a few weeks’ time, when all the migrants start to return from their winter quarters and begin to sing, it does become very hard to pick out individual songs from the cacophony that greets you as you step outside.

The Great tit that lives in all our gardens is one of the easiest songs to identify. Just two rhythmical cheeps repeated several times that can be rhymed with ‘Teacher Teacher’ or simply sound like a squeaky bike pump going ‘Squeechy Squeechy’. The Greenfinch is also easily identified as its song is a unique wheezy Zheeeow, Zheeeow.

Pigeons and doves are possibly the easiest to identify by sound. The big fat Wood Pigeon with the white patch on its neck repeatedly going Coo Coooo Coo,Coo Coo, the Collared dove with it’s black neck ring, going Coo Cooo Coo and the Stock Dove with its turquoise neck going Whooip Whooip Whooip

And finally, a song that is one of our most beautiful spring sounds is that of the Song Thrush. This song is a series of different phrases, each phrase being made up of three identical sounds. So it will be noise, noise, noise, gap, different noise, noise, noise, gap a different noise, noise, noise ….. On the farm we have a Song Thrush with a beautifully clear opening set of phrases that sounds like ‘Ricky, Ricky, Ricky’, followed by several different three sound phrases. I am told that it sounds just like Bianca from Eastenders shouting ‘Ricky Ricky Ricky’! This bird is now obviously known on the farm as the Ricky bird.

One bird that I really hope to hear this spring is that of the cuckoo. The classic bird song of my childhood, now sadly so rare. There is now an app available to download free called Merlin Bird ID. This app can identify a bird by its song and is quite amazing.

St Lawrence’s Church, Church End, Willington MK44 3PX

Summer Organ Concerts

Sunday 30th April at 3.00pm

Celebrating our 10th year, our Summer Organ Concerts are on the last Sunday of April through to September.

Enjoy the music, played this month by David Williams

Entry is free, with donations going to the Organ Fund.

Tea and cakes available

Cople Parish Council

A Parish Council (PC) meeting was held at Village Hall on Monday 16th January 2023, this was attended by six local Parish Councillors & the Clerk. There were apologies from one Councillor & local Borough Councillor.

Public Participation

· A resident raised an issue regarding Post 16 Transport. Resident currently paying for a 7-day ticket, as this was the cheapest option, but the service only ran for 6 days a week. The resident also advised that a 17-year-old was having to pay an adult fare & that Grant Palmer was not partaking in the £2 fare scheme. It was agreed to ask the Ward Councillors if a formal survey would be valuable to allow evidence to be gathered.

· A resident raised an issue relating to the removal of trees & hedges. The resident also raised concerns about people struggling with the cost of living crisis & issues with demands for council tax.

If you feel that you would like to raise a concern or issue, you are very welcome, please can you contact the Clerk in advance of the meeting if you wish to attend. The next Parish Council meeting is on Monday 20th March 2023 at 7.30pm. Please contact Anne, Parish Council Clerk, by e-mail clerk@cople-pc.gov.uk

Jo Roberts from the Forest of Marston Vale - attended the meeting to promote a scheme for tree planting in the Forest of Marston Vale area. General matters requiring discussion:

· To donate £1,000 towards the Playing Field & Playground maintenance (Section 19 of the Local Government Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1976)

· Consider arrangements for the Coronation - Parish Councillors would look into supporting an event on Monday 8th May 2023. Cllr Small would contact residents to look into the feasibility of organising an event

· Discuss Fly Tipping in the Parish - One location in Cople was on the list for the Bedford Borough Council fly tipping camera. Reporting of the issues to Bedford Borough Council (BBC) would help to build up a record of the extent of the problem

Borough Councillors report

Financial Settlement - The Government confirmed an almost £60 billion package for councils in England for the next financial year.

Councillor Ward funds - There will be Ward Fund Allocations for 2023/4 and 2025/6, actual figures have not yet been provided but it is suspected that the funds will be similar to the previous allocation.

Council Tax Surplus - Council Tax was raised by almost 4% last year. Since then BBC has accrued a Council Tax surplus of £1.511 million in council tax which will be carried over to BBC’s budget for next year. The excess from 2022/23 will be shared between the Council, the Police & Crime Commissioner for Bedfordshire & the Bedfordshire Fire & Rescue Authority in proportion to their 2022/23 precepts on the Collection Fund..

Dept. for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities funding accepted by the Council - The BBC accepted up to £2.3m awarded by Dept. for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities to deliver the High Street Heritage Action Zone (HSHAZ) Government scheme..

Bedford received grant from DFT and £2 bus fare - The BBC accepted a grant of £69,509.50 from the Department for Transport (DfT) to protect socially necessary bus services from January to March. Additionally, the BBC has also accepted a further £66,058 from Active Travel England/Department for Transport.

Community Litter picks - The Parish Council agreed to arrange two community litter picks in 2023. Dates & times of 16th April at 11am & 24th September at 11am were proposed.

Cont on page 14

King Charles III Coronation - The UK will mark the Coronation with a threeday bank holiday weekend from Saturday 6 May to Monday 8 May 2022. For the celebration Bedford Borough Council is waiving the usual administration fee for street party road closures. For anyone wishing to hold a street party over the extended bank holiday weekend, the Council asks that applications are submitted by 1 April 2023. Residents can email road.closures@bedford.gov.uk to request a street closure.

Local Plan 2040 - A consultation took place between 15th June & 29th July 2022. A total of 1,449 individual representations were received from 595 respondents, over 50% were objections. BBC concluded, following review, that nothing in the representations received has altered the conclusion reached by officers and thus voted to send this plan to the Inspector.. For brevity not all issues not be listed however, they can be accessed through the appropriate portals on the council’s website.

Council Tax for 2023/24 - As part of current budget setting process, the January Executive will consider that a provision of 1.50% be made in the Council Tax Base in respect of losses on collection. For further detail please view related documents via the council’s online portals.

Cople to Cardington footpath - Cllr Sankersingh had contacted Cardington PC, which would be discussing the route of the path at its January meeting. Once feedback had been received from Cardington PC, Cllrs Sankersingh & Miller Donkin would look to produce a map of the route.

Speed Watch & Conflict Study - There had not been any Speed Watch sessions recently due to the weather and shorter days. The Speed Watch group could now visit the same location once a week but the time of the session would need to change. Cllr Hinkley had shared details of a county meeting in April 2022 with members of the Speed Watch group

Digital Connectivity - Update from BBC Justine Ives. ‘Works are now fully completed within our BDUK project. As part of the extension, 20 premises were enabled in Willington Road and Bedford Road and were live as of 28th Dec. Any further/future works will be done commercially. We continue to engage with BDUK on Project Gigabit but I will not be informed of any commercial rollout so am unlikely to be able to provide any details on any build plans for the area going forward.’

Neighbourhood Plan update - Chair of Steering Group, informed the PC that the group now comprises 6 members. The results of the survey have been emailed to all those respondents who provided their contact details. The results are also available for everyone to see on the Neighbourhood Plan web page of the PC website.

Amenity & Highways - Report any Highways issues

Another resident had complained about the blocked drains on Water End; the Clerk had followed this up with Highways. Growth around the bottom of the tree at the top of Woodlands Close would be cut back by Cllrs.

Consider quotations for a mobile SID - It was agreed to contact other parishes to ask if the use of SID’s had had a meaningful impact on speeding. The Clerk would ask Cllr Moon to attend next meeting with information from other parishes in the Ward.

Discuss the electricity supplier for the street lighting and agree action -

The PC has sought a new electricity supplier to try to reduce the costs of the electricity supply for the street lighting. A broker, The Utility Supplier, had put forward SSE as a new supplier. Details of the costs and savings were considered by the Councillors

Discussion from Cllrs for discussion at the next meeting - It was agreed to invite a representative from Bedford Girls’ School to attend the March PC meeting to discuss the parking issues on Grange Lane. The invitation would be included in the letter produced by Cllr Sankersingh.

Blunham Community Cinema Village Hall, Blunham MK44 3NN

We present on Friday 28th April 2023 ‘Elvis’ (Cert PG) starring Austin Butler and Tom Hanks. The life of American music icon Elvis Presley, from his childhood to becoming a rock and movie star in the 1950’s while maintaining complex relationships with his manager Colonel Tom Parker.

Doors open 7pm , film starts promptly at 7.30pm. Adults £5.00 Children £3.00. Family (2A + 2C) £12.00 Sweets, Drinks, Ice cream and Pop-corn are available.

For tickets or any further information contact Margot 01767 640938 or 07783 046020.

Blunham and District Gardening Club.

Blunham Village Hall, MK44 3NN.

Tuesday 4th April 2023 from 7.30pm

This night is a social night. Refreshments will be served. Visitors are welcome.

For further information contact Brenda Leaf 01767 640623.

Cople Sports Football Club

Now into their 7th season, Cople Sports FC have found themselves in the region's top division which promises to bring some of the best teams in the county to the mighty Cople Arena. Matches start at 10.30am on Sundays and support is always appreciated.

Upcoming fixtures include: -

02/04 Supreme Spartans (A)

09/04 Bushmemorial First (H)

16/04 MNines (H)

23/04 AFC Kempston Rovers (A)

Graham Ebbs

Tel: 07775 783155 (Mobile)

Mobile Library News—April 2023

The mobile library is visiting the village fortnightly on a Wednesday. It will call at: -

All Saints Road 10.00 - 10.20am; Water End—10.25 - 10.40am and The Five Bells—10.45 -11.05am.

The dates for April are 12th and 26th

Knit and Stitch

Come and meet your friends in the Five Bells on alternate Fridays from 10.00am until 12.00noon.

The dates for April are 14th & 28th

Bring your knitting, crochet, embroidery or just bring along yourself to chat & enjoy coffee & cake.

COPLE SPORTS AND SOCIAL CLUB

APPLICATION FOR MEMBERSHIP/RENEWAL

I (Name) _______________________________________

Of (Address) ____________________________________ _______________________________________________

Email Address (if available) __________________________________________

I hereby apply for membership/renewal of Cople Sports and Social Club. I am over 18 years of age and I agree to abide by the rules of the Club.

Signed: ________________________________

Date: ________________________

Membership Fee Paid (please circle)

£7.00 (self)

£10.00 (self & partner)

Partner’s Name: ______________________________

Please pay at club or by bank transfer, details below.

Account Name: Cople Sports & Social Club

Sort Code: 60-02-13

Account No.: 51878658

Hi my name is Tracy and my business is well established within Willington.

I provide a full range of treatments: Waxing, Electrolysis, Eye Treatments. Relaxing Body Massage, Indian Head Massage, Reflexology. Pedicures, Manicures, Shellac Gel Varnish. Facials, including Non-Surgical Facelifts.

With over 22 years experience in the beauty industry I will always welcome new customers and be happy to sit down and discuss your requirements. 15% off your first treatment (new customers only) Telephone: 01234 831894 or 07825 615839 email: tracy.essentialbeauty@gmail.com follow me on Facebook: @essentialbeautytracy 35 Chapel Lane, Willington.

Cople Sports and Social Club 2023

As a result of recent retirements and resignations from the committee and the impact of Covid, it was felt it would be a good time to launch a membership drive for CSSC. We want to inform Cople residents and the residents of surrounding villages of the many activities that take place at the club and our plans for 2023 and the future.

The committee would like to give a huge thank you to the retiring Chairman and others who have served the club loyally for many years. In spite of the Covid pandemic and other huge challenges, the club is in a healthy state both financially and well supported by locals.

A Brief History

Prior to 1982 the club was housed in an old pavilion which was located on the side of the playing field. This building was reaching the end of its life and becoming uneconomic to repair. The lack of facilities prevented the football team achieving promotion, inadequate changing rooms etc.

With the help of what is now the Village Trust and many volunteers the club was relocated to its present position and since then the club has survived many changes and tough challenges. This is testament to the dedication and hard work of the committee and the local community.

At present we have a thriving Sports section with both the Cricket and Football teams doing well. Music has always been a major part of the social side of the club and Cople is fortunate to have a vast array of gifted and enthusiastic musical talent. The famous Cople Proms are already scheduled for early September this year and there will be other events for all to enjoy.

Welcome new members.

The club would be delighted to welcome residents and friends to join us at this exciting new chapter of the club’s history.

The cost is only £7 per individual or £10 for joint membership. The membership form is with this article and this can be returned in person or scanned/photographed to the email address provided. (finn946@hotmail.com).

We would particularly like to welcome anyone who wishes to take part in any of our sports activities especially Cricket and Football. Why not pop in with your membership form and see for yourself what goes on!?We have a very competitively priced and well stocked bar and would love to see you!

Standard opening times at the moment are: -

Friday night - Family night – everyone welcome. 7.00pm till close

Saturday opening will commence during the cricket season. Watch this space!

Sunday 12 noon till 7.30pm. Why not support our live sports events - cricket and football on the field. The club also has a large screen and will show all major sporting events.

Other times for special events will be published on social media and village magazines.

At the moment the club are looking at a short to medium term update of the clubs internal infrastructure. Our focus is on energy saving incorporating new LED lighting, insulated ceiling and flooring etc. Other short term fixes will be an improvement to the sound system and wiring. Medium to long term plan is to improve and modernise the outside space with a flexible option to ‘bring the outside in’ and enable us to accommodate more people when we have functions, important match days etc. Where possible a lot of this work will be done on a voluntary basis and one thing we are always looking for is volunteers with the necessary skills to help. Could this be you?

Cople Cricket Club

CCC are looking for new or ex-players to join us for the 2023 season, having proudly just won the Bedfordshire division 2 title. We have set ourselves a new challenge and will be playing in the Huntington league starting in league 3. This will be a tougher challenge and any new talent will be very much welcomed (minimum age 16 to play matches but all welcome) Games will be played on a Saturday starting early May to midSeptember,

Interested? Why not come down to our Monday evening net sessions (indoors at moment), please contact: - Joseph HendryTaylor on 07779 944495 or joehendrytaylor@gmail.com

Planned future events.

Cricket season begins in early May (See next months Cople News for further details)

Annual Rounder’s match — Cople v Cardington—August Bank Holiday

Coronation—Saturday 6th May (See page 2 for details)

Cople Proms—Saturday 2nd September

Wear it pink night in aid of Breast Cancer

April 2023 Diary

LIFE

COPLE TUESDAY CLUB

On Tuesday 11th March we listened to a highly entertaining talk by Colin Hill, a retired Royal Protection Officer telling us all about ‘Dancing with Diana.’ Colin worked for the Metropolitan Police Force from 1977-2007 joining the force aged 23. Being a Close Protection Officer means exactly that! Always been present & alert. Whatever the occasion, not just when the Royal member was on official business.

There were a few “perks“ though enjoying some unique experiences superb food in beautiful locations. Shadowing the Royals in all there pursuits whether this be at their leisure or performing their royal duties. Nine protection officers were required just to take the Royal Princes a 5-minute drive to school.

Colin was often surprised & amused with some of his duties! Although not a dancer he was required to partner both the Queen Mother and Diane at one time or another. There were many humorous situations & awkward moments. Fortunately he never had to draw his firearm only coming close to doing so once.

Our next meeting is on 11th April, Cople Village Hall 7.30pm Quiz Night! So get your thinking caps on! All welcome for a fun evening.

Eithne Dandy.

• Roofing repairs, reroofs or roof de-mossing.

• Leadwork repairs and replacements.

• Gutter and facia cleaning and repair.

• Chimney and brickwork repointing and repair.

• Any other ladder related work.

Local friendly service, happy to help.

Contact: Ashley

Tel: 07851 121782

Email: midgardpm@outlook.com

FOODBANK COLLECTION

Dear Cople Residents, Once more the kind residents of Cople were generous with their donations to the Foodbank. The collection made on Saturday 4th March 2023 resulted in a total of 107.1kg which is sufficient for 255 meals.

The need for help from the Foodbank continues to increase year upon year and they now regularly feed around 1900 people a month, giving them enough food for 3-4 days, or around 10 meals. The monthly food leaving the warehouse is generally in the region of 18—20 tonnes, so they are very grateful for all donations they receive as each one is vital for the ongoing work of the Foodbank, and is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Open Wednesday to Sunday

Two selected lunches for £18.95

Excellent Sunday roasts 3.00pm

Booking advisable

Speciality theme nights

April

April

Bookings now being taken for Easter

Singer ‘Jenny Joy’ on 29th from 8.30pm

Cople Church monthly Coffee mornings 2023

(4th Saturday of the month)

Come and enjoy meeting friends in the beautiful surroundings of Cople Church.

Please make a note in your diaries of the following dates. A different group/committee will run the coffee morning each month. All Welcome.

22nd April - 10.30am - 12.00noon Lunch Club committee

27th May- 10.30am—12.00noon Knit and Stitch Group

10th June 10.00am - 2.00pm Sale Trail and mini fete with refreshments (NOTE - this is in place of the coffee morning on the 4th Saturday)

22nd July - 10.30am - 12.00noon Tuesday Club

August - no coffee morning due to holiday

23rd September - 10.30am 12.00noon The Friends of Cople Church

28th October - 10.30am—12.00noon Mothers' Union

25th November - 10.30am 12.00noon Cople PCC

In good condition, includes staging. Only one small window broken. Located at Northill Rectory available to view by appointment. Removal at your own risk.

Height 230 cm

Contact Lawn Doctor

Width 310 cm Depth 190cm

Tel: 01767 627 581 or 07796 328

855

Email: LawnDocGardens@aol.com

Village Litter Pick

Sunday 16th April 11.00 – 12.00 noon

Meet at the parking bay outside the Church

If you would like to be involved and help keep Cople litter free. Please contact Navin Sankersingh 07595 426887

Please wear suitable footwear

Gloves, litter pickers and bags provided

WILLINGTON VILLAGE HALL

MONDAY NIGHTS DURING TERM TIME

6:30pm until 8:00pm

If you are interested in joining us please register online:JoinUs@girlguiding.org.uk

Further information can be obtained from Brown Owl Tel :07914 240494

Email: willingtongirlguiding@gmail.com

B. W. Taylor Plumbing Roofing and all

Building Maintenance

From “Complete Bathrooms and Kitchens” including tiling and plastering through to “Ball Valves and “Garden Taps” No Job too small

Local Reliable service at Reasonable Rates

References Supplied if Required

Telephone: Barrie Taylor 01234 - 838676 Mobile 07979 - 928186

COUNTRY STOVES & SWEEPS

HETAS Registered Wood/Multi Fuel Stove Installation

Gas Fires Fitted – GAS SAFE

Chimney Sweeping

Insurance/Safety Certificates Issued

Chimney Lining

Bird Guards Fitted

Free Survey & Quote

Competitive Prices

01767 627591 / 07950 705479

Julian Biggs, Northill, Bedfordshire

Two Counties Foot Clinic Ltd

Podiatrist/Chiropodist

Yvonne Siudak

BSc (Hons) in Podiatry, MChS, HCPC Reg

2 Belfry Court, Sandy Bedfordshire SG19 1JR

Easy free parking available.

Tel: 01767 692822

Mobile: 07841 033014

Email:

Yvonne@yourfootclinic.co.uk

www.yourfootclinic.co.uk

Mother’s Union

As our Lady Day service at Biggleswade was not due to be held until the 24th March, a report will appear in May’s Cople News.

Our next meeting will be held on Monday 3rd April as our usual meeting day (the second Monday) is Easter Monday. The venue for this meeting will be decided nearer the time.

Liz Buck

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we believe that Jesus Christ Son of God, came to earth to be the Saviour of the world, and that by his death on the cross, he paid the price for the sin of the world, so that whoever believe in him would not perish., but have everlasting life.

(MU Prayer Diary)

CAN YOU HELP ?

We are holding the Sale Trail in the village on the 10th June between 10.00am - 2.00pm.

We will be hosting teas and cake in the church and we will also be holding a ‘mini’ fete around the church.

If you are not having a stall in your garden would you be able to help with teas, man the book stall, or sell raffle tickets etc ?

A couple of hours would be appreciated . Please phone June 01234 831705 if you are able to help.

Many thanks June and Julie

Gardening April 2023

It suddenly occurs to me that I often start these columns with reference to the weather and although it is absolutely the case, that we get what we are given, the fact that I refer to it so regularly does reveal its total lack of predictability. Following the driest February since 1993 which was also rather mild, to get snow in March followed by consecutive days of rain is to the gardener at least, a tad challenging. But so be it!

For many domestic gardeners, the horticultural calendar begins at Easter time; warmer weather (perhaps?), increased light levels and with the Easter holiday resulting in more free time to really get cracking.

The first job many of you will undertake is to weed. Whether it be by hand or by hoe, I strongly recommend the use of the latter if you have never tried it. Simply slice through the culprit, then collect the herbage and dispose of. Many horticulturists believe that home compost heaps are simply not big enough to generate the requisite heat to kill off weed seeds so incinerate the debris or take to the tip.

Edge the lawn, either with an edging iron or as they are also known, a half moon and a plank laid flat to give you a straight edge, or long handled shears, and mow the lawn (not as short as its final cut last year) if conditions permit and your garden will fairly rapidly look transformed.

Last month’s just for fun question asked, which one of these is the common name of a plant: - Stink Horn, Stinking Bishop, Stinking Iris. And what, if anything, are the remaining two? It was a bit of a trick question, but Stink Horn is a mushroom that takes its common name from the fact that it emits a pungent odour very similar to that of carrion, dead flesh, in order to attract flies so that they can spread its spores so that it may grow elsewhere. Its botanical name is perhaps of even more interest: Phallus Impudicus which even if you do not read Latin is pretty self explanatory as to why! Still unsure?, look at a picture!

Stinking Bishop, as some of you gastronomes might know, is the name of a cheese BUT it takes its name from a variety of pear which when made into a perry is used to ‘wash’ the cheese with to help create its distinctive flavour. And Stinking Iris is the common name of the ubiquitous and in my experience, largely unloved plant with rather unsightly strappy leaves, many of which are often brown and dead looking and festooned with reddish,

orange berries. Its botanical name is Iris foetdissima. As to which one is a plant, well I will leave that up to you?!

If you have any interest in the natural world, I would encourage you to take an in depth squint at fungus as it is a truly fascinating subject as is the folk lore around it. The nomenclature in itself, as intimated above, is often amusing and very regularly, completely enchanting. Toadstools, Earthstars or Devil’s Fingers are such three examples. This month’s just for fun question is: - True or false, an area of stinging nettles in your garden shows you that the soil is very fertile as otherwise they would not grow there? All correspondence can be emailed to lawndocgardens@aol.com or posted to:Lawn Doctor Garden Services, 14 Sand Lane, Northill, SG18 9AD. As usual, please contact me with any gardening queries or tasks you may have.

Cople Bell Ringers

The, mostly new, band of All Saints Bell Ringers, have now reached a significant level of ability by being able to ring changes. ‘Ringing Changes’ involves each ringer changing places with another when asked to do so by the Conductor whilst ringing. This involves split second timing, excellent rope control & must be considered a significant achievement for all concerned. We are looking forward to ringing for the Coronation of King Charles III.

Tel: 01767 627 581 or 07796 328 855

Email: LawnDocGardens@aol.com

Tree Care, Planting, Weeding, Hedge Trimming, Turfing, Jungle Clearing, Landscaping, Lawn Improvement, Patio/Drive Pressure Washing/ Weedkilling, Holiday Watering etc., etc.

Mike Vacher, Tower Captain

Knit & Stitch

Contact: Hazel Shreeves

Tel: 01234 838817

Mothers Union

Contact: Jill Ebbs

Tel: 01234 838659

Cople Village Trust

Chair: Catherine Bayliss

Tel: 01234 838704

Cople Sports & Social Club

Chair: Graham Ebbs

Tel: 017775 783155

Tuesday Club

Contact: Joy Duthie

Tel: 01234 838407

Cople Carpet Bowls Club

Contact: Pauline Baynes

Tel: 01234 838102

Cople Web Site

Contact: Ian Whiting

Tel: 01234 838347

Email: ian@cople.org.uk

Web Site: www.cople.org.uk

Village Agent

Wendy Worgan

Tel:0800 039 1234

Mobile: 07717 269440

wendyw@bedsrcc.org.uk

Cople Parish Council

Clerk: Anne Pape

Tel: 01234 376645

clerk@cople-pc.gov.uk

https://cople-pc.gov.uk/

All Saints Church

The current contact details for Cople Church are as follows:Tel: 01234 974722. email: cmwvicar@gmail.com

Churchwardens

June Thomas Julie Scherrer

34 Grange Lane 26 Grange Way

Cople, Beds Willington, Beds

MK44 3TT MK44 3QW

Tel: 01234 831705 Tel: 01234 838623

juneshanahan748@btinternet.com

julie@scherrer.co.uk