More pictures of the Old Buckenham fete

Some of the entertainment

 There was Punch and Judy for the children (?)

 Pony rides (really for the children)

 A well-loaded raffle table

 The dog show was well supported

One entrant was the same colours as his master's make-up

(but more about the Morris dancers in the next post)

A near perfect day

Pictures of the village fete
The sun shone, the stall holders were enthusiastic, the entertainers entertained, the visitors visited and seemed to be spending their money at the Old Buckenham village fete today.
Here are some photos to show what you might have missed. More will follow tomorrow.

Mid-morning as setting up begins

Muriel performs the official opening...

...and then tries her luck on the stalls

The car boot gets going...

...while other drool over cars...

...or wait for their food to be cooked.

(to be continued)

Hearing dogs for the deaf

WI in August
Assistance Dogs was the theme of Old Buckenham WI’s August meeting when Loiuse Brundell gave an illustrated talk about ‘Hearing Dogs for the Deaf.’ Most people are familiar with Guide Dogs for the Blind but unaware that dogs can be trained assist those with a hearing disability.
The charity was the brainchild of a police dog handler who, in 1976, visited the USA and witnessed working Hearing Dogs for the Deaf. In collaboration with a hearing therapist, Tony Blunt started to fund raise in earnest. By 1986 the first few Hearing Dogs were working and now there are over a thousand dogs around the country.
Many of the first dogs were rescue dogs though now most come from dedicated breeders. Labradors, retrievers, King Charles spaniels and poodles make the best Hearing Dogs. These dogs spend the first few months of their lives with a foster family undergoing socialisation. At six months they are assessed for their aptitude. They need to be obedient, sociable, calm, confident and curious. All dogs are sent to the training centre in Yorkshire where they are trained to respond to basic sounds – a doorbell, smoke alarm, telephone and clock alarm. The handler can request other responses too.
The trainer then works with the dog and the new owner for about a week to ensure the new relationship is established. After three months in its new home, the dog returns to the centre for a final test. On completion of this test the dog is given a special coat with the Assistance Dog logo and an identity card.
The headquarters in Buckinghamshire was opened in 2000 and is the centre of the fund raising team. One hundred and fifty dogs a year are trained and this is expensive. There is a huge demand for Hearing Dogs and the waiting list is long.
The members at the meeting were reminded of their participation at the Village Fete and also the annual village Produce and Handicraft Show, run by the WI and needing plenty of entries from members.
The next WI meeting is on Thursday 22 September when the speaker will be Angela Ruthven with a demonstration of chocolate making. The competition will be for an unusual teaspoon.

Old Buckenham village fete 2011

Why not come along and join in?

(just click on the poster to enlarge it)

Another month, another cover

Now available for all to read

Quiet month in the village?

Diary dates for September
Thursday 1 Parish Council, Village Hall, 7.30pm
Friday 2 Crib drive, Village Hall, 2pm
Saturday 3 Debating Society, Church Rooms, 10am to noon
Saturday 3 Village Fete, Village Hall grounds, 2pm start
Sunday 4 Wargames club, Village Hall, 2.30pm to 6pm
Monday 5 Monday Mardle, Church Rooms, 2.15pm to 4.15pm
Tuesday 6 Coffee and chat, Church Rooms, 10.30am to 12 noon
Wednesday 7 Women's Fellowship, Methodist Chapel, 2.30pm
Thursday 8 Breckland Flower and Garden Club, Village Hall, 2pm
Thursday 8 Social and Wine Circle, Church Rooms, 7.45pm
Friday 9 Yogacise, Village Hall, start of weekly sessions, 9am
Friday 9 'One Stop Bus' outside Village Shop, 10am to 12 noon
Sunday 11 Harvest Festival, Methodist Chapel, Hargham Rd, 10.45am
Sunday 11 Produce and Handicraft Show, Village Hall, 2pm
Sunday 11 Askew Agricultural Museum, open 2pm to 5pm
Sunday 11 Old Buckenham windmill, open 2pm to 5pm
Monday 12 Whist drive, Church Rooms, 2pm
Monday 12 Service and sale of produce, Methodist Chapel, 7.15pm
Wednesday 14 Luncheon Club, Village Hall, 10am to 2pm
Wednesday 14 Kids' Street Dance, start of weekly sessions, 4pm to 6pm
Sunday 18 Wargames club, Village Hall, 2.30pm to 6pm
Monday 19 Monday Mardle, Church Rooms, 2.15pm to 4.15pm
Monday 19 Buckenham Pre-school AGM, Pre-school building, 7.30pm
Wednesday 21 Songs of Praise, Methodist Chapel, 7.30pm
Thursday 22 Women's Institute, Village Hall, 7.30pm
Friday 23 A Hat Trick of Plays, OB Players, Village Hall, 7.30pm
Saturday 24 Open Parish Council Forum, Village Hall, 10am
Saturday 24 A Hat Trick of Plays, OB Players, Village Hall, 7.30pm
Tuesday 27 Village Fete 'wash up' meeting, Village Hall, 7.30pm
Wednesday 28 Luncheon Club outing

Memories at the Fete

The day war broke out

Wymondham and Attleborough Talking Newspaper (WATN) will be trying to collect up some interesting information at the Old Buckenham village fete on Saturday 3 September. Being the "3rd of September", the day that the war broke out, it is hoped that as well as informing people at the fete about the service that WATN provides, they will be able to record some of the local people telling of their experiences in the village during the last war. This is particularly appropriate as 453rd Bomb Group of the Amercan airforce was based at Old Buckenham Airfield during that time.
Members of WATN aim to record short features to go into the weekly summary of local news that they produce for those with limited or no vision. Their attendance at the fete, which opens at 2pm at Old Buckenham Village Hall, may also introduce this service to those who could benefit from it.

Keep moving

Exercise for all ages
Two new activities will start in Old Buckenham Village Hall next month.
Eileen Oliver’s first Yogacise class will be on Friday 9 September. Normally these classes will start at 9.30am but this first session will need to start at 9am because of other hall bookings. Eileen is sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.
Meg Howard is starting weekly ‘Kids Street Dance’ classes in the Village Hall on Wednesdays. The first one is on Wednesday 14 September from 4pm to 6pm.

Genuine help for Third World

Textile collections
Members of the local community are no doubt fully aware that from time to time the village, through the Old Buckenham Village Environmental and Recycling Group, arrange to collect textiles for the Third World. Any remuneration from this exercise through landfill payments, etc, is paid into village organisations.
Recently the situation arose where some households left collections for the Salvation Army and the collection failed to materialise. One resident telephoned the Salvation Army to be informed they had no knowledge of a collection taking place in Old Buckenham. It has since been established through Radio Norfolk that the proposed collection was not genuine.
Our village collections are genuine. Before committing ourselves to the operation our District Councillor, Adrian Joel, visited the premises at West Bromwich to satisfy himself of all aspects of their operation.
The next village collection is on Tuesday 4 October with kerbside collection commencing at 9am (or if you prefer at the Village Hall car park between 8.30am and 9am). If you have uncollected donations from another appeal please ring Mike on 860462 to arrange collection.

Answers on village issues

Quiz your parish council
A special forum meeting arranged by Old Buckenham Parish Council will be held on Saturday 24 September at the Village Hall starting at 10am.
There will be an update by parish council members on various village projects and this will be followed by an open forum for residents to put forward their ideas and opinions. So you have just a month to think up those questions.


Six hundred up
Some irrelevant statistics. This is the six hundreth post on this blog since it started in 2008. The site now gets about 150 visits a week and three-quarters of these are from the UK.
The United States come next with 8% and all other countries are less than 2%. Visits have come from around 150 different countries all over the world and a third of all visits have arrived via a Google search.

Practical recycling

Garage sales galore
There was activity all over Old Buckenham today with over thirty households having their own personal garage sales. People came from far and near to see what they could find, with one person's 'rubbish' often turning out to be just what they wanted. There was extra car traffic, plenty of people cycling around and even more walking from place to place and discovering parts of the village that they had never seen before.
The event was organised to raise funds to pay for more equipment on the recently opened recreation area. Over a hundred people bought maps to find where all the sales were taking place while the hot dogs, bacon rolls and other refreshments sold out quicker than expected.
Those households selling their unwanted goods seemed satisfied with the level of sales and so a lot of stuff that would have gone to landfill went away to live a little longer.
The weather just about managed to stay dry, the sun popped out occasionally and soon after lunchtime everything calmed down and the village returned to its near normal sleepy Sunday state.

Coming soon from Old Buckenham Players

Just click on the image to enlarge it

Call my wine bluff

Social and Wine sampler
The Old Buckenham Social and Wine Circle meeting in August took the form of a “Call my Bluff” but with wine instead of words. The attendance was low but there were two teams in action as they tried to identify four mystery wines. Chairman David Sallnow and his wife Jenny had also provided three descriptions for each of these wines. The descriptions were of course full of the flowery language that ‘wine experts’ seem to revel in so deciding on the correct one was a difficult job.
Even so the teams managed to choose the correct wine in three out of the four bottles It was also interesting to find out that all four wines were from a local supermarket and had cost less than £4 a bottle.
There was time for some discussion on what wines the members preferred and thanks were given to David and Jenny for all the time and energy they had spent in preparing everything for the evening.
At the next meeting on Thursday 8 September the speaker will be Natalie Hutchinson with a talk entitled “Help to move on”. All are welcome to come along that evening at 7.45pm in the Church Rooms.

Swirls and Curls

Breckland Flower and Garden Club
Rosemary Ward brought her slides of Southern France to the August meeting illustrating Roman fortifications and some of the flowers that managed to grow amongst the ancient stones, as well as colourful meadows found higher up in the mountains.
'Swirls and Curls' were much in evidence on the competition table - the winner of the new hands class was Janet Skidmore and Ursula Jackson won the old hands class as well as the monthly cup.
Jean Vernon won the table show with her vase of three stems of 'hot colour from the border'.
The next meeting will be held at Old Buckenham Village Hall on Thursday 8 September at 2pm when 'The Girls' will be demonstrating 'Autumn Medley'.
The competition title is 'Garden Harvest' - a basket to include fruit and/or vegetables; the Joan Fisher cup to be awarded for the best use of colour.
Any fruit, flower or vegetable can be brought for the table show.
Visitors are always welcome at the meetings. Further details from Pat on 457305 or Sally on 788712.

Victorian gentlemen

Famous men in Norwich
At Old Buckenham WI’s meeting in late July the speaker was Barbara Miller from Norwich. The subject of her talk was "Three Victorian Gentleman and one other". The three gentlemen in question were Thomas Bignold, Jacob Henry Tillett and Jeremiah James Colman.
James Bignold, the founder of Norwich Union, ran an insurance business from a back room in a house in the Haymarket before moving on to premises in Surrey Street. He was Mayor of the City from 1843 to 1848 and was knighted in 1854.
Jacob Henry Tillett (1818-1892) was born into a non-conformist Norwich family. He became a solicitor in 1839 and was a Liberal Party politician. In 1845 he was one of the founder members of Norfolk News. When the paper was first published it consisted of four pages of local news. It came out on a Saturday and the concern was that people might read it on a Sunday! (The paper subsequently became the EDP as we know it today).
Jeremiah James Colman was of course the founder of the Colman Mustard empire. He was also a Mayor of Norwich and a Liberal MP. He was a great benefactor to the City of Norwich, giving money for the restoration of St Peter Mancroft and for the west front of Norwich Cathedral.
The fourth Victoria gentleman was William Houghton Clabburn. He was a major industrialist of Norwich, being a partner in the company, Clabburn Son & Crisp, which manufactured the famous Norwich shawls. This gentleman was the most generous patron of Frederick Sandys, a pre-Raphelite painter (also born in Norwich). Clabburn and Sandys were friends as well as patron and artist. Clabburn owned 23 paintings, many of which were portraits of the three Victorian gentlemen described earlier.
After the break for refreshments, members were pleased to welcome a member from Diss WI who had represented them at the National Annual General Meeting held in Liverpool in June. She reported back that 21,000 new members had joined the WI during the last 12 months. Plans are well under way for the WI Centenary Year (1915) including a 15,000-member capacity at the O2 Arena in London. Speakers at the Liverpool meeting included Erwin James (Guardian columnist and former prison inmate), Dr Rita Gardner, the first woman Director of the Royal Geographical Society and Sir Steven Redgrave, who talked about his worldwide charity work as Fairtrade Ambassador. He applauded the WI for its role as one of the founders of the fairtrade movement in the UK. The meeting ended with the appearance of the national WI singing group, The Harmonies, who performed a medley of hits from their album.

Fun for all

A Party in the Park
Bucks Just Play invited everyone along to their Party in the Park at the Old Buckenham Children's Play Area on Saturday 6 August. It was a free event funded by a Sustainability grant from Community Spaces.
There were constant queues for the face painting while Stevie Spud entertained with items such as plate spinning and ballon animals.
It is just over a year since the play area was officially opened and it is proving very popular with the local children (as well as their mums, dads, carers, grandparents, etc). Well done to all concerned.

How much remains?

The view today
Just compare this photograph of what is now "The Clinic on the Green" with the drawing done in 1947 of the same scene (posted earlier on Thursday 28 July).

Blooming better allotments

What a difference nine months makes
Just compare the picture taken late in October 2010 with one taken at the end of July this year.

Still plenty to do

Diary dates for August

Tuesday 2           Coffee and chat, Church Rooms, 10.30am to 12 noon

Wednesday 3      Luncheon Club, Village Hall, 10am to 2pm

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

Monday 4           Monday Mardle, Church Rooms, 2.15pm to 4.15pm

Friday 5               Crib drive, Village Hall, 7.30pm

Friday 5               Norfolk Balloon Meet, Old Buckenham Airfield

Saturday 6         Party in the Park, Children's Play Area, 2pm to 4pm

Saturday 6          Norfolk Balloon Meet, Old Buckenham Airfield

Sunday 7             Norfolk Balloon Meet, Old Buckenham Airfield

Sunday 7             Wargames club, Village Hall, 2.30pm to 6pm

Monday 8           Whist drive, Church Rooms, 2pm

Tuesday 9         Oil scheme meeting, Church Rooms, 7pm

Thursday 11       Breckland Flower and Garden Club, Village Hall, 2pm

Thursday 11       Social and Wine Circle, Church Rooms, 7.45pm

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

Sunday 14          Askew Agricultural Museum, open 2pm to 5pm

Sunday 14          Old Buckenham windmill, open 2pm to 5pm

Tuesday 16        Village Fete meeting, Village Hall, 7.30pm

Wednesday 17   Luncheon Club, Village Hall, 10am to 2pm

Wednesday 17   Songs of Praise, Methodist Chapel, 7.30pm

Saturday 20        Garage sale at Karmel, the Green, 8am to 4pm

Sunday 21          Village Garage Sale, maps available from 10am

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

 Thursday 25      Women's Institute, Village Hall, 7.30pm

A visit from The Upper Octave

Songs from the shows at All Saints
Last night provided a most enjoyable evening’s entertainment in All Saints Church, Old Buckenham. Around eighty people, many from outside the village, came along to be entertained by The Upper Octave who performed their concert “Bizet to Broadway”.
The event was organised to raise funds for the church and turned out to be a most wonderful way to both raise funds and have a wonderful time. With the church rigged up with special sound and lighting equipment, the group performed a wide range of music from various operas and varied musicals.
Starting with the Phantom of the Opera (in costume) they travelled through Tosca, Iolanthe, Evita, South Pacific, The King and I, Carmen, and Les Miserables to mention just a few. They even managed to squeeze in a song by Victoria Wood before a finale of Love Changes Everything from Aspects of Love.
A standing ovation at the end meant that there had to be an encore to keep the audience happy.
Half time had provided the chance to have a glass of wine and some real home-cooked refreshments. As the evening drew on, the colourful but subdued lighting in the darkened church gave the performance that little something extra.
Should you have missed this show, the cast took the opportunity to tell everyone that they will be performing at the Maddermarket Theatre in Norwich on Sunday 4 December. Why not book now, you’ll enjoy it as much as the singers enjoy their singing.
There is also a rumour that they may be back in Old Buckenham in the summer of 2012 – if so, you will read about it here…

The lighting levels during the show were not really conducive to photography but the group posed outside before the second half and were also pictured having some welcome refreshments after they had finished their singing.

Old Buckenham cricket pitch

Archie MacLaren and Mr Porter
Can any of the blog readers expand on the links with Old Buckenham of Archie MacLaren. He was one of the leading players of cricket's Golden Age, heir to W G Grace as England captain and therefore the country's foremost sporting celebrity. After his Test match career ended and a string of business ventures failed, he was given the job of Lionel Robinson's cricket manager and provided with accommodation on the Old BuckenhamHall estate.
It is understood that Archie and his family lived at The Manor when he first came to Old Buckenham in 1911/12, but during or after the First World War moved to Warren House. An EDP article reveals he was still resident on the estate at the time of the 1921 Australian match (for which he was selected and captained Robinson's English XI). It says: "Groundsman Porter, who was wounded in the war, has had the benefit of the sound advice of Mr A C MacLaren, whose house is almost within a golf-shot distance of the cricket pitch."
Archie probably left Old Buckenham not long after, as Lionel Robinson's health was in serious decline and he died 14 months after staging the most prestigious cricket match ever played in Norfolk.
It would also be interesting to learn something more of Groundsman Porter, who was afflicted by a severe limp as a result of the wounds he sustained while fighting in France. Did he or members of his family have on-going links with the village?

If you can provide any information on this subject you can use the commenting facility below or send an email to oldbuckhistory@aol.com

More local history

Our local garage
Here is more information connected to the drawing shown in the last post.
Herbert Westfield, moved to the village around 1924/5 from Essex and set up a garage and shop at the former Reading Room, now the Clinic on the Green. He repaired cars and cycles, sold petrol and paraffin, charged accumulators and so on. His wife Elsie ran the little shop next door until Herbert retired aged 80 in 1951 and they moved to Attleborough. They sold the business to Leslie Loveday.
The drawing illustrates of how the place looked in 1947. The (very) amateur artist was Maurice "Pally" Large, who lived across the road (his father was Will Large). It probably wouldn't win any prizes in the village art competition today but is an intriguing depiction of how the building, which has undergone many changes over the years, looked at the time.
Incidentally, in contrast to the present day, the village petrol station thrived in those days. In the 1930s, Westfield's sold the cheapest petrol for miles around - at a ha'penny under a shilling (5p) a gallon. That's about 1p a litre!

When we had a garage

Sixty-four years ago
A reader of this blog has sent in a copy of a drawing done in 1947 of what is now the 'Clinic on the Green'. As was pointed out, this drawing by Maurice Large would not win any prizes in an art exhibition but it does give an idea of what things used to look like.

August is here already

Yet another newsletter
If you have not got one yet you can now pick up a copy of the August newsletter from the village shop or the other 'selected outlets'.

Match of Yesterday

Official opening of recreation area
Tim Ing, the chairman of the Old Buckenham Parish Council, was on hand yesterday to cut through the yellow and green ribbons and perform the opening ceremony for the new recreation area. It is situated just behind the village hall and has now been equipped with two football goals with nets.
So it was appropriate that the supporting act was a football match between a team from the High School and another team made up of various players of differing ages. One parish councillor took to the field and was even allowed to be referee for the second half. It is understood that the final score was eleven goals to four but it is not really relevant to say which team scored the eleven.
The spectators were treated to some lovely homemade refreshments and tea or coffee to warm them up. The sun never really managed to break through and it was rather chilly just standing around.
Hopefully this will be the start of another useful facility for the use of all the village.

Old Buckenham Village Fete

The fun is coming

click to enlarge the image

'Outside in' talk

Breckland Flower and Garden Club

'Outside In' was the title of July's demonstration ably interpreted by Linda Harman at the Breckland Flower and Garden Club meeting. Her outside containers included an earthenware bowl and long-tom pot, a brightly painted bucket, a piece of wood and an improvised pedestal made from bamboo sticks. Her flowers included soft orange lilies and gerberas, white antirrhinums and pink roses. She spoke of her experiences in USA at the world show (flower arranging) and included tips of how to wire fatsia leaves.
The competition for a miniature arrangement was won by Joy Tunmore (Old Hands) and by Janet Skidmore(New Hands). Joy was also awarded the trophy for most imaginative arrangement. The table show for a vase of sweet peas was won by Shirley Penfold.
The next meeting will be held in Old Buckenham Village Hall at 2pm on Thursday 11 August when Rosemary Ward will talk on ‘Flowers and Ruins in the South of France’. The competition title will be ‘Swirls and Curls’ - to include plant manipulation. The table show will be for three stems of ‘hot colour’ from the garden.

Further information from Pat on 457305 or Sally on 788712 - visitors are always welcomed.

Just read the poster

Just click on the illustration to enlarge it 

The Hargham Tea Party

Damp but enjoyable
Yesterday provided the opportunity to enjoy a cream tea in the gardens of Brian and Eileen Oliver in Hargham Road. The weather was less than kind with around half an inch of rain falling during the morning and early afternoon.
But this event was to raise money for the Senior Citizens' 'Christmas' Party to be held early next year so the regular supporters turned up with umbrellas and wearing their waterproofs to support the good cause.
Most of the teas were enjoyed while sitting under gazebos and party tents in the garden although a few took advantage of being indoors.
With a cake stall, some bric-a-brac and a raffle raising money as well as the cream teas, some useful funds were raised for the party. It was interesting to see that most of those attending were of an age that they were contributing to an event that they will be able to go to...

Al fresco evening

Evening out

Old Buckenham Social and Wine Circle had their July meeting out of doors in the Garden of John and Barbara Frost in Mill Road. After a rather wet day, things cleared up in the early evening and everyone was able to sit outside chatting (and probably have a glass of wine as well if you so desired). There was the chance to enjoy some homemade refreshments and to take part in a larger than usual raffle.
The evening did turn a little chilly as a virtually full moon rose above the trees so the mardling continued indoors for a little longer.

Next month the group will be having a meeting back in the Church Rooms on Thursday 11 August. Chairman David Sallnow has promised an evening of ‘fun with wine’ so why not come along for a 7.45pm start and see what it is all about.

Latest council minutes

These notes are written by the blog editor from the draft minutes and may contain information that is amended at the next council meeting.

Parish Council in July

All members of the parish council were present along with six members of the public.
The formal meeting was suspended to allow members of the public to ask questions. The meeting was then resumed.
Minutes of the June meeting. These were signed as a true and accurate record of the meeting and there were no matters arising.
Allotments. Adrian Joel said there had not been liaison meeting since the last Parish Council meeting. He had received an email from Tim Bornett (chairman and secretary of the Old Buckenham Allotment Society) which he had replied to. He had also received another email from an allotment holder asking a list of questions to which he read out and the answers will be provided for the allotment holder. At next meeting of the liaison group a new tenancy agreement will be drawn up with clauses inserted relating to concerns that have been expressed. Adrian Joel expressed thanks to Keith Hodgson for his work on the taps for the allotments and the Parish Clerk is to send a letter of thanks.
Funding of Community Car Scheme. The meeting was suspended to allow the scheme co-ordinator to give details of new mileage funding rates and alternative ways that they have to be implemented. When the meeting resumed, Derek Smalley proposed that Breckland Council pay 2.5p of the new mileage rate and the other 2.5p increase to be paid by the users of the scheme. This was seconded by Tom Johnson and agreed unanimously.
Recreation Area. Carol Marshall thanked the Parish Council Chairman who had marked out the football pitch. She raised the matter of children possibly swinging on the crossbars of the goalposts and what action needed to be taken to prevent it. It was agreed that there was nothing the Parish Council could do as they could not have 24-hour supervision of the area. Jonathan Kemp said the business plan had been sent to Breckland Council who thought it was a good plan and they gave some suggestions for some small amendments. The time scale for funding had to be extended and it was hoped that the final business plan could be submitted to Breckland in September for a possible decision in December. The working party will also be exploring other avenues for funding. Tom Johnson raised some concerns expressed by the Village Hall that there was no provision for toilets on the Recreation Area. Carol Marshall said that, on the advice of the police, these would not be provided.
Planning applications. Whitehouse, 57 Fen Street. Single storey garage to replace existing garage. There were no objections from the parish council.
‘Doe Lane’ meeting notes. Adrian Joel raised the matter of parking at the play area and the subsequent problems. John Frost raised the matter of children using the Church Rooms’ toilets at selective times but the Parish Council may have to pay to clean the toilets. The use of the toilets would be on a trial basis. Tim Ing sought the views of other councillors on the matter and John Frost said he would speak to the present cleaner to obtain her views on the subject if the Parish Council was prepared to make a donation to the Church Rooms. Adrian Joel also raised the matter of holding regular meetings with residents and a meeting would be arranged for Saturday 24 September in the Village Hall (the Parish Clerk to check if the hall is available).
Declaration of satisfactory completion of play area. It was proposed by Adrian Joel that the play area had been successfully completed within the original terms of reference. This was seconded by the chairman and agreed with 10 for and 1 abstention. Adrian Joel said the play area is looking in excellent condition and thanked the volunteers who maintained it.
Road sign for village shop. Adrian Joel said he had spoken to Norfolk County Council (NCC) about obtaining a sign pointing to the village shop on the white sign post at the junction of Abbey Road and the B1077. He was advised that this was not possible and the matter is now with MP George Freeman who has taken the matter up with NCC. If unsuccessful the shop owner will apply to Breckland Council for a finger post on the Green. Tom Johnson raised the matter of speed signs at the play area and suggested the Parish Council have it owns signs on the play area following the refusal of Norfolk County Council to introduce a 20 mph speed limit and provide signs.
Attleborough expansion plan. Derek Smalley said he had attended a steering committee meeting of the Attleborough Community Team (ACT) as a private individual and not as a parish councillor. He raised some serious concerns regarding the whole Attleborough plan and asked if he could attend future meetings as a representative of the Parish Council. Adrian Joel replied on the matter of infrastructure and possible section 106 payments to be paid by the developers. Also Breckland Council had not received details of the prioritising of the infrastructure of the scheme. There was going to be a meeting at Breckland on Thursday 28 July and Tom Johnson would be attending the meeting. Tim Ing proposed that Derek Smalley should be able to speak on behalf of the Parish Council at ACT meetings and this was agreed unanimously. Various councillors expressed their views on the development.
Chairman’s report. Tim Ing said that the Parish Council need to appoint a Council Health and Safety Officer under the new proposed Health and Safety policy being drafted by the Parish Clerk. Tom Johnson agreed to undertake the role. The Parish Clerk would present the new policy for adoption at the September meeting. He then raised the matter of village archive storage as the Attleborough Heritage Museum had agreed to take the documents or alternatively they could be stored at the Village Hall. Various views were expressed on the matter and Paul Boggia agreed to look further into the matter. Tim Ing said he had received an email from a resident regarding a hedge removal in Banham Road. The Parish Clerk said that he had spoken to Breckland Council on the matter and they had informed him the removal of the hedge did not contravene the Hedges Act as it was on private property. Tim Ing then raised the matter of the £500 won from the Pride in Norfolk award and that no decision had yet been received for how the money should be spent. The Parish Clerk is to write to the Women’s Institute to seek their views on how the money could be spent. Tim Ing will be attending the planning meeting of Breckland Council planning committee regarding the Shrublands development on Monday 8 August to speak on behalf of the Parish Council.
District Councillor’s report. An examination in public of the Site Specifics Proposals of the Development Plan Document (DPD) will commence at the beginning of July and last about a week. The Inspector’s report will follow and the adoption of the DPD will take place towards the end of this year. With effect from the end of 2012, the Government will allow Councils to introduce a Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) on all new houses built to cover the cost of infrastructure. Breckland are currently working on a district-wide CIL. To ensure that major developments given planning permission prior to the introduction of the CIL contribute to the District’s infrastructure, Breckland will be looking at ways of enduring that these developments contribute ie a S106 legal agreement. The next meeting of the Attleborough Task Force is Thursday 28 July which will be attended by Adrian Joel and Tom Johnson.
Parish councillors’ reports. Tom Johnson said he attended the recent Village Hall meeting where views were expressed that the Parish Council seemed to be concentrating on things for younger residents and that the majority of the older residents were being ignored. He also said that the Village Hall will be making a grant application at the next precept meeting. Sarah Windle said she was working on the Community Emergency Plan and was having a meeting with Breckland Council on the subject. She will be getting out in the community to meet residents and see what equipment is available in an emergency. Derek Smalley said the first new welcome pack had been delivered. Also he had people coming to him regarding bulk oil purchase. He said that he needs at least 15 to 20 people and at the present time there were only five who had expressed an interest in the scheme so he will put an item in the next newsletter. Akis Chrisovelides will circulate a recently prepared document for a Youth Council in the circulation folder. Adrian Joel said he had attended a meeting of Norfolk Association of Local Councils (NALC) locally and he found the meeting useful. He had given them details of the Old Buckenham allotments and they were impressed with the project. They said they would like to see more people from Old Buckenham attend their meetings. Sarah Dye said she attended the new councillors training course and found it very useful and enjoyed it greatly. She then expressed her thanks to John Hicks for his excellent work on maintaining the play area. Carol Marshall said the opening event of the Recreation Area would take place on Saturday 23 July and asked if Tim Ing would do the official opening and he agreed to do this. She then asked for volunteers of the Parish Council in providing Old English teas on the opening day and also said that she needed more volunteers to assist with the garage sale on Sunday 21 August.
Highways. A tree branch on the B1077 towards Attleborough between the Pink Cottage and Puddledock corner was broken and is dangerous. Parish Clerk is to contact highways on the matter.
The Green. Tim Ing had attended the Old Buckenham Green Right Proprietors (OBGRP) meeting in June and will circulate notes from the meeting to all councillors. Steps up to the bench on the Green have been inserted and a new grass cutting agreement had been agreed up to 2012. OBGRP is looking at possible parking charges on the Green again. There is still no full list of owners of green rights. OBGRP was holding an open meeting on Saturday 23 July at Village Hall at 10am. The next meeting of the OBGRP would be held on Tuesday 12 July. They will be looking at an amenity area around the trees near the village shop and will not allow one on the main Green. He then said he and Sarah Dye had met with the owner of the Ox & Plough. Concerns have been raised about parking on various areas of the Green and that suggested solutions were being discussed to address these problems. Tim Ing said the Parish Council may be asked to make a financial contribution to the solutions. He asked for councillors’ views on the matter and some suggestions were put forward for discussion with the OBGRP. Akis Chrisovelides raised the matter of the fish and chips sign and was informed the OBGRP had given permission for the sign to be put on the Green on a temporary basis.
There is no parish council meeting in August.
The next meeting will be on Thursday 1 September 2011 at the Village Hall starting at 7.30pm.

The Upper Octave perform locally

All the way from Bizet to Broadway
Norfolk's most popular and talented vocal ensemble "The Upper Octave" will present their new two-hour concept show "Bizet to Broadway" at Old Buckenham All Saints Church later this month. The show combines the best of classic musical theatre with everyone’s favourite operatic arias to create an eclectic mix which leaves audiences wanting more, bursts with energy, flair and has wowed discerning music and concert lovers alike. The performance will take place, wine and nibbles included, on Saturday 30 July at 7.30pm. Tickets at £10 each are available from Doris by calling 860845.

Another moveable feast

Talking between courses
Saturday 9 July was the date of another 'progressive supper' organised by  Old Buckenham Women's Institute. It all started with sherry and nibbles in a house in Mill Road before everyone moved on to  Hargham Road. Here another house was invaded by the diners who enjoyed their starters of pate and toast or a melon cocktail. Then off to the next venue, this time in Attleborough Road, by foot, by bicycle or even by car to sit down for the main meal and to enjoy a glass of wine.
After plenty of after-dinner conversation it was back to a different house in Mill Road where a large variety of sweets were laid out ready to be consumed. There were even seconds available for those who wanted to try something else.
The evening had remained dry despite a forecast of possible showers so many participants enjoyed their coffee sitting in the garden, enjoying even more chatting and admiring the flowers until dusk fell and it was time for all to return to their own homes.

Didn't we have a luv-er-ley day, the day we went to Wroxham

Luncheon Club eat out
This week was time for the local Luncheon Club to forsake the Old Buckenham village hall and take a coach trip out to have lunch at the Hotel Wroxham. After their meal in the Waterside restaurant they were then able to sit and watch the boat and bird traffic on the River Bure or do a little shopping around the many parts of Roys. Even the showers of rain came at the right times to allow everyone to keep dry before the coach journey home.

Keeping safe

Child Safety week events
The children of Buckenham Pre-school Group took part in various activities in support of Child Safety Week.
They had a visit from the St John Ambulance Service with their first response vehicle. They also took part in their own ‘beep–beep’ days with help from Old Buckenham’s lollipop lady, Julie Taylor, when they learnt about road safety and raised money for the Pre-school and the road safety charity Brake.
Road Safety Officer Philip Archer brought along his two bears Bethany and Benjamin to teach the children the importance of holding hands when walking along and also to always wear a seat belt when travelling by car.