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February 2015 Incorporating The Herald

A recent study by Newcastle University, of rural pubs, has provided robust evidence of their central role in rural communities. The study shows that television’s portrayal of Emmerdale’s ‘The Woolpack’ as the hub of the local community is not too distant from reality.

The good news for Compton Dundon is that our local, ‘The Castlebrook Inn’, is soon to re-open under the management of Nicki and Wesley. Both Nicki and Wesley have managed pubs before, in London, and they are really looking forward to taking on a ‘country pub’.

They hope to be moving from Chilcompton to Compton Dundon later in February and would like to have a ‘soft’ opening of the pub on 27th Feb. prior to a grand opening in mid to late March.

Prior to opening, £250,000 worth of building work needs to be completed on the pub. The Castlebrook will retain its character but will benefit from some significant improvements to areas such as the restaurant.

Nicki and Wesley would like to employ local staff and they will be looking for a full time cook, a cleaner (2 hours every morning), part time bar and waiting staff and a pot washer. If you are interested in applying for any of these posts, please send your CV to info@castlebrookinn.co.uk.

You can keep up to date on the latest developments at the Castlebrook by looking at posts on www.facebook.com/comptondundon.

Compton Dundon

and Littleton

Parish Newsletter

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Compton Dundon Resident ‘Environmental Champion’

Local resident Esme Mirzoeff, 11, was recently crowned an environmental champion, beating off competition from other young people around the country to win a video competition run by Eurostar and Young People’s Trust for the Environment’s (YPTE).

As part of Explorium’s writing and digital literacy tutoring programme Esme wrote a powerful speech about trees, deforestation and our need to respect our environmental needs for balance. She submitted this to the YPTE Have Your Say on Sustainability national competition and when she won a place to head to Brussels and present her ideas to MEPs she couldn’t believe it. “When my mum told me I had won I was excited but then really nervous! It was a totally amazing experience going to talk at the European Parliament and it has shown me that your writing can make a difference.”

Every Tuesday at Explorium young people get together to perfect the art and craft of writing between 3.30 and 5.30 pm. Anyone interested can phone Julia on 01458 274050.

Gardening Club News The January meeting saw an informative ‘Gardeners Question Time’ with experts Patricia Heap and Les Taylor giving advice on topics such as carrots, parsnips and wild flowers. Programme changes Monday 2nd February - Spring colour and interest in your garden with speaker from Brimsmore Garden Centre. Monday 2nd March - Wicked Plants. Monday 13th April (due to Easter weekend) Ponds. Wednesday 15th April Trip to Kelways Garden Centre for tour and talk. Friday 8th May Trip RHS Malvern Spring Show. Tickets are £20 plus coach - Non members are welcome but reserve a ticket to avoid disappointment. (Kathy — 01458 274531)

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Compton Dundon Archive

A newsletter reader has suggested that we put regular photographs of old Compton Dundon on to our facebook page (www.facebook.com/comptondundon).

Photos can be posted on the facebook page by anybody who follows it by ‘liking’ it. They will then appear in the posts of all who are following it.

The photograph is of Swiss Cottage (1908), Bill & Kathy’s current home. Les Taylor’s mother and uncle can be seen in the photograph.

Compton Dundon Walking Group Walkers usually gather at the Meadway Hall and

arrange to share cars to the starting point for the walk.

They then stop at a pub for lunch. All are very welcome

to join the group.

Sundays—10 a.m. Leader Telephone

15th February 2015 Simon & Ali 01458 445463

15th March 2015 Lynda & Martin 01458 273591

19th April 2015 Dick & Sue 01458 241618

17th May 2015 Chris & Marlene 01458 273454

21st June 2015 Paul 01458 273624

19th July 2015 Mel & Peta 01458 445303

This newsletter and past issues may be found on the village website: www.comptondundon.com For the latest community news and information, follow Compton Dundon on Facebook: www.facebook.com/comptondundon

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The Crafts Club The crafts club meets on the first Tuesday of each month, in the Meadway Hall Meeting Room, from 9.30 a.m. to 12.30 p.m.

In February, for those who are interested, we are going to have a go at crocheting with cotton. You will need a size 2 crochet hook and some crochet cotton. If you are not interested in that, bring your own thing or just come for a chat and a cup of coffee. (Trish - 01458 447075)

The Photography Club

The newly formed photography club meets on the third Wednesday of each month in the Meadway Hall Meeting Room, at 7.00 p.m. The following meeting dates have been agreed so far: 18th February, 18th March, 15th April, 20th May and 17th June.

The club is for photographers of all abilities and all are welcome. Our challenge for the next meeting is to photograph a sunset. (Mark - 07970 919 884)

Baby & Toddler Group We meet at the Meadway Hall every Tuesday during term time. 9.30 a.m. to noon.

100 Club The 100 Club provides a valuable source of income for the Meadway Hall, whilst at the same time giving everyone a chance to win a monetary prize. If you would like to join the 100 club, tickets are available from Janet Davies (01458 272877 - Ferndale, Peak Lane). The next draw for the 100 club will be at the W.I. meeting in March.

The winners of the December 2014 draw shared £215 between them.

£100 £50 £20 £15 £10 £10 £10

Les Taylor Olive Holland Mary Jones Pat & Peter Mizon J. Bowles Sally Walker Hazel Broome

No 8 No 11 No 67 No 42 No 33 No 99 No 82

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Superfast Broadband

Superfast broadband connections enable users to surf the internet, download music and stream tele-vision at great speeds. The UK Government wants us to have the best broadband in Europe.

Unfortunately, those who are responsible for implementing this appear to think that the residents of Compton Dundon do not know what a computer is, let alone know how to use one because they have put us at the back of the queue for superfast cabinet upgrades.

Superfast Broadband is important for your child’s education, for your business, for keeping in touch and updated, sourcing your needs, it is an essential utility and it can even effect your house price.

The current situation is that broadband for Compton and parts of Dundon is no longer listed as ‘coming soon’ . Under European regulations you cannot receive funding as you will be covered by a private service provider. For those residents in Compton Dundon with an 01458 44… telephone number, this means that subscribers will not receive a superfast broadband service from any internet service provider via landline unless they are prepared to share or contribute to the cost of upgrading the BT cabinet themselves. BT has requested that all those with an 01458 44…telephone number who are interested in upgrading to a superfast broadband service advise the Parish Council soon so the number of interested subscribers can be quantified, by sending their landline telephone number, via an email to hughthomascdpc@gmail.com For other Dundon residents, your postcode and cabinet are still to be evaluated by Connecting Devon and Somerset. Your exchange is within the programme but decisions on which cabinet get upgraded will depend on the outcomes of pending detailed surveying. The surveys will be carried out between October 2015 and March 2016.

Please refer to the Compton Dundon website for more detailed information.

Commercially covered

To be surveyed 2015-2016

Not covered

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Highlights from the January Meeting

At the Christmas party held in December Gill presented Anthea Bell with the skittles cup, Wendy Edwards being the surprised runner up. The next match will be a Cup Round versus Pawlett W I on Friday January 23 at the Ring of Bells, Ashcott.

Kathy was unable to attend the meeting as she is still recovering from a recent operation on her foot. Kathy thanked us for the plant she had received. Trish competently dealt with the business ably assisted by Janet. We were very pleased to welcome visitors, and to record the enrolment of several new members. Subs were paid. A recent fund raising stall held at the Big Breakfast and the Christmas dinner raised £200 for our depleted bank balance.

Apologies for absence included one from Verity, whose husband, Jim has some serious health problems, from Kath Franks who is making slow progress but who is hoping to rejoin us in the Spring. Betty Bowles recently celebrated her 90th birthday and is also hoping to rejoin us in the Spring. Congratulations Betty! We heard sad news from Wiviliscombe W I that Betty Knight had died but on a more positive note, Vicky, from Wilton Lodge has given birth to a baby girl, four weeks early but still weighing in at 8lbs 12oz. A thank you letter from Yeovil and District Support Group for Osteoporosis for the recent donation on £20 forwarded by November's speaker, Rosemary Leaf. Sally Walker is the new W.I. Rep. on the Village Hall committee.

Forthcoming events: 29th March: Bristol Hippodrome for Anton and Erin Week commencing 20th April: Oliver at the Strode Theatre Week commencing 27th April: Second Exotic Marigold Hotel 18th August: Trip to the Matthew in Bristol. Our Speaker, Martyn Steer spoke to us on Local Justice. Martyn spent 27 years in the RAF, having joined on leaving school, spending three years at college. Martyn travelled all over the U K, Germany, Cyprus, Libya, and had lunch with Gadalfi. In 27 years Martyn and his wife moved house 18 times and one day he decided he did not want to do it any more. He became a school bursar and on retirement, was persuaded by Gerry Castle to join the ranks of Magistrates and was taken on board in 2009. No further recruitment is taking place as the work load has reduced due to some matters being dealt with "out of court". Martyn warned us that the talk would not be a barrel of laughs but encouraged us to interrupt along the way to enlighten proceedings and he did admit there were times when he could manage a wry smile.

Local justice has been administered since 1361 in the days of Edward 111. 96% of crime committed in the country is dealt with locally and every case starts in a magistrates' court. Sentences are passed for people who plead

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guilty and trials are held for people pleading not guilty. Sentences can vary for what appears to be similar crimes when extenuating circumstances are taken into account. Many people attend court, Crown Prosecution Lawyers, Witness Support, - legal advisers, interpreters if deemed necessary - courts can become rather crowded. The main aim of sentencing is obviously punishment but this is tempered with the opportunities for rehabilitation and anger management courses. A question as to why some cases take so long to come to court, was due to the police and the Crown Prosecution Service not acting swiftly but it is hoped that, in the future, with the aid of modern technology, a great improvement will be seen . Family courts are civil proceedings and we were surprised magistrates have the power to remove a vulnerable child from its parents and place in foster care, although Martyn emphasised there is a great deal of expert advice from the appropriate parties. Members of the public are not allowed access to Family Courts. All of this gave us a great deal to think about - Martyn explained everything very well indeed, and answered our questions patiently. Patricia Heap thanked Martyn who donated his fee to his charity, Benchmark which raises funds for grants to youth projects.

The competition for a hand made Christmas decoration was won by Sally Walker and the Flower of the Month was won by Pat Maddaford with primroses. Spring cannot be far away. Next month's speaker Dawn Lawrence will speak on Endangered Species the competition is for a wild animal in any medium but nothing alive please!

Short Mat Bowls Club

Do come and have a go on a Monday or Tuesday evening, at 7.00 p.m.. We supply the bowls and the first three evenings are free. We currently have 3/4 vacancies for new members.

(Michael - 01458 442046)

Dundon Cider Co-operative

The annual village ‘Wassail’ took place at Frances and Alan Riley’s house in mid January. We enjoyed good food, drink and company

Hopefully we made enough noise to awaken the apple trees and scare away the evil spirits so that we can have a bountiful autumn harvest.

All villagers are very welcome to join the cider co-operative.

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The Herald Newsletter of St Andrew’s Church

Compton Dundon

Priest in Charge: The Reverend Sharon Walker; Tel: 01458 442297 or sharonannewalker@hotmail.com. However, any enquiries with regard to Baptisms, Weddings or Funerals should be directed to the Administrator, Barry Sutton on 272811; barry@sutton-family.org.uk

Church Officers Chairman of the PCC: Peter Robertson 840562

Church Wardens: Martyn Steer 273455 & Helen Thomas 274427 PCC Secretary: Pat King 274926 Treasurer: Margaret Sutton 272811 Organist: Roger Adams 272324 Administrator: Barry Sutton 272811

Church Services in the Benefice — February 2015 Residents of Compton Dundon are more than welcome at any of these services.

Date Time Service Location Leader Preacher

1st 08.00 Holy

Communion Parish Church David Hatrey David Hatrey

1st 09:30 Sunrise Parish Church Sarah Woodward Sarah Woodward

1st 10:00 Family

Worship Compton Dundon

David Hatrey David Hatrey

1st 10:00 Taize Walton Church

Diana Greenfield -

1st 10:30 Holy

Communion Mission Church Sharon Walker Sharon Walker

1st 16:00 Evening Worship Parish Church Jill Perryman Jill Perryman

1st 18:30 Refresh Mission Church The Knights -

4th 10:00 Midweek

Communion Mission Church - -

8th 10:00 Holy

Communion Compton Dundon

Stephen Lynas Stephen Lynas

8th 10:00 Family Service

Walton Church

Sharon Knight Sharon Knight

8th 10:30 Holy

Communion Parish Church David Hatrey David Hatrey

8th 10:30 Café Style Worship

Mission Church Annie

Wynter-Croft -

8th 18:30 Refresh Mission Church Suzie Williams .

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FLOODLIGHTING THE CHURCH

As you will have seen, the church has been floodlit over the Christmas period. For a

small donation, you too can have the floodlights lit, perhaps in memory of

someone dear or to celebrate a special day. Please contact Barry Sutton on 272811 for

further information.

Date Time Service Location Leader Preacher

11th 10;00 Midweek

Communion Mission Church

Sharon Walker Sharon Walker

15th 10:00 Holy

Communion Compton Dundon

Grant Welch Grant Welch

15th 10:00 Holy

Communion Walton Church

Stephen Lynas Stephen Lynas

15th 10:30 Morning Worship Parish Church

Sharon Walker Sharon Walker

15th 10:30 All Age Worship Mission Church

Jan James Jan James

15th 18.30 Refresh Mission Church

Polly Checkley Bob Miles

ASH WEDNESDAY

18th 10:00 Midweek

Communion Mission Church

Sharon Walker Sharon Walker

18th 19:00 Holy Communion Benefice Service

Compton Dundon

Sharon Walker Sharon Walker

STEWARDSHIP

22nd 10:00 Holy

Communion Compton Dundon

Wendy Griffith Wendy Griffith

22nd 10:00 Family Service

Walton Church

Sharon Knight Sharon Knight

22nd 10:30 Sung

Communion Parish Church

David Hatrey David Hatrey

22nd 10:30 Worship & Word Mission Church

Sharon Walker Jill Perryman

22nd 18:30 Refresh Mission Church

- -

25th 10:00 Midweek

Communion Mission Church

Sharon Walker Sharon Walker

1st March 10:00 Morning Prayer

Compton Dundon

David Hatrey David Hatrey

LENT COURSE Life on the Front Line

This year there will be a Benefice Lent Course which will take place at the Mission Church in Street, from 7-8.30 p.m. every Tuesday

for six weeks, starting on Tuesday 24th February.

All are welcome

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ST ANDREW’S - DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

Alpha Course: The Alpha Course, which hopes to answer many of our questions about the Christian Faith, takes place in the Meeting Room, Meadway Hall every Monday until 9th March, 12 noon—2 p.m. There is no need to come to every session. Led by Sharon Walker, it will last no longer than two hours and will include a simple soup lunch, a DVD and an opportunity to share your thoughts with others.

The Meadway Hall Our hall is a wonderful asset to the village. It is well used by villagers and it is admired by visitors. Last year our expenses were £21,518 and this was offset by our hall hire income of £21,909.

Thanks to the support of many villagers, an additional £8,072 was raised through fundraising. Of this money, the Glastonbury Festival crew donated nearly £4,000, the village lunch team raised £1,447 and the rest came through the bingo nights, quiz nights and the 100 club.

The maintenance of the village hall is an expensive business and we need your help in order to carry out our responsibilities. Please will you consider joining the Village Hall Committee or offer your help/support at future village hall events. (Contact Janet - 272877 or Julie - 272135)

This year we will be carrying out repairs and decorating both the interior and exterior of the hall and in addition we need to purchase 200 chairs to provide more comfortable seating for the hall users.

12th March Brookside School Mothering Service

15th March Mothering Sunday service at St Andrew’s, led by the Rev’d Grant Welch

26th April The Annual Parochial Church Meeting after the Church Service, followed by a shared lunch.

7th June Dedication of the new vestments

13th June Village Hog Roast

5th July Pets and Pastries Service

27th September Village Harvest Lunch

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Parish Council Members

Cllr Greg Jones (Chairman) 272531 greg@mor-cott.co.uk Cllr Hugh Thomas (Vice Chair) 274427 hughthomascdpc@gmail.com Cllr Diana Churches 442078 diane.churches@live.co.uk Cllr Graham Napper 442962 Cllr Irene Parsons 273071 irene.parsons123@googlemail.com Cllr John Rowland 272367 Cllr Sue Solle 445770 carlsolle@talktalk.net

The Parish Council Clerk: Stanislaw Berkieta FCSI, Castlebrook House,

Compton Dundon, Somerton, TA11 6PR. Tel 01458 8921

Email comptondundonclerk@gmail.com

Website: www.comptondundon-pc.gov.uk

Planning Applications Received

Application No: 14/05708/FUL Status: Pending Consideration Location: Red Lake Farm, Littleton Proposal: Erection of 3 fisherman lodges and conversion of existing storeroom to farmshop/reception. Application No : 14/04863/OUT Status: Pending Consideration Location: Compton Randle, Castlebrook Proposal: Outline application for the Erection of single storey dwelling in Garden of Compton Randle.

Planning Decisions

Application No: 14/05162/FUL Status: Permitted with conditions Location: Linden Lee, Hayes Road Proposal: Erection of extension to dwelling.

Application: 14/05162/FUL Status: Application Refused Location: Land adjoining Keepers Cottage, Ham Lane Proposal: Erection of a dwelling house (Revised application)

Application: 14/04987/PAMB Status: Application Withdrawn Location: Lower Hurst Farm, Hurst Drove Proposal: Prior approval for change of agricultural building to dwelling house. Application: 14/04975/PAMB Status: Application Refused Location: Land OS 7314 Street Road Proposal: Prior approval for change of use of covered cattle yard into residential.

Application: 14/04971/PAMB Status: Application Refused Location: Beacon Bottom, Peak Lane Proposal: Prior approval for change of use of agricultural storage building to dwelling.

Election Reminder

Please remember to register to be on the electoral roll for the forth-coming elections on 7th May 2015.

To add your name you can click on www.gov.uk/registertovote or you can telephone for a form on 01935 462462 or you can email elections@southsomerset.gov.uk

Are you interested in becoming a volunteer driver, providing transport for the residents of our village?

(Please contact Hugh — 01458 274427)

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Community Car Scheme South Somerset Links 01458 250169

South Somerset Links operate five vehicles, driven by paid and volunteer drivers. They are self-funding and have to finance the cost of the cars, insurance, maintenance as well as the staff and office costs. All of the vehicles have been specially adapted to carry wheelchairs.

WHO CAN USE THIS SERVICE? Anyone who is unable to access normal bus or taxi services in their locality can use this scheme. This includes people who are isolated due to financial constraints. The catchment area for this scheme is based around Somer-ton and Langport. However, if a request is made for transport outside of this area, and transport is available, we will endeavour to assist you.

HOW MUCH DOES THIS SERVICE COST? The scheme is run on a not for profit basis, however, there are set rates and these are available from the office at the time of booking. We are able to accept South Somerset Travel passes or Bus Passes towards the cost of your journey. Please ask for the current subsidy when making your booking.

HOW DO I MAKE A BOOKING? Please telephone our office in Langport on 01458 250169. The office is open from 9.30a.m. until 12.30 p.m. each weekday morning. Please leave a message at all other times and we will ring you back. However, we always try to accommodate any emergency trips. As we have regular trips each day we need as much notice as you can give us to make a booking. (Martin Hawkins)

Village Lunches

The village lunches are all at 12.30 p.m. on the final Wednesday of each month. To book a meal, please contact either:

Ally Dore 445463 (allydore@btinternet.com) or Pauline Atkins 272485 paulineatkins1944@gmail.com)

Please note the Village lunch dates - for your diaries:

25th February, 25th March, 29th April

27th May, 24th June, 29th July

Compton Dundon Golf Society There has been an excellent response to the suggestion that the village forms a golf society to play friendly, social and competitive golf. We will play on either the 2nd or 3rd Wednesday in the month depending upon the availability at the courses. If you are interested in joining, please contact Ian (448873), Chris (272596) or Richard (445977) for more information.