Here's the latest of what's going on in your community.

Acomb

Julie Foster

THE next meeting of Acomb Parish Council will be held at 7pm on Wednesday September 1 2021. The meeting will be held in Acomb Village Hall, as dictated by the current legislation. Residents wishing to attend should note that the meeting will be socially distanced, with other Covid-19 recommendations in place. Any questions to the Parish Council, from residents, should be submitted to the Parish Clerk (parishclerk@acombpc.co.uk or 01434 634397) at least 48 hours before the meeting.

BE sure to catch the last session in August of ‘Let’s Sing’ this Tuesday 31sr in the Village Hall at 10.15am, starting with coffee/tea. Come and have fun singing and swaying to a variety of favourite songs from over the years. For more information contact musicalmemories17@gmail.com or 01434 607490.

Slaley

Helen Savage

SLALEY’S Commemoration Hall is a fantastic community asset. The hall trustees, so ably led by Rosaleen Doonan, are approaching the final stages of fundraising for the hall extension. They’re now calling for one last push from the community to help them reach their target. So far £83,348 has been raised/pledged from grants, donations and fundraising. The cost of the new extension is £96,000. The trustees have set an ambitious but achievable deadline of the end of September to go ahead to commission the work so that the extension can be built in time for the hall’s centenary celebrations next year. Please could you help us reach the target by donating? Go to www.gofundme.com/slaleyvillagehall Or if you would like to donate by cheque or bank transfer, please contact the Treasurer, Stella on 01434 673001 or by email on stellacdouglas@gmail.com.Gift aid forms are available.

JUDGING by the appalling state of our lawn (you can’t see grass for mushrooms, sadly none of them edible) it seems like the recent rains have produced a bumper season for fungi of all sorts. Ladycross Nature Reserve are delighted to have been able to organise a fungus foray again this year on Saturday October 2 at 2pm. If you’d like to learn more about the wealth of fungi up in the forest, please book with Joan on 01434 673245 or email jjewitt245@btinternet.com. A small charge is made towards the upkeep of the reserve - £4 for members, £5 for non-members.

Newbrough

Rob Tindall

FIRSTLY, a grovelling apology. My fat finger put an intrusive 5 into my telephone number for those wishing to reserve a seat on the coach for the Senior Citizens’ trip to Berwick on September 9. The correct number is 674324. I also apologise if someone who does own the number printed has been the recipient of ‘nuisance’ calls. Well over half of the seats have already been taken.

THERE are numerous signs at the Warden level-crossing advising cyclists to dismount. How many take this advice? Less than one in twenty, I suspect. Last week I met a crocodile of about twenty bi-pedallers, and they weren’t of the lycra-clad sort, who slowly made their way across, not one of them dismounting. There have been some nasty tumbles as the crossing is on a slight bend and wheels can slip or get caught in the polished rails.

THE lucky winners in the Town Hall August draw are: 1st Claire Heminsley, 2nd Hazel Page, 3rd Sheila Burrows.

IT never ceases to amaze me but one week we have golden fields of waving corn and the next mottled brown and yellow expanses where next year’s crop is already germinating. We no longer have, “We plough the fields and scatter.....” as today it is all about minimising soil disturbance. Nationally there has been comment about the dearth of butterflies. Not on my patch! I have never seen so many Peacocks and Cabbage Whites whilst there is no shortage of Tortoiseshells, Painted Ladies and Red Admirals.