september 2020 paper pershore times · 2020. 9. 9. · pershore times a free monthly newspaper for...

Pershore Times A free monthly newspaper for Pershore and surrounding villages

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FREEIssue 57 February 2021

However, we do have lots ofgood things happening whichwill put things right. Thevaccines are in hand and thenumber of people beingvaccinated is moving forward atan incredible speed, faster thanany other country in the world. Aremarkable achievement in sucha short time. We will soon be ontop of this killer!Early indications are that thelockdown is working. We have tobe responsible however difficultand boring it may be, listen to

our scientific advisers and takeseriously the advice we aregiven.I hear so many people trying tofind ways to ridicule the advisorsand government leaders. The‘know all’ TV interviewers inparticular! It’s easy to criticiseand win points but the future is inour hands and only we can stopthe disease spreading. We shouldall be working together to savelives! The old proverb ‘emptyvessels make the most sound’ isappropriate!

We are out of the Europeancommunity with a deal. The mainpart being we can trade withoutimport tariffs to the whole ofEurope. This is a massivemarketing opportunity enablingus to maintain and generate newbusiness arrangements. A goodcompromise by both parties. Nodoubt there will be challenges butthey will be overcome.We have passed the shortest dayand daylight is getting longereveryday, green shoots areappearing, Spring is on its way !A new year and we have lots ofgood things to look forward to;vaccination against Covid 19,Brexit and Springtime just toname a few! Hopefully, in amonth or two after all the hardwork by so many people we willturn the corner and all will bewell.

The new year has been dominated by thecoronavirus pandemic. Alarming increase in newcases and a dramatic rise in fatalities. We send our

deepest sympathy to everyone affected and thank the

medical teams involved at all levels. A further

lockdown and all very gloomy. December looked so

much better with optimism and high hopes.

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Residents are being urged tohelp rough sleepers by lettingWychavon’s housing team knowabout people they see on thestreets.People can play their part byremembering if they spotsomeone sleeping rough, tellStreetLink what they look likeand where they are online atwww.streetlink.org.uk ortelephone 0300 500 0914StreetLink will pass the detailsto Wychavon’s housing team oroutreach service who will go andfind the individual and beginworking with them to offer helpand support. Wychavon hasalready helped thirty-six peopleto get off the streets since thestart of the Covid-19 pandemic.Sadly, a few people have chosennot to take up the help offered.Wychavon continues to workwith them and to offer support.Emergency shelters will beopened on cold nights to makesure people who have chosen tocontinue to sleep rough havesomewhere to go when

temperatures fall.If people want to do more thenthey are encouraged to donate tolocal registered charities for thehomeless or offer to volunteertheir time with them.If residents see a personcollapsed on the street, theyshould call the emergencyservices immediately.Cllr Christopher Day, ExecutiveBoard Member for Housing,Health and Wellbeing onWychavon District Council, said:“If you want to help supportrough sleepers, the best thingyou can do is let us know byusing StreetLink. The sooner weknow about someone, thequicker we can find them andstart to work with them to find asolution. Not everyone acceptsour offer of assistance, which istheir choice, but we will neverwalk away and will continue toengage with them until they areready to be helped.”

Help the Homelesswww.streetlink.org.uk

tel 0300 500 0914

2 Issue 57 - February 2021 - Pershore Times

A Supreme Court ruling whichwill mean insurance companieswill have to pay out to dozens oflocal companies who paid forpandemic insurance.The court ruled that insurancefirms will have to pay claims forbusiness interruption when theywere forced to close in the lastlockdown.Dozens of local business ownerscontacted Harriett for assistanceas their claims were rejected. Sixinsurers who had sold businessinterruption insurance products -Arch, Argenta, Hiscox, MSAmlin, QBE and RSA - claimedtheir policies did not cover aglobal pandemic likecoronavirus.Harriett Baldwin has advisedlocal firms affected by the delayand also raised her concerns inTreasury Select Committeemeetings which has beencarrying out an enquiry into thewider impact of coronavirus on

the economy. Harriett said:“I’ve had quite a few localbusinesses raise their concernsabout how some companies wererefusing to pay out on theirclaims. The courts moved swiftlyto hear a test case and I ampleased that the Supreme Courthas upheld the initial ruling.This has been a very difficulttime for many businesses andalthough the Government hasrolled out a number of supportpackages, some of the shutdowncosts were covered by insurancepolicies. I remain eager to offer assistanceto companies who have beennegatively impacted by theseperiods of lockdown but I hopethat with a vaccinationprogramme properly underway,we can see a route towardsunlocking the local economy assoon as possible.”

Pandemic InsuranceRuling!

Support rough sleepers

With the rapidly rising Covid-19virus rates and the new nationallockdown restrictions, aftercareful consideration thePershore Benefice has taken thedecision to suspend publicworship in their buildings for thetime being. Therefore there willbe no worship services held inPershore Abbey, St Mary’s inWick, St Nicholas’ in Pinvin orSt James’ in Birlingham fromnow until further notice. However they will revert toproviding an online SundayService each Sunday at 10.30amavailable on the Pershore AbbeyCommunity YouTube Channel. Alink to this service will bepublished on the Abbey websiteand Facebook page. This will

commence from this Sunday10th January. Church buildings will remainopen for personal prayer withsocial distancing hygienemeasures in place. Full details ofthe individual church openingtimes are available on thePershore Abbey website. Peopleare reminded that face coveringsare mandatory upon enteringplaces of worship along withhand sanitising and the 2 metredistance applies at all times. The Benefice will remain activeon its social media platforms tokeep the community updated.There is also a prayer group onFacebook for those wishing tojoin.

Pershore Beneficesuspends publicworship

Pershore Times - February - Issue 57 3

How does the COVID vaccine work?

Linbury Doctors are a group ofprivate GPs providingindividualised care for you andyour family in the comfort ofyour own home; seven days aweek. Their GPs coverWarwickshire, Worcestershire,Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, theCotswolds, Solihull andsurrounding areas, includingPershore.Misconceptions of vaccinesTo share more insight into howthe COVID vaccines work, it isimportant to start by saying thatvaccines, in general, save morelives than any other medicineand come only second to cleanwater when it comes topreventing disease.Vaccines have been given tobillions of people and haveshown to be safe. They havebecome so successful that wehave lost sight of many fataldiseases like measles, mumpsand rubella. Instead, we’re leftwith no disease, and all everyonesees is a side effect from thevaccine, so they often get a badpress.Here at Linbury Doctors, weoffer private COVID tests with48-hour results. Click here tofind out more information, or getin touch with us on 0333 0507338.How do vaccines work?Most vaccines work bystimulating the immune systemso it thinks it has met the diseasebefore and fought it off. A lot ofthe vaccines we are used to are‘attenuated pathogens’. Thismeans taking a virus or bacteriaand making it so it doesn’t causethat infection anymore butinduces an immune response.They are called ‘replicatingvaccines’, and some precautions

sometimes need to be exercisedin the immunosuppressed.With Influenza, for instance, wetake the virus, grow it, render itnon-infectious by vaccinatingwith parts of the virus whichtriggers an immune response.This means if you were to comeinto contact with it, your bodywould be able to respond byreleasing the immune cellsneeded as it had been trickedinto thinking you’ve had itbefore.There are several myths around,such as ‘the flu vaccine givesyou flu’. But there is nopossibility of this as theingredients are inactive. We know it’s safe and it works.Side effects are common, suchas a short-lasting fever and asore arm. Sometimes, thevaccine doesn’t work as well aswe would like but that’s aboutmatching the seasonal strain. What safety checks do theCOVID vaccines have to passbefore they can be used?As the different variants of theCOVID vaccine are being rolledout, they will be in rigoroustrials. Once the trials havepassed through the relevantstages, the regulator givesapproval for the vaccine.In the UK, the regulator is theMHRA. The Pfizer vaccine wasapproved by the MHRA inDecember and we receivedwelcome news in the New Yearthat the Oxford vaccine had alsoreceived approval. Even after the vaccines receiveapprovals, safety checks are stillcarried out and any effects arereported and reviewed.Who decides who receives thevaccine?The joint committee on

vaccination and immunisationhas independent experts whodecide how the vaccineprogramme is rolled out.mRNA Vaccines(Pfizer/Moderna)Both the Pfizer and Modernajabs use technology known asmRNA, which introduces intothe body a messenger sequencethat contains the geneticinstructions for the vaccinatedperson’s own cells to producethe antigens and generate animmune response.It does not alter human cells butmerely presents the body withinstructions to build immunity toCoronavirus. These are new, butnot completely new, as they havebeen used in oncology and otherclinical settings.Here at Linbury Doctors, weoffer private COVID tests andcan get the results back to ourmembers on the same day. If youare currently suffering fromsymptoms, then get in touchwith your doctor directly, or giveour private practice a call on0333 050 7338Concerned by the speed of theCOVID-19 vaccinedevelopment?With most vaccine development,it takes a long time to study andget the evidence as the infectionpool is so small. With COVID-19, there was a huge infectionpool, so we have been able tostudy the numbers needed in asmall period of time.The mRNA vaccines have beentested on up to 40,000individuals, so they have beentested on the same number ofindividuals as any other previousvaccine in circulation. We knowthese vaccines are not causingsevere adverse effects at thisscale. Acute side effects arecommon, like being feverishnext day or having a sore arm,but this is a strong signal thatthey are giving the immunesystem a kick and reassures youthat your body is mounting agood immune response.We know the first two vaccinesprevent people from becomingunwell with COVID-19 andprevent serious illness. However,we don’t have data to see if theyblock transmission at present.As private doctors, we know thatthe risk of having seriousconsequences from gettingCOVID-19 – even if you’re notin a vulnerable category – issignificantly higher than the riskof suffering mild side effectsfrom the mRNA vaccines.There have been some concerns

raised that the mRNA vaccinesmay influence yourchromosomes, but this is a myth;they are particularly safe asdon’t penetrate the nucleus ofcells. Plus, they are cleared fromthe system within 72 hours.There is therefore no link tomRNA vaccines and geneticmodification.The MHRA are continuing tomonitor for side-effects, but onlytwo people out of the thousandswho received the vaccination inthe first week developed allergicreactions.Therefore, the advice haschanged so that people withprevious severe allergic reactionsare unable to receive the Pfizervaccine and the situation isbeing monitored.AstraZeneca/Oxford VaccinationThe Oxford vaccine works like atraditional vaccination, more likethe attenuated vaccines alreadydiscussed. It uses a harmlessvirus altered to look a lot morelike the pandemic virus. Anattenuated ‘spike protein’ of thevirus is injected which theimmune system builds up aresponse to as if the real virushas entered the body. Therefore,if you then come into contactwith COVID-19, the body’simmune system will recognisethis ‘spike protein’ and raise theimmune response.Two full doses of the Oxford

vaccine gave 62% protection, ahalf dose followed by a full dosewas 90% and overall, the trialshowed 70% protection.Statistics as of 25th Jan 2021:•So far, up to 75% of over 80-year-olds have been vaccinatedin the UK.• In the UK, 6,169,377 vaccineshave been administered.• The government aims todeliver 15 million vaccines tothe over 70s, healthcare workersand shielding categories by mid-February. Should I have the vaccine if Ihave had COVID?Yes, is the short answer. Wehave no idea how long naturalimmunity will last, how good itwill be and how durable. Thecurrent recommendation wouldbe to have the vaccine if offered,even if you have had a provenCOVID-19 infection.If you are a member of LinburyDoctors, we can arrange for youto have a COVID test, with asame-day result. Get in touchwith your private GP to discuss,or give us a call on0333 050 7338


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The Government has givenapproval for plans to add a newstation car park in Pershore. Theextra parking space will belinked by a new footbridgewhich will be installed addinghundreds of new spaces forcommuters. The current car parkwill be retained to add extraspaces for disabled and less-ablerail users.Harriett Baldwin haschampioned the plan for overfive years and has held meetingswith senior rail chiefs and aseries of Government Ministersto press for support for the newcar park.The plan stalled becauseNetwork Rail, and then theDepartment for Transport,needed to approve the new stepbridge.Harriett worked with localstakeholders including the localtown council, district councillorsand the Cotswold LinePromotion Group to ensure thatthese plans would be supportedby local people.

Harriett said: “I haveconsistently called for better useof Pershore train station andfaster, more frequent, morereliable services along theCotswold Line and adding extracapacity at the station car partare important parts of thisambition.“The Department for Transporthas approved this proposal toadd the car park and a newfootbridge after much hard workfrom Wychavon District Counciland lobbying in Westminster tomake the case for theseimprovement for all rail users.“I’ve always held the view thatif you don’t ask, you don’t get,and in this case it has been quitea battle to get all the variousstakeholders onside and workingtogether.“This is great news for local railusers and when we get throughthis Covid travel hiatus, thestation will form an importantpart of our green travel recoveryplan.”

Green light for newstation car park

Swift action by the Chancellor tosupport local businessesimpacted by the latest lockdown.Prime Minister Boris Johnsonannounced that schools will needto be closed until half term andlocal people are urged to stay athome unless making essentialjourneys.Chancellor Rishi Sunakconfirmed that an additional £4.6billion will be allocated tooffering support for businessesaffected by the latest measuresincluding those retail, hospitalityand leisure businesses who aren’table to trade.Qualifying businesses will beable to access a grant worth upto £9,000 per property to getthrough to the Spring. A further£594 million discretionary fundhas been allocated to help otherbusinesses in addition to £1.1billion allocated to localauthorities to deliver localsupport.“Over the last year, theGovernment has worked hard tocreate and deliver a range ofsupport packages to help

business that aren’t able to trade.“I share local people’s shock andfrustration that the new mutantstrain of the virus is having sucha major impact and forcing areturn of national lockdownmeasures.“The Chancellor has once againstepped up to support businessand I remain happy to help anyorganisation or individual whoneeds help accessing thisassistance either through theTreasury or through the localcouncil.“The promise of a vaccinationoffers us all a little hope thattimes will be better soon and Ihope that businesses will be ableto weather this latest storm andprepare for a return to operationsas swiftly as possible.”

£4.6 billion businesssupport

Help the Homelesswww.streetlink.org.uk

tel 0300 500 0914

Harriett Baldwin has praisedGovernment support packagesworth billions of pounds whichhave helped local familiesimpacted by the globalpandemic.The MP highlighted a range ofschemes to help local people’sjobs and livelihoods as well asspecific measures to help lowerpaid households through thecurrent crisis.The Treasury has rolled outfurlough schemes to help protectpeople’s jobs and provide up to80 per cent of salaries to helpkeep incomes coming in whenbusinesses are required to shut.Last year, the Department forWork and Pensions received anextra £9 billion to provideadditional support including a£63 million Winter Grant Fundand £220 million to extend theHoliday and Food Programmehelping the most vulnerablefamilies.

Harriett said: “Over the last year,we have seen the Governmentdevelop and implement a rangeof support packages to helppeople and businesses survivethrough the pandemic and therehas been an emphasis on helpingthose on the lowest incomes.“This has seen extra measuresput in place to provide a safetynet for all sorts of people.Thousands of workers andhundreds of businesses acrossWest Worcestershire haveaccessed over £100 million ofnational support of all types.“I am proud that we have beenable to move swiftly to offerhelp and today’s debate shouldbe about highlighting that helpfor families.“Having spoken at great lengthwith our local Job Centre team, Ihave been keen to offer supportto families who need extrasupport. The welfare system isan important safety net helpingpeople to get through this mostturbulent of times.“But this is a time of nationalemergency and I think myconstituents want all parties towork together with the commonaim of getting through thiscoronavirus crisis and gettingour lives and our economy backto normal as quickly aspossible.”


A few words from…Harriett Baldwin MP

THE UK’s work helping tocombat the ebola virus in Africahelped us improve our responseto Covid-19, according toHarriett Baldwin MP.And the lessons learned handlingdrugs which need to be stored atvery low temperatures has helpedto inform medical teams acrossthe UK handling thePfizer/Biontec vaccine.The MP, who was Minister forAfrica and saw at first hand thework of UK aid agencies dealingwith the ebola crisis, urged theGovernment to re-think plans toslash the UK Aid budget fearingthat the decision may have wideimplications for our country aswell as the world’s poorestnations.Harriett was speaking in a debateabout ‘Global Britain’ and sheurged the Government toabandon its plans to break anelection manifesto commitmentto spend at least 0.7 per cent ofthe country’s gross nationalincome on aid projects.Harriett commented: “I’ve had

the privilege of seeing our UKAid projects at first hand whileserving in the Government asMinister for Africa and I knowhow important it is to continuethis life-saving work. It is alsowrong to break a manifestocommitment.“The knowledge we have on thestorage and transport of drugs atvery cold temperatures comesfrom the work carried out in thefight against ebola. In this case,UK Aid is saving UK lives.“But more troublingly, cuttingimportant aid projects in placedlike Ethiopia and Somalia willinevitably mean that more babiesdie of malnutrition and diarrhoeaand fewer girls will be educated.“The UK has been the onlycountry in the world to meet theNATO target for defence of 2 percent and the UN target fordevelopment of 0.7 per cent.Both budgets are very much inthe national interest as we aim tomake the world safer, healthier,cleaner and better educated.”

‘UK Aid helped Covidresponse’

Harriett Baldwin MP has praisedhealth chiefs and local healthteams and GPs who are rollingout vaccines to vulnerable groupsand essential health and careworkers at a speed that offershope of a release of lockdown inthe near future.The Herefordshire andWorcestershire’s vaccine roll outplan is third best in England with76.2 per cent of over 80 year oldsgetting at least one jab.And the team plans to expandcapability with the opening oftwo major vaccination centres inBromsgrove and at the ThreeCounties Showground in thecoming weeks.Harriett said: “I receive regularbriefings on the great progressthat we are making across thetwo counties and this is tribute tothe efforts of GP and medicalpractitioners who are taking onthis immense challenge to get ourhighly vulnerable groups

vaccinated quickly andefficiently.“It has been a well-plannedexercise and we are ready toscale up to do even more jabs inthe coming weeks as we look toget all the most vulnerable peopleprotected.“I know that the Vaccines TaskForce has done a superb job ofbuying enough vaccine foreveryone and that three vaccineshave now been approved. At themoment the only constraint isvaccine supply and I’veencouraged local health chiefs tobe ready to scale up further formore supply.“The sooner we get the jabs intopeoples’ arms the quicker we canget children back into school andstart to re-open the economy.“This is welcome news to sharebut I hope that we are able tobuild on this great start and getmany more people protected assoon as possible.”

MP hails county jabprogress

School meal voucherschemeHarriett Baldwin MP haswelcomed the return of avoucher scheme to helpvulnerable families during thelatest period of school closures.The Government has reinstatedthe scheme which allowedparents to source extra food atlocal supermarkets to help whilechildren are being home-schooled.Parents who qualify for freeschool lunches will now be ableto choose a supermarket giftcode for £15 a week per child tohelp them ensure their childrenhave a free lunch on a schoolday.Local parents have raised theirconcerns about some of the foodpackages offered by localschools and the voucher schemewill allow parents more choice.The Government has also

introduced a £170 Covid WinterFund to help families over theChristmas break and this schoolterm including half-term.Harriett commented: “Of course,we all want children to be ableto return to school as quickly aspossible as this interruption isbad for their educational andmental development.“Home schooling presents arange of extra challenges and myefforts continue to be aimed andencouraging the lockdown to bereleased as soon as possible witha vaccination programme now infull swing.“Based on my postbag, thevoucher scheme helps the mostvulnerable families moreeffectively as in my experiencechildren can be quite fussy eatersand may not want exactly whatthe schools are providing.”

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Wychavon's Villages ofCulture say stay strong and“Walk on, walk on, with hopein your heart.”These words were made famousby Gerry Marsden, who sadlydied on the 3rd January, and hisappropriately named group, ThePacemakers. While the song isstrongly linked to Liverpool F.C.the song has become the anthemfor the medical services duringthis time of the Covid-19pandemic.With the turn of the year to2021, came the country's returnto a third “lockdown”. When thevillages presented their visionfor 2020 they could not haveforeseen the virus from China,Covid-19, waiting around thecorner. Most of the eventsplanned for 2020 were put onhold but the hope is that eventswill take place in the comingyear as Wychavon has agreedthat the villages can re-launchtheir Villages of Cultureprogramme in 2021. However,one of the original legacyprojects is not only nearingcompletion but is one activitythat is positively encouraged bythe government during“lockdown”. That activity iswalking. Walking is an activitythat provides many benefits forparticipants; healthy exercise,mental well-being with anappreciation of nature, isaccessible to most and at noadditional expense.Late in 2019 the villages plannedto produce a series of legacywalks around their area. Theproject would involve a largenumber of individuals with awide range of skills. The walkswere carefully designed withhelp from Worcestershire CountyCouncil Public Rights of WayDepartment, and during the first“lockdown”, in March, the walkswere trialled by villagers.Corrections were made and the

walks tested again during thesecond “lockdown” inNovember. The walks are alsodesigned to provide informationabout the villages the walkersare passing through and thehistory that surrounds them egWhite Ladies Aston was theplace where Oliver Cromwellstayed before moving to fight thefinal battle of the English CivilWar at Worcester and Spetchleywas where Sir Edward Elgaroften visited, being a familyfriend of the Berkeley Family,with the area inspiring him tocreate some of his musicalmasterpieces. A further feature ofthe project was to includeillustrations by Glynis Dray, alocal artist who has over theyears contributed articles tomany popular publications andwhose love of walking and hercraft as a painter would providea unique visual aspect to thewalks. All of these items werethen magically brought togetherby Gemma and Vicki in theWychavon Graphics Departmentto produce a 20 page brochure.In February, it is planned tolaunch the walks brochure and tore-launch the Villages of Cultureprogramme and these are set tocoincide with a virtual meetingwith Nigel Huddleston M.P.Minister for Sport, Tourism andHeritage, with responsibilitiesfor Culture and Art. He is theM.P. for Mid Worcestershire, butmore importantly he is the localM.P. for White Ladies Aston,Broughton Hackett, Spetchleyand Churchill, the Villages ofCulture. The villages arehonoured to be given time todiscuss their planned projects forthis year with such a seniormember of the Government.In conclusion, the Villages ofCulture wish you all, a belated,“Happy and Healthy New Year.”See the Facebook page for moredetails bit.ly/villages-together

Villages of CultureGarden Watch

We have entered a new year but,unfortunately, also a newLockdown. Once more we arerequired to stay at home. Thegarden is an extension of ourhome territory and it is not at itsbest!!Over the past few weeks wehave seen the garden undergo anumber of changes. First we hada large new water feature (i.e. aflood!) which then became anice rink and, within hours, thegarden was transformed into aWinter wonderland. Somebeautiful frosty mornings andvivid sun-rises created a perfectmorning aspect. Plants and treeswere splendid in their icy coatsand dried seed heads becamedelicately spiked flowers. Alas, itdid not last!The garden is looking stark. Barebranches and muddy greens andbrowns are not so inspiring.However, there are bright newshoots from the Spring bulbspoking up from the lawn andslicing their way through thebare earth. There will be flowerssoon and the promise of newgrowth. The magnolia has plentyof buds. These usually appear inDecember and are often quitebig and fat by now. This yearthey seem to be holding back-perhaps they know somethingwe don't! The camelias are alsobearing buds but it will be sometime before they flower.

Over Christmas we acquired newbird feeders from a friend – ‘forGarden Watch’ I was told. Twoare outside our patio window sowe can watch them from thehouse and two more are furtherdown the garden. The robinshave taken ownership of the onewith fat balls and are guarding itjealously! A sentry robin is to beseen sitting in the tree andchasing away other birds. It isquite surprising to see such afriendly looking bird behaving inthis way! The tits andchaffinches have been takingadvantage of the other feedersand our overweight pigeons strutbelow, pecking at the spillage.Since our neighbour’s chickenshave had to be kept indoors dueto bird flu, we have not beenvisited by our flock ofopportunist crows. The cockerelis still making his presenceknown though!It is a quiet time and there islittle we can do in the garden fornow. Within weeks we will haveSpring flowers again. The daysare getting a bit longer and weknow we have to be patient inthis time of Lockdown. We alllook forward to being out andabout again and, eventually,Covid free. Meanwhile, whoknows, if we are lucky we mayhave another beautiful Springlike last year!

Nigel Huddleston


Fundraising in 2020 was a washout for most support groups inPershore. To help ease thesituation, Pershore Rotariansdecided to deliver a programmeof monthly donations to thoselocal support groups sufferingfinancial hardship due to Covid-19. Requests from communitygroups needing help withrunning costs were received andseveral monthly donations of£600 - £700 were made in theperiod to December 2020.Pinvin Federation of Schoolsneeded additional Chromebooksfor children learning at home. Aschool spokesperson said, “Dueto lockdown restrictions, manychildren are suffering fromisolation. There’s a need forfamily support workers andbetter access to IT. Rotaryfunding provided additionalsupport and Chromebooks forthose children without access toonline working resources.” The Pershore Relief in SicknessCharity supported localhealthcare teams, providing extraPPE to frontline healthcareworkers, specialist wheelchairsand a bladder scanner for localGP surgeries. Treasurer, AlisonFox, said, “Our most recentpurchase was 30 books onPalliative Care Guidelines forlocal community nurses and areteams.” Sam Faulkner at Abbey ParkSchool said, “The donation enabled us tocontinue to run our breakfastclub, which provides earlymorning childcare and meals tochildren of working families. Welive in difficult times and manyof our families face difficulties.The breakfast club means somuch to so many.” Despite being forced to restrictits use, resulting in a severe dropin income, the St Andrew’sCentre was able to accommodatethe Food Bank with its trebling

of clients needing support.However, the Centre’sprogramme of improvements hadto go ahead and Robin Hancoxsaid, “With Pershore Rotary’ssupport, we have been able toreplace the lighting in thekitchen and corridors by moreEco-friendly and cheaper to runfittings. We look forward tocompleting the project in 2021and to welcoming back all ourregular users and visitors." Pershore Town Football Clubrecognised that some of theirYouth Section were unable topay membership subs due tofamily hardship. With regularfundraising projects cancelled,the club needed to find an extra£280 per child to enable them tocarry on. Mark Thomson,Chairman of PTFC, said, “We really appreciate thedonation from Rotary and thefunds will be put towards thosekids whose parents are not ableto pay subs at this present time.”Research has shown that morethan 7% of adults have neverlearnt to read. Improving readingskills contributes towards raisingpersonal self-confidence andimproving the skills set in thelocal workforce. Read EasyEvesham & Pershore is a charitythat offers free, confidential oneto one reading coaching to adultswho struggle with literacy. SueOxley, Literary Specialist, said,“Pershore Rotary’s donationhelped purchase sets of phonicbased reading manuals andbooks.”

If you would like to know moreabout Rotary, or get involvedwith Rotary in Pershore andmake a difference in yourcommunity, contact Kit Carsonat:[email protected] or on 07747 117624

Sprint supportsDaylesford Farm

As part of a recent extensionproject, Sprint Group based inCobham Road, Pershore wereproud to be chosen to design andinstall a front of house food andbeverage bar along with a backof house wash up and servicearea.The Bamford Wellness Spa is aholistic wellness retreat situatedin the heart of DaylesfordOrganic Farm in the Cotswolds.Daylesford are renowned fortheir healthy and award winningorganic food which theywelcome you to discover ontheir unique farm in theCotswolds, visit one of theirLondon farm shops or orderonline. Owner Carole Bamfordsays:Over forty years ago, we beganto turn our family’s farmlandover to sustainable, organicfarming, first in Staffordshireand then in the Cotswolds. Whatbegan as a simple passion forreal food and a desire to feed ourchildren better has grown intoDaylesford as we know it today,

one of the most sustainableorganic farms in the UK. Integral to this design was adedicated tea infusion dispensearea. The project was handedover just before Christmas andincludes equipment supplied byPrecision Refrigeration,Hoshizaki Europe B.V. andMaidaid Halcyon.The Orchard Bar is the perfectspace to enjoy a light snack ordrink following a range ofactivities including yoga, Pilates,meditation, facial and massagetreatments. More about the newSpa and Bar can be found hereand further details aboutDaylesford Organic Farms canbe found here.If you would like to discuss yourkitchen or bar project call SprintGroup UK 01386 555922 oremail [email protected]

Lockdown Donations

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Sadly I have to report that ourWalking for Health group arecurrently only allowed to walkwith one other person and not theusual dozen! You may have noticed us innormal conditions, strollingaround Pershore on a Fridaymorning - or shall I say heard, asmuch chatting is involved.However, as soon as lockdown iseased I’m sure that most walkerswill want to get outand about as soon as possibleand you’ll be the first to know!In the meantime many will have

covered what could be called the“Panksy Trail”, finding andadmiring the series of paintingscreated by Mr.Sce (now knownas Panksy) in and aroundPershore.There’s been a robin in AbbeyPark, a kingfisher in King

George’s Field, with Lisa thehedgehog in the woods belowAllesborough Hill. Not forgettingthe fox in Tiddesley Woodand the Otter off Station Road.By the time you read this whoknows what else may havepopped up!These lovely images are spraypainted onto industrialbiodegradeable cling film whichis obviously sturdier than thenormal domestic type and able towithstand bad weatherconditions. The artist is ofcourse, Mr. Sce who aftertraining at art collegebecame a gas engineer and whoexpresses his love of art in thesewonderful creations.His intention is to remove thesepaintings at the end of January,relocating them onto a framedcanvas and then donating them to

Acorns Childrens Hospice. Whoknows perhaps some cards maybe possible in the future fromAcorns?Think we must thank Panksy fortaking the time and using histalent to brighten up thesegrey and frightening days for us

all. Hope he’s going to be aroundfor a long time!

Val Wood, WFH Pershore Co-ordinator.Tel 01386 554235

Pershore Vale Walkers and Panksy

Avon Meadows our own LocalNature Reserve also known asThe Wetlands, has certainly livedup to its name this last fewweeks but has also proved theworth of its creation asany flooding has been contained

within the site and not inadjacent houses!However, high water levels haveimpacted on the installation ofthe new Dipping Platform whichhas had to be halted in mid flow(excuse the pun!).We must also

not forget the impact of Covid-19 restrictions which hashampered any work parties thatwould normally have happilyploughed through mud but nowhave to socially distance whilstkeeping to limited numbers. Nevertheless, life carries on andour cygnets seem to have beenchased off as their parents beginto think about the new breedingseason. Many of the mallardshave moved homeinto the north scrape which isnow full of water providing isletsfor wading birds and a night-time roost for waterfowl.The boardwalks have beenmended; one bridge replacedafter being washed away andthe 2 smaller bridges runningparallel with Mill Lane havingbeen removed, will soon bereplaced with stone coveredculverts thus creating an easiercrossing.Plans are also in hand to improve

the path from the boardwalk andpast the new dippingplatform which is now veryboggy to say the least!Bird recording continues witheveryone socially distanced ofcourse, and already 57 specieshave been recorded. Some lesscommon species seen include:Little Grebe, Shoveler, CommonGull, Coal Tit, Linnet andBullfinch together with theregular wintering Stonechats notforgetting some rather vocaltawny owls.Spring is on the way to delightour eyes with the usual variety ofwild flowers and by which timehopefully, life will be returningto some semblance of normalityand we can all look forward tohearing the cuckoo!

For more information visit:www.avonmeadows.org.uk

Avon Meadows, our own local Nature Reserve

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Our team of Rotary BusinessClub and Wick Care Farmwalkers achieved their aim ofwalking the 1,083 miles fromLand’s End to John O’Groatsbefore New Year and to datehave raised £2,500 fromdonations. The funds raised will go towardsrefurbishing the kitchen facilitiesat Wick Care Farm which are nolonger fit for purpose. The Farm

supports adults and children in awide variety of activitiesdesigned to help improve ormaintain their mental andphysical health. There’s more to be done, soplease help us help Wick CareFarm by donating via our VirginMoney Giving page: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/.../displayCharityCampai...

Pershore Rotary’s walk for Wick Care Farm

We’ve arrived!

And breathe…..

I am often concerned about howvery little thought is given tobreathing! Given the life-changing and life-enhancingeffects that increasing ourbreathing capacity has on ourmental and physical health, weneed to talk about it! We breathein and out somewhere in theregion of 22,000 times a day andunless our attention is drawn toour breath, many of us nevergive this vital function muchthought. A little knowledge ofhow our breath function works isthe key to a brighter day, andthat’s where ‘Sing for Health’comes in!You may have never sung a noteoutside of your shower - but itdoesn’t matter! Read on…Singing is a way of exhaling. Itregulates our out-breath, calmsour thoughts, and releases‘feel-good’ endorphins – all

while improving our mental andphysical health. If you live withanxiety, depression, pain,isolation, heart or lung healthworries – this could really makea difference to you. Breathing forsinging improves our breathcapacity and has a wonderfuleffect on our entire body andmind function - helping withself-confidence, concentration,memory, posture, muscletension… the list goes on!You may have seen Sing forHealth banners at Abbotswoodand Pershore Medical Practices.It was intended as a live meetingeach week, which we managed todo for six weeks beforelockdown restrictions wereimposed in March last year.Since then sessions have beentaking place online. Whilstmeeting online may seem a poorreplacement for live humancontact, it has proved a lifelinethat has kept a vital sense ofcommunity alive whilst we areconfined to our homes; it meansthat we can connect with friendlyfaces, share a smile and chat withothers without leaving the house.Sing for Health sessions areavailable online, on Mondaysand Thursdays from 10 - 11am.Absolutely anyone can give thisa try – it’s free, no previousexperience is required, and it willbring you happiness!Great things happen when webreathe and sing together – Ihope you can join me. For moreinformation please contact Paulaon [email protected]

or call 0770 9953475.Individual and group sessionsavailable onlinePaula lives in Pershore and is aprofessional singer and singingteacher working with principlesof Alexander Technique andNatural Voice teaching. She is atrained ‘Singing for LungHealth’ Leader (The Musical

Breath/British Lung Foundation);‘Sing for Health’ is supported byAbbotswood Medical Practice.With her partner Chris Long, sheruns the celebratedPershore/Worcester choir ‘VocalHigh!’, North Cotswolds U3AChoir, and Evesham U3A Choir.www.paulaevansvoice.comwww.vocalhigh.com


Pershore Heritage & History Society

One Man Among ManyYoung men from Pershore andsurrounding villages along withtheir friends volunteered to jointhe army when war was declaredin 1914 thinking it would be agreat adventure – just like the

stories in books they had read –books with such titles as “True asSteel”, “Valour and Victory” and“Deeds of Daring on Land andSea”. After all, they’d be homeby Christmas, wouldn’t they?As time passed more were

encouraged to enlist and thegovernment realised in 1916 thatconscription was necessary.Of course, this had a profoundeffect on the populationespecially in areas producingfood for the nation as men whohad been working on the landfrom large scale farms or smallmarket gardens in places likePershore found themselvesuprooted having to leave the landto be tended by old men andboys.One such man was WilliamGeorge Haynes (known to oneand all as George) who lived inNewlands in a three roomedhouse with his wife, Ellen andthree young daughters. Theireldest child, George, lived inChurch Street with his maternalgrandparents. Their house hadmore space (8 rooms).In August of 1916 Georgepresented a request to his

commanding officer for amonth’s leave to deal with theharvest. This request was grantedand George returned to the frontduring the Battle of the Somme. Letters were exchanged. In oneto his eldest daughter, 7 yr. oldLily, he told her he had receivedthe razor but it wasn’t shavinghim so he was thinking ofsending it back also “I expectyou think you are getting a biggirl now making Mam a cup oftea and taking it upstairs” alsoasking her to “tell Mam to send aparcel with a cake in and tellMam not to forget the fags.”George wrote to Ellen Dec 10th“We are going up to the trenchestoday for the last time beforeChristmas so send a good parcelto me on the 16th and then Ishall get it on Christmas Day.He was killed on Dec. 15th.

Cynthia M Johnson.

WG Haynes & Family 1916

Covid hasn't put us off, sayslocal Read Easy GroupLocal group Read Easy Eveshamand Pershore has made realprogress in the past three monthsdespite the ever-growingproblems of Covid. The Group,which is affiliated to the nationalcharity, Read Easy UK, aims tohelp adults in our area who wantto learn to read or improve theirreading skills.The Group, which was set up inFebruary 2020, has now recruitedand trained twelve ReadingCoaches and has appointed aPublicity Organiser, Cllr CharlesTucker of Pershore, to theManagement Team. Workingremotely, using Zoom formeetings online, has made itpossible to continue building thegroup.Sue Oxley, the Group's actingTeam Leader says “Covid hasn'tdeterred us! We are now fullyready to take on adults who wantto develop their reading skills.Our reading coaching is on aconfidential, one to one, basis, sowe will pair each individual withone of our Reading Coaches. Ofcourse, while Covid continueswe will be doing this remotelyand online.”Sue added “It's easy to assume

that all adults are able to read butin England alone there arearound 2.4 million adults whoeither can’t read at all or strugglewith this most basic requirementfor everyday life. Poor readingability has a huge impact onwhat people can do in life andthe opportunities open to them. Itaffects every aspect of their life –socially as well as in terms ofemployment – and far too often

means they never achieve theirpotential. It can mean peoplebecoming socially isolated, neverable to take a full part in theircommunity.”The Group is appealing toindividuals and localorganisations for help identifyingadults that may want help withtheir reading. There is no chargefor the service, which is financedby donations and fundraising. There are still two vacancies inthe Management Team, for aFundraiser and Secretary. TheTeam would love to hear fromvolunteers who might beinterested in taking on theseroles.

Contact Sue Oxley([email protected] :07799 053831) if you feel youcan help the group or to discusshow the group can helpindividuals.The national Read Easy website,www.readeasy.org.uk has muchmore information, includingvideos of people telling howRead Easy has helped themdevelop their reading skills andthe effect it has had on theirlives.


Through adaptability andcreativity, dedicated youthworkers at the Riverside Centreare helping children. The Government’s lockdownrules and tiers have alwaysallowed support for vulnerableyoung people and their families.Complying with these rules andoperating within the NationalYouth Agency’s guidelines, wehave been able to deliver ourservices initially online, then inperson, gradually building up toactivity weeks last summer,before scaling down again. “I ama local key worker and it wasvery difficult to find amusementand childcare for the childrendue to Covid 19. It waswonderful that you managed topack in so many great activities,whilst keeping the children safeand healthy with all the Covidguidelines. We are lucky to havesuch a great facility on ourdoorstep in Pershore. I lookforward to supporting the youthclub in the future.” EdieAnderson, West Mercia PoliceProviding practical supportWe currently offer pre-booked1:1s and carefully managed in-house sessions in ‘bubbles’.These are an opportunity foryoung people to talk about anyissues around schooling,relationships, loss of jobopportunities etc. 16-25 year-olds who are not in employment,education or training can sign upfor mentoring to explore options,

make decisions, create CVs andapply for jobs or trainingIs your child struggling withhome-based learning?Do you need access to adedicated computer or place tostudy? If so, we can help!Our Community Room is a calmspace, away from the distractionsof home and other pressures, with new Chromebooks linked tofull-strength, safeguardingappropriate, wi-fi. Supervised by a youth worker ortutor, with learningsupport/motivation if required. To ensure we adhere to theGovernment’s Covid regulations,this free service needs to be pre-booked. [email protected] or message via PershoreNoticeboard.“This room is a genuine giftfrom the community to thecommunity, thanks to donationsfrom Pershore’s Rotarians, CivicSociety and Town Council. Itgreatly enhances our specialisedsupport.” Abi, Centre Manager

Pershore Riverside Centre, KingGeorge’s Way, Pershore,Worcestershire WR10 1QUwww.pershoreriversidecentre.org.uk Instagram @[email protected]

Festival cancelled

RHS Malvern Spring Festival onthe 5th-9th May will not takeplace due to the ongoing impactof the pandemic. With fantasticsupport from garden designers,nurseries and traders they hadhoped to go ahead with reducednumbers and the addition of anextra day but it has become clearwith the current level ofuncertainty around outdoorevents that they have are notgoing to be able to create RHSMalvern Spring Festival thisyear.

Currently, the cancellationadvice only affects RHS MalvernSpring Festival and The GoodLife Show both to be held inMay.The team is working hard todeliver a very special MalvernAutumn Show later in the yearon the weekend of 25-26September. Hope to see thevaccination programme fullyrolled out and the infection ratesunder control.

Support for youngpeople and families

Winter fuel payment incold snapOlder people automatically get awinter fuel payment each yearand this is topped up whentemperatures dip below freezingfor seven consecutive days. Coldweather payments to those onbenefits are also paidautomatically by area, based onlocal weather station temperaturereadings.However, with people beingrequired to stay at home andmany taking on home schoolingduties, families are facing extraheating costs during the coldsnap and the Government hasallocated £1.7 million toWorcestershire County Councilto help out those in most need.The Covid Winter Fund schemeand other measures have beenintroduced to allow vulnerablefamilies to access extra support,with heating and utility costs aswell as extra food costs.People who receive benefits orwho qualify for extra support

can find out more information byvisitingworcestershire.gov.uk/here2helpor ringing 0800 9882881.Harriett said: “The cold weather has broughtextra challenges for us all and Iquizzed the Department forWork and Pensions in the Houseof Commons about how localpeople can access these extrasupport measures.There are a number of schemesin operation to help people withadditional food and heating costsduring this period of lockdownand I encourage local people tofind out if they qualify forassistance. Some are automatic,but others need to be requested.This doesn’t affect the standardwinter payments, which are paidautomatically to pensioners, butthe Government has added extrasupport for families who arestuck at home and I am eager toshare the news.”

Success and Disaster Tim Hickson

During World War Two, to makethe improvement in theperformance of airborne radar weso desperately needed, a sourceof waves was required withwavelengths of a fewcentimetres. Britain had twopossible lines of research. Onewas using a device called aklystron, invented before the Warand so known to all nations. Theother was to employ a newBirmingham Universitydevelopment of a small cylindercalled a magnetron. The researchteam had produced what theycalled, a resonant cavitymagnetron. This, eventually,produced a powerful source ofthe waves needed.Both these devices could befitted in aircraft with a reflectingdish (like that seen on housestoday to receive satellite signals).Both gave radar waves of thedesired short wavelength so twofour-engined Halifax bomberswere provided to test what thetwo devices could do. Successwas not immediate but, as thescientists tweaked the apparatus,

the magnetron’s waves began toproduce images of towns likeCheltenham and Gloucester at agreater range than that achievedby the klystron kit.It began to be clear that nowthere could be solutions to threeimportant problems facing theRoyal Air Force. One was how toenable fighters to find enemybombers at night; another wasgiving bombers images of thetargets they were approaching sothey could hit them accurately;finally, and, as it turned out, mosturgently, allowing our aircraft tofind and attack U-boats beforethey could sink ships in theconvoys bringing vital suppliesto Britain across The Atlantic.Once the Malvern and Deffordscientists felt they had a workingsystem, called H2S, this neededto be manufactured in quantity tofit into aircraft. EMI (thecompany whose Abbey Roadstudios were, years later, to playa part in the success of TheBeatles) were one of thosealready involved in producingklystron kits. Alan Blumlein,skilled in designing electroniccircuits and the inventor of stereoand of the TV system we stilluse, was the leader of the EMIteam.In June, 1942, on Saturday the6th, Blumlein with two EMIstaff, visited Defford fordiscussions about the prototypeof the magnetron kit. They werestaying in The Swan Hotel inTewkesbury. That evening,Bernard Lovell (later Sir BernardLovell of Jodrell Bank fame),now in charge of the magnetronradar, had a brief flight in theHalifax and found the systemworking better than ever.Naturally, Blumlein and hiscolleagues from EMI wanted tosee for themselves. So, next

afternoon the Halifax took offfrom RAF Defford and set off forwhat was to be a shortdemonstration flight. Tragically,just over an hour later one of theengines caught fire. Near WelshBicknor, a local farmer saw theaircraft low above the River Wyewith its starboard wing on fire.This then broke off, the Halifaxrolled onto its back and crashedin flames killing all on board.Worth mentioning 11 killed? -the worst accident in British testflying historyThis tragedy caused a pause inthe production of a workingversion of the magnetron-basedkit. The only prototype had beenlost in the crash so that EMI hadnothing to copy and its team hadgone. However, Churchill made

it a priority that ‘200 sets were tobe in RAF bombers by midOctober.’ This was an impossibletarget to achieve but it showedhow important the PrimeMinister felt their production tobe. With his backing as well asthat of an experiencedindustrialist, Sir Robert Renwick,and a dynamic senior RAFofficer, Air Vice Marshal DonBennett, 48 bombers were fittedwith H2S radar by the end ofDecember.By the spring of the followingyear, a similar radar had beenfitted into a dozen CoastalCommand Wellingtons. Thesewere also equipped with verybright Leigh Lights so once theradar detected a U-Boat on thesurface, the light enabled thecrew to drop depth chargesaccurately. Thus began ourwinning of the Battle of theAtlantic which had come soclose to defeat. Had thathappened, Britain could not havesurvived. Near Welsh Bicknor is GoodrichCastle where there is a medievalchapel. That has stained-glasswindows, one panel of which is amemorial to those killeddeveloping airborne radar. It iswell worth a visit. At the top ofthe central window is an imageof a resonant cavity magnetron -something now in all our modernmicrowave ovens.


Memorial window detail - right lowerGoodrich Memorial Window

Halifax V9977 (Crown copyright reserved)


Positively positive! Susan Catford

There are some words I findslightly irritating, like the use ofthe word ‘musicality ‘ which hasappeared in our vocabulary (Iblame ‘Strictly’). However, theword ‘positivity’ is one I wouldlike to see even more,particularly in our currentclimate.Having attempted to shut thedoor firmly on 2020 as a year wewould rather forget, we seem tohave tumbled head first into2021!! So already I am pickingmyself up, dusting myself off tostart all over again! (There's asong in there somewhere.)I will explain. Firstly we had aCovid Christmas – no turkey, novisitors on Christmas Day, justthe two of us consumingparacetamol like Smarties and

trying to be jolly. Fortunately wehad friends and family whoshopped for us and carrier bagsof presents appeared outside ourfront door. We had food to eatand even managed some fizz.Thank goodness for Netflixwhich took our minds off ouraching heads and limbs for awhile.Secondly, my poor sister suffereda heart attack (fortunately a mildone ) and had to spend her entireChristmas in hospital visitorless.She was well looked after,considering all that is going on,and is now thankfully at homerecuperating. Her Christmasdinner was consigned to thefreezer and the usual celebratoryfizz is still, I believe, on ice!So that was the end of the yearor was it?? Actually not quite.Our son should have married lastJuly but, of course, it didn'thappen. The wedding wasrescheduled for January 2nd2021. From a large wedding with100+ guests, it was reduced toonly fifteen. Then the future in-laws found themselves in Tier 4so although the wedding couldhappen (the rest of us being inTier 3),there could only be sixguests!! As my son put it ‘a veryexclusive guest list’. With days

to go, it became obvious thateven more restrictions wereimminent. Fearing there wouldnot be a wedding after all, sonand future daughter-in-lawmanaged to rearrange thewedding within 24 hours to bringit forward by four days. Thevenue obliged, the registrarswere available, the photographersrearranged their personal plans,the hairdresser turned up on themorning as did the florist whothey had been unable to contactthe previous day. And ithappened!! A much reducedevent but a radiant bride, adelighted bridegroom and twosets of very proud parents. It wasa very cold day and to be able toremove our masks, photos had tobe outdoors. It was challengingbut worth every minute. Let'shope they will photoshop our rednoses!Within days of this, we had twobig birthdays in the family. Therewould have been celebrations,parties but, alas, this could notbe. Thanks to the internet, wemanaged virtual ones instead.My siblings and I came together‘virtually’ for the first time inseveral years, a rare event!Another session reunited us withfriends whom we had not seen

for months. There was even amagnificent ‘showstopper'birthday cake (millions ofcalories!) plus lots of cards andgood wishes. What had beenpotentially non-events, werepretty good after all.By now, you may have gatheredwhy positivity is so important.Life is full of ups and downs, farmore of the latter at the moment.We need to stay positive andmake the most of what we have.There will be a Covid free futurewhen we will make up for thingswe have missed – lots ofpartying and delayedcelebrations. Meanwhile, we mayhave tumbled into 2021 but wehave resilience and we willbounce back!

FOOTNOTEI would like to record my thanksto the NHS, Worcester RoyalHospital and our local G.P. whodiagnosed a serious post Covidcondition in my husband andthen treated this promptly. He isstill poorly but is graduallyrecovering. Please, everyone,take this Covid virus seriouslyand help prevent it spreading.

‘Thought Plants’ is Susan’s first book and is a newcollection of writing and poems exploring ideas,

events and everyday life. At times serious andthoughtful, at others enjoying the whimsical, lighter

side of things. It has grown surprisingly well from earlyseeds and a fertile imagination.

Available for £9.95 from: Hughes & Company

8 Church Street Pershore Tel: 01386 [email protected]

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Thought Plants

Susan Catford

‘Thought Plants’ is a new collection of writing and poems exploring ideas,

events and everyday life. At times serious and thoughtful, at othersenjoying the whimsical, lighter side of things. It has grown surprisingly

well from early seeds and a fertile imagination

Thought PlantsSusan C

atford

120 pages A5 full colour illustrated by Susan Catford


Hip pain - age related? Karen Harris

Last month, I wrote about thepsoas muscle and the directrelation it has to the majority ofback problems, but could it beresponsible for your hip pain?Absolutely!The pelvic girdle is first andforemost the linchpin of ourupright posture. Without thepelvis as a platform and fulcrum,the spine would be horizontal.

Like any platform that offers astable and flat surface the pelvissupports the spine from below. Itunites the musculoskeletalcomponents of the upper andlower halves of the body - asdoes the psoas - and it’s not toofar-fetched to say that the pelvisis the body’s other brain. it isbuilt to endure incrediblepunishment while safeguardingessential functions.Hip pain is incredibly commonand most of it is blamed onageing. Alerted by pain and/orstiffness, doctors take a look atthe area where the head of thefemur inserts into the socket ofthe hip joint. If they findinflammation and/or cartilagedegeneration, they usuallydiagnose arthritis. The wordarthritis spooks people but it onlymeans there is inflammation inthe joint. I wonder how manypeople have asked ‘why is thereinflammation in my joint?’ ratherthan ‘oh well it must be my age!’The hip joint has an interiorlining, known as the synovium;this delicate membrane secretes afluid as a lubricant. This is themechanism that, in arthritis, getsinflamed, but it is actually onlydoing its job. The synovium is

there to protect the joint andwhen there is an unusual amountof friction it generates an unusualamount of fluid. There isn’tmuch room in the joint; this extralubricant turns viscous andrestricts the ball and socketfunction. When musculoskeletaldysfunction is present, irritationof the synovium isn’t a diseaseand it isn’t related to ageing.Rather, the inflammation iscaused by misalignment of theshoulders, hips, knees and ankleswhich necessitated a

compensating movement in thehip joint. The head of the femurloses its proper relationship tothe other joints and as a result,experiences extra rotation,grinding into the hip socket likea mortar into a pestle. There’smore to Posture Alignment thanjust standing up straight!

Arrowheads tell ancienttaleWhen archaeological architect,Leen Ritmeyer, saw fourarrowheads at an excavation inJerusalem, he knew he waslooking at evidence of amomentous time in Israel’shistory.‘There, amongst a four-inchlayer of soot and burnt stone inthis ancient Israelite tower wereone bronze and three ironarrowheads’ Leen recounts in thelatest Christadelphian video on‘Why I believe the Bible.’ ‘Theiron heads were Israelite, thebronze came from theBabylonians. Shortly after thesearrows were fired, the Jewishpopulation was taken into exileby their Babylonian captors’,says Leen who worked onexcavations in Jerusalem for 20years.‘It is seeing such things todaythat gives me hope andconfidence in the Bible; forinstance, the pool of Siloamfrom John 9, where the blindman bathed his eyes, the tumble-down stones on the Temple

Mount that Jesus prophesiedabout in Matthew 24; theseplaces and so many others arestill there today and show thetruth of God’s word.’To watch Leen’s video visithttps://pershore.bible/feb2021

In memoriamKaye Elizabeth Likely. Of Pershore. On December 26th 2020,peacefully in hospital after an illness bravely fought, aged 59 years.Much loved wife of the late John Likely, Sister to Moira anddaughter of the late Jean and David Middleton.William George Bryant, “Billy”. Of Pershore. Passed away onJanuary 5th 2021, aged 70years. Loving Father to Kristopher andNicola. He will be greatly missed by all his family and friends.Christine Diane Mason. Previously of Pershore. Passed awaypeacefully at Wood Norton Nursing Home on January 8th 2021aged 85 years. A much loved friend to many and a supporter ofnumerous animal charities.Wayne Workman. Of Pershore. On January 9th 2021, suddenly inhospital, aged 74 years. Much loved husband of the late Annie,dearly loved dad to Sara, David, Andrew and Becki, belovedgrandad and great grandad.John Holland. Of Pershore. Passed away on January 6th 2021, aged82 years. Dearly loved Husband of Ann. John will be sadly missedby his Family and Friends.Albert (Stan) Hawkins. Of Pershore formerly of Cheltenham.On December 18th 2020, passed away at his home in CherryOrchard House, with his daughter at his side, aged 85 years. Adearly loved Father, Grandfather and Great Grandfather to 15.Missed beyond measure, a memory to treasure for family blessedto call him our own.Brian Frederick (Puffa) Palfrey. Of Pershore. Former Manager ofLawrance’s Bakery, Evesham. On January 19th 2021, suddenly inhospital, aged 77 years. Son of the late Reg and Nellie Palfrey,beloved Father, Grandfather and Brother.Alan Roberts. Formerly of Wick. On January 26th 2021,peacefully in St Richard’s Hospice, aged 64 years. Loving partnerto Eirwen, Brother to Dale and Karen and sadly missed by all hisfamily and friends.

E. Hill & Son Funeral Directors

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Residents are being urged to‘pull together, by staying apart’in a bid to reduce Covid-19infections and help save lives.The Prime Minister announced anew national lockdown forEngland on Monday (4 January).It means people must stay athome and only leave for certainreasons including to get food andessentials and for exercise once aday. All non-essential retail,gyms and leisure centres mustalso close but click and collectand takeaway services are stillavailable.The move was in response torising Covid-19 infection ratesacross the country which isleading to increased hospitaladmissions, deaths and risks theNHS becoming overwhelmed.Wychavon is no different andhas seen infection rates soarfrom 82 per 100,000 at the startof December 2020 to 284 per100,000 as of 3 January 2021.Cllr Bradley Thomas, Leader ofWychavon District Council, hasnow called for residents tofollow the new restrictions tohelp pull the district throughuntil spring when it is hoped thenational vaccination programmewill allow a return to somenormality.Cllr Thomas said: “I know it’stough being separated from

loved ones and it is devastatingfor businesses forced to close butif we don’t get back on top ofthis virus there is a very real riskour NHS is overwhelmed, wecan’t rebuild our economy andnormality will slip further away.“The vaccine rollout has startedin this area and we will see itramped up over the comingweeks. Hope is definitely on thehorizon we just have to hold on.“But we can only get there if allof us take action to protect eachother. This means we mustfollow the rules, wash our hands,wear face coverings correctlyand keep 2 metres apart fromothers when we do go outside.We can do this if we all pulltogether, by sadly staying apart,for just a little while longer.”Free parking in all Wychavonpay and display car parks willremain in place until furthernotice to help people shop foressentials and support thevulnerable. On-street parkingrestrictions still apply and arebeing enforced.

More information on the supportavailable to residents during thislatest national lockdown and theimpact on services is available atwww.wychavon.gov.uk/coronavirus

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Teenage Focus! - Gregory Sidaway (17)Lockdown 3.0

Strange times have befallen usagain as we enter the thirdinstalment of the Lockdowntrilogy. My bedroom is myclassroom, my pyjamas are myschool uniform and we're back toa world linked by bufferingonline meetings and “Can youhear me now?”'s. My morningcommute is a metre to the leftfrom duvet to desk. Once I'm atmy desk, my gateway to theoutside world, my laptop isencompassed by mugs of tea,stacks of textbooks, notes – evenhalf a packet of Trebor Extra(are-you-out-of-your-mind!?)Strong mints. All of this ismasterfully out of the view of mywebcam.As with everything, online schoolhas its ups and downs. On thebright side, I can afford to gainan extra fifty minutes of sleep

each morning; there's no journeyto school, either. Don't get mewrong, I like a blast of fresh air –but it is nice to watch rain patterdown the window in theknowledge that I won't be at thereceiving end of it, clutchingonto an umbrella that's alreadyinside-out and begging to be putaway. Lessons are a bit slower.The teachers have a niftyfunction on their laptops thatenables them to blur theirbackground. On an unlucky day,though, the computer thinks partof their face is the background.I'll occasionally look up fromnote-taking and jump out of myskin – parts of teacher's head bluror sometimes disappearaltogether. It creates this strangePicasso-esque distortion. But itmust be said that it's in situationslike this that great, dedicated

teachers stand out. So to them:thank you for continuing toinfuse your lessons withenthusiasm in this difficultperiod. Now, I figured a slightly largerperspective was needed aboutlearning online, so I sent out amessage or two to a few friendsand along came replies. “I do likethe fact I don't have to get readyevery morning, I can have alonger sleep,” was an opinionthat matched mine very closely.Overall, they were “very gratefulto all the teachers” for giving us“a full timetable of onlinelessons”. It was acknowledgedthat this situation wasn't as badas they'd feared, with thepandemic highlighting “thepower of technology”. However, there were inevitablynegatives. The general consensuswas that it isn't as fun learningfrom home, we're “starting to getneck pains and eye strain frombeing on computers for so long”,while there were also worries ofneeding a glasses prescriptionafter lockdown from staring atscreens all day. “Motivation hasdefinitely been reduced”,although they acknowledged thatthey weren't giving up and wereworking harder to get on top ofthings. One of my friendscommented on the fact that “thewhole concept of A Levels feelsless 'real'”. On the subject ofdoing assessments under theseconditions, one friend replied:“exams are just … no.” There

were also worries about howeasily it is to become distracted –“I'm certainly not the happiestI've been.” – and about howmuch of an impact this periodwould have on grades. The latteris a particular concern amongstall of us if the lockdown periodcontinues beyond the 8th March(the current date for returning toschools as of 29th January).Across the board, the biggestissue with this scenario is thatsocial life has been limited andwe all miss hanging out as agroup at school. Thankfully, though, we're stillable to talk online. Just becausewe're behind our screens doesn'tmean that funny moments don'texist. Tales came in of youngerbrothers complaining aboutMaths teachers withoutremembering to switch off theirmicrophone first; of anotherteacher fighting their waythrough explaining their lessonwhile battling hiccups at thesame time. (“All you could hearwas this fairly low, disembodiedvoice suddenly letting out thisreally high pitched hiccup everyminute!”)To any parents or guardiansreading this, apologies on behalfof all students for a slightlylouder household. Hopefully, bythe time next month's articlecomes around, we should benearing the end of this.

Until then, I hope everyonestays safe and enjoys themselvesas best as they can.

Country file

Canada gooseFor those of you who are visitorsto Croome Park, the presence ofCanada geese will be a familiarsight and sound. These largebirds originate from North

America and are now to be foundthroughout the UK. They wereintroduced into Britain in the late17th century by King James 2ndas an addition to his waterfowlcollection in St James's Park.

Between October and March,approximately 190,000 birds arewintering here but they can beseen all the year round. Theirnatural habitat is farmland,grassland, coastal areas andwetlands. They can also be foundin urban parks and green areaswhere they are sometimesregarded as a nuisance.The Canada goose is a largegoose with a distinctive blackhead and a large white throatpatch. It has black, brown, greyand cream feathers which makeit an attractive bird. Flocks ofthese geese can be very noisy,particularly when flyingoverhead in their distinctive ‘V'formation.This goose is monogamous,mating for life. The female layson average 5 eggs which

incubate for 24 -32 days afterlaying. Goslings can walk, swimand find food immediately afterthey have hatched. Parents arevery protective of their broodand can be seen marching themin line, one parent at the frontand the other at the back.The lifespan of a Canada gooseis 10-24 years. The oldestrecorded reached 31 years!At Croome in Winter, they canbe seen carefully negotiating theicy surface of the lake beforetaking off and landing insplendid formation. Their splashlanding may appear noisy andhaphazard but it is verycontrolled and precise, definitelya sight worth seeing.


PR and communications trendsfor 2021. We collate the trendsfor the new season in a snapshotof what to expect in the world ofcomms:1. Integrity: stand up for whatyou believe in and be authenticabout it. Be loud and proud withyour messaging both externallyand internally.2. Trust: customers wantaccurate information from allsources, from journalists,employers and influencers, toensure they gain a fairrepresentation from all.3. Personalisation: customerswill believe in your brand farmore if they understand it andcan buy-in to the way it works.Think Gymshark. BrewDog.4. Transparency: clearmessaging with open and honestcommunications to build acustomer and employee/teamappreciation. Then enjoy realconversations with people whomatter most to your business.5. Innovation: finding new waysto communicate and drivingchange. Embrace thetechnological changes and makethem integral to your business.6. Digital: analogue is in declineand digital has achieved masteryin the battle of the comms.Understand the change and geton board with the newtechnologies that can supportyour business.

7. Omni-channels: businesseswill be expected to communicateacross all social channels toincrease customer engagement.The rise of the ChatBot seemsinevitable.8. Analytics: clients will want tounderstand the data behind theposts and learn how theircustomers are behaving on theirwebsites and social platforms.Posting is not enough, learningwhat works and why, whichmessage drives most sales andhow they can adapt fromfeedback, is essential in thedigital age.9. Data: businesses will continueto battle data breaches andexpect more from their privacyand security systems.Compliance issues aroundGDPR and Brexit will also beprevalent to those who dobusiness outside of the UK.10. Upskilling and building:utilising opportunities to learnand grow from every experienceand every client - both internaland external - taking what youlearnt from 2020 and movingforward.

To find out more about localPublic Relations Agency You DoBetter PR and the services itoffers visitwww.youdobetter.co.uk, [email protected] or call07891 777464.

2021 has not started in a particularlypositive way and if you facedfinancial difficulties in 2020 it islikely, with the intensification ofthe Coronavirus pandemic, thatthese may be continuing in2021. Unfortunately, thepotential misfortunes andhardship of some can providerich pickings for others whoseek to take advantage. Thisis a warning of what to lookout for and offers someguidance on what to do if youare targeted.January is the deadline for Self-Assessment returns to besubmitted and the number ofemails and phone calls purporting tobe from HMRC is likely to increase.HMRC will never email, phone, or text either todemand tax or to offer tax refunds so none of these approaches willbe genuine. Whatever you do, do not respond to emails or texts that appear to besent by HMRC and certainly do not click on any links or provide anybank details. ALL such communications are scams and are designedto fraudulently obtain your bank details or to infect your computersystem. In the same way do not provide details over the phone toanyone alleging to be from HMRC who is either demanding tax orthreatening legal action. All such approaches are phishing activityand should be reported to HMRC.There is an online form to report suspicious phone calls. Emails canbe forwarded to [email protected] with a description in thesubject line of what is being reported and texts can be forwarded to60599. There are some very sophisticated groups operating whose whole aimis to defraud their victims of cash. If you receive a call from yourbank advising fraudulent activity on your account always besuspicious. Hang up and to confirm what you have been told is truephone the bank’s fraud line from a different telephone. If you havebeen the subject of fraud, phone the fraud line as soon as possibleand report the incident to Action Fraudhttps://www.actionfraud.police.uk Do not be bullied, remain vigilant and be aware that if an offersounds too good to be true then it will be.

Stay safe

Carol Draper FCCAClifton-Crick Sharp & Co Ltd

Lies, scams and conartists Carol Draper

CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTSAND BUSINESS ADVISORS

40 High Street, Pershore, Worcestershire WR11 1DPTel: 01386 561100 Fax: 01386 561040

Email: [email protected]

Today’s news

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PR 2021 Ruby Edwards


Reflexology Angela Johns

I am an Holistic Therapist. Thismeans that I understand that tohave good health I need morethan just a healthy body andmind. It is healthy to understandmy emotions and how to processthem. It is healthy to havemeaning and purpose in my life.I also place effort in the health ofmy energy body. I know that myperson is not contained withinmy physical body. For instance, Idon’t need to say or do anythingfor someone else to pick up myvibe (and vice versa). And Ihave literally lost count of thenumber of times that I have said,I was just thinking about you!This shows me that I have aresponsibility to have a healthyenergy body too as it obviouslyeffects more than just me. It maynot be in the tangible way as

when my physical body needshelp and I take up anappointment at the doctors. Or ifI have an emotional outburst andothers feel my wrath. Or if I ammentally low and I need tooffload on a sympathetic friend.Any life coach will tell you thatthoughts become words becomedeeds. How about energiesbecomes thoughts become wordsbecome deeds. I am creating myown reality so I want qualityingredients! My reality impactsothers so I want it to be a goodone.I don’t need to fully understandhow this part of me, of us, worksbecause the effort of my labourin looking after it bears fruit. It'sjust like I don’t need tounderstand the machinations ofsleep to know I feel good whenI’ve had enough. As all ouraspects are so intricatelyintertwined the healthy choices Imake for my mental health hasphysical benefits, so I don’t wantto neglect my energetic health bynot making good choices heretoo.

Angela is a qualifiedReflexologist, AromareflexPractitioner and ReikiTeacher/Practitioner. She ispassionate about her therapiesand spends quality time with herclients to facilitate theirwellbeing. You can find her atangelajohns.co.uk

Jazz News Peter Farrall

This time last year booking wasgoing well for the August jazzfestival but along came the covidrestrictions and all jazz wascancelled. Now we areexperiencing deja vu with theprospect of the currentrestrictions extending into thespring and maybe further. As lastyear, we plan to make a decisionin April when we should bebetter informed. Keep an eye onour website.A very popular item in thefestival programme over the lastfew years has been the Sundaymorning chat about the role ofvarious instruments in thedevelopment of jazz, presentedand illustrated by maestros oftheir instruments. Year by yearwe’ve been educated aboutpiano, guitar, clarinet andsaxophone with trumpet to comein 2020 but, we hope, will nowbe moved to 2021.Many jazz musicians were, andalways are, looking to extendtheir instrumental range outsidethe “normal” jazz catalogue,sometimes with bizarre results.We have had Yusef Lateef tryingout oboe, bassoon and, having

developed an interest in easternmusic, moved on to more exoticoriental instruments including aChinese globular flute. RahsaanRoland Kirk was said to scourNew York pawn shops seekingunusual items and found a stritchand a manzello, both derivativesof the saxophone and has beenknown to play these and anordinary sax all at the same time.It’s very unlikely that we willever hear these instruments atPershore Jazz Festival but thereis a very tenuous possibility thatwe may one day be treated to abagpipe recital!If Graham should book GunhildCarling, a multi-talented, artistfrom Sweden, she would be sureto include bagpipes in herinstrumental luggage.Not the ideal jazz medium butshe makes a pretty good job ofit.Check out:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W780LSQHbYY

Keep up to date atpershorejazz.org.uk tel: 07484 606964 Stay Safe

Gunhild Carling


Let’s Imagine Emily Papirnik

relaxing body and mindelaxingr g body and mind

Words from Charlie and theChocolate Factory “PureImagination”“Want to change the World?There’s nothing to it.”John Lennon wrote “Imagine”and this line really resonateswith me“Imagine all the people livingfor today.” To imagine can be difficultsometimes but I invite you tocome with me and imagine…You are by a river, it might beone you know well or one youhave never seen, it doesn’tmatter. Try to imagine a river inthe countryside at this moment.One where you would be able tohear the birds and notice thepeace around you. Are you there?Now I want you to notice a boator canoe by the side of the river,it is waiting for you. This is just for you.Get into the boat and makeyourself comfortable, it hassome coloured blankets andpillows for you to really getcosy so allow yourself to liedown. Yes lie down there is no need tosteer or look where you aregoing.Now breathe, slow and longbreaths.The boat or canoe is now goingto gently leave the riverbank,you can feel the movementbelow you as you lie on the bedof pillows and blankets, youmight want to put a blanket overyou too.Do you feel a light breeze or isthe warm sun shining down?Feel the ripples and waves underyou, feel the flow that you arein, allow the feeling of freedom,enjoy the feeling of letting go.As you lie there you can see theclouds above you, the whitefluffy clouds against a gorgeous

deep blue sky.Occasionally you will see thetree branches over your headwhen you come to a narrowerbit of the river, see the leaves,the different shapes and sizes,perhaps trying to think of thenames of them, or not.Watch the birds that fly over andnotice the different bird songthat you hear around you.Allow the feeling of free flow,that knowing you’re going in theright direction, in perfect timefor you, just enjoy the ride,notice the beauty of naturearo

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