Cotswold Link July - August 2021

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July / August 2021

Shop Local with Cotswold Veg Boxes From Vale of Evesham asparagus to heritage tomatoes, purple sprouting to succulent strawberries, Cotswold Veg Boxes are jam-packed with seasonal treats and staples.

Pulling from all the fantastic local growers and suppliers the area has to offer, including Gorsehill Abbey milk, Cotswold eggs and Cotswold R-oil - it’s never been easier to shop local. With various box sizes, flexible delivery frequency and the ability to swap out your least favourite items, there is a Cotswold Veg Box to suit all households.

In April 2020, Alex, Pete and Will started supplying their local villages with fresh produce when supermarket deliveries couldn’t reach ‘the sticks’

and farm shops were at capacity. After receiving more and more requests from further afield, The Cotswold Veg Box Company (CVB) was born.

Delivering to smiling faces on doorstops was the highlight of our week during lockdown and our customers quickly became our ‘CVB family’ creating an overwhelming sense of community. From 40 boxes a week to over 500 bespoke Christmas boxes, CVB have delivered 10,000 orders in its first year and we now deliver across four counties with a growing team of staff.

By using small, local suppliers, we are able to buy things like cherry tomatoes and sugar snaps in bulk and re-pack into paper bags, larger items like

Remap Gloucestershire Helping the Disabled A disabled person may often have a problem that is specific to their own situation.

Often, our wonderful NHS cannot find the exact solution to help and there may be nothing available commercially. This is where the charity Remap comes in. Remap Gloucestershire is a charity supported by volunteer engineers and craftsmen who are able to design and build bespoke equipment to aid a disabled person.

Our volunteers assess the problem and then go away and devise a solution to alleviate the difficulty. Solutions are designed and

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cauliflowers and cabbages are delivered in crates, usually by tractor from a farm half a mile away… and we’ve even convinced some of our suppliers to use compostable packaging! Plus, anything left over at the end of the week is delivered to local food banks which means not only does a Cotswold Veg Box help you with your 5-a-day but it also reduces your plastic waste, food waste and food miles!

More information: (or see our advert on opposite page) 01386 840641 hello@cotswoldvegbox.com www.cotswoldvegbox.com

built and then offered to the client to confirm that the problem has been solved. Cases vary in complexity from, for example, a gadget to enable an arthritic person to open a window, to a sophisticated electronic system to help someone communicate.

Remap Gloucestershire covers the whole of the county and in normal circumstances deals with 100 cases each year. The service is free to the client and our funding is used only to cover materials and travel costs.

If you could benefit from this service or know someone who could, please visit our website: www.remapglos.org.uk . To make a referral use our on-line form that is available on the website and can be sent electronically to our case secretary.

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Generous donations transform local Youth Club

from Annington and Heyford have transformed a Youth Club 08 Donations at RAF Brize Norton

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Garden View

All about saving water in your garden this Summer

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Astronomy

Meteor showers & fireballs in the sky this Summer!

news 02 local Shop local with Cotswold Veg Boxes 10 Let the children chill out! garden view: news: 08 local Transforming local Youth Club 12 Save water this Summer cotswold link 10 astronomy: Meteor Showers & fireballs!

14 Advertising Index education

FEATURED

FEATURED

FEATURED

Welcome to the July - August issue In this issue we look at how generous donations have transformed a local Youth Club at RAF Brize Norton (p8).

We also explore meteor showers on p10, whilst also looking at allowing children to simply chill out over the July / August months on p10!

On p12 we look at the importance of saving water in your garden.

I hope you all enjoy this issue and I’ll see you again in September.

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Best wishes,

Christine Campbell | Editor

Cotswold Link Magazine is published in good faith and the editors cannot be held responsible in any way for inaccuracies in reports or advertis-

in reports or advertising that appear in this publication and the views of the contributors may not be the those of the editors. Adverts and Your Cotswold LinkLink Magazine carry no implied recommendation from the magazine or the publishers. All rights reserved. appearing in Cotswold 4ingadvertisers Please YourforCanyotswoldLink when contacting any of our advertisers All information is correct to the best of our knowledge at the time of going to press. Cotswold Link Magazine cannotmention be held responsible errors or omissions.

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Windrush Valley Flower Show & Fete 24 July 2021: 13:00-17:00

Come for a delightful family day out. Held at the Great Barrington village hall, set in the beautiful landscape of the Windrush Valley: a traditional fete with refreshments including teas, cakes, BBQ, ice creams and Pimms; competitions for fruit and vegetables, flowers and flower arrangements, arts and crafts and children’s classes; stalls and popular games; a tombola and raffle; and band. Bring your dog for the Dog Show and Agility Competition!

COMBE MILL in STEAM

Themed events: 18th July - In Steam 15th August - Models & Collections Late 19th Century restored Sawmill and Workshop that once served the Blenheim Palace Estate. Make a poker in our Dual Blacksmiths’ Forge. Beam Engine and Line Shafting, with the Restored Waterwheel. Tower Clocks.

Take-away Ploughmans Lunch and snacks, Cream Teas from Tea Room to enjoy in the Picnic Area by the River Evenlode. Millie-the-mill-cat trail for the children Combe Mill, Blenheim Palace Sawmills, Long Hanborough, Oxfordshire. OX29 8ET Admission: Adults £8.50, Concessions & Children £7.00, under 5s free, Open: 10am to 5pm

ANNINGTON DONATION REJUVENATES CARTERTON YOUTH CLUB Thanks to a generous donation from Annington and their contractors Heyford, RAF Brize Norton’s Airplay Youth Support have been able to make significant improvements to the ‘The Flat’ which is home to their senior Youth Club for ages 13+.

The works took place at ‘The Flat’ at Ely Close Families Centre behind Annigton’s development, The Crescent in Carterton. Completed in April, the project involved designing and fitting a brand new kitchen and appliances, re-decorating internally and installing new flooring.

The club, which re-opened in May 2021, hosts a range of activities and support for young people including a weekly Airplay senior Youth Club on Thursdays 6-8pm. The Airplay Youth Programme is funded by the RAF Benevolent Fund, and its RAF Brize Norton project aims to help military children integrate in Carterton by being open to the whole community. In addition to the Thursday evening sessions, Airplay also run activities for ages 5-13 at Carterton Family Centre.

Louise Saunders, Sales and Marketing Manager at Annington, comments: “We’re proud to support the local communities in which we are operating and are especially keen on supporting initiatives that benefit children and young people. We are very familiar with the RAF Airplay scheme, having donated to other groups over the years and are delighted to be able to help them give the RAF Brize Norton Youth Club much-needed facility a new lease of life.”

Jessica Price, Community Development Officer at RAF Brize Norton said: “Annington’s donation has enabled us to bring a new lease of life to the Youth Club ‘Flat’ and for that we’re very grateful. Both Annington and Heyford went above and beyond to deliver on this project with many of their contractors donating their time to support Carterton’s young people. We’re very excited to re-open once Covid-19 restrictions allow this to happen and the Airplay team can’t wait to see the young people’s reactions to the transformation of their beloved youth club!”

Annington is currently building new homes at The Crescent, which is located on the site of former Ministry of Defence housing linked to RAF Brize Norton.

Annington’s mission is to provide high quality homes to local buyers at affordable prices, with the development itself providing 135 new homes when complete, a large play area, and two additional smaller play spaces for children. Annington has recently released a new phase of two, three, and four-bedroom homes at The Crescent.

For more information about RAF Brize Norton’s Airplay programme contact Ayleila Parry at Action for Children: ayleila.parry@actionforchildren.org.uk To find out more about the homes available at The Crescent or to register your interest, please call Connells on 01993 847309. For more information about Annington, please visit www.annington.co.uk

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The

July / August - Chill Out Time

Cotswold Sky

Meteor Showers and Fireballs A meteor shower occurs when the Earth passes through a stream of debris left behind by a comet. The bits of rocks and dust are drawn into the Earth’s atmosphere by its gravitational force where they burn up and create fiery streaks across the sky.

The Southern Delta Aquariid Meteor Showers are active between 13th July and 24th August peaking on 30th July. There is some uncertainty regarding its origin but recently Comet 96P/Macholz has been identified as the likely source of the meteor shower. The comet has a diameter of 4 miles and takes just over 5 years to complete one orbit of the Sun. To observe look South.

The Perseid Meteor Showers are active between 16th July and 23rd August peaking on 12/13th August and are one of the highlights of the year for many meteor hunters. It is called the Perseids because the meteors appear to originate from the constellation of Perseus and are caused by the Earth moving through the debris left behind by comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle. To observe look North East.

Fireballs The Alpha Capricornids “Yellow Slow Fireballs” are active between 2 July and 14th August peaking on 30th July. This shower has infrequent but relatively bright meteors, with some fireballs and an estimated maximum of 5 per hour.

A fireball is an unusually bright

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meteor and can be in a variety of sizes. The reader may be familiar with the fireball meteorite that landed on the driveway of a house in Winchcombe during March. Do not expect more meteorites to drop on driveways during this period - the Winchcombe meteorite weighing 300 grams was the first to be recovered for 30 years. To observe look South East.

DIARY

Meteorite Showers (Please refer to above article) Mercury: Difficult to observe during July and August.

Venus: Can just be observed setting on the western horizon at twilight during the months of July and August.

Mars: Fades rapidly during July as it competes against the light evening skies and by August cannot be observed as its orbit takes it closer to the Sun. Jupiter: For the party poppers Jupiter will be seen from around midnight in July in the south east following Saturn and gaining steadily in altitude working its way southwards until by late August will be hovering in southern sky.

I find it difficult to believe of any other generation of children in recent years who have suffered through a disjointed education than the present one unless we include the war years of 1939-45 when children were separated from their parents.

What advice can I give? It must be chill out and enjoy your well deserved break.

Professionally I hope the Government pull out all the stops and inform the schools what the policies of next year’s examinations will take prior to the school year commencing and not wait for the potential crisis to occur before taking action. The new Year 11s’ and 13s’ have already missed 6 months and more of conventional classroom education. To expect them to take next year’s GCSE’s and A Levels without this being taken into consideration would be negligence of the highest order.

Let the Children Chill

Perhaps we adults should ask the youngsters how to chill. We sometimes forget that we were once children, and the enjoyable memories of our early lives will be forever with us.

When you were a child what irked you most? Think of it and ask yourself if you would allow your children to do what you were not allowed to do.

Provided there are no safety issues let your youngsters off the reigns: 1. Give your children the time to play and create friendships.

2. Support them in making age appropriate decisions. To the older ones treat them respectfully as young responsible adults.

3. Do not transfer your personal anxieties to the children. This will serve no purpose.

4. Get the children outdoors for walks. Point out what you can see and let them show you what they can see. This way you will learn a little of how they perceive their own worlds.

Saturn: Lies to the right Jupiter throughout both months giving an excellent opportunity to observe both planets either by binoculars or telescope.

John Harris

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If struggling for something new look upwards, we spend far too much time with our own thoughts looking down or at the most at eye level, thus missing a big chunk of our world.

5. Ban the iphone and computer for a set 2/3 hours a day and this includes you, the parent. It can be done and instils a little self-discipline.

6. You need hobby time whether it be painting, handicraft, tennis, cricket, swimming, football, cycling, walking, music, cooking, gardening – the list is endless.

7. Have a positive conversation at the end of each day with your youngsters.

Let it be on any topic such as “How did the day go?”, “How can we improve on what we have done today?” “What is the plan for tomorrow?”.

8. Reward your child’s efforts, show how proud and appreciative of them you are.

JOHN HARRIS

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GARDEN VIEW

Save Water In spite of the somewhat soggy spring water is an increasingly precious resource in the UK. Over the past few decades, rivers, reservoirs, and ground water supplies have become depleted. It’s important to save water where we can.

Most of us have enough space for at least one water butt, and there are slimline versions for smaller plots. Connect them to every available downpipe around your house! Fit guttering to sheds and summer houses to allow even more water collection. Keep the butts covered to prevent leaves falling in and deter mosquitos from breeding.

Bulk up soil with organic matter, such as compost and leaf mould. This improves free-draining soil particularly, but most soil types will benefit. It prevents clay soil baking hard and damaging roots, and on boggy soil it improves drainage and oxygenation. It’s win-win, whatever soil you garden on.

Water during cooler parts of the day. A good soak every few days is better than little and often, because when only the surface is wet most

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of the water evaporates or drains away. Also, water only at critical stages like germination, or when you’ve just transplanted young plants with immature root systems, or when fruit is setting such as tomatoes or strawberries.

Bare soil loses moisture quickly through evaporation so mulch, mulch, mulch. Use straw, grass clippings or leaf mould. Mulching has the added benefit of smothering weeds.

A green lawn looks lush, but no-one should be watering a lawn nowadays. Yes it will yellow, but lawns are tough and will green up at the first sign of rain.

ing. Instead use capillary matting or trays to capture run-off and enable plants to access this when needed.

The only time you shouldn’t use rainwater is with seedlings. They are vulnerable a variety of fungal infections called which fall under the catchall phrase, ‘damping off disease’. Tap water only is recommended for seedlings. But once they are potted up, you can switch to harvested rainwater.

I retired my sprinkler system years ago. Sprinklers are wasteful and it’s better to implement targeted watering or even a slow drip-irrigation system. Work with your garden rather than against it. My free-draining lime soil favours plants such as lavenders and other silver-leaved species. If you garden on clay you might choose roses or ribes sanguineum and Malus (crab apples).

‘Grey’ water is water from washing up or washing vegetables, or even bathwater. Collecting it can be a good idea providing you take certain precautions. There are plenty of tutorials on YouTube to help you make the most of your own grey water. Use rinsing water only or eco products free from phosphates which are harmful to the microflora in the soil. Bathwater should not be stored for too long and should only be used to water flowers, never edible crops, because of the risk of bacterial growth harmful to humans if ingested.

Greenhouses can be a major source of water wastage. Never place pots directly on to stag-

I hope this has inspired you to save water in your garden this summer.

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Index Bathrooms Country Bathrooms: p7 Builders & Contractors Calarel Developments: p5 Country Roofing & Building: p7 Garolla Garage Doors: p6 Hooper Joinery: p6 Mitre Oak Buildings: p16 North Cotswold Builder: p6 Rooflight Company: p3 Phil Dadge: p4 Thomas Contracting: p6 WB Home & Garden Maintenance: p13 Wychwood Oak Frame Buildings: p6 Children’s Services Cotswold Tutor: p11 Walker’s Day Nursery: p1 & 3 Elderly Services Edwardstow Court: p15 Hearing & Mobility Store: p10 Windrush Care: p15 Electrical Services Aerial Solutions: p2 P Wheeler Electrical: p4 S Turner Electrical Services: p16 Food Delivery Cotswold Veg Box: p1 Furniture Amanda Hanley By Design: p1

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Carterton Graham Lane Furniture: p4 Hilltop Joinery: p4 Hooper Joinery: p6 Phil Dadge: p4 Roundabout: p8 Flooring RS Flooring: p3 Garage Doors Garolla Garage Doors: p6 Gardening & Outdoors Coln Clearances: p12 Cotswold Garden Designs: p13 Stockwell Davies Tree Contractors: p12 Thomas Contracting: p6 Tom Negus Tree Care: p12 Waterside Landscaping: p13 WB Home & Garden Maintenance: p13 WHC Hire Services: p13 Healthcare & Wellbeing Bourton Podiatry Clinic: p1 Burford Foot Clinic: p11 Cherwell Hospital: p9 Fit Active Personal Training: p9 Paul Brookes Foot Health: p11 Runnerbean: p11 Hearing Aids Hearing & Mobility Store: p10 Home & Interiors Amanda Hanley By Design: p1

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Country Bathrooms: p7 Property Maintenance Sports & Leisure Country House Curtains: p3 Coln Clearances: p12 Fit Active Personal Training: p9 Hillarys Blinds: p5 Country Roofing & Building: p7 Runnerbean: p11 Hilltop Joinery: p4 Garolla Garage Doors: p6 Tree Surgery Rooflight Company: p3 Hilltop Joinery: p4 Stockwell Davies Tree RS Flooring: p3 Hooper Joinery: p6 Contractors: p12 Just Carpentry & Locks: p14 Locksmiths Tom Negus Tree Care: p12 MJ Harris Domestic Repairs: Just Carpentry & Locks: p14 Tuition p7 Motoring Amanda David Classical Phil Dadge: p4 Cotswold Garage: p2 Guitar Tuition: p9 WB Home & Garden Dean Tyres: p4 Cotswold Tutor: p11 Maintenance: p13 Music Lessons Windows Removals Amanda David Classical RJB Window Restoration: p7 Coln Clearances: p12 Guitar Tuition: p9 Rooflight Company: p3 Painters & Decorators Phil Dadge: p4 WB Home & Garden Maintenance: p13 Pets & It is to be hoped that the next meeting of this group will be on Wednesday 28th July and it will be a social and coffee morning in the Animals Wash Wiggle British Legion Hall, B-O-W at 10 for 10.30am. & Wag Dog If government regulations change, members will be contacted. The Grooming: p2 following meeting will be on Wednesday 25th August when the Plumbing speaker will be Tom Constant on the subject of “Stepping Stone to I.D Godden: Fame” at 10 for 10.30am. p14 M.P.N This will be a live event, but we are exploring the possibility of a hybrid Plumbing: p16 meeting to be on Zoom for those unwilling to attend a group gathering. Full details will be found on our website: www.u3asites.org.uk/ bourton

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