Sutton Bonington

Mike Elliott 0115 937 6506 elliottnews@btconnect.com

MISSING MAN FOUND. A volunteer search and rescue team, supported by specialist police officers and an aerial drone, helped to save the life of a vulnerable missing man who spent five days in the open air.

The 46-year-old man was reported missing from the Sutton Bonington area on the Sunday, June 28, and was last seen heading into an area of expansive fields near the River Soar.

After several police searches of the area proved unsuccessful, officers requested specialist help from members of the Nottinghamshire Search and Rescue Team (NSART) – a charity working in partnership with the police.

Seventeen volunteer responders, supported by officers from Nottinghamshire Police’s underwater search, tactical support and drones team, spent much of Thursday scouring the area in heavy rain.

After around six hours of searching more than a square mile of land the team found the man shortly after 4pm in a dense crop of trees – badly dehydrated but alive.

PC Richard Mosley, a specially trained Police Search Advisor, explained:

“We had spent several days looking for this man and I must say that I started to fear the worst. He was in poor health already and he simply wasn’t dressed for the kind of weather we had been experiencing. He had no food or water with him and was wearing only a t-shirt, hooded jumper and a pair of jeans.

“I’ve been involved in searches before where we have recovered dead bodies and I had really started to think this was going to be the same.

We even had members of our underwater search team scouring the banks of the river and searching likely snagging points for a body.”

The man was found by volunteer NSART members in a copse of trees so dense that even the camera attached to the police drone could not see through it. He was treated at the scene and later transferred to hospital for further checks.

The Nottinghamshire Search and Rescue Team, whose control unit is based at Sherwood Lodge, is a registered charity dependent on public donations. It is made up of nearly 50 volunteers with a wide range of experience and expertise – including firefighters, paramedics and doctors. With expertise in lowland search operations the team is on duty 365 days a year to assist the police.

Jo Scott, chairman of the Nottinghamshire Search and Rescue Team, was one of the volunteer responders on the ground. She added: “What we saw on Thursday was a perfect example of team working with the police. If we’d not found him when we did the outcome may not have been so positive. Everyone involved in the team is a volunteer with jobs elsewhere. It can be very demanding but results like this make it all worthwhile. It’s fair to say that we all went home on a massive high.”

PC Mosley added: “I think what this incident demonstrates above all is that remarkable team effort that goes in to finding so many high-risk missing people. It’s not just the officers or search teams on the ground; it’s also those in missing from home team who are constantly liaising with families and processing other intelligence such as CCTV images or making calls to witnesses. It really is a huge team effort and I really can’t say enough good things about our colleagues from NSART.”

Giving more details on the specifics of Thursday’s search operation PC Mosley also highlighted the “gamechanging” nature of aerial drones in searches for missing people.“On this occasion the drone wasn’t actually able to identify where this man was, but it was able to search and clear large open areas in a timely manner. In a methodical search like this that is invaluable. The fields around were full of waist high crops.

Twenty people searching through those on foot would have many hours that we simply didn’t have; it would also have caused thousands of pounds worth of damage. So the police drone really is a game changer when it comes to finding missing people.”

The Nottinghamshire Search and Rescue Team is a registered charity that relies on public donations to carry out its life saving work. As well as supporting the police is also has a secondary objective to help the local community in times of crisis – such as flooding. The team has also been busy during the Covid-19 epidemic – delivering PPE to front-line services and getting medication to patients.

Last year it was the nominated charity for the Chief’s Charity Challenge – a year of fund-raising activities led by Chief Constable Craig Guildford that raised more than £4,500 to support its work.

HOPING TO HOLD AN ‘IT’S ALL OVER’ TEA PARTY. Parish councilors at Sutton Bonington are looking at the possibility of holding a social activity once the current coronavirus pandemic is over.

The council chairman Coun Julie McMullen-Kerr has reported to members that she had been approached by a resident suggesting that it would be nice to hold an ‘its all over tea party’ in the village, supported by the parish council, as soon as they are able to following COVID-19.

Members of the parish council agreed with the party idea in principal and suggested that community groups and the village hall committee should be approached at the appropriate time.

SCHOOL RE-OPENING. Sutton Bonington primary school from June 9, started to implement the Government’s plan - to began the phased reopening of the school for children in Reception and Year 1, and opened for children in Reception and the following week (15/6),they welcomed back children in Year 1.

Headmaster Lee Shilton said the children were being looked after in bubbles with pairs of staff in the school. Before the end of the month they had 50 children in school which is approximately equal to 30 per cent of the school population. “The key worker group has risen slightly and remain a priority group. Most of the children in Reception are attending school and approximately half of the children in Y1 are in school.

“We are closing for children in Reception and Year 1 a week early on Friday July 17 so that we can accommodate year 6 children in their final week,”

A recent announcement from the government has stated that all children will attend school in September on a full-time basis, and Mr Shilton says they await additional guidance regarding this.

“We remain open to the children of critical workers and vulnerable children. The school has worked hard to open and for now children in Year R and Year 1 can attend school.

“The safety of the children, staff and all members of the community is of paramount importance and increases to pupil numbers will be done in line with a rigorous risk assessment which is regularly reviewed in line with government guidance.”

COUNTY COVID-19 SUPPORT. Sutton Bonington representative at Notts County Council, Coun. Andy Brown, has reported that the authority have set aside £1m to support local communities to respond to COVID-19 and that £20,000 from this fund has been paid out to villages within the division, additional funds are still available.

In report to the parish council, Coun. Brown says the County Highways teams are continuing during the coronavirus pandemic period to deliver critical services and these include bridge inspections, emergency response to incidents, network co-ordination, customer liaison, traffic signals, gully emptying, grass cutting, etc.

CHURCHES’ DROP IN INCOME. The two parish churches in Sutton Bonington, St Annes and St Michael’s, like all other churches, have suffered by a drop in their income during the current coronavirus pandemic.

And while currently the ban on their use has been eased, full services still cannot be held there.

In an effort to change the position, parishioners are being asked to consider giving financial help to the two churches..

In a statement parishioner are told the village is blessed with two beautiful, very old and very different churches in St Michael’s and St Anne’s.

The two churches are medieval ones. and are a result of the merging of the two original villages -- Sutton and Bonington -- they are St.

Michael’s Church (Bonington’s church) and St Anne’s Church (Sutton’s church, located down St Anne’s Lane. St Michael’s is the larger of the two churches.

The two ancient ecclesiastical parishes of Sutton and Bonington were united for civil purposes in 1829 and 74 years later were formed into one ecclesiastical parish (with one rector appointed from 1950). St.

Michael’s Rectory, situated on the other side of the Midland Main Line, is now used by the University of Nottingham, whose large campus is just north of the village, to house postgraduate students.

Regular services will continue to be held in both churches once the coronavirus pandemic is over.

“However, these old structures require significant and continuous maintenance and this involves considerable expense, often running to tens of thousands of pounds a year. Many people give very generously towards church expenses, including by regular, monthly donations known as Planned Giving. We are very grateful and without this money the churches could not be run and maintained,” say leaders in the two churches.

The number of people making regular donations is falling and last year’s accounts show a fall of over £3,000 in regular giving in 2019 alone, at a time when expenses are increasing.

“This leaves the upkeep of our churches in peril. Donations can be ‘restricted to use for church building maintenance alone or ‘unrestricted’ and used for indirect running costs such as insurance, heating and lighting, along with other expenses. “

PARISH COUNCIL LOOKING FOR NEW MEMBERS. The parish council at Sutton Bonington are looking for another member to co-opt.

In a statement to the village, clerk Helen Chadwick is asking residents if they could spare a few hours a week to help their community. “Are you interested in volunteering as a parish councillor?” she asks saying they currently have a vacancy.

To qualify as a parish councillor you must be a British Subject, be over 18 and either live or work within 3 miles of the parish boundary.

Persons wishing to be considered for co-option should contact Helen for further details at The Dairy, Village Farm, Main Street, Stanford on Soar, telephone: 07827 785836 or Email: clerk@suttonboningtonparishcouncil. by August 1.

BAPTIST CHURCH SERVICES. Services at Sutton Bonington Baptist Church continue during the current coronavirus situation and their services haven’t stopped just because the building is closed.

The church has gone online on Sunday mornings at 10.30am those who would like to join them are asked to please get in touch through the Zoom Link. Anyone can also contact the church through its Facebook page.

During the week their home groups, youth and children’s activities are continuing online.