Photos of 2010

Images of Old Buckenham in 2010
At this time of the year, most of the newspapers fill their pages with various reviews of the past year.
So here are six pictures of my personal favourite photographs taken in the village during the year. There is snow, mist, fete, fair, tractors and a notice board.
Just click on the images if you want to see them in more detail.

Singing by candlelight

Carols at Christmas

There was standing room only at the ever popular candlelit service of Lessons and Carols held at All Saints Church, Old Buckenham, on Christmas Eve. The congregation were welcomed by the Revd Alistair Monkhouse and the service was led by Revd David Hill, Rector of the Quidenham group of parishes.
Readings were given by members of village organisations and other churches. Pupils from the Primary School read a Christmas poem and Lisa Cullins sang “Silent Night”. The choir from the High School sang the Star Carol by John Rutter and Howard Marshall sang a folk carol. Instrumental Christmas music was provided by Annett Winters, accompanied by the organist, Tom Hilton. The 1st Old Buckenham Scout Group sang the Millennium setting of the Lord’s Prayer.
Prayers were led by Dr and Mrs R Lindner and the Christmas message was delivered by Steve Eggleton. The offertory of £810 was given for the work of the St Martin’s Housing Trust (Norwich Night Shelter).

A new year starts

The January newsletter is here
You can collect your copy from the village shop, the two pubs, All Saints church or the Clinic on the Green.

Greetings to all our readers

Bearing gifts
Throughout Christmas Eve, the people of Old Buckenham and the surrounding area have been dropping off the gifts of non-perishable foodstuff to the Church Rooms. They will be taken on to the St Martins Housing Trust charity in Norwich to be used to help feed the homeless of Norfolk.
Just a tin of soup can mean an awful lot to someone who has very little in the way of possessions and no permanent roof over their head. As usual the local people have been very generous.
The money from the collection at the candlelit carol service held on Chrismas Eve will be going to the same charity.

A happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year to all our readers where ever you may be in the world.

Carols by candlelight

Christmas Eve in Old Buckenham
The candlelit carol service on Christmas Eve in All Saints Church is something that people all over Norfolk travel to attend. It is always packed so make sure you get there in plenty of time.

Lighting up time

Evening stars
It may be getting dark but Old Buckenham is still bright and active. A full moon shines down, houses are decorated and the village shop stays open late for those last minute purchases.

Managing the Green

Picnic tables

The chairman of the Green Rights Proprietors has provided the following information.
The Old Buckenham Green Rights Proprietors’ appeal against the earlier decision in their claim against the Ox & Plough Limited for £160 unpaid levy on the picnic table area on the Green was heard by His Honour Judge Darroch on Friday 17 December. The Judge upheld the appeal and ordered the Ox & Plough Limited to pay £160 plus a £25 court fee.
The Judge stated that he found that the Proprietors had shown they had the right to manage the Green and collect reasonable rents, wayleaves, etc, from those using the Green in order to finance the upkeep and maintenance of the Green.
The Proprietors were represented by their solicitor Peter Rollin. Alison Frank and Mike Read were present as were Mark and Sally Bishop together with several other Old Buckenham residents. Terry Cracknell, as Lord of the Manor, asked if he might make a statement and answer any questions and the Judge thanked him for the information he was able to give to the Court.

Repairs to windmill

Windmill status
The windmill at Old Buckenham has not been open to the public for some time and is in need of two repair projects. The first is to repair and replace the sails as these were found to be decayed when inspected in 2010. The second is less apparent and relates to repairs to the timber ribs forming the roof structure.

This second project is a higher priority due to the need to retain structural integrity of the roof and prevent water penetration. It is anticipated that the roof repair will be undertaken in 2011 although no timescale is yet in place. The work to the sails to restore the full magnificence of the windmill silhouette is unlikely to be completed in 2011 due to the understandably tight financial conditions under which Norfolk Windmills Trust is operating.
The windmill committee will be discussing whether it is feasible to restart public opening sessions with the building in its current condition. They will, as ever, keep the public informed through the village newsletter and this blog.

Effective recycling

More textiles collected
The textiles collection in Old Buckenham in October was important for two reasons. The clothing, shoes and other materials collected will be sent out to the Third World where they will be much appreciated by those that receive them. Also the money raised from recycling credits (for stopping the material going to landfill) was £170.87 and this has been donated to Old Buckenham High School.

The school cooperates with these collections and the Village Environment and Recycling Group is grateful for the school's continuing support in allowing temporary storage of the textiles in its cycle sheds.

Be inspired in 2011

Old Buckenham Women's Institute

November was the month of Old Buckenham WI's annual meeting and this gave members the opportunity to look back on the previous year and to review the coming year. 2010 was a very busy year, with members taking part in darts and Scrabble tournaments, competing in the annual Cator Cup competition, supporting village events, running the popular village produce show and organising a day craft school in the village hall.
The new committee was approved at the November meeting and the President, Susan Hunter, was re-elected for 2011.
The WI's rich history is underpinned by an inspiring campaigning legacy and it is at this time of the year members are given the opportunity to decide which resolutions should be considered at the national Annual Meeting in June. Next year's short list includes campaigning against mega-farming, the closure of local libraries and urging the government to support the funding of research and development into the cost effective production of natural galamanatine for the treatment of Alzheimer's type dementia.
At local level, the 2011 programme has a wide ranging series of talks. The monthly meeting takes place on the fourth Thursday of each month at 7.30pm in the Village Hall. New members are most welcome. The full programme for 2011:
Thursday 27 January         EPIC - The European Prospective Investigation of Cancer (open meeting )
Thursday 24 February     A journey in time - Old Buckenham and Attleborough
Thursday 24 March         Spring propagation - a talk and demonstration to get you gardening
Thursday 28 April           Canals and waterways
Thursday 26 May            Resolution meeting
Thursday 23 June            From vicar's son to BBC producer
Thursday 28 July             Three Victorian gentlemen
Thursday 25 August         Hearing Dogs for the Deaf
Thursday 22 September   Saffire Chocolates (demonstration of chocolate making)
Thursday 27 October       Birthday party
Thursday 24 November    Annual meeting
December                        Christmas lunch (on a date to be fixed)

Our local panto

Old Buckenham Players will be presenting their annual patomime in January 2011. This time it will be

ALADDIN

by Norman Robbins.

The story of Aladdin and his magic lamp will be performed in time-honoured pantomime fashion with all the well-loved characters, like Widow Twankey, the Princess, Wishee Washee and Aladdin himself. And, of course, the hated Abanazar, the evil magician who provides plenty of opportunity for boos and hisses from the audience. Come along to Old Buckenham Village Hall for some post-Christmas fun!
Licensed bar.
Performances on Thursday 20, Friday 21 and Saturday 22 January at 7.30pm at Old Buckenham Village Hall – with a special matinee at 2.30pm on Saturday 22 January.
Tickets will cost £6 (£4 for the under 14s) and are available from Old Buckenham Post Office, Nuts ‘n’ Bolts in Attleborough or by calling 01603 810373.

What the councillors said

Latest Parish Council thinking
These notes of the parish council meetings are prepared by the editor of the blog from the draft minutes and so may contain information that is amended later at the next month's meeting.

Eight members of the public went along to the December parish council meeting and all the parish councillors attended.
The minutes of the November Parish Council meeting were signed as a true and accurate record of the meeting and there were no matters arising.
Allotments. Adrian Joel said the first meeting of the Allotment Holders Liaison Group had been held in November and the next meeting was scheduled for February 2011. On-site parking could be a difficulty and he proposed that £386 plus vat be spent on some matting that could cure the problem. It was agreed unanimously that the funds come from Parish Council Contingency Fund. He then raised the matter of funding for fencing and water installation and said a grant application had been sent to Breckland Council for £1,000. The water installation would be installed labour free by a resident and that a grant of £900 had been given by Old Buckenham 2000 Trust towards the project.
War memorial. Gerald Norton said cleaning of the memorial had been done and had cost approximately £500. There were now no further funds available for future cleaning and he said that grant applications would be made to the Parish Council for future maintenance of the memorial. Various ideas were discussed regarding the memorial but it was considered the grant application route was the best way for the future maintenance.
Rubbish bins. Derek Smalley raised the matter of the litter bin situated on the Green next to a bench that was being used by those depositing dog waste. This was causing a problem and he asked if it could be moved away from the bench. Norman Cawston agreed to arrange this and Tim Ing also agreed to do an inventory of all litter bins and dog bins for the purpose of the asset register of the Parish Council and to give the information to the Parish Clerk.
Amenity area. Adrian Joel raised the matter of an amenity area opposite the village shop and a possible picnic area. He suggested that the Parish Council look at the original application to Breckland Council and possibly resubmit it. Adrian Joel will contact Breckland Council to obtain a copy of the original application and Carol Marshall said she would check to see if she had a copy of the application. The Parish Council will review the matter when the documents are available.
District Councillor’s report. Adrian Joel said that Breckland’s Attleborough & Snetterton action plan consultation meeting was held in the Village Hall on Saturday 20 November and about forty residents had attended the meeting where they could ask Breckland Council questions on the whole matter. All residents have received a questionnaire in the post, these must be returned by Friday 28 January 2011. An in-depth Attleborough Transport Study had been completed by Breckland at a cost of £100,000. The Local Development Framework (LDF) specific development plan documents will be considered by the LDF Task & Finish Group for further clarification to take place on the proposed settlement boundaries prior to being sent back by the Cabinet before going out to public consultation for a six week consultation period. He then advised that a new Animal Warden Service was available from 8am to 9pm Monday to Friday and from 10am to midday on Saturday and Sunday. Finders of dogs outside these hours should contact the Animal Warden Service to register the find and be informed of how it will be collected. The telephone number for the service is 01362 858500. This number should also be used for the reporting of lost dogs. If people believe their dog has been stolen then they should contact the police on 0845 456 4567.
Parish Councillors’ reports. Adrian Joel said that the road at Puddledock Corner had not yet been done and Mike Craven-Romain said he was waiting on a phone call from the Highways engineer as he had previously spoken to him on the matter. Carol Marshall said that the Recreation Area meeting had not yet taken place and she was hoping to arrange a meeting for the new year. She also raised the matter of grit bins in the village hall car park which she thought had been like an ice rink and dangerous. Derek Smalley raised the matter of the welcome pack which had been the subject of an article in the village newsletter. He now had a comprehensive list of information for the contents of the welcome packs. Tom Johnson said the safety message from Norfolk Fire Service had been inserted in the newsletter. He then raised the matter of grit bins in the village and the spreading of grit by volunteers. The Parish Clerk will contact NALC on the matter. Tim Ing asked if any member of The Parish Council would do a reading at the church Christmas candlelit service and Norman Cawston agreed to do it. Tim Ing raised the matter of gritting some roads not on the current schedule gritting routes and the Parish Clerk will contact the county councillor to see if he can assist.
Parish Clerk’s report. Mike Bartlett had reported that he will be organising a door-to-door calling to obtain views of residents regarding the Attleborough expansion plans to pass on to Parish Council who in turn can make a submission to Breckland Council. The Parish Clerk read through the notes of a meeting held on Saturday 14 August which listed some of the main issues including some points relating to the Parish Clerk. These included some which were repudiated by him and explanations were given as to what he considered were total inaccuracies in the alleged instances. Tim Ing thanked the Parish Clerk for the work he had done on behalf of the Parish Council since he took over the role in difficult circumstances. The meeting notes to be put on the January meeting agenda for further discussion.
The Green. Tim Ing said he had contacted the Green Right’s Proprietors asking for an up-to-date list of all proprietors. He was referred to Legal Services at County Hall as the Green Right Proprietors did not have an up-to-date list. They had sent him an email containing information that would be printed off and made available as soon as possible to the Parish Council. The meeting was also informed that bat boxes had been purchased for the Green and hopefully would soon be installed.

The next Parish Council meeting will be on Thursday 6 January in the Village Hall starting at 7.30pm.

Tea and table arrangments

Flower and Garden Club
The December meeting of Breckland Flower and Garden Club in Old Buckenham village hall involved both tea and table arrangements. Members and guests had an enjoyable afternoon making colourful table arrangements with candles, ribbons and foliage and flowers. Joy Tunmore demonstrated in easy stages to ensure everyone present made a lovely display that they could take home. A cup of tea and a variety of goodies to eat rounded off this Christmas meeting.

The monthly competition was for a Christmas table arrangement on a cake stand. The New Hands winner was Susan Thurlow and for the Old Hands, Ursula Jackson and Shirley Penfold shared first place. The table show for three stems of foliage was won by Sylvia Briggs.
The first meeting in 2011 will take place on the Thursday 13 January at 2pm in Old Buckenham Village Hall when there will be an illustrated talk. The competition will be for an arrangement to incorporate a photo frame and using dried and/or preserved plant material. The table show will be for three stems of winter colour from the garden
Further information is available from Pat on 01953 457305 or Sally on 01953 788712

Party time

Social evening
Tonight it was the turn of the Old Buckenham Social and Wine Circle to have a little 'party' for their end of season meeting. There were some light hearted quizzes, charades and even a little bingo to help the evening along. A fish and chip supper for everyone was much appreciated by all those attending as was a large raffle to conclude the evening's entertainment.

Even more snow images

Not much happening
There is little other village news today so here are some more sombre snow pictures. No sun here in Old Buckenham so almost all black and white images.
There is the Ox & Plough before opening time, some unused benches making interesting patterns and even the village hall has a different charm when the snow is around.

Ice cold

Rod Alley pond is rather frozen

A busy build up to Christmas

Diary dates for December

Thursday 2 New Buckenham Silver Band at Methodist Chapel, 7.30pm

Thursday 2 Parish Council, Village Hall, 7.30pm

Wednesday 3 Women's Fellowship, Methodist Chapel, 2.30pm

Friday 3 Crib drive, Village Hall, 7.30pm

Saturday 4 Putting up decorations, Village Hall, 10am

Sunday 5 Wargames club, Village Hall, 2.30pm to 6pm

Tuesday 7 Coffee and chat, Church Rooms, 10.30am to 12 noon

Wednesday 8 Luncheon Club, Village Hall, 10am to 2pm

Wednesday 8 "Driving home for Christmas", High School, 7.30pm

Thursday 9 Breckland Flower and Garden Club, Village Hall, 2pm

Thursday 9 Social and Wine Circle, Church Rooms, 7.45pm

Friday 10 'One Stop Bus' outside Village Shop, 10am to 12 noon

Friday 10 Final Netgamers, Village Hall, 7pm to 9pm

Friday 10 "Driving home for Christmas", High School, 7.30pm


Saturday 11 "Driving home for Christmas", High School, 3.30pm


Saturday 11 "Driving home for Christmas", High School, 7.30pm

Wednesday 15 Songs of Praise, Methodist Chapel, 7.30pm

Sunday 19 Christingle service, All Saints, 4pm (workshop 3pm)

Sunday 21 Wargames club, Village Hall, 2.30pm to 6pm

Friday 24 Church Rooms open all day for food donations

Friday 24 Candlelit carol service, All Saints, 7pm

Saturday 25 Family Eucharist, All Saints, 9.30am

Saturday 25 Christmas service, Methodist Chapel, 10.30am

December newsletter is out and about

Something to read

If you feel like braving the snow, the newsletter is around at various village locations for you to pick up.

Decorating job to do

You’ll be delighted to help
The Christmas decorations will be put up in the Old Buckenham Village Hall on Saturday 4 December from 10am. There is a shortage of helpers to do this so if anyone could give a hand their help would be most welcome. These decorations are enjoyed by many residents over Christmas and New Year so please help if you can by coming along at 10am on the morning of Saturday 4 December.

More snow scenes

November snowfall
Overnight snow in Old Buckenham followed by about an hour of nice morning sunshine means that someone just can't resist going out taking photos.Whether it is Old Buckenham Green, the almshouses, the childrens' playground, All Saints Church, Ottomer Pond or the war memorial, they all look that little bit different with a sprinkling of the white stuff.

Thoughtful evening

Serious stuff at Social and Wine

The Social and Wine Circle in Old Buckenham held their fourteenth AGM on Thursday 11 November in the Church Rooms. Alistair Monkhouse gave a summary of the last year’s activities saying that speakers were becoming more expensive and that the organisation had made a small loss over the last year. He gave a summary of the speakers he had arranged for the 2011 season and hoped that a few more regular members could be recruited to stabilise the financial position.
Alistair was retiring from the position of chairman and David Sallnow was unanimously elected as his successor along with two committee members Brian Stone and Peter Warren.
The speaker for the evening was Kate Hill who gave an overview of her work involving mental health and understanding the human mind. Discussions took place on a wide range of subjects including schizophrenia, hearing voices, bipolar affective disorder and the possible effects of using cannabis. She described experiments involving MRI scanning to observe what parts of the brain were active during various activities and changes in the behaviour of people who had suffered accidental brain damage. She finished by pointing out that it seemed that having a past record of mental health problems was worse than having a prison record when applying for jobs.
It will be ‘party time’ at the next meeting on Thursday 9 December with a fish and chips supper on the menu.

Refurbishment project

Duck House renovation

Volunteers are needed to retrieve the duck house from the middle of Rod Alley pond and to refurbish it. The use of a boat may be available should it be required.
If you are able to help in any way then please contact Alison on  860692.

Attleborough and Snetterton Heath Area Action Plan

A chance to comment
Breckland Council representatives were at Old Buckenham Village Hall on the morning of Saturday 20 November. They were on hand to answer questions on the Area Action Plan to guide development in Attleborough and Snetterton Heath over the next 15 years. There was plenty of display material and maps for residents to look at which led to interesting discussions on where relief roads might go, where should a traveller and Gypsy site be put and how could the traffic flow around Attleborough be improved.
All properties in Old Buckenham should have now received a booklet/questionnaire from Breckland Council which needs to be returned by Friday 28 January 2011. This is your chance to put your views forward on schemes that could have considerable effects on life in Old Buckenham in the years to come.

You can help

Food for homeless in Norfolk

The Church Rooms in Old Buckenham will be open throughout Christmas Eve as a collection point for non-perishable foods for the homeless accommodated under the St Martin's charity. St Martin’s provide the night shelter and temporary homes for those found sleeping rough on the streets of Norfolk. Regretfully many of these people found on the street have some form of mental disorder. Your contribution, however small, does help. If you have any queries please contact Mike on 860462.

Somewhere to live

Returning to a home

On Friday 26 November, Eamonn Burgess from St Martin's in Norwich will come to the village hall in Old Buckenham to give an informative talk on his work. This involves placing the homeless back into the community following their time in the Night Shelter, probably initially having been found sleeping rough on the streets.
Eamonn has tremendous enthusiasm for his work. He gets excited when somebody donates an item he specifically seeks for a first resettlement home. Starting at 7.30pm, it promises to be an interesting and informative evening.
Admission is free, and hopefully coffee will be provided. Should you be able to bring a ring top can of soup that can go back to St. Martin's, it would be put to good use and much appreciated. Ring Mike on 01953 860462 if you require any further information.

Children in Need event raises over £1000

High School fundraise for Children in Need

Because of a clash with the visit by the House of Lords Speaker to Old Buckenham High School, they held their fundraiser for Children in Need on Friday 12 November.
The School Student Council voted to hold an Indoor Fayre with over 25 stalls including face painting, x-box challenge, sponge the teachers, chocolate fountain and many, many more, all run by the students themselves. They not only invented their stalls but they advertised them, organised equipment and prizes, set up and cleaned up afterwards too. All the staff and teachers had to do was spend their money and enjoy the fun. The grand total raised for Children in Need this year was £1080.65.

Charity begins at home

OB2000T grants
The Trustees are pleased to announce that the following organisations were successful in their bid for funding from the Old Buckenham 2000 Trust.
• Buckenham PreSchool Group and Nursery for equipment and furnishings for their new extension,
• Old Buckenham Players for the replacement of the storage shed at the village hall,
• Old Buckenham Cricket Club for boundary ropes and a tarpaulin square cover for the new pitch at the High school
• and finally the Allotments Working Party for a water supply and fencing for the new allotments site.
It is hoped that with the benefit of the grants these organisations will be able to continue and improve on the good work that they do for our community and the Trustees hope to be able to help other groups in the near future.

Poppies raise more money

Breaking the thousand barrier
The money raised in Old Buckenham on behalf of the British Legion Poppy Day collection has this year reached the grand total of £1102.25. This is a fantastic amount of money, breaking the £1000 mark for the first time.

Many thanks to everyone for their generous donations and a further thank you to those collectors who gave up their time to make the “house to house” collections, without whose help this sum would not have been reached.

November market draws the crowds

Wonderful soups, worthwhile raffle
Saturday 13 November was the day of the November Market organised to raise funds for All Saints, Old Buckenham. There were all the usual stalls - bric-a brac, tombola, handmade cards and guess the weight of the cake as well as a local publisher selling his books, Fairtrade goods and a representative of the Energy Saving Trust giving out free advice.
One highlight was the supply of homemade soups which tempted many to come along for a pleasant light lunch (and to buy some raffle tickets as well).
First indications are that the event raised over £500 for the Church funds.

Lest we forget

Old Buckenham remembers
Villagers gathered around the war memorial on the Green today. The weather may not have been wonderful but they stood for the two minute silence and remembered those locally involved in the two world wars as well as those still involved today.

Treasure Quest in Old Buckenham

"I've found clue three!"
Old Buckenham had a visit from the BBC Radio Norfolk Treasure Quest programme this morning. Clue number two led them to the almshouses on the side of the Green and into the particular almshouse that contains memorabilia of the building of the property 150 years ago.