Teme Valley Times November 2017 issue 68

November 2017

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TENBURY APPLEFEST, held on October 7th, once again pulled in the crowds, with well over 1,000 people visiting the event.

Celebrating all things apple, and with a wide range of stalls and other attractions, Applefest is now well-established in Tenbury’s calendar. The Leominster Morris (pictured above) certainly helped bring a splash of colour and tradition to the day!

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TEME VALLEY TIMES

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Teme Valley Times

Streetworks in Tenbury

BARCLAYS BRANCH TO CLOSE Barclays have announced the closure of their Tenbury Wells branch on Friday December 8th with the following points said to be the main reasons for closure: • The number of counter transactions has gone down in the previous 12 months and additionally 67% of our branch customers also use other ways to do their banking such as online and by telephone • Customers using other ways to do their banking has increased by 17% since 2012 • In the past 12 months, 36% of this branch’s customers have been using neighbouring branches • We’ve identified that only 182 regular customers use this branch exclusively for their banking However, even in the most recent year for which figures are available, the Tenbury branch has been quite busy, with 29,825 counter transactions, so its closure will cause considerable inconvenience for local people.

On the good side, Tenbury is better off than some towns, such as Craven Arms, which no longer have a bank branch. Not only is there a TSB across the road from Barclays Tenbury, the TSB also has longer opening hours - 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday plus 9am to 1pm on Saturdays - so it seems likely that some residents and businesses will consider moving their accounts.

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The final phase of Tenbury’s ‘Public Realm’ renewal, in Teme Street, started in September. The section from The Crow to Cross Street was carried out by Worcestershire County Council some while ago; the section from the Teme Bridge to The Regal was carried out more recently, as part of the scheme to open a Tesco in the town; and work is now underway on the remaining part, from The Regal to The Crow.

Ken Pollock, the Worcestershire County Councillor for Tenbury Wells, said “When it comes time for the carriageway work, this will take place at night to minimise disruption. I am assured that the raised tables will be re-laid in the specified red tarmac at this time, both in the new table at the pedestrian crossing, but also in all the existing raised tables. The necessary Traffic Regulation Orders are in consultation at present. I trust that this phase of work will be less disruptive than the earlier ones. There will be no need for temporary traffic lights, so traffic should be kept flowing reasonably freely, although some traffic management will be required around Crow Corner.”

Ken also explained that it is anticipated that the work will be completed by the end of November.

Better Funding for Schools Worcestershire has been one of the worst-funded areas in England where schools are concerned and Harriett Baldwin, West Worcestershire’s MP, has campaigned for a fairer deal since becoming an MP in 2010.

Education Secretary Justine Greening has announced details of a new deal and schools in West Worcestershire will be 3.2 per cent better off. Each secondary school pupil will attract minimum funding of £4,800 and primary school pupils will attract at least £3,500.

Harriett said “This is enormously good news for local teachers and parents and it is great to deliver on one of my key election pledges. We all know that local schools do a great job with really challenging funding and nine out of ten local secondary schools are either good or outstanding.”

Chris Dell, Malvern Hills District Councillor for Lindridge Ward, commented “The inequality in the funding to schools in different areas has been a concern for some time and this is a useful step forward.”

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Teme Valley Times

What’s On! What’s On ads start at £10 for a simple advert with up to 25 words. Need more words? Add 25p for each extra word!

Email: temevalleytimes@yahoo.co.uk

Conquest Theatre Bromyard Now BookiNg: The Sleeping Beauty Dec 29 / 30, Jan 5 / 6: see website for details oct 27

Film: The Eagle Huntress, 7.30pm, U

oct 29

RoH: Alice’s Adventures in wonderland, 2pm

Nov 1

RSC Live: Coriolanus, 7pm

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Folk in the Foyer: Chris Quinn, 7.30pm

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Andrew Dee Spirit Medium & Psychic, 7.30pm

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NT: Live Follies, 7pm

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Film: Their Finest, 7.30pm, Pg

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NY Met: The Exterminating Angel, 5.55pm

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once Upon a Labrador, 7.30pm

Nov 21

Exhibition on Screen: Hockney, 7.30pm

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Film: My Cousin Rachel, 7.30pm, Pg

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Roving Crows Celtic folk music, 7.30pm

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oscar wilde Season - Live: A woman of No importance, 7.15pm

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Film: Another Mothers Son, 7.30pm, 12A

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Robbie’s Supersonic Rocket: fun for 3-11 years of age, 3pm & 6.45pm

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Teme Valley Times

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Bottled Water for Tenbury The car park near Tenbury’s swimming pool was pressed into service as a collection point for bottled water, with plenty of hands ready and willing to load it into residents’ cars Problems hit water supplies in and around Tenbury Wells on Friday September 29th as a result of a burst pipe in the Burford area. Some residents found themselves with no water, but for others the problem was down to worries that the water coming out of the tap might not be fit to drink, even though it could still be used for washing clothes and bathing, for example.

Water was brought into the area in tankers to try to keep the mains topped up, but at times the tankers couldn’t keep up with demand, so some customers saw their water go off.

The burst pipe was repaired quickly enough but there were concerns that contamination might have entered the water supply, so even if there was water coming out of the tap, Severn Trent said “As a precaution we’re asking our customers in the Tenbury Wells area who live in either the WR15 8 postcode or the SY8 4AU postcode to not drink their water supply while we investigate a potential issue.”

Thousands of litres of ‘free of charge’ bottled water were delivered to the car park near Tenbury Swimming Pool and to the car park at Tenbury Community Hospital in Burford. This could be

Another truckload of bottled water being delivered to the Tenbury Hospital car park, to be collected by residents in the Burford area collected by affected residents, to keep them going until the tap water was declared safe to drink.

After the system had been flushed through and the water had been tested, Severn Trent gave the ‘all clear’ on Monday October 2nd. They also announced that affected customers would automatically receive a £25 credit on their account.

Country Pub of the Season The Bell at Pensax, on the road from Clows Top to Abberley, has won another award! This one’s from Wyre Forest CAMRA, and it’s because The Bell is their Country Pub of the Season, Summer 2017. Ian Mercer, on behalf of The Bell, commented “All the hard work pays off in the end. We aim to provide the best real ale in the area, and it’s a real pleasure to receive another CAMRA award.”

The certificate will be added to their already impressive display of awards, which can be seen hanging in the pub’s bar area.

Ian Mercer with the award, at The Bell

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Teme Valley Times

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We offer a wide selection of sizes, styles and prices and we can design your advert for you if you wish.

General business advertising in the main body of the paper starts at £30 for one issue.

This includes full colour. Series discounts are available.

Our ‘What’s On!’ section is ideal for promoting local events or local clubs. A simple advert with up to 24 words is £10. If needed, extra words are 25p each.

Our ‘Local Services’ section is for businesses that provide a service at the customer’s property.

Examples include electricians, plumbers, plasterers, washing machine repair and lawn mowing. Adverts in this section are black and white as standard but there are colour and logo options at extra cost. The minimum booking in this section is four issues (about six months).

For more information please email temevalleytimes@yahoo.co.uk or ring 01584 781762 and speak to Chris or Lucy.

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Teme Valley Times

Leominster Food Festival Still something of a fledgling festival, this looks set to become a firm fixture in Leominster’s calendar. This year it was very relaxed, rather than too busy, so there was ample time to browse the stalls and chat to the producers. The layout worked well, with the main food market in Corn Square and further stalls (more drink focussed) in the garden area behind the Tourist Information Centre.

There was plenty of opportunity to taste and try, especially if you happened to be Leominster’s Official ‘Fish and Flesh’ taster: displays in Grange Court explain how Leominster was governed in 1634, with the Burgesses appointing a FishTaster to “... try all the fish at the market to make sure it’s fresh. It is all about protecting Leominster’s reputation for good quality food so that trade isn’t lost to Hereford or Ludlow”.

The ethics still ring true today and the suitably attired ‘official’ (John Stirling) was able to declare Hilltop Farm’s rare breed pig roast bap to be of exemplary taste and quality!

After Leominster’s Town Crier and Mayor declared the festival open it was time to start browsing. Newton Court Cider had tastings and you could find glutenfree ready meals such as Duck & Plum pie (£3); gluten-free oat mixes; lamb, water buffalo or venison burgers; pear juice; beautifully ripe Marjorie Seedling plums; and handmade sourdough doughnuts filled with jam, custard or salted caramel custard.

Many shops joined in with tastings including The Mousetrap (cheese shop) and Barber & Manuel (delicatessen), both just off Corn square. Other scheduled activities during the day included chef demonstrations, children’s activities and live music.

John Stirling officially ‘tasting’ the food on offer

La Fleur de Chocolat luxury macaroons

Sarah’s Feisty Flavours: mini-jars of chutneys, sauces and jams

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Tasting Newton Court’s perry

Taartie’s Sourdough doughnuts

Myrtle’s Brewers Chutney made with medlars and Swan Brewery beer

Town Crier Richard Brookman

The Mousetrap’s tasting table

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Teme Valley Times

Neighbourhood Plans Supported

Wardrobe Opens!

The sound of corks popping heralded the opening of a new fashion outlet in Cleobury Mortimer on 28 September as glasses of Prosecco were served to the gathered crowd. Special guest was actress Linda Lusardi, who came to fame in the 1970s as a Sun page-three girl.

Dressed in black, and still looking stunning, she arrived to cut the ribbon accompanied by her husband, actor Sam Kane, and spent an hour or so chatting to people.

Linda has played TV characters in Emmerdale, Brookside and The Bill and has competed in TV’s Celebrity Master Chef,

Celebrity Come Dine with Me and Dancing on Ice. She has also headlined more than 25 pantomimes around the country; this year you could catch her playing the Wicked Fairy in Sleeping Beauty at The Woodville in Gravesend.

Called ‘The Wardrobe’, the new shop stocks ladies fashions, accessories and footwear.

Suzanne Clews and her daughter Lucy are running the shop. They hope to keep stock fresh and exciting, and capture the latest trends, by visiting London fashion warehouses regularly.

Kempsey and Clifton upon Teme are the first places in the Malvern Hills District to have their Neighbourhood Plans officially backed by local residents.

On October 5th, voters in Kempsey and Clifton went to the polls to indicate whether or not they wanted Malvern Hills District Council to use the relevant Neighbourhood Plan to help decide planning applications in their area.

In Clifton upon Teme 132 people took part in the poll, with 92.4 per cent voting ‘yes’; in Kempsey the ‘yes’ vote was 91.7 per cent.

Kempsey Parish Council and Clifton upon Teme Parish Council were each responsible for drawing up and submitting their plans; both plans have been subject to public consultation and also to examination by an independent planning inspector.

Clifton upon Teme’s plan covers themes ranging from supporting investment in the economy, tourism and home working, to protecting local community facilities and significant views, as well as guiding the development of new housing.

The documents will now be presented to a meeting of Malvern Hills District Council on 28 November 2017 to be formally adopted.

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Teme Valley Times

It’s a Long Way! Grandad Nigel Hedgcock has raised about £1,000 by cycling from Land’s End to John O’Groats at the age of 70. Diagnosed as needing a knee replacement when he was 65, and having always been a keen walker, his physio suggested he stop walking and take up cycling.

The ride was in aid of outdoor play area improvements at Clifton-Upon-Teme primary school. Before the ride Nigel commented “I have never previously competed in a challenge of this magnitude and feel it will be a great milestone to reach.”

He started his journey on Sunday 20 August and made his way up the UK with stop-overs at St. Austell, Exeter, Wells, Hereford, Shrewsbury, Bolton, Kendal, Gretna, Hamilton, Blairgowrie, Grantown-on-Spey, Dornoch, and Bettyhill.

He completed the ride on Saturday 2 September having covered 1,018 miles in just 14 days.

The route used country lanes and national cycle routes where possible. Dartmoor was a challenge with its steep hills, as were the Cairngorms. You can still sponsor Nigel by contacting his daughter Charlie Merrick on 07496 394731.

Signage was still on display near the Talbot in Newnham Bridge a week after the event, stating that the A443 was closed

Velo Birmingham

Controversy was triggered by Velo Birmingham’s cycling event on Sunday September 24th. There were strong feelings on both sides and many people were disappointed that Worcestershire County Council agreed to host the event without first carrying out a full public consultation.

The impact on local residents and businesses was obvious. Extensive road closures, in terms of mileage as well as duration, meant that some businesses, including Broomfields at Holt Heath, said they would be unable to open on the day.

The closures also made it impractical for some people to get to work, or to hospital, or to church, or to visit family - as many do on a Sunday. Carers were affected, as were Nigel Hedgcock and his bike at John their clients, since with roads closed it was impossible for some carers to operate their O’Groats normal schedule. Newspaper and other deliveries were also affected and some marshals did not seem to be fully aware of agreed special access arrangements.

A ‘last minute’ rethink of Balloon Decor the route took it out of Party Products Herefordshire, and away Greetings Cards from Clifton-upon-Teme, and meant that it didn’t come nearer Tenbury than stock in now Great Witley. This reduced disruption in the Teme Valley 13 Teme St, Tenbury Wells - 01584 819705

Hallowe’en

Signage at Abberley, also still on show a week after the event, directed traffic off the A443 and up the B4202 to Clows Top - even when the B4202 was closed! area, but major through routes, such as the Holt Fleet Bridge, were closed for over seven hours.

On the other side of the coin, thousands of cyclists enjoyed having the road to themselves for the day, and some residents welcomed the opportunity to see them pedal past.

The signage was disappointing: it often failed to provide a coherent diversion and, at least in our area, the signs didn’t even make it clear when the road would be closed.

Also, signs were still in place days after the event, directing motorists away from their correct route. Even a week after Velo, signage in Newnham Bridge stated that the A443 was closed and sent traffic heading to the M5 along

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the A456 towards Kidderminster.

In Abberley, signage directed traffic for Stourport off the A443 and onto the B4202 towards Clows Top. This was particularly unfortunate on Tuesday September 26th, when the B4202 was closed near The Bell.

Velo Birmingham will be held in 2018 and some key questions need to be answered sooner rather than later. These include: would it travel through Worcestershire? Would road closures be for a similar length of time? Would there be full public consultation prior to decisions being made? Would next year’s event have better signage - and would this be removed as soon as the relevant closure ends?

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Teme Valley Times

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Teme Valley Times

Lindridge Autumn Show Beautiful roses, flowers and a lovely selection of vegetables, fruit, preserves and cookery were all on show at Lindridge Village Autumn Show in the Parish Hall in Eardiston on September 2. There was even a sunbathing banana amongst the exhibits!

‘Best in Show’ and the Betty Andersson Cup was awarded to Kath Pardoe for her winning entry in class 20 ‘A plate of 6 scones’. Class 5, ‘A collection of tomatoes’, had a good number of entries suggesting that more people might be growing their own, but overall there were fewer entries this year, so why not give it a go yourself next year? You might turn out to be a winner!

Refreshments were served all afternoon and unclaimed exhibits were auctioned at the end of the day, raising £85 for First Responders.

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Teme Valley Times

League of Friends Shop Poetry Competition Muriel Lanman from the Tenbury Hospital League of Friends gave us this update about their pop-up charity shop which ran for a fortnight in late September, in a vacant shop unit down Banfields passageway in Tenbury.

A bit of an Aladdin’s cave, the shop had a great mix of things, from sun hats to wicker chairs, T-shirts, pictures, Doreen James and Rosemary kitchenware and Adams at the League of more, so a careful Friends pop-up shop browse was always worthwhile.

Muriel said “I am ashamed to say that I didn’t help at all with the Charity Shop this Autumn as I hadn’t been well but Rosemary and Tish kept me well informed as to how the shop was doing. Again, our grateful thanks to Sadie Chalkley of Banfields for the use of the shop unit. The League was able to raise just over £1,400, all of which will be used for the good of Tenbury Hospital.”

“Matron comes to committee meetings with a shopping list for pieces of equipment etc that will help staff improve the comfort of patients and she always goes away smiling. Grateful thanks for all the donated items and sincere thanks to all who came along and browsed and bought and to all who helped with setting up and clearing away the shop. The amount raised proves how important Tenbury Hospital is to all of us.”

Members of the ‘Border Poets’ group delivered poetry workshops at schools in Tenbury, Burford, Bayton, Lindridge and St Michaels.

Entries for the subsequent competition were judged by three poets independently: Paul Francis, Pat Leighton and Thirza Clout.

The prize-giving was in Tenbury Library on September 29th. It was attended by about 65 friends and family and the project was secured by a grant from Malvern Hills District Council.

The winning group with local poet Tina Cole

Kimbolton’s Secret Gardens

The ‘Secret Gardens of Kimbolton’ event, organised by local resident Mrs Cathie Wilson, took place earlier this year to raise funds towards the installation of new heating in St Andrews Church, Leysters. An impressive total of 15 gardens were open, with the garden trail HQ based at the village hall, and if you were lucky you might even have spotted a peacock!

The heating project at St Andrews was prompted by a specific legacy left by Miss Winnie Cooke (1916-2012). Miss Cooke was a familiar figure round the village and she had been a dedicated church cleaner for 19 years.

The event raised sufficient money to complete the project so Autumn and Winter should now be a lot warmer in the beautiful old church!

Burford Car Boot

Burford Pre-School CIC held a car boot at Burford Village Hall at the end of September, with attractive stalls running the length of the hall’s car park.

The choice of second hand children’s toys was immense. Other items included upholstery, a guitar, golf clubs, pictures, handbags, cot blankets and even a ‘Thomas the Tank Engine’ canvas playhouse!

A sizzling BBQ by Phil ‘Clockhouse’ Gibbs helped stave off the chilly weather and there was tea, coffee and cake in the hall. Also inside was an upcycling stall with weird and wonderful creations giving old objects a new lease of life.

A raffle and tombola added to the fundraising for the school’s outdoor area refurbishment plans. Burford Pre-School CIC directors Jane and Jean said ‘”Thank you to all the people who supported our event - we raised £450!”

Teme Valley Times

Rock Show

Sunny weather saw Rock Show get underway in and around the village hall with plenty to do for young and old alike. Outside there were many of the usual activities including skittles, a coconut shy and a fun dog show.

The Cleobury Brass Band produced a lovely melodious sound which drifted around the show field and there was ample seating nearby if you wanted to rest while enjoying their playing.

Bliss Gate Village Field charity and Stour Valley Cat rescue had bric-a-brac fundraising stalls and Rock RBL and Save The Children were also busy on their stands. Free fun tugs of war and children’s races provided further activity and upstairs in the hall were roomfuls of bric-a-brac to wade through to find that bargain!

Inside the hall the Horticultural Show was laid out with many winners in evidence. Refreshments were very reasonable: 50p for tea or coffee and £1 for a slice of cake, encouraging people to stay longer. At the end of the day, trophies were presented and the raffle was drawn.

The event raised around £1,000 for Rock Play, a project to construct a children’s play area near the village hall. Quotes were obtained from three companies and Creative Play was chosen to supply the equipment. It’s hoped that the project will be completed this year. The funds raised by the show made a very useful contribution to the scheme.

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Shop Window Competition Many shops in Tenbury took part in Applefest’s Shop Window competition, with the winners receiving their awards on October 6th. A lot of creativity was displayed, with an interesting range of interpretations of the theme.

Congratulations to the winners! First: Flowers at Number One, Second: Beauty Laine, Third: S.E.N.S.E.

Flowers at No1 (1st): Charlotte and Meryl Hemingway receiving £50, a bottle of Applesecco, a Robinsons Cider Jute bag and a Kerry Certificate from Anna Macleod of Kerry and Alison Chadwick of Oldfields Cider

Beauty Laine (2nd): Victoria Hopewell receiving £20, a Robinsons bag and a Kerry Certificate from Carole Clayton (Applefest organiser) and Anna Macleod

Teme Valley Times

Tenbury Applefest Dry weather for most of the day - the showers only began at packing up time - helped make this another enjoyable Applefest.

There was a good mix of food and drink, arts and crafts, and apples galore; and local organisations, schools, charities and Tenbury businesses took the opportunity to promote themselves.

‘Food to go’ came in many forms, whether a deliciouslooking slice of Bramley apple sponge, or a 4-layer coffee cake, or various other home-baked treats such as Apple & Shropshire Blue scones. There was no need to go home for lunch - the hot food choices were just as varied!

At the far end of the ground, well-contained musical entertainment added interest throughout the day, with local school choirs, soloist Shannon Flynn, and the Teme Valley Band taking to the stage at various times, with the popular Bandemonium taking their usual end-of-day slot.

There was a lovely relaxed atmosphere, livened up - of course - by the colourful and vibrant performances of Leominster Morris.

For apple-lovers though, the star attraction was the apple marquee with hundreds of apple, pear and quince varieties on show, grown, picked and laid out by Frank P Matthews Ltd, from their heritage collection of trees.

There is always much to learn and if you had the time to look carefully at all the information labels you could find out about varieties that are currently ‘on trial’ at Matthews’ nursery.

You could also discover that ‘Rosette’ was found in Clifton-upon-Teme in 2000; that ‘Bardsey’ is lemonscented and was found on Bardsey Island; and that ‘Court Pendu Plat’, which is of uncertain origin, is one of the oldest apples in existence, being quoted as ‘an old variety’ even in the 16th century!

Also in the marquee, for much of the day, Tish Docherty from appleTeme was working hard demonstrating the art of juicing apples.

Summing up the day, organiser Carole Clayton said “The gate was well up on last year and we have had some very positive comments from regular and new traders with lots of stall holders selling out.”

All ages catered for

S.E.N.S.E (3rd): Diann Dowell receiving £10, a Robinsons bag, and a Kerry Certificate from Anna Macleod

Harlequin Gift Shop

Subscriptions Subscriptions We can post each issue of the Teme Valley Times to any UK address for a year (seven issues) for £12.95. An interesting Christmas present for somebody, perhaps?

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Teme Valley Times

Boozy Cider bread from Swifts

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Burford Open Day St Mary’s Church in Burford held an Open Day on September 10th. Refreshments, stalls, parachuting teddy bears and poetry workshops ensured an afternoon of creativity and good-humoured simple fun!

Despite the stiff breeze and intermittent showers the bears decided that they should ‘Keep calm and carry on’. Experienced parachutist ‘Edward’ managed to sail well clear of the safety sheet, gliding expertly around to the side of the church, fortunately landing in soft grass.

Other bears took the more direct route - straight down - and the excellent footwork of the safety net operatives ensured that nearly all the bears had a safe landing. At the top of the tower Mark Yarnold did his best to ensure the bears didn’t have a bumpy ride down, by employing a powerful launch (throw!) into the prevailing wind.

Afterwards, warming cups of tea and coffee in the church allowed everyone to dry off before the official presentation of certificates by medieval characters.

St Mary’s is in what will hopefully be the final stages of a Heritage Lottery bid, to restore the ancient monuments in the church.

Teme Valley Times

Stalls included Body Shop products, artist Jennifer Chance with countryside-inspired artworks, and preserves including apple & damson cheese from Penny Thompson

A medieval presentation!

Launching off the tower

Mark Yarnold selecting the next victim

On the way down!

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Teme Valley Times

Abberley Gardening Club Show This annual show is a compact version of a horticultural show, with just a modest number of classes, but none the worse for that! Held at The Manor Arms in Abberley, the exhibits included a huge collection of ‘bug hotels’ made by pupils from Abberley Primary School.

Around 3pm the raffle was drawn and the prizes were awarded, with the best in show winning a Manor Arms meal voucher. The event sponsors included Murley Agricultural Supplies, Cooks Nurseries, The Bell at Pensax and The Manor Arms.

Clee Hill Auction Viv Yemm’s prize-winning Cherry Bakewell tart

Sarah Goodman’s 3rd prize ‘Flower arrangement in a candlestick’

Chris Jones (right) receiving 1st prize for her plain scones dressed for afternoon tea

Mamble Festival Success Mamble Festival Committee took great delight in presenting cheques to Sarah Harris from Marie Curie (£1500), to Mamble Village hall (£1200) and to Mamble Church (£1200) at the annual Mamble Harvest Supper on Saturday 23rd September.

These fantastic amounts were raised by their very successful Flower Festival and ‘Open Gardens’ in June, plus other social events. Led by Hazel West and her team of arrangers, the floral arrangements belied the huge amount of work and artistic talent that it took to stage the Festival at St John The Baptist Church.

Speaking at the presentation, Sandra Bennett, Chair of the Festival Committee, commented “Thanks go to the open garden volunteers, all 11 of them, for all the extra weeding and lawn mowing in preparation. Also to Dorothy and Peter Cotterill (aka as Mr & Mrs Tutti Frutti) who hosted sales of ice creams over the weekend. Thanks also go to the cake bakers for the provision of absolutely fabulous cakes and the army of volunteers, who prepared the church and its grounds and manned the kitchen and the church. Thanks also to the organists who were so generous with their time and the Mamble Art group who staged an exhibition in the village hall.”

Sandra concluded “The events do not come without significant detailed planning and organisation and success is only made possible by local support.”

The Festival Committee was put together initially to raise funds for the Church and village hall by hosting its first flower festival in 2007.

The committee, which has subsequently seen members come and go, has provided significant fundraising for the hall and Church, along with local charities including Midland Air Ambulance, Tenbury Hospital, Acorns Hospice, Nineveh Ridge Care Farm, and Macmillan Cancer Support.

(L to R): Judith Evans (Treasurer), Sandra Bennett (Chair), Sarah Harris (Marie Curie Community Fundraiser), Russell Sharples (Mamble Church Warden), Hazel West (Festival committee member), John Scandrett (Village Hall Trustee), Jill Bytheway (Festival committee member), Mary Swift (Secretary)

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An auction to help fund new heaters for the church took place in St Peters Church, Clee Hill on the evening of 22 September. Lots included a bottle of House of Commons Claret, paintings from a local artist, a cake every month for a year (including Christmas cake!) and tickets to Canterbury Cathedral, Kidderminster Harriers and the Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway.

Organiser Ian Gomes Walker Caravaggio thanked all the people who contributed prizes and commented “The evening was a great success we had about 30 members of the public come along and we raised over £400 which will help to get one or two heaters in the church.”

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Ludlow Food Festival

TEME VALLEY TIMES

This food festival has been around for over 20 years. It all began as the result of an evening of discussion in the Blue Boar pub between some members of Ludlow Chamber of Trade. The idea was to create a festival that would promote the small local food and drink producers and at the same time encourage visitors to explore the town itself. Like most new ideas you just give it go and see what happens - suffice to say that the festival has been a success.

John Whaite Great British Bake Off winner

Ludlow Parking Drop-In Those of us who have followed the event over the years have seen many changes, including increasing popularity, so some years it has been a crush to get in! Many small producers have become bigger producers, and many new food businesses have emerged. The festival is a showcase that puts products in front of an appreciative audience.

This year the line-up of over 30 chefs along with bakers of distinction, food writers, industry experts, and scores of producers evidences the passionate and diverse range of ‘good-food aficionados’ to be found in the local area.

A revised layout of marquees this year allowed easier access to stands at busy times and removed the hot, potentially claustrophobic, feel that the big marquee has sometimes created.

Youngsters were again well catered for with shows, cookery classes and beast hunts, all to be found in the castle moat area.

The opportunities to learn are immense, whether it’s discovering more about a product from its producer, mastering knife skills, learning about new products, sitting in on a tasting with a producer, trying a barista experience, meeting ‘live fire’ chefs or experiencing a master class with ‘Great British Bake Off’ bakers.

You could even curl up and listen to authors talk about their books in the festival’s pop-up bookshop, which really had the look and feel of a bookshop!

If you got hungry, the ‘Food to Go’ was truly international this year with AfroCaribbean, Japanese, Italian and Cuban dishes amongst the options, so you could graze your way round the world!

Other festival events around the town included Pudding Tasting at the Methodist Church, the Sausage Trail and the Ale Trail. You would have needed a long weekend to even experience half of Droitwich Salt what was going on!

How to contact the Teme Valley Times Phone: 01584 781762 Email: temevalleytimes@yahoo.co.uk Online: www.facebook.com/temevalleytimes Post: Teme Valley Times, Tenbury Wells, WR15 8LW Editor & Publisher: Chris Dell. Deputy Editor: Lucy

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Councillors Viv Parry, Andy Boddington and Tracey Huffer, with Shropshire Council highways officer Andy Keland

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A lovely porter from Hop & Stagger Brewery in Bridgnorth

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Shropshire Council is considering changes to parking charges in Ludlow. A drop-in session, where people could learn about the Council’s proposals, was held at the Women’s Centre in Church Street on September 5th. It was organised by Shropshire councillors representing Ludlow and Clee: Andy Boddington, Richard Huffer, Tracey Huffer and Viv Parry.

Andy Boddington, Shropshire Councillor for Ludlow North (which includes the town centre) commented “There are a lot of proposed changes to car parking rules. Visitors will be allowed to park on the streets and in the Castle Square car park for a long as they like, though that could prove expensive. New season tickets will permit residents to leave their vehicles in car parks for less than 50p a day. The permits used by builders who need to park in the street when repairing properties will leap to £20 a day. This is not just about the cost of parking. The challenge we face in Ludlow is balancing the needs of residents, workers, shoppers and visitors. That is never going to be easy to achieve in an historic town like ours. Residents need somewhere to park but we also need a constant turnover of vehicles in car parking spaces so people can get to the shops, GP practices and tourist attractions.”

The consultation closes on October 17th and Ludlow Town Council has also expressed concerns over the proposals.

Riverside Event

Committee member Clare Currant and Supporter Richard Cundall

People gathered at Dinham Millennium Green in Ludlow on September 15th to enjoy a fundraising evening of music, played by Vintage Jazz Revival, plus poems and prose about the Corve and the Teme.

“It was a wonderful evening, raising £704 towards the cost of our flood risk mapping project” said Rosemary Wood, Chairman of Friends of the Corve and Teme, who added that the Friends hold quarterly multi-agency meetings with designated representatives from the Environment Agency, Shropshire Council Highways, Shropshire Council Flood and Water Management Team, Severn Trent Water and Shropshire Wildlife Trust.

Orleton Scarecrows Once again the residents of Orleton came up with some great ideas for ‘scarecrows’ in this year’s Village Scarecrow event, held in midSeptember. A trail map (£1 from the village shop) helped people to find the scarecrows and also to vote for their favourites.

It was good fun and, if you walked round and saw all of them, it also provided a good bit of exercise. Subjects included ‘Donald Trump’ building his wall on the Mexican border; three builders with ‘The Gaffer’ dozing on a bench, one sitting down watching, and one actually doing the work; Yoda and R2D2 from Star Wars; an invisible man who was (obviously) difficult to spot; a ‘leggy blonde’ on a bicycle from Call the Midwife; Cubs and Guides; ‘Alan Sugar’ from The Apprentice; Little Miss Muffet; The Cat in the Hat and many more.

Great imagination and endeavour was evident in the number and variety of scarecrows on display and partway round you could stop at the Church for refreshments and browse the book sale, laid out on the pews.

The most involved display was probably ‘The Chef’, with an array of dishes for four crows who were dining in the corner of the garden.

Each dish had been carefully crafted; pigs in blankets (pink felt pigs in blue knitted blankets), coq au vin (a very smart looking fabricated cockerel sitting in a casserole dish with a few onions, mushrooms and wine bottles), toad in the hole, ratatouille (a rat with a gold pendant around his neck saying 2E surrounded with all the vegetables that go into the dish) and welsh rarebit - a ‘rabbit’ on a piece of ‘toast’, with a leek on its lap!

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Teme Valley Times

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Teme Valley Times

Rock Coffee Morning

Rate Relief

In recent months, many shops in Ludlow have been displaying information about the increase in their rateable value. The good news is that Shropshire Council has been awarded more than £2million, spread over four years, to help mitigate the impact of the business rate review.

The government doubled small business rate relief, which means that businesses with a rateable value of £12,000 or less pay no business rates.

If the rateable value is £12,001 to £15,000, the relief tapers from 100% to 0%.

Shropshire Council has been allocated discretionary funding over a fouryear period, to provide additional discretionary relief to businesses adversely affected by the 2017 revaluation. The Council has identified over 1,000 local businesses with a rateable value between £15,000 and £200,000 that have, after taking other reliefs into account, seen an increase in their rates.

Letters are being sent to these businesses, with an amended business rates bill, explaining the discretionary scheme and advising businesses that if they don’t wish to apply for the relief they should advise the council within 14 days.

Ludlow MP Philip Dunne said “Many local businesses have benefited from the government’s 100% increase in Small Business Rate Relief threshold.

But there remain some businesses for whom the Business Rate Review in April has had a marked impact.” He added “The Chancellor announced two further measures for relief in the last Budget, for those who had lost Small Business Rate Relief or Rural Rate Relief, or those losing Public House Relief.”

In addition, Mr Dunne explained that “I also arranged for the Chief Valuation Officer for England to visit Ludlow in the summer to hear for herself the impact of some of the proposed increases. I have recently heard back that she expects shortly to complete her review of the rating structure applied locally, so I hope to be able to inform businesses affected in the next few weeks.”

Martley Applefest Martley Applefest, at The Chantry on October 7th, saw students contributing a great deal to the day’s proceedings. The focus changed for this year, with stage performances taking a much stronger role.

In the main hall, there were stands manned by students looking to generate funds. In the second hall, chutneys, ‘Handmade by bunting, craft stalls and more were on offer, along with Lisa’, handcutthe Abberley Young Farmers. paper art Outdoor activities included Segways on the playing fields: for £5 you could take one out for 10 laps of a circuit on the field, which proved to be popular with young and old alike!

Apple juicing was also flavour of the day, whether ‘bring your own apples and clean containers’, or simply watching a demonstration where a Fordson Major tractor powered a scratter (to break up the apples), then a replica Victorian cider press could be seen squeezing the ‘cheeses’ (of broken-up apple) to produce the juice.

The replica press was brought along and demonstrated by its maker Steve Huke, whose family farms at Martley.

A pork roast, candy floss, toffee apples, Dean’s Ice Creams and apple-themed refreshments including an unusual chocolate apple cake - meant you didn’t Segways away! need to go hungry!

Local Cider is a Winner A Teme Valley cider maker has been named ‘Best Drinks Producer in Worcestershire’, the award being presented by ‘Visit Worcestershire’ at a ceremony in Malvern.

Geoff Thompson from Oldfields Farm commented “We’ve always felt our cider is first class and it’s very heartening to see that the rest of Worcestershire feels the same. Things just go better when everyone is pulling together so this award is for the whole team. We wouldn’t make the cider we do without the graft of our gang on the farm and without the technical support and fantastic distribution network of our sister company, Hobsons Brewery.”

This is the latest in a line of accolades for Oldfields Cider including being named one of the ten best British ciders by the Independent newspaper.

There are many social coffee mornings in and around the Teme Valley where people can pop in for a chat and a cuppa and Rock Church’s ‘free community coffee morning’ is celebrating its first birthday.

Organiser Christine Clark (Lay Minister for Wyre Forest West churches) invites people to come for tea, coffee, biscuits and cake from 10am till noon on the last Thursday of each month.

Tables and chairs can be moved outside in summer, producing something of a ‘pavement cafe’ atmosphere, but when we were there in September, the event took place inside the church.

It’s all free, with no strings attached, but if you would like to donate, there are dishes for any contributions.

Replica Victorian press, demonstrated by Steve Huke and family

Autumnal vases decorated the refreshment tables

Cornish Aromatic, Lemon Pippin and Wichenford Wonder were some of the apples on display

Geoff Thompson with cidermaker Josh Thompson For over 50 years the farm produced a few barrels a year for friends and hop pickers, but the current facilities include a bottle plant (co-funded by a Worcester Local Enterprise Partnership grant) a keg line, and

pressing and fermenting equipment.

Oldfields success has spread around the globe so you can now enjoy a pint of Worcestershire cider in Hong Kong and Shanghai!

Goodie-packed apple-themed hampers

Apple activities

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Teme Valley Times

The Stoke Bliss & District AIS was formed in 1947 when a group of local farmers decided to organise a ploughing match and various other agricultural competitions.

Since then these have been held annually at different farms within a 10 mile radius of Stoke Bliss church.

As the result of the formation of a ladies’ committee back in the 1960s, the event now includes classes such as cookery, homecrafts, handicrafts, produce and children’s sections, so today the event offers much more than fields alive with ploughmen busy ploughing!

A day can easily be spent enjoying the countryside at its best, especially as good food and refreshments are available. However, when we attended on a chilly and overcast September morning, some hardy souls were already tucking into ice creams from the ice cream van! Fortunately the weather improved, to give a thoroughly pleasant warm afternoon of autumn sunshine.

The first ploughing match was held at Hall Farm, Stoke Bliss (then part of the Underley Estate) by kind permission of Harry Dorrall; the Society returned to Underley for their 50th (1997), 60th (2007) and for this year’s 70th event.

Overall Champion on the day was Roger Smith who came first in the Horse ploughing class, and was awarded The Sir Archer Baldwin Perpetual Challenge cup.

Ploughman Jon Cole, not long back from representing England in the 20th European Vintage Ploughing championships held in Kadeltshofen (Bavaria), came first in the

Classic ploughing open class.

Among the many winners in the Homecrafts and Handicrafts competition were Andrew Edwards (Challenge Cup for Handicrafts and the Challenge Shield for Art); Ted Mills (Challenge Cup for Horticulture); and Douglas Roper (Challenge Cup for Produce).

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Autumn Show The Tenbury Agricultural Society holds an Autumn Show each year at Penlu Sports Club in Burford. This relaxed event for farm produce includes hops, apples, pears, grain, roots, potatoes, cider, perry and wines.

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Teme Valley Times

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