Village news
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East Leake Mike Elliott 0115 937 6506 elliottnews@btconnect.com
LOOKING FOR ANOTHER PARISH CLERK. The appointment of Robin Westwood as the new clerk of East Leake parish council has not gone ahead.
Mr Westwood was appointed to the job following the retirement of Lesley Bancroft, who had been in post for a number of years.
He was due to start his new role on May 15 and prior to taking on the East Leake job his career included senior posts with Oadby District Council and Broxtowe Borough Council, and latterly running his own business consultancy.
At the time of his appointment the chairman of the Parish Council, Coun. Conrad Oatey, said they were very pleased to have appointed him, and looked forward to benefitting from his extensive experience.
But then within a few days the council chairman said in a new statement that Mr Westwood, having accepted the post, had withdrawn before taking it up.
“The Parish Council is very disappointed at being let down in this way. Efforts are continuing to fill the role at the earliest opportunity,” said Coun. Oatey.
MOON WALK SUCCESS. East Leake’s new big attraction in the form of the Moon Walk held earlier this month was highly successful from a social point of view – and it has now been confirmed it was also a major success financially, having made £1,814 for the two good causes it was supporting.
Co-organiser Jenny Mellors told the Echo this week: “I am delighted to announce that the total raised for the bra walk was a staggering £1814. The money is being split between Sarah’s making memories fund and the British Heart Foundation. “I would just like to say a huge thank you to everyone who took part on the night and everyone who has kindly donated. The date has been set for next year - Saturday 12th May and we look forward to seeing you all then.”
The event was held for the first time this year with Jenny and Tracie Waterfield being in charge of it., with both of them having had experience of such events, having taken part in the famous London Moon walk twice. There were 195 people taking part in the 5k walk at East Leake which set off from outside The Round RobINN bar in the centre of the village.
This first East Leake effort at a Moon Walk was raising money, amongst other good causes, for the British Heart Foundation and the local ‘Making Memories Fund’ set up in support
of Sarah West --a former teacher at the village Lantern Lane School and who was brought up in the village and whose parents still live there – who has been diagnosed with serious breast cancer – and whose supporters want to raise money so Sarah and her partner Rups and two young girls, Olivia (5) and Amelia (2) can go on a dream holiday. Sarah was one of the people taking part in the walk.
NEW GYPSUM PRODUCT. East Leake based British Gypsum, having just celebrated their 100th anniversary, have a new product -- Thistle Bonding 60 -- that is being hailed as one that will massively speed up small repair jobs.
The innovative new undercoat plaster that decreases setting time by as much as two thirds has, say the firm, all the attributes of original Thistle Bonding Coat plaster, but with a much shorter setting time of just 60 minutes, meaning it’s ready to finish in 75 minutes.
The new product from the village site effectively means installers can double their productivity on repair work, potentially even having the time to complete two jobs a day instead of one.
The new product is ideal for patching deep holes or chases, and is available in a 10kg re-sealable tub or 12.5kg and 25kg bags.
The firm say the different sizes reflect the needs of different trades, the tub and smaller bag is ideal for the occasional user while the larger bag suits those who regularly do patch and repair work or those that have a large job planned.
Gareth Dunn, Innovation Project Manager at British Gypsum, explains: “After spending time working on site with a range of installers, it’s clear that a lot of time is being spent waiting for undercoats to set. On smaller jobs in particular, this makes up a substantial amount of the overall time spent working on that project.”
Plasterer Ken Smith got the chance to try out the new plaster during the trial of Thistle Bonding 60. Ken said: “I used the product to repair a small patch on a wall and thought it was very good. The quicker setting time meant I was able to bond, patch and skim it all in one visit. Using the 12.5kg bag meant I didn’t have to open a big bag of plaster and waste product too. Definitely five stars from me!”
Thistle Bonding 60 joins British Gypsum’s existing Thistle One Coat and Gyproc Easi-Fill products to create a new trade patching range. Together the range offers plasterers and builders, as well as electricians, plumbers and decorators, a tailored collection of products that are perfect to use to repair holes, fill in pipe or cable chases or finish walls.
Thistle One Coat allows users to make a deep fill with a single application and create a good standard of finish even when wet, without the worry of cracking or shrinkage.
Rounding off the patching range is British Gypsum’s Gyproc Easi-Fill. With a working time of one hour, or 20 minutes when using Gyproc Easi-Fill 20, the plaster can be trowelled smooth when wet, or sanded smooth when dry. It provides the perfect base for decorating quickly and doesn’t need any expert plastering skills to apply.
All products are available from local trade suppliers.
FRACKING GROUP. Village supporters of the Notts Free Frack group in East Leake are being asked to get the anti fracking message heard. The group say they require as much help as possible to get heard.
The group has recently held several leaflet dropping exercises in the North of Nottinghamshire where currently there is likely to be more actively because of firm movement by would-be developers in that part of the county.
The East Leake area group continues to be active in their efforts to bring to the attention of people in their area the current situation and the possibility of future fracking activity in the area
ANNUAL REPORT. Although the annual report of the chairman of East Leake parish council - Coun. Conrad Oatey – lists many strong and positive advancement made in the last 12 months/ he admits there are some less positive aspects of 2017.
In his annual report to the parish, he says that efforts to get improved Health facilities have stalled. “Lots of discussions, even a grant application for funds for a new building --made by the Health Centre and Clinical Commissioning Group to a national fund --, but there is still no sign of any money. We need to be prepared for this to be a long haul!!!”
The chairman speaks of the concerns over the apparent endless stream of housing applications being brought by developers, and says the council has been very busy reading mountains of papers and commenting on proposals.
Coun. Oatey comments on the the apparent lack on involvement of village residents. “Whilst on special occasions we do get voluntary help, such as the annual Litter Pick, there is much more we could collectively do if more people were prepared to get involved. The idea to form a “Friends of East Leake” to undertake minor tasks to tidy the village raised no serious interest.”
The chairman said he hoped residents would remember East Leake is their village. “Do you care about what happens in it or how it looks?”
The report from the chairman goes on to comments on “mindless acts of anti social behaviour / damage.” Adding, “This ranges from graffiti to destruction of part of one of the bridges in the village. I would ask everybody to be vigilant, and pass any information to the police. After all, it is your money the vandals are wasting......”
The chairman says that once again the parish council had agreed a rise in parish precept which equates to about 25p per week. “This is almost entirely driven by the urgent need for the Gotham Road car park extension. We have been advised by Rushcliffe that we cannot claim developer contributions (Section 106 money) for this, even though the need is clearly driven by more housing further from the village centre. Without the precept rise, the extension would need to wait at least another 12 months, and residents have made their frustrations about car parking very clear to us.”
Kegworth Mike Elliott 0115 937 6506 elliottnews@btconnect.com
FUN DAY AND FOOD FESTIVAL. All is set for Kegworth’s biggest event of the year, the Family Fun Day and Food Festival being held on Saturday (June 3) this weekend, on the Sideley Recreation Ground and which promises to provided entertainment for all ages.
The showground will open at 10am and Breaston Highlanders Band will give it a musical start shortly afterwards.
The event organised by the OneKegworth group was held for the first time last year and its success meant it was an obvious choice to hold another.
The Food Festival is new for this year and with over 25 food stalls, there will be a wide range of mouthwatering food to try including hog roast, delicious lamb, hot filled rolls, wood fired pizza, premier cheese, handmade fudge, traditional country ice cream, rich handmade brownies, fresh donuts, beautifully roasted coffee and food served from a fire engine!
The Food Festival will showcase a Kitchen Demo Area, with the guest TV chef leading Ready, Steady, Cook competitions and local artisan bread makers and skilled butchers offering demonstrations on their area of expertise.
The Arts and Crafts section will be even bigger and better this year, and will showcase arts and crafts from local jewellery makers, crafters and artists as well as Indian jewellery and henna tattoos, youth arts, face painting, handmade cards and woodworking.
This is the perfect area to pick up a unique gift for your loved one or to treat yourself to something different.
Many local businesses have joined the organisers to showcase all they have to offer including health, beauty and services.
They will be standing alongside others including East Midlands Airport, Air Ambulance, University of Nottingham and the NHS.
For the children there will be lots of fun with fairground rides, hook a duck stalls, tombola, scavenger hunts and a bouncy castle will be available for the youngsters and will ensure they have a fun filled day of excitement!
Over the years Kegworth has become well known for tractor displays --dating back to the village Carnival days – and on Saturday visitors will be invited to go and see a lovely collection of vintage tractors, owned by one of Kegworth’s oldest residents who is still young at heart! There again be a Viking Camp and the Vikings will be there in force to welcome visitors to go and see their traditional camp set up around the camp fire.
On display will be a fine collection of musical instruments and weapons and learn about how the Vikings lived. See them prepare for the final Battle of Kegworth!
The performing arena is back bigger and better than ever.
The event will be kicked off with the wellknown Breaston Highlanders Band, followed by live Viking battles, Grand Central Chorus, Community Theatre Performances, Timeless Duo, Canine Scentwork demos, Meet the Wolfdog sessions and dog agility demos!
Says organiser Julie Cooke: “Our schedule is packed full of variety and there is something guaranteed to keep you entertained.”
Another new attraction this hyear will be an Animal Arena which will hold the dog show classes and Canine Scentwork workshops. Says Julie: “Don’t let man’s best friend miss out on our family fun day designed for everyone to enjoy, he might get Best in Show!”
The animal area will comprise of animal charities, stalls and animal handling opportunities with a wide range of small furries and reptiles. Returning this year are Woodies Wings, who will be bringing a wide range of rescue parrots and owls.
Pony rides will be available and are set to be a big hit this year.
The Kitchen Demo area will see Chef demonstrations on the hour from 10am through to 4pm to include local artisan bread maker demonstration, food bank challenge, skilled butchery demonstration and a ready, steady, cook challenge between TV chef Matt Guy and his brother Justin Guy from the Yew Lodge Hotel in the village.
Says Julie: “It will be fun to see which brother will win the challenge.”
In the evening on Saturday there will be Ceildh in the village hall from 6.30pm11.30 pm
when those attending will be able to enjoy an evening of live music staring well-known folk band Jigabit, followed by student band Tundra.
Ticket price of £8 (£6.50 for students) includes both entry and sumptuous hog roast provided by TV chef Matt Guy. Tickets available from Picture This and Lovage Homes in Kegworth, from One Kegworth or at
the Information Point stand at the show.
CANCER RESEARCH FUND-RAISER. Elsewhere in Kegworth there will be a Summer Fund-raiser for Cancer Research UK also on Saturday from 10.30 to 4pm at 23 Heafield Drive Kegworth. There will be cakes, books, bric a brac and plants for sale. There will also be a raffle. Any donations would be gratefully appreciated.
Any queries please contact Paula Wood, 01509 673274.
COMMUNITY LIBRARY. Tonight ( Wednesday, May 31) our singing group EmbarrasSING returns after a short break to rest the vocal chords - except for possibly belting out a few choruses of Y Viva Espana.
7.00 start, just £2.00 for a really sociable and enjoyable evening.
Next Wednesday, June 7, we’re game for anything in the library. Cards, dominoes, board games – just drop in and join in from 2.00pm
If your children or grandchildren took part in the recent ONE Kegworth Bookmark Competition then call into the library and see if theirs is one of those on display for a short time.
As part of our ongoing upgrade of the library services, we have a new telephone line installed.
Our new telephone number is 01509 554176 and it has answering facilities for leaving out-of-hours messages. This number is active as of now.
GARDEN CLUB. The May meeting for the Kegworth and District Garden Club was held at the meeting room, Kegworth Village Hall when the speaker was Keith Bates and his subject was Orchids.
Keith’s interest in orchids started with a visit to Kew Gardens in 1988.
He now has over 300 plants of various varieties and is a founder member of the Hinckley and District Orchid Society. Orchids have been around since the age of the dinosaurs. They were given the name orchid by the Greeks and there are over 32.000 species.
Keith gave practical advice on buying, repotting , feeding and watering . He also advised on pests and diseases and which compost to use.
All necessary information if the plant is to flower again.
Raffle winners for the evening included Susan Wright, Julie Plimmer, Alison Beauchamp, Sandra Bucknell and Ann Docherty.
The next meeting will be on Thursday this week, June 1, the speaker will be Tracy Akehurst and her subject is “Pickled potted and canned”.
Long Whatton and Diseworth
Mike Elliott 0115 937 6506 elliottnews@btconnect.com
FOOD BANKS. Food Banks have now been established in each of the churches of the Diseworth Benefice. The aim is to collect tinned and packaged goods that are later for distribution to the food bank in Shepshed. There is a named box at the back of the church for all contributions. “Thank you for your continued donations,” is the message from the church.
BAVARIAN NIGHT OUT. Visitors to Diseworth Village Hall on Saturday June 3 are in for a special night out.
Keg and Cask Mobile Bar Solutions will be presenting Karl’s Bavarian Brass.
A real fun evening for both young and old is promised.
“Ve hav vays of makin u happy,” say the band who are arguably the best Oompah band in the East Midlands.
Doors will open at 7.30 on the night and tickets at £12 include a light supper Strictly Licensed bar only. Contact Dave for more details on 07742 173534.