Eckington

On July 21 at Eckington Village Hall at 2.15pm the speaker is Bernard Mills, who will be giving a talk on the History of Kays. His book will also be on sale.

For information call Janet 750066 or Margaret 750316.

FRIENDS OF ECKINGTON SCHOOL: Members are organising the auction of promises for this year. To donate a promise or sponsor a section of the catalogue or advertise in the catalogue, call Liz on 751613.

ECKINGTON TODDLERS: This month members abandon the village hall for visits to the gardens of local parents (and some local attractions). Contact the host for the morning by 9.30am to check arrangements, and take a cup and a snack for the children.

Tuesday July 5: Cotswolds Farm Park visit with Eckington Under Fives, Helen Ashby 01386 751189; Tuesday July 12: Georgina's house - 13 The Close, Eckington, Georgina 01386 750426; Tuesday, July 19: Anna's house - Trinity House, Church Street, Eckington, Anna 01386 751936; Tuesday, July 26: Croome Park walk and picnic, Sophia 01905 371877.

BOOK CLUB: The next meeting will discuss The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler at Pam's house on July 15 at 8pm. The August book will be Carol Shield's Happenstance, meet at Jay's on Friday, August 19.

For information call Jeni on 751478 or Karen on 750401.

CELEBRATION EVENING: A celebration to mark the end of the second world war will be held on Saturday, July 9 at 7.30pm in the village hall, with a buffet supper, show, sing-a-long and dancing. People are invited to wear wartime outfits (optional) and bring own drinks and glasses. Tickets are £4 from Arthur Ore, 750796 or Joan Green, 750396. Numbers are limited.

CHRISTIAN AID: Collections during Christian Aid Week totalled £1,077. With a record number of people gift aiding their money it added a further £110 to this total.

PARISH COUNCIL: At the recent council meeting on June 14, a number of electors took the opportunity to attend the open forum to voice their concerns at the withdrawal of the 382 bus service from The Close and the increase in incidents of vandalism and verbal abuse in the village.

A number of residents were distressed to discover that the 382 bus service to The Close had been withdrawn by the county council. A petition of in excess of 70 names was presented to the council stating their concern, emphasising in particular the distress this move had caused a number of residents, particularly those who were reliant on the bus service to maintain their independence, and who found it too physically demanding to cope with the prospect of a long walk up from the Bell or Cross with shopping. County councillor Adrian Hardman was present at the open forum, and shared everyone's concerns. Arrangements were made for a representative from the village to attend with Adrian Hardman a meeting at county hall, with the public transport unit to voice their concerns.

Concern was also expressed at the increased level of vandalism within the village, with incidents occurring in various locations, with criminal damage to property being caused. It was agreed that all incidents of vandalism should be reported to the police either through the West Mercia police phone line - 08457 444888 or through Crimestoppers 01800 555 111.

Following the open forum, the council meeting dealt with a number of issues:

Highways: It was noted that following continued pressure from both the parish council and local residents, some repairs to the potholes in The Close and New Road would be undertaken by the highways authority.

Telegraph Pole, New Road: A site meeting between Highways, BT and the parish council had been held to look at the location of the telegraph pole at the junction of New Road and Jarvis Street. BT will be contacting neighbouring householders to discuss relocating the pole.

Lengthsman: It was agreed that the lengthsman scheme had been successful within the parish, enabling many simple highways tasks to be undertaken. As further funding from highways unit have been secured for the current financial year, it was agreed that the contract for the lengthsman would be extended until the end of March, 2006.

Traffic speed survey: The highways unit has recently deployed a mobile speed monitor in Tewkesbury Road during the morning commute to work time. It was used to track the speed of all vehicles entering the village from the Bredon direction. The monitor identified that more than 50 per cent of vehicles entered the village in excess of 35mph. The statistics have been passed to the police for their consideration, and the parish council is considering various methods of emphasising the speed restrictions to all motorists.

The next parish council meeting will be held on Tuesday, July 12 in the village hall. Villagers are reminded that there is an opportunity to raise any issues or concerns direct with the council at the open forum, which is at 7.30pm.

CAR BOOT: On Sunday, July 17 and Sunday, September 4, 2pm at the recreation centre; £5 per boot, set-up from mid-day. Call Liz on 01386 751613 for information. Donations of goods and cakes for the school stall would be appreciated.

SCOUTS AND GUIDES GROUP: The village has no Scouts or Cubs due to a lack of leaders. There are enough funds to re-open these sections so anyone interested in becoming a leader should contact Geoff Ransted on 750855. There are 50 Brownies and Guides with leaders and helpers.

ROYAL BRITISH LEGION: It has been a sad time for members lately with the death of member Mr Len Richardson. Len came to the village as the station master and was also responsible for Bredon station. The railway stations were the lifeline of the villages in the 1950s with few people having cars and not many buses around. Len was a keen Legion member and eventually became chairman.

Members were also saddened to hear of the death of Mrs Nellie Dyson who, with her husband Bob, moved to the village in 1969 before moving to Defford in 1987 when they retired from running the nursery in Station Road. Both Nellie and Bob were keen members of the Legion, with Bob once being chairman.

The branch now has 30 members, many well into their 80s. For information on the Legion, contact May Stephens on 750638.

The church service on Sunday at Defford Church will include the re-dedication of the 1914-18 Defford War Memorial. This will also be the last Defford Sunday service the Rev Peter Thomas will lead.