Community, Parish Council & Village
The Methodist Church is holding a special Coffee Morning on Saturday July 2 from 10.00 to 12.00 in the Methodist Church Hall. They are raising funds with coffee, cake, books & stalls, for the Methodist Church children’s’ charity, Action for Children, which runs a wide range of activities and projects to support families and children in the UK. Continue reading “Action for Children”
Local Knitting Club, Knit One Down One, who regularly meet in the White Hart, were the featured knitting club in the recent edition of Simply Knitting. One of the founders, Julie Bennett, was already running an after-school sewing club (Sewcool) when she had the idea of an adults knitting club, another member, Kate Cornes, joked: Continue reading “Knit One Down One Featured”
After a well-earned summer break the band start their autumn events with an open rehearsal for brass and woodwind players on Friday September 18th at Heathlands. This is a great opportunity for anyone who fancies giving the band a try to come along for the first time, alongside other new starters, to see what playing in a band is all about. Our Autumn 2015 programme is themed around “Stage and Screen” and will include music ranging from Miss Saigon, Grease and Wicked through to Rocky, Gabriel’s Oboe and The Blues Brothers. The majority of this term’s music is brand new, so we’ll all be trying the music for the first time together. After that we’ll be performing another of our popular workshops with local primary schools on October 10th, and a secondary schools workshop and concert on November 14th at Philip Morant school. 2015 marks 25 years since the band’s founder suddenly passed away, so it’s appropriate that we’re performing a concert at a school whose concert hall still contains a plaque commemorating the affection in which he was held.
The band’s summer activities marked a milestone for our current conductor, with our concert at Marks Hall marking the 100th concert he has conducted as sole conductor, although that didn’t prevent him from leaving his baton in his car at the start, or prevent him from missing the significance of the concert. Having decided not to risk the showers which were threatened but never arrived, the band performed a programme of recent favourites ranging from Mancini & John Williams through to Bon Jovi and Joseph inside a lovely atmospheric barn, which contributed to the relaxed atmosphere of the event. Shortly after that we returned to Coggeshall’s St Peter ad Vincula Church for a wonderful concert featuring music from Rachmaninov and Gershwin through to James Horner and Les Miserables, with the concert highlights including a new percussion heavy arrangement of Africa by Toto, and the audience demanding an encore of our Neil Diamond medley.
The band continues to raise thousands of pounds for charities, and have a fully booked calendar for 2016. We also continue to welcome players of all ages and joining couldn’t be easier – there’s no audition, you can just pop along any Friday evening, and you don’t have to make every week. We remain a fun and friendly bunch who help each other out, especially when the notes get tricky. Everything you need to know about the band (including details of all our events and how to join us) is on our website, or you can call Graham on 01206 824157.
Rural Community Council of Essex (RCCE) is a leading charity working in Essex for over 85 years. We provide assistance to people and communities throughout rural Essex to build a sustainable future
RCCE is looking for a new Rural Housing Enabler to help rural communities in Essex provide the housing they need.
You will promote and advise on affordable rural housing, working with parish councils, registered providers and local authorities to achieve this. You will attend community events, deliver presentations at parish council meetings and undertake housing needs surveys.
You will also have the opportunity to work on other community engagement projects that include wider housing and development priorities or needs.
You will be a confident communicator, able to prioritise and problem solve and be enthusiastic about rural communities, especially in terms of affordable housing. This role will require flexibility, as it involves some out of hours working. We are particularly interested in hearing from applicants that have experience of affordable rural housing or planning/development.
Contact: Sarah Sapsford (Community Engagement Manager) – 01376 574 330, [antibot mailto=”[email protected]”] or www.essexrcc.org.uk.
RCCE registered charity no 1097009 Registered company no 4609624
To apply you must complete an application form and an equality monitoring form, which can be downloaded from RCCE’s website: www.essexrcc.org.uk/Working_for_us or can be provided by contacting us (see above).
For any queries relating to the posts or application process, or informal discussion please call 01376 574 330.
Open Gardens 2015In previous years West Bergholt Gardeners have opened their gardens to the public in aid of charity, most recently in 2014 where well over £3,000 was raised for teenage cancer charities. This year the organizers are taking a break, hopefully to be back reinvigorated next year, but for those still hoping to visit local gardens and get some ideas, we have recently received details of another similar event:
This year Coggeshall is opening its garden gates so that you can visit walled gardens, kitchen gardens, tiny gardens, gardens that will delight and inspire you. There’s lots to do and see for young and old alike. Follow the children’s trail, visit the plant stall, enjoy a delicious home-made tea – a perfect afternoon out for the whole family! For more information visit the website at www.coggeshallopengardens.org.
There are some 23 Villages/Parishes running Open Gardens in Essex this year, a small sample includes some relatively local:
There are more listed at the Open Gardens website.
Reach new heights with the EACH Colchester AbseilOn the 22nd March 2015, the East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices (EACH) are holding their fourth Colchester Abseil at The Town Hall.
The abseil will be an exhilarating 100ft descent and will give participants a birds eye view of the high street. The abseil is being managed by Creation Climbing Centre and there are up to 60 places are available.
Last year over 50 adults took to the challenge raising a fantastic £6,500 for EACH! The money raised helps care for children and young people with life-threatening conditions and supports their families. Last year, EACH helped 572 families, many of whom live in Essex.
To find out more about this fantastic event and to sign up, go to www.each.org.uk/colchesterabseil or call 01206 848450.
From babies to young people up to the age of 18, EACH supports families, children and young people living with life-threatening conditions across Cambridgeshire, Essex, Norfolk and Suffolk from diagnosis to end-of-life and throughout bereavement. They do this through a range of services delivered where the family wish – in their own home, at hospital, in the community or at one of their three hospices in Milton, Ipswich and Quidenham.
Care at end of life isn’t the only service EACH provides though; many children and young people who use their services are extremely active but need additional support and care. A child might receive the support of a play specialist to give them access to appropriate play activities helping them grow in confidence and aid their physical and mental wellbeing, enjoy sensory rooms at the hospices, have music therapy sessions to offer the opportunity to interact, communicate and express themselves or sessions in the therapeutic hydrotherapy pool.
Their support stretches further than the young person to include families, they know the stresses and strains living with a life-threatening illness can place on all the family. EACH runs special family events where families can meet others in similar situations to them, sibling days always full of smiles and laughter and spiritual care.
As last year, the Methodist Church in West Bergholt organised their annual house-to-house collection for “Action for Children” (formerly National Childrens Homes) , the Methodist children’s charity. Last year they nearly reached £1,000 (£934.79 to be precise), and whilst they would have dearly loved to break that barrier this year, once again they missed out by a small amount raising £930.19, which is very similar to last years. This was achieved despite the fact that the shortage of collectors this year meant they were not able to cover as much of the village as they had done in previous years, as one of the organizers commented:
This is a very worthwhile contribution to the important work of Action for Children. Thanks to all who supported and particularly to the small band of collectors. We did not break the £1,000 barrier this year but maybe next year!
Action for Children is a national charity founded over 140 years ago. It is dedicated to supporting and speaking out for the UK’s most vulnerable and neglected children and young people, for as long as it takes to make a difference in their lives… In short they:
Their vision is:
For a world where all children and young people have a sense of belonging and are loved and valued. A world where they can break through injustice, deprivation and inequality to fulfil their potential, shape their own destiny and experience the joy of life.
West Bergholt Care NetworkThe following update has been received from The Care Network:
For over twenty-five years The Care Network has operated in the village to help residents with transport to medical and other important appointments. Throughout this time we have relied on a system of telephone contacts, one for each day of the week, who arrange the transport. In some cases the same ladies have been involved for most of this time.
During this period technology has moved on apace and we are now able to offer what it is hoped will be an improved service. We now have a single contact number which will hopefully be easier for users to retain. The same contacts will have the calls transferred to them on their respective days and will arrange the transport. One bonus is that if a particular contact is not available the call will transfer to the next day’s contact thus eliminating the need for the user to dial again.
If you live in the village and need help with transport for a medical or important appointment please contact us on
0300 777 3100
Calls are charged at local land line rates
If you feel able to volunteer and offer some time as a driver please contact Harry Stone on 241026.
As last year, the Methodist Church in West Bergholt are organising their annual house-to-house collection for “Action for Children” (formerly National Childrens Homes) , the Methodist children’s charity, from 1st to 13th September. Last year they nearly reached £1,000 (£934.79 to be precise), and would dearly love to break that barrier this year. To help them make this, they would be delighted to have some more helpers to do rounds, so they can cover as much of the village as possible. If you can help, even for only a small round, please contact Sylvia Wilks, 76, Mumford Road (01206 242511) as soon as possible.
Action for Children is a national charity founded over 140 years ago. It is dedicated to supporting and speaking out for the UK’s most vulnerable and neglected children and young people, for as long as it takes to make a difference in their lives… In short they:
Their vision is:
For a world where all children and young people have a sense of belonging and are loved and valued. A world where they can break through injustice, deprivation and inequality to fulfil their potential, shape their own destiny and experience the joy of life.
Sunday 22nd June was a glorious day. The sun shone and over 400 people turned out to visit 13 open gardens and the allotments in West Bergholt. Apart from the beautiful gardens, some small, some large, there were donkeys to feed, a vintage Jaguar to admire and a 1960’s jukebox to listen to. The church halls laid on refreshments, as did Garlands Farm. Plants and other produce were on sale at the allotments and some gardens.
The event, organised by the West Bergholt Gardening Association, raised over £3,000 for the Teenage Cancer Trust. In addition Tom Bowdidge’s family raised over £400 for the Tom Bowdidge Foundation at his grandparents open garden. To find out more about these charities visit www.teenagecancertrust.org or www.facebook.com/thetombowdidgefoundation.
The event drew visitors from other villages and even from far flung places such as Ipswich (a charabanc full from their allotment society!) and Leigh-on-Sea. The organisers would like to thank everyone who took part including the visitors. They welcome comments, both positive and negative, please send to [email protected].
The Association are looking to make this an Annual Event . Watch this space!!!
The club’s next meeting will be on the 15th September when DEBORAH HART will give a talk on Hanging Baskets and Winter Containers. 7.00 for 7.30pm. Why not come along to the Orpen Hall, all are welcome. There is a small charge of £3 including refreshments , also gardeners raffle.