Midsomer Norton Life Summer 2020

Summer 2020 Issue 35

Sponsored by Midsomer Norton Town Council

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MIDSOMER NORTON NEEDS YOU! KEEP IT LOCAL

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M M U N IT Y

Business Directory Inside

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@Sam Chivers Estate Agents @samchiversestateagents

Call 01761 411020 www.samchiversproperty.co.uk

#fortheloveofproperty property

ESTATE AGENTS

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE H

ello everyone. My name is Lynda Robertson and, on May 11th, I had the honour of being elected Chair of Midsomer Norton Town Council, which also means that I became your Mayor of Midsomer Norton.

Following on from our first Mayor, Paul Myers and my predecessor, Michael Evans, is going to be a hard job, particularly with the problems of Covid-19 affecting us all. Fortunately, Councillor Steve Plumley was elected Deputy Mayor, so I have a considerable amount of support coming from that direction and, of course, everyone in the Town Council office.

Just a little bit about myself: I moved here in 1993 with my husband and one of my sons, so I feel as if I am local. As a family we ran a taxi and courier business and I also worked for a local research company.

My husband and I retired just in time to be elected onto the Town Council in 2011. This was when we were lucky enough to be able to form our own Council after many years sharing with Radstock and Westfield.

A lot has been achieved since then, the latest being the development of the Town Park. It’s coming on tremendously and, if you haven’t been to see what’s happening, please go and have a look. BUT, please be careful as it is a work in progress – so take care!

The big thing for the town at the moment is the fact that the shops on the High Street are all opening again. It’s really important for the spirit of the Town to keep the High Street vibrant, so please do your shopping locally, following the rules, keeping safe and I’ll see you there!

Take care everyone.

Cllr Lynda Robertson – Mayor of Midsomer Norton

C O N T E N T S

WELCOME TO

MIDSOMER NORTON HIGH STREET

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HIGH STREET DIRECTORY

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COVID-19 YOUR FEEDBACK IS REQUIRED

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TOWN COUNCIL STAFF

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A VERY DIFFERENT SUMMER

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A NEW LOOK FOR THE RIVER

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MIDSOMER NORTON TOWN TRUST

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MIDSOMER NORTON TOWN PARK

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ANNUAL REPORT

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SUPERHERO SHOUT OUT

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MAYOR'S REPORT

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MIDSOMER NORTON STREET PASTORS

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MIDSOMER NORTON CRICKET CLUB

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NEW FESTIVAL PLANNED

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The next edition of Midsomer Norton Life will be in September. If you would like your group to be included in the next edition, please contact us on 01761 410141 before the deadline of 20th August 2020.

If you have difficulty reading the print please contact the Town Clerk for a large print copy. You can also view Midsomer Norton Life on the council’s website at www.midsomernortontowncouncil.co.uk Midsomer Norton Life is produced by Ignyte Media Ltd, Unit G5, Second Avenue, Westfield Industrial Estate, Radstock, BA3 4BH Tel 01761 410141. While every care has been taken to ensure the data contained in this publication is accurate, neither the publisher nor its editorial contributors can accept, and hereby disclaim, any liability to any party for loss or damage caused by errors or omissions resulting from negligence, accident or any other cause. Ignyte or Midsomer Norton Town Council does not officially endorse any advertising material included within this publication. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or stored in any retrieval system in any form without the prior permission of the publisher.

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Midsomer Norton HIGH STREET

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hopping has never been easier, especially with the introduction of online stores and next day delivery, but there is something that online retailers can’t give you and that is the joy of a beautiful and convenient high street, something that we have right here in Midsomer Norton.

High Streets have been the beating heart of towns and villages for generations. The majority of stores are occupied by local businesses, born and bred in the town itself and while today’s modern world can make popping to the shops a little more difficult, there is something endlessly special about browsing the high street, bumping into old friends and having the chance to really see and feel the products before you buy them.

Plus, by shopping local, you’re helping your town’s economy rather than a big national corporation – which, according to statistics, not only boosts the local economy but can also increase the value of your home! Prosperous town centres can cause properties to gain up to £40,000 in value!

If that isn’t enough to make you consider supporting your local shops, how about the actual experience of shopping? Before the internet, going to the shops was a whole event. There was no

YOUR HIGH STREET

NEEDS YOU

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

ordering your goods while still in your pjs, you’d put on something nice, either get the bus or take a walk to the town centre and after you’d picked up what you needed, stop off for a home-made cake and refreshing coffee or tea before going back home. You don’t get that with Amazon now do you?!

When you shop at your local high street you’re buying from a person, probably someone you know either from around or someone you went to school with or someone’s relative and every purchase is better with a personal touch. Not only that, but local businesses often offer alternatives to the bigger brands that are cheaper, and they are much easier to get in touch with should you need any additional assistance.

SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESS

Following the Covid-19 pandemic, as we all start to get used to a new normal, it is more important than ever to support our local high streets.

Shoppers will have to be more strategic about how and where they shop and buying locally will be essential if we want our smaller communities to thrive and survive as lockdown restrictions are lifted further.

In Midsomer Norton we’re lucky that we have such a diverse high street with a good mix of national and local brands.

organise your wedding with bridal wear and florists. Plus, hairdressers, gyms and beauty salons allowing you to look and feel good.

From unique gifts and clothes, to second hand rarities and sports equipment, you can find a whole host of products right on your door step. Our high street has sweet shops and a toy shop for the young at heart, hardware stores and carpets for the home. You can

We have good quality cafes offering home cooked food and drink, estate agents for those wanting to move up the property ladder and travel agents for those wanting to get away.

If you look closely, we have a vast variety of shops and services in one place.

Over the next few pages is a directory of all businesses on Midsomer Norton High Street.

Throughout the magazine you will also find other directory categories supporting businesses in the town of Midsomer Norton. From garages to kitchens, decorators to design services, we have them covered.

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

YOUR HIGH STREET With plenty of parking and a diverse range of businesses, Midsomer Norton’s High Street is a picturesque and convenient place to do a spot of shopping or indulge in some pampering. With a mixture of national chains and independent stores, the high street is always full of surprises.

Accomodation The Old Priory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 569598 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.midsomerpriory.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@theoldpriory.co.uk Antiques and Restoration Past and Present Upholstery . . . . . . . 01761 419301 . . . . . . .pastandpresentupholstery@outlook.com Arts and Crafts Rose Crafts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414390 Midsomer Norton Craft . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568255 Bakers and Bakeries Muffins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415559 Parsons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415524 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.parsonsbakery.co.uk Bathrooms Firenza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419114 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.firenzaltd.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . enquiries@firenzaltd.co.uk Beauty and Health Revive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414004 Eden Treatment Rooms . . . . . . . . . . . . 07927 153518 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.edentreatmentrooms.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .edenbeauty2@aol.co.uk

American Nails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411970 Grace Beauty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07740 050390 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.graceacademyofnails.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . gracehairandbeauty@gmail.com Pure Beauty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568300 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.purebeautymsn.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . purebeautymsn@gmail.com Norton Nails and Beauty . . . . . . . . . . 01761 201506 Feet1st4u . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410021 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.feet1st4u.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .info@feet1st4u.co.uk Stephanie Jayne Beauty Room . . . 07530 858888 Midsummer Tanning Studio . . . . . . . . 01761 419966 High Energy Fitness Studio . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411276 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.highenergygym.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@highenergygym.co.uk Bookmakers Ladbrokes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.ladbrokes.com Backhouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.backhousebet.com Bridal Wear Solitaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416699 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.solitairebrides.co.uk CafÉs and Coffee Shops Jacarandas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410888 Costa Coffee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412803 Essence Café . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419977 Car Dealers Midsomer Motors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416820 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.midsomermotors.co.uk Carpets K J Carpets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410100 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.kjcarpets.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .info@kjcarpets.co.uk

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Charity Shops PEOPLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 402687 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@peoplelimited.co.uk Care and Share . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 418199 Sue Ryder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416494 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.sueryder.org . . . . . . . .midsomernorton1042@suerydercare.org British Heart Foundation . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419541 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.bhf.org.uk Cats Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415014 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.cats.org.uk/midsomer The Children's Society . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417009 Chemists Lloyds Pharmacy - St Chads . . . . . . . . 01761 412249 Lloyds Pharmacy - Chesterfield House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01716 413231 Midsomer Pharmacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568202

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Clothing and Shoes M & Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419635 Keith Ingram and Sons . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413243 Magpie Vintage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 402428 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . magpievintage19@gmail.com Convenience STORES, Newsagents and Groceries One Stop Stores . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413347 McColl's . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 235631 Sainsbury's . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416180 Lidl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 08009 777766 Delicatessens and Sandwich BARS Docky's Deli . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419944 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.dockys.co.uk Pure Taste . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414499 . . . . . . . . . .www.puretastemidsomernorton.co.uk Subway . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410950

Together,

Education and children Kip McGrath . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 569005 . . . . . . www.kipmcgrath.co.uk/midsomer-norton . . . . . . . . . . . .midsomernorton@kipmcgrath.co.uk Midsomer Norton School of Music . 01761 417828 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.msnschoolofmusic.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . msnschoolofmusic@gmail.com Sally Teall's Baby and Toddler Classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07974 820944 . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.sallyteallsbabymassage.co.uk . . . . . . . . . sallyteallsbabymassage@hotmail.co.uk Estate Agents Geoffrey Smith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411010 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.geoffreysmith.org . . . . . . . . . Midsomer-Norton@geoffreysmith.org

let's support local businesses

Barons Property Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411411 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.baronsproperty.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . enquiries@baronsproperty.co.uk Your Move Bailey & Bryant . . . . . . . . 01761 419400 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.your-move.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . .midsomernorton@your-move.co.uk

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Estate Agents cont.

Michael Gould . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 409000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.michaelgouldproperty.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@michaelgouldproperty.co.uk Wicks and Pierce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413060 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.wicksandpierce.co.uk Andrews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410111 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.andrewsonline.co.uk Financial and Legal Services FDC Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417575 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.fdc-law.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . norton@fdc-law.co.uk Thatcher and Hallam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414646 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.th-law.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . enquiries@th-law.co.uk BPB Accounting Solutions . . . . . . . . . 01761 414807 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.bpbsolutions.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@bpbsolutions.co.uk Tony White Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 418202

IF THE UK SPENT JUST £5 A WEEK WITH THEIR LOCAL SHOPS & BUSINESSES INSTEAD OF ONLINE OR WITH MULTI-NATIONALS, IT WOULD BE WORTH APPROX £16 BILLION GOING DIRECTLY BACK INTO OUR TOWNS. WHICH MEANS REAL JOBS, BETTER FACILITIES AND A NICER PLACE TO LIVE. MAKES YOU THINK DOESN'T IT? SHOP LOCAL, USE LOCAL, INVEST LOCAL

Ian MacDonald Insurance . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416937 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.ianmacinsurance.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .info@ianmacinsurance.co.uk King Watkins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413869 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.kingwatkins.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .enquiries@kingwatkins.co.uk Pethericks & Gillards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410444 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.pgtax.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .mail@pgtax.co.uk Bishop Mortgage Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411116 . . . . . . . . . . . . . finacialadvice@bishopandco.co.uk Waterhouse IFA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415010 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.waterhouse-ifa.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@waterhouseifa.co.uk FISHING TACKLE A M Hobbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413961 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.amhobbsfirearms.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .paul@amhobbsfirearms.co.uk Florists Sweet Pea Floral Design . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417779 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.sweetpeafloraldesign.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . toni@sweetpeafloraldesign.co.uk Funeral Directors B H Mears . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 347173 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.dignityfunerals.co.uk Gifts and Cards The Entertainer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412238 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.thetoyshop.com Cottles' Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Out of Asia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411168 Object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416170 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .objectgifts@gmail.com Cottles' Candies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

K K Stores . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Hairdressers and Barbers Sweeny Todd's . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568106 Jack and Harry's . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568088 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.jackandharrys.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jackandharrys@gmail.com

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Barber Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Headlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413175

Oils and Coils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568070 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.oils-and-coils.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . hello@oils-and-coils.co.uk

James Christopher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410321 . . . . . . . www.jameschristopherhairdressing.co.uk

Hollies Variety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419182

Lewis Thomas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416867 . . . . . . . . . . . . www.lewisthomashairdressing.com . . . . . . . enquiries@lewisthomashairdressing.com

Opticians Edwards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413212 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.edwardsmidsomer.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . edwardsopt@gmail.com

Celia's Place . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07745 046994 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.celiasplace.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@celiasplace.co.uk Pierres . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.pierre.org.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . pierres_hair@btconnect.com Oliver Joseph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416999 . . . . . . . . . . . .www.oliverjosephhairdressing.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . oliverjosephmsn@aol.com Scissor Art Barber Shop . . . . . . . . . . 07841 408524 House of Hair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412065 Josie Louise Hair Extensions . . . . . . . . 01761 568100 Health Stores The Green Shop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 418857 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.greenshopmsn.co.uk Broadies' Supplements . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568081 . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.broadies-supplements.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . broadies.supplements@gmail.com Home and Hardware High Street DIY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414355 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.highstreetdiy.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . sales@highstreetdiy.co.uk

Eyetech . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414136 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.eyetech-opticians.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . msn@eyetech-opticians.co.uk Scrivens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414774 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.scrivens.com Pawnbrokers C and G Moneypoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568572 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.candgmoneypoint.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . candgmoneypoint@hotmail.co.uk Pet Services Columbard Pet Supplies . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412957 . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.columbardpetsupplies.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@columbardpetsupplies.co.uk Pet's Corner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417699 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.petscorner.co.uk Canine Class . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411132 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.canineclass.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .info@canineclass.co.uk Post Office Post Office . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 03457 223344 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.postoffice.co.uk

Norton Discounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07837 439875

Pubs, Bars and Clubs Mallards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411514

Argos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 03451 657820 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.argos.co.uk

Palladium Electric . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 404230

CanDo4You . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413333 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.cando4you.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . cando.msn@btinternet.com

The Riverside . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410456 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.riverside2000.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .theriversidemsn@gmail.com

Johnsons The Cleaner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413333

White Hart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 418270 . . . . . . the-white-hart-public-house.business.site

Lilley's Vinyls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412373 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lilleysvinylrevival@gmail.com

Fat Sam's . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411036

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Recruitment Riverside Recruitment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410433 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.riversiderecruit.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . staff@riversiderecruit.co.uk Simple Recruitment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 235741 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.simplerecruitmentltd.co.uk . . . . . . . . . enquiries@simplerecruitmentltd.co.uk Sports Norton Sports and Camping . . . . . . . 01761 418972 . . . . . . . . . . .www.nortonsportsandcamping.co.uk takeaways Jackie Chan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411888 Dominos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415577 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.dominos.co.uk Shaplas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411887 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.shaplamsn.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .manager@shaplatakeaway.co.uk Hera Indian Cuisine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416844 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.heraindiancuisine.co.uk

Charcoal Grill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414415 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.charcoalgrillnorton.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . charcoalgrill_msn@hotmail.com The Greek Grill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 231805 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.thegreekgrill.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@thegreekgrill.co.uk Best Pizza and Kebabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410400 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.bestpizzaandkebab.co.uk Oriental Sunrise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414266 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.orientalsunrise.co.uk A K Pizza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411114 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.akpizza.co.uk Tattoo Parlour Silver Street Tattoos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.silverstreettattoo.com . . . . . . . . . silverstreettattoostudio@hotmail.com travel TUI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410566

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

11

Town Warden TO THE RESCUE

T

he Town Council received a call from a concerned member of the public at the beginning of June. A mother duck and her ducklings had gotten stuck in a grate on the River Somer and couldn’t find their way out.

The Town Warden went to investigate. When he arrived, he could just see the ducks through the grate and there was no way the ducklings were strong enough to swim out. He managed to find a long plank of wood that would fit through the grate.

A couple of days later the duck and her ducklings still hadn’t found their way out so a resident placed another plank going up from the river to safety.

A week later we received another call to say the duck and her ducklings are now safe on the riverbank and are thriving. A big thank you to all involved in the rescue!

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

A case of MISTAKEN IDENTITY

T

he Town Council recently received a report of Giant Hogweed (Heracleaum mantegazzianum) being present along the Wellow Brook Walk. This is an alien (non-native) invasive weed that can be particularly hazardous as its sap causes burns, rashes and severe blistering of skin subsequently exposed to sunlight.

Until expert confirmation of its identity could be sought, the Town Council put up warning signs in the vicinity. However it was confirmed on 1st May that there is no evidence of Giant Hogweed on site. There are, however, plentiful specimens of a close relative, the native or common hogweed, also known as cow parsnip (Heracleum sphodylium). This is a generally harmless species that is widespread across the country.

The signs have now been removed and we can breathe a sigh of relief that the hazardous species is not present. Better safe than sorry!

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

13

COVID-19 Your Feedback is Required!

O

n Monday 23rd March 2020, the United Kingdom was put into lockdown. Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced lockdown measures including: Only leaving home to shop for necessities such as food or medicines, Work from home and do not travel, and Do not meet others – even friends or family.

These unprecedented steps were put into place to limit the spread of coronavirus and to protect the NHS from being overwhelmed with sick patients.

As a result of Government advice, the office in the Town Hall was closed until further notice, and the Town Clerk and office staff started working from home. Although the office was closed, the staff remained contactable on the office phone number – 01761 418701 and via email – administrator@ midsomernortontowncouncil.co.uk. In addition to this a new email was set up – coronavirus@ midsomernortontowncouncil.co.uk to deal with any coronavirus related issues. The Town Warden, who was not able to work from home, continued working looking after our town and green spaces.

Before the lockdown, the Town Council, Community Trust and B&NES Councillors created a leaflet to support the residents of Midsomer Norton during the pandemic, and this was delivered to over five thousand homes. It provided useful information and resources, including advice on how to keep safe and where to find help, and what to do if you develop symptoms. The leaflet included a Good Neighbour Scheme enabling residents to regularly check on vulnerable neighbours required to self-isolate. There were flyers to put through neighbours' doors, enclosing your contact details

and what you can do to help, from shopping to a friendly phone call. There were also posters for residents with a weakened immune system and were self-isolating, requesting deliveries to be left at the door, and a poster for those who are able to help asking for people who need help to contact them. The leaflet also included a list of useful websites including the NHS and Government websites.

During the first couple of weeks of lockdown we received several calls from vulnerable residents requiring assistance with picking up medications/ prescriptions and shopping. We were initially able to call on Alex Davis, the manager of the Midsomer Norton Community Trust, to pick up prescriptions and medications, and Brookes News on Redfield Road who very kindly helped out with delivering shopping to the residents that were shielding or isolating. We would like to thank them for everything that they did to help those in need!

We would now be very grateful to receive your thoughts on the leaflet provided. We would like to know whether you thought the leaflet and the information it contained was helpful.

Did you see any of the posters displayed in any homes around Midsomer Norton? And did you provide any help as a result? Did you distribute any of the “Can I Help You?” cut out flyers? Were you then contacted by anyone who was in need of any assistance? Let us know! We would love to hear from you on the emails detailed above.

The Importance of putting in place a Lasting Power of Attorney in the current circumstances It is always a good idea to have provision in place for your affairs in the event you become unwell for any reason or if you lose capacity to decide things yourself. In the current COVID-19 pandemic, a Lasting Power of Attorney can be an invaluable document to have in place.

How can a Lasting Power of Attorney be beneficial when I am unwell?

Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is a legal document that allows people you trust to make decisions on your behalf, when you ask them for help or when you lose capacity to make decisions yourself.

There are two types of LPA – one for property and financial decisions and the other for health and welfare affairs .

By putting in place an LPA, you decide who is appointed as the decision maker (known as an attorney) in relation to your property and welfare affairs and you may wish to impose restrictions upon them when they make decisions on your behalf. Given the current crisis, the benefit of putting in place a LPA means that your attorney(s) can manage your affairs if you become hospitalised or unable to leave your home.

Most people are initially concerned about their finances if they become unwell, the LPA for property and financial decisions is the document which can assist by allowing your Attorney(s) to legally deal with your everyday banking but also with other more complex financial decisions and planning in the long run. With complex assets some consideration and careful drafting of the LPA is required.

The LPA for health and welfare decisions allows your loved ones, if you cannot make your own decisions, to be involved in making decisions about where you should live, what care and support you should receive and what medical treatment you should have to keep you alive. Your attorneys can represent you when you are no longer able to express your wishes by yourself. If there is no health and welfare LPA in place, there is a risk that the decision makers acting in your best interests may make choices that are in fact contrary to your wishes. Your next of kin may express a view or objection but have no legal authority to trump the decision made by a doctor, for example, unless your loved one challenges this via mediation or as a last resort the Court of Protection. This can be an expensive process and may cause a great deal of distress to your next of kin.

If you feel you would benefit from a Power of Attorney during this difficult time, we are offering a 2 for 1 discount on Powers of Attorney until 30th September 2020 (conditions apply) For further information or to talk to a legal expert, speak to a member of our private client team quoting SUMMER241 in Keynsham (0117 986 9141) or Midsomer Norton (01761 409438).

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

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Financial and legal Looking for a new home? Or advice on an investment? There’s no need to travel into Bath or Bristol or relinquish your personal information online, with Midsomer Norton’s financial and legal businesses right on your doorstep you can stay local and receive amazing service you can trust.

Accountancy Services BPB Accounting Solutions . . . . . . . . . 01761 414807 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.bpbsolutions.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@bpbsolutions.co.uk

Mortgages Bishop Mortgage Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411116 . . . . . . . . . . . . . finacialadvice@bishopandco.co.uk

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Solicitors FDC Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417575 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.fdc-law.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . norton@fdc-law.co.uk

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Thatcher and Hallam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414646 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.th-law.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . enquiries@th-law.co.uk

Simple Accounts Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 408177 Financial Planners Waterhouse IFA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415010 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.waterhouse-ifa.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@waterhouseifa.co.uk Douglas and Young . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07496136197 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.douglasandyoung.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . amy@douglasandyoung.co.uk INSURANCE Tony White Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 418202 Ian MacDonald Insurance . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416937 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.ianmacinsurance.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .info@ianmacinsurance.co.uk

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

TOWN COUNCIL STAFF The Town Council staff, like the rest of the country, went on lockdown and after spending a busy couple of days setting up the IT equipment all members of staff are now working from home.

The office phone has been transferred to a mobile phone, so the office is contactable during normal working hours on 01761 418701.

All Council business is carrying on as normal and the staff have been carrying out day to day tasks and supporting the community.

The Town Clerk, Donna Ford, is managing the Town Park now the work has resumed and running the COVID response from her office at home. Deputy Clerk, Amanda Hazell, is keeping the finances up to date, paying invoices, completing the year end and keeping small projects running. Project support and Admin officer, Caroline Brown, is busy reviewing the Council policies and writing the Annual Report. The Town Warden, Dave Paisey, is out and about ensuring all issues are dealt with and keeping the Town nice and tidy, socially distancing of course!

The staff keep in touch using Zoom and have regular meetings so all staff are aware of any issues that need dealing with. Town Council meetings are also held on Zoom with members of the community able to join, keep an eye on our website for upcoming meetings and agendas.

Donna Ford, Town Clerk, said: "As far as the Town Council goes, it is business as normal in what the new normal is now. As the clerk for the Town Council my main objective is keeping the Council still running and providing the services you, as the community, want and need whilst striving to ensure we are sticking to the Government Guidelines. Working from home like any parent at the moment has it pros and cons."

“I’m really enjoying working from home”, said the Deputy Clerk, Amanda Hazell. “I feel like we are

still very much supporting the community as we are always available either on the phone or via e-mail. It’s nice to have a chat with the residents that call in with an issue, I could be the only person they speak to that day, so I always take the time to listen and engage with them. A lot of our residents are older people who may not have access to a computer. We always go above and beyond to find information they require or report issues to B&NES on their behalf.”

Caroline Brown said “I’m really looking forward to going back to the office. I miss the residents popping in and the face to face contact.”

Dave Paisey, Town Warden, noticed a few changes in town, especially in regard to the number of people using the high street. He said: “The high street was virtually free of litter and the sight of people queueing for the shops two metres apart was strange at first, but a few weeks on I noticed a number of people were using the high street for their daily exercise and though several of the essential stores were open, the carparks were practically empty.”

He noted that during lockdown and as restrictions started being eased more and more people have been enjoying the high street’s picturesque nature.

He said: “I’ve seen people meeting up at the Hollie’s Gardens to talk with friends all socially distanced on the grass and the benches. There have also been more people enjoying riverside walks and an increase of people using the Town Park, many of whom have discovered it for the first time.”

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

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TOWN's CIVIC AWARDS 2020 T

he Council is calling on residents to nominate local people for the town’s Midsomer Awards with a particular focus this year on all those groups or individuals who have helped our community get through the Covid-19 pandemic. It might be that someone has supported you by getting your shopping or maybe you know of a local health worker or someone in the essential services who you think should be recognised.

"Although we cannot hold our Annual Civic Service at the current time due to social distancing rules, we very much want to recognise the exceptional people in our community who have made a difference and to say thank you. Whilst we are encouraging people to particularly think about people involved in responding at all levels to the Covid-19 pandemic, we also welcome nominations

based on lifetime service/contribution to the community in general”, said Lynda Robertson, Mayor of Midsomer Norton.

Originally started in 2007 by the Midsomer Norton Society, the Midsomer Awards have developed into an important part of the town’s civic life since the Town Council took them over in 2011.

Anyone wishing to nominate an individual or group for an award can do so by contacting the Town Council by email (administrator@ midsomernortontowncouncil.co.uk) or ring 01761 418791. There are a number of awards for individuals or groups and all nominations will be considered at a Town Council meeting.

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

A Very Different Summer 2020 for Midsomer Norton T

he Covid-19 pandemic and resulting lockdown has led to many national and international events sadly being cancelled or postponed. It has also had a more local impact, in that the Midsomer Norton Civic Service, Town Fayre and Pride have all been called off this year.

The Civic Service The Civic Service would have taken place on Sunday 21st June 2020. The Service is a celebratory event to recognise a wide range of community groups and individuals in Midsomer Norton. The awards include a Lifetime Achievement Awards for example, which last year was given to Joan Norman for community service, Lucy and Jim Edwards for their work on the Silver Street Nature Reserve and to Rev Christopher Chiplin, who has served as Vicar of the Parish Church for the last 25 years.

There are also Awards recognising those who work with young people, which last year went to Karen Rawles of Playtots and Off the Record for their work providing advice and support to our local young people. Also last year, the Community Trust received recognition for the huge success of the Community Cinema. The Men’s Sheds and Contact the Elderly were also singled out with Awards in 2019 for their work aimed at combatting isolation and loneliness in the community. The Asset Transfer team responsible for securing key community assets into charitable Trust, were also awarded last year. The Civic Service is also an opportunity to celebrate our local sports, and last year the Methodist Cricket Club’s 70 years of work, along with the dynamism of Midsomer Norton Cricket Club were both rewarded with trophies.

Midsomer Norton Town Fayre Due to take place on Saturday 11th July 2020, it would’ve been the seventh year of the Midsomer Norton Town Fayre. Taking place in the new Town Park and the Somer Centre, the Fayre would have been opened by Michael Eavis, the founder of Glastonbury Festival.

As in previous years there would have been many attractions for all of the family included a climbing wall, face painting and much more. Local school children would have again been kicking off the festivities by taking part in the annual Maypole Dance Festival. The Arts Festival showcasing the very best of our local creativity and talent including poetry, drama, and music would have also gone ahead.

Midsomer Norton PRIDE Midsomer Norton Pride 2020 was due to go ahead on Saturday 20th June 2020 after receiving a grant from Midsomer Norton Town Council. However, in light of the pandemic, Midsomer Norton Pride has recently announced on their Facebook page that a virtual Pride event will now be taking place on Saturday 11th July. The event will go ahead with the help of FDC Law. Keeping everyone safe is the top priority at the moment, but let’s hope that as social distancing measures are relaxed, next year we can all come together to celebrate and enjoy our community with all of these events.

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

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A new look for the River T

he river landscape along the High Street is important both visually and environmentally to the town. Following discussions between the Town Council and Stonebarn (the contractors who take care of the river) earlier in the year, it was agreed that there would be a major reappraisal of the river running through the High Street. Stonebarn are committed to providing a quality service in maintaining the river.

Before We fully appreciate the wide range of views and expressions of interests that we have received from local people and residents while the work has been carried out. We are very pleased to have received many positive comments about the ongoing work to the river and the way that it is looking at present.

We will continue to liaise with the contractor about the continuing works and adopt working practices of a sustainable and practical nature during the Covid-19 pandemic. Stonebarn are preparing concept boards for display on site indicating the points of interests, along with our key objectives in managing the river. Â

Throughout these works every attempt has been made to protect the natural habitat, flora and fauna of the river. We are very pleased to see that the range of birds, insects and marine life are all thriving, with Kingfishers, Crayfish, Marsh Marigolds and Flag Iris now being spotted in the town.

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

MIDSOMER NORTON TOWN TRUST

D

espite the challenges of coronavirus and lockdown – the Town Trust has done its best to keep moving ahead with projects using video conferencing and contractors working outside.

of the Town Trust recently met with St Chad’s Surgery to allow them to give their feedback on the proposed plans.

TOWN PARK The Town Trust as ever is working hard to prepare the infrastructure to generate events when Lockdown lifts. A full report focusing on this project is included on page 20.

AMPHITHEATRE – The new 300 seat facility is now complete with the steps and rails in place and the terraces grassed. Whilst sadly all the first events have all had to be cancelled we have been using the time during lockdown to test the facilities.

Sensory Garden – Now that the design for the Town Park entrance is almost complete, it will be possible to move forward with the detailed plans for the Sensory Garden. Representatives

SILVER STREET NATURE RESERVE Through lockdown the Town Trust Friends of Silver Street Nature Reserve have continued to care for

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

the space as individuals working within lockdown rules. Sadly the Green Flag and In Bloom and all the planned events and meetings have been cancelled. That said more people than ever have discovered this haven of tranquillity as a place to go for their permitted walks during lockdown.

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great thanks to those who contributed to this project.

At the same time, sadly the offers of volunteer time cannot be followed through due to social distancing rules but again – huge thanks to all those who offered their time. When lockdown restrictions lift we will look to contact everyone and work out a way to get people involved.

In the meantime, the Town Council have agreed to fund the shortfall so that the path can be progressed to allow Parkrun to come and inspect and get this initiative moving. As soon as restrictions permit this work it will be progressed.

For now areas for further paths are being investigated and applications made for additional grant funding from a range of funders.

COMMUNITY BUILDINGS The planned work on the Town Hall to complete the pointing of the rear wall and improvements to drainage has had to be postponed for the foreseeable future. The inability to complete this work has in turn delayed the final completion of the Asset Transfer process.

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UPDATE: PARKRUN PATH COMMUNITY CHALLENGE: After a fantastic response from the community donating funds and offering volunteer time, we hit lockdown and along with everything the project froze.

The objective was to build a new path by the end of April 2020. Of the fundraising target of £6,463.20 to build a 90 metre path to zig-zag down the hill in the Town Park from the Greenway to the Wild Meadow we were able to raise £1,058.62. On behalf of the community the Town Trust extends

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Midsomer Norton Town Park

S

ince our last update in the spring issue of “Life� a lot has happened, both at the park and in the world.

Work had been on hold at the end of the winter and during early spring, waiting for the seemingly continuous rain to stop and for the ground to dry out sufficiently to move soil without turning it all to liquid mud. Eventually the rain did stop, but then the Coronavirus crisis hit. However despite this, with appropriate social distancing measures in place, the contractor was able to return to site and recommence work in late April. With weather remaining largely dry, work has progressed at pace.

The new wetland area, watercourse and meander pool between the Celebration Meadow and Wild Meadow to the east was completed first, and within days of completion it was already being enjoyed by families seeking recreation during

lockdown. With a return of some light rain as this update is written, the grass seed and seed impregnated coir erosion control matting is now slowly greening up. Within a few months and with further showers, the bare soil should all become green again.

The final works on the Amphitheatre are now very nearly complete. Recent work has included installing access steps, handrails and the stage area, together with soiling and grass seeding. The stage area is just awaiting its final surface of resin bound gravel, and the power supply for events is still to be completed.

The Celebration Meadow has now had the saved topsoil re-spread and has been seeded. Once there has been sufficient rain, this too should green up rapidly.

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Finally work is now well underway to create the new main entrance area to the park, just to the side of the Somer Centre. This will include a Sensory Garden area (which is being sponsored by the Radstock and Midsomer Norton Lions Club), an improved trackway into the park, cycle parking, some new car parking bays and feature walls to highlight the entrance. With lockdown, securing materials has in some cases taken longer, so accurately predicting completion dates is not as easy as usual. However, it is hoped that the work here will be complete by the end of July,

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just leaving planting of the Sensory Garden to be undertaken in the Autumn.

Ahead, plans are still in place to undertake some further path improvements, particularly providing a better link between the greenway and riverside path. Just before lockdown, arrangements had been made with The Conservation Volunteers (TCV), an organisation that co-ordinates volunteer labour to undertake conservation and access improvement works. The plan was to use their regular volunteer team, combined with a call for local volunteers to help build the path and with some other work on site. Once TCV resume volunteering this work should get underway.

There are still some elements of the original masterplan to realise, including improving access to the top of the batch and some of the interpretive elements, as well as enhancing facilities for a wider variety of use. However by the end of this year, the majority of major works will have been completed and bare areas should be green again, providing a park that hopefully all in the Somer Valley can enjoy as lockdown eases.

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

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Garages, Taxi and Travel Car trouble? Midsomer Norton has several mechanics specialising in everything you can think of, so whether you’ve broken down, need new tires or just want an MOT or service for piece of mind, you can find the right garage for you without venturing too far. The town also has a wealth of taxi and private vehicle hire services as well as coach companies, helping you get to where you need to go.

Car and Van Hire Go Self Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 08448 111730 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.goselfdrive.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@goselfdrive.com

Caravans and Motor Homes Somer Valley Caravan Sales . . . . . . . . 01761 415875 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.somervalleycaravans.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@somervalleycaravans.co.uk

Car Dealers Midsomer Motors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416820 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.midsomermotors.co.uk

Affordable Van Conversions . . . . . . . . 01761 411238 . . . . . . . . . . . www.affordablevanconversions.com

Dave Fowlers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417470 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.davefowlersgarage.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . sales@davefowlersgarage.co.uk

Coaches, Minibuses and Taxis Centurion Travel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417392 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.centuriontravel.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . .coach-hire@centuriontravel.co.uk

JB Autos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416244 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.jbautosradstock.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jbautosradstock@outlook.com Car MOT and Repairs Norton Service Station . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411911 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . mike@nortonmotcentre.co.uk Bathwick Tyres . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 441840 Centurion MOT Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417392 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.centuriontravel.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . .coach-hire@centuriontravel.co.uk Dennis Miller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412539 Will Smith Motor Engineer . . . . . . . . 01761 416056

John Martin Coaches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417629 . . . . . . www.johnmartincoachholidaysbath.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info.johnmartin@btconnect.com Welton Cabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417600 Radstock Taxis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417166 Bath Limousines Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417392 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.centuriontravel.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . .coach-hire@centuriontravel.co.uk Motorbikes The Checkered Flag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 330020 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.thechequeredflaguk.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@thechequeredflaguk.co.uk

Car Parts and accessories Andrew Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417570 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.andrewpage.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .info@andrewpage.com Halfords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 404560 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.halfords.com

I SUPPORT INDEPENDENT BUSINESSES

WHO'S WITH ME?

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Annual Report 2019 – 2020

T

he Annual Report is produced by Midsomer Norton Town Council. Its purpose is to inform the electorate of the Council’s progress on a wide variety of projects and events. The report would have been formally presented to the Annual Town Meeting due to take place on the 27th April 2020, but due to the Covid-19 pandemic this was not possible.

Mayor’s Report 2019 – 2020 This municipal year will unfortunately be remembered for the horrible sting in its tail, Covid-19 and the consequent lockdown.

The Town Council’s first aim is to encourage a strong sense of community in Midsomer Norton and that means enabling people to get together and share activities, and that is exactly what Covid has prevented us from doing in so many ways.

However, the Town Council, B&NES Councillors and Community Trust worked quickly to produce a Covid-19 information mailout and launch a Good Neighbour Scheme which has fostered an incredibly positive community effort in the town – helping support the most vulnerable.

So many of the things which the Council has started or supported have been cancelled or suspended this year: the Midsomer Norton Town Fayre, the Carnival, the Community Cinema at the Town Hall, the monthly Paradis Trio, the First Thursday Events at Welton Rovers, and so on, and so on. Rest assured, however, we will be working hard with the community to get things back on track once a solution is found which enables us all to be the social beings that we are.

Before Covid, it was a year of progress and consolidation. The Council’s biggest enterprise (in partnership with the Town Trust) is still the Town Park, and with major funding from the money which developers have to give the Local Authority

when they build housing (“section 106”), the plans are coming to fruition, with the Amphitheatre, the link with the Silver Street to Radstock cycle path, the Celebration Meadow and the Riverside Walk from Gullock Tyning to Radstock Road all making good progress.

The Catholic Church Garden, now renamed the Garden of Friendship after the Council took a lease on it, open for residents to enjoy. We are pressing B&NES to allow an entrance to this lovely garden from the footpath in the Hollies car park, which will make it much more accessible. Then there is the wonderful shared path from Silver Street to Radstock Road, a project which the cycle charity Sustrans achieved. The Greenway on the north side of town linking Radstock, Welton and through to Northmead Road, is much more accessible and enjoyable after we managed to get the muddy section between Station Road and Northmead Road paved.

We are working to improve Wellow Brook Walk, just south of the Greenway, and we have improved the play and exercise facilities at West Clewes.

We also have Withies Park, the Gullock Tyning skate park, the rugby, football and cricket facilities all helped by Council grants. The town’s Sports Centre under Dragonfly Leisure is benefiting from investment and expansion and we must continue to treasure it once it can re-open. Silver Street Nature Reserve has been strengthened by the transfer of ownership and governance from B&NES to the Town Trust and is a delight at all times but perhaps especially now the weather is better.

The Midsomer Norton South Station has great plans to become even more vibrant and attractive to visitors; like the Nature Reserve, it thrives on individual enterprise, and where that needs a helping hand, the Council will step in. We have so many hidden and some not so hidden gems like this, and we look to make them more available and more pleasant for everyone.

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Planning The Town Council continues to be consulted on all planning applications within the town boundary. In addition to commenting on specific applications, the Town Council contributes to plans and policies at a wider level, such as the Somer Valley Enterprise Zone, which affect the town and our vision for the future.

Members of the Council and other interested parties continue to make progress on the Neighbourhood Development Plan which is getting ever closer to being released for public approval by a referendum.

Neighbourhood Plan Following an application approved by the Town Council, Midsomer Norton was successfully designated as a Neighbourhood Area in November 2013, to enable the town to facilitate the Neighbourhood Plan process. The Neighbourhood Plan is one part of the development plan for the town over the period 2019 to 2029, the other parts being the 2014 Bath and North East Somerset Core Strategy and the B&NES Place Making Plan.

Midsomer Norton Neighbourhood Plan Group (MSNNPG) is preparing the Plan in order to establish a vision for the future of the Parish and to set out how that vision will be realised through planning land use and development change over the plan period. The purpose of the Plan is to guide development within the town and provide guidance to anyone wishing to submit planning applications for development within the town.

The emerging plan will continue to be tested through further informal and formal consultation, before being submitted to the Local Planning Authority for an independent review. If this is successful, it will then be put to the electorate in a referendum for adoption.

Finance In June 2019 we held our first public meeting as a single committee having decided to merge the Finance subcommittee and Operations

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subcommittee into a proper council committee.

This allows the meeting to be open to the public and decision making more transparent. Each month we look at the expenditure and check that we are working within the budget set for the year.

Once again, our budget considerations required some compromises. We lost £6,400 from the final reduction from B&NES of the Local Council Tax Support. The Council had to make up this loss and recommended continuing with its plans to enhance the town and progress the Town Park improvements. We also agreed to increase the staffing levels to provide more officer time so that more resource can be given to seeing through major projects and then keeping up with the increased day to day activities.

Grants Midsomer Norton Town Council is funded by its’ residents and subject to funds being available the Town Council can provide financial support to community organisations operating in the Town for the benefit of the community, whilst providing value for money for local taxpayers and ensuring that public money is spent in a responsible manner.

The Town Council is committed to following best practice in grant giving in order to provide sustainable funding and support to voluntary and community groups. The Council assesses applications rationally and objectively and provides Small Grants, usually less than £500, Revenue Grants to support a group’s running costs up to £3,000 and Community Project Grants providing financial support to community groups to help fund a wide range of projects that meet the needs of local people and benefit the local community.

In the 2019/20 financial year the Council supported the following organisations: • Midsomer Norton Social Club • 2282 Somer Squadron • Somerset Farmers' Market • Mencap

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

• Swallow • Midsomer Norton Football Club • Outfield Festival • Age UK • Dial a Ride • Welton Rovers • Community Trust Solicitors' Fees • Town Trust Solicitors' Fees • SWAN • Midsomer Norton Pride

Midsomer Norton Recreation Ground Trust

play area and an outdoor gym with running track.

Income generated by the Trust is insufficient to cover the running costs of the whole site and the Town Council provides additional funding to cover grass cutting, safety inspections and repair and maintenance of both the play area and outdoor gym.

Midsomer Norton Town Trust From its creation in March 2011, Midsomer Norton Town Council started negotiations with B&NES to secure the freeholds of the Town Hall and the Somer Centre along with a 99-year lease on the Orchard Hall. At the same time, recognising that house building had reduced the amount of public green space for residents to enjoy, the Town Council acquired St Chad’s Well, purchased land for the Town Park, and sought to secure the freehold of the Silver Street Nature Reserve.

In order to enable the community to run buildings and events the Town Council facilitated the creation of the Midsomer Norton Community Trust to enable the people of Midsomer Norton to volunteer without taking on huge personal liabilities.

On the 25th February 2019, B&NES exchanged contracts with the Council to transfer the freeholds of the Town Hall, the Somer Centre and The Town Council is the Trustee for the Midsomer Silver Street Nature Reserve and complete a 99 Norton Recreation Ground Trust, a Registered year lease on the Orchard Hall. The sustainability Charity. The previous Trustees of the Miner’s of these community assets can only be achieved if Recreation Ground, which was the original they are run for the people, by the people and will foundation in 1924, transferred responsibility to be protected for generations to come. the then Norton Radstock Urban District Council in 1971 and this subsequently passed to Midsomer Many new initiatives are developing including creating a Midsomer Parkrun. A community appeal Norton Town Council in 2011. The Council continues to lease the football pitch and car park to build a new path in the park and a Town Farm Project linked to a new potential asset transfer of on match days and training evenings to Welton a play area at Hillside Crescent to the Town Trust.

Rovers Football Club which has been at West Clewes since 1887.

As Trustee, the Town Council is responsible for meeting the objectives of the Charity requiring it to provide the inhabitants of Midsomer Norton with a recreation and playing field. Alongside the use as a football ground, the Trust provides a

Heritage England

Midsomer Norton was named by the Government as one of 59 towns across England to receive part of a £95 million fund to revive historic shopping areas. The funds available are to be used to

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

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improve the fabric of the High Street, making it a more attractive environment to live in and visit.

It is hoped that this in turn will encourage more retail and leisure facilities to the High Street.

The successful bid was led by B&NES Council and was developed by the Midsomer Norton Regeneration Partnership to address the particular hurdles faced by the High Street. B&NES Council has not yet released the final amount of the funding for Midsomer Norton.

The exact amount of the fund that has been awarded, has not yet been confirmed by B&NES Council.

You can see the full Annual report at www.midsomernortontowncouncil.co.uk/ annual-report

Carers’ Centre Your local family-run garden centre

Available Now!

Shrubs, Perennials, Roses, Climbing Plants and Herbs Compost, Gravels, Grits and Ornamental Pots NEW TEMPORARY OPENING HOURS Monday to Saturday, 10am – 4pm Closed Sundays Find us on the B3139 just outside the village of Chilcompton

Telephone: 01761 232137

www.nortongreengardencentre.co.uk

We’re still here to support unpaid carers in BaNES If you’re looking after someone else during this crisis we’re here to support you. Get in touch for: • Trusted information and advice • Help planning for emergencies • Employment and grant support

0800 0388 885 Monday–Friday, 8.15am–3pm

support@banescarerscentre.org.uk

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

House and Home If you’ve been thinking about decorating during lockdown, but need a little help, no fear – Midsomer Norton has a whole host of businesses offering all manner of services to help you with everything from decorating, remodelling and even just helping out around the house, garden and even services to help look after your pets.

Air Conditioning Lane Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 603180 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.laneair.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .dale@laneair.co.uk Antiques and Restoration Past and Present Upholstery . . . . . . . 01761 419301 . . . . . . .pastandpresentupholstery@outlook.com Dustland Fairy Antiques . . . . . . . . . . 07454 972973 Bathrooms and Kitchens Firenza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419114 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.firenzaltd.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . enquiries@firenzaltd.co.uk Hobbs Marble & Granite . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412934 . . . . . . . . . . . . www.hobbsmarbleandgranite.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . info@hobbsmarbleandgranite.co.uk Boilers Heating and Plumbing OHS Oil Heating Services . . . . . . . . . . 07850 115569 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.ohsoilheatingservices.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ohs@hotmail.co.uk MAP Plumbing and Heating . . . . . . . . 01761 670184 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.map-heating-ltd.com ONTAP Plumbing & Heating Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413161 . . . . . . . . . . www.ontapplumbingandheating.com J S Tams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416286 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.jstams-heating.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@jstams-heating.co.uk Builders and Carpenters L J Developments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417595 Steve Pride . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415517 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.stevepride.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . steve@stevepride.co.uk Norton Masonry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419422 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.nortonmasonryltd.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . nortonmasonryltd@hotmail.co.uk

Mark Nash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412726 Peaky Builders (Bath) Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . 07512 257595 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.peakybuilders.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@peaky-builders.co.uk Somer Joinery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415511 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.somer-joinery.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .somerjoinery1@aol.com Colin Hackney Woodwork Specialist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .07762 410065 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.woodworkspecialist.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@woodworkspecialist.co.uk David Dando Plastering . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414251 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.daviddandoplastering.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . david.dando404@btinternet.com Burglar Systems Future Security Systems . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 298116 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.futuresecurity.online . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@futuresecurity.online Carpets K J Carpets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410100 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.kjcarpets.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .info@kjcarpets.co.uk Electricians Mendip Electrical Solutions . . . . . . . . 01761 419712 . . . . . . .Mendipelectricalsolutions@hotmail.com J Bracey Electrical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 233066 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.jbraceyelectrical.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . office@jbraceyelectrical.co.uk John D Hill Electrical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412222 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.johnhillelectrical.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@johnhillelectrical.co.uk Estate Agents Geoffrey Smith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411010 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.geoffreysmith.org . . . . . . . . . Midsomer-Norton@geoffreysmith.org

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Barons Property Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411411 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.baronsproperty.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . enquiries@baronsproperty.co.uk Your Move Bailey & Bryant . . . . . . . . 01761 419400 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.your-move.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . .midsomernorton@your-move.co.uk Michael Gould . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 409000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.michaelgouldproperty.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@michaelgouldproperty.co.uk Wicks and Pierce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413060 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.wicksandpierce.co.uk Andrews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410111 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.andrewsonline.co.uk Garage Doors SDS Garage Doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.sdsgaragedoors.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .info@sdsgaragedoors.co.uk Garden Services S K Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07766 952417 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . seevicessk@yahoo.com Fosseway Tree Services . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419712 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.fossewaytreeservices.co.uk . . . . . . . FOSSEWAYTREESERVICES@GMAIL.COM J & K Primrose Garden Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419891 . . . . . . . .www.primrosegardenmaintenance.co.uk

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Hot Tubs and Spa Eco Leisure Hot Tubs SW . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416557 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.ecoleisurehottubs.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ecoleisure-sw@mail.com Oven Cleaning Clean as a Whistle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07547 482531 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.cleanasawhistleovens.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@cleanasawhistleovens.co.uk Painters and Decorators Fricker Painting & Decorating . . . . . . 07974 874301 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . frickerdecor@gmail.com LWK Decorating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07800 524435 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lukekingman@icloud.com Pet Supplies and services Columbard Pet Supplies . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412957 . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.columbardpetsupplies.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@columbardpetsupplies.co.uk Pet's Corner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417699 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.petscorner.co.uk Canine Class . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411132 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.canineclass.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .info@canineclass.co.uk Pride and Groom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568228 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.prideandgroomuk.co.uk Midsomer Veterinary Centre . . . . . . . . 01761 412132 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.midsomervets.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . enquiries@midsomervets.co.uk

LMG Outdoor Living . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 300595 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.lmgoutdoorliving.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .lee@lmgoutdoorliving.co.uk

Silva House Veterinary Centre . . . . . . 01761 412223 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.highcroftvet.co.uk

Fairington Tree Surgery, Fencing & Landscapes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .01761 410358 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.fairingtontreesurgery.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . danfairington@hotmail.com

Self Storage D & J Self Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411313 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.djselfstorage.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . office@djselfstorage.co.uk

Lazy Days Landscaping . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415458 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.lazydayslandscaping.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lazydays123@hotmail.com

Windows and Fittings Radstock Window Warehouse . . . . . 01761 414524 . . . . . . . . .www.radstockwindowwarehouse.co.uk . . . . . . . .sales@radstockwindowwarehouse.co.uk

Webster Gardening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07790 625302 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . webstergardening.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .websters.gardens@gmail.com Clarke’s Maintenance Services . . . . . 07731 920293 . . . . . clarkesmaintenanceservices@outlook.com

Temple Window Blinds . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411291 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.templewindows.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@templewindows.co.uk SGM Glazing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 417221

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

SUPERHERO SHOUTOUT E

very doctor, nurse, carer, transport worker, cleaner, bin collector, teacher, postman – they’re all absolute heroes but the person who delivered your pizza last month – they are also a hero.

You’ve no doubt seen or done small acts of everyday heroism. People queuing up outside Sainsbury’s every week, to do the shopping for a vulnerable neighbour. DJs giving their time for free and keeping morale high on Facebook. Hidden staff in offices doing jobs than no-one ever thought was important till now and even children teaching the not so tech savvy how to Facetime or Zoom. All heroes in their own way.

Lockdown is now easing and it would be easy for all of us to just go back to how things were but to ensure these acts of kindness aren’t in vain, we must continue to look out for our neighbours, help people in times of difficulty and even just say hello and smile more often to strangers. This is what community is about and long may it reign.

We asked you to send us a shout out to your Superhero and here are a few we received: • Bev Craney deserves recognition for continuing to be a rock for the whole staff team at SWALLOW throughout this pandemic and always checking in with us no matter how tired or overworked she is. She is a star and deserves every ounce of recognition.

• A shout out to Lilly who made care packages and a hamper for the carers at Bloomfield care home.

• Laurence and all the team at Midsomer Veterinary Centre have looked after pets through this difficult time and Sarah would like to thank them for caring for her dog.

• Michelle B. spent time shopping and running errands for neighbours in her Close and was a lifeline and absolute diamond.

• John P’s wife and children would like to say how extremely proud they are of his dedication to others. He is a care worker and has worked throughout the crisis.

• Mrs O. would like to thank her neighbour Rowan, who Facetimed her daily to make sure she wasn’t lonely. Rowan is aged 7, Mrs O is 83.

• Peter would like to thank all the staff at St Chad's Lloyds Chemist for their hard work throughout the pandemic.

• Cheryl T’s husband would like to say how proud and amazed he is at his wife’s strength and stamina. She is a nurse at the RUH and has been working non-stop.

• A big thank you to Tracy who has been live on Facebook teaching Pilates classes free of charge.

Keeping us all stretched and nimble throughout lockdown.

• Jack, aged 10 has been playing the guitar on his front lawn to entertain the neighbours and keeping spirits high. Everyone has loved the singalong.

• A shout out to Karen, who despite having her own health issues has been helping her neighbours with shopping and errands. Thank you, Karen, from all of us.

SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESS

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Support FOR OUR COMMUNITY

M

idsomer Norton Town Council created an information leaflet for residents during the coronavirus pandemic featuring useful information on how to look after ourselves and others in the community.

The idea was to “help a neighbour” with posters to put in windows if you require assistance and leaflets to put through neighbours’ doors if you are well and can assist. We have received lots of feedback of how this has been working well and people have been coming together to support each other.

We also teamed up with B&NES who created the 3SG in partnership with Virgin Care who set up the Compassionate Community Hub. The team have been reaching out to the vulnerable and isolated providing help with food deliveries, medicine, urgent housing, mental health and wellbeing and money matters.

established a relationship with. The benefit being that people can continue to access support from a trusted neighbour and a safe and secure payment process.

At time of printing, 3SG have received over 4,000 calls from people across Bath and North East Somerset. 3SG have recruited and managed 2,500 volunteers and over 800 tasks have been completed supporting the most vulnerable, with food shopping, collection of medicines and befriending calls and 90% of volunteers are carrying out repeat services for people they have

Midsomer Norton Town Council staff are working from home and still available on the office telephone number 01761 418701. We have received a number of calls from the vulnerable who require assistance and members of the community who would like to volunteer. Everyone who calls is put in touch with the 3SG team. The number for the 3SG team is 0300 2470050.

Radstock

Window Warehouse

t: 01761 414524 e: gary@radstockwindowwarehouse.co.uk

Local company supplying everything for the Double Glazing Industry and much more too from our Trade Counter.

OPEN TO TRADE AND RETAIL CUSTOMERS • WINDOWS & DOORS • CONSERVATORIES • TIMBER STRUCTURE CONSERVATORY ROOFS • ROOF LIGHTS

• BI-FOLDS • FASCIAS, GUTTERING & SOFFITS • POLYCARBONATE • GLASS • FIXINGS & SILICONES

No job too small, give us a call or drop in for a friendly chat with Gary or email us for a quote.

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Food, Drink and Leisure Midsomer Norton has plenty of national brands and independent cafés and takeaways offering all your favourite meals at affordable prices. With cafés and tearooms tempting you with homemade cakes, filling sandwiches and refreshing cups of tea, to take aways with menus full of tasty treats and pubs and bars with incredible, friendly atmospheres, there is something for everyone.

Bakers and Bakeries Muffins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415559 Parsons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.parsonsbakery.co.uk CafÉs and Coffee Shops Jacarandas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410888

Convience stores, newsagents and groceries One Stop Stores . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413347 Brookes News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412378 McColl's . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 235631

Costa Coffee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412803

Sainsbury's . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416180

Essence Café . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419977

Lidl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 08009 777766

Cinema Cinema at the Town Hall . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419133 . . . www.midsomernortoncommunitytrust.co.uk manager@midsomernortoncommunitytrust.co.uk

Delicatessens and Sandwich Bars Docky's Deli . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 419944 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.dockys.co.uk Pure Taste . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414499 . . . . . . . . . .www.puretastemidsomernorton.co.uk

Together,

Mobile Disco Rockysmagicparties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07713 353430 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.rockysmagicparties.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .rockysmagicparties@gmail.com High Defination Disco . . . . . . . . . . . . 07969 394152 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.hddisco.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . james@hddisco.co.uk Pubs, Bars and Clubs The Dolphin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413336 Crossways Tavern . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412245 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@thecrosswaystavern.co.uk Mallards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411514 Palladium Electric . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 404230

let's support local businesses

The Riverside . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410456 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.riverside2000.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .theriversidemsn@gmail.com White Hart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 418270 . . . . . . the-white-hart-public-house.business.site Fat Sam's . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411036

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Welton Rovers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412097 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.weltonroversfc.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .weltonroversfc@gmail.com

Shaplas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411887 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.shaplamsn.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .manager@shaplatakeaway.co.uk

Midsomer Norton Social Club . . . . . 01761 412942

Hera Indian Cuisine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416844 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.heraindiancuisine.co.uk

Sports Dragonfly Leisure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 252631 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.dragonflyleisure.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . enquiries@dragonflyleisure.co.uk Norton Sports and Camping . . . . . . . 01761 418972 . . . . . . . . . . .www.nortonsportsandcamping.co.uk Takeaways and Resturants Dhillons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415969 Chopsticks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 412880 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.chopsticksradstock.co.uk

The Chip Inn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415371 Charcoal Grill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414415 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.charcoalgrillnorton.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . charcoalgrill_msn@hotmail.com The Greek Grill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 231805 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.thegreekgrill.co.uk Best Pizza and Kebabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410400 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.bestpizzaandkebab.co.uk

Jackie Chan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411888

Oriental Sunrise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414266 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.orientalsunrise.co.uk

Dominos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415577 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.dominos.co.uk

A K Pizza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411114 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . akpizza.co.uk

Fosseway 9 Hole Golf Course

Club Membership available

We are open for members and pay & play.

Our club is sociable & approachable Call 01761 412214 for more information.

Pay & Play – Day Pass

£9.50 weekdays / £14.00 weekends Best Western Plus Centurion Hotel, Charlton Lane, Midsomer Norton, Nr Bath BA3 4BD • www.centurionhotel.co.uk

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Mayor’s Report MAY 2019 – 2020

I

t was my privilege to be asked to serve as Mayor in this first year of the new Town Council, following the election on May 2nd 2019. This was the ninth year of this new era for Midsomer Norton Town Council, after it was restored, together with Radstock and Westfield Councils, following the successful public petition for a Governance Review, which split up the former Norton Radstock Town Council in 2011.

Councillor Paul Myers served as Mayor and Chairman of the Town Council for those first eight years, a truly remarkable stint of public service. It was one of my earliest and most pleasant duties at the annual Civic Service to award Councillor Myers the symbolic Freedom of Midsomer Norton in recognition and thanks from the town for that service.

As most people know, Town Councillors, including the Mayor, are unpaid volunteers. The awards which are made at the Civic Service are a public way of recognising and thanking the many people who give their time and energy to make our community life kinder and better than it might otherwise be, and when they come forward to attend the service and accept their symbolic

award, it is really another service which they give, helping to build a sense of community cohesion and pride, and I’m grateful to them for it.

Another memorable occasion from the earlier weeks of my mayoralty was the Town Fayre.

The weather was kind and the Fayre was a great success, thanks to the efforts of the organising committee (more volunteers) and the participation of so many people from the town. I found the maypole dancing by so many primary schools particularly impressive, both for the efforts of the children and their teachers and for the tireless and cheerful organisation by former town councillor Amy Purchase. I won’t forget the experience of presenting prizes flanked by two huge, but thankfully very friendly, Bath Rugby players.

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

37

The Mayor’s role is to represent the town on formal occasions and so hopefully to help in community building and community pride. There is an annual Civic Parade in Bath when the district’s mayors appear publicly together as they start their year of duty; I unfortunately couldn’t be there, but Midsomer Norton was well represented by Steve Plumley the deputy mayor, and his wife Lynn.

There were various other times when the appearance of the Mayor and his chain gave a helpful sense of occasion. I would single out three in particular, two of them because they are new and may become annual fixtures: the Scarecrow Competition at Greenacres, and the Town Council party for children at Christmas. The success of both exceeded everyone’s expectations and I do hope they continue.

Apart from formal or social occasions, the year has been one of impressive progress with the new Town Park. When it is complete it will be one of the most important responsibilities of the Town Council and Town Trust, and it will surely be a great resource for the town, with the Parkrun and other sporting uses, the amphitheatre for entertainments with an audience, not forgetting the pleasure of just walking and cycling, playing and picnicking.

The third was the Twinning Week. We are twinned with Ambarès-et-Lagrave, north of Bordeaux, and the French are very good at the Civic part of this.

Their Mayor, who is actually much more important in their system than our Town Council mayor, makes a welcoming speech to the twinners, and this year Midsomer Norton was presented with an interesting and original triptych, now hanging on the stairs of our Town Hall tower. I’ve been working at my French for many years, and it was a great pleasure to put it to effect in front of an audience for the first and probably last time, in replying and thanking him on behalf of Midsomer Norton.

My year was abruptly curtailed by the Coronavirus, which still hasn’t gone away. It has stopped all the Town Hall and Community activities which the Town Council has been trying to boost and support, including the Fayre, the Twinning and the Carnival. The lockdown to counter the virus really has been at a high cost to community life; hopefully it will at least have helped people to stay safe.

My successor, Councillor Lynda Robertson, has started her year of office in this extraordinary and challenging time, but I wish her every success nevertheless, especially as we emerge from our social confinement, hopefully with a vaccine or at least some effective treatment. Let us hope that the 2020/2021 year can end better than it has begun.

Michael Evans. Mayor 2019 -2020

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

BREAKFAST on Somer Valley FM

S

omer Valley FM has been busy during the pandemic. The local radio station is now offering more live shows than ever before. At the start of lockdown the station launched its new Breakfast Show hosted by long standing radio presenter Jo Davis.

“When we heard the news that the country was going to be in lockdown, I thought what can I do?

I need to keep busy. I’ve always wanted to host a Breakfast Show, it is my dream job. I wanted to bring a bit of an alternative into people’s lives.

The news and what’s going on around us can wear you down. We have to be aware of government guidelines, but we all need a bit of sunshine in our lives. That is what I wanted to do with the

Breakfast Show, we are all local people and we do need to smile. For me it is all about the music, I love getting requests and hearing what people are up to as they get through the pandemic. Someone said to me the other day they loved the show because ‘you sound like you are smiling when you speak’. That’s is exactly what it is all about.”

Tune in 8 – 10 a.m. on weekday mornings for Jo’s insights, stories and great music choices. Listeners can now leave requests and messages on the station’s new Talk service, www.somervalleyfm. co.uk/talk Somer Valley FM is available on smart speaker, 97.5FM or on online at somervalleyfm.co.uk.

It only takes a few minutes to apply for this September www.bathcollege.ac.uk info@bathcollege.ac.uk @bathcollege

#STARTYOURJOURNEY

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

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MIDSOMER NORTON STREET PASTORS

M

idsomer Norton Street Pastors are part of a national team first established in 2003.

Street Pastors are trained volunteers from local churches who care about their community. They work together with local councils and the police, patrolling the streets helping people, caring for them and listening to them, on a Friday and Saturday night between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m.

The Street Pastors in Midsomer Norton first started patrolling the Town on Friday, 18th October 2013 providing water, flip flops, sweets, first aid, getting taxis and a range of other ways.

During the time that the Pastors have been assisting on the High Street, antisocial behaviour has been reduced by more than half during weekend evenings. Thankfully, no Street Pastors have been injured during this time.

Unfortunately, the number of Street Pastors in Midsomer Norton has declined over the years with very few new recruits being found, and on the 12th February members of the charity voted to close the service. The last patrol took place on Saturday, 28th March.

and selfless, and who are prepared to give their time and effort in fruitful partnership with professional bodies to be a force for good. Thank you on behalf of the town for what you have done. And we will, I am sure, find more ways to say that thank you”.

A Thanksgiving event was due to take place on Sunday, 14th June 2020 at Midsomer Norton Town Hall between 4 pm to 6.30 pm, when anyone associated with the Street Pastors was welcome to attend. Unfortunately, due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the strict government social distancing guidelines, this was not able to go ahead. It is hoped that the event will be able to proceed when normality resumes.

Together,

Richard Elsip, from the Midsomer Norton Street Pastors said: “We give thanks to The Lord and would like to express our thanks to so many people that we met who positively reacted and welcomed us and also for the encouragement and financial support. Although it is the end of a season for Street Pastors in the town many new friendships found and made will not be forgotten”.

Last year’s Mayor Michael Evans, said: “To have served weekend after weekend for over six years, in a selfless voluntary role, is a contribution to celebrate indeed. I know that the goodwill and positive drive of many of the pastors, past and present, will not disappear when the organisation here winds up, but will find other ways to improve the life of the town. The very existence of the Street Pastors in Midsomer Norton has shown us that there are people who care, who are unjudging

let's support local businesses

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

And everything else…!

With such a diverse range of businesses and services, it can be hard to categorise everything that Midsomer Norton has to offer. Find a wide range of services designed to make your life easier without the extra stress of searching online or journeying into Bath and Bristol here.

Cake Makers Minky Kitten Cake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07801 511274 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.minkykittencakes.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . sarah-jane@minkykittencakes.co.uk

Education Kip McGrath . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 569005 . . . . . . www.kipmcgrath.co.uk/midsomer-norton . . . . . . . . . . . .midsomernorton@kipmcgrath.co.uk

Childcare Bumbles Daycare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413505 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . bumblesdaycare@outlook.com

Midsomer Norton School of Music . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .01761 417828 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.msnschoolofmusic.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . msnschoolofmusic@gmail.com

Little sunshine childcare . . . . . . . . . . 07581 073709 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .angjames77@gmail.com Free Rangers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411328 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.freerangers.org.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . admissions@freerangers.org.uk Hidden Garden Day Nursery and Pre School . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568188 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.hgdn.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . hannah@hgdn.co.uk Design Services Gordon and Julia Web Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . gordonandjulia.net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . hello@gordonandjulia.net Solo Design and Print . . . . . . . . . . . 07584 990700 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.solodesignandprint.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .paul@solodesignandprint.co.uk

BOOST YOUR LOCAL ECONOMY. SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY. POTENTIALLY HELP TO CREATE OR MAINTAIN LOCAL JOBS.

MAKE YOUR MARK

Kumon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411400 . . . . . . . . . . www.kumon.co.uk/midsomer-norton PawnBrokers C and G Moneypoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568572 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.candgmoneypoint.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . candgmoneypoint@hotmail.co.uk Photographers Nigel Coles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410168 . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.nigelcolesphotography.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . nigel@nigelcolesphotography.com Tim Martin Photography . . . . . . . . . . 07824 600631 . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.timmartinphotography.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . tim@timmartinphotography.co.uk Ian Jeffery Photography . . . . . . . . . . 07919 574940 . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.ianjefferyphotography.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . hello@ianjefferyphotography.co.uk

SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESS

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Derryn Vranch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07811 44 99 53 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.derrynvranch.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .info@derrynvranch.com Stu Tucker Photographer . . . . . . . . . 07545 891275 . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.stutuckerphotography.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . hello@stutuckerphotography.co.uk Owen Lucas Photography . . . . . . . . 07757 756383 . . . . . . . . . . . . www.owenlucasphotography.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . owenlucas@icloud.com Riding instructor Ashleigh Compton Equestrian . . . . . 07513 009545 . . m.facebook.com/ashleighcomptonequestrian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .ashleigh.compton@hotmail.com Scaffolding Norton Scaffold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415975 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.nortonscaffold.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . sueweeks749@hotmail.com

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Surveyors David Simmonds' Associates . . . . . . . . 01761 418331 . . . . . . . . . . www.davidsimmondsassociates.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . info@davidsimmondsassociates.co.uk Estate Surveys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 415602 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.estatesurveys.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .terry@estatesurveys.co.uk Tattoo and Body Piercing Max Body Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411344 Silver Street Tattoos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.silverstreettattoo.com . . . . . . . . . silverstreettattoostudio@hotmail.com Technology Smart Home and Business . . . . . . . . 08445 006614 . . . . . . . . . . . . www.smarthomeandbusiness.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . info@smarthomeandbusiness.co.uk

NICHOLAS J MAGGS FUNERAL SERVICES A Dignified Goodbye

Planning your funeral may seem daunting, but there’s nothing to worry about, and it’s often better to prepare.

We provide a thorough planning service for clients throughout the Somerset area.

Professional, compassionate service with almost 50 years in business Service available 24/7 • Doctor liaison • Funeral announcements • Catering Burial • Vicar liaison • Flowers • Music • Crematorium • Private Chapel of Rest Contact us, and learn more on our wide-ranging services.

Telephone: 01749 840499 / 346567 • Email: n_maggs@hotmail.co.uk www.njmaggsfuneralservices.co.uk

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

Return for station VOLUNTEERs

V

olunteer gardeners have been allowed back at Midsomer Norton Station under a strict Covid-19 protocol which specifies social distancing, hand washing and keeping to certain areas. The gardeners have started by grass cutting and clearing some of the obvious overgrowth of plant life but have been pleased to see the wild flowers and insects in the meadow area. Clearing and strimming up the line has also started.

There is a good and accessible footpath alongside the line outside the boundary fence where walkers are welcomed. Although there are no trains running, the Trust wants to make it clear that train lines and stations can be dangerous places and warn people not to go through barrier fences and on to the line. The rails themselves can act as trip hazards and there are many other pieces of equipment that can be hazardous.

Other volunteers will gradually be allowed back distance working but it is unlikely that events with

train running will be possible until after the end of the year. There is a new website where the Trust are adding news items, photos and information about the railway. www.sdjr.co.uk The Somerset and Dorset Railway Trust will be very pleased to welcome visitors back as soon as the Government allows.

Silver Street Nature Reserve

T

he Friends of Silver Street Nature Reserve, part of the Town Trust, have been have been keeping a watchful eye during the lockdown with no volunteer work being carried out but some jobs just won’t wait. The bin in the woods has to be emptied every week and the bag carried up to the top of Silver Street where the council take it. (They also empty the bin by the noticeboards at the meeting place in the woods).

Now that restrictions have been relaxed a little, we have started to carry out the general tasks and hope to start filling in the woodland pathways they had been damaged from all the wet winter weather, seems a long time ago now!

We are sad to see the amount of rubbish left around in the school field and the Nature reserve for others to dispose of. Many people have been collecting rubbish as they do not like to see it all littering our lovely countryside. No one seems to have the answer to this problem but we need to be educating others about this anti-social behaviour.

This summer has been cancelled as far as events are concerned but we hope for better times ahead and let us not forget how we rely on each other and how lucky we are to have the countryside to enjoy on our doorstep.

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

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ST JOHN'S CADETS AND BADGERS

M

any businesses across the country have had to adopt new ways of working during the Covid-19 Pandemic and St John Ambulance are no different. Whilst continuing to provide support where required, our young people have still been working hard. Locally in Norton Radstock, our Badger group supports young people from 7-10 years and have been continuing with their badge subjects online as well as their first aid sessions, this term learning all about the rich history of St John Ambulance.

Whilst we are unable to meet in person we are still managing to “meet” virtually with our groups of young people ensuring that we continue to deliver support, training and fun to our Youth groups. Having all our young people's events such as residential camps cancelled, it has been incredibly disappointing but we have been creative and our young people have been involved in virtual camps, creating habitats suitable for a nocturnal animal, creating flags for the campsite, making bonfire cakes, dressing up and making kits,

all of which they have been able to share virtually with their friends online. Along with this they have also received their usual first aid training, quizzes and most importantly been able to connect with our youth units, which is a lifeline for some of our young people!

Many of our young people have involved themselves in fundraising and support activities for St John Ambulance in these unprecedented times, whether this was making clothes wash bags for our adults who have been supporting the NHS by providing over 10,000 hours of volunteer support, making cards for our members who have been unwell, virtual dance offs and marathons. Coming up is a virtual bake off for both our Badgers and Cadets (10-18) with funds being raising to support the organisation.

If you are looking for a volunteer opportunity, St John have a number of volunteer roles available to support our youth and we would love to hear from you.

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

45

Church Life during lockdown… and afterwards

S

ince March 18th, Midsomer Norton Methodist Church has been closed…but the church is still well and truly open! We believe that church first and foremost is PEOPLE and as a church we have continued to worship, to pray and to serve others in the name of Jesus. We have continued to pray for our community during this time. We don’t know how long we will be out of our church building but God’s work continues.

We have seen significant growth during this time in the number of people who have engaged with our activities online which you would be most welcome to be part of, as follows: Sunday 10.30am online worship (which will

continue live streaming after the lockdown) and a

daily ‘thought for the day’ on both Facebook and Youtube, at: Midsomer Norton Methodist Church.

We also have a Facebook page offering a prayer for the day at: Midsomer Norton Methodist Prayer and Reflection.

If you need to contact the church and for updates of when we will be reopening our building and activities, please use one of the following means: Website: www.msnmcc.org Email: msnminister@btinternet.com Telephone: 07957414970

Rev Stephen Robinson

Family owned and run A caring professional service t 01761 412132 e enquiries@midsomervets.co.uk w www.midsomervets.co.uk

Puppy and kitten starter packages Puppy parties • Vaccinations and pet passports Pet behaviourist • Neutering Medical investigations and surgery Pet Health Club • Acupuncture and laser therapy Midsomer Norton and Radstock’s only independent veterinary practice

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MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

MIDSOMER NORTON CRICKET CLUB

T

he return of test match cricket in July, when England take on the visiting West Indies, will give a boost to all cricket fans, including players and members at Midsomer Norton Cricket Club.

The coronavirus outbreak and lockdown measures have impacted Midsomer Norton Cricket Club like everyone else. As we approach what would normally be the midpoint of the league campaign, no matches have been played at the club’s Withies Lane ground but the club is closely following the advice provided by the national and county cricket bodies.

At present, some socially distanced practice is permitted and the club is hopeful that as

#stayingpositive

lockdown restrictions are eased, training activities will become more competitive and match like in nature. Off the pitch, the club has been busy with online social activities, including a regular Saturday evening music quiz and maintenance and refurbishment of the ground and its facilities continues. Coach Jake Rowe posts online training and fitness videos.

Sadly, coronavirus has forced the cancellation of the club’s August Outfield festival which proved such a great success in 2019 but plans are already being made for Outfield 2021.

The club is hopeful that some cricket will be played at Withies Lane before the end of the summer so if you (or one of your children) are interested in joining the club, then please contact any of the following. New members are always welcome!

Adult cricket - Nick Potter nick.potter@portalspaper.com

In these difficult times, we at Riverside Recruitment want you to know that we are here to support you whether as a job seeker or employer.

Looking for a job?

We can’t always guarantee that we will have your perfect job available at the right time, but we can guarantee that we have access to many employers and will do all we can to help you get back into work.

Looking for staff?

If you’re an employer and need any staffing support, we can help and can offer lots of flexible solutions.

Please call our office on 01761 410433 to speak to one of our friendly and knowledgeable consultants.

Please note, to keep everyone safe we are registering by appointment only, so please do call first.

16 South Road, Midsomer Norton, Radstock BA3 2EZ Tel: 01761 410433 www.riversiderecruit.co.uk

Youth cricket - Graeme King staddlestones@hotmail.co.uk Social / community membership - Tom Webb mnccbar@outlook.com

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

47

NEW FESTIVAL Planned A

new festival which was to take place at Norton Down has been postponed because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, with the organisers hoping they can reschedule in September.

decided to postpone.

BFM Festival (Beer, Food and Music) was due to take place for the first time on 20th June and planned to feature local bands, food producers based in the area and a range of local beers and ciders to be hosted by Midsomer Norton RFC with all profits going back into the club and other local events.

“But as we’ve carried out a lot of the preparation work and with a lot of other festivals being postponed until 2021, we’ve made a decision: If there is any way – and we realise that this is unlikely – that we can safely and sensibly hold this festival before mid-September and in line with government guidance, we will do our utmost to organise and host the festival and have the celebration of beer, food and music we all deserve this year. Either way, you can bet you’ll see us next year!”

Speaking to reporters, one of the festival’s organisers said: “As I'm sure you all suspected by now, we at BFM are sad to announce that we won’t be debuting our new festival. Instead, we’ve

While we wait for confirmation that 2020’s festival can go ahead, the organisation has already confirmed that 2021’s event will take place on 19th June.

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49

Health and Beauty We’re lucky to live in such a beautiful part of the world, with plenty of picturesque sites and places to take a walk or go for a run. Midsomer Norton is also blessed with businesses helping you feel your very best from hairdressers to nail bars and beauty salons, allowing you to look and feel as amazing as the surrounding countryside.

Barbers and Hairdressers Sweeny Todd's . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568106 Jack and Harry's . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568088 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.jackandharrys.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jackandharrys@gmail.com Barber Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Headlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413175 James Christopher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410321 . . . . . . . www.jameschristopherhairdressing.co.uk Lewis Thomas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416867 . . . . . . . . . . . . www.lewisthomashairdressing.com . . . . . . . enquiries@lewisthomashairdressing.com Celia's Place . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07745 046994 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.celiasplace.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@celiasplace.co.uk

Eden Treatment Rooms . . . . . . . . . . . . 07927153518 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.Edentreatmentrooms.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .edenbeauty2@aol.co.uk American Nails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 411970 Grace Beauty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07740050390 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.graceacademyofnails.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . gracehairandbeauty@gmail.com Pure Beauty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568300 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.purebeautymsn.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . purebeautymsn@gmail.com Feet1st4u . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 410021 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.feet1st4u.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .info@feet1st4u.co.uk Stephanie Jayne Beauty Room . . . 07530 858888 Midsummer Tanning Studio . . . . . . . . 01761 419966

Pierres . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 413134 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.pierre.org.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . pierres_hair@btconnect.com

Michelle Louise Beauty . . . . . . . . . . . 07740 024529 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.michellelouisebeauty.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .michodonoghue@yahoo.co.uk

Oliver Joseph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 416999 . . . . . . . . . . . .www.oliverjosephhairdressing.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . oliverjosephmsn@aol.com

Vikki Morgan Beauty . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07794336695

Scissor Art Barber Shop . . . . . . . . . . 07841 408524 Beauty and Health goods Argan Beauty Deep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07598 340474 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.arganbeautydeep.net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .beautydeep@yahoo.com The Green Shop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 418857 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.greenshopmsn.co.uk Broadies' Supplements . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 568081 . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.broadies-supplements.co.uk . . . . . . . . . . . . . broadies.supplements@gmail.com Beauty Salons and Therapists Revive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01761 414004 Sophie's Nails and Beauty Salon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chiropractors and Therapists The Medical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01225 444001 Three Sixty Therapy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 07968 065956 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.threesixtytherapy.co.uk

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50

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

AN UPDATE FROM The Lions

A

s lockdown restrictions are slowly lifted Radstock & Midsomer Norton Lions Club will again be out fundraising for local and international causes. We may have had to cancel the annual duck race but we are still raising money with our Easter egg raffle, some of the proceeds have already been banked. Don’t be surprised to see some of our eggs being a feature on the bar of your local pub or cafe, when pubs reopen we hope to carry on raising funds for the Lion's charitable giving because we think it will be needed more than ever in these uncertain times.

Our club members have been embracing technology and holding our monthly general meeting on Zoom. Lions volunteer their time and the Covid-19 crisis has put a spotlight on just how

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important volunteers are to the community. As Lions we serve the community and help raise funds making sure that every penny we raise goes to the causes and does not incur any administrative or other costs.

Where there’s a need there’s a Lion. We have recently helped Bath Theatrical Costume Hire volunteer team with a £250 donation from the club and then secured £750 from Lions International Foundation MD105 emergency Covid-19 fund to make up £1,000 towards their project providing much needed PPE masks to supply key workers with face masks and over 4,000 masks have been distributed helping 24 organisations from care agencies, food banks, nurseries and pharmacies.

As Lions we will soon be able to start our service projects. Litter picks in Radstock and Midsomer Norton and we look forward to doing this with volunteers who help us with this activity and we hope to get other environmental, health and educational projects going as soon as we can. If you are looking for a better future and want to know more about doing this through joining a Lions club we would love to hear from you and discuss what we do and why being a Lion makes a difference to you and your community and how Lions International makes a global impact.

Contact us by email : membership@rmnlions.org.uk or telephone 0345 8339601.

LOCAL LIFE

51

USEFUL CONTACTS IN CASE OF EMERGENCY: Ambulance, fire, police – 999 NHS Direct – 111 Police non-emergency – 101

There are 2 difibrillators in the high street, these can be found at Welton Rovers Football Ground and the junction of Silver Street and the High Street, opposite the town hall

MIDSOMER NORTON TOWN COUNCIL 01761 418701

The council are based at the Town Hall, on the Island. Opening times: Mon - Thur 9.30am - 4.30pm and Fridays 9.30am 3.30pm

MIDSOMER NORTON TOWN TRUST 07530 042627 MIDSOMER NORTON COMMUNITY TRUST 01761 419133 The Office is based in the Town Hall

BATH AND NORTH EAST SOMERSET COUNCIL 01225 477000

B&NES Council Connect 01225 394041 councilconnect@bathnes.gov.uk

CITIZEN'S ADVICE 03448 487919

The Citizen's Advice drop in can be found at the One Stop Shop in the Hollies, High Street Midsomer Norton. Open on Tuesdays from 9.30 - 2pm

AGE UK B&NES 01225 466135 FOOD BANK

Somer Valley Food Bank, The Salvation Army, Radstock Road Midsomer Norton BA3 2AJ. Open Mondays, 12pm - 2pm.

07729 523986

CHILDREN’S CENTRE

Somer Valley Children’s Centre and Family Support Team Greystone Building, Church Street Radstock BA3 3QQ 01225 396660 brightstartcc@bathnes.gov.uk

DOG WARDEN 01225 394041 DOCTOR SURGERIES

St Chad’s, Gullock Tyning - 01761 413334 Somerton House Surgery, 79A North Road - 01761 412141

PHARMACIES

Lloyds High Street - 01761 413231 Lloyds St Chad’s, Gullock Tyning - 01761 412249 Midsomer Pharmacy, 98 High Street 01761 568202

DENTISTS

Midsomer Dental Care, 1 North Road BA3 2QB - 01761 412366 North Way Dental Practice, North Way, Midsomer Norton, BA3 2DY - 01761 413663

HOSPITALS

Paulton Hospital, Salisbury Road, Paulton, BS39 7SB - 01761 412315 RUH Bath, Combe Park, Bath, BA1 3NG 01225 428331 St Martin’s Hospital, Midford Road, Bath, BA2 5RP - 01225 831500

VETERINARY SURGERY

Silva House Veterinary Centre, 3 Silver Street - 01761 412223 Midsomer Veterinary Centre, 53 North Road - 01761 412132

SCHOOLS Longvernal Primary School, 2 Longvernal Midsomer Norton BA3 2LP - 01761 412777 Midsomer Norton Primary School, High Street Midsomer Norton BA3 2DR - 01761 412289 St John’s C of E Primary School, Redfield Road, Midsomer Norton BA3 2JN - 01761 412019

Welton Primary School, Radstock Road, Midsomer Norton, BA3 2AG - 01761 413131 Norton Hill School, Charlton Road, Midsomer Norton BA3 4AD - 01761 412557 Somervale School, Redfield Road, Midsomer Norton BA3 2JW - 01761 414276

CHURCHES

Midsomer Norton Methodist Centre, High Street, Midsomer Norton, BA3 2DR - 01761 410450 St John the Baptist, Midsomer Norton, BA3 2HX - 01761 411216 Welton Baptist Church www.weltonchurch.org.uk - 01761 410274 Salvation Army, Radstock Road, Midsomer Norton BA3 2AJ - 01761 420170 Holy Ghost Catholic Church, High Street, Midsomer Norton BA3 2DR - 01761 235111

TRANSPORT

Midsomer Norton and Radstock Dial-aride - 01761 417504 Midsomer Norton and Radstock Community Service Vehicle Trust - 01761 452585 SWAN Transport -01761 439548 First Bus - 0345 64460707

HALL HIRE

Town Hall, The Island, Midsomer Norton BA3 2HQ - 01761 419133 Orchard Hall, Orchard Vale, Midsomer Norton, BA3 2RB - 01761 419133 Somer Centre, Gullock Tyning, Midsomer Norton. 01761 419703

DHI 01761 419086

High Street, Midsomer Norton BA3 2DP

OFF THE RECORD 01761 414100

113 High Street, Midsomer Norton, BA3 2DA

PUBLIC TOILETS

Midsomer Norton Town Hall Midsomer Norton Library Midsomer Norton Sports Centre, Gullock Tyning

52

LOCAL LIFE

COUNCIL RESPONSIBILITIES Do you get confused with who to contact regarding matters in your street and the town? Many residents of Midsomer Norton contact either the Town Council or B&NES with questions about services, or to find out how they can access help and support.

We have compiled a list below which we hope you will find useful. Also below are contact details and opening hours for both the Town Council and B&NES local council offices for face to face advice about a wide range of Council and partner services.

MIDSOMER NORTON TOWN COUNCIL www.midsomernortontowncouncil.co.uk Council Offices Town Hall The Island Midsomer Norton Bath BA3 2HQ Tel: 01761 418701 Email: townclerk@ midsomernortontowncouncil.co.uk Monday – Thursday: 9.30am – 4.30pm Friday: 9.30am – 3.30pm

The Town Council Officers are always happy to help residents to direct their questions to the right place. But in case you didn’t know Town Council are able to help with the following: • Allotments • Defibrillators • Grants • Midsomer Norton Life Magazine • River Somer in the Town Centre • Town Park • West Clewes Park • War Memorial • St Chad’s Memorial Garden • Wellow Brook • Garden of Friendship • Flowers – all of the tubs and baskets, planting at The Hollies garden and the around the Gateway signs in Midsomer Norton

THINK BIG SHOP SMALL

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LOCAL LIFE

BATH AND NORTH EAST SOMERSET COUNCIL www.bathnes.gov.uk

Council Connect: For help with waste, roads, libraries, planning and general enquiries Tel: 01225 394041 Email: council_connect@bathnes.gov.uk Customer Services: For Council Tax, Benefits and Business Rates Tel: 01225 477777 All other enquiries: Tel: 01225 477000 Email: enquiries@bathnes.gov.uk BATH ONE STOP SHOP 3-4 Manvers Street Bath BA1 1JQ Monday, Tuesday, Thursday: 8.30am – 5pm Wednesday: 9.30am – 5pm Friday: 8.30am – 4.30pm Saturday: 9am – 4.30pm GUILDHALL BATH (Electoral Services, Register Office, Bath Record Office) Guildhall High Street Bath BA1 5AW MIDSOMER NORTON LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SERVICE The Hollies High Street Midsomer Norton BA3 2DP Monday – Thursday: 9.30am – 5pm Friday: 9.30am – 4.30pm Saturday: 9.30am – 1pm

53

At the Bath One Stop Shop and Midsomer Norton Library and Information Service – part of B&NES and based in The Hollies - you can access self-service kiosks, computers and telephones to enable you to access library and council services.

Council staff can help to get you started if you have trouble using these facilities.

You can also pay for council services such as Council Tax and garden waste subscriptions, access the Homesearch website, view and comment on planning applications and contact council departments and external services.

In The Hollies there are also the facilities to: apply for council permits such as bus passes and Discovery Cards, library services - borrow, renew, or return library items and the ability to register births, deaths and marriages.

Council Connect are also able to help with the following services: • Bus Passes • Dog Warden Service • Fly Tipping • Garden Waste • Grass Cutting • Graffiti Removal • Gritting of Roads • Libraries • Parks and Open Spaces • Pavements and Road Maintenance • Planning Enquiries • Public Toilets • Public Transport • Recycling and Waste • Road Faults and Potholes • Road Safety • Street Lighting • Litter

54

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

56

MIDSOMER NORTON LIFE

01761 410732 | SECOND AVE, MIDSOMER NORTON, RADSTOCK BA3 4BH

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LOCAL LIFE

YOUR TOWN COUNCILLORS

Cllr Lynda Robertson (Mayor) 01761 415629

Cllr Steve Plumley (Deputy Mayor) 07913 952901

therobertsons70@outlook.com

s.plumley@sky.com

Cllr Michael Evans 01761 235996

Cllr Sue Graham 07896 411 840

michevans@gmail.com

sujgraham@gmail.com

Midsomer Norton Town Council Town Hall, The Island, Midsomer Norton Bath BA3 2HQ - 01761 418701 townclerk@midsomernortontowncouncil.co.uk midsomernortontowncouncil.co.uk

Cllr John Baker 07827 994171 j.baker6@sky.com

michael.moxham@freenet.de

Cllr Lynne Clement 07855 037805 01761 414003 lynne.clement@btinternet.com

Cllr Brian Lawrence

(Chair of Finance and Operations Committee)

07701 007 277

bcml@hotmail.co.uk

Cllr Michael Moxham 01761 419960 07593 185850

57

Cllr Richard Robertson 01761 415629

Cllr Chris Smith 07969 181 166

therobertsons70@outlook.com

nannychris57@outlook.com

Cllr Gordon Mackay (Chair of Planning Committee)

07806 604 302

council@gordonmackay.net

58

LOCAL LIFE

A MESSAGE FROM THE CLERK As the coronavirus raced across the world, many cities, towns and smaller communities have never faced a greater challenge. It is at local level where the consequences of the pandemic have been felt the strongest over the last weeks and months. The residents of Midsomer Norton made extraordinary efforts to protect their residents, friends and family from the effects of Covid-19 and promoted solidarity in the community of which both the Town Council and I are extremely proud to have been a part of.

On March 27th, the Council offices closed and all staff found themselves working from home, for some this was a completely new experience. The offices may have been closed but the Town Council remained firmly open for business continuing to ensure public services were maintained and continued to run where possible. Our Town Warden, who is now a full time employee, kept a close eye on the town and continued to work outside within the town following government guidelines. Thanks go to Dave for his continued commitment. Town council meetings are now being held remotely via Zoom as part of the change in legislation that now permits this. As a result the Town Council was able to hold the Annual Meeting of the Council where our new Mayor, Lynda Robinson, was duly elected.

Congratulations to Lynda we look forward to working with you in the future.

Some things are slowly beginning to return to normal and our local economy has received a welcomed boost with some of the shops and businesses opening again. A push has been made

by the Town Council and additional funds agreed in a call for ALL business ranging from plumbers, dog walkers and shop owners with an offer for free advertisement in this edition of Life. I hope everyone gets involved in supporting the local shops and businesses in our town whilst continuing to exercise social distancing and follow the one way systems and routes installed in our local shops, all designed to aid our community experience and try to keep one another safe.

Another boost for the town is the Town Park and work has now picked up with the contractors back on site and continuing to develop and create a fantastic asset for the town. During the last few weeks, families have been seen exercising in the park and enjoying the new meander pool that has been created. The Town Fair was due to be held in the park this year but unfortunately will no longer go ahead as with other events planned for the town over the summer. We will not let this get us down though and look forward to next year and the return of the ever popular summer events.

From myself and all the officers at the Town Council we wish you all a fruitful summer and most of all stay safe.

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