Bishop’s Castle

DON’T LET THE SPARC GO OUT - The future of SpArC Leisure Centre, Bishop’s Castle. Written by Jean Shirley and Richard Whately from the SpArC Marketing Group.

The financial statement released by Shropshire Council in January revealed that “the current £1.8 million leisure centres and swimming pools budget is being cut to zero in 2017/18”. Bishop’s Castle Leisure Centre pool is most immediately under threat but, if rescued, the whole centre, including the theatre, would be saved. In its statement, the council expresses concern for Shrewsbury, but under-populated areas which generate few votes are easily forgotten. Would SpArC be missed? It is needed by music and theatre lovers; sports and fitness enthusiasts; primary and secondary pupils, including legally entitled young swimmers; users of fitness classes, gym and other resources, including the retired; GP referrals, for heart disease, obesity etc, and those with special needs; leisure and theatre employees, as well as local cafes.

SpArC is the only leisure centre in Shropshire which is both increasing in membership and attendances, and also performing above budget.

The theatre shows a 50 per cent audience increase since 2013. There will be a substantial shortfall between the centre’s running costs and its income when Shropshire Council withdraws funding.

What can we do about it? Action to date has included: the installation of 200 solar panels on the roof of SpArC by SCC; vocal support from the Community College (BBC1 Inside Out West Midlands, broadcast February 15, at 7.30pm); audit of changes needed to reduce running costs; and the enlistment of a number of volunteers in crucial roles.

As a first step in generating funding, we are running a crowd-funding proposal to maintain pool access for school children. Our target is £50,000, and we will let you know when the scheme goes live. We hope to use the proceeds to match-fund income from other sources.

The South-West Shropshire Co-operative Schools Trust will co- ordinate primary and secondary school support for the crowd-funding scheme. We also have professional marketing support, but need: parents to encourage students in local fundraising activities; the message to get around, encouraging everyone who supports either the leisure or theatre facilities at SpArC to donate to the scheme; everyone who has thought of becoming a SpArC member to do it. We’d love to hear from an experienced bid-writer. Please don’t let the SpArC go out. Contact us at the SpArC Marketing Group via jeanshirley@btinternet.com 01588 638877 or richard.whately@btinternet.com 01547 510681.

SING FOR TAIZE SERVICE - Everyone was invited to a Taize singing practice in the Church Barn, on February 28. It was led by Michael Plunkett and he says: “We hope to sing pieces that will be used in the next Taize service on March 13 when we will be using the format, reading and prayer suggested by Taize for that day.” To find out more call Michael on 01588 630018.

MEMORIES OF A ROMANIAN ORPHANAGE - Bishop’s Castle WI was held in the Methodist Hall on February 16. Sue Blower from Montgomery spoke about “setting up an orphanage in Romania”. Over 20 years ago she spent two years with a charity in Bucharest working as a nurse tutor. Sue and her colleagues were given a building that took three weeks to make habitable, but once set up they made a huge difference to the lives of the children. She returns to Romania every year to see them.

Throughout her talk Sue kept the mood light with several amusing anecdotes of her personal life and members had a lovely evening finished with a light supper prepared by members.

Next meeting is March 15 when Andy Jones will talk about his life as a steward on the royal yacht HMS Britannia, starting at 7.30pm in the Methodist Hall, Bishop’s Castle.

COFFEE MORNING - Lydbury North resident Diana Walker held a coffee morning at her home on February 18 and raised £103 for Lydbury North Church and £100 for the Midlands Air Ambulance. She also gave people the opportunity to renew their annual subscriptions to the Clun Deanery Magazine the distribution of which she organises in the village. Diana would like to thank everyone who came and those who helped her on the day.

CORRESPONDENT - Julia Parker 01588 680445 jparker228@btinternet.com.

 

Clows Top

BINGO - Is being held at Clows Top Village Hall on March 11, eyes down looking at 7.30pm prompt. Bayton School PTA are arranging this event and would welcome your support.

 

Clun

WOMEN’S WORLD DAY OF PRAYER –Supper and entertainment at Hightown Community Room, Clun, tomorrow at 7.30pm. Enquiries to Joan Kerry 01588 640401.

BIG FAIR TRADE BREAKFAST - At the White Horse Saturday, 8.30- 11am. As part of Clun’s Fair Trade Fortnight, The White Horse will be serving breakfasts made from local and fairly traded produce. Buy your £5 voucher towards the cost of your breakfast in advance from the White Horse, the Market Square, Clun, 01588 418829. No admission on the day without a voucher.

FLICKS IN THE STICKS - Presents: Paddington (PG) at Bettws y Crwyn Village Hall, Saturday 7.30pm. Adults £4, children £2; running time 95 minutes. Refreshments, are available. Call 01588 640233.

Based on the stories written by Michael Bond, Paddington gets his big screen debut in this story of hope, discovery and family. When he decides to leave darkest Peru and head to England to look for the geographer that visited his home many years ago, Paddington encounters a world that is very different from the one he expected. But when the Brown family offer to take the bear, it seems as though their involvement in Paddington’s quest may be just what the Brown family have been missing.

FLICKS IN THE STICKS - Presents Suffragette (12A) at Clun Memorial Hall SY7 8NY. Saturday, at 7.30pm. Tickets are £4.50 adults, £2.50 under 18s. Enquiries: 01588 640254.

The story follows the foot soldiers of the early feminist movement, women forced underground to pursue a dangerous game of cat and mouse with an increasingly brutal State. These women were not primarily from the genteel educated classes, they were working women who had seen peaceful protest achieve nothing.

Radicalised and turning to violence as the only route to change, they were willing to lose everything in their fight for equality – their jobs, their homes, their children and even their lives. Maud was one such foot soldier. The story of her fight for dignity is as gripping and visceral as any thriller, as well as heart-breaking and inspirational.

WI - Bettws y Crwyn WI monthly meeting Wednesday, Bettws Village Hall, 7.30pm.

FILM – Get Carter (18). Osborne and After Festival – Get Carter at The Three Tuns, Bishop’s Castle Wednesday. Doors open 7.15pm, Osborne display and talk 7.30pm, film 8pm. Tickets £4 on the door.

As part of Clun’s Osborne and After Festival, the cult film Get Carter is being shown at The Three Tuns Inn, Bishop’s Castle. It stars Michael Caine as gangster Jack Carter, who travels north to Newcastle to investigate when his brother dies mysteriously in a car “accident”. The film also features a very scary John Osborne as gangland boss Cyril Kinnear. This is the film above any other that deserves the description “gritty”! The film is preceded by a talk and display about John Osborne.

 

Hayton

WI - Report of the meeting on February 11 of Hayton and District WI. Eileen welcomed an increasing number of members (extra chairs had to be found) to our February meeting. Notices were given – a “clean for the Queen” campaign to tackle the litter problem on March 5, when we will all take to the lanes and collect the cans and takeaway wrappers that decorate the verges; quizzes, lunches and lots more events coming up as detailed in this month’s newsletter. Eileen then welcomed back our speaker, Jo Carter, who had visited us before; she continued her previous talk of being a lady’s maid, by letting us into the beauty secrets of the ladies (and gents) of a previous era. At her place of work, Calke Abbey, there is a still room where many of the lotions and potions were concocted, and the herbarium garden where the ingredients would have been grown. As her talk entitled “top to toe, the price of vanity” indicated, she began with hair preparations and styles, dyes included rust and oil for redheads and urine for blonds. Lead oxide and arsenic were used to whiten the face while porcelain, pig’s or human teeth replaced one’s own rotten ones.

Even more drastic measures were taken to achieve the fashionable 18 inch waist including removal (without anaesthetic) of the lower rib to enable corsets to be tightened, no wonder smelling salts were in constant use. Perfume was used to cover the “scent” of unwashed clothes and bodies and mercury skin peels used by the very rich for a perfect complexion – we agreed that today’s beauty regimes were not so bad after all. Rose Lloyd thanked Jo for her fascinating insight into the extreme lengths that were gone to in search of the perfect appearance.

Competition results: flower of the month: 1st cyclamen, Annie Jones; 2nd snowdrop, Janice Holliday; 3rd periwinkle, Barbara Wright. Object beginning with “o”: 1st ornament, Audrey Pugh, 2nd oregano, Dot Williams, 3rd oranges, Pam Macintyre. Next meeting is March 10, when Sylvia Barret will give an illustrated talk entitled Edward and Mrs Simpson. For more details of the WI contact Eileen on 01584 876437.

 

Mamble

WI - Mamble Cum Bayton vice president Pauline Blumer welcomed three new members and visitors to the February meeting. Details were given of the various amateur dramatic and operatic shows taking place over the next few months, as well as the visit to the Centenary Battlefields. Final arrangements were made for the Institute’s visit to the Carpet Museum in Kidderminster on February 17. A talk for new members on the structures and aims of the Women’s Institute will take place at county office on Tuesday.

Mark Hoskins gave a fascinating talk about taking part in the 2015 “marathon of the sands” across the Sahara Desert. Described as the toughest foot race on earth, the competitors had to complete 155 miles in six days, the equivalent of a Marathon a day, with day time temperatures as high as 131° Fahrenheit, but as low as 32 degrees at night. He showed us the lightweight, but expensive, equipment he had to carry daily as well as samples of the specialist dried food.

He had trained extensively in the Worcestershire countryside but nothing had prepared him for the difficult terrain he encountered, the sandstorms and the difference in daytime and nighttime temperatures.

However, he completed the event, knowing that his six-year-old son would be so proud of him, and that he had helped to raise £8,000 for diabetes charities.

On March 14, the Institute will welcome Mervyn Silcox, who will speak about “living with my father”. The meeting starts at 2pm at Mamble Village Hall. The competition is an item beginning with “v”, and there will be a trading stall.

 

Rock

WALKS - Rock Pathfinders. Free guided walks along our footpaths and bridleways taking two-three hours, off the roads and into the countryside. The March walks will be on Thursdays at 10.30am. Today from The Lenchford Inn. Lay- by next to the B4196 Shrawley Road WR6 6TB, OS reference 813643. March 17, AGM followed by a short walk from Rock Village Hall, Rock, DY14 9SD, OS ref 735712. Everyone welcome. For our full programme visit rockpathfinders.webspace.virginmedia.com or rockvillagehall.co.uk or ring Alan on 01299 400304 or Jan on 01299 832571.

 

Shropshire Hills

DISCOVERY CENTRE / IN OUR GALLERY - February 24 to April 12. Ron Kelly – a photography exhibition of local landscapes, flowers, birds, bees and wildlife. Ross Prince at the Loudwater Studio. Ross Prince is an extremely talented young artist. At only 21, Ross is autistic and expresses his creative and warm nature through work with pastels. 10am-5pm. Free entry. All the art on display is available to purchase.

DISCOVERY CLUB - Saturday, daffodils and other spring flowers, go on a flower hunt and make a daffodil to take home with you 11am-noon.

£2.50 per child aimed at three-seven year olds to be accompanied by an adult, no need to book just turn up.

SHROPSHIRE HILLS IRISH MUSIC DAY - Saturday. Fiddle workshops throughout the day, all spaces fully booked on workshops but why not pop in to the Discovery Centre in the afternoon to hear some Irish tunes.

For full details, contact Kitty Greenwood 01584 841564.

FARMERS’ MARKET - Craven Arms Saturday 9am-1pm. Monthly market, local food producers, artisan crafts.

COURSE - Chainsaw maintenance and cross-cutting course on Sunday.

This course covers maintenance of your chainsaw (including sharpening), operator safety, safety clothing and risk assessments. Find out how to start and operate your saw safely.

It will also cover round timber cross- cutting techniques of pre-cut timber up to guide bar. The course would suit people who want to be confident cutting up their own wood on their own land and who do not require a qualification. 9.30am-4pm, £65 per person, booking essential on 01588 676060.

COOKERY COURSE - (International Vegetarian Cuisine) Best exotic tastes of the world on Tuesday. Bring in the sunshine with this session of meat-free international cookery. We will touch down in Africa to make a delicious stew of aubergines and peanuts, soak up the carnival heat with salsa and burritos and dose up on vitamin C mixed with warm spices from the Middle East. This is a great way to gain confidence with new flavours and ingredients for anyone keen to cut down on meat in their diet or for those who want to widen their vegetarian repertoire, 10am-3pm, £50 per person, booking essential call 01588 676060.

 

Tenbury

LENT SOUP LUNCHES - Every Wednesday until March 16, at Tenbury Methodist Church Hall, noon till 1.30pm. Come along and enjoy soup and company, donations accepted for Christian Aid. All welcome.

COFFEE AND CHAT - A warm welcome awaits you tomorrow and on the first Friday of each month, from 10am until noon at The Pump Rooms.

Organised by the Tenbury Branch of the U3A this is a great way to find out what we have to offer that might be of interest to you – our activities range from ballroom dancing to Spanish and lots of other interesting subjects.

So do come along to see what you can take part in. If you are looking for a new fun interest or some serious study come and give us a try! And you will make lots of new friends.

We look forward to seeing lots of members and anyone else who would like to discover more about the Tenbury branch of U3A.

JUMBLE SALE - Bockleton Village Hall, Saturday, 2pm.

RACE NIGHT - By the Tenbury Wells Round Table, presented by St Michaels Village Hall, Saturday at 7.30pm. Entry £2.50, bar open. Place your bets for a fun evening for all.

 

The Strettons

BRIDGE - Calling all bridge players today to All Stretton Village Hall for an afternoon of modern bridge available from 1.30pm-5pm. Lifts from Church Stretton can be arranged by ringing Dom on 01694 723128 who can also provide further information and an offer of tuition if you wish.

THEATRE LIVE - The National Theatre Live hit comedy Hangmen will be streamed to Church Stretton School tonight at 7pm. Adults £11, children £5. Refreshments will be available. For further information ring the school on 01694 722209.

DAY OF PRAYER - Women’s World Day of prayer tomorrow takes place at St Laurence’s Church 10.30am. Prayers will be for Cuba, all welcome.

CEILIDH - Local fundraisers for Amnesty International will host a ceilidh tomorrow night, at the Silvester Horne Institute with music supplied by the Compost Band. Ring 01694 720175 to enquire for tickets.

RNLI - A fish and chip supper hosted by the local committee for the RNLI is planned for Saturday night at the Silvester Horne Institute. 7.15pm for 7.30pm. During the evening Ian Caskie will give a talk about the SS Great Britain from launch to re- launch. Tickets cost £10 from John Thomas Florists or enquire for places by ringing 01694 722138/724371.

PRACTICAL WORKSHOPS - On Sunday a practical workshop on apple tree grafting takes place at Karuna, Nr Picklescote, when participants can take home two samples.

Ring 01694 751374 to enquire for places. The following weekend March 12/13 offers practical workshops in hedge laying. Cost is £50 per day to include soup and a roll and refreshment and bookings can be made for one or both days.

LONGMYND HIKE - The next meeting about the Longmynd Hike will be on Sunday, at 7pm in the District Social Club when further discussion about celebrating 50 years of the Longmynd Hike will take place.

COMMUNITY CINEMA - The film to be shown at Church Stretton School Monday 7.30pm is Everest (12) starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Keira Knightley. Interval refreshments available. At Hope Bowdler Village Hall Testament to Youth will be shown on Wednesday and at Acton Scott on March 15 is Brooklyn (12A).

MEMOIRS - Mayfair Community Centre offers a chance for writing your memoirs from 1.30pm-4.30pm starting on Monday and continuing on March 14 and 21.

BINGO - Bingo for the over 18s is held at the District Social Club every Monday evening 7.30pm, eyes down 8pm. Each game has money prizes.

WIVES AND FRIENDS - At the February meeting there was an audio visual travelogue talk on America, followed by pancake refreshments. The March meeting on Tuesday will be a talk by Chris Faulkner on 100 years of Cub Scouting. She has called her talk “keep calm and carry on Scouting”. The meetings take place in the Methodist Church Hall at 7.30pm. Visitors always welcome, admission £3.

GAMES - Friday evenings offer pay- as-you-go cricket practice and coaching at the Leisure Centre for juniors from 5pm-6pm and for adults from 7pm-8pm. On school Mondays boys and girls aged five-11 years can play hockey with Stretton Sharks from 3.30pm-5pm. Ring 01694 723543 to find out more.

PANTOMIME - This year’s All Stretton’s Amateur Dramatic Society’s production of the pantomime, Red Riding Hood , was directed by Stephen Butler and produced by Heather Hathaway and with a cast which included several new faces alongside the many regular players all performing in the true spirit of pantomime and playing to full houses. The society wishes to thank everyone for the help and support given which made everything go with a swing. Oh yes it did!

SCHOOL NEWS - At Church Stretton School the Bronze D of E Youth Hostel walk is due to take place and an electronics extravaganza is planned for year six pupils. Hockey schools championships are due to take place at Lilleshall for St Lawrence’s pupils.

SSIF - South Shropshire Interfaith forum Round Table discussion next Thursday, March 10, from 12.15pm- 1.15pm at the Pilgrim Centre in Craven Arms will be led by Rizvan Khalid and the subject will be “Jihad”. All welcome to munch their lunch if taking their sandwiches as drinks are provided. Donations towards hire of the room welcome.

PENTABUS - The Pentabus Theatre Company will be at All Stretton Village Hall next Thursday, March 10, to present This Land by Sian Owen, starting at 7.30pm. Tickets £10 and £6 call 01694 723378 to reserve.

FRIDAY MARKET - Held at Mayfair Community Centre will be back on March 11 8.30am-noon selling cakes, produce and craft items.

CARDING MILL CANTER - The Carding Mill Canter of 7.8km takes place March 12. Registration and starting is from Carding Mill Valley. Full details merciafellrunners.org.uk 

 

Westhope

CLOVER CLUB - The Clover Club opens today. Doors open at 7pm. We shall all be spending an evening with the Victorian baker. Admission £1. Tea, biscuits and raffle.

DIDDLEBURY AND WESTHOPE WI - There was a good attendance at the February meeting with just two apologies noted. The minutes were read and signed. The president has been to the meeting of group events. This year to be organised by Munslow WI.

Our speaker was Philip Revel, who told the story of the More children of the Coredale, who were born at Brockton and because of their parents’ broken marriage were shipped off to America on the Mayflower by their father. It was an amazing story and Phil was warmly thanked. Refreshments were served by Mary and Elizabeth.

The competition for something beginning with “m” was won by Mary Hall, medal; Judy McNally, map; and Kath Woodhouse, mop.

Why not come and join us on Tuesday at 7pm, when Mr Crow will speak on “everything that glitters is gold”, the story of Tutankhamun’s Tomb.