East Leake
Mike Elliott 0115 937 6506 elliottnews@btconnect.com
LOOKING FOR AN ORGANIST. East Leake Our Lady of the Angel’s Catholic Church are on the look out for an organist, and are asking if there is anyone out in the community who might be ale to help.
The church say they are looking for an organist for the Sunday services at the church.
“We would need you to come fortnightly and a small fee is available. We are a friendly happy church and would be made most welcome,” says the church notice.
Please contact Gilly Murray on 01509 853879 or Father Michael on 01509 852147, if you are interested or would like some more information.
FOLLOW COVID-19 GUIDANCE. Villagers in East Leake are being encouraged to follow Covid-19 guidance and support their neighbours by parish council chairman Coun Conrad Oatey.
In a summary of the work of the parish council Coun. Oatey says people are still wrestling with the consequences of the virus.
He said: “It feels a long way yet to go to emerge on the other side. In the mean while we will have experienced personal and financial hardships, disappointment and grief. I would encourage us all to follow guidance wherever possible, and to do everything we can to help and support our neighbours.”
He explained to residents that the council had been unable to hold their usual Annual Parish Meeting this year, but says the annual reports are available online at https://east-leake.gov.uk.
In his report Coun Oatey said the Parish Council had made progress in getting the subject of the new Health Centre to national level. He commented: ”Unfortunately the financial strains of Covid-19 will have set the cause back.”
He said that lots of “behind the scenes” work to sort out the children’s’ playground have been going on, including legal action and repairs.•
Coun. Oatey said that sewage and drainage problems had continued, but Severn Trent has finally accepted that there is a problem. He commented: ” We don’t know what the solution will be, but it is likely to take some years to be delivered. We are monitoring the situation closely.”
Planning consent is being sought for additional car parking for Costock Road Playing Fields
The Parish Council has agreed to fund additional hours for the Parish Clerk Neil to project manage the work for a new pavilion on the Costock Road Playing Fields, including to finalise a building design, obtain costings and progress grant funding through the Football Foundation and other bodies. The project is a joint venture between the Playing Field
Charity, members of the community and the Parish Council. The Chairman said “good progress” has been made on the project despite the lockdown.
The new Outdoor Gym in Meadow Park was proving popular before its closure during Covid-19 and new housing applications in East Leake have diminished during the last year, but not stopped.
Coun Oatey concluded: ”We know that we need improved infrastructure and continue to press for that (school places, health centre, traffic calming around T-junction, drainage)”.
PARISH CHURCH WORSHIP. St Mary’s Church at East Leake continued to offer Digital Worship every Sunday on their website, Facebook and YouTube. They have a main service streaming at 10am and evening prayer at 6pm.
The Rector, the Rev Tim Parkrer say their ‘Doing Christianity’ course had had to be delayed for a few weeks due to unforeseen circumstances, but with the latest announcement from the government, we are now hoping to be able to host the course ‘in person’ at St Mary’s.
The parish church is open for individual prayer every Sunday and Wednesday, 1pm-4pm. Hand sanitiser is available at the door and a simplified layout has been adopted to enable social distancing which is still limited to 2m. It is expected services in church will be resuming soon Most of the government’s guidance about reopening for services has been published and a briefing session from the Archdeacon is expected to explained new arrangements…
The Rev Tim in his message said after this the standing committee will convene to decide on how best to apply the guidance in East Leake’s setting, but they anticipate services resuming shortly after, with digital worship continuing as well since there are still some significant limitations.
“The most significant of which is the two-metre ‘rule’ will still apply for public worship, except in specific situations, such as the act of receiving communion, where closer contact cannot be avoided.
“Among other things, there will be no singing allowed and refreshments cannot be served after the service. In a small church building like St Mary’s, the rules will mean that for practical reasons services will be limited to around 20 people, and ‘back to back’ services on the same day may not be possible at first.
“We may also need some way to help people spread out across the available services, so that anyone who comes will know they have a seat. Whatever the case, we anticipate this being a gradual process and one we learn from and adapt to as we go along. In the smaller villages, churchwardens are taking the lead in consulting and deciding on the most appropriate first steps in their setting,” say the Rev Tim.
METHODIST CHURCH.
East Leake Methodist Church continued to hold their Church at Home each Sunday and publish service sheets for worshippers to follow.
LITTLE EGRETS SPOTTED.
Little Egret birds - Egretta garzetta - have been spotted in East Leake’s Meadow Park his year, says the Friends Group
In a report to members, they are told that over the past four years little egrets have been seen in the Park quite often.
“This year (2020) they have bene spotted again. It is one of our success stories. It is still classified as ‘uncommon’ in the UK. Little egrets have been seen in the Park in the autumn and winter as they migrate from the continent.”
The Little Egret is a small, white heron with black legs and yellow feet. It has a black bill and long plumes on its head and neck during the breeding season. It feeds on small fish and crustaceans.
“Once a very rare visitor from the Mediterranean, Little Egrets are now a common sight around the coasts of southern England and Wales as they expand their range, possibly due to increasing temperatures caused by climate change. It first bred in the UK on Brownsea Island, Dorset, in 1996, and has been moving northwards ever since; it was recorded as breeding in Berkshire for the first time in 2007. It is included on the Amber List as a rare breeding species in the UK.
The Wildlife Trusts are working with researchers, scientists and other conservationists to monitor changes in the wildlife in order to be able to react to the adverse effects of climate change.
“We have reported the sightings of these birds in the Park and if you see them on your travels the Wildlife Trust would like you to hear from you. Essentially the sightings add to the data being complied to help monitor and understand climate change.”
SIGNS AND LOCATIONS PROPOSALS. The parish council at East Leake have set up a Working Party to bring back proposals for Signs and Locations being provided in the village. One of the tasks will be to seek costs of the provision being suggested. The group is being led by Cllr Jenny de Villiers
There was general support for the idea and Coun de Villiers says she hopes there would be a will to proceed in order to reduce speeding traffic.
It was proposed by Cllr Simmons and seconded by Coun Maggs that a working party be formed and agreed unanimously. Couns Budzik and Simmons volunteered to join, and outside interest would also be invited, e.g. from Neighbourhood Watch
East Leake PC Staff and Services: It was agreed that grounds staff should be expected to return to normal hours and duties a date in June, but staggering lunch break to maintain social distance.
However, a risk assessment would be needed before opening the office to the public, so the Clerk and Deputy should continue working from home as possible. Incoming telephone calls and emails are being dealt with as normal NEWSLETTER TO ALL
HOUSEHOLDS. The Chairman Coun. Conrad Oatey said the council should be communicating with local residents, Newsletter to all Households, especially as the Annual Parish Meeting had not been held because of the coronavirus pandemic. A number of suggestions were made, and a four-sided edition could be produced.
GOTHAM ROAD PLAY AREA. Action is being taken by East Leake Parish Council to resolve issues around the closure of the Gotham Road Play Area.
The play area has been closed for a long time because of ‘dangerous soft areas under the rubber surface.’
According to the parish council the closure of the play area been ‘a great frustration’ to many people.
The parish council says it has spent many months seeking a resolution from the playground supplier who it says denies responsibility for the failure.
Steps have been agreed by the parish council to continue to pursue a legal remedy, including exploring whether insurers will cover any legal costs.
The council has also decided to get the area repaired as soon as possible at the council’s cost, whilst retaining the right to take legal action to recover the cost, in parallel with repairs.
The council says it is expected that the repair work will be ‘substantial’ as it involves removing the rubber surface, installing a stone base and installing a new safe soft surface.
Costs are expected to run into tens of thousands of pounds, and the council says it believes strongly that this should be paid for by the supplier, rather than being paid by the council funds.
However, the council has decided that the situation cannot be left until any legal proceedings have concluded as such proceedings may take ‘a considerable time’ so it has been agreed to fund repairs as soon as possible.