News

Calling all scarecrow makers and builders! Would you and your household – of whatever age- like to create a scarecrow and win the prestigious inaugural annual community vote for the best specimen? If the answer is ‘yes’, then please contact Val Hoare to be given your entry number, your judging form and to be told how to pay your £3 entry fee.

Entries should be brought to the community meadow (Lot 7) on Saturday August 22nd, at a time to suit yourself and to allow for the current social distancing rules. Then you and the whole parish will have the next week in which to view the entries and cast your votes for the best scarecrow and the runner-up.

On the afternoon of Saturday August 29th, there’ll be a Plant, Produce and Cake stall and at 6pm, the winners will be announced.  The two entries with the greatest number of votes will win a cash prize. So get your thinking caps on – we are looking forward to seeing your creative genius.

You’ll find full details on the Events page for August.

Many of us have been taking the opportunity during lockdown to explore our local area and learn more about about what we see growing and living in our hedgerows, gardens, streams and in our Community Orchard and Meadow. Littlehempston Nature Lovers are an informal group, who swap photos and info about sightings of wildlife such as nesting birds, bats, the stick insects of Ackrells Hill, unusual plants and cockchafers (sounds painful but is actually a common beetle). A bit like a local Springwatch, especially as some of us have night cameras.

The most exciting news exchanged recently has been the sighting of an otter in the Hems below the Old Vicarage and also a possible sighting in the Ambrook. No otters were spotted in the recent investigation pictured here of the Hems wildlife, though fish fry, freshwater shrimps, a damselfly nymph and a whirylgig beetle larva (possibly) were found.

Less happy sightings have been hedgehogs run over by cars, possibly as they got more adventurous when traffic died away for a while. Roadside signs have been put up to alert motorists to the possibility of hedgehogs crossing with luminous letters that headlights will pick up at night, which is usually when the hogs are out and about. Please drive carefully through the lanes at night and keep an eye on the road surface as you go.

Nature Lovers is a friendly group open to all – young people especially welcome – so do get in touch, if you want to be included in the e-mail exchanges.

The Community Space Team successfully navigated the technology to hold its Annual Meeting on Zoom in June. Chairman, James Dunn, reported that in 2019 the Space had provided a wide range of activities and events that informed, educated and entertained (to borrow the BBC mantra) and also raised enough funds to pay the bills and continue paying off the loan on the building works.

However, all agreed that 2020 was more of a challenge with all our major fundraisers cancelled for the moment. So ideas for community events that respected social distancing were discussed – be prepared for a change of style in the coming months. If you have a good idea or would like to join the Space Team (cheerful, friendly, monthly meetings), please get in touch.

The only income source at the moment for the Space is the Littlehempston Lottery, so many thanks to all who bought a ticket for the quarterly draw in June. First prize went to Suzanne of Gatcombe and was drawn by Ken (pictured here) who started the lottery and just happens to be her dad. But it was all above board, honest! Second prize went to an Uphempston resident who kindly gave her prize to the Space just as she did this time last year, when superior toilet brushes were purchased with the donation. What will be the exciting investment this year?

Littlehempston Church has taken its first step out of lockdown. It is now open on Sundays from 10a.m. to 3p.m. for individuals and family groups for private prayer and reflection. The pews have been rearranged so that the central area of the nave is uncluttered and visitors can observe the current 2m social distancing guidelines. The kitchen and toilets remain out of use.

Although the hymn books and bibles are unavailable for now, there are printed prayer resources for you to use and take away when you leave. While the building has been closed during lockdown, the church family has been meeting virtually and will continue to do so. You can access our on-line services and join us using the information on the Dart and Avon Mission Community website. With appropriate signage in place, we hope you will feel secure and will enjoy the chance to sit quietly and take in the peace and tranquillity of our beautiful building.

Dawn Neil, Head of Education at the Mare & Foal Sanctuary is asking for your support for their Wellies for Wellness project. Some Littlehempston people may remember Dawn from her time as a teacher at Berry Pomeroy school and also from the Beating the Bounds and Well Dressing events last October.

The Mare & Foal Sanctuary has set up a project named Wellies for Wellness which will be based at their Coombe Park equestrian and education centre.

They would really welcome your vote for their Wellies for Wellness bid to the Calor Community fund. They could get £5,000 to equip their outdoor classroom for nature-based learning if they get enough votes. This is an area which they are keen to share with other local community groups in the future.

Please click on this link to the Wellies for Wellness Crowdfunding page and on that page please click the red Like button. You will then be asked to register on the Calor Community site to be able to vote using the Like button. You can register by filling in the box or by logging in using Facebook.

Every like adds one point to the Wellies for Wellness project’s score on the crowdfunding page. But if you’d like to help a bit more you can also pledge some money to the project on the crowdfunding page, and every pledge adds 10 points to the score.

If you are a Facebook user, please invite your friends to vote for the Wellies for Wellness project by sharing the post about it on the Mare and Foal Sanctuary’s Facebook page.

There are also share links on the Mare and Foal Sanctuary’s Instagram and Twitter pages for those of you who use those channels.

If you were passing through the village last Tuesday afternoon, you may have spotted a group of local women waving their legs around in the community meadow. This was Littlehempston’s first outdoor Pilates class. Following the new Covid 19 regulations, Val Hoare strimmed six mat shaped spaces in the long grass and the five particpants nestled down into their “corn circles” for an excellent and much needed core workout in the sunshine amongst the buttercups led by Brenda Sleeman. If you’d like to find out more, contact Val Hoare.

The meadow and orchard have proved special places for local people to chill out over the last couple of months. Recently a new bench was installed at the top of the orchard, so that people who toil up the bank can get their breath back and admire the view. Many thanks to John Floyd who made the bench and to Jenny Galton-Fenzi who provided the materials. Jenny reports: “Growing in front of John Floyd’s upper bench are some patches of Lesser Stitchwort – the only other place I remember seeing it in the parish was in the verge near the Old Manor turning.”