february - Countesthorpe Herald

www.countesthorpe-herald.org.uk 

IN THIS ISSUE OF YOUR COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER 

PAGE 

6 

HE ERALD 

Steeplejacks and 

Steam Rollers in 

the spotlight 

NEW COUNTESTHORPE 

Village Newspaper 265 February 2010 

OUR VERY OWN ‘DINNER LADIES’ 

The team pictured above provide a 

welcome hot dinner and social every 

Wednesday lunch time at the Methodist 

Church Hall. As with most voluntary 

groups, they could always use some extra 

volunteers. There follows a selection of 

letters from both the team and recipients 

of the lunches which give a fl avour of the 

club and show how much the effort taken 

to provide this mid-week social occasion 

is appreciated. Some of the letters refer to 

the special Christmas Dinner with which 

the Herald are pleased to be associated. 

Dear Readers, It’s that time of year 

again, we are asking for help again. 

Something a bit different this time, we 

are looking for a retired, able bodied 

man to take down the trestle tables, 

stack chairs and vacuum the carpet after 

the luncheon club. He would be needed 

every Wednesday from 1.15 to 1.45pm 

or he could come for lunch (two courses 

for £1.70) and clear away after. 

PAGE 

8-9 

We are also happy for anyone to volunteer 

to help in preparation and serving the 

meal should they have a spare Wednesday 

once a month. Any volunteer needs to be 

able to stand for a few hours as all the 

work is done in the kitchen. 

I look forward to hearing from you, I can 

be contacted on 2775827, please leave a 

message should I be unavailable. 

Yours faithfully Sheila Clarke 

To the Herald, As a helper at the Senior 

Citizens Wednesday lunches, we at the 

Christmas lunch always had a 1lb box of 

Roses chocolates from you, except this 

last one, not a 1lb but a 2lb tin of Roses, 

so that deserves an extra thank you. 

Winnie Wright 

Dear Sir, I would like to take this 

opportunity to say thank you to Leysland 

High School for inviting the Senior 

Citizens of the village to a Christmas 

lunch, followed by entertainment, by 

Shelterbox on the 

ground helping 

Haiti relief effort 

PAGE 

13 

Herald challenge 

you to answer 

questions 

INSIDE YOUR HERALD, EVERY ISSUE • Local Events Diary • Parish Council News • Local Services Directory • The Very Best Local Gossip! 

MORE HOMES = MORE 

TRAFFIC = MORE CHAOS 

See page 3 for traffi c and page 21 for planning 

some very talented pupils. I had a most 

enjoyable day. I would also like to thank 

the Countesthorpe Senior Luncheon Club 

for a lovely meal, complete with crackers, 

and the present of chocolates given by 

the Countesthorpe Herald. 

Eileen Edwards 

Dear Sir, I would like to thank the people 

of the Herald for the tin of chocolates 

given to us at the Wednesday dinner 

club. 

Sue Johnson 

Dear Sir, I am writing to thank the 

Countesthorpe Herald for the very 

generous donation of £200, for the 

Countesthorpe Senior Citizens Luncheon 

Club, Christmas meal. 

This club has been running for over thirty 

years, by volunteers who, source, prepare, 

cook, serve, a weekly hot meal for up to 

40 Senior persons each week, which is 

considered a very worthy community 

service, as a number of these people are 

widows, widowers, this also serves as a 

social meeting each week. 

Each Christmas the club tries to make 

the Christmas meal as festive as possible, 

and your very kind donation allows us to 

purchase a gift for each member. 

Once again please pass on not only my 

thanks but the thanks of the members 

of the Countesthorpe Senior Citizens 

Luncheon Club for your very kind 

donation Dave Ball, Club Chairman.

2 THE NEW COUNTESTHORPE HERALD FEBRUARY 2010 

About a dozen villagers 

regularly help produce the 

Herald. A further 70 make 

sure copies go through every 

letter box. All the helpers are 

volunteers who give their 

time to our community 

completely free. 

Advertising 

Contact: Elaine Cooke 

10 Mull Way 

Tel: 277 4422 / 277 1808 

Fax: 278 3204 

Articles 

Post or deliver to the Herald 

38 Station Road or 

Green Lane Workshop 

or Fax: 278 3204 

e-mail herald@macunlimited.net 

Committee 

Andrew Pennington 277 3692 

Elaine Cooke 277 4422 

Martin Smith 277 5783 

Andrew Oughton 277 1808 

Hettie Schultka (Photo Library) 

Mike Higgs (Photographer) 

Marion Szyndler (Typist) 

Patsy Paterson (Proofi ng) 

Maureen Leadbeater (webmaster) 

Trevor Blood 

Web Site 

www.countesthorpe-herald.org.uk 

Diary 

Please post events on Parish 

Council web diary 

Next Copy Deadline 

11th March 2010 

TIMS Landscaping & Home Maintanance 

277 0129 

07885 052558 

INSIDE 

Tiling, Bathroom Fitting, Laminated Flooring 

all types of DIY (If you don’t see what you need please ask) 

8 Waterloo Crescent, Countesthorpe, Leicester LE8 5SU 

Countesthorpe Diary 

JANUARY 

30-31st “Art in Epiphany” 

St Andrew’s All day Active Arts 

FEBRUARY 

2nd Mothers Union 

Cornerstone 2.30pm. 

Ruth Westley ‘Anecdotes from 

my life’ 

6th WOW! Arts & Crafts Fair 

Doors open 10am until 4pm 

Village Hall £1.00 entry on the 

door for Rainbows Childrens 

Hospice. 

8th W.I. 

Village Hall 7.30pm 

Ice Cream by Brian Dalby 

9th Herald Committee Meeting 

Conservative Club 8pm. 

12th Sheila Dibnah 

Village Hall 7.30pm 

Active Arts Event 

17th Community Cultural Festival 

Brockington College 6 - 8.30pm 

See page 15 

19th Countesthorpe and Foston 

Heritage Group 

Village Hall 7.30pm. 

Peter Liddle on, ‘Finding 

archaeological sites in Leic’s’. 

21st Fair Trade Fortnight 

From today until 6th March. 

More details on page 27 

22nd Public Meeting 

For Willoughby Road Plans. 

Village Hall 7.30pm See page 21 

24th Fair Trade Coffee Morning 

Village Libray 10.30am. 


Methodist Church 

See page 27 

27th Day of Folk 

10am till closing -Village Hall 


See page 6 

OUTSIDE 

Slabbing 

Patio’s 

Block Paving 

Driveways 

Gravel-Pebbles 

Fencing 

Tree Work 

Grass Cutting 

Hedge Trimming 

Pressure Washing 

Gardens Cleared 

MARCH 

2nd Mothers Union 

Cornerstone 2.30pm. 

Ivan Bennett ‘Evangelism’ 

6th Annual Art Exhibition 

1pm-5pm Saturday and Noon- 

4pm on Sunday Countesthorpe 

College Active Arts Event 



8th W.I. 


Stoneygate Spooks Scandals and 

Society Virginia Wright 

11th Herald Copy Date 

12th Leic’s Arts Big Band Concert 

- College 7.30pm. AA Event 

12th Herald Quiz 

Countesthorpe Cricket ground 

7.30pm. See page13 

26th Herald Published 

APRIL 

6th Mothers Union 

Cornerstone 2.30pm. Ros Dudley 

‘Spring Flower Arranging’ 

12th W.I. 


Portals. Joyce Lucas 

14th London Mozart Players 

St Andrew’s Church 7.30pm. 


17th Acoustic Sounds 

College See page 6 

FREE OVER 60’S 

SWIMMING LESSONS 

Starting 15th February at Enderby 

Leisure Centre for two weeks Monday, 

Wednesday and Friday At 8am (1 hour 

lessons) ASA qualifi ed teacher. To book 

on fi ll out a registration form and hand 

in to reception. If you join the free 

swimming lessons, you will receive a 

£20 off Voucher for Everyone Active 

swimming lessons to continue learning. If 

you have any queries please call Enderby 

Leisure Centre 2750234

FEBRUARY 2010 THE NEW COUNTESTHORPE HERALD 3 

LONG DELAYS ON 

ROUTE TO LEICESTER 

Countesthorpe seems doomed to be 

blighted with travel delays. After the 

weeks of problems around Landsdown 

Grove prior to Christmas, greater delays 

caused by roadworks at St Thomas’s mini 

island have marked the start of the new 

year. Hopefully by the time the Herald 

is published the County Council will 

have amended the traffi c management 

(detailed in the following Leicester 

Mercury article) and traffi c will fl ow 

better for the remaining three months of 

the work to improve the junctions. 

RETHINK OVER ROADWORKS 

IN SOUTH WIGSTON 

Changes to the layout of roadworks in 

South Wigston “clogged” with traffi c are 

to be made after over thirty complaints 

from motorists and local traders have 

been lodged. 

Leicestershire County Council has been 

forced to rethink the way it has dealt with 

the fl ow of traffi c along Blaby Road and 

surrounding streets since work began 

directly after Christmas. 

The works, due to last four months, have 

seen the area gridlocked during rush-hour 

and long queues at other times. 

It has involved lane closures at the 

bottom of Saffron Road and the closure 

of one end of Countesthorpe Road. 

The County Council has now said it 

intends to shorten the length of road 

controlled by temporary traffi c lights 

and is considering installing yellow box 

markings. 

A spokesman for the council also said 

it would be installing a “more effi cient” 

Firth School of Dancing 

I.D.T.A. 

Over 

30 years 

experience 

Ballroom, Latin, 

Sequence, Argentine Tango 

Blaby Social Centre 

Mon & Fri Evenings 

Phone Sheila (Mon, Fri Evs.) 277 1218 Home 277 1909 

Enjoy Exercising to Music? 

Closed for the summer resumes 

Wednesday 9th September 

Countesthorpe Village Hall, 

6pm to 7pm £3 per session 

For more information contact Ann 

Tel: 288 8389 or 

Email ajjnorton@tiscali.co.uk 

temporary signaling system next week. 

In the time since roadworks began, 

businesses in Blaby Road say their 

customers have been deserting them 

and some are worried about going out 

of business. 

They have welcomed the council’s 

changes and hope it improves the 

situation. 

Graham Bishop, owner of South Wigston 

Cycle Centre, in Blaby Road, said: “At 

the moment, it’s a nightmare at rush-hour 

and it’s been a huge inconvenience for us, 

our customers and anyone who wants to 

drive around South Wigston. Customers 

are setting off to come here, seeing the 

traffi c, and then turning around to go 

elsewhere. 

“I’m happy that they are trying to do 

something about it. It’s a good thing and 

hopefully it will help make things better 

because it is a very big issue.” 

Bill Boulter, county councillor for South 

Wigston, said he had received more than 

20 complaints. 

He said: “We had a word with the 

council on Monday because at this rate 

we wouldn’t have had any shopkeepers 

left. 

“Anything that will ease the situation is 

good because we’ve had two weeks of 

absolute chaos and we’ve got 15 more. 

“The whole area is clogged up. I think 

this will help but I don’t know why 

they didn’t think of this before. I’m 

disappointed by that as the council knew 

it was causing havoc.” 

Oadby and Wigston council leader 

John Boyce said he had also passed on 

a number of complaints to the county 

council. 

He said: “Anything that increases the 

fl ow of traffi c has to be welcomed. It’s 

not acceptable at this time.”


LEICESTERSHIRE 

SPEAKERS 

CHRISTMAS EVENING 

The room garlands sparkled as did 

Leicestershire Speakers at their Christmas 

meeting on Wednesday, 10 th December. 

The Secretary reminded members of the 

post-Christmas Sunday lunch and the 

President’s dinner in March. A reading 

followed entitled “Miss Blaydon’s 

Christmas Cake”. The story of a lonely 

woman who eventually persuaded 

villagers into her home to eat with her. 

Trouble was the cake was so old it had 

been moth-balled – literally. Somehow 

guests avoided eating but the dog was not 

so lucky! An hilarious tale! 

Mark Glover presiding Chairman then 

handed out a series of diffi cult words to 

4 teams for a “Call my Bluff” session. 

UNDERBUD was deceptive; it was not 

a grafting point on a tree (although Carol 

Hayward’s tree acting was memorable) 

nor barnacles on a boat, but a Debutante 

awaiting presentation. DZIGGETAI 

proved easier, as members worked on the 

clues and identifi ed it as a species of Wild 

Ass found only on the Russian Steppes. 

So it continued with Sylvia Wilson’s team 

emerging eventual winners. 

Whilst the Christmas goodies were 

being set out, Josephine Northam read 

“The Nativity” a poem written from the 

point of view of teachers. The school 

nurse had to go on stage disguised as a 

tree and fi ghting broke out amongst the 

shepherds but, fortunately, Baby Jesus 

was not actually tossed off the stage. 

Beautifully read and bravely keeping a 

straight face, Jo was the only one not 

helpless with laughter. 

Feasting followed and conversation 

fl owed – well what else would you expect 

from Speakers? 

Leicestershire Speakers welcome anyone 

who would like to learn the art of speaking 

in public. Our meetings are supportive, 

informative and entertaining. We offer 

enthusiasm and encouragement to help 

turn nervous wrecks into confident 

speakers. Members are available for 

speaking engagements. We meet at 7.30 

pm on the second Wednesday of each 

month. For more information ring Anne 

Jones on 277 2295 or visit our website 

www.leicspeakers.co.uk. 

DVD OF SPECIAL 

OLYMPICS 

FANS of the Special Olympics 2009, 

which was hosted in Leicester earlier 

this year, can now relive the triumphs 

and tears in a DVD package of all the 

action. 

The commemorative double DVD set, 

containing all the thrills and spills of the 

games, is now available to order. 

Lasting 190 minutes, the DVD features 

highlights including the magical opening 

ceremony at the Walkers Stadium, 

setting the tone for 7 days of sporting 

endeavour in the city, which hosted the 

Special Olympics for the second time in 

July 2009. 

Athletes, volunteer helpers and sporting 

ambassadors from across the city 

have also contributed their views and 

comments as the drama unfolded in 20 

venues across Leicester, Leicestershire 

and Rutland. 

The double DVD is available now to 

order, priced £13, which includes postage 

and packing, from David Sinclair at 

www.sinvision.co.uk/SOL2009/DVD. 

html 

For an extra £2, fans can also get a copy 

of the prestigious ‘A Sporting Chance’ 

book, which charts the progress of the 

Special Olympics movement in the UK 

and abroad, telling the tale of how it 

has helped the personal development 

and aspirations of those involved, and 

transformed attitudes towards people 

with learning disabilities. 

Special Olympics Games Director Steve 

Humphries said: ‘The Special Olympics 

2009 will no doubt live long in the 

memory for years to come. 

I’m delighted that we are now in a 

position to ensure everyone can have 

their own keepsake souvenir of this 

historic occasion. 

‘This could not have been possible without 

the collective efforts of Leicester-based 

Sinvision, Touch Rainbow Productions, 

and Sianbetween, whose combined 

talents have resulted in a most fi tting 

commemorative memento of the games, 

and a worthy tribute to the outstanding 

achievements of the Special Olympics 

GB athletes and Team Orange - the 1,500 

volunteers who all pulled together to 

make the event possible.’ 

The Special Olympics 2009 involved 

2,700 athletes from 19 UK regions, who 

participated in 21 sports across Leicester, 

Leicestershire and Rutland, with the 

support of 1,200 coaches, over 6,000 

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sinvision.co.uk/SOL2009/DVD.html 

HELP FOR NEW YEAR 

RELATIONSHIP BLUES 

Help is at hand for people experiencing 

relationship diffi culties in the New Year 

– thanks to Relate Leicestershire. 

January is the busiest month of the year 

for counsellors at Relate Leicestershire, 

who work with families, couples and 

children to resolve all kinds of relationship 

issues. 

Judith Stevenson, Client Services 

Manager, said: “New Year is an extremely 

busy time for Relate. By January, the 

Christmas spirit has worn off, people are 

short of money and fed up with the bad 

weather. That is when relationship issues 

often come to a head, especially when 

couples and families have spent a lot of 

time together. 

“At Relate Leicestershire, we offer 

counselling to anyone affected by family 

breakdown or confl ict at home, whether 

that is couples, children or other family 

members. We have trained relationship 

counsellors, family counsellors and 

young people’s counsellors.” 

Counselling sessions take place six 

days and four evenings a week at Relate 

Leicestershire’s headquarters at Aylestone 

Road and at weekly clinics in Ashby, 

Coalville, Hinckley, Loughborough, 

Lutterworth, Market Harborough and 

Oakham. 

According to Relate’s relationship 

experts, people can take simple steps to 

avoid the New Year relationship blues. 

Judith added: “The most important thing 

is that people make time for each other. 

Just by sitting down and enjoying a nice 

meal together, families can help to heal 

their rifts. Poor communication is at the 

bottom of most relationship issues.” 

For more information about counselling 

services and advice on improving 

relationships, contact Relate Leicestershire 

on 254 3011 or visit the website at www. 

relateleicestershire.org.uk 

PUT THE BRAKES ON, 

NOW ! 

So Mr Jennings advises us, in a recent 

Herald, that our Government recommends 

that between 2006 and 2026, the number 

of dwellings in Countesthorpe should be 

increased by 300. By my reckoning, that 

works out at an average of 15 per year. 

As reported in the same issue of The 

Herald, Blaby District Council recently 

saw fi t to approve the building of 110 

dwellings off Borrowcup. Prior to that, 79 

dwellings had already received approval 

(since 2006), making a grand total of 189 

so far towards our “allocation” of 300. 

Applying the average of 15 per year, 

Blaby District Councils Planning 

Committee has now approved 12.6 years 

worth of expansion for our village, taking 

us well into the year 2018. There should, 

therefore, be no reason whatsoever 

for them to even consider any further 

applications for several years. 

What prevents BDCPC from using this 

statistic as a reason to reject further 

planning applications? Perhaps the 

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Bedding & Compost Plants, Compost 

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Fresh Meat & Poultry 

from local farmers 

Turkeys & Cockerels 

fact that the Council has actually 

identifi ed sites for 1750 houses around 

Countesthorpe and developers are aware 

of these. But why bother to do this when 

the allocation for the area is only 300? 

Hallams are likely to appeal against the 

rejection of their application for 180 

dwellings (12 years worth of growth, 

taking us to 2030), Persimmon have 

submitted a second application for 150 

dwellings (10 years growth taking us up 

to 2040) and in the run up to Christmas, 

Davidsons presented a proposal to build 

a further 120 (bring on 2048 !!) 

BDCPC is all too happy to see these 

application coming in for our village 

because it takes the pressure off other 

areas where building may be diffi cult. 

The big danger in getting ahead with these 

approvals, is that a future Government 

revision could possibly be done on a 

“wipe the slate and start again” basis 

thereby penalising any area that adopts 

this policy. 

Not only do we need to put on the brakes, 

we need an EMERGENCY STOP! 

How about a network of villagers, say 

one for each road, who are willing to 

give up some of their time to deliver vital 

information regarding meetings, planning 

applications etc. to their neighbours. 

Hopefully this could be fed to these 

people via our councillors. (The Herald is 

good for this, but once every two months 

could be too slow.) This would hopefully 

allow our village to present levels of 

protest that truly refl ect our feelings. 

Colin Veitch 

NATURAL HISTORY AND 

HERITAGE IN THE COUNTY 

Holly Hayes at Birstall is the home of 

the County’s Environmental Resources 

Centre and the venue for a series of very 

interesting talks exhibitions and training 

sessions. Coming soon, on February 

2nd they offer ‘Small Mammals in 

Leicestershire’, on March 2nd ‘The 

Archaeology of Leicestershire Villages’ 

on March 13th ‘Project Gargoyles’ and 

on April 10th ‘Earthworms’. For more 

details and to book a place the contact 

phone number is 01162671950. 

Our local Heritage Wardens are Shirley 

Taylor on 2776259 and Simon Skerrit 

on 2780477. PatsyP


2010 PROGRAMME 

Our new programme is now ‘out and 

about’ –please if you don’t receive a 

copy through your door pick one up in 

the library, Glebe Garden Centre, the Bite 

Gallery 115, Station Road, the Rainbow 

Shop or Alliance & Leicester. 

Our February highlight and part of 

Leicester Comedy Festival is a talk 

entitled ‘Life with Steeplejack Fred’ in 

which Sheila Dibnah will refl ect on her 

life with the famous Fred. Tickets are 

available from Glebe Garden Centre on 

277 1570 or Active Arts on 277 6259 at 

£8 or £6 for concessions and the date 

is Friday February 12th, 7.30 p.m. in 

Countesthorpe Village Hall. Then on the 

27th we are supporting Countesthorpe 

Day of Folk, with activities ranging from 

storytelling to Scottish Country Dancing, 

folk crafts to a drum workshop. For 

more details and a booking form, please 

contact 277 6259. 

Regular exhibitors will not need 

reminding that the Art Exhibition takes 

place over the weekend of March 6th and 

7th at Countesthorpe College, opening 

on Saturday from 1 to 5 and on Sunday 

from 12 to 4. Please do get in touch if you 

would like to exhibit your work – all art 

forms welcome especially 3D, just phone 

us on 277 6259 or Dorothy and Clive on 

277 1882 soon for an entry form. 

Then on March 12th we have the ever 

popular visit of the Arts in Education 

Big Band who usually attract a large and 

cheery audience –again tickets available 

from Glebe Garden Centre or from 

Patersons at home. 

Looking further ahead, those interested 

in either of our workshops –a portrait 

master class for the day of April 17th and 

the Willow workshop on June 26th and 

27th is advised to think seriously about 

booking a place as the response to both 

following the publication of the details 

has been quite amazing, - and pleasing 

for us I should add! 

PatsyP 

Just a quick footnote to remind readers 

that Ali and his staff at the Bite Gallery, 

115, Station Road plan to have frequently 

changing art exhibitions for us to enjoy 

over our refreshments. They also provide 

a take away service if that suits you 

better. 

FOR A FREE QUOTATION FROM YOUR QUALIFIED, 

COUNTESTHORPE BASED TREE SURGEON CALL 

COUNTESTHORPE 

WWW SINGERS 

We are a friendly group of ladies who just 

enjoy singing. We meet on Wednesday 

evenings during term time in the music 

room at Countesthorpe College from 7pm 

until 9pm. (We do make a small charge 

to cover costs) 

We are currently looking for more ladies 

to join us. There are no auditions. The 

only criteria are that you enjoy singing, 

and can sing in tune. 

We perform 2-3 concerts a year and are 

fortunate to have Will Welsford as our 

Musical Director. 

If you would like to give us a try, just 

come along on Wednesday at 7pm or ring 

Rosey on: 2867133. 

ACOUSTIC SOUNDS 

ARE BACK !! 

Thank you to all local residents who 

supported our Charity concert in October. 

We thought you’d like to know that we 

raised £750, after expenses, which went 

to the MS Society (Leicester Branch) 

New Building Fund. 

They opened their new building in 

November, and it was lovely to see the 

money we raised go towards such a great 

new place. 

We had a wonderful response from the 

audience at the end of the evening, and 

many requests to come back! So, we are 

currently rehearsing for our next concert, 

with most of the same performers, on 

April 17th again at the College. 

Tickets will again be £7.50 (from Debbie, 

2775117) look out for the posters around 

the village nearer the time. 

Steve Hancock 

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SUCH A COMFY FEELING 

FOR LOCAL SINGER 

There aren’t many nans who can stare 

above the fi replace to see a picture of 

their grandson onstage at the Royal 

Albert Hall. But singer Jersey Budd’s 

nan can. Unsurprisingly, the photo is 

in pride of place at Marjorie’s home in 

Countesthorpe, a stone’s throw from the 

house where Jersey grew up. 

The past year has been a whirlwind for 

our Jers, who played the legendary venue 

before he’d released his debut album. 

Then there was Glastonbury, the headline 

slot at a tribute festival to idol Bob Dylan, 

tours with pals Kasabian and The Rifl es... 

well, you can see he’s been busy. 

Plans for a second album to follow up 

Wonderlands are under way, and this time 

round, be prepared for a rockier sound. 

“That’s what I’m hoping for,” says Jersey. 

“After playing the album live with big 

guitars you get the bug for it and you want 

to take that sound into the studio.” 

Any hopes for the New Year? “Hopefully 

the venues will get bigger,” he says. 

From Leicester Mercury 

KASABIAN 

NOMINATED FOR TWO 

BRIT AWARDS 

Local heroes Kasabian have been 

nominated for two Brit Awards. The 

lads are up for best British group and 

best British album for West Ryder 

Pauper Lunatic Asylum. They will also 

be performing at the February 16 awards 

ceremony alongside Lady Gaga, Dizzee 

Rascal and Florence And The Machine. 

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Also repairs to Hi-Fi Audio 

Equipment 

All work guaranteed 

HELIX NEAR SELL OUT FIRST VISIT 

The Helix Ensemble’s fi rst visit to St 

Andrews Church proved a near sell 

out. Wearing slick, all black, outfi ts (no 

stuffy dinner jackets here!) the immediate 

message to the audience was that they 

were in for an effervescent feast of 

music. 

Musical Director Richard Davis inspired 

the ensemble with his fl owing tempo 

changes (“Mendelessohn’s Hebrides 

Overture should make you feel seasick”) 

and care over orchestral colour 

and intonation. 

The Helix Ensemble enjoy programming 

new compositions along side established 

repertoire. The concert included the fi rst 

performance of Ivor Hodgson’s “Song 

and Dance”. Skilfully orchestrated, the 

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lyrical “Song” (including some attractive 

legato bassoon playing) was followed by 

a very lively and tuneful “Dance”. 

Another Helix Ensemble tradition is to 

draw soloists from within the ensemble. 

In this case the accomplished Jo Conquest 

played Malcolm Arnold’s second fl ute 

concerto. Taking advantage of Richard 

Davis’ intimate knowledge of the work 

(he is principal fl autist with the BBC 

Philharmonic) Ms Conquest perfectly 

captured the wispy nature of Malcolm 

Arnold’s finale as well as proving 

completely at ease with the technical 

challenges of the faster, movements. 

The concert ended with Mendelssohn’s 

Italian Symphony. Again, Richard Davis 

gave this an individual interpretation, 

whilst remaining true to the composers 

musical aims. The positive audience 

response suggests that they had 

appreciated the quality of the evening’s 

entertainment.www.helixensemble. 

co.uk Roger Swann - roger@cigol.com


SPARE GARDEN TOOLS? 

Have you any spare garden tools? Are 

you cleaning out your shed? Are you 

clearing a house? Have you any spare 

spades, forks, rakes, secateurs, wheel 

barrows, etc? 

If so we can offer them a good home 

where they will be used and treasured. 

We are ‘A Place to Grow’ at Enderby. 

APTG is a community garden project 

that introduces the joys of gardening to 

individuals and groups. We recently were 

runners-up in the national Guardian Public 

Services Awards 2009 in the Complex 

Needs category. People with disabilities 

and health problems work alongside 

volunteers to produce vegetables and 

fl owers. Groups including people of all 

ages from the very young to the not so 

young use APTG. These include schools, 

U3A and Homestart. Our new projects 

include a small orchard and a wildlife 

pond. The therapeutic effects of gardening 

have proved quite remarkable. 

Come and visit us and see this remarkable 

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Any donations of tools would be very 

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collect any donated tools please ring Joe 

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UNWANTED PRESENTS 

OR SALE PURCHASES? 

“After the festive season, many people 

will be contemplating how they will 

get rid of unwanted presents or dispose 

of household furniture in order to 

accommodate new purchases made in 

the sales. Age Concern is the answer!” 

says Tony Donovan of the local Age 

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The credit crunch is affecting stocks 

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Tony Donovan, the charity’s executive 

director, added: “It’s a Catch - 22! On 

the one hand, more people are saving 

money in these diffi cult times by buying 

the high quality goods which we sell, 

whilst on the other, traditional donors 

are apparently more inclined to ‘make 

do and mend’ rather than donate to our 

charity’s shops. Items can be delivered 

to any of the charity’s shops, whilst large 

quantities or large items such as furniture 

can be collected from homes by calling 

2781208. 

SHELTERBOX TEAM ON THE GROUND: 

“THERE IS NO MORE HAITI” 

Aid workers for the international disaster 

relief charity ShelterBox are on the 

ground in Port au Prince, Haiti. 

ShelterBox Response Team arrived in the 

island’s capital on January 14 and quickly 

made contact with government offi cials, 

ACTED and Rotarians in the country. 

The Response Team, who are completely 

self-suffi cient, then set up base with the 

help of a Haitian Rotarian. 

Speaking from Port au Prince, David 

Eby said: ‘We’re working hard to resolve 

security, logistics and communications. 

The city is totally devastated. Our host 

told us, “There is no more Haiti .” 

The situation on the ground remains 

fraught with the damaged infrastructure 

in Haiti hampering the aid effort but 

ShelterBox is doing everything within 

its power to ensure aid reaches Haiti 

imminently. 

ShelterBox’s Head of Operations John 

Leach said: ‘Our priority is now getting 

logistics in and doing all we can to get it 

on the island. We’re sending a ShelterBox


Logistics team into Miami to work and 

coordinate logistics into Haiti from 

there.’ 

ShelterBox’s Logistics Manager Richard 

Lewis added: ‘We’re doing everything 

we can to make sure emergency aid 

reaches the people of Haiti. 

‘The situation is changing by the minute 

and we’re exploring every single avenue 

available to us in order to make sure 

the aid gets on the ground as quickly as 

possible.’ 

The ShelterBox Logistics team, made 

up of SRT members Mark Dyer (US), 

John Lacquey (US) and Ian Neal (UK), 

will meet a consignment of ShelterBoxes 

being fl own into Miami, USA and run the 

logistics into Haiti from there. 

930 ShelterBoxes have already been 

dispatched and are en route to Haiti while 

another 1,000 are being packed today at 

ShelterBox HQ by ShelterBox’s team of 

volunteers. Virgin Atlantic are supporting 

the relief effort by fl ying hundreds of the 

ShelterBoxes on their planes. 

Sir Richard Branson, President of Virgin 

Atlantic, said: ‘Everyone who has seen 

the sheer destruction in Haiti over the last 

few days will have been moved to help 

in any way they can. 

‘We will fl y in as much aid as possible 

so that the agencies on the ground can 

respond to the needs of everyone in Haiti 

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globe. People in Haiti need our help and 

we will stop stop until they get it. If you 

can help, in any way at all, I’d urge you 

to do so.’ www.shelterbox.org 

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LETTERS 

TO THE EDITOR 

THANK YOU 

I would just like to say a big ‘Thank You’ 

to everyone at Countesthorpe Methodists 

Church for their Children’s Christmas 

Party held on 29th November 2009. 

All of the children who attended the party 

had a great time. At the beginning there 

was a puppet show, showing an alternative 

version of the Christmas Story. Next on 

the agenda was fun and games, before a 

superb Christmas buffet. 

The icing on the cake was a visit from 

Father Christmas himself where all of 

the children received a gift. 

My children had a great time at the party. 

Many many thanks to the Methodist 

church for organising this party, it was 

hugely successful. 

Andrew Scott 

Dear Herald, 

I am writing to you as a concerned village 

resident. 

We all know the problems regarding the 

youths that can congregate in certain 

areas of the village. Bus shelters, car 

parks and like moths to a light, the front 

of the shops at the bank in the middle on 

the village. 

Now for the most part when they sit 

chatting there are no problems, but when 

they grow in numbers and become more 

boisterous they pose somewhat more of 

nuisance. 

Many a time with their BMX stunts they 

look like they could fl y through the large 

windows of the shops, which, not only 

causing damage to themselves would 

pose a large cost to the business owner. 

But it is now with the latest case of what 

I regard as criminal damage that I feel I 

should write to hopefully highlight to the 

parents what their children are getting 

up to. 

The large posts to the front of the shops 

on the bank (under the fl ats) have always 

been unsightly to look at. But, recently 

there has been a contractor working 

there stripping them down and rendering 

them good. No doubt to the cost of the 

businesses there and the residents of the 

fl ats. 

Having worked hard and nearly fi nished 

the mortaring of all the posts imagine my 

disgust on the evening of Monday 23rd 

November to stroll past to fi nd all but one 

of the posts damaged quite severely. 

Names written in the softer mortar, we 

know who you are now, mortar ripped 

from the steel retainers, the corners on 

some bashed with what could only be a 

bat of some sorts. 

Hasten to say a thorough mess of 

someone’s hard work in making a part 

of the village more attractive. 

Now, my biggest quandary is what do 

the local parents think of this? It is your 

children causing the damage. Are you 

just happy that they’re not on your front 

damaging your surroundings? 

Do you walk / drive past the location see 

your child and even pay a thought to what 

they may be getting up to? 

The damage when caused would not 

have been quiet, it would not have been 

unnoticeable, do we all just walk on 

by now and let the younger generation 

vandalise a village we pay good money 

for in house prices and taxes? 

This sort of problem stretches further 

than unruly youths, it a sign of the society 

to come. 

Village Resident (name & address supplied) 

Lost Cat 

I am not sure whether you can help, but 

we moved into the area in December, just 

off The Chestnuts and one of our cats has 

gone missing, he disappeared on 16th 

December. He is a large pussy cat, black 

and white 8 years old and answers to the 

name of Marshall, he is recognizable by 

his tail, which goes along his back as 

apposed to straight up. He is friendly, 

but a little nervous, if anyone spots him 

please could they call Janet of Kevin on 

07528840457. 

Dear Editor 

I read the letter in your last edition from 

Councillor David Pollard, the Liberal 

Democrat Councillor for Blaby. I was 

surprised by the letter since it was 

blatantly Party political and I think it a pity 

that your community newspaper should 

be used in such a way. Nevertheless, I 

feel that it is appropriate for me, as the 

representative of Countesthorpe in our 

national Parliament, to respond. 

Councillor Pollard’s letter spoke about the 

large number of housing developments in 

the Countesthorpe and indeed throughout 

Blaby District. He particularly spoke of 

“the background to these applications” 

and blamed Conservative Councillors at 

Blaby for this. This is not fair. 

The broader background to these 

applications is a simple one. The Labour 

Government is predicting that housing 

demand is likely to mean that there is 

a requirement for some three million 

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new homes by 2020. The Government 

is now demanding that local authorities 

make provision for this new housing. 

The question has to be why there is this 

demand. There are several reasons. 

There is the requirement for replacement 

of some poor stock – new stock should, 

one hopes, be better insulated and 

more environmentally friendly; there 

is an increase in the number of people 

living alone in single households, partly 

because of divorce; there is the issue of 

longevity so that people are living longer 

in their own houses – something I am sure 

we all welcome. 

However, the biggest reason is immigration 

into this country. Although it has been 

played down by the Government, when 

there are over 200,000 immigrants nett 

coming to this country, as have done 

over two of the last three years, there is 

of course a hugely increased demand. 

Indeed at that rate, there is a need to 

build a city the size of Birmingham every 

fi ve years. Incidentally, these fi gures do 

not take account of illegal immigration 

– and nobody has a clue how many illegal 

immigrants there are in the country. 

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Favell’s Garage uses electricity 

produced from renewable sources 

Whilst understanding the desire of 

people to come to this country to better 

themselves, we need to ask how many 

people this country can cope with and 

what strain population growth of this 

nature puts on national infrastructure. 

At the moment it is predicted that the 

population will grow to 70 million in 

the UK by 2050, a fact which does not 

concern the Immigration Minister. 

We believe that the Labour Government 

has completely lost control of 

immigration into this country. Readers 

of your newspaper may have their 

own ideas, but they will be aware 

that the Liberal Democrats typically 

support the Government’s failed stance 

on immigration. The Conservatives 

fought the last Election on “controlled 

immigration” but, unfortunately, lost. 

When the next General Election comes 

this year, Conservative policy will be 

similar, advocating a much tighter and 

controlled immigration system, with 

a firm but fair system which allows 

some new arrivals, on a quota basis, but 

restores control over the large number of 

people that have been coming here over 

the last twelve years. This will have a 

signifi cant impact on housing demand 

and I hope will lead to reduced demand 

for building in Countesthorpe – and 

across the country. 

A few years ago, the Association of 

Liberal Democrat Councillors published 

a campaign document entitled Effective 

Opposition, which significantly said 

on page 21 that Liberal Democrats 

should “Be wicked, act shamelessly, stir 

endlessly”. On page 23 it says “Don’t 

be afraid to exaggerate”. According to 

Liberal Democrat documents, they want 

a “liberal approach to immigration” and 

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in November their policy was that there 

would be “no limits” on immigration. 

Might I suggest that Councillor Pollard 

says whether he supports Liberal 

Democrat policy before writing again to 

the Herald to make such Party political 

points. If he does, there will certainly 

continue to be increased demand for new 

housing across Leicestershire. 

Yours faithfully, Andrew Robathan MP 

Dear Sir 

My attention has been drawn to a letter 

from a Blaby District Councillor, Cllr 

Pollard, offering observations on local 

planning issues. However the letter seems 

to be more intent on causing political 

mischief and contains many inaccuracies. 

I think Countesthorpe residents deserve 

better. 

The document referred to in the letter, 

The Strategic Housing Land Availability 

Assessment (SHLAA), was prepared 

by Blaby District Council planning 

officers as part of the evidence base 

of the new Local Plan, now called the 

Local Development Framework. Blaby 

planning offi cers had no choice about 

this, Government guidance requires 

them to produce a SHLAA and to assess 

any piece of land within the District for 

its suitability for housing development, 

if requested by an owner or developer. 

Once done the guidance required that 

the document be published. This was 

done by posting the information on the 

Council’s website. 

It should be emphasised that the SHLAA 

is NOT a decision making document and 

does NOT allocate land for housing. 

At no time has the document been 

discussed, agreed, endorsed or accepted 

by the Blaby Cabinet or Council, and as 

is made clear in the document itself 

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the fact that a piece of land appears 

in the document does not confer on it 

any special status and an application to 

develop it would still need to be tested 

alongside the development framework as 

with any other piece of land. 

Proposing specifi c sites for housing is the 

role of a future ‘Allocations’ Document 

which will be prepared by the District 

Council. Countesthorpe residents will 

have the opportunity to make their views 

known on the Allocations Document to 

the District Council before it is submitted 

to the Government for independent 

examination. 

Ernie White, Leader Blaby District Council 

Dear Editor 

I write to correct the misleading and untrue 

letter from Blaby District Councillor 

David Pollard (Countesthorpe Herald No. 

264 - December 2009). 

It relates to the Blaby District Council 

Strategic Land Availability Assessment 

(SHLAA) . This document was compiled 

in accordance with guidance issued by 

the Department of Communities and 

Local Goverment. Every Local Authority 

is required to have one. It has NEVER 

been adopted as council policy by Blaby 

District Council. It has only been noted, 

as a consultative document. 

What is a SHLAA? It is a list of potential 

sites which could be developed, NOT 

a list of land that will be developed. 

A letter to all Blaby District Council 

members from Councillor Ernie White 

(Leader of the Council) dated 24th March 

2009 states: Members are not being 

asked to support, endorse or approve the 

SHLAA itself only that it is published as 

part of the evidence base for the Local 

Development Framework. 

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Who compiled the SHLAA? This is listed 

in the document itself. It states that the 

SHLAA process has been guided by the 

Leicester and Leicestershire Steering 

Group consisting of: 

Local Authority (and County) 

Planning Offi cers 

Local Authority Housing Offi cers 

A representative from the Home 

Builders Federation 

A representative from the 

English Partnerships 

A representative from the 

Housing Corporation 

A Registered Social Landlord 

Hardly a list brimming with Conservative 

Councillors! Nor of any other political 

group. May I now draw Councillor 

Pollard’s attention to the very latest 

edition of the Blaby District Council 

Members Bulletin. There is mention of 

the SHLAA in it. IT clearly states: It is 

important to note that the document is 

not a decision making document. It is a 

technical document that forms part of the 

Local Development Framework evidence 

base, and as such, it does NOT allocate 

land for housing. 

I deeply regret David Pollard’s attempt 

to bring politics into planning. This 

must not happen. If Councillors start to 

embark on Party Political lines regarding 

planning issues, they will have failed to 

represent the people who elected them. 

All our villages are under attack. While 

Countesthorpe is required to provide 300 

new homes, Blaby village is required to 

provide 375. 

I welcome Councillor Pollard’s support 

to my efforts to protect the Green Wedges 

around our villages. This is a time to put 

aside Party loyalties and face the common 

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David Jennings, Councillor 

NEWS FROM THE W.I 

In our November meeting Ann Halsey 

spoke passionately of the work of the 

Baldwin Trust. This group have canal 

boats that have been adapted to suit 

people with special needs and the trust 

arranges for many groups to explore our 

waterways during the summer months. 

The December meeting put us all in the 

mood for Christmas with a talk by Mike 

Bull on the history of the Little Theatre, 

it is amazing what goes on behind the 

scenes. We rounded the evening off by 

singing carols. 

We have a very varied programme for the 

coming year, from Ice Cream in February 

to Ladybird Books in August plus much 

more We meet the 2nd Monday of each 

month at 7.30 pm in the Village Hall and 

visitors are more than welcome. 

Dorothy Wells 

HERALD COMMUNITY ADVERTISING 

THE RAINBOW SHOP 

(supporting the work of Christian Aid) 

Your local charity shop selling 

good-as-new clothes, books, 

bric-a-brac, videos, DVDs 

fairly traded goods, wholefood 

& environmentally-friendly products. 

Opening hours 

Mon to Fri 10am. to 12 noon 

Tues and Thurs 2pm. to 4pm. 

Sat 10am. to 3pm. 

1 Main Street, Countesthorpe


TWINNING 

NEWS 

At the time of writing the snow lies on the 

ground but we can still plan for sunnier 

events and we are looking forward to the 

visit from our friends over in Mennecy. 

This is our twin town near to Paris and we 

look forward to a visit on Thursday 13th 

May 2010, when they will be fl ying over 

to spend a long and pleasant weekend 

with us. 

Mennecy is also twinned with Renningen 

in Germany and we have an invitation 

from Renningen to visit them in June 

this summer. We are as yet unsure what 

response this invitation will get but we 

expect that some of us may be taking the 

offer up. 

In the meantime we have various activities 

to share. Just before Christmas we put 

together a beautiful Christmas tree for 

the Foston festival. This was themed 

on angels and we had a workshop 

to construct all manner of weird and 

wonderful angels. 

We will also be meeting on 23rd January 

when a selection of cheeses and wines 

will be enjoyed by members. Regrettably 

this note will not be going out in time for 

readers to join us. 

If you wish to find out more about 

twinning or want to get in touch with 

us please feel free to contact any of the 

committee or E-mail us on countesthorpe. 

twinning@gmail.com. 

David Wild (Secretary) 

Member of The National Association of Professional Inspectors & Testers 

E.G. ELECTRICAL 

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HERALD QUIZ 

The rules are simple – teams of three 

villagers (preferably entered before by 

phoning Elaine Cooke on 277 4422) are 

required on the evening of Friday March 

12th in the Cricket Club ready to take part 

in a pencil and paper pub style quiz for 

the fi rst part of the evening. You need 

to arrive hungry to enjoy the delicious 

supper always provided in the interval 

then most can sit back while the top four 

teams play out the semi fi nals then the 

fi nal to see who will hold the Herald 

plaque for the next year! 

It is a very sociable evening and it is 

always good to see so many organisations 

represented – and our thanks are due to 

the Cricket Club for making their room 

available. 

I almost forgot the other rule –the 

Question master’s decision is always 

right except when proved wrong! 

VILLAGE WEBSITE 

Countesthorpe village website has 

undergone a facelift and has a new look 

and feel. The website still contains 

useful information on the businesses and 

amenities in the village as well as some 

interesting information on walks around 

the countryside, sports and recreation and 

news around the area and further afi eld. 

The site aims to give a balanced view of 

what happens in our lovely village and 

the things that may affect us all. 

If you have any old photographs or 

information you would like to be included 

on the site or if your business is not on 

already, email countesthorpe.info@ 

virgin.net. Steve Goodall 

HOUSING ADVICE ON 

YOUR DOORSTEP 

Staff from Blaby District Council will 

be running a monthly housing surgery 

at Blaby Farmers’ Market to offer advice 

to people struggling with debt and other 

issues during the economic downturn. 

Offi cers from the housing options team 

and South Leicestershire Citizens Advice 

Bureau (SLCAB) will be available at the 

Joint Service Shop, Forge Corner, from 

9.30 – 12.30 on the fourth Saturday of 

each month to give information on: 

• The Mortgage Rescue Scheme 

• Homelessness prevention 

• Debt 

• Rent Payment plans to clear arrears 

• Deposit loans for rented properties 

• Landlord/tenant issues 

• Harassment and illegal evictions 

• Housing rights 

• Relationship breakdowns 

Vijay Jethwa, housing and private sector 

manager at the Council said: “It is 

important that the advice and information 

we can offer is accessible to all and that’s 

why we are taking our services out to the 

local community. 

“This is a chance for people who may 

be experiencing hard times to talk 

through their housing issues with trained 

members of staff.” 

For more information on housing options 

advice and information from Blaby 

District Council please call 272 7770. 

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This phone is designed by Giles Towning 

and is a novel way to give your phone 

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I hope you enjoy it, and thanks to Giles 

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There are lots of origami instruction 

videos available on internet, just put 

‘origami video’ and the model you want 

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something, good luck. 

Penny Groom 

NEW LOOK LOOS TO 

BE OPENED IN BLABY 

Blaby District Council have improved 

and extended the public conveniences 

in Johns Court car park after asking 500 

people what changes they thought should 

be made to the tired looking toilets. 

Baby changing facilities, sensor 

controlled taps and eco-friendly solar 

lighting are just some of the features 

which have now been installed to bring 

the facility up to date. 

The toilets are behind Johns Court 

shopping precinct and will be open from 

8am - 6pm Monday – Saturday. 

The refurbishment is part of the Council’s 

Car Parking Strategy which saw charges 

introduced last year for people using car 

parks across the district, and this is now 

helping to fund improvements to car park 

facilities. 

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COMMUNITY 

CULTURAL FESTIVAL 

Community Action Blaby District is 

holding a Community Cultural Festival at 

Brockington College on Wednesday 17th 

February between 6 -8.30pm. 

As well as providing an enjoyable evening 

of entertainment, the aim of the festival is 

to raise awareness of the range of cultural 

backgrounds of the people living in our 

communities in Blaby District. 

There will be activities such as Chinese 

Dancing, Japanese writing, a chance 

to try Belly Dancing, and a lot more, 

including craft activities for children. 

This event is FREE and is open to 

everyone, from all backgrounds of life. 

The doors open for the public at 5.45 

and will start at 6pm with a Chinese 

Lion dance to celebrate the Chinese 

New Year. 

For more details of the event, or if you 

would like to contribute to making this 

event a success and having a stall to 

promote your culture, then please call 

Darren Walker on 2727669 or email 

Darren@vabd.org.uk 

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For your FREE market appraisal... 

Telephone: 0116 

257 0577 

4 9 Leicester Road, Wigston, Leics. LE18 1NR 

It is not Harrison Murray’s policy to accept instructions where there is already a 

Sole Agency Agreement in existence, until that Agreement has expired or is terminated. 

interested in replacing a boiler that may 

be over 10 years old but is still in good 

working order? 

If your boiler has a permanent pilot light 

or is over 10 years old, it is likely to be G 

rated. That means it is less than 70 per 

cent effi cient. A new high effi ciency A 

rated boiler is over 90 per cent effi cient, 

which means you will get over 20 per 

cent more heat and hot water from your 

fuel. And that could reduce your fuel 

bills by up to £235 a year. In addition, 

it will substantially reduce your home’s 

carbon footprint. 

The boiler scrappage scheme has been 

introduced is to provide a grant of £400 

toward the cost of replacing old G 

rated boilers with new A rated models. 

The grant will be available to 125,000 

households in England and The Energy 

Saving Trust is responsible for the 

administration of the scheme. 

Householders and landlords who privately 

own and rent dwellings heated by G rated 

boilers are eligible to apply, on a fi rst 

come, fi rst served basis. 

HOW CAN I TELL IF MY BOILER 

IS G RATED? 

If you have a Potterton boiler, there is 

list of G rated boilers on the website at 

www.potterton.co.uk/boiler-scrappagescheme 

The Energy Saving Trust website (www. 

energysavingtrust.org.uk) also has 

information to help you identify if your 

boiler is eligible. 

HOW DO I APPLY? 

Before you call the Energy Saving Trust 

to register your interest in applying for 

the grant, you will need to get a quote 

from a Gas Safe registered installer, to 

replace your G rated boiler with a new 

A rated boiler. 

Your installer will be able to specify the 

best type and output of boiler for your 

home. Potterton has one of the most 

extensive and reliable range of A rated 

boilers on the market. 

Then you need to contact Energy Saving 

Trust either by emailing boilerscrappage@ 

est.org.uk or by calling their ACT ON 

CO2 advice line on 0800 512 012. 

The £400 vouchers will be issued from 

18 January 2010. You will receive the 

voucher approximately ten days after 

application. Vouchers are valid for 12 

weeks from the date of issue. If the 

voucher is not redeemed within this 

time, it will be cancelled and reallocated. 

Only one voucher per household will be 

issued, but if the voucher expires, it will 

be possible to apply for another if funds 

are available. 

Once you’ve received the voucher, you 

can go ahead with the installation. You’ll 

have to pay the installer when the work is 

completed, and then claim back the £400 

by sending the invoice and voucher to 

the Energy Saving Trust. You’ll get your 

£400 rebate within 25 working days. 

Please note that installations made before 

you get your voucher will invalidate your 

claim and you will no longer be eligible 

to receive the £400 rebate. 

SCAMNESTY 

Help target those Scam traders by 

handing in any scam letters you have 

recieved to your local library. 

Scam Bins will be left in all libraries and 

mobile libraries throughout Leicestershire 

for the month of February. 

Website: www.leics.gov.uk/libraries


NEWS AND VIEWS FROM THE CHURCHES 

EPIPHANY: 

COMING OF THE WISE MEN FROM THE EAST 

Epiphany is the climax of the Christmas 

season which is usually counted from 

the evening of December 25th until the 

morning of January 6th, which is the 

Twelfth Day. The term epiphany means 

“to show” or “to make known” or even 

“to reveal”. In churches, it remembers 

the coming of the Wise Men bringing 

gifts to visit the Christ child, who by so 

doing “reveal” Jesus to the world as Lord 

and King. 

The popular story for Epiphany Sunday 

is from the Gospel of Matthew (2:1-12), 

where some mysterious figures from 

the East play an important role. It was 

long believed that one day the wise and 

powerful of the world would come to 

Israel, acknowledge its God, and share 

in the blessings that God had bestowed 

on Israel (see Isaiah 60:1-6). It makes 

sense, then, that these wise ones from the 

East would seek out the newborn King 

of the Jews. 

Thus, the biblical story leads us to ponder 

the meaning of visitors from the very 

places in the world that we seem to fear 

most right now. In Matthew’s story of 

God at work in the world - the good 

news, the Gospel - these foreigners, 

these gentiles, represent us, where Jesus 

commands his disciples to “Go, make 

disciples of all nations”. We are in this 

big picture, this tradition of hope rooted 

in the prophets and embodied by Jesus 

Christ himself. 

This tradition of hope speaks of a 

different time, not the time of Herod but 

a time of restoration and peace, a time 

of a great feast at which all of God’s 

children will gather and there will be 

plenty for everyone and everyone will 

be welcome. 

This beautiful story of the Wise Men 

from the East, so long ago, bearing 

extravagant gifts for a king and being 

overwhelmed with joy, is not just a nice 

little story that decorates our Nativity sets 

and Christmas cards. This little story is 

part of a larger story that holds within it 

the suffering of the world. 

Years ago, a Christian church leader 

in China named Wang Weifan wrote 

about the three Wise Men from the East: 

“Christ, the saviour of humankind, is the 

great light that shines upon all peoples. 

But the very fi rst to be called to worship 

the holy infant were the Wise Men from 

the East. Why them, in particular? Was 

SAVE time, tax and tears 

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it that the ancient cultures of the East 

had received more of God’s revelation 

and were thus better prepared to accept 

Christ? Or was it that the East stood 

in greater need of Christ because of 

the endless river of tears which is its 

history?” 

SCRIPTURE 

GUIDES US 

The Magi follow a star, guided by God, 

looking to nature for signs and guidance. 

God would also provide direction through 

a dream but it’s signifi cant that they’re 

also helped by scripture, when they hear 

from the religious authorities who know 

right where to look for the answer. We 

need scripture and personal experience, 

and the Christian community that helps us 

understand all those gifts. Then, like the 

Magi, we’re drawn to worship the One 

we seek. Without scripture we would be 

like the Wise Men, “who were aware that 

something had happened”. Just being a 

biblical scholar isn’t enough, either: the 

chief priests and the scribes missed the 

meaning of the text, and Herod turns to 

scripture to use it for his own panicked 

purposes. One can, like Herod, be in 

favour of studying the scripture and 

still be on the wrong side of God’s will. 

There’s a challenging thought at the 

beginning of this New Year! 

The Revd Nutan Suray 


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Countesthorpe 


Notes from Sheila Howell and Angie Skerritt 

CHRISTMAS 

MEMORIES 

Although Christmas seems a long while 

ago the memories linger. Last December 

we invited the different groups who use 

our church premises during the week 

to decorate a Christmas tree which we 

provided. They joined in with enthusiasm 

and each tree stood in the windows in 

the chapel. It wasn’t a Christmas Tree 

Festival but people were invited to call 

in on the two Saturdays before Christmas 

and see the trees and perhaps stay for a 

cup of tea. The trees looked very pretty; 

they were most imaginatively decorated 

and we do thank the groups for all their 

efforts - they were much appreciated. 

As last year, we joined with St Andrew’s 

for Christian Unity week in January; it is 

always good to “get together”. Fairtrade 

Fortnight is from 22 nd Feb to 7 th March 

and members of our congregation will 

again be helping to man the Fairtrade 

information desk at Countesthorpe 

Library during the two weeks, plus 

running a Fairtrade stall in the schoolroom 

over the two weekends. 

SHROVE TUESDAY 

AND PANCAKE DAY 

Shrove Tuesday and Pancake Day will 

soon be here. Shrove Tuesday ends the 

season of Epiphany and always falls 47 

days before Easter, so the date varies from 

year to year. The name ‘Shrove’ comes 

from the old word ‘shrive’ meaning ‘to 

confess’. In the Middle Ages people 

used to confess their sins and be forgiven 

before the Lent season began. 

The following day, Ash Wednesday, is 

the start of Lent. Making pancakes on 

the previous day was a way of using up 

the foods that were not allowed through 

the Lenten season. 

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Lent is the 40 day period of fasting 

and prayer before Easter. The 40 days 

represent the time that Jesus spent in 

the desert overcoming the temptation 

by Satan and is in preparation for 

remembering the death and resurrection 

of Jesus. Whilst today we may not 

fast during Lent some people do deny 

themselves in some way and it is surely 

a time for private refl ection. 

EASTER 

All are very warmly invited to our Easter 

Day service, and to stay for a “cuppa” and 

a chat after the service. 

NEW YEAR 

RESOLUTIONS 

By the time you read this we will be 

well into the New Year but at the time 

of writing the year was very new and 

many of us were making New Year 

Resolutions. 

We came across the following quote 

which we thought would be a good 

resolution. 

I cannot be everywhere, 

so I’ll do what I can here. 

I cannot do everything, 

so I’ll do what I can. 

I cannot live forever, 

so I’ll get started right now. 

‘GOD PROVIDES THE WIND BUT 

MAN MUST RAISE THE SAILS’ 

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At the beginning of the New Year it was 

our privilege at the Baptist Chapel to 

welcome back a young local man, Mr Joe 

Bailey, who is currently taking a year out 

from his studies and working alongside 

the missionary society, ‘The Open Air 

Mission’ as a trainee evangelist. 

I recently asked Joe about the work of the 

Open Air Mission and his new role. 

Pastor Aubrey: It’s good to see you again, 

Joe, and welcome back to Countesthorpe 

and the Baptist Chapel. 

Joe Bailey: Thanks, Aubrey, it’s good 

to be back. 

Pastor Aubrey: Firstly, Joe, could you 

tell our readers a little bit about the Open 

Air Mission? 

Joe Bailey: The OAM was founded 

by a Christian Barrister called John 

MacGregor in 1853. He was burdened 

for the vast multitudes of people living 

in Britain who, even at that time, were 

ignorant of the true message of the 

Bible. After much prayer with others, 

John MacGregor formed the OAM to 

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address this imbalance. The bulk of the 

work is made up of open air preaching 

in town centres. The mission evangelists 

also visit prisons, schools, fairgrounds, 

old-folks’ homes, churches, beaches, 

and youth clubs and undertake personal 

visitation. 

Pastor Aubrey: I know, Joe, you’ve 

taken a year out from your studies to 

work with OAM, but what is your role? 

Joe Bailey: The Trainee Evangelist post 

is just like an apprenticeship. The trainee 

learns how to be an effective witness for 

the Lord Jesus Christ by a mix of going 

out and speaking to people about Jesus 

and studying the Bible himself. You go 

out with an experienced evangelist to his 

regular preaching opportunities. 

Pastor Aubrey: I imagine that visiting 

different cities as you do must have 

informed you a great deal about the 

spiritual condition of our country. What 

have you found it to be? 

Joe Bailey: I would say that the majority 

of the British people show little care for 

the state of their own souls. They are 

fi xed upon the temporal things of this 

world - their possessions, relationships, 

health, fashion and work - and spare little 

thought for how they will fare when they 

meet God one day. What’s saddest is that 

a lot of people think that they can get to 

heaven by their own good deeds - even 

though the Bible teaches that the only 

way to heaven is by a personal trust in 

Jesus Christ. 

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Pastor Aubrey: Joe, could you share 

with us some real life encounters? 

Joe Bailey: In my fi rst week I met a 

young man in Bath who listened to two 

or three open air messages. Outwardly 

he looked very well-to-do - nice clothes, 

good job, etc - but he was seeking 

something more. As we talked he could 

see sense in what I was saying. He 

wanted answers to some deep questions. 

His father had committed suicide and this 

made him question things more deeply 

than most people. I felt greatly honoured 

that he opened up to me and allowed me 

to gently point him to what God’s word 

says about life, death, heaven, hell, etc. 

He left very thankful and said he would 

seek the Lord by reading the Bible for 

himself. 

In another instance, I spoke to a very 

intelligent Oxford Biology student called 

‘Christian’ (ironically!). He claimed he 

could not believe the Bible due to lack of 

evidence, but after a while he admitted 

that it wasn’t a lack of evidence but a lack 

of will. He didn’t want to believe. And 

that’s the case for so many people. It’s 

not that God hasn’t shown Himself to us. 

He has - in the Bible, in Creation, in our 

consciences and in the historical person 

and work of Jesus Christ. 

Pastor Aubrey: Thanks, Joe. I hope 

that in the next six months you know 

the Lord’s hand upon your ongoing 

ministry. 

The Open Air Mission website 

is on www.oamission.com. 

To discuss the spiritual 

things talked about contact 

Pastor: 277 2468.


CHILDREN’S GROUPS 

At St Andrew’s, children of all ages are 

encouraged to learn about God and to join 

in the worship. Two Sundays a month the 

younger children attend Sunday school 

groups and on the other Sundays they 

are actively encouraged to participate in 

the all-age services by taking part in the 

reading, prayers or talk. 

The Sunday school groups meet in the 

Cornerstone during the 10.45 service, 

normally on the fi rst and third Sundays 

of the month. 

SCRAMBLERS, for children aged 3-7, 

aims to introduce worshipping God to 

young people in a simple fun way pitched 

at a level which is easy to understand 

through stories, crafts, books, videos, 

games and activities. We asked some of 

the children why they liked attending 

Scramblers. 

‘Because we do fun stuff & learn about God.’ 

Isaac aged 7 

‘Because we do lots of different things.’ 

Megan aged 7 

ADVENTURERS, for children aged 

8-11, provides an opportunity for the 

children to learn about what it means 

to be a Christian using drama, crafts, 

stories, and discussion. We asked some 

of the children why they liked attending 

Adventurers. 

‘Because it is fun and exciting and we try 

new things.’ Katy aged 9 

‘We always have fun and try new things.’ 

Emily aged 9 

‘Because we do lots of fun activities and 

make lots of things.’ Naomi aged 8 

CRÈCHE. During the same services a 

crèche is run at the back of the church to 

provide a safe, caring environment for 

the youngest children whilst the parents 

attend the 10.45 service. Parents are 

welcome to stay with the children if they 

do not settle. 

Some of the children and helpers ready for the 

Sunday School Christmas Party 

As well as the Sunday groups there are 

groups during the week. 

BREATHE is the 11-18’s group whose 

aim is to be “Church for the next 

generation”. The group meets every 

Monday in homes around Countesthorpe. 

The 11-14’s meet first from 7 to 

8.30pm with the 15-18’s meeting from 

8 to 9.30pm. They meet for cake, fun and 

discussion. They talk about topics that 

are relevant to young people and see what 

God has to say about it! Regular socials 

are held and the group gets involved in 

the community events put on by Reality 

Youth Project. For more info contact 

Matt on 07841 054659. 

LET’S GO is a group for under 5’s and 

their parents or carers. The group meets on 

Thursday afternoons at 1.45pm, usually 


New multi-grain bread with great taste 

in The Cornerstone. Through music and 

singing, stories, crafts and other activities 

the children are introduced in a simple 

way to the Christian faith in a relaxed and 

welcoming environment. Parents/carers 

can relax and chat over a cup of tea whilst 

keeping an eye on their children in the 

play areas. 

CHILDREN’S 

WORKSHOPS 

In addition to the regular children’s work, 

St Andrew’s puts on occasional children’s 

‘workshops’ linked to special seasons 

in the Church’s year. In the past year 

workshops have been run on Good Friday 

and in Advent. These help the children 

to experience the Easter and Christmas 

stories in a new and different way and 

everyone has a thoroughly good time. 

Children enjoying the Advent Workshop 

CONTACT DETAILS 

If you would like to fi nd out more about 

the children’s groups please contact the 

St Andrew’s church offi ce - 277 8643 - 

or come along at the times given above. 

Everyone welcome. 

Stephanie Hubbard 

Meal Deal 

Lunch bags 

now available


LIONS ACHIEVE A ROARING SUCCESS 

Once again Blaby & District Lions 

weredoing their bit to collect money for 

BBC Children in Need. In an unusual 

twist on collection tins, volunteers were 

standing with huge wheelie bins at Fosse 

Park, urging drivers to offer a parking 

donation by throwing in their loose 

change as they drove by. 

On Friday November 20th members of 

Blaby & District Lions along with friends 

and other volunteers were out in force all 

day completing their annual collection 

for BBC Children in Need Appeal. 

Over the past 20 years the club have 

now collected the staggering total of 

£120,225. Pudsey Bear and his friends 

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were also collecting in and around Blaby 

Precinct, outside Aldi, and also at the 

new Park & Ride at Enderby as well as 

the main shopping areas of Fosse Park. 

Children in Need co-ordinator Lion 

President Mike Prideaux said “Blaby 

& District Lions are very grateful to 

the management of Fosse Park, Marks 

& Spencer, Enderby Park & Ride and 

Blaby Precinct and Aldi’s for allowing 

us to opportunity to support this very 

worthwhile cause.” 

“Each year it never ceases to amaze us the 

generosity shown by the public and this 

is clearly refl ected when we manage to 

raise over £6700 in one day alone.” 

“Such a busy day puts a huge pressure on 

our membership and we are very grateful 

for the additional support from friends 

and other members of the public.” 

NEWSPAPER 

COLLECTIONS 

Lorry collecting the 10 tonnes of newspapers 

from Anthony Herberts farm in December 

December’s delivery of used Newspapers 

to South Wales from the village was a 

staggering 10 tonnes. 

The current price for clean newsprint 

is still rising but is currently over £100 

per tonne. All the money raised by this 

voluntary project is being used for the 

benefi t of the village as a hardship fund. 

The only costs taken out of the money 

raised is haulage. We have been able to 

do a deal with a Newport based carrier 

on a return load basis – the cheapest way 

of moving goods around Britain. 

All the boxes you see around the village 

have all been donated as has the printing 

that has been required. 

We are indebted to Anthony Herbert 

for again allowing us to use one of his 

barns to store the Newsprint and to Chris 

Marshall for allowing one of his lads to 

load the Newsprint on to the lorry. 

To those of you who are helping in 

any way thank you for your continued 

support. Without you this would be an 

impossible task – many hands make light 

work springs to mind. The next stage 

is to get the Container sited and up and 

ready for use. 

There are many parts of the village were 

we still don’t have any collection boxes. 

If you would be prepared to have a box 

outside your home or you can help in any 

other way in the collection of newsprint 

please contact me on 0116 277 8025. 

Geoff Kirk


FOURTH PUBLIC 

MEETING CALLED 

22 FEBRUARY 

The Parish Council have received the 

expected planning application for 120 

houses on land off Willoughby Road. 

Following the public consultation by 

the developers agents at Countesthorpe 

College they have submitted what 

appears at fi rst sight to be an unaltered 

plan. Having attended the consultation 

and listened to the numerous residents 

expressing their concern it is of little 

surprise to note that the views of the 

residents have had little or no impact on 

the application. 

The Parish Council has called a special 

meeting at the Village Hall on Monday 

22nd February at 7.30 p.m. to allow 

residents the opportunity to express their 

opinions before the Council decide on 

their formal response to the consultation 

by Blaby District Council. The application 

is not expected to go before the Planning 

Committee at Blaby District Council 

before their March meeting but if the 

timing were to change the Parish Council 

meeting would be brought forward. 

It is disappointing to note that the second 

application for 150 houses on land off 

the Leysland estate was passed by Blaby 

District Council last week. 

This is in addition to the 110 houses to 

be built off Borrowcup Close and takes 

the total number of planning consents 

under the new planning requirements to 

339, 39 more than the village was told it 

would need to accommodate to meet the 

new housing requirement as laid down 

by central government. 

COUNTESTHORPE 

VILLAGE HALL 

PART TIME BAR 

SUPERVISOR 

required for the Village Hall. 

Job to include all aspects of running 

bar, approximately 15 hrs. per week. 

Work is mainly at weekends. 

Guaranteed set wage will be paid. 

Some fl exibility required. 

2 References to be supplied. 

Please apply in writing, no later 

than 18th February 2010 stating 

experience to:- 

Clerk to the Parish Council, 

Village Centre, Station Road, 

Countesthorpe, LE8 5TB 

Tel. 2779518 

Email: clerk@countesthorpeparishcouncil.co.uk 

Disappointingly this is already being 

referred to by planning officers as a 

“minimum” requirement with no limit 

being mentioned. Any additional building 

in our village will be greeted by other 

villages having their requirements 

reduced at our expense. 

This will lead to further speculative 

applications being made which may 

radically alter the size and nature of the 

village unless the District Council are 

prepared to resist the rush by builders to 

take advantage of the new rules at our 

expense. 

Hallam Developments whose application 

for 180 houses off Leicester Road was 

declined by the District Council have 

already filed their appeal against the 

decision. Martin Smith 

BEATING THE 

SNOW AND ICE … 

Despite apologies from the more distant 

villages, thirteen members turned up 

and enjoyed a rewarding Leicestershire 

Speakers meeting in January. 

It was an ‘impromptu’ evening organised 

by Jo Northam and Anne Jones. With ten 

minutes to prepare a fi ve-minute speech, 

everyone took part and produced an 

intriguing variety of styles. 

Dot Barnard’s contribution, ‘Classifi ed,’ 

breathed information and humour into 

the contents of our local and national 

press. Mark Glover’s ‘Head in the 

Clouds’ challenged those of us who had 

never learned – or forgotten – Latin, but 

nevertheless, was hugely entertaining and 

Morag Wilkes was certainly ‘On the Ball’ 

with her suitably vigorous approach. 

The lively, laughter-packed evening 

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was well worth effort for the brave souls 

turned out to beat the snow and ice. 

The Leicestershire Speakers welcome 

anyone who would like to learn the art 

of speaking in public. Our meetings are 

supportive, informative and entertaining. 

We offer enthusiasm and encouragement 

to help turn nervous wrecks into confi dent 

speakers. We meet at 7.30pm on the second 

Wednesday of each month at the Blaby 

Drop-In Centre. For more information 

ring Anne Jones on 2772295, or visit our 

website www.leicspeakers.co.uk. 

We are also available to give entertainment 

and talks to other societies and groups. 

MANGA CAFÉ 

Is a monthly group for fans of anime 

and manga. It meets at Enderby Library 

on the fi rst Saturday of the month (next 

meeting 6th February), from 1-2pm 

(while the library is closed). If you’re 

interested in manga or anime and want 

a chance to chat with other fans, please 

join us. The group invites members of all 

ages; currently the majority are in their 

teens or twenties. For more info phone 

Ali at Enderby on 305 3523 or visit www. 

leics.gov.uk/manga.htm 

ROMP IN THE SWAMP 

This half term, keep your little monkeys 

busy by swinging in to a Romp in the 

Swamp down at the library. We will be 

having stories and activities with a jungle 

theme. This is likely to be a very popular 

event, so be sure to arrive on time, as 

places will be allocated on a fi rst come, 

fi rst served basis. Wednesday 17th Feb. 

10:30-12:00, Countesthorpe Library. 

Thursday 18th Feb, 2:30-4:00, Blaby 

Library.


BUILDING SERVICES 

CLIVE CUMBERLIDGE 

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☎ 277 9543 

R B SMITH 

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Contractor 

☎ 07970 869775 

6 Tebbs Close, Countesthorpe 

CARPENTER 

CHRIS ANDREWS 

Your local carpenter 

To fi t Kitchens, lay fl oors and hang doors 

☎ 277 0912 

Mob: 07870 646142 

CARPET CLEANING 

CARPET & UPHOLSTERY CLEANING 

Powerful Truck Mounted System 

All types of Carpets & Upholstery 

Oriental Carpets and Rugs 

DuPont Protection Treatments 

☎ 279 6969 

A.T. BROWN & SON, CLEANCARE SERVICES 

COMPUTERS 

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For all your business and home 

computing needs call Edward 

☎ 277 2419 

Mob: 07940 658340 

GARDEN SERVICES 

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LOCAL TREE SURGEON 

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NO JOB TOO BIG OR SMALL 

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LOCAL SERVICES DIRECTORY 

HOUSEHOLD 

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Household Maintenance, Plumbing, 

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☎ 277 6620 

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INFORMATION 

COUNTESTHORPE 

INFORMATION CENTRE 

• Bus Timetables • Where to go 

• What’s on • Welfare Rights & Benefi ts 

Open: Mondays & Wednesdays, 10 a.m. - 12p.m. 

St Andrews House, Main Street 

☎ 277 8643 

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A MEETING OF THE COUNTESTHORPE 

PARISH COUNCIL WAS HELD IN THE 

VILLAGE HALL, STATION ROAD, 

COUNTESTHORPE, ON THURSDAY, 

12th NOVEMBER 2009 AT 7.30 PM WHEN 

THERE WERE PRESENT: 

Mr M Smith: Chairman 

Mesdames M Baum, J Jennings, J Weatherstone 

Messrs A Collis-Smith, A Clifford, 

Rev. M Gillespie, P Holdridge, D Jennings, 

K Mason, I Paterson, B Smith 

Mrs J Adcock: Clerk to the Council 

Mrs P Mount: Deputy Clerk to the Council 

There were 3 members of the public present 

POLICE MATTERS 

The Chairman gave mention and welcomed the 

police presence on the evening of Halloween 

and also their attendance at the Remembrance 

Sunday Service. 

PLANNING APPLICATIONS 

Mrs J Jennings reported on the following 

Planning Permission (subject to conditions): 

7 The Square; 1 The Vineries; 6 Linden Avenue; 

76 Cosby Road; 26 Ludlam Close; 3 The Dales; 

Bungalow, Countesthorpe College, Winchester 

Road. 

Planning Applications 

12 Poplar Avenue (single storey rear extension); 

1 Stanyon Close (erection of new double garage 

and new pitched roof over existing garage); 

Amberlee House, Peatling House Farm, Main 

Street (insertion of additional windows to front 

and side elevation): No observations 

Land east of Scalborough Close, The Leyslands 

(residential development of 150 houses with 

associated landscaping and infrastructure): see 

notes below 

Land east of Scalborough Close 

In the fi rst instance the Clerk was asked to 

ring the case offi cer at Blaby District Council 

and ask for a deferment as the Parish Council 

wished to call a Special Parish Council Meeting 

to discuss this matter and allow parishioners 

to voice their views. If an extension is granted 

the date for the meeting will be Monday 7th 

December, if not the meeting will be held on 

Monday 23rd November. 

Blaby District Council has notifi ed the Parish 

Council that the residential development of 

110 houses with associated landscaping and 

infrastructure – land north of Borrowcup 

Close will be placed on the agenda for the 

Development Control Committee on 19th 

November with a recommendation for approval. 

After a discussion the Chairman agreed to write 

a statement on behalf of the Parish Council 

objecting to the application. Mrs Joy Jennings 

agreed to read out this statement on behalf of the 

Parish Council. This can only be carried out if 

there is a request from a member of the public 

who wishes to speak. 

The Clerk was asked to notify the case offi cer 

Nigel Wright of this fact. 

Blaby District Council has notifi ed the 

Parish Council that Outline application 

for residential development (maximum 180 

dwellings) with associated landscaping and 

infrastructure with access from Leicester 

Road – land at Leicester Road will be 

placed on the agenda for the Development 

Control Committee on 19th November with a 

recommendation for refusal. 

As the recommendation is to refuse this 

application the Parish Council will not make 

any statement unless a member of the public 

requests to speak at the meeting. The Chairman 

agreed to prepare a statement for Mrs Jennings 

to read if this scenario arises. 

The Clerk will contact Mr I Davies, Planning 

Offi cer at Blaby District Council, to ask if he 

will notify her if anyone indicates that they will 

be speaking at the meeting so that she will in 

turn be able to inform him that Mrs Jennings 

will be speaking on behalf of the Parish Council. 

Mr A Collis-Smith stated that the pumping 

station for the Leysland estate, in Scalborough 

Close, had failed and emergency measures have 

had to be taken by the owners of the pumping 

system. This pumping station has never been 

adopted by Severn Trent. New pumps are 

now being installed. Mr Collis-Smith is of the 

opinion that before any planning applications 

are considered this pumping station needs to be 

adopted. 

Section 106 Requirements 

106 agreements are made with the district 

council by housing developers when plans for 

future developments are received. The money 

from these agreements has in the past been used 

by the d istrict council without any consultation 

with the Parish Council. 

The Clerk reported that a meeting was held in 

December 2008 with members of the Parish 

Council and the Housing Strategy and Policy 

Offi cer Blaby District Council whereby the 

Parish Council’s concerns were raised with 

regard to 106 monies not coming to the Parish. 

The Offi cer advised the Parish Council to 

produce a “wish list” of areas where they 

consider this money should be spent. This was 

prepared and sent to Blaby District Council. 

The Parish Council’s District Councillors were 

urged by members to lobby the District Council, 

if these planning applications are approved, to 

ensure that 106 monies are given to the Parish 

Council to improve the village or at least 

consulted as to where the money is being spent. 

MAINTENANCE OF COUNCIL 

PROPERTIES 

Insurance 

The insurance on the new Council vehicle is 

due in December. The Clerk asked where she 

should go to get quotations. She was advised to 

ask our current brokers, T Ball, to make further 

enquiries in the fi rst instance. 

Park Equipment 

The Clerk reported that the two new spring toys 

for Leysland Park and the slide in Dale Acre 

should be fi tted this week. 

The Clerk read an e-mail from a young resident 

of the village about the poor quality of park 

equipment in Countesthorpe compared to other 

villages. 

A further letter has been received with regards 

to park equipment at the Leysland 

A letter from Blaby District Council with regard 

to an outdoor basketball initiative was passed to 

Mr A Clifford for this attention. 

St. Andrew’s Churchyard 

The Clerk was asked to obtain quotations for the 

repairs to the footpaths in the churchyard. 

REPORTS OF WORKING PARTIES, AND 

COUNCILLORS 

Finance Working Party 

Mr K Mason reported on the following: 

Staff Salary Increase: It was resolved that 

a 1.25% increase be accepted for the Clerk, 

Deputy Clerk, Groundsmen, Caretaker and 

Cleaners as from 1st April 2009. 

Grant Aid: A request for grant aide has been 

received from the Citizens Advice Bureau. The 

working party recommended that grant aid of 

£250 under section 137 be granted. This was 

resolved. 

Audit 2008/09: The external auditor 

recommended that the Parish Council adopt 

Standing Orders. Mr I Paterson proposed, 

seconded by Mr D Jennings, that standing orders 

should not be accepted. This was unanimously 

resolved. 

It was recommended by the auditor that a 

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risk register should be operated. This was 

discussed at length by the working party and it 

was resolved in the fi rst instance that attention 

should be given to the cemetery and staff 

salaries. The Clerk was asked to approach other 

parishes to ascertain their method of payment 

for salaries. 

VISION GROUP – REPORT THEREOF 

Rev. M Gillespie reported that the arrangements 

for the Christmas Spectacular were well in hand. 

Councillors were reminded again that they 

would be expected to “shake” collection tins in 

aid of the Air Ambulance appeal. 

VILLAGE HALL – REPORT THEREOF 

The Clerk reported that she had been advised 

by Blaby District Council that elections would 

either be held on the 6th May 2010 or 3rd in the 

2010 diary. 

U3A: A letter has been received from the U3A 

with regard to the picture hanging rails in the 

hall. Mr I Paterson volunteered to speak to the 

U3A on this matter and report back to the next 

meeting. 

Till for bar: Mr P Holdridge was thanked for 

his input with regard to purchasing a new till 

for the bar. This has now been installed. The 

bar supervisor recommended a few changes to 

prices. 

YOUTH WORK WITHIN THE VILLAGE 

Mr Clifford announced that the youth team, led 

by Kirk Sellars, was opening a Youth Club at the 

College tonight for over 16 year olds and it was 

the fi rst of its kind in the village for 6 years. 

ALLOTMENTS – GLEBE DRIVE 

A letter from Mrs C Fisher, Secretary of the 

Allotments Society, Glebe Drive, was circulated 

to members prior to the meeting. 

This letter sets out who she has contacted with 

regard to the possible sale of the allotment land. 

Mr Jennings stated that he had forwarded a 

copy of the letter to Mr G Clark, Blaby District 

Council, Planning Department. Mr Clark 

replied: 

1. The letter to Mr Smith from Mrs Fisher (19th 

October 2009) – the allotment site is included 

within the site shown in the Strategic Housing 

Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA). The 

site was submitted by the Leicester Diocesan 

Board of Finance. In its submission to the 

District Council there is reference to the 

retention of an area for continued allotment 

use. It may be appropriate to remind the Parish 

Council and the Gardens and Allotments that the 

purpose of the SHLAA is to provide evidence 

that informs the preparation of the Local 

Development Framework. It is not a document 

which allocates land for house development. 

2. On a related issue the District Council has 

J Free education for children aged 3 to 5 

(children taken from their 3rd birthday) 

J Qualifi ed teacher & Nursery Nurses amongst the staff 

J Purpose built accommodation with extensive outdoor play areas 

J A safe, secure and stimulating environment 

J Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum 

to lead to approved learning goals 

been asked to provide a ‘screening opinion’ for 

a potential planning application on a larger area 

of land off Willoughby Road. The allotment 

site falls within this area. Please contact 

Andrew Senior or Ian Davies if you would fi nd 

it helpful to discuss the Screening Opinion. 

3. Should BDC receive an application for 

housing development on the allotment site, one 

of the policies which it would be considered 

against would be Policy L2 of the Blaby 

District Local Plan. This policy protects 

allotments, although it allows for suitable 

alternative provision. 

Rev M Gillespie stated that the vicar had 

received a letter from the Diocese stating that the 

allotments will not be part of the land for sale. 

Mr I Paterson felt that consideration by the 

Parish Council should be given to purchasing 

the whole of the Glebe land, which includes 

allotments, in order to protect it from future 

development. 

The Clerk was asked to reply to Mrs Fisher 

stating that the Parish Council strongly supports 

the retention of the allotments. The Diocese 

does not intend to sell the allotments and Blaby 

District Council have provision in hand to 

protect allotments. 

VILLAGE FILMS – REQUEST FROM 

HERITAGE GROUP 

No reply has yet been received from MACE 

with regard to the cost of reproducing the 

DVDs. 

BUS SERVICE NO. 45 

A letter has been received from the Leader of 

the County Council, Mr D Parsons, with regard 

to the reduction in the 45 bus service. The 

letter stated that as all the settlements on the 

route covered by route 45 do have alternative 

bus services and all journeys can be made 

by connection either to the CircleLine or in 

Leicester city centre the County Council will 

not continue to subsidise this service. 

CONDITION OF VILLAGE FOOTPATHS 

The Clerk reported that she had received, over 

the past year, numerous complaints about the 

condition of pavements in the village, the last 

being Gillam Butts. These complaints have 

been reported to the Highways Department. 

An e-mail from the Highways Department 

states that the Gillam Butts footpaths were due 

to be re-laid during 2009/2010 but another area 

outside of the village has taken priority. 

A timetable has been drawn up to repair the 

worst footpaths on the Gwendoline Drive estate 

over the next 5 years. 

The Clerk was advised to write to Mr Lugg 

asking him to look into this matter. 

Meeting closed at 9.25 pm. 

Names taken for waiting list from age 1 

Hours of part-time sessions 

(5 per week) 9.15 - 11.45 or 12.30 - 3pm. 

All visits welcomed. Telephone 277 3489 

The Drive, Countesthorpe, Leicester LE8 5PB 

A MEETING OF THE COUNTESTHORPE 

PARISH COUNCIL WAS HELD IN THE 

VILLAGE HALL, STATION ROAD, 

COUNTESTHORPE, ON THURSDAY, 

10th DECEMBER 2009 AT 7.30 PM WHEN 

THERE WERE PRESENT: 

Mr M Smith: Chairman 

Mr D Ball: Vice Chairman 

Mesdames G Farrands, C James, J Jennings 

Messrs T Blood, A Collis-Smith, F E Duffi eld, 

P Holdridge, D Jennings, K Mason, I Paterson 

Mrs J Adcock: Clerk to the Council 

Mrs P Mount: Deputy Clerk to the Council 

There were 6 members of the public present 

The Chairman, on behalf of the Council, wished 

to send good wishes to Mr J Jeffcott, Senior 

Groundsman, for a speedy recovery. 

POLICE MATTERS 

Mr D Ball reported that the local police offi cer 

was in regular contact with the Parish Offi ce. 

PLANNING APPLICATIONS 

Mrs J Jennings reported on the following: 

Information regarding the proposed quality 

bus corridor improvements A426 Aylestone 

Road/Lutterworth Road/Leicester Road has 

been received. 

Planning Permission/Refusal 

1A Leicester Road: Application granted subject 

to conditions attached to planning permission. 

Land north of Borrowcup Close*: Application 

granted subject to conditions attached to 

planning permission. 

Land at Leicester Road**: Refusal of outline 

planning permission 

* Conditions and reasons for application being 

granted have been circulated to all members of 

the Parish Council. 

10 Willoughby Road - this application has been 

withdrawn. 

Planning Applications 

2 New Street (retention of boundary well and 

fencing): No observations 

1 Benskyn Close (retention of conversion of 

garage to treatment room): No observations 

The Chairman asked members if they would 

permit a representative from the Allotment 

Society to speak on a proposed planning 

application for land east of Willoughby Road. 

Permission was granted. 

The representative stated that the Glebe 

Committee of the Diocese had decided not to 

sell the land on which the allotments stand. 

They would give the allotment society a 25 year 

lease which was something they had never had 

but welcomed. However, the committee did 

agree to look to sell the rest of the glebe land 

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for development with a right of access over 

the allotments. The allotment society felt that 

this would destroy the allotment community 

as it would be divided into two halves by a 

fence. Allowing access through the allotments 

would also mean that traffi c would have access 

to Glebe Drive, a very narrow roadway. As 

the only other access to the site would be 

Willoughby Road it is felt that a ‘rat run’ into 

the village would be created. 

The Chairman stated that it was not possible to 

make observations on a planning application 

that had not yet been offi cially submitted. 

If plans were submitted a Special Parish Council 

Meeting would be called to allow parishioners 

to express their views. 

The Chairman stated that a Public Exhibition 

of the proposed development will be held on 

Tuesday, 15th December at 3.30 – 7.30 pm in 

the dining hall of Countesthorpe Community 

College, Winchester Road. 

MAINTENANCE OF COUNCIL 

PROPERTIES 

Mr D Ball reported on the working party 

meeting held on 7th December 2009: 

Shetland Way A resident of Shetland Way has 

requested that the crab apple tree on land near 

to the car park in Shetland Way be cut down. 

Upon inspection it was decided to prune the tree 

further but not remove it. 

Dale Acre Park A letter has been received from 

a resident about their concern that equipment at 

the park had been vandalised. All vandalised 

equipment has now been repaired. A letter will 

be sent to the resident informing them of the 

action that the Council has taken. 

A further letter has been received complaining 

about the poor standard of the equipment in 

Dale Acre Park compared to parks in Knighton 

and Broughton Astley. 

The Chairman of the working party asked if 

money could be put in the budget, for next year, 

to allow for the replacement of the two spring 

toys which were vandalised many years ago. 

Approximately £4000 would be required. 

REPORTS OF WORKING PARTIES 

AND COUNCILLORS 

106 Monies 

A meeting was held with Mr A Senior, 

Development Control Manager, Blaby District 

Council to discuss 106 monies. 

Mr Senior was informed that a meeting had 

taken place on 12th November 2008 with Mr 

I Jones, Housing Strategy and Policy Offi cer, 

Blaby District Council, who advised the meeting 

on the use of 106 monies. The Council were 

advised by Mr Jones to produce a “wish list” 

which would then be in place should a section 

106 agreement arise from future development 

plans. 

This list was produced and Mr Jones stated in a 

letter dated 23rd December 2008 that this had 

been forwarded to Mr Senior in the planning 

department for his consideration. 

Mr Senior stated that of the ten items on 

the “wish list” the only one which might be 

considered was the one for an extension to the 

cemetery. 

After a discussion it was resolved to send a 

letter to Mr Senior thanking him for attending 

the meeting and to state that the Council were 

pleased that he would negotiate on their behalf. 

Finance Working Party 

A request for grant aid (section 137) monies has 

been received from the Stuart Cosby Memorial 

Trust. Mr I Paterson declared an interest as he is 

a member of this committee. 

The Trust received a grant of £1000 on 17th 

April 2008. It was resolved to give the Trust a 

further £1,000 this year. 

The Clerk read a letter from Blaby District 

Council with regard to an application for grant 

aid towards Mobile Youth Provision. 

Mr I Paterson stated that he was of the opinion 

that the Blaby Central Community Forum was 

sponsoring this particular project from their 

£20,000 budget. 

After further discussions it was decided not to 

contribute to this project as it was felt that this 

would not benefi t the youths of Countesthorpe. 

VILLAGE HALL – REPORT THEREOF 

U3A 

A debate re the use and ownership of the 

hanging rails in the Village Hall has been held 

and a satisfactory conclusion reached. 

VISION GROUP – REPORT THEREOF 

Christmas Spectacular – 2010 

A working party meeting was held on Monday 

7th December 2009. 

The next meeting of the working party will 

be held on Monday 19th April at 10 am in the 

Village Hall. 

The collection for the Air Ambulance raised 

£131.12 on the evening. Approximately 500 

people attended the event. 

VILLAGE FILMS – REQUEST FROM 

HERITAGE GROUP 

MACE has stated that the cost to copy the 

village fi lms would be approximately £380 for 

10 copies. 

After a discussion it was resolved to ask the 

Heritage Group to produce copies. 

SEWAGE – SCALBOROUGH CLOSE 

Once again the sewage pumping station in 

Scalborough Close has failed. This caused foul 

sewage to fl ow into gardens, onto footways and 

into the brook. 

Persimmon has taken appropriate remedial 

action. Tankers were used to empty the 

accumulated sewage from the holding tanks and 

temporary pumps have been installed pending 

an approved upgrade of the pumping station. 

SNIBSTON’S CENTURY 

THEATRE ROCKS! 

Snibston’s Century Theatre is set to rock 

next month as it welcomes the fi rst of 

its tribute bands for the year, The Floyd 

Effect. 

The Pink Floyd tribute band will play 

at the Century Theatre, Coalville on 

Saturday, 20th February and will recreate 

the music and magic of the last four 

decades. 

Avid followers of the former super group 

will not be disappointed as the best- loved 

tunes are brought to life by this talented 

ensemble. With the latest lighting and 

projections to fi ll the atmospheric theatre, 

a fantastic time for all is guaranteed! 

Tickets for ‘A Tribute to Pink Floyd’ by 

the Floyd Effect are £15 on the night or 

£12.50 in advance. Start time, 7.30pm. 

Bookings can be made by calling 01530 

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PAUL RICKETTS – 

“CUTTER’S CHOICE” 

Fast rising black comedian Paul Ricketts 

brings his popular show ‘Cutter’s Choice’ 

to the Leicester Comedy Festival 

following a successful run at The Hen & 

Chicken’s Theatre, London and tour of 

North London Schools as part of Islington 

Council’s Black History Month. 

First premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe 

2009 his latest show is a comic personal 

and political black hair-story. The 

audience gets to choose Paul’s new haircut 

as he traces the funny and sometimes 

embarrassing relationship between hair 

fashion and social change. The search for 

a black identity as represented through 

his choices of hairstyle – from bald head 

to dreads, kinky to straight, fl at-top to 

Afro. 

Paul’s distinctive skewed view of the 

world informs his black ‘sub–urban’ 

comedy. His intelligent humour focuses 

not only on sharp observations from 

life, but also racial, cultural and satirical 

subjects, intermingled with strange 

tales of ordinary madness. Paul is 

now in demand as an act and MC at 

prestigious venues such the Comedy 

Store (London & Manchester), Just 

The Tonic, Nottingham, The Glee Club, 

Birmingham and clubs across the UK. 

“There is no show here at the (Edinburgh) 

Fringe that is as informative as well as 

funny.” The New Current 

Show 8pm, £5, £4 concs, February 10- 

11, Kayal Restaurant, 153 Granby Street, 

Leicester LE1 1FE 

COAST TO COAST WALK 

IN AID OF LOROS 

Adrian Walker is calling on walkers 

from across the county to take part in the 

Coast to Coast Walk in aid of LOROS, 

the Leicestershire and Rutland Hospice. 

The Albert Wainwright route was created 

to cross the country from St Bees in the 

Lake District through to Robin Hood’s 

Bay in Yorkshire. Wainwright believed 

in getting to high land to get the best 

views and therefore the route is somewhat 

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hilly! The 192 mile route completed over 

13 days is challenging, and takes you 

through some of the best countryside in 

Britain, including the Lake District, the 

Yorkshire Dales and the remote North 

Yorkshire moors. 

The 2010 walk will start on Wednesday 

22nd September and fi nish on Wednesday 

6th October 2010 and a new team of up 

to ten people is being sought.. 

LOROS Senior Fundraiser, Adrian 

Walker, who organises the training walks 

and completed the Wainwright Walk on 

fi ve occasions said, “The Coast to Coast 

Walk is a great challenge and not beyond 

most people. It gives participants the 

opportunity to get fi t, learn about map and 

compass skills, learn fi rst aid/survival tips 

and raise funds for a great local charity, 

LOROS. This really is a “must do” event 

in your lifetime.” 

At regular meetings and training 

sessions the group will get to know their 

travelling companions and elect daily 

walk leaders. The accommodation will be 

a combination of Youth Hostels and Bed 

and Breakfast establishments. The total 

costing, including food, accommodation, 

transport fuel etc will be approximately 

£600 per person. 

On average walkers are travelling 15 

miles a day (the shortest day is 9 miles 

and the longest 21 miles), with no rest 

days for 13 days. 

As each person pays their own costs, 

there is no set amount that walkers are 

asked to pledge for participating. It is 

hoped, however, that £1,000 is raised 

for LOROS. 

Anyone who is interested in taking 

part in the 2010 walk, should contact 

Adrian Walker, on 2318431 or e-mail 

adrianwalker@loros.co.uk. 

HERALD COPY DATES 2010 

Issue Copy date Layout Publish Committee 

265 14 Jan 21-22 Jan 29 Jan 9 Feb 

266 11 Mar 18-19 Mar 26 Mar 6 Apr 

267 13 May 20-21 May 28 May 8 June 

268 22 July 29-30 July 6 Aug 17 Aug 

269 16 Sept 23-24 Sept 1 Oct 12 Oct 

270 11 Nov 18-19 Nov 26 Nov 7 Dec 

 

 

 

Frances Frances Jacobs, Jacobs will will be at be Countesthorpe at Countesthorpe Library, 

Station Road on Wednesday 7th October, 

Wednesday Library, 4th Station November Road & one Wednesday Wednesday 9th per 

December month between 2009 between 10am 10am and noon & 12noon to give to free give 

you free legal advice. If you have any legal concerns 

you legal are advice. invited to Please come and phone discuss the them Blaby with Offi ce 

Frances or alternatively for more please details contact our Blaby 

Office for further information.


FAIRTRADE 

FORTNIGHT 

Recent years have seen a huge growth in 

the Fairtrade movement and many local 

folk choose to support the movement’s 

aims whenever practical and possible by 

buying fairly traded goods. Businesses 

and producers in developing countries 

are given fair and supportive contracts 

through Fairtrade organisations, so are 

able to plan ahead better and pass on this 

stability to their families and workers, 

thus also enhancing the local economy. 

This year’s Fairtrade Fortnight from 

February 21st to March 6th will be 

marked in Countesthorpe as in recent 

years in three specifi c ways. There is to 

be a stall in the village library selling a 

selection of goods brought along from 

our Rainbow Shop, so please bring some 

money when you come to change your 

library books and perhaps buy some of 

our coffee or teabags or treat yourself to 

a packet of Geo bars (several fl avours 

available) sweets or delicious chocolate. 

If anyone feels they would like to help on 

this stall please contact me on 2776259 

and I will pass on your offer to Anne 

Tester who is making up the rota! The 

library staff will be holding a Coffee 

Morning from 10.30 am on Wednesday 

February 24th using Fairtrade goods, 

and the Methodist Saturday coffee 

mornings on the weekends of February 

27th and March 6th will also feature a 

Fairtrade stall whose ‘goodies’ will also 

be available after the Sunday services. 

Don’t forget that a wider range of goods 

is always available in the Rainbow Shop 

and Information Centre just next to St 

Andrew’s church and opposite the Co-op, 

and if you are in Leicester and present 

hunting the Just Shop has moved to 36 

Silver St, on the edge of St Martin’s Sq. 

We would like to congratulate Leysland 

High School who support Fairtrade all 

year in school. 

PatsyP 

All Aerial Work 

undertaken 

TV set up 

and guidance 

U3A 

NEWS 

Countesthorpe University of the Third 

Age committee members have a strange 

problem really – too much success! Just 

as the group celebrates its tenth birthday, 

the committee feels it must put a halt to 

new enrolment while they search for a 

solution to the amazing attendance at 

the regular main monthly meetings, just 

about fi lling the Village Hall. This is an 

obvious and almost ideal place to meet 

and use as the hub for the organisation, 

which is of course aimed at retired folk, 

and in fact has over the years attracted 

folk from right across the area. There are 

of course lots of U3As in our county and 

some very close at hand, so no one should 

be excluded from joining the organisation 

nationally. 

The committee of course have had 

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22 The Elms, Countesthorpe 

Inside Out 

numerous ‘wild’ suggestions for cutting 

down attendance at the meetings 

– including having boring speakers, 

sending out more information to members 

so there is not the need to attend the 

monthly meetings, having a raffle to 

select who can come next month or 

simply shutting the door when the hall 

is full! 

Before long I confidently expect to 

be writing another article explaining a 

slightly amended pattern of working for 

Countesthorpe’s popular group, as the 

committee discuss and debate all the 

options for reopening membership in 

consultation with other U3As in similar 

circumstances, and mulling over the more 

constructive suggestions from members. 

From now on, members who would fi nd 

it more convenient can gather for coffee 

on the morning of the monthly meeting 

between 10.30 am and 12 noon to get 

the latest news about trips, theatre visits 

and updates about any other groups, 

instead of going in the afternoon for the 

main talk. 

We await any more changes with 

interest! Meanwhile activities continue 

– and Bill Collett took a moment during 

the Archaeology Group visit to Market 

Harborough Museum to try on the Roman 

helmet as you can see. 

PatsyP 

Home & Garden maintenance. Local reliable service. For a free quotation 

please call Gary Hawkins on 07929 874 928 or email garyhawk@hotmail.


Flowers by Betty Bolton 

Published by The New Countesthorpe Herald. Printed by Alice (graphics), Countesthorpe 

BOWLING CLUB 

GIVES TO CHARITY 

At the beginning of each year the 

presidents of both the men’s and ladies 

sections choose one or two charities to 

support and we raise money throughout 

the year at various club events, but 

mainly from the proceeds of the Charity 

Gala held in August. At the end of the 

season a dinner/dance is held at the 

Conservative Club at which trophies and 

prizes are presented to the winners of club 

competitions. It was at this event that our 

ladies president, Mrs Bridget Gardiner, 

handed over a cheque for £960 to a 

representative from the Air Ambulance 

and a further donation of £240 was given 

to the Diabetes Society, which brings 

the total charity money given to £1200. 

This was a splendid result. Well done 

to everybody who helped to raise this 

money, and particularly to Bridget for 

her tremendous effort. 

We hope that all our members will have 

a happy, healthy and successful year 

ahead. Remember, that although winter 

is upon us the days are lengthening and 

this means that we are advancing towards 

the start of another outdoor bowling 

season. 

DODGE THIS! 

DODGEBALL CLUB 

Those looking for a fun way to make a 

healthy start to 2010 could try a new sport 

that is quickly growing in popularity. 

A year old, the Enderby Dodgeball Club 

“Dodge This!” are on the look out for 

both new male and female players for 

2010. 

The Enderby Dodgeball sessions started 

in January and will be held every Tuesday 

from 8.30pm to 10.30pm at the Enderby 

Leisure Centre on Mill Lane. 

Dodge This! at Enderby is going strong 

but with new members attending it 

will provide the opportunity for the 

club to enter league and tournament 

Dodgeball. 

Sessions are for those aged 14 and above, 

and beginners are welcome. 

Further information is available from 

Simon Moody a Level Two Qualifi ed 

Dodgeball Coach with the UKDBA 

(UK Dodgeball Association) who is 

using his qualifi cation to push Dodgeball 

in the local area, as well as getting 

young people and adults active. Contact 

him on 07743 098544 or by email at: 

enderbydodgeball@googlemail.com and 

website www.letsplaydodgeball.co.uk 

Countesthorpe Herald 

herald@macunlimited .net 

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