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December 2003 Features & News

Features & News

RECORD REVEL REWARDS COMMUNITY
The Revel Committee handed out cheques to a long list of village organisations at the Annual General Meeting on 24th September.

VILLAGE OF THE YEAR COMPETITON 2003
We've done it again. Yes, for the second year running, Pucklechurch is the top village of the competition for the old Avon area.

"TOMBSTONES" A MONUMENTAL SUCCESS
Our own Pucklechurch Players opened on 7th November for a successful two-night run of "Tiptoe Through the Tombstones".

HAS SOMEBODY BEEN GOING THROUGH YOUR BINS?
South Gloucestershire Council conducted an analysis of our waste to assess how well we are doing at recycling.

TWO PUCKLECHURCH PUBS MAKE GOOD BEER GUIDE 2004
The 2004 edition of CAMRA's Good Beer Guide includes the Star Inn and the Rose & Crown.

BOB'S A STAR
National award for Star landlord.

PUCKLECHURCH ONLINE
Article about this site.

PUCKLECHURCH IN THE FAST LANE
With the arrival of broadband at the Abson telephone exchange, Pucklechurch entered the fast lane of the information superhighway.

DESIGN-A-SIGN COMPETITION
Have you noticed when you enter the village that the Pucklechurch signs seem to be missing something?

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RECORD REVEL REWARDS COMMUNITY

The Revel Committee handed out cheques to a long list of village organisations at the Annual General Meeting on 24^th September. Revel Chairman John Whelan said that this year’s Revel was the biggest and best in his 14 years on the Committee. He proclaimed himself “really, really chuffed” at the success of the parade, with the number of floats and the level of participation exceeding all expectations. Revel events were organised over the three weeks leading up to the Revel itself.

Revel profits were over £8,000, a full 60% more than last year. This year a total of £7,550 was distributed to the following worthy causes:

VILLAGE OF THE YEAR COMPETITON 2003

We’ve done it again. Yes, for the second year running, Pucklechurch is the top village of the competition for the old Avon area. We have won the shield, another plaque, and a certificate, plus a cheque for £75. I was very pleased to accept this award on behalf of the village at a ceremony held at Camerton Village Hall on the 15^th November.

Sponsored by Calor Gas and organised by the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), the 2003 Village of the Year Competition saw us competing against ten other local villages with a population of more than 1,500 residents.

Thank you to all the villagers who made an effort in helping with this win. It was nice to wander around to see that people were taking pride in their properties. We also owe thanks to South Gloucestershire Council’s Street Care Department for keeping the street litter to a minimum and cutting all the grassed areas around the village, making the whole village look in good order.

The trophies will be on display in the Post Office. Many thanks to Shirley and Keith for allowing us the space to display them.

Les Whittock

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"TOMBSTONES" A MONUMENTAL SUCCESS

Our own Pucklechurch Players opened on 7^th November for a successful two-night run of “Tiptoe Through the Tombstones”, produced by Rachel Goodchild and Merle Wilmot. The play, a sequel to “Tomb with a View” performed by the company in their 1986 season, combined comedy and murder to good effect. Jan Beg and Georgia Whelan co-directed this two-act whodunit about a family of professional assassins who get a bit of their own medicine when they return to the old family home to discuss their inheritance. Excellent casting and an outstanding set design made for a thoroughly enjoyable performance.

Emma Buckley’s maidservant and Richard Hanks as the outrageously effeminate Vernon led the way through the plot’s many twists and turns, foiling the devious plans of lawyer Mortimer Crayle (Martin Hall) and his would-be partner in crime Zoe (Alexandra Goodridge). The Tomb family were played by Susie Hawkins as the ditzy Athene, Sue Humphris as the tough-talking, bleach-blonde Fabia, Andrea Ryland as the elegant mystic Octavia, Gina Blyth as the domineering Henrietta, and Karl Fuerstenberg as the hapless Augustus. Richard Foreman bared nearly all as the clown up to no good. 

If you would like to join Pucklechurch Players, either on stage or off, they would be pleased to welcome you at their weekly meetings: Thursdays, 8pm, Village Hall meeting room.

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HAS SOMEBODY BEEN GOING THROUGH YOUR BINS?

South Gloucestershire Council conducted an analysis of our waste to assess how well we are doing at recycling. The Council contracted with Network Recycling to collect and analyse a sample taken from 50 homes in Pucklechurch on Wednesday, 23rd July 2003. The rubbish was categorised and weighed using digitally calibrated scales. The results may surprise you. As the chart above shows, 57% of the waste put out in the wheeled bins, including garden materials, kitchen waste, paper, and cardboard, could have been composted at home rather than being transported to the landfill site in Swindon. Furthermore, 15% of the residual waste collected from the 50 households (paper, glass, cans, and textiles) could have been recycled in the green recycling boxes.

Why should we care about how we dispose of our waste? In the first place, landfills take up huge swathes of countryside, and they are not the kind of thing anyone wants in their own backyard. Secondly, landfills will cost us more and more in taxes if we don’t reduce the volume of waste. National targets set by the Landfill Directive to reduce the amount of biodegradable municipal waste that goes into landfills from the baseline year of 1995 are 25% by 2010, 50% by 2013, and 65% by 2020. The landfill tax will rise accordingly. It is currently £14 per tonne, but it goes up to £15 per tonne in 2004-05, and thereafter rises £3 per year, bringing it to £35 per tonne by 2011-12. If we continue sending rubbish to landfills at the current rate, South Gloucestershire Council will have to pay out an extra £7million up to 2012. For you and me, that means higher council taxes or cutbacks in other areas. Surely we can think of better uses for our money than putting it in landfills!

South Gloucestershire Council is committed to reducing rubbish, encouraging re-use and developing recycling services in the area. To learn more about composting, visit the Council’s web page on home composting at: http://www.southglos.gov.uk/environmental_ protection/homecomp.htm or call the Helpdesk at 01454 868000. South Gloucestershire residents can send cheque for  £14.95 to SITA and receive a voucher good for a home composting bin, which can be collected from one of the SORT IT! centres. The new bins are an improved model with a front opening hatch. Currently you will also receive a home composting guide and a free kitchen bucket with lid (worth £4.95).

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TWO PUCKLECHURCH PUBS MAKE GOOD BEER GUIDE 2004

The 2004 edition of CAMRA’s Good Beer Guide includes the Star Inn and the Rose & Crown in its listing of the best pubs in the country. Published by the Campaign for Real Ale, the guide’s primary criterion for selection is the quality of the beer. Although cities and large towns often have multiple entries in the guide, few villages rate even one entry, let alone two! Congratulations to both of these fine establishments. Keep up the good work!

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BOB'S A STAR

In the last edition of Pucklechurch News, we reported how Bob Todd, landlord of the Star Inn, had won the Regional Shine Award from the Punch Pub Company, owners of the Star. Having won the regional award, Bob progressed to the national final, held at the Forest of Arden Country Club in Warwick on 4^th November. Prior to the awards evening, the organisers commissioned a video of the Star’s operation, which featured many of the staff.

During October, a phone vote determined the winner of the national Shine Award, with part of the proceeds going to Marie Curie Cancer Care. The result was close, with Bob finishing second out of nine finalists (originally some 4,600 pubs took part), an outstanding performance in a truly national competition. Congratulations Bob and all your staff on a fabulous result. Thanks also to everyone who voted. Over £16,000 was raised for Marie Curie Cancer Care as a result.

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PUCKLECHURCH ONLINE

The Pucklechurch community website went online with the publication of the September issue of the Pucklechurch News.  As well as the electronic edition of the newsletter, the website offers space for the many clubs and societies in the village to promote themselves and communicate with members.

One of the big potential advantages is that we can have a complete diary of events. Several club organisers have said that this will really help avoid clashes of events that so frequently happen. This is available online to anyone with an internet connection but we will also be providing printed versions for posting on the community association notice board and other locations in the village.
In brief the site contains:

• Calendar of events
• Community pages with information on clubs and associations
• General information on the village
• A directory of local businesses serving the community with contact details and opening times of the surgery, shops and pubs
• A brief history of the area with links to other sources of information
• A list of other local information including bus timetables

Since going 'live' in September there have been nearly one thousand visits to pages on the site. However, visitors will notice that we are still missing a lot of information from the clubs and organisations in the village. If you are one of the organisers, please take a few minutes to send any information you have to Martin Smith (webmaster@pucklechurch.org) or drop it off to any of the Pucklechurch News editors.
 

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PUCKLECHURCH IN THE FAST LANE

With the arrival of broadband at the Abson telephone exchange, Pucklechurch entered the fast lane of the information superhighway. Speed of sending and receiving data is the main advantage broadband offers over a normal dial-up connection, and this will be a boon to the many home-based workers and businesses in the village. However, you don’t need to use it for work to find these benefits useful. Take radio, for example. 

Yes, good old-fashioned radio is getting a boost from high-speed Internet connections. You can tune into any of thousands of radio stations all over the world that broadcast live over the Internet.  Fed up with the same old stuff on music radio in the UK?  Chances are that a radio station somewhere in the world is broadcasting your favourite music.  Maybe you moved here from another part of the UK or from abroad and want to catch up on news back home. Chances are that a station from home broadcasts over the Internet. With broadband you can listen and surf at the same time.

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DESIGN-A-SIGN COMPETITION

Have you noticed when you enter the village that the Pucklechurch signs seem to be missing something? Do you need a public outlet for your formidable artistic talents? Then start getting your ideas down on paper for the village sign competition!

The search for a suitable design to be put in the arched space at the top of the sign has now begun. Omar Beg, chairman of the Parish Council, has offered to donate a prize (yet to be named) for the winner…as if fame weren’t enough.

The area measures 575mm wide by 345mm tall. Designs should take the shape of the space into consideration. All entries will be considered, and the decision of the judges will be final.

Entries should be submitted on a single sheet of A4 paper in either single or full colour. Please remember to include your name, address, phone number, and age (if under 18). Designs must be submitted by 18th January 2004 to Jackie Sexton, either on paper or electronically (see Pucklechurch News information block for address and email details).

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