NEWS FOR BROXTED & CHICKNEY

from the Five Parishes' Magazine

JANUARY 2007

NEW CARPET FOR ST MARY'S CHURCH

Thanks to some very generous funding, a new carpet has been laid in Broxted church. Readers will remember that in April Beth Harwood-Mann gallantly ran in the London Marathon, raising a considerable amount for charity. Her main beneficiary was the Multiple Sclerosis Resource Centre but she has generously given a portion of the money raised towards this new carpet. The carpet beautifully complements the church's tiles and grateful thanks go to Beth for thinking of the church in this way.

BROXTED PARISH COUNCIL

At its meeting on the 6th December the Council received, with regret, the resignation of Mrs Cathy Burton. As the whole Council is up for re-election on the 3rd May 2007 it is not necessary to attempt to fill the vacancy that this has caused.

Bus Shelter

A number of estimates to rebuild the bus shelter at Brick End have been received and these are now with the Council's insurers for a decision. It is still hoped that the shelter will be rebuilt early in the New Year.

Precept

The Council has set its precept for 2007–2008 at £9,000.

Village Hall

The Council has started the process with the Charity Commissioners to make the Council the trustees of the Village Hall.

SSE

The Council agreed to donate £1,000 to the Stop Stansted Expansion Campaign as it prepares for the Public Inquiry into the appeal by BAA against Uttlesford's refusal to grant permission for the increased use of the existing runway.

Next Meeting

The next meeting of the Parish Council will be on Wednesday 10th January 2007 at 8.00 pm in the Village Hall. The Council always welcomes members of the public to its meetings. The minutes of the Council meetings are posted on the village notice-boards, and can be viewed on this website.

BROXTED & DISTRICT COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION

The quiz planned for the 25th November had to be postponed because of a number of other events taking place on the same evening. This will now be held on Saturday 10th February in the Village Hall at 7.30 for 8.00 pm. Tickets are priced at £6 which will include a hot supper, but please bring your own drinks. Teams of 6-8 are welcome to take part, but if you don't have a team come along anyway, join in the fun and meet your neighbours! Bookings and details from Jenny Oliveira on 01279 850348.

THE GREAT BROXTED QUIZ 2007

Phyllis and Roger Clark are organising on Saturday 10th March another of their annual quizzes to raise funds for SSE. Details will be found on the SSE page but please remember that space is limited so do book as soon as possible with Roger and Phyllis on 01279 850638, or at clarkatbroxted@hotmail.co.uk.

TIMELY REMINDER

Please do not put garden rubbish etc in ditches. Already, during November's heavy rain, problems have been experienced with several roads being flooded – due mainly to ditches being blocked, and thus making it difficult for water to run away. This can prove extremely dangerous to motorists, especially if the rain is followed by frost.

PEOPLE

CONDOLENCES
We were very sorry to learn that Linda Barrow's mother, Mrs Bessie Mattingly, died on the 14th November. Her funeral service was conducted in Broxted church by the Rev'd Gillian Greenslade followed by a private cremation. We offer our love and condolences to Linda and Geoff at this sad time.
BEST WISHES
go to Val Felgate for her continued improvement following her recent spell in hospital. Coming as she does from Thaxted to attend services in each of our churches, she has been much missed during her absence.

THE FRIENDS OF THE FIVE PARISHES

The annual service of Evensong held at Great Easton Church on the 19th November was well attended and everyone enjoyed a thoughtful address by Bishop Edward Holland on the importance of the part that The Friends have to play. Traditional afternoon tea was served with delicious sandwiches and cakes during which three Christmas hampers were raffled. Thank you to all who provided goodies for the tea and hampers – we are very blessed by the generosity of The Friends.

Prior to the Evensong, in a flying visit on Saturday, Gillian’s gang of future priests descended on the Old Vicarage for coffee. Michael gave a brief talk on the importance of having a Friends organisation within the Church, which much interested the gathering. This was followed by a visit to all our churches and a lunch at The Rectory.

The Friends have recently funded the cost at £3,000 of repairs to the windows of the north side of the aisle in Little Easton church. This brings the total that The Friends have donated towards the upkeep of our four churches to £23,900.

THE FRIENDS OF THE FIVE PARISHES 50% CLUB

Make a resolution to join the 50% Club. New members are always welcome and there are plenty of chances to win this year. A cheque for £8 will give you a chance every month from January until August. Make the cheque out to ‘The Friends of the Five Parishes 50% Club’ and send it to Fran Woodrow at Windy Ridge, Duton Hill, Dunmow, Essex CM6 2DX. The money raised helps to maintain the churches in the Five Parishes. The winner of the November draw was Jenny Speller.

UDC THREE BIN RECYCLING COLLECTION

During week beginning 1st January, there will be collections of both wet and dry recycling, with the following revised collection dates:

Usual collection day	Revised collection day
Monday 1st January	Tuesday 2nd January
Tuesday 2nd January	Wednesday 3rd January
Wednesday 3rd January	Thursday 4th January
Thursday 4th January	Friday 5th January
Friday 5th January	Saturday 6th January

Extra dry recycling can be left alongside the dry recycling bin in either a cardboard box or one of the old recycling boxes. All collections will start as usual at 7.00 am. Normal collections will resume from Monday 8th January 2007.

Christmas trees can be taken to the mobile recycling skips in Dunmow and Stansted on the 6th January, to Dunmow and Thaxted on the 13th January or to the household recycling site in Saffron Walden. Recycling hotline: 01799 510344. The hotline will be staffed during office hours (except on the 1st January).

PRIVATE DENTISTRY AWARDS 2006

Carolyn Copping writes:

"Many of you as patients may have been aware that our team at Thaxted Dental Centre were short-listed for the title of Best Team at this year's awards. Just to be short-listed was quite an achievement in itself, so we decided that this year's Christmas Party would be going to the event itself, at the Café Royal, Piccadilly, on 24th November.

"At the champagne reception we felt alternately humbled and proud of ourselves to be brushing shoulders with some of the most famous names in the dental world today. Everyone was in their best finery and the surroundings were fabulous. With almost 500 people from all over the UK, the mood was celebratory, but with a distinct air of expectation. I wasn't sure if it was butterflies or just the champagne making me feel wobbly!

"After lunch, the serious business of the awards ceremony began. Our category was listed last, so it seemed like we had a lot of clapping and photography to get through first. I felt the urge to visit the ladies (as you do!) and was just wondering if I could fit it in when the running order changed and it was us! All thoughts of the loo disappeared, and my heart was in my mouth as the host read out the various contenders, and our photographs flashed up on the huge screen behind him. Then he opened the envelope: “And the runner up in this category is...” (thankfully no long pause here, unlike The X Factor) “Thax…” And the rest of the sentence was lost amid mad cheering from our table. You’ll be pleased to know I didn’t wet my knickers, but I did cry and laugh, and nearly burst with pride!

"So, a huge thank you to all of you out there who filled in our surveys and feedback forms and who wrote such lovely things about us. It's great to know you are appreciated, but to have it recognised nationally in this way was an experience we will never forget."

RACE NIGHT

Please note the date now on your new calendar of Saturday 17th March for the Race Night and invite your friends to come along with you to Little Easton Memorial Hall. There will be a hot supper, bar and all the excitement of the races with real live jockeys. If you would be willing to buy a horse, at £5 each (what a bargain!) please contact one of the race managers, Jenny Green on 01371 870402 or Lyn Cox on 870572.

SHAHZADA STABLES

With much regret we announce that Elaine and Ricky Good are leaving the village and relocating to Norfolk. Elaine has given much pleasure to numerous children and adults in the five parishes and beyond for many years. Apart from her teaching skills, she has always made time to encourage children, not only to learn to ride, but to care for their ponies.

Performances given by the Shahzada team have been a feature at the Countess of Warwick's Country Show for a number of years, being a source of admiration to spectators and riders alike. A condition of their move is that Elaine and Ricky have promised to visit the Show each year to keep in touch with their many friends. Meanwhile, they will be greatly missed and we join in wishing them much happiness in their new home.

GREAT EASTON CHURCH OF ENGLAND PRIMARY SCHOOL

Everyone at the school wishes the readers of this Magazine a peaceful 2007. January does not mark the beginning of a new year for schools, in fact schools operate within three types of year; the academic, financial and calendar. However, January is traditionally the time for resolutions. I would like to invite you to make one on behalf of our school; that is to tell someone with pre-school children about the fantastic education that they can receive at Great Easton Church of England Primary School.

It is a good time of year to be doing this because parents of three and half year olds and four year olds have to complete an application for a school place for the new academic year (starting in September) by the 28th February. This can be a very confusing process because parents have to name three possible schools and express a preference for their first, second and third choices. The first choice no longer has to be the school that is nearest to them. We are hoping that all the families in the Five Parishes will put us first because of the close links that we have with our community and the excellent education that is on offer in our caring, Christian environment. We are also hoping that we can persuade families who live in the Dunmow area and beyond that they might prefer to nominate our small village church school as their first preference. We have 22 places for children starting school for the first time next September. According to the birth statistics there are only 18 children needing school places in the Five Parishes, which means that we can offer places to those living outside our villages. We also have spaces available in other year groups for siblings or those moving into the area.

We are always happy to show prospective parents around the school, they just need to ring the office on 01371 870219 to make an appointment. We also have a brochure that is available from school, local estate agents and in the near future our revised website. We look forward to meeting new families in this New Year.

Gill Hopkins

Headteacher

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

Wednesday 17th January	LEPRA Coffee Morning, Little Easton
Sunday 21st January	Little Easton “Winter Blues” Lunch
Sunday 28th January	StanstedVillage Music Club
Saturday 10th February	Broxted Community Assoc Quiz
Saturday 10th March	The Great Broxted Quiz 2007
Saturday 17th March	Race Night in Little Easton
Sun/Mon 26th/27th August	Countess of Warwick's Country Show