October 2020
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6. Brislington war memorial 8, Oct Horoscopes
10. Your Garden in October 13. Recipe of the month 16. Puzzles 18.Tree planting and parks 21. The Botanist review 24. Create your perfect home office 28. 4000 mile county wide cycle The team EDITOR Michael Davies WEB DESIGNER Matthew Clarke ACCOUNTS Lisa Davies PROOF READER Elisabeth Davies Advertising sales Tel: 0117 3258029 Mobile: 07500 017236 Email: info@directlocalonline.com Distribution: Direct Local South Bristol edition is delivered to 20,000 people each month. Why not subscribe free on our website to receive our bigger and better weekly virtual magazine and be in with a chance to win ÂŁ100. Its full of local news events competitions and much more
Mikes letter
Welcome to this months edition. Wow October already. Where has the year gone, seems like the years go faster and faster the older you get doesn’t it? feels like only a few days ago we were talking about the kids going back to school and the problems it may bring... Now we are thinking what sort of mess has been created as we head to half term and the government suggestion of not going away for the autumn school holidays. I really do feel for the university students that have been sold the dream of partying all night and endless campus lectures they were so looking forward to as they head in to fresher week. I think they should all get a refund, or at least been told the whole story before the local universities took their cash and put them in some kind of lockdown. As for those that seemed to have had mass dorm parties shame on you we are all in this together for the long haul so suck it up, a time to party will happen-and what a party it will be when its all over!! On a happier note as of the 1st October its only 85 days to Christmas. I wonder how we will celebrate this year as most of the usual events that mark this occasion are closed and the pub will be closed at 10pm. Maybe we should have social distant street parities. Anyway till next week stay safe and well folks
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Brislington War Memorial As people hurtle along the busy Bath Road in and out of town, they would be forgiven for failing to notice the Brislington War Memorial. Situated next to the Lodekka Public House and opposite the entrance to Kensington Park Road, it is a simple yet beautiful monument to our fallen heroes. Set in a semi-circle of iron railings, there is a stone cross bearing a sword of sacrifice above a wreath, both in relief. The inscription upon the cross reads: 1914-1918 IN PROUD AND GRATEFUL MEMORY OF THOSE FROM THE PARISH OF BRISLINGTON WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN THE GREAT WAR. 1939-1945
However, the monument has been somewhat neglected in recent years and is in desperate need of some care and attention. Jos said, ‘Lots of weeds are growing through cracks in the pavement, the metal railings surrounding the monument are badly corroded, a large amount of litter has become trapped in the undergrowth behind the railings and there are several overhanging branches rubbing against the top of the cross, which could potentially cause damage’. Andrew added, ‘Every year, Jamie Park, the landlord of the adjacent Lodekka pub, does an annual tidy-up prior to Remembrance Sunday. This year, we want to give him a helping hand to ensure our Brislington War Memorial is looking its very best’.
Therefore, this Saturday 3 October, starting at 10am, we have organised a working party to clean it up. We have contacted the Royal British Legion, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and Bristol City Council to get the necessary permissions in place before we start work. We plan to scrub the cross with soap and water, pick up the litter, do some weeding, cut back the undergrowth and overhanging branches, and rub down the railings. The following Saturday, 10 October, we intend to start repainting the railings.
As we approach Remembrance Day on 11 November, we hope to decorate the railings with hundreds of knitted poppies. St Luke’s and St. Cuthbert’s Churches in Brislington have already donated several dozen poppies, but if you would like to knit one in remembrance of a loved one, please do and we will add it to the display. We have left a ‘poppy box’ at the entrance to the Lodekka, where your poppies can be deposited up to Friday 30 October. If you can help out with any of these activities, please get in touch.
Cllr. Jos Clark and Andrew Varney regularly keep residents informed via their quarterly newsletter, ‘Focus on Brislington West’. If you would like to receive a digital version, please register using this link: http://www.bristollibdems.org/efocus
By Jos Clark, Liberal Democrat Councillor (Brislington West) Email: cllr.jos.clark@bristol. gov.uk Mobile: 07584 370429 & Andrew Varney, Liberal Democrat Councillor Candidate 6
PM Johnson confirms major blow for football fans! Prime Minister Boris Johnson has confirmed that football fans will not return from October 1 after announcing new lockdown measures in the wake of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. It had been hoped that fans could return to limited-capacity football stadiums from the start of next month. With grounds having around 25 to 33% of its capacity being filled. However, tighter restrictions due to a spike in Covid-19 cases have resulted in those plans being pushed back - potentially by six months. That would mean matches continuing to be played behind closed doors until March, at least, unless "significant progress" is made. "On reopening sporting events, we will not be able to do this from 1 October, "Boris Johnson told the House of Commons.“We will have to extend the 'rule of six' to all adult indoor team sports. "Unless we make significant progress, these restrictions will be in place for six months."
Sport leaders foresaw the announcement coming and have asked the prime minister for a £15billion rescue package. The Football Supporters Association have written to the government urging them to rethink the approach to letting fans in. Arguing that pilots which allowed fans into matches have been a success and shown that crowds can comply with social distancing measures put in place, FSA CEO Kevin Miles said the financial consequences of not allowing fans in could be devastating to clubs that mean so much to communities.
A combination of revenue at the ground and government support is urgently needed to keep clubs going. “The Government has to listen to fans and football clubs on this one.”
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OCTOBER HOROSCOPES Aquarius Jan 20-Feb 18 Cancer June 21 - July 22 Things that have felt held up, should begin to move more freely soon. This could be projects or new ideas, that have been on your mind for a while. Relationships are also highlighted at this time from family, friendships and romance Communication is a very valid key in this area, with listening, and how and what you say. Keywords things releasing, relationships and communication Pisces Feb 19 - Mar 20 Any obstacles, and hold-ups should begin to diminish soon. It may help if you do some clearing, maybe in your home, and also allow some time for yourself, to allow relaxation and new ideas to come through. Try not to overthink things, and give yourself the chance to find the balance that will keep you in great form. Keywords. You time, clearing and balance. Aries Mar 21 - Apr 19 This may be a good time to look around your home and see what needs to be changed. If you have had ideas and have never got round to them, maybe now would be a good time to do so. You may also find other projects that you have put off are coming to mind, try not to take everything all in one go. Maybe sit quiet and go with your intuition as where to start first. Keywords. Home, projects and intuition. Taurus Apr 20 - May 20 Communication is highlighted for you at this time. Be aware of others needs and sensitivities, as sometimes you can let words come out that are better held back. It may also pay to be a little more flexible in certain situations, there is a strength in being flexible and sensitive. If you find this hard to do, you it as something you can learn from. Keywords. Communication, sensitivity and learning. Gemini May 21 - June 20 Although you have not been in the best frame of mind recently, which is understandable with strange present circumstances, as well as looking after you, be aware of others needs and try to be more sensitive when necessary. Hopefully, you will now be feeling a little more optimistic and resuming some things that were on hold . This could be a time to look round and start to sort a few things out, I kind of Autumn Spring clean. Keywords. You time and sensitive to others. restricted
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This could be a good time to do an autumn cleaning, whether it be physically or emotionally. Try and be aware of your intuition as this is high lighted for you at this time, instead of ploughing on just because something is what you would like. Intuition is there as a very helpful thing as long as we actually listen to it. Keywords. Autumn clearing And intuition Leo July 23 - Aug 22 You may have felt reluctant to change things, and you may find now, that you are feeling restless, and it may now be time to look for new ideas and inspirations. Some of the ideas you have had recently maybe worth looking at to bring into fruition. Keywords inspiration and opportunities. Virgo Aug 23 - Sept 22 You may find you have a moment of illumination, with a great idea. Try not to let people put you down, and to be aware of your own inner strength, and your capabilities. Balance and looking after you, are important at this time.You may already be considering buying things for Christmas, Keywords. Looking after yourself Libra Sept 23 - Oct 22 You may be feeling things are being held up, and there are obstacles stopping you from moving forward to achieve your goals. Try not to let things stress you out, take a deep breath and give yourself a few moments to bring back some calm and balance.This should help you to avoid missing opportunities or new ideas. Keywords balance, calm, opportunities. Scorpio Oct 23 - Nov 21 There seems to be a few opportunities to get together with some people in small gatherings. You may find this will give you information, And ideas for either business or hobbies. This could be a good time for studying or research. Keywords gathering information, Study. Sagittarius Nov 22 - Dec 21 This seems to be a very good time to work with your intuition. Things that are bothering you at the moment, are likely to ease over the next few weeks, especially if you are working with your intuition. Keywords intuition, relationships and House and Home Capricorn Dec 22 - Jan 19 It may be an idea to step back and look at a situation, or just things in general, and see what needs to be changed.It may mean doing a clearing physically or emotionally, this will be good and allow new things, ideas to come into your life. Communication is highlighted at this time. Keywords. Clearing, new things, and communication
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Amazon parcels could be delivered by selfdriving delivery boxes
Bristolians could soon see their Amazon parcels delivered by a small self-driven vehicle.
The online giant is hiring a team of engineers to develop its Amazon Scout vehicles for use in Bristol and throughout the UK following the growth in online shopping. The Scout rolls along the pavement at walking pace before delivering to a customer's door. It has been developed with a camera and sensor to help it navigate around pedestrians, pets and obstacles such as bins and sign posts.
"Our investment in this new Amazon Scout team in the UK, which will consist of dozens of engineers, is driven by our partnership with the Cambridge community and made possible by the talented people who live here," the company said.
The technology is already being tested out in small areas in the States, including the area just outside Amazon's headquarters in Washington state.
Last week, Amazon said it would create 7,000 jobs by the end of the year, taking its permanent UK workforce to more than 40,000 people.
Engineers in the UK will be working with the Amazon Scout research lab in Seattle to develop the software.
But thousands of jobs have been lost in the retail sector since March, as non-essential shops were forced to close during lockdown and many turned to online shopping. 9
Your Garden In October
Autumn is officially here! October, in all its glory, gives us a wonderful display of colours. The trees are beginning to lose their leaves in abundance as they become dormant for winter, telling us that the change of season is in full swing.
The days are much shorter and cooler and we can feel autumn chill in the air. Although trees are the stars of the month, October is time to think about how the garden will look when it wakes from hibernation. There are plants to be cut back and left tidy for the winter, shrubs to be planted or moved, summer plants to be removed and replaced with winter hardy bedding, bulbs to be strategically placed in borders and the lawn to be fed and given its final mow October may bring with it the beginning of quiet times for the garden – but not for the gardener. TIDY PERENNIALS Perennials are not difficult plants to care for, but trimming them after flowering finishes in autumn helps to improve their appearance and give a boost to next year’s flowering. Using a knife, shears or secateurs, cut stems close to the ‘crown’ or dormant base of the plant. Any crowded clumps of perennials can also be lifted, divided and replanted. Take the opportunity to remove weeds as you prune before applying a light mulch to protect from any hard frost.
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PLANT TREES AND SHRUBS October is the ideal month to plant trees and shrubs. Although the container grown plants can be planted at any time of the year they are easier to care for if planted in the autumn or winter. The ground is damp and still warm which gives the perfect conditions to allow roots to become established before winter sets in.
PLANT AUTUMN BEDDING Any remaining summer bedding will be looking very tired by now and is best cleared and replaced for a fresher display. Autumn bedding such as pansy and primrose will give an instant lift to the garden and they look great planted between the shrubs in the border. Myositis, which produces masses of small flowers with the little white eyes and Sweet William, which provides a colourful carpet of flowers from spring through summer are both ideal for over wintering if planted now.
LOOKING GOOD THIS MONTH... Conifers
WHY SHOULD YOU PLANT THEM? Conifers are hardy evergreen trees and shrubs that suit any garden. They come in a huge range of shape and sizes and textures and the colour can be anything from yellow or light green through to dark green and blue. Easy to care for and long lasting, conifers are the ideal choice for any gardener looking for a low maintenance but high impact plant. HOW SHOULD YOU PLANT THEM? Dwarf conifers are good for containers and larger shrubs and trees make good hedging or garden features. They are happy in any soil in the sun or shade. Newly planted conifers will need watering until established.. After flowering, sheer back dead flower stems to keep the plant looking full.
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750g Jersey Royal potatoes, halved lengthways
Put the potatoes in a pan, cover with cold water, bring to the boil and simmer for 20-25 mins, until cooked
350g British broad beans
Drain and leave to steam dry in a colander for 5 mins
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 2 tbsp drained jarred capers, roughly chopped 5 gherkins, finely chopped 25g pack flat leaf parsley, finely chopped ½ x 25g pack basil, finely chopped, a few leaves reserved to garnish
Meanwhile, cook the broad beans in boiling water for 3-5 mins, until tender, drain, leave to cool for 2 mins, then squeeze the beans out and discard the shells Whisk together the oil, capers, gherkins, parsley, basil, lemon zest and juice, mustard and garlic to make a dressing, then season to taste Toss the potatoes and broad beans in the dressing, arrange on a serving platter, then garnish with a few basil leaves to serve
Zest and juice of ½ lemon 1 tbsp Dijon mustard 1 small garlic clove, finely crushed
Feeds 4 Ready in 45 minutes Each serving contains Energy 13% 1047kj 252kcal
Fat Low 13% 9g
Saturates Low 7% 1.5g
Sugar Low 4% 4g
Salt Low 15% 0.9g
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Home Improvement tips
Laminate Flooring In Five Steps! Laminate is attractive for a few reasons. It is just a good tight floor that requires minimal maintenance. Laminate flooring is normally durable and in comparison with other types of flooring not costly. If you're following theses steps carefully, it is possible to setup any flooring straight away on your own. A fairly nice activity job for two individuals to undertake. What do I need? - Laminate - Underfloor + joining tape - Skirtings - Mitre Saw / Jig Saw - Tapeline - Hammer - Spacers - Pencil - Square Step 1 Prepare everything you have obtained for the project to start out. The ground where one must place the laminate ought to be completely flat and free of dirt and dust. Step 2 Then you may start with the actual sub floor. This is basically the sound, humidity and heat insulation. There are numerous types of flooring on the market. Make sure when choosing your sub floor to select the one that fits your floor the best. When rolling out the sub floor. Simply place the underlay along with joining tape together.
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Step 3 Now you can begin at one corner, between the walls and the laminate place spacers an 8mm apart around the room between the wall and the laminate. This help the laminate to expand against the wall in hot and cold climates. First, place a whole sheet of flooring. After that you can work the room. Hold the plank in a angle of about forty-five degrees and tap the boards together using a rubber hammer and off cut of laminate to ensure you don’t ruin the tung or grove of the next board. I recommend using a dremel tool to cut out spaces under skirting that is surrounding doors to get a seamless finish if your leaving the original skirting in place Step 4 When the laminate is completed , you may start the skirting to hide the 8mm. You can find a variety of skirting for sale at places like B and Q. The simplest to use is the bull nosed variety. This can be a good choice seeing as there are absolutely no fancy edges to cut. Cut the skirting boards inside a corner with a miter saw at forty-five degrees. This way you will get good, tight edges. Step 5 Your floor is ready! Thoroughly clean the surface with a lightweight. Wet cloth. Not too wet, because laminate are not able to endure that. Be careful while positioning the furniture. Putting them on laminate (specially with the cheaper ones) can quickly get them scratched. The best you can do is ensure the bottom part of the legs is properly flat.
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Tree planting and Parks At a recent Area 5 committee meeting, the ward councillors for Brislington, Windmill Hill, Knowle, Totterdown and Bedminster approved spending of £29,000 of what is known as Section 106 money on tree planting measures for the area. I also asked at that meeting about replacement of trees which have been cut down in St Anne’s wood to enable the Environment Agency to build their new path to the flood screen. The officer responsible told us that they are now running out of ideas for places to plant new trees in Brislington and when I took my usual walk around St Anne’s Park yesterday it was clear that every suitable location for tree planting within the park is already in use. The council officer says they are very open to ideas from the public in relation to future tree planting, so if anyone has any good ideas please let me know?
According to the press release set out at the time, the priorities for the strategy will include looking at ways to stop wildlife habitats from being destroyed, managing land in a sustainable way that is sympathetic to wildlife and creating and caring for wildlife-rich spaces in every part of the city and across the region. How this will be applied against the equally pressing need for more affordable housing in the city remains to be seen, but it will undoubtedly have an impact on any plans developed by Homes England in this area. I will make sure everyone knows when this strategy is published. Jubilee Pool
Last Tuesday I took part in a Knowle Labour Party meeting where members were able to quiz Cabinet member Asher Craig on the Jubilee Pool consultation. It was a really good meeting where a lot of members were able to express their concerns, ask questions and put If you want to keep up to date with what is forward ideas. As well as spelling out what a going on in Bristol’s parks you could do a difficult situation the council is in with respect lot worse than sign up to the Bristol Parks Forum – this is an independent group, not to the PFI contract with Hengrove Leisure a Council organisation, but they do a lot of Centre and the budget deficit caused by great work seeking people’s opinions on Covid-19, Cllr Craig also listened carefully and relevant issues and feeding into the council’s I am still hopeful that a solution will be found. consultations. You can sign up by e-mailing The issue will be discussed at length at Full info@bristolparksforum.org.uk Council this week and I hope to be participating in the debate. Schools started back this I have been told that very soon Bristol will week and don’t we know it! I spent much of publish its strategy for addressing the Ecological Emergency declared a few Friday contacting everyone I could regarding months ago – this will be of particular the 36 and 96 bus services, which have not interest to anyone who is following the been coordinated at all with the new staggered development of Brislington Meadows. school opening times at Oasis Academy. After chasing First Bus, WECA and the Cabinet member for Transport (I know others have too!)
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I’ve been told that changes to the 96 will be happening very soon, but getting change for the 36 has been much harder work – hopefully we’ll find out next week whether children are still expected to wait two hours after their lessons end for a bus to come along. Council Housing Review The Wednesday Member briefings are back as well, and this week it was the new initiative from the Housing Department “Moving Forward Together”. The Council wants to revamp its service to make it a more local, more visible service. This means making it easier to contact a Housing Officer when tenants have issues and increasing opportunities to give feedback. Safety is being highlighted as a key issue too. The new initiative has been informed by a survey of council housing residents, which received more than 3,000 responses. The next phase after identifying what residents wanted to see from the service is to design how that can be delivered, and a number of events are planned to help tenants feed into that planning. To see the full results of the Survey and find out about the planned events, you can go to:
https://www.bristol.gov.uk/housing/tenant-participation-ways-to-get-involved/moving-forward-together Two New Initiatives Finally, two new initiatives from the council. You can read about a new scheme to help businesses convert to electric vehicles (including an EV Centre of Excellence in Sandy Park) here: https://news.bristol.gov.uk/news/free-electric-vehicle-loans-for-bristol-businesses?fbclid=IwAR2znajinsW3e5VMcAnwmjSi1vpsMxwdWX_HZtp7K3vU6R87fOUrxI9hnuE And you can read about plans for a brilliant new Youth Centre for South Bristol here: https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/ bristol-news/youth-zone-4000-children-created-4483024?fbclid=IwAR2znajinsW3e5VMcAnwmjSi1vpsMxwdWX_HZtp7K3vU6R87fOUrxI9hnuE If you would like to contact me about this update or anything else relating to Brislington, please e-mail me at cllr.tim.rippington@bristol. gov.uk Article by Tim Rippington Labour Councilor
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Tucked away up on Berkley Square, The Botanist is a lively, up market venue offering delicious tasting food, great service and a vibrant atmosphere. I had been invited as a VIP guest to their pre-launch party to sample their new menu and get a feel of the new look restaurant. We arrived for our 8.30pm booking and where greeted with a friendly welcome and complementary Prosecco. The restaurant is very modern in look, but still retains an old whirl charm which will appeal to both the younger and older generations. On offer was a complimentary three course dinner and a choice of cocktails to wash it down with. For starters I had crispy chipotle chicken bites with a smoky chilli jam. This was recommended by the waiter, and a very good recommendation it was too. Beautifully cooked they’d used the thigh and not the breast as the meat was tender and not dry in the slightest. For mains, I had ordered the rack of lamb, but was told after I’d placed the order that they had run out. Shame really as I was looking forward to it. So I went for a medium rare ribeye steak with a bernaise sauce. Served with skinny fries and their signature red onion puff pastry tart this was a lovely meal. The steak was perfectly cooked and seasoned. Not too sure what the pastry was about but it was pleasant. The sauce was very nice but stone cold! Needless to say I ate it all because the flavours where there and they worked beautifully. 20
Moving on to dessert I had the crème brûlée and very nice it was too. It’s one of my favourite desserts and they did it proud. Served with homemade shortbread it was the perfect end to a really good dinner. This is a lovely restaurant and I’d definitely go again, and I’d encourage others visit also. The only thing that let it down was that the service was a little slow and the food could have been hotter? Warm food and cold plates is not a good combination! Reviewed by Peter Abraham
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Bristol Charity Distributed 769 Tonnes of Food in COVID Emergency Response
FareShare South West distributed 769 tonnes of food to 337 frontline charities and organisations across the South West in just 4 months as a response to the COVID crisis. The charity, who have conducted an impact report into their action operated at 5 times their pre-crisis capacity from March through to July, which equated to distributing enough food to make 2 million meals for the most vulnerable in the region.
Ensuring our operation could work at these vastly increased levels, almost overnight, was a real logistical challenge and we couldn’t have done it without the support from local businesses, including Ashton Gate Stadium for lending us an entire second warehouse space and generous donations from companies including ALD Automotive, field&flower, Osborne Clarke and Rathbone’s Bristol office.
CEO of FareShare South West, Julian Mines, says: “Proud does not even begin to cover how I feel about the staff and volunteers who made reacting in the way we have possible. Pre-COVID 8.4 million people in the UK struggled to put food on the table and COVID has seen that vulnerability laid bare and exacerbated. While supermarket shelves seemed empty in March 2020, there were thousands of tonnes of surplus food available due to closure of the hospitality sector and unexpected changes to supply chain algorithms.
Our task now is to secure this growth long term. Sadly, the demand for food has not abated as more and more people find themselves out of work. In fact, our partner frontline organisations are reporting that many who have never had to seek food support are now reaching out for help. We are determined to be there, providing food to organisations who are working directly with vulnerable people. These are time critical opportunities to prevent people from falling into even more complex issues relating to poverty, and many of those we supply food to offer vital guidance to support people out of vulnerable situations.”
This along with large scale donations of food from major food companies meant we could dramatically increase our output. While some of our existing charity partners, schools and community groups had to close their operations in March, we received many new enquiries – including from pop-up projects – asking for emergency food support. This included several food banks, who had seen a huge spike in demand and could not maintain supply.
FareShare South West’s food has supported a number of notable Bristol responses including Caring in Bristol’s Cheers Drive campaign, Bristol Community Transport’s work providing food parcels to vulnerable elderly people, FOOD Clubs by Family Action taking place in deprived areas across the city as well as continuing food provision to other Bristol charities like One25.
To read the full impact report visit: https://faresharesouthwest.org.uk/covid-food-response/ To find out more or to support FareShare South West, visit: https://faresharesouthwest.org.uk/ 23
Create your perfect home office Working from home has become part of everyday life for almost half (46.4%) of British workers since the start of lockdown according to official figures released by the Office for National Statistics. For the past 5 months, many of us have had to manage with a makeshift office in the spare room or setting up a workstation on the kitchen table. However with many companies looking to create more flexible working solutions which could see you spending more time at home than the office, then a more permanent solution is needed. If you’re the kind of person who loves nothing more than being one with nature and then this spacious wooden cabin available from www.dandrgardenbuildings.co.uk/
This modern and bright office idea from www.mendipconservatories. co.uk is perfect if you’re in need of an inspiring and creative environment. Not only does this office look absolutely fab but it is also fully insulated meaning you can use it all year round in comfort. It also can be fully kitted out with power points to ensure all of your technology can be used as well as security features also coming as standard giving you peace of mind when after you’ve finished for the day and take that short walk back to your home.
Measuring in at a generous 4m.4m, there’s plenty of space to set up your new office with room left to share with another member of the family. The cabin is made from dense slow-grown spruce which is excellent natural insulation - perfect for those colder days that will soon be here. 24
Shipping containers make great home office as they are weatherproof, cost-effective and easy to set up. There are plenty of these container conversion companies out there to choose from which will custom make your perfect office space or if you fancy taking on the challenge, you could try converting one yourself. www.portableoffices.co.uk is a company who supply container garden offices in Bristol so if this is up your street then you can contact them directly to get a quote. Alternatively... If you don’t have the space to install a garden office then don’t worry, you can still create an office space in your home. Whether you choose to update your spare room, upgrade the garage or convert your loft, there are plenty of ways to get your required workspace sorted. Contact companies local like www.knofficesupplies.co.uk www.randallsoffice.co.uk
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BRISTOL ENERGY DEAL BAD FOR CUSTOMERS A deal which will see Bristol Energy’s residential customers transferred to Together Energy may be a relief for Bristol City Council but will be bad news for its 155,000 customers, according to energy switching specialists Flipper.
“Flipper stopped switching customers to Together Energy in early 2019 after experiencing major issues when customers of One Select Energy who were transferred to them under Ofgem’s Supplier of Last Resort (SoLR) process. The problems were so bad and took so long to resolve we have never recommended them to any of our members since.”
Flipper, which itself is based near Bristol, has refused to switch anyone to Together Energy since early 2019 because of the Clydebank-based supplier’s poor customer service record.
Mr Gutteridge concluded: “My advice to Bristol Energy customers is they should start looking for a new deal with a supplier offering great customer service ASAP. Now is a great time to be switching with some of the most competitive deals available offering 100% green energy.”
Mark Gutteridge, CEO of Flipper said: “More than half of the customer reviews for Together Energy on Trustpilot rate them as ‘bad’, the lowest score possible. So it is incredible that the city council says they are pleased with the deal and that the new supplier “shares similar values” with them. “While the deal will save 110 jobs and put some money into the coffers of Bristol city council, customers should expect a big drop in the quality of service”. “As well as the poor rating on Trust Pilot, Together Energy are ranked last out of the 35 energy companies reviewed by Which? and 35th out of 41 energy companies looked at by the Citizen’s Advice Bureau.
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Flipper is an energy switching service that does all the work on behalf of their members. Flipper searches the market to find a better deal and then manages the switch process for the customer. It continues to check the market every month, switching the customer every time they can save at least £50/Yr. It’s free to sign up, with members paying a £30 annual subscription when they are switched for the first time and begin saving. As well as checking tariff prices, Flipper continuously checks supplier performance to ensure it only switches members to those offering great customer service. For more information go to www.flipper. community
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The 4000-mile country-wide cycling journey from Bristol Two of Bristol’s best known personal trainers, Paul Waters and Lou Alldis, are halfway through an epic 4000-mile cycle ride of the UK in aid of The Mental Health Foundation and the Woodlands Trust. This week they reached Cape Wrath, after pedaling 1500 miles from Bristol. Now they start the journey homeward. Lou explains her thoughts behind the journey “My Grandad’s favourite saying was ‘life is for living’. This isn’t something that most of us have been able to do recently during the pandemic, and it’s safe to say that it has been a stressful time for most people. At the start of lockdown, my Grandad passed away peacefully at the grand old age of 93. While it was his time to go, not being able to see him in those last few weeks was exceedingly hard and I miss him dearly. He did, however, leave me with something that I am so very proud of – a sense of adventure and an endless curiosity for life. He was a keen traveller; rambler; adventurer; writer of potty poems; giver of the best hugs and just the most incredible Grandad. Part of this fundraising is in his memory as he would have loved the adventure and was a keen supporter of the Woodland Trust and loved being outside exploring.” Paul shares Lou’s lust for adventure and is keen to raise money for two charities close to his heart. Recently, Paul’s dad Bill has struggled with anxiety and depression, something he’s gone through a number of times in his adult life. This time though, with all the things going on in the world, he attempted suicide.
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Thankfully, he is OK, and Paul has been staying with his parents most of the time since. Bill has been getting great support and has made vast strides forward. “We are hugely proud of him for battling hard to overcome this and so pleased to see him getting back much closer to his usual self – full of spark and wit (even though his jokes are terrible). Aside from all this, we’ve experienced the stresses that so many people have faced recently – a difficult house sale and losing our work and income due to the virus. We decided a few weeks ago when we sold our house not to take on another place yet and use this opportunity to have a break, reset and do something truly memorable.” Paul Waters Paul and Lou are aiming to cycle around every single National Park (15) and Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England, Wales and mainland Scotland. They are calling it ‘A Ride in the Park’ and we estimate it’ll be just over 4,000 miles and take 2-3 months. “We want to share with you our beautiful little island and show how jam-packed with amazing places it is. We want to show you just how important those places are for our wellbeing. We want to share with you how vital it is, we get out into those spaces and move, and we want everyone to recognise that we all face mental health challenges in our hectic world, but that there’s always something within our power to help fight these and keep ourselves balanced”
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