SHERBORNE SCHOOLS’ CHORAL SOCIETY – Mendelssohn’s ELIJAH
SHERBORNE ABBEY
Wednesday 8 February 2023 at 7.30pm
Tickets £15, £12, £10. Scan the QR code in the advert to book online
I: 01935 812249
E: [email protected]
Sarah-]ane Morris – Soprano
Andrew Morris – Tenor
Susan Legg – Alto
Peter Grevatt – Bass-Baritone
Dan Marks – Conductor
Employ My Ability offers vocational training for students with learning disabilities and special educational needs and disabilities. One of their students, Maddie Walters, spent her last term working on her journalism skills with the aim of writing a column for us. – Ed
Hello everyone and Happy New Year! For this month’s article I’m going to share an event that happened at Thorngrove Garden Centre and how the magical Fairy Tale Forest came to be.
Every Thursday in December both education students and day service users at Thorngrove Garden Centre worked behind the scenes with Angel Exit Theatre, a Dorset-based theatre company that creates interactive events, to make a fairy tale forest come to life. The staff and students enjoyed the music and drama, they loved pretending to be the animals and they also loved learning the songs that were included in the production. The poly-tunnel was decorated with trees and snow and there was a huge gingerbread house where Mary Godmother lived. It gave the children who have visited a magical experience with festive activities that they enjoyed.
The team and I were interviewed by BBC Radio Solent and talked about how Angel Exit Theatre came about and what was my favourite bit about this event (my favourite bit was the workshops we did before the production!).
During the event I spoke to people as they exited, asking questions like “Did they enjoy the Fairy Tale Forest?” “Did they meet Mary Godmother”? and “What was your favourite bit?”. All the feedback was great!
Everyone really enjoyed the Fairy Tale Forest, and I hope we can do it again next Christmas!
If you are interested in learning more you can visit The Angel Exit website and see lots of photos for this event on the Angel Exit Theatre Facebook page.
Enthusiastically starting veganuary will often start well but swiftly falter on the know-how, says nutritional therapist Karen Geary
As we’re slightly later this month, I’m hoping to catch you at the stage where you enthusiastically began your ‘veganuary’ month and now the motivation is waning (or you still want to do it but don’t know how to start!).
With a bit of planning, plant-based diets can provide all the right nutrients. I actually used to be vegan myself, and my most creative time in the kitchen still comes from preparing meals that are plant-heavy.
Balancing your plate
A plant-based meal should always consist of a protein, a healthy fat, a carbohydrate and four to five different types of vegetables of different colours in order to access plenty of fibre and micro-nutrients.
This month, try to widen the variety of fruit and veg you eat in a week. A great goal is 30 different types of plants. Go shopping at the end of the day and try some of the veg that supermarkets sell off at half price. Remember, you can count herbs and spices in the 30!
Protein
Without meat, your protein sources include beans, lentils, tofu, chick peas, peanuts, tempeh, seitan, nut butters, quorn, protein powders such as hemp and pea, plus all the nuts and seeds.
Carbohydrates
You need one portion of these – pick from potatoes, sweet potatoes, whole grains such as rice, wheat, buckwheat, quinoa or oats. All fruit and veg count, and don’t forget these don’t have to be fresh! Frozen, tinned or dried all work.
Fats
Try using flax (a good source of omega 3) or avocado oils as well as olive oil.
When to supplement
As a vegan, it can be very difficult to get vitamin D, vitamin B12 and iodine from food sources alone. The quality of sources can be highly variable and/or they are not in the correct form needed to be absorbed in sufficient quantities. Supplements are recommended for vegans (and there are plenty suitable for vegans), but it is better to get tested before supplementing in order that the right amount is taken.
But what do I eat?
Please don’t be a junk food vegan! Living on vegan sausage rolls for the month is not what I would call a healthy diet. I once counted the number of ingredients in a well known supermarket vegan pizza – there were 98! And the majority of them I didn’t recognise. Get in the kitchen and keep it simple:
Breakfast
Plain soy or coconut yogurt, some stewed apple, topped with nuts and seeds.
Or scrambled tofu on toast. Add a bit of turmeric so it looks like eggs and stir fry a few tomatoes and peppers in it, or enjoy with a side of avocado or kimchi.
Or some simple porridge topped with nut butter, berries, and maybe some molasses for sweetness.
Lunches and dinners
Minestrone soup is a great option, and you can make a big batch as it will keep in the fridge for days.
Sauté onion, carrots and celery in a little oil until soft. Add veg stock, herbs, a tin of tomatoes, a tin of beans (e.g. butter or cannellini) or chickpeas, some shredded cabbage, a small handful of rice and season. Serve when the rice is cooked through.
Oven traybakes such as sliced sweet potato with cannellini beans cooked in coconut milk spiced up with ginger and chilli, topped with breadcrumbs.
Curries such as red lentil – we’ve shared this lentil dhal before. It’s a tasty one-pot Indian dhal curry that’s ready in just 25 minutes. With red lentils, coconut milk, and simple spices, it’s a protein-packed, creamy and delicious meal.
Find more recipes on my Instagram, Facebook, and a free seven-day plan can be downloaded from my website.
A local expert from Citizen’s Advice provides timely tips on consumer issues.
Q: “As the weather has turned colder, I’ve noticed mould and damp in our flat. It’s mainly in our bedroom, including some black mould on the carpet. I’ve been chasing our letting agents, who say they’ll speak to our landlord. I’m really worried about how this might affect our health. Our tenancy agreement isn’t up for eight months. Is there anything else I can do?”
A: “It’s good that you’ve already raised the issue with your letting agency. Unfortunately, it isn’t always easy to work out the cause of mould or damp, which can make it difficult to establish who is responsible, unless there’s an obvious cause, like a leaking roof. There is information on our website that may help you work out what type of damp you have, who is responsible for fixing the problem and what you can do. Check your tenancy agreement for mentions of repairs and damp, and contact Citizens Advice on anything you’re unsure about. A landlord will have to act in relation to damp if it makes the property unsafe for someone to live in or if it is making the tenant or a member of their family ill.
The landlord will be responsible if the damp is related to property maintenance or to repairs they should have carried out, for example if gutters are broken or pipes are leaking. If the damp has damaged items for which the landlord is responsible for, such as carpets and window frames, they’ll likely have to cover the cost of repairs.
Making it worse
One of the most common causes of damp is condensation. To prevent this, it’s important to keep homes well-heated and well-ventilated, but for a lot of people this will be trickier to do given the colder weather and higher heating costs. You may be eligible for help to insulate and heat your home, and should visit our website to find out more. We also have advice on things that can make damp worse and may prevent the landlord taking responsibility for repairs. These include drying clothes on heaters or blocking air vents.
If your landlord is responsible for the damp in your property but doesn’t act, there are steps you can take, such as reporting them to the local authority. If you’re in social housing, you might also be able to use the landlord’s formal complaints procedure. There is more information about this on our website. If it reaches the point where you want to get out of a fixed-term tenancy agreement early, do speak to an adviser first, as there might be better ways to approach the issue. Contact your local Citizens Advice or you can call our Adviceline on 0800 144 8848 for personalised support.”
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But first, this month’s Letter from the Editor…
Is it too late to wish you a Happy New Year? When does it stop being appropriate and become just awkwardly late?
Well, probably about now, but it’s our first issue of the year and I’ve not seen you yet – so Happy New Year!
We had a wonderfully packed house over Christmas and New Year. It’s astonishing how full it feels when you have four children and they all turn into adult-sized human beans when you’re not looking. Then one gets himself a wife, some of them bring a friend or two over and before you know it you’re making toasted sandwiches for 12 while vociferously defending your position that cheese has no place in a hot tuna sandwich (and yes, in the interests of science I tried it and will now acknowledge that my previous position may have been foolish. I have, in fact, wasted the 20 years since I discovered toasted tuna by not having melted cheese in it).
Thanks to a small … hiccup … in editorial organisation (ahem) there’s no Random 19 or Dorset Island Discs in this issue – apologies, I know they’re popular. Instead may I suggest that you spend some time on the solar farm debate with Rupert Hardy, and mosey through some of the columns you might usually flick past (I know, I do it too. But trust me – every single page has earned its place, and is worth a few minutes of your time. Jane’s wildlife column deserves to be read slowly. Charlotte (flowers) always makes me laugh, Andrew (farming) makes me think. Roger Guttridge always has a good story. Tracie and Courtenay manage to combine words and pictures perfectly every month in A Country Living. Readers photos are a joy.
I know that everywhere we look right now there seems worry, despair, gloom and uncertainty. And a bill that needs paying. Except here in the BV of course – we always try to leave you feeling a little lighter and perhaps knowing something new. And we’re free, obviously.
Meanwhile, we shared a small note on social media which has been popular and I think bears repeating: It’s January. Rest. Get some fresh air. Find a new favourite show (we’d personally recommend Yellowstone if you’ve not seen it yet). Eat some chocolate. Keep cosy. Cook your favourite foods. Get yourself a big bunch of flowers. Plan some adventures.
See you in three weeks!
Why do people in Blandford have to drive fast?
Taking a few things to my car on Christmas morning, a car was coming towards me at speed. When I said to the woman who was driving ‘slow down’ I got ‘f**k off!’ back.
Charming – and on Christmas morning.
There just is no need for either.
Susan Holmes
By email
I thought It appropriate to contact your magazine in the hope that a warning note could be posted. I have just returned from walking along the North Dorset trailway towards Shillingstone station with my five-year-old Cocker Spaniel.
From a side footpath a youngish Boxer Dog appeared, stopping some 20 feet from us. A few moments later a pack of five or six dogs, including two aggressive older Boxers, chased out of the same path and went for me initially, barking and salivating, but then attacked my spaniel. The dogs were acting as a pack.
The two women who were with the dogs subsequently appeared and while trying to intervene had no impact on stopping the attack. Getting my dog out from under the two larger Boxers, we managed to walk away – we will live to fight another day, but the Spaniel is a bit shaken up.
I did tell the women concerned that the dogs were acting as a pack and should either be muzzled or at least on leads. This was met with a somewhat vacant look.
I am flagging this up not to cause trouble but to alert others. If this were a young child or a family out with their dog or puppy the outcome could be very unpleasant. I understand these women are local so a repeat of this matter is highly likely.
Name and address supplied
Do fellow North Dorset residents feel that they receive value for their Council Tax? It recently came to my attention that we have the third highest Council Tax rates in England – but do we get the third best services? I’m failing to see where all the money goes – I would welcome someone pointing me to the information?
Council tax is for our streets, lighting, rubbish, planning, policing etc.
But our streets are constantly being washed into pot holes (or, as in Sturminster Newtons case, falling into the river), there’s very little street lighting except in the towns, and there’s even less police (through no fault of their own).
But we know the government have no wish to lose votes by raising the taxes required to foot the rising social care bill, so they pass it down the line to local councils – and I presume as Dorset has an aging population our social care bill is higher than most?
At least the plentiful new housing developments springing up around the north of the county will be filling up the council tax coffers nicely – have spending budgets increased accordingly?
Robert McKenzie
Blandford
I very much enjoy Andrew Livingston’s articles, and the recent A Bugger’s Muddle (BV, Dec 22) was no exception. I had yet to see a lack of eggs in the shops, although I had seen much talk of empty shelves, and I felt perhaps it was another media frenzy over a non-existent issue (apologies BV!). Until I looked a little more closely and realised that the eggs in my trolley were from Italy, just as Andrew Livingston had predicted.
Further reading has lead me to understand that it’s not just chicken farmers who are unable to re-invest in the next cycle of egg laying hens, it is happening across a number of food industries where the producers are seeing profits squeezed not only by rising costs but also by increasing supermarket pressures.
At what point can and should the government intervene? I refuse to accept we need a ‘nanny state’ interfering – enterprise should naturally be self-regulating. But what is an industry to do when the playing field is very far from level? How can our producers – held, quite rightly, to the very highest of welfare, traceability and chemical standards – possibly compete with cheap imports from less regulated countries?
Surely if those are the standards we hold ourselves to, any product sold here should maintain the same standards? Not doing so rather makes a mockery of the system – and enforces the fact that only the wealthy can afford to eat well.
If everyone had the same standards, the prices would be the same for all?
Betty Jeans
Shaftesbury
(You may find George Hosford’s article in Farming this month even more illuminating Betty – Ed)
I was so surprised when I had a call just before Christmas telling me that I had won the Boxing Day racing prize. On Boxing Day we joined the queue of cars winding slowly through Wincanton to the racecourse. The going was good to soft – and that was just the car park! Thankfully there was a tractor on site to pull out anyone who got stuck.
We had a great day, chatting to other racegoers, cheering on the finishers – the noise in the stands when the horses are coming in to the finish is incredible. Thank you for organising the prize, it was a great day out and one we will repeat.
Pam Ferguson
By email
Above is a photo of a recent cheque presentation to the Milton Abbas Surgery. The £2,000 was raised primarily by monthly charity pub quizzes held at The Crown in Winterborne Stickland throughout 2022, the remainder being raised by a local resident who match-funded some quizzes, local donations, and the profits from local Artsreach shows.
The main aim of the fundraising was to allow the Milton Abbas Surgery to buy a second online heart monitor which transfers results directly to the patient’s records, reducing administration work by the practice staff.
This equipment is very rare in Dorset, so Milton Abbas are leading the field in detecting and recording heart issues. In the picture are (L to R) Ash Millar (landlady of the The Crown), Dr. Julian Rees (Senior Practice Partner), Sarah Noble (Practice Manager) and Graeme Gale (Quiz Organiser)
Graeme Gale
Milton Abbas
Gordon Fong looks back at a year of loss that left his family stunned – and shares what he has learned about coping when tragedy happens
It’s always good to remember, as we make it through another Christmas season, that the holidays can be a difficult time for many people. The colourful TV adverts and magazine photographs of happy family gatherings may have been the total opposite experience for some people this year. For me, this was the first Christmas without dad, who had recently passed away from a severe bleed on the brain.
Actually, if an author set out to write a story of family tragedy, they would have looked at my last year and paused, thinking ‘this is too much’. Because it wasn’t just my dad.
On the day my dad died, mum came to the hospital and told us her eldest brother had just died earlier that morning.
Two days later, I had to wake my mum to tell her that her eldest sister had just died. Within minutes we were in the car, to go and comfort that family.
Just before dad’s funeral, we visited my favourite aunty. I always remember her kind words, and it was pleasing to see her smile and hear her laughter again. However, once home, we heard she had collapsed and been rushed into the critical unit at hospital. We didn’t even have time to go home after dad’s funeral service because we needed to go and say our last goodbyes to aunty, who was waiting to be taken off breathing support.
There was to be one more sad event, for one more of my mum’s siblings. The youngest sister would lose her 12-year-old grandson to a brain tumour just two weeks later.
The whole family was just stunned and numb.
Reeling.
Five gone in such a short space of time.
Funerals were interspersed with the weddings that had been planned for so long. I learned a lot from this short period.
Be there
I saw the importance of having others around in numbers, whether visiting the hospital or the bereaved household.
I also saw patients who had no visitors whatsoever; I think that is worse.
Even families dealing with their own grief travelled to support others. Be there if you can – they can always say no.
Once dad was in his own side room, the whole family took a turn to watch over him, 24 hours a day. It was an opportunity to say what we needed to say and to help during his times of discomfort.
Don’t be quiet
Remember to talk about those you’ve lost; their good parts AND bad parts. Even joking about them helps keep their memory alive. Those conversations might bring some emotions, but when shared, I found it comforting.
Share photographs on social media or in private messages – in their turn they might bring out some unseen ones from others.
Enjoy those memories.
Try and remember that grief and a strong wave of sadness can catch you at any moment or be prompted by any situation. Something so simple as seeing their favourite drink on a supermarket shelf, as I did, or hearing a place mentioned that was a favourite family holiday destination. Turn it into a positive memory there and then, if you can.
And we all need help sometimes. Reaching out to friends, family and the many support organisations is important.
Gordon Fong is a business owner known for being a champion of Southbourne
Reflecting on your last growing year should mean a better new season, says flower farmer Charlotte Tombs. Also … excitement as we start all over again!
New beginnings, new starts, new catalogues, new varieties, new compost, new trays, new gloves, new seed markers, new tools (it’s always their fault) … they’re all signs of one the things I love most about growing from seed. It’s another chance to try again each year. You can wipe clean all those gardening mishaps and go in with a clean slate; a new approach, a determination to do things better or differently. A bit like Groundhog Day, but with you in control (ish).
I don’t start seed sowing in earnest until February, when the natural light levels improve, but I will sow a few sweetpea seeds somewhere warm this month, and then put them in the greenhouse as soon as they germinate. I might also soak a few anemone or ranunculus corms and claws and get them to sprout, then plant them up and put them in my little zip-up greenhouse next to the back door so I can monitor the new life emerging.
Try those old seeds
I use January as a month to plan and dream … but, yes, mainly to procrastinate.
Did you know that seed, if stored correctly, only loses 10 per cent of its viability per year? You can do the maths – nine year old seed will have a 10 per cent germination rate! So never give up on an interesting old packet of seeds found in your grandparents drawer; you may just get a successful outcome, even if only partial.
If you can save seed from your own plants, that seed may well grow better for you than purchased seed, as it could have adapted to your soil type and growing conditions. This is why those self-seeded young plants in your gravel path are often so much healthier than the ones you mollycoddled last year.
So check what seeds you have left, pore over those seed catalogues, make a list of everything you want to grow, (also check with a fellow seed geek – you may be able to share or swap seed varieties, or they may have grown it before and it was a waste of space or time). Then, if you are anything like me, you’ll need to cut your list down considerably as you never have as much space as you need for your entire wishlist.
Some gardenkeeping
Use this quiet time to tidy up and organise your seed trays and pots. Use an old brush to clean out all the old soil if they are lying around outside and have been buried under a pile of leaves (like mine). Obviously we were meant to clear up, wash the trays and pots in warm soapy water and put them away for the winter – there may be slugs and snails (or their eggs) hiding, and the last thing you want is a slug chomping through your newly emerging germinating seeds.
I do love the theory, but the practice takes discipline I simply don’t possess. In my defence I don’t, however, buy new plastic pots; all gardeners have hundreds and they can be re-used time and again.
Start journalling
If you haven’t done so, think about keeping a gardening diary, or at least make notes. It really does become a very useful aid and if you have gardening geek tendencies like I do you’ll find it fascinating that last New Year’s Eve the temperature was +14ºC and this new year matched it, but two years ago on New Year’s Eve the temperatures dropped to -3ºC…
I keep a note of when I sowed a seed and when it flowered, but some gardeners go further, recording dates of germination, potting on, planting out, flowering and then when they were ripped up and another flower grown in its place.
The RHS has a great 5 year diary and you can start it at any time in the year.
Congratulations to all the winners of the Shaftesbury Business Awards 2023
Family Business
Winner – La Fleur de Lys (http://www.lafleurdelys.co.uk/)
Award Sponsor – Shaftesbury Town Council (https://www.shaftesbury-tc.gov.uk/)
New Business
Winner – Dan Pitman Media (https://danpitmanmedia.com/)
Award Sponsor – Farnfield Solicitors (https://farnfields.com/)
Cafe/Pub/Dining
Winner – The Salt Cellar (https://thesaltcellargoldhill.co.uk/)
Award Sponsor – Johnsons Stalbridge (https://www.johnsons-stalbridge.com/)
Beauty/Fashion
Winner – JLA Beauty (https://jlabeautyshaftesburyandgillingham.co.uk/)
Award Sponsor – The Grosvenor Arms Hotel (https://grosvenorarms.co.uk/)
Health & Fitness
Winner – CrossFit (https://www.crossfitshaftesbury.co.uk/)
Award Sponsor – Shaftesbury Chamber (http://www.shaftesburychamber.co.uk/)
Green Eco
Winner Coconut & Cotton (https://coconutandcotton.co.uk/)
Award Sponsor – Action Coach (https://westherts.actioncoach.co.uk/)
Customer Service
Winner – Elite Garages (https://www.elitegarages.co.uk/shaftesbury)
Award Sponsor – The Wincombe Centre (https://www.thewincombecentre.co.uk)
Retail
Winner – Willow (https://willow-natural.co.uk/)
Award Sponsor – Gavin Dixon Finance Solutions (http://www.gdfinancesolutions.co.uk/)
Young Entrepreneur
Winner – Brad Hansford (Meyers)(https://www.meyersestates.com/)
Award Sponsor – Wessex Fire & Security (https://www.wessexgroup.co.uk/wessex-fire-and-security/)
Independent
Winner – Kit & Kaboodle (https://www.kandkdorset.co.uk/)
Award Sponsor – Shaftesbury Town Council (https://www.shaftesbury-tc.gov.uk/)
Best Place To Work
Winner – Shirley Allum (https://www.shirleyallum.co.uk/)
Awards Sponsor – Action Coach (https://westherts.actioncoach.co.uk/)
Innovation
Winner – Wessex Fire & Security (https://www.wessexgroup.co.uk/wessex-fire-and-security/)
Awards Sponsor – Hub Chartered Accountants (https://hub.accountants/)
B2B Business
Winner – The Wincombe Centre (https://www.thewincombecentre.co.uk)
Awards Sponsor – Ward Goodman Chartered Accountants (https://www.wardgoodman.co.uk/)
Artisan Crafts
Winner – Golden Snowdrop (https://www.goldensnowdrop.co.uk/)
Awards Sponsor – Marketing West (https://www.marketingwest.co.uk/)
Digital
Winner – Woodfrys Farm (https://www.woodfrysfarm.co.uk/)
Awards Sponsor – Dorset Tech (https://dorset.tech/)
Overall Business of the Year
Winner – Shirley Allum (https://www.shirleyallum.co.uk/)
This winter, Dorset Wildlife Trust has been deliberately installing dead trees in a valley near Ansty, says conservation officer Stephen Oliver
Implementing nature-based solutions to reduce the flood risk from surface water and improving water quality and habitat for wildlife are the two main objectives of river restoration work.
Dorset Wildlife Trust’s rivers conservation officer, Stephen Oliver, describes the work involved in the Devil’s Brook project:
‘This exciting partnership project involved two kilometres of river restoration work completed on Devil’s Brook, a 14-kilometre long watercourse rising in the chalk hills near Higher Ansty and flowing south to join the River Piddle near Athelhampton. Much of the river has, over time, been heavily modified, straightened and over-widened, which has significantly reduced the habitat quality and biodiversity of the river.’
Fallen trees
‘A partnership of organisations – including Wessex Water, Wild Trout Trust, Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group Southwest – with the support of Environment Agency and Natural England, has been working with local landowners and managers to look at the opportunities to undertake river restoration work.
Trees, whether standing or fallen, provide vital habitat along a watercourse. Unfortunately, modern land management practices mean that fallen trees are often removed. Our Rivers and Wetlands team, with the help of local land managers, trustees and Wessex Water volunteers, have installed 33 Large Woody Debris (LWD) features along a two-kilometre targeted reach to replicate fallen trees. The LWD consists of locally-sourced trees of different shapes that are positioned in the river and pinned in place using chestnut stakes.
Fallen trees naturally provide much needed shelter and food for an array of wildlife. But this necessary habitat is often lacking due to our tendency to ‘tidy up’ and remove these features, fearing that they are causing a problem.
In fact, nine times out of ten, a fallen tree along a watercourse causes no hazards and should be left in place to encourage natural processes along our modified rivers and streams.‘
Riffles and scours
‘The LWD features that have been installed will dramatically transform the current uniform habitat (same flow, same depth) in this area – they will physically change water flow and direction. This will allow gravel riffles and scour pools of varying depths to form, increasing the diversity of wildlife that can make its home in and around the river.
‘Dorset Wildlife Trust staff and volunteers working on site were treated to excellent views of kingfishers and dragonflies, who were quick to perch and admire these newly-installed habitat features! Now that the project has been completed, we will be carefully monitoring for changes to the habitat and wildlife abundance in order to see what impact the work has had.’
Find out more about Dorset Wild Rivers: dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk/DorsetWildRivers
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