The whole of Pamphill First School decamped to the nearby church for its annual Easter service.
Rev Suzie Allen and headteacher Mike Wheeler at the back, with pupils and their bonnets
The school near Wimborne has around 70 pupils who made traditional bonnets to wear. Reverend Suzie Allen led the service in St Stephen’s Church at which the children sang hymns enthusiastically. Afterwards all the pupils took part in an Easter bonnet parade in front of their parents – with medals given out by headteacher Mike Wheeler. He said: “Following all the Covid disruption it was great to have the whole school in church for the traditional Easter service. “Afterwards the wonderful Parent Teacher and Friends Association (PTFA) sold tea, coffee and cakes to raise funds. It was a lovely service during which we were reminded of the true meaning of this Christian festival.” Wimborne Academy Trust’s CEO Liz West said: “This looked like a great last day of term and the bonnets all look wonderful.”
A wonderful new country life focusing on home-grown produce and beautiful food could have been shattered by the death of a son. But the family have strained every sinew to wrestle good from the tragedy, says Rachael Rowe.
Archie, aged seven, already showing a love of cooking
When Patty Lowe and her family moved to a large house in Woolland with a traditional Victorian greenhouse and an acre to grow vegetables, it inspired a journey of creating nutritious recipes. Over ten years, Patty and daughter Gertie tested and refined family favourites while husband Gordon provided technical know-how. Twins Archie and Jamie loved trying the various creations emerging from the kitchen, with Archie helping with preparation and cooking. So that her children could use the recipes at university, Patty uploaded them to a website. However, son Archie, 21, insisted the photography should be better and set about creating beautiful images of the feasts made in the Lowe kitchen. He used the garden and a small studio he set up in the house, saying, “The pictures should make people feel hungry, Mum!” On 8 September 2020, all that changed. Archie went off to work in a local racing yard as usual, and later that morning, Patty got a phone call. There had been an accident. Archie had been tragically killed in a horse- riding accident on Okeford Hill. Everything the family knew and loved about life was blown apart. ‘It is a beautiful place,’ Patty reflects, ‘and for someone who loved life as Archie did, I cannot think of a more beautiful place to spend your last moments.’
Archie with Manni, ‘the ugliest pony in Britain’ with whom Archie went on to trial for the Great Britain team and was recognised as one of the best young riders in the country.
Ugly pony, best pony Archie had been passionate about horses from the age of ten. Patty smiles as she reminisces: “He got the ugliest pony to ride. It had a wall-eye, and he called it the Cow (it was called Manni), but he loved it so much. And he went on to trial for the Great Britain team and was recognised as one of the best young riders in the country. In fact, people talk at Pony Club of how the ugliest pony in Britain went on to be the best in the country. “And Archie was always so positive. He would always say hello to people or say what a nice dog they had.”
As Patty and her family were dealing with the aftermath of Archie’s death, friends suggested pouring their energies into a fundraising cookbook of their family recipes. More than 100 recipes were selected, all illustrated with Archie’s photography. Sea bass receipe image Archie Lowe
That cookbook! As Patty and her family were dealing with the aftermath of Archie’s death, friends suggested she create a cookbook. More than 100 recipes were selected and illustrated with Archie’s photography. Tempting dishes such as mushroom risotto with peperonata, courgette and walnut bake (just in time for summer gluts), and pork with chilli burst from the pages. For the last two years of his life, Archie was vegetarian, so there is a large selection of plant-based ideas. Poignantly, delicious-looking doughnuts are on the back cover, but there is no recipe in the book. Patty explains: “Archie wanted to make doughnuts just like Krispy Kremes and mastered a technique. Each Friday, he made them and took them to work for colleagues but never told us the recipe.” All the proceeds from A Dorset Kitchen are going to two charities. The Air Ambulance that tried so hard to save Archie is one beneficiary. In addition, the Archie Lowe Foundation has been established to support young riders, especially boys, to learn riding skills. The Archie and Manni Bursary will help people who might not otherwise have been able to pursue their dream of riding. It is a partnership award in collaboration with West Wilts British Eventing with the first prize of £1,000. Does Patty have a favourite recipe? “Chicken lasagna. And Archie loved the Pad Thai.”
A Dorset Kitchen recipe for vegetarian stuffed peppers – a simple risotto packed with veggies spooned into baked peppers image Archie Lowe
Sold out The book sold out all 1,000 copies within six weeks. More have been printed as word gets out of how good the book is (the recipes are easy to follow and delicious, by the way). I’m curious as to how the book is helping Patty and the family begin to heal after such a tragic accident. “Just before I wake up each day, I wonder what to do. And then as I wake, I think, today I can do something good. I can do something good and help people. It is easy to sink into self-pity. If I can make this charity work and give a little bit of Archie to people, good can come from this, and the pain is eased.”
Archie with his much-loved Sura
To buy a copy of A Dorset Kitchen, visit www.adorsetkitchen.com. More events to support the Archie Lowe Foundation and Air Ambulance will be held in the near future.
Now it’s easy to think at first glance that this isn’t a particularly great image, but bear with me. The reason this is such an interesting photo is because a supernova (designated SN 2022 HRS) in this little region of space near M60 (NGC 4649) – which is an elliptical galaxy approximately 57 million light-years away in the constellation of Virgo – suddenly became visible to us just a couple of weeks ago, around the 16th April. It is also worth bearing in mind that a single light year is around six trillion miles, so this galaxy is possibly the furthest object I’ve intended to capture to date! There are many other ‘faint fuzzies’ in this image, making up the Virgo supercluster which is a huge swarm of 2,000 galaxies in this region of space. The Supernova shown magnified in this image actually happened 63 million years ago. To put that into perspective, this star all the way across the universe exploded in the biggest explosions that we as humans know about – but it actually happened when the dinosaurs were still roaming the Earth. However, it only just became visible to us on a seemingly ordinary day a couple of weeks ago. More amazingly, we saw it, realised, and now astronomers all over the world just like me are imaging it themselves, just days after it became apparent to us. I find that truly incredible, and its why I love this hobby! This image was captured only nine days after the Supernova appeared, and was captured using my bigger Sky-watcher Newtonian Reflector Telescope and Cooled Astro Camera.
The night sky, May 2022 – Rob’s guide for your stargazing this month:
We are in the midst of galaxy season now, and with the lighter evenings extending, long nights shooting are becoming scarce. The nights are still packed with celestial events though, if you’re prepared to get up early enough to see them! Highlights include close conjunctions of some of our neighbouring planets, a total lunar eclipse, meteors from Halley’s Comet and a possible storm of shooting stars towards the end of the month! So, grab those binoculars or your telescope and get ready to set those alarm clocks. Also on display this month are the bright stars Vega and Arcturus; look towards Vega on a dark moonless night, and you may be able to make out a fuzzy patch. This is the Great Cluster M13 in Hercules. A closely knit globular cluster of around 1 million stars. That particular cluster may feature as next months image, if I can get a good shot of it!
What to look out for On the 6th of May, we’ll be treated to a display of shooting stars from the Eta Aquarid meteor shower. Caused by tiny pieces of Halley’ Comets burning up in our atmosphere, you’ll need to look up in the early hours of the morning to catch the display. On the 13th May between 1:55 and 2:45am, the Moon moves in front of Porrima, a large star in the constellation Virgo. On the 16th May, there is the possibility of seeing a total lunar eclipse which should be visible from America, and parts of Europe and Africa. Here in the UK, the partial phase starts at 3:27am, reaching totality at 4:29am. Grab a pair of binoculars and look low towards the east to spot the crescent Moon sailing below Jupiter, Mars and Venus, on the respective nights of the 25th, 26th and 27th May. Another celestial event requiring an early dawn wake-up call! Before dawn on the 29th May, Mars passes below Jupiter, another one to observe with Binoculars. The second potential meteor shower on offer this month is provided courtesy of the debris from Comet Schwassam-Wachman-3, during the night of 31st May/1st June. This may produce a brief but intense storm of shooting stars, known as the Tau Herculid meteor shower, with the best views offered once again before dawn. The comet itself is still in the process of breaking up, a process which began when the comet first started to fracture in 1995.
by Rob Nolan – Find RPN Photography on Facebook here
Clayesmore is a wonderful school in which to work, with excellent facilities and a warm, supportive and happy atmosphere.
An enthusiastic, proactive and practical person is required from September 2022 to provide the skills and expertise to support teaching and learning within the vibrant DT department.
Your duties will include preparing for practical work, advising and supervising pupils, and ordering, storing and maintaining stock materials and equipment. You will have a knowledge of Health and Safety within a DT environment and be able to carry out regular safety checks and risk assessments.
This post is full time, term time only, Monday to Friday with occasional Saturdays. A competitive salary and attractive benefits are provided for the successful candidate.
For further information and an application form please go to:
Clayesmore is committed to the safeguarding and promotion of children’s and young people’s welfare and expects all staff and volunteers to share in this commitment.
Gordon Amery, the organist of Gillingham Methodist Church, is organising an important fundraising Concert for Ukraine in the church on 13th May.
It will feature celebrity organist Thomas Trotter (Birmingham City Organist) and guests David Briggs (Organist, St John the Divine, NYC), Keith Hearnshaw (Concert Organist), Jonathan Hope (Organist, Gloucester Cathedral), Duncan Honeybourne (Concert Pianist) and Rex Wickham (Treble). Everyone involved is giving their services without charge, so 100% of funds raised will go to the DEC appeal. ‘WeGotTickets’ the online booking site will also be donating 20% of their Booking Fee. Gordon said “Not only is it vital for us to raise as much money as possible for this appeal, but most of the performers are world-class artists. This will be a once-in-a-lifetime concert for music lovers in Gillingham and its surroundings.” Tickets £20 on the door, or online here
Independent Non-Executive Board Members x 2 Positions
About Us – East Boro Housing Trust has a fantastic opportunity for 2 Independent Board Members to support the work of our Board. We are a dynamic Registered Provider Landlord that provides supported and family housing throughout Dorset/BCP and the surrounding area. Sitting on our Board of Management, your wealth of expertise will ensure that we remain innovative, financially strong, and well governed as we continue to grow our organisation. We joined the Aster Group as a Group Member in 2020 but retain our East Boro Board of Management and now is an exciting time to join our Board as we continue on our new journey. East Boro has a long history since its inception in 1960. We are focused on growing and developing further and providing services to our existing customers. We would like you to be part of our future.
About You – You will be joining our already established Board as a Non-Executive Director to help us to achieve our Mission “Everyone has a home and the housing related support they need for their lifetime”. You will bring with you your qualifications and sound experience in one or more of the following areas: Finance, Business, Housing, or Law. You will be an ambassador who can share your knowledge and expertise. You will be used to being in a position of influence, able to establish constructive, high quality relationships with a group of stakeholders. You will work with your colleague East Boro Non-Executive Board Members to oversee and scrutinise the governance, performance, and strategic direction of East Boro. East Boro Non-Executives also have the opportunity to contribute to the Group/Strategy/Reviews when requested. In return we can offer you a rewarding position within a progressive and person-centred Housing Association and the chance to make a difference to the lives of our customers and to the communities in which we operate, as well as developing yourself and your advancement of your own Non-Executive Director aspirations within the Group. There is an annual remuneration paid for this position of £1,375 per annum plus role related expenses.
Chair of the Board of Management
East Boro Housing Trust is also seeking a Chair for its Board of Management. As well as fulfilling the Board Member duties detailed above, the role of Chair works closely with East Boro’s Chief Executive and the Senior Management Team. The Chair will lead Board Meetings, undertake annual appraisals of all Board Members and represent the organisation with Partner Organisations. There is an annual remuneration paid for this position of £3,850 per annum plus role related expenses. We hold 6/8 Board Meetings per annum and are adopting an in person/hybrid online approach to meetings.
For further information contact Cara Lewis, PA to Chief Executive, on 01202 883 503 extension 015 or via [email protected] or to arrange a discussion with East Boro Chief Executive, Kevin Hodder. If you are interested in the above vacancy, please send your CV to [email protected] or post FAO Cara Lewis, East Boro Housing Trust, Faulkner House, 31 West Street, Wimborne, Dorset, BH21 1JS. Closing date for all applications is Midday Tuesday 7th June 2022. Interviews will be held remotely/online during the daytime of Thursday 16th June for shortlisted candidates.
East Boro Housing Trust is a Charitable Registered Society Under the Co-operative & Community Benefit Societies Act 2014 No. 16946R
We are looking for a part time nanny for our 7 month old Son.
Hours are from 8am – 1pm Monday – Friday. We are based in Charlton Musgrove, and would need you to drop him at Nursery in Sherborne at 1pm, so a driving licence is essential.
Additional hours available by mutual agreement, including accompanying us on family holidays etc.
Award Winning’ South Somerset Partnership School is recruiting!
South Somerset Partnership School is a complex pupil referral unit based in South Somerset, we have sites across the area in Yeovil and Chard. We are currently looking for enthusiastic, flexible staff for posts available from September 2022.
This is an exciting time to join our team of staff as we move into a brand new structure. We will be providing long term specialist provision for a group of young people, alongside high-quality partnership placement and outreach work. We are proud of our partnerships with schools, our community and Somerset Local Authority and work to actively develop and promote the inclusion of children and young people across our area.
Please clearly indicate on your application form which post you wish to apply for (and complete the appropriate form). We will discuss placement as part of our interview process, we always try to match your individual skill set with the needs of our school. We are unable to accept CV’s as a means of application.See our website for more details ssps.org.uk
Posts available:
Secondary Teacher
With the ability to deliver English up to Key Stage Four.
MPS / UPS
Not suitable for ECT
Adolescent Support Worker
Part of the Outreach and Capacity Building team,
(Somerset Grade 12)
Teaching Assistants
Tuition Service and Long Term Specialist Placement
(Somerset Grade 13)
Any part time and job share requests will be considered, but will be required to meet the needs of the school. All applicants are subject to enhanced DBS check
If you have any queries and for submission of your completed application forms to Claire Brand – School Business Manager at: [email protected], 01935 410793
Closing date: Noon Thursday 19th May
Interviews: Provisionally, w/c 23rd May and 6th June for successful candidates.
