Your Invitation to join us for a Service of Thanksgiving Sunday 10 March 2024 at 6.00 pm
Sherborne Abbey, Dorset
A special occasion to mark the RNLI’s 200th Anniversary
By kind permission of the Reverend Martin Lee
Rector Sherborne Abbey
Join us for a Service of Thanksgiving | RNLI | Sherborne Abbey
Milborne St Andrew and Weatherby Castle | 6 mile Dorset Walk
Admittedly, these are slightly underwhelming pictures for what is, I promise, a really lovely couple of hours walking!
To follow this route using the Outdooractive App, please find the route here.
Our first walk of the new year was such a peaceful one, full of wide open skies and big views, and despite the threatening gloom of the grey weather it stayed dry enough for a picnic (is it even a winter walk if you’re not perched under a hedge out of the wind eating a slightly-squooshed sandwich?).
The secret of the towering obelisk from 1761 in the middle of the densely wooded Weatherby Castle hillfort was fascinating – it can surely only ever be seen by surprised walkers.
The majority of the route is on bridleways, but even the footpath sections are broad and easily followed.
It is easy going all the way round, with no big hills, and despite walking it in early January it wasn’t too muddy at all. Except for the one field below. This si looking back the way we have just come, and it was flooded through the central dip, right across the valley. The only way out was through … it wasn’t impassable, but some rather sploshy trotting was involved!
People encountered – zero, except for passing the garden of one lady off to feed her chickens!
See all previously-published Dorset Walks by The BV here. You can also find every route we’ve walked (including many which are unpublished in The BV) on OutdoorActive here (just zoom in/out on the map) – all include a downloadable gpx file.
The epic walk and the Cambridge graduate plumber
In the second of this month’s episodes, we hear from the Dorset woman who is currently halfway through her year-long walk right around the coast of Great Britain, and editor Laura Hitchcock sits down with Sturminster Newton’s Robert Cowley as he chooses the records he could not live without.
- Claire Allen’s Epic Walk: ‘I’m surprised I’m still here!’ Terry briefly interrupts Claire’s year-long journey walking Britain’s entire coastline to find out how she started, where she is – and how it’s going
- MP Chris Loder confronts the Post Office’s leadership, offering unwavering commitment to the Horizon scandal victims
- He graduated from Cambridge and, to his father’s consternation, went straight into the family plumbing business. Robert Cowley, MBE – magistrate, volunteer and plumber – talks to editor Laura as he selects his Dorset Island Discs
Fasting –Yes or No?
From ancient tradition to modern health strategy – expert Karen Geary looks at the science and her personal journey with fasting
In 2012, Michael Mosley popularised the 5:2 fasting diet (5 days normal eating, 2 days very low calorie). Mosley’s approach was based on research conducted into Alternate Day Fasting (ADF), and as a consequence fasting, or time-restricted eating (eating in a defined time period each day), became much more prominent.
For my entire adult life, I have tried every fasting practice; from short 14-hour overnight fasts to several days of water-only fasting. Over the years I have changed my views on fasting and what works. These are my insights into fasting well.
First, a note of caution. Fasting will vary according to individual health conditions and may not be right for everyone. Always consult a healthcare professional before starting fasting if you have a medical condition, or are unsure. Pregnant or breastfeeding women, those with eating disorders or medical conditions should avoid fasting.
Why fast?
Fasting is an ancient practice with a long history in different cultures. Today there are many approaches to time-restricted eating, each purporting benefits such as weight loss and broader benefits such as improved lipid levels, lowered blood pressure, improved mental health and remission of type 2 diabetes.
Fasting can be a powerful tool for accomplishing health-related goals. For weight loss, you naturally eat less calories. People who struggle to spread their calories during the day find it helpful to restrict intake to a specific period eg a later breakfast or skipping an evening meal. Insulin reduces because there is no or less calorie intake, which – given time and consistency – helps reduce blood sugar and improves lipid levels. Lowered blood pressure and improved liver markers are common. Potential mental health benefits and cognitive impacts of fasting are emerging – recent research has shown potential effects on brain health and mental clarity.
What the science says
Scientific literature on fasting is still evolving. I first researched it in 2015, and back then most of the research was on mice or young males.
The original 16/8 model (16 hours fasting, eight hours feeding) came from a study using mice – but it’s not exactly a valid comparison. A 16/8 fast for a mouse is the equivalent of several days fasting for humans!
There was less research on the elderly, women and post-menopausal women due to hormonal complexities, but more is becoming available. Even now, some research is not solid or has contradictory results, needing more studies using diverse populations. There is emerging research on fasting during chemotherapy, which I’m monitoring with interest.
Longevity is often associated with fasting – some claims are overstated but again there is always new research which I keep up to date with. .
The best way I judge the success of different fasting methodologies is to combine what the research says with my observations in clinic with clients. The sweet spot is finding the best approach for an individual, and not just sticking slavishly to the latest approach or trend. It must work around lifestyle and what can be achieved consistently.
- Things I have learned:
- Long term fasts (eg three day water fasts) can make you feel unwell and can contribute to lost muscle mass from lowered protein intake. I’ve yet to be convinced of the benefits vs. the misery inflicted.
- It is hard (but not impossible), to hit a protein target on a 5:2 or ADF-style approach. This may affect muscle mass over the longer term.
- A time-restricted eating window (eg 16/8 or 20/4) gives discipline and structure to those trying to manage their hunger and calories; in particular late night snacking.
- Hypocaloric fasting – a very low calorie diet (like the 800 calories-a-day diet created by Michael Mosley, or the Fasting Mimicking Diet created by Valter Longo) – is not a true fast, but does help take away hunger pangs. If you are not metabolically healthy, it’s a great option, but the trade-off is likely lower muscle mass, so not something to do long term.
- Fasting during the week preceding a menstrual cycle may exacerbate symptoms such as mood swings and cravings, so is probably best avoided or limited to a shorter window.
- Key tips for fasters
- Stay hydrated, and prioritise protein and plants during eating windows/non fast days.
- Circadian rhythm fasting aligns eating patterns with the body’s natural cycle, emphasising earlier eating and a longer overnight fast. By syncing with the body clock it may improve digestion, sleep and weight management.
- Begin gradually, shifting meal times earlier in the day and extending the fasting period. Start with a 12-hour fasting window and gradually increase it to 14-16 hours, allowing your body to adapt. Try to maintain a consistent eating schedule, as irregular eating patterns can disrupt the body’s circadian rhythm. Consistency helps regulate hunger cues and supports better metabolic function.
- When breaking a longer fast, start with something light, perhaps a few nuts and fruit, before eating a large meal. Incorporate plenty of fruits, veggies, lean proteins and healthy fats.
- On non-fasting days, don’t eat between meals, leaving 4-5 hours between eating. Three meals a day with no snacks sounds dull, but it avoids compromising any benefits of fasting.
- Prioritise exercise, especially resistance exercise in order to maintain muscle.
- Fasting with a friend (sounds like a wonderful chat-up line – Ed) is scientifically more successful.
- Try apps like Zero or Fastic to help keep on track with your fasting. They provide excellent educational content and have great reminders.
Senior Nurse Manager | Milton Abbey School
Term Time Only
The opportunity has arisen for a warm and welcoming Senior Nurse Manager to join our team from the start of the summer term 2024. The Health Centre provides high quality nursing care 24 hours per day, 7 days per week for pupils during term time.
Our Senior Nurse Manager will be RN qualified, and applicants should have a minimum of 5 years post-qualification experience preferably with A&E or minor injury, coupled with good clinical knowledge and strong management experience. Enthusiasm and a keen interest in adolescent health are also essential. The appointment will be for 40 hours a week, 34 weeks per year and may include On Call night duties.
The role is both diverse and rewarding and applicants should be confident to work autonomously and keen to support the team of nurses and the young people in their care. Previous experience of working in a school environment would be an advantage.
You will be part of a friendly and supportive team, and training will be available to enhance skills. Staff also benefit from free parking and free refreshments and a three-course hot lunch during term time.
Further details may be obtained from our website or from HR on 01258 882306 or email [email protected]. Applications must be submitted on the school’sapplication form. The closing date for applications is Friday 9th February 2024
Please note that we are not accepting applications for this position through any employment agency and all applications should be made direct to the school.
Milton Abbey School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. The appointment will be the subject of an enhanced disclosure from the Disclosure and Barring Service. Additionally, please be aware that Milton AbbeySchool will conduct online searches of shortlisted candidates. This check will be part of a safeguarding check, and the search will purely be based on whether an individual is suitable to work with children. To avoid unconscious bias and any risk of discrimination a person who will not be on the appointment panel will conduct the search and will only share information if and when findings are relevant and of concern.
Please note that our school is a no smoking site.
www.miltonabbey.co.uk Registered Charity No 306318
The winter work has just begun
Winter habitat management on the DWT’s reserves is under way, enhancing the ecology and supporting endangered dormice, butterflies and newts
Image: Chris Gomersall 2020VISION
While summer may be the time for ‘making hay while the sun shines’, the dormant winter season is when the dramatic habitat management on Dorset Wildlife Trust’s nature reserves takes place. Darker damper days see the tough work of coppicing and hedge laying and the scrub and pond management. This month, Dorset Wildlife Trust (DWT) reserves manager Neil Gibson and reserves ecologist Steve Masters give BV readers an insight into their vital winter season work.
Hedge laying
Nature reserves: South Poorton, Bracketts Coppice, Kingcombe Meadows
Target species: dormice, yellowhammer
The traditional method of hedge laying (or plashing) has long been in existence to maintain hedges as dense barriers for livestock – but it also prolongs the longevity of a hedge. Over time, hedges can require rejuvenation; they develop gaps, become top heavy and no longer provide good shelter. They can also spread out and suppress flower-rich grassland.
The maintenance process entails cutting back the vegetation but selecting the best stems or pleachers to partially sever at the base, leaving some living tissue. Those are then bent over and laid down onto the earth or the previous laid stem. Once intertwined to hold in place, what remains is a thick, living hedge, which will provide cover for nesting and roosting animals and birds. Products resulting from hedge laying include firewood and flexible rods for hurdle and fence construction.
Scrub management
Nature reserves: Fontmell Down, Powerstock Common, Townsend, Upton Heath
Target species: insects (especially butterflies), wildflowers
In simple terms, scrub can mean anything from scattered bushes to closed canopy vegetation. On DWT nature reserves, it tends to be a mix of smaller woody shrubs, such as hawthorn, blackthorn, dogwood and hazel, encroaching onto a species-rich grassland. Scrub is a valuable habitat in itself – providing shelter and nesting sites for a wide variety of wildlife. Generally, the aim is to manage the scrub to provide a range of ages of shrubs, rather than eradicating it. Many DWT reserves are internationally important for their grassland, so we must strike a balance between the two.
A good example is Fontmell Down, a chalk grassland with a vast array of flowers, including ten species of orchid – plus, of course, the many animals (especially butterflies and other insects) that rely on them. Scrub constantly grows, so, if not kept in check, this habitat would eventually be lost.
Grazing animals can help, but other management methods include volunteers with hand tools, staff or contractors with chainsaws – and very occasionally big machinery when appropriate. Often, valued nature reserve habitats need intervention to keep them in top condition for the wildlife they support. These interventions often replicate the conditions of the past, which may have been due to human activity or or now-extinct large animals.
Scrapes
Nature reserves: Winfrith and Tadnoll Heath, Sopley Common
Target species: heath tiger beetle, scarce blue-tailed damselfly, pillwort, marsh clubmoss, heath sand wasp, sand lizard
Wet scrapes are shallow ponds that hold rain and flood water seasonally and remain damp for much of the year. They are created by digging into the soil and they work better with uneven edges and varying depth. These often-overlooked habitats are important across our nature reserves. There are a variety of species, especially some very rare invertebrates and plants, which depend on these areas.
We create dry scrapes on heathland, for example, by scraping off shrubby ericaceous growth, while digging down to expose sandy soils beneath. The excavated matter is banked up to form a south-facing mound, with a sandy face. This helps to ensure that plenty of consistent bare-ground habitat is available for wildlife across the site.
Wet scrapes can benefit plants, birds, and more wildlife. For these, we create areas with shallow water grading through to muddy edges. These habitats are often created by ‘re-scraping’ existing scrapes as they become vegetated – sometimes all it needs is a bit of ‘roughing up’!
Ponds
Nature reserves: Powerstock Common, Kingcombe Meadows
Target species: great crested newt
Ponds are a habitat that often needs attention to ensure they do not become inhospitable for species which depend on some open water. Sometimes, donning waders and hand tools is just not enough, and the job calls for bigger machines.
Winter is the optimal time for this – species such as newts are away from the ponds on land. It is crucial for some ponds to maintain deeper open water. This allows the pond wildlife to disappear into the depths for safety.
Tougher plants and sediment can be removed easily with a digger, ensuring that work doesn’t need to be carried out again for years to come and the pond will gradually re-vegetate. Where possible, we also try to expand the network of ponds available on a nature reserve by creating new ones. This is beneficial, as ponds at various stages of succession provide a habitat for a wider variety of wildlife.
- Visit our website to plan a trip to a Dorset Wildlife Trust nature reserve where you can see first-hand how our winter management work benefits wildlife
dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk
Buckle, Graham
Formerly of Hampreston for 20 years, and moved away to be closer to family.
Passed peacefully away on 10th January at home in Croxteth, surrounded by his family
The funeral has already taken place, but the family ask that if you knew Graham and wish to make a donation in his memory, please give to the British Heart Foundation.
Peldry, Jean
24/07/39 – 12/01/24
Formerly of Shaftesbury
Gone home to be with her beloved Peter.
Missed and eternally loved by Simon, Margaret, Chris, Steven, Michael, Jeff, Alana, Maisy and Timothy xx
Smash those garden goals!
New year, new developments at Thorngrove: January sees the unveiling of the renovated cafe and a host of garden plans and events
2024 is in full swing and we’re not slowing down here at Thorngrove in Gillingham. The garden centre reopened on 3rd Jan, but regular followers may have noticed the café remains closed. Fear not! It’s only for a short while longer as the café undergoes some exciting refurbishments of kitchen facilities and out front of house.
Ben, manager of The Secret Garden Café, had this to say about the upcoming reopening. ‘The team and I have welcomed returning customers, and seen many new faces through 2023, and during that time we always receive lots of fantastic feedback. Our vision is to increase what the café offers, while continuing to provide a relaxing, inviting, and hassle-free setting to catch-up with friends and enjoy our diverse menu. We believe we offer something unique to the area and we can’t wait to welcome people back through the doors of the café when we reopen on Monday 15th January with new changes, and of course, a new menu.’
Be sure to stop by after the 15th to sample the new menu. We look forward to showing off the hard work that’s been happening behind the scenes!
Our café will also continue to function as an environment for our Employ My Ability (EMA) students to gain valuable work experience in a real-world setting. Across EMA, we’re all very excited by the updates coming to the café.
If you stop by this year and enjoy your visit – please do consider dropping us a five star review on Google. In today’s world of online shop windows, it really helps, possibly more than you’d imagine!
Garden plans
Have you set your garden goals for 2024? It’s that time of year when many of us make plans and set our New Year resolutions – but even while much of your garden is lying dormant, you can take this opportunity to sketch out some new ideas and goals for your garden this year. Even if it’s just ‘add a new flower’. Perhaps a fruit tree, or making sure your tools are clean … and of course don’t neglect the wildlife! We have a wonderful range of birdfeeders and bird food that will ensure the promotion of a healthy environment. Nothing beats the sight of a returning robin or the noisy tsurping of a large group of long tailed tits arriving. Make your garden a haven for the birds – across the garden centre, our beautiful selection of seasonal plants are on hand to bring some vibrancy to your home or garden this winter.
With a few January sales in the shop (25% off all houseplants, and 50% off all Christmas decorations), there’s plenty of reasons to stop by and see us this month. Our events calendar continues to grow – visit our website today and check out the ‘Events’ section for news on workshops, crafts for children and more.
We wish everyone a brilliant 2024 ahead, and we look forward to seeing you soon!
- thorngrovegardencentre.co.uk
