Village FaceBook Group
There is a very active Stawell and Sutton Mallet FaceBook group. You may apply to join, and if you live in Stawell or Sutton Mallet and are willing to follow the group rules you will be admitted. As the group is getting rather large now we have decided to restrict members who are not villagers to those who have something significant to offer the group or who have a genuine interest in the community. If you just want to know what is going on then everything is posted here, on the website.
Funeral Arrangements for Ryan Thomas
Many of you will have known Ryan Thomas who sadly passed away recently. His partner, Andreea, has asked me to pass on a message of thanks for all the support she has received from people in the village.
I would like to offer my sincere thanks to all those in the village for their messages of support and condolence, it has been truly so touching. Andreea.
Ryan’s funeral will be held at Sedgemoor Crematorium, on Friday October 6th at 1pm, followed by a wake at Ryan and Andreea’s home, located in the village of Stawell – all are welcome.
Crematorium address details are as follows:
Sedgemoor Crematorium
Stretcholt
Bridgwater
Somerset
TA6 4SR
https://www.sedgemoorcrem.co.uk/contact-map.php
For those planning their arrival for the wake following the funeral please park at Stawell Village Hall, TA7 9AD, in the centre of the village.
If you wish to send flowers then please send them to:
Quantock Funeral Services, 69 Staplegrove Rd, Taunton TA1 1DG.
There is also a charitable giving site where you can give a donation in Ryan’s memory where you can also leave messages, stories and photographs of your memories of Ryan.
Another Road Closure!
There will be a road closure for up to three days from 26 September on Moor Road/Slocombe just before it joins the A39 https://w3w.co/audit.sized.pointed
This is to allow further works by Wessex Water to take place. The road will be completely closed with no access for emergency vehicles.
For a map showing the location go to: https://one.network/?tm=135711931
Food Bank
Jeanette and Ian Scott, who operate the food bank collection in the village, had a lovely response from the Bridgwater Food Bank volunteers recently. When Ian took the latest contributions into town the staff told him how important and valued, the regular donations from Stawell were and how much they were appreciated.
If you would like to donate then there is a box outside “The Old Post Office” almost opposite the village hall. ///pronouns.trucks.steepest
September Stuff!
Parish Council: The agenda for the October meeting is now available
Parish Council: The minutes of the September meeting have now been published under the “Organisations/Parish Council” menu
Harvest Supper
30 September
Doors open at 7:00pm to eat at 7:30pm
Meat OR Cheese Ploughmans and Dessert. Alternative vegetarian 0ption available.
Tickets: £10/adult, £5/primary age child. Someone will call with tickets over the next two weeks.
BYO drinks and glasses. Raffle in aid of Bridgwater Salvation Army
Emergency Road Closure: There will be an emergency road closure at Moor Road, Stawell which will commence on 11th September 2023 – 15th September 2023 (00:00 – 23:59) for a total of 5 days.
This will enable Wessex Water to carry out work to repair/replace a valve.
The contractor has indicated that access for Emergency Services through the site is not permitted on this occasion.
Remember that the closure will probably be for less than 5 days .. they always seem to build in a margin to allow for delays and the like. The work is towards Moorlynch, just up the hill if you turn left at the crossroads with Billicombe Lane. Likely to increase traffic along Ford Lane I think. Check out a map at:
Who Wears Wins!
Fashion Through The Decades
A very special fashion exhibition is set to open for the delight of the discerning and stylish folk of the area. Make sure the weekend of 16 and 17 September is free so you can be reminded of fashion through the decades. Doors open each day from 2:00pm to 5:00pm
Entrance is by donation (If you can, then £3 each seems reasonable but remember it’s all for a great cause so feel free to put in as much as you wish). Refreshments, including cream teas, will be available.
Why not add to the vibe by coming along in something vintage or simply something outrageous!
Green Door Families is the local charity where the profits will be going. Based in Street they help families and individuals in the community who need help and support in many different situations including, family crisis, a new baby, illness, death of a loved one, loneliness, financial worries, isolation, poverty, homelessness and addictions. Check out Green Door Families
Coffee Morning: The September Coffee Morning is now being hosted by Belinda Beake at 4 The Old Apple Store, Stawell (///dine.seriously.cracks). Doors open from 10:00am to 12:00pm on Saturday 30 September
MOMSS: The full, glorious technicolour, digital September edition of MOMSS is now available under the “Organisations/Church” menu.
Parish Council: The Agenda for the September meeting of the PC, on Monday 4 September, is now available under the “Organisations/Parish Council” menu.
There are also 4 new Audit documents relating the the Parish Council available in the Parish Council Documents section.
Is it August already?
Church Coffee Morning: The August Coffee Morning will be held at The Manor, Stawell. Our hosts will be Lianne and Richard Graham. As always the coffee pot comes to the boil at 10:00am and simmers away until 12:00pm. All welcome Donations to support the church.
Avon and Somerset Police Reports: There have been several break-ins around the Polden villages in recent weeks. A couple of reports are:
A garage was broken into between 5am and 2pm on the 1st, in Priory Road, Chilton Polden. The offender gained entry by forcing one of the garage doors, after initially removing a security light. Once inside paint was thrown around, before the offender made off with a Chain Saw and tool bag.
A garden shed was broken into between 10:30pm on the 31st and 7am on the 1st in Scotts Lane, Catcott. The offender gained access to the shed by removing a padlock by force. Once inside several tools were stolen, these were two Honda mowers, Stihl brush cutter, hedge trimmer, strimmer, leaf blower and an Echo strimmer.
A neighbouring property also had their shed entered, but nothing stolen from within.
Any information, CCTV images, please contact the Police on 101 or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
These are in addition to the the theft in Sutton Mallet where security lights and a gate were broken in order to break into a shed.
An advice leaflet can be found at sheds-and-garages.pdf
Saturday 5th August
Stawell and Sutton Mallet Village Hall
2pm to 5pm
Book Stall
Food Hamper Raffle
Proceeds to St Francis Church
Industrial Action Affecting Waste Collection
STOP PRESS:
Monday 19 July: The strike action has now been called off. Union members have voted to accept the latest offer from their employers.
Tuesday 11 July 2023
Strike action by Somerset waste collection crews has been suspended for two weeks pending a union ballot. Talks today between the Unite union and SUEZ recycling and recovery UK – the Council’s collections contractor – made progress and the union has agreed to ballot its membership on an improved pay offer.
Annual pay negotiations between Suez UK (Somerset Council’s collections contractor) and the Unite union are ongoing and following a ballot, union members plan to take industrial action.
They intend to strike Wednesday to Friday, for four weeks from Wednesday 12 July to Friday 4 August. Industrial action could be called off as late as Tuesday 11 July 2023. If that happens collections would operate as normal. There is likely to be significant disruption to waste collections.
The situation is likely to change frequently. The latest update I have received is provided below:
The situation is likely to change over the course of any action so the most up to date information can be found on the Somerset website at:
https://www.somerset.gov.uk/bins-recycling-and-waste/waste-industrial-action/
July news and events
Village Hall: The play/Exercise equipment has had it’s latest safety inspection. The report can be seen at Play Area Report
MOMSS: The latest copy of the colour, digital version of MOMSS is now available under the “Organisations/Church” menu.
Parish Council: The agenda for the July meeting of the Parish Council are available. They are under the “Organisations/Parish Council” menu.
Parish Council: The minutes of the July meeting are now available under the “Organisations/Parish Council” menu
Village Hall Events: There will be no HUB Cafe until September due to folk being away on holiday.
Coffee Morning: The Church Coffee Morning this month will be hosted by Jill and Graham Fry at Elm Tree Farm, Stawell. NOTE: This is an alteration to the previously published location and host. All are very welcome to go along for a chat with friends and neighbours to the accompaniment of great cake and coffee. July 22nd at 10:00am to 12:00pm
Ooh surprise ... another road closure
I have received notification of a temporary road closure at Stawell Road, Stawell for approximately 184 metres, which will commence on 10th July 2023 and should last for ONE day and the road will be open outside of 7:30am to 6:00pm.
A map of the affected area (in red), together with the recommended diversion route (in purple) is shown below, along with the link to One.Network.
https://one.network/?tm=134021473
Let us hoped the details are more accurate than the last one!
You might want to check out the One.Network site while you are there – when we looked there were lots of other roadworks coming up all over the local area in the next few weeks,
June news and events
Church Coffee Morning: Your hosts this month are the rather fabulous Janet and Brian Scowcroft at Willow Cottage 😉 . As usual doors open at 10am until 12pm on 24 June. Come along and enjoy a catch up, coffee and cake with friends and neighbours.
Parish Council: The minutes of the June meeting are now posted on the Parish Council section of the website.
POSH Events
A fun and informative evening was had by a good crowd of folk at the first Parish Of Stawell Heritage event back in May. Ann Murch came along with 50 old domestic and farming artifacts from times past. We all managed to identify some but others had us all stumped – who needs a glove finger stretcher?. More photos and a fuller report in the POSH section of the website.
Somerset Ghost Stories
The second POSH event will take place in the Village Hall on Saturday 24 June at 7:30pm.
Roger Evans’ talk will be based on his local best seller “Somerset Tales of the Supernatural” Roger Evans will be well known to many; he is a historian, author of many books on the area and a very entertaining speaker.
This will be an evening not to be missed so do get it into your diary and I’ll see you there, possibly hiding under the table!
Parish Council: The next meeting will take place on 5 June at 7pm in the Village Hall. The agenda has been published here under the ‘Organisations’ menu
Stawell Youth Group News
The Stawell Youth Club is open to any children in the village aged 8yrs and above.
To celebrate the 1st Anniversary of the Youth Club, the children decided to mark the occasion by going Go Karting at Haynes at Sparkford. They planned to pay for the trip through a Sponsored Bike Ride. They used posters and the Facebook page to advertise the ride and friends, family and villages came forward and the group were touched by the generosity they received which was enough to pay for the trip. During the event each member cycled 8 miles around the villages; this was no mean effort given that the youngest riders were only eight years old. The whole group together cycled over 100 miles!
Over the past year the teamwork of the Youth Club has really grown and children who didn’t know each before are making strong friendships with each other. The Club has enabled them to come together in a safe place and play outside, go off for bike rides to Milk on the Moors, Chedzoy Park and Peasey Farm. We have celebrated Birthdays through-out the year and visited the bee hives,
alpacas and best of all …..baby kids at the goat farm with Ian Graham.
My thanks goes out to everyone who has supported financially or volunteered their time, to help out over the last year. The kindness shown for this group, has been overwhelming and I hope the club will grow from strength to strength in the future. If anyone would be interested in volunteering some time on Fridays 5pm – 6.45pm – (TERM TIME ONLY), please get in touch, as its lovely to have a bank of people I can ask to join us on trips out and activities in the hall.
Denise Rogers
So what else is happening in May?
50 Peculiar Artifacts: Take part in a fun, informal quiz where you get to examine some historic artifacts and try and figure out what they were used for. Hosted by the Parish of Stawell Heritage Society with guest expert, Anne Murch. Full details below. May 13 7:00pm
Parish Council: The Annual Meeting and Annual Parish Meetings take place on Monday 15 May at 7:00pm. Agendas available under the ‘Organisations’ menu.
Coffee Morning: The next Coffee Morning is on 27 May with hosts Anna and Ralph Sealey at Cape House.
Road Closure: The main road through the village will be closed from the junction with Ford Lane westwards for 75 metres. This will be a full closure with no emergency vehicles able to pass. Works are expected to begin on 30 May and last for 10 days. This is to allow the National Grid to do work connecting new supply.
The statutory notice can be viewed here: Statutory Notice
The map showing the road closure can be seen here: MAP
Parish Of Stawell Heritage Society
“50 peculiar historical artifacts!”
Anne Murch will be bringing along 50 odd, unusual objects, gizmos and gadgets from times past to the village hall on Saturday 13 May at 7:00pm
See how many you can identify. No prizes, just the honour of knowing you are the top village history ninja!
Tea and Coffee will be available and yes, Anne will tell us what they all are and a bit about their history and use.
Tickets £3 – adults, £2 for children.
Further information: Jackie Lusty – jackie_lusty@hotmail.com 07970974215
Coronation of His Majesty The King and Her Majesty The Queen Consort - The Village Celebrations
The celebrations commence with a special HUB Café where the Coronation will be broadcast on the big screen in the Village Hall. This will run from 10:00am to 12:00pm on Saturday 6 May.
In the evening of 6 May there will be a Coronation Curry evening. Chicken or Vegetarian options. During the evening a beacon will be lit. Tickets for the evening (to be booked in advance) will be £5 per adult and U16s £2.50. The bar will be open from 7pm to 11pm.
On Sunday 7 May, there will be a Commemorative Service in the church at 10:00am followed by an Afternoon Bring and Share Street Party. “
We cordially invite all residents of Stawell and Sutton Mallet to join us for an afternoon of food, games and festivities on Sunday 7th May from 2pm to 5.30pm at Stawell Village Hall Car Park. There will be plenty of food and drink for everyone to bring and share, including traditional British fare such as scones, sandwiches, and tea.
This is an opportunity for us to come together as a community and celebrate our shared history and culture. It is also a chance to show our support for the new king and wish him well in his reign.
We hope that you will join us for this joyous occasion. Please feel free to bring your family and friends and spread the word to your neighbours.
If you have any questions or would like to buy a ticket @ £1.00 to come the party, please do not hesitate to contact Denise Rogers. We look forward to seeing you on Sunday 7th May 2023 and celebrating this special event together.’
Who Wears Wins!
A “Fashion through the Decades” Exhibition is planned to take place in the Village Hall on Saturday 16th/Sunday 17th September.
We are sending out a request for everyone to hunt through their wardrobe for clothes that were once so fashionable. Maybe you have something new that might become a style icon of the future,
I you have a special outfit, uniform, dress, hat or shoes that you would be happy to exhibit then please get in touch with Kay McDonald : mcdonald.kay@googlemail.com, Jackie Lusty: jackie_lusty@hotmail.com or Margaret Williams: mewilliams8@hotmail.com
ALSO: Calling anyone who has a dress-making mannequin at home and would be prepared to lend it for the above event. Many thanks.
Additional Route 19 Buses
I have been informed that the Route 19 bus service which runs through the villages has additional buses running in term time only. The primary purpose is to serve students at the college but they are open to all. The additional times are shown below.
UK Emergency Alert System Test
The following message comes from Avon and Somerset Police:
The UK government’s new Emergency Alerts system is now live. The system will enable people to be contacted via their mobile phone when lives are in danger. It will be used to warn you in the event of emergencies, such as severe flooding. There will be a national test of the UK Emergency Alerts System on Sunday 23 April.
Please see the attached document for more information.
April Happenings
Parish Council: The minutes of the special planning meeting on 12 April are now published. Available under the “Organisations/Parish Council” menu.
Parish Council: There will be a second Special Planning Meeting of the Parish Council to discuss two further planning applications. The meeting will take place on Thursday 20 April in the VH at 6:00pm (note the earlier time)
Parish Council: The minutes of the April meeting are now posted. There is also an agenda for a Special Planning Meeting on Wednesday 12 April.
MOMSS. The digital, colour, edition of MOMSS is now available
HUB Cafe: Cancelled due to staff shortages
Coffee Morning: This will be hosted by Denise Rogers at Holly Tree House on 29 April. As usual, our host will be brewing coffee and serving cakes from 10:00am to 12:00pMorag and Jim at the Old Manor Farmhouse
Goodbye and Good Wishes to Stepping Out
As many villagers will know, Stepping Out are moving on and continuing their fabulous provision at Bawdrip and Cossington Village Halls from next week.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank them for making our hall their home for some time and providing lovely lunches on Tuesdays. We wish them all the best in their future enterprises and I am sure villagers will continue to order their weekly bread from them.
March...Spring is on the way
ROAD CLOSURE NOTICE: Wessex Water will be carrying out essential maintenance (a mains leak) from Tuesday 21 March to Friday 24 March. This will require the closure of Ford Lane to all through traffic (but emergency service access is permitted). The closure appears to be from just past the village boundary sign to the bottom of the hill. Pedestrian access may still be possible. Any concerns and questions can be directed via 0345 6004600. I believe all properties should have received a letter from Wessex Water with details and a map but the map can also be accessed at https://one.network/?tm=133334579
March Parish Council Meeting: The agenda for the next meeting (6 March) of the PC is now available here on the website.
HUB Cafe: This month the wonderful HUB Cafe will be on Saturday 11 March. Come along for a guaranteed warm welcome along with good food and hot drinks.
Lent Lunch: On Saturday 18 March from 12:00 to 2:00pm there will be a Lent Lunch in the village hall. Have a lunch of soup and rolls and make a donation to charity.
Coffee Morning: The March Coffee Morning will run from 10:00am to 12:00 noon 25 March. Your hosts are Nico and Soraya Anvari who live in Catslide Barn (5 Manor Court) at the end of Manor Court in Stawell – There will be signs up outside!
Easter Bingo: In the evening of the 25 March, after partaking in the fantastic cakes and coffee which Soraya and Nico are promising 😉, you can go to play at the annual Easter Bingo event. The VH doors open at 7:00pm. Refreshments will be available.
As usual donations of prizes are very welcome. They can be left with Ruth Peberdy at Old School House or Tina Swift at Carisbrooke House. If you wish to donate a prize but cannot deliver then call Ruth on 722914 who will organise their collection.
It's February Already!
Parish Council Minutes: The minutes for the February meeting have now been published.
HUB Cafe: Yes, there is a HUB Cafe this month! Come to the Village Hall this Saturday (11 February) and enjoy good company with friends and neighbours plus great coffee and a range of foo, both sweet and savoury. Doors open at 10am until 1:00pm.
Coffee Morning: This month our hosts are Giles and Ailish Edwards at Connaught in Stawell. Always a lovely event with good company, cofffee and home-made cake. 10:00am to 12:00 noon (ish).
MOMSS: The February edition of the MOMSS magazine is out. The digital edition is available here under the Organisations/Church menu. Always worth a look at the digital version to see Anne Farmer’s cover pic in colour.
Road Closure: If you drive through Chedzoy I’m sure you will have seen the signs but if not here is a notice of a road closure there. There will be a road closure at Ward Lane, Chedzoy which will commence on 2nd February 2023 – 3rd February 2023 (00:00 – 23:59) for a total of 2 days.
This will enable Wessex Water to carry outa sewer repair due to severe cracks in broken pipe.
A couple of notices from the police. Firstly, garage has been broken into between 9am on the 26th and 9am on the 27th in West View Close, Middlezoy. Once inside the offender stole a motorcycle described as a KTM 450 in Orange & Black (VE58YKK). The police are also warning about scams where someone sells something on Facebook Marketplace. A fraudster agrees to buy it. The fraudster then arrives at the victim’s address, presenting a fake banking app showing that the payment has been made to the victim. The victim hands over the goods, believing they have been paid, only to realise that they haven’t received the money some hours later. If the victim checks their account and questions why the money hasn’t yet arrived in their bank, the fraudster will say that it can take a couple of days to show. Intimidation tactics may also be used. Police advise always using the site-approved payment method.
What's Going on in January
The first Coffee Morning of 2023 takes place on 28 January and is hosted by Jean Reynolds at 5 The Old Apple Store in Stawell. Doors open from 10:00am to 12:00pm.
There is always a warm welcome, plenty of coffee and a range of fabulous cakes to ruin the New Year diet!! Do come along and spend time chatting with friends and neighbours. Funds raised are used to support the village Church.
Parish Council: There is a special planning meeting taking place on Tuesday 3 January. The agenda is published under the Organisations/Parish Council menu.
Road Closure – Ford Lane: a notification has been received of a TTRN (urgent) road closure at Ford Lane, Stawell which will commence on 9th January 2023 – 13th January 2023 (00:00 – 23:59) for a total of 5 days. This will enable Wessex water to carry out main leak repair works.
The contractor has indicated that access for Emergency Services through the site is not permitted on this occasion.
For any further information about this closure please contact Wessex Water on 0345 600 4600, quoting reference: ttro914515SE.
Please visit one.network https://one.network/?tm=132329724 where you will see the map of the affected area (in red), together with the supplied diversion route (in blue).
HUB Cafe and Film Night: January 21st is the big day for Village Hall events this months. The Cafe will be open in the afternoon from 10am to 1pm and in the evening the cinema opens for a showing of Mrs Harris goes to Paris. Full details of both events below
Doors open at 7:00pm on 21 January for a 7:30pm showing. Bar and food on sale.
Based on the book “Mrs ‘Arris Goes To Paris” by the celebrated American author, Paul Gallico (living in Salcombe at the time), the film tells the story of a widowed cleaning lady in 1950s London who falls madly in love with a couture Dior dress, and decides that she must have one of her own. After she works, starves and gambles to raise the funds to pursue her dream, she embarks on an adventure to Paris which will change not only her own outlook, but the very future of the House of Dior.
This film was praised by critics and audiences alike and achieved an excellent 94% on the Rotten Tomatoes website.
Alternative Fuel Payment
The Government has announced that Alternative Fuel Payments will be made in January to Northern Ireland customers and in February to those in Great Britain. this is a payment being given to homes and businesses who do not use mains gas for heating. This payment is in addition to the Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS) non-repayable discount of £400
"Warm Spaces"
The VHC is very pleased to say that after much form filling and questions beyond belief we have been granted £750.00 towards the ‘Warm Spaces’ project over the winter. This will allow us to do seriously subsidised extra VH hub cafes etc and other ‘things we have planned. Dates of these other cafes etc will be made known when we know ourselves lol. This will be from December through March
Fixed Payments for Oil Heating Consumers
I’ve had the following notification passed on to me which should interest the many users of oil for heating in the village. I went to the UKIFDA website to check this and discovered that the site has lots of information that would be of use to oil consumers.
UKIFDA, the trade body for the liquid fuel distribution industry, has met with the government to discuss the most efficient way of getting the £100 fixed payment announced on 19th September to heating oil customers.
Given the highly competitive nature of the heating oil market, customers have the ability to purchase from a number of different distributors and outlets. Consequently, they are likely to hold multiple accounts, which makes the fixed payment distribution challenging to deliver without duplication.
Inevitably this will take some time, so we strongly recommend that customers do not wait if they need heating oil. We are working closely with the government to find a solution and ensure that heating oil households receive their £100 as soon as possible.