Articles March 2022
Longhorsley Community Award
Your Chance to Nominate Your “Unsung” Heroes
Parishioners are asked to nominate a person or organisation who they believe has enhanced the parish through:
service to the community
contributing to the life of the parish
credit to Longhorsley’s reputation
charitable works
selflessness
The total number of nominations received for each individual or organisation will be counted as a vote which will then determine the recipient of the award.
You may recall that last year’s winner was Fiona Leighton of the Longhorsley Playgroup - Fiona and Sam had kept the playgroup going throughout the pandemic and the Playgroup was seen as an incredible resource for the village of Longhorsley.
Look out for nomination forms which will be available in the Village Hall, online here or from the Longhorsley Parish Council website or you can complete the form below.
The closing date for nominations is 31st March.
Longhorsley Parish Council
April Edition
The last date for submissions is 20th March. You can email, phone or leave short articles in Millar's Village Shop.
If you leave an article in the shop, please include your phone number.
Please keep articles under 250 words, if at all possible.
Jan and Sheena Haveman 07834 740649 longhorsley.tree@gmail.com
Longhorsley Parish Council
The next Parish Council meeting will be held on 9th March, in the Village Hall, starting at 7pm, with a parishioner slot at 8pm. Meeting notices are displayed on village notice boards, with minutes and other info found on the Parish Council website northumberlandparishes.uk/longhorsley
Please note that due to COVID issues, this meeting could be moved to a virtual ZOOM meeting at short notice. In the event that the meeting has to be changed, a notice will be placed on our website giving the necessary joining instructions.
Contact details for the current members are detailed below:
Clerk: Gillian Turner, 4 Lowther Close, Seaton Manor, Ashington, NE63 0HY 01670 812704 or parishclerk@longhorsley-pc.gov.uk
Chairman: Penny Ford 788278 penelope.ford@longhorsley-pc.gov.uk
Councillors: Kirsty Bell, Peter Boyle, Norman Douglas, Andy Hedman and David Pringle.
Passing Places on Smallburn Road
Residents may have seen the newly created passing places on the Smallburn Road. These areas have been created to ensure that motorists have a safe place to pull-in to allow vehicles to pass.
Please note that they are not a parking place!
HM The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Celebrations
More than 1,500 beacons will be lit throughout the United Kingdom and UK Overseas Territories, in recognition of The Queen’s long and selfless service. We are pleased to announce that Longhorsley has been invited to take part in the formal "Lighting of the Beacons" event, to be held on 2nd June, with our lighting slot being at 9.45pm. Further details to follow.
We have also planted 7 native fruit trees to mark every decade of the Queen’s reign. The area will be known as the "Longhorsley Jubilee Orchard".
We also recognise that other organisations in the Village will be holding their own personal events to commemorate this special weekend, and we would love to hear what you have planned so as to produce a schedule of the events taking place.
Archies Pond Refurbishment
We are pleased to announce that the refurbishment works are now drawing to a close. The ponds have been dredged, new smaller ponds created and new pathways laid out. The final works are to install new decking and surface the pathways – all of which should be completed by the end of March.
MUGA Lights
We are awaiting the return of the token-box plate from our supplier – delays at their end have meant that the adjustments to allow only tokens to be used has taken longer than originally anticipated.
Your County Councillor
Delivering the Council’s budget takes time but I’m pleased with the end result. We have made a number of new commitments across the County designed to help business and encourage new jobs.
We have found £10 million to deal with the land slip problem at Todstead on the road from the A697 to Rothbury near the Anglers Arms. It’s a huge amount of money but we think we just need to get on with it and hopefully fix the problem once and for all.
We are also finding over £2 million extra this year for C roads and unclassified roads.
The Storm Arwen Review is underway and aims to publish its findings in early April.
As always if I can help with anything please let me know.
Glen Sanderson 07730 979737 glen.sanderson@northumberland.gov.uk
Neighbourhood Policing Team
Our Neighbourhood Beat Manager, PC Andrea Teasdale, is on secondment at the moment. If you wish to report any incident please contact Northumbria Police on 101 or in an emergency 999.
You can also report using the ‘Contacts’ page of www.police.uk
Alternatively you can pass information anonymously via Crime Stoppers at crimestoppers-uk.org or 0800 555 111.
Storm Arwen - Village Hall Update
Tanya, Jan and Fiona have submitted a funding request to Northumberland County Council for a Welfare Hub Grant to deal with future emergencies such as Storm Arwen.
If successful the grant will cover the cost of upgrading the hall's kitchen, which will make it easier to cater for large numbers. This includes a new cooker, fridge, dishwasher and washing machine, cutlery, crockery and cooking implements and some large folding tables to be used for serving and eating meals. The grant will also cover the cost of having the new appliances professionally fitted.
In addition the project will see the hall issued with an emergency toolkit to help organise and coordinate efforts during an emergency.
There is also potential for the hall to have solar panels installed to supplement our power supply in case of future power disruptions.
Automated External Defibrillator (AED)
Some patrons who are Friends of The Shoulder of Mutton have pledged and bought an additional Automated External Defibrillator (AED) for the community. This new defibrillator is now registered on ‘The Circuit’ – The National Defibrillator Network. It is also connected to the North East Ambulance Service.
To gain access to the cabinet, it is preferred that you dial 999 and ask for the code to open the defibrillator case, located outside The Shoulder of Mutton. This ensures that the appropriate emergency services are dispatched, and trained personnel will offer support. The locked cabinet assists with the security of this valuable community asset. Locating the defibrillator outside rather than inside ensures availability 24/7 – 365 days of the year.
It is hoped that in the very near future we can arrange a CPR Refresher Course, which will include using the Defibrillator. Details to follow.
Many thanks to all concerned for their efforts and generosity.
March Tweets around the Village
Tall trees around the Village Green are favoured song posts for Mistle Thrushes. One can be heard and easily seen amongst the bare branches here, as well as on other tall trees around the Village. Some lucky people have even had one singing from their back garden. The song has a harsh quality, but it carries well through the noise of traffic and wind in the trees. They can often be seen feeding on the playing field and other large areas of grass.
Song Thrushes, another early singer, are in full song along the Haining, between Church View and Whitegates, and along South Road and no doubt other places too. They are also easy to see at this time of year, and their song is more melodious, always repeating whatever phrase is being used.
Another song which penetrates the background noise of the traffic is that of the Great Tit. These are paired up by now and are very loud and frequent singers throughout early Spring.
Listen also for the first singing Chiffchaffs, normally to be heard up along Archies Pond by the middle of March. But in the absence of access, anywhere on the fringes of the Village is possible. It also has a two-note song like the Great Tit, but always limited to the sound of its name, emphasising the second syllable.
Andrew Brunt 788352
For more information about birds in Northumberland, visit the Northumberland and Tyneside Bird Club website www.ntbc.org.uk
County Council Waste Services Survey
Northumberland County Council are currently running an online Customer Satisfaction Survey about their waste disposal services.
To take part in the survey go to this website: nland.uk/wastesurvey.
The survey closes on 6th March.
Longhorsley Takeaway Food
We will send out a Breaking News if we are notified of any changes.
The Shoulder of Mutton
The Shoulder of Mutton is open and offering takeaways every day.
Sunday lunches 12-6pm ~ Monday to Saturday 5pm-8pm
See their menu at shoulderofmuttonpub.com ~ phone 788236 to order
Pizzeria Padre
Pizzeria Padre at West Moor Farm (by Forget Me Not Country Park) is open for collection every Thursday & Saturday 5pm - 8pm.
Order by 5pm Tuesday for Thursday or 5pm Thursday for Saturday.
See the menu and place orders at pizzeriapadre.com
The Flying Fryer
The Flying Fryer will be here every Friday from 4pm to 7pm, depending on demand.
Please remember to keep 2m apart when queuing.
Facebook The Flying Fryer 07984 426 725
Dou_h&co
Dou_h&co are here some Thursdays 4:30pm – 7:30pm.
Next visit is 3rd March.
Pre-order on 07507 834 628 from Tuesday 9am each week.
See their menu on the Dou_h & Co Facebook page and Dou-h.co.uk
Mivesi Naan Truck
Mivesi Naan Truck have not notified us of any future visits.
For updates see the Mivesi Facebook page.
Post Office in Longhorsley Village Hall
Monday 9:15am to 12:15pm
Tuesday 9:15am to 10:45am
Friday 11:30am to 1:30pm
Please note that this Outreach Service cannot accept large parcels.
Please remember to keep 2m apart when queuing.
Only one customer is allowed to be served at a time.
Mobile Library Visiting Times
The Mobile Library visits Longhorsley once a month, on Fridays between 3pm and 4pm, in the Village Hall car park.
The next visit will be on Friday 11th March.
The Mobile Library Service website can be found here
Ultrafast Broadband Project Update
Alncom have installed their cabinet in the Village Hall. They hope to start making residential connections in late March or early April.
Covid Update - Living with Covid
On 21st February the government announced a plan for Living with Covid.
All remaining domestic Covid regulations ended in the last week of February as part of the Living with Covid plan. However the public are encouraged to continue to follow public health advice.
Vaccines will remain the first line of defence against Covid. There will be an additional booster (4th jab) for all adults aged over 75, all residents in care homes for older adults, and all over 12s who are immunosuppressed. Details will be set out later by the government.
Further details can be found on the government website: living with covid, vaccination strategy, and presentation slide pack.