Updated 9th October 2024
Wilshamstead Parish Council
Average Speed Camera Installation Latest
The Parish Council expect that the improvement works required as phase one of the average speed camera installation in Cotton End Road will be work on the street light columns by the local authority minor highway works contractor, Breheny, by the end of September,
This will be followed by the camera installation works by Jenoptik. The Parish Council have committed funds to this long-awaited project. The Parish Council are in regular communications to local authority Officers to stay updated on all aspects of the installation scheme.
Christmas Lights Turn On Date For The Diary
We have set a date for the annual switch-on of our Christmas Lights for Friday 29th November at 7.30pm. Final confirmation will be in the November newsletter
Local Community Police Reminder
The Police use 'Beds Connect' which is a platform in use by the Police Watch scheme. Do sign up to receive email updates, by following QR Code.
Incidents and concerns can be reported at www.beds.police.uk where an online form can be completed, or you can partake in a web-chat, or of course you can dial 101, or 999 in an emergency.
The Police Crime Commissioner has announced a Tackling Rural Crime 2024 event will be taking place at Scald End Farm, Thurleigh, MK44 2DP from 09:45 – 13:00 hrs on Wednesday 6th November. This event is to provide an opportunity to discuss the issues and look for solutions against rural crime. Members of the community cano book their place by contacting pcc@beds.police.uk or for more information contact the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner on 01234 842067.
Bedford Flood Forum Event
Bedford Borough Council is hosting a Flood Forum on Thursday 3rd October from 6-8.30pm hosted by the Mayor and Council partners.
The Flood Forum will be an opportunity for local communities to find out more about flooding and flood risk management across Bedford Borough. Everyone is welcome at the event, if you are interested in attending please book a free ticket using the link https://tinyurl.com/5n886zm6.
Universal Studios Update
As part of the ongoing community engagement work being carried out by Universal Studios representatives of Wilstead Parish Council are to attend a meeting on 18th September with some of the Universal team who are over visiting the UK. Feedback will be included in the next Parish Council update.
Contacting The Parish Council
The best way to contact the Parish Council is to email Lizzie the Parish Clerk at
office@wilsteadparishcouncil.org.
Alternatively you can call 01234 743152 or write to PO Box 1548, Bedford, MK44 5AX.
Please note the Parish Office (at the rear of the Village Hall) is open most Mondays, 9am to midday. It is worth ringing in advance to ensure it is open.
It is always more interesting to attend a Parish Council meeting in person to see what goes on and understand the range of items covered in trying to move improvements for the Wilstead community forwards. Dates have been set now, with meetings on a Monday starting at 7pm in the small hall at Wilstead Village Hall, head to the left hand side of the main hall building and you will see the door open which is where the Parish Council will be.
Everyone is most welcome to join us, on 14th October, 25th November, 6th January, 10th February and 10th March.
All Saints Church
United in Faith Welcoming All
The services have been planned for October as follows:
Sunday 6th October 11.00am Morning Praise
Helen Harbron-Applegarth
Sunday 13th October 11.00 am Holy Communion Fr Paul Messam
Sunday 20th October 11.00 am Holy Communion
Rev Steve Marsh
Sunday 27th October 11.00 am Holy Communion
Fr Paul Messam
The Coffee Morning on 18th September in the Chapter House was a great success with over 30 people attending . We raised £199.00 for church funds.
The next Coffee Mornings is are Wednesday 16th October and on Wednesday 20th November.
We are planning our usual Advent Fair and Christmas Tree Festival on Saturday 30th November. Organisations are invited to bring a Christmas Tree on the day before.
There will be the usual stalls plus delicious refreshments. From 12 noon onwards.
As usual there will be a Remembrance Day Service on Remembrance Sunday 10th November
Look forward to welcoming you to All Saints at this busy time of the year.
Robert Heley
Wilstead Bowls Club
The outdoor season has now come to an end. Congratulations go to all those who made it through to the Finals Weekend on the 14th and 15th September.
Winners were:
Mens
George White Singles. - Ed Wilson.
4 Woods Singles - Dave Rosier.
Handicap Singles. - Roy Whiffin.
4 Wood Pairs - Jeffrey Burden, Ed Wilson.
Brian Crouch 3 Wood Triples.- Roger Gould, Gordon Clarke, and Barry Gray.
Ladies
2 Woods Singles.- Barbara Carter.
3 Wood Singles. - Ann Rosier.
4 Wood Singles.- Ann Rosier.
Pairs. - Marie Crowe, Sandra Spinks.
Fixed Jack. - Barbara Carter
Mixed
2 wood Singles. - Roy Whiffin
3 Wood Triples. - Jean Ward, Jeffrey Burden, and Graham Field
The short mat season has now started in the hall on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons, with league matches on a Thursday evening.
Upcoming Diary Dates
Bingo and Curry Night.
Saturday 12th October Eyes Down 7.30pm.
Finals Presentation Buffet Lunch.
Sunday 3rd November.
If you need any club information you can contact.
Sue Marchant - Club Secretary
07716 676383 sue@marchantonline.com
Or visit our website. www.wilsteadbowlsclub.co.uk
Quiz Time Again
Wilstead Garden Club will be holding their annual quiz a month earlier than usual on Tuesday 15th October at the usual time of 2.30pm. Fiendish garden related questions will be set by our quizmaster Mary, who assures us they are not fiendish or difficult. Quizzing can be done individually or teams and it is purely for fun. Entry £3 as usual.
Our September meeting was well attended by 38 members. We started with a catch up about future events and congratulating the many successes in the recent Flower, Produce and Handicraft Show. We were also delighted to welcome 4 new members and to see Mary back with us.
Our speaker was a familiar face, Michael Brown. He took us on a journey with 100, or possibly more, objects and people involved in managing the soil from the prehistoric to today. Who knew the head gardeners on large estates had equal status to the butler, wore a top hat and didn't get their hands dirty. Or first spades were wooden! Sounds mad but strong metal hadn't been invented and a gory detail was it was quieter for grave robbers. Some objects were familiar, others seemed unnecessarily complicated such as the mouse traps with many moving parts. Once again Michael gave us lots of fascinating stories and information.
Everyone is welcome to our meetings and don't be put off with a quiz, it's a good chance to socialise. We look forward to seeing you in October.
Wilstead Garden Club Committee
Maralyn, Lynda, Viv, Mary, Julie, Annette, and Chris
wilsteadgardenclub@hotmail.com
Going for Gold
Holiday Bible Club
The Olympics and Paralympics may be over, but there's still a chance to join in with some Olympic fun in October half term. Why not come along to the Going for Gold Holiday Bible Club, where we'll be learning about the greatest victory ever won?
From Tuesday 29th to Thursday 31st October we'll be at Wilstead Village Hall from 10am until 12pm, running games, quizzes, crafts, songs, stories and much more. All children aged 4–11 are welcome to join us, and everything is free of charge.
You can find out more and register in advance at wilstead.org/going-for-gold.
Run by Wilstead Evangelical Church.
Wilstead Pre School
Well the new term is in full swing and our lovely children have settled in well and are embracing the fun Pre School has to offer ! It's been lovely to see the children smiling as they walk in ready for an action packed day. The parents have been fabulous too !
We have already been enjoying forest school and walks to the woods and our new allotment where we are growing pumpkins ready for Halloween. We've got lots happening this half term with parent consultations, stay and play events and our AGM.
As you are aware we are a charity run Pre School. Totally separate from the school. Therefore we need a committee of parents to help us stay up and running.
Date Wednesday 9th October 7.00pm at pre school. All parents are welcome to come and join us it's a great way to get to know the team better and make friends along the way.
Our quiz night is Friday 18th October starting at 8.00pm. Doors open from 7:30pm. Please join us for this fun evening. It would be fab to get as many parents there as possible and the wider community. Please contact 07948565992 to book a table.
Our Christmas bazaar is fast approaching on Sunday 1st December in the Village Hall. 12-3.00pm. If you would like a stall please contact 07948565992. Stalls cost £15. Be great to get some local businesses there. Guaranteed a lovely family Christmassy afternoon.
Can I take this opportunity to thank Suki and Jaz from the Post Office for all their amazing support of Pre School over the years. They were so generous with their donations.
But even more so. I think, like most of the village, we are going to miss them ! We wish them all the happiness in their well deserved retirement and exciting new chapter.
Thank you all for your unwavering support of our Pre School.
Book a table for our quiz night !! See you there.
Julia
Wilstead WI
Our September speaker was Jim Coley who very kindly stepped in at the last minute as our our original speaker cancelled due to illness.
Jim explained how the River Trust look after our rivers testing the water quality and generally making it safe for us all, some interesting slides were also shown.
We are holding our WI birthday party in October, 94 years goodness - we have done well. We have 42 members and meet on the 1st Thursday of each month in the Village Hall at 7.30pm where we have a speaker or sometimes just a general chat and beetle drive, jigsaw evening or bingo, all in good fun. If you would like to pop along anytime to see us, you would be most welcome.
Details are below should you wish to chat or just come along on the night.
Karen Cook
WI President
karencook3@btinternet.com
01234 403936
Wilstead Village Hall
As the temperature in the hall building is going to gradually get lower, please ask the caretaker to put on the air conditioning if needed to warm up the required room at the beginning of your hire.
For a while this is cheaper than permanently putting on the under floor heating which is not wanted by all groups yet. Also the under floor heating is not instant and it takes 48 hours to warm up the hall. When it is deemed cold enough to put on the under floor heating, the room temperature can be topped up by the air conditioning. Hopefully this system will suit all hirers and the various room temperatures needed.
We wish to redesign the Hall website to make it easier for potential hirers to find out information about the hall and to make bookings. Therefore, we are looking for help to do this. If you have these skills and are willing to offer your time to support us, please contact Angela (see below). All costs incurred will be covered.
Due to the closure of Elstow Village Hall (length of time closed is not known yet) we welcome the Table Tennis groups who have had to transfer. Thank you all for choosing our hall.
To find up to date information about the hall, T's & C's, rates of hire, to make a booking via the On-line Diary etc, please visit
wilsteadvillagehall.org.uk.
Chairperson – Sandra Spinks
sanschambers@hotmail.com 07853395939
Secretary – Angela Fosbrook
angela.fosbrook@ntlworld.com 01234 294692
Wilstead & Wixams Community Art Group
By the time you read this article we hope that our Art Exhibition was a success and thank you to all who came along and supported us.
More in the next edition. Perhaps some of you might like to try your hand and join us?
As an Art Group we meet just to enjoy painting or drawing together with others. It has a strong social element and those who come usually go away happier than when they came! If you're interested in art and would love to try out your talent, why not join us? To make it clearer, we do not have a resident art teacher but from time to time we may invite a guest artist. Our members are always glad to advise where they can and to encourage you in whatever medium you choose to use. You need to bring your own materials, but we can provide some equipment, easels and paints etc. Your first session is free and, if you decide to continue and become a member, it will be £3 a session when you're able to come. We usually meet in the Village Hall on Mondays from 2pm-4pm. We don't meet on Bank Holidays. Our group has members of all abilities, using a variety of mediums. You might like sketching in pencil, charcoal, pen and ink, whatever. You can also paint in watercolour, acrylic or even oil or in a mixed media. Do whatever you like. We'd love you join us.
Enquiries: Michael Bradley: Mobile 07526 939164.
Email: revmichael14@outlook.com
P3 Footpath Group
Meetings
The next meeting of the Group is planned for Saturday 12th October at 10.00am in the Village Hall, small hall. As usual there should be reports on the current condition of all of the 17 Public Footpaths and Public Bridleways around the village.
These reports will highlight any problems / issues with a particular path together with how these might be addressed. These could be problems with overgrowth or undergrowth restricting access along the path or issues with the path furniture e.g. waymark posts, kissing gates or culverts.
The last 2024 meeting will be on Saturday 7th December, again 10.00am in the Village Hall.
Come along if you are interested in helping to look after the paths around the village, be that periodically keeping an eye on a path and noting any problems or getting involved with keeping them easy to go along
Working Parties
The August Working Party tackled overgrowth and undergrowth issues on that part of Footpath 8 between Cotton End Rd and The Stables.
The next Working Party is expected to be late October / early November and will look to address any issues raised at the October Meeting.
The path or bit of path which would benefit most from the Group's attention will be derived from the group members' reports together with any problems reported by the general public.
So if you have a problems with a particular path or bit of path please contact the number at the bottom of this article.
Walks
The mid August walk was around Ampthill just after the deadline for inputs to the August Newsletter. It started in Sainsbury's car park and went up Brewery Lane to access Ampthill Park and then along the escarpment before descending through fields to Redding's Wood. Bye-passing Lockheed Martin the walk went towards Kings Wood before going back up the escarpment to Ampthill via Houghton House (the roofless Georgian mansion sitting on the escarpment). It gave great views north over the countryside towards Bedford.
The September walk was around Pulloxhill. Unfortunately it started to rain part way round the walk so a short cut had to be taken back to the cars.
Fortunately the rain didn't impact on the optional post walk drink at the Cross Keys! It had stopped raining by the time we got there so we could sit outside (in the sunshine!!).
The next walks are currently planned for Sunday 20th October and Sunday 24th November meeting at the Whitworth Way car park at 10.30am
No walks have been checked / finalised yet but these, around 5 mile walks, could include Woburn (walking by elephants!), Cardington, Great Barford, Stewartby, Clapham, Renhold or Willington. Keep an eye out for posters on the village noticeboards. Details will be in future Newsletters.
P3 2025 Calendar
It is hoped to shortly finalise the 2025 P3 Calendar listing dates and times of meetings and walks. Once completed these dates will be listed in the Newsletter.
The dates of Working Parties will depend on what work has been identified as required at the various meetings throughout the year.
Nigel Jacobs
Wilstead Footpath Group
01234 400733
Borough Councillor Report
Fly-tipping and Environmental Crime
Bedford Borough Council urges residents to report instances of fly-tipping. The Council remains committed to tackling environmental crime prosecuting fly-tippers.
Prestigious Award
Bedford Borough Council has been awarded the highest honour for employers in supporting the Armed Forces community.
Wixams Train Station
Network Rail, in partnership with Bedford Borough Council, has announced the start of preparatory work for the new Wixams station. The works have been costed at £63m but if the Universal Theme Park goes ahead the station will become a four-platform station and others will take over the costs.
River Festival Changes Welcomed
St Mary's Gardens was set as a family-focused area and a SEND area away from heavier crowded areas. Many groups for children set up in this area and families with young children stated they thought it was a very beneficial change and really felt secure. The estimated crowd was 300,000 over the two days, up 50,000 on the previous event. Over 90 volunteers cleared up litter on Sunday morning.
Universal Meetings
Universal's representatives had meetings with relevant Parish Council chairs and clerks etc.
Bus Changes on Rural Routes
Bus patronage has altered drastically since the pandemic. The Council is to review the current services to see if they are still meeting the needs of residents and the changing patterns of working life especially with so many people working from home.
(Full report on request to Parish Council Clerk)
Elstow Cricket Club
(Local cricket club for Wilstead, Wixams, Elstow, Kingsbrook, Cauldwell and other surrounding areas)
Well, what a season it has been. We have had scorching heat, torrential rain, narrow defeats, cup final wins and parties galore including the End of Season Party of all Parties. We have also embarked on our biggest ever project in conjunction with Elstow Abbey FC and the Elstow Playing Field to refurbish our changing rooms and increase the size of our bar/tearoom to make it a far bigger brighter space for all to enjoy.
Thank you to all our Captains, Coaches, Managers and Helpers for another incredible summer at The Warren. Here is our end of season report…
U9's Coach ,Bharat Ghatty, says the kids have shown amazing teamwork, dedication, and sportsmanship throughout the season.
Souvik Ghosh, our U11 Development coach, reports that the team delivered an outstanding all-round performance to finish at the top of the league table.
Our Chairman and U13's County coach, James Tanswell, reports that the U13s had a highly successful season, won the league, then progressed to the County finals for the 3rd consecutive year.
U15's is where our club had its biggest successes, managed by Stephen Folbigg, just one match during the league campaign to win their division. They won the U15 Development title defeating Queens Park, in a dramatic and tense finish.
Elstow U15's County Team won their county league final for the first time in the Club's history against Olney CC! The finals team included Wilstead residents Luke Candlin, Dylan Hooper, and Alex Couling, and was coached by Geoff Couling and Richie Candlin.
The Elstow Belles completed another excellent season in the soft ball league led by Nicola Wisson-Hill and Sophie Pomfrey. Numbers are up and they are still looking to recruit new players.
In open age cricket our Saturday 1st XI led by Club Captain Ranvir Thiarra finished second in Div 1 and this should be good enough to gain promotion to the Onyx Cambs League next season. It has been a fantastic season with notable performances from Olly Stock and Mathu Senthilkumar, both U15 players.
The Saturday 2nd XI performed well in their first season in Div 3 finishing mid table.
Our Sunday 1st XI, under new captain Ryan Lammin finished 3rd in Div 3, again Guraj Galsin led the way with the bat. The leading bowler was young Faheem Mahmood.
The Sunday 2nd XI finished a creditable 6th in the league winning 5 of the 14 completed matches. The season saw a number of Elstow Academy players excel, with Ashton Jepp securing 16 wickets in the league, Adeeb Ahmed scored 373 runs while Taj Bangerh scored over 200 runs and took 9 wickets.
Now that the season is over, we turn to winter nets for all age groups and the Bedfordshire Indoor League kicks off in October where represented by three men's teams and our ladies' team.
Tea Room, bar and changing room refurbishment works are almost complete, but we still need to raise more money to complete the works and fit out the bar area. We have included a link to our GoFundMe page at the end of the report. If you can help in any way it would be appreciated. Even the smallest contributions are welcome and will go a long way to helping us complete the works.
https://gofund.me/dbeaaf7f.
We are always looking for new ideas, volunteers, sponsors, coaches and managers so if you have any questions or would like to be involved with the running of this fantastic Cricket Club, please get in touch by emailing us at elstowcricketclub@hotmail.co.uk or by calling one of our current committee members as follows:
Fiona Tanswell – Treasurer 07855 758696
Geoff Couling – Youth Development Manager 07577 609399
Ranvir Thiarra – First Team Captain 07590 375172
Matt Stevens – Groundsman 07811 105822
Nicola Wisson-Hill – Belles Co-ordinator 07789 586671
Alternatively, visit our website elstowcricketclub.co.uk for more information.
You can also go to elstow.play-cricket.com for details of all the fixtures, results and competitions across all our adult and age group teams.
Wilshamstead Endowed Charities
At a recent meeting of Wilshamstead Endowed Charities the following trustees and committee members were present:
Eric Benton, Mark Brooks, Marc Frost, Nigel Jacobs, Anne Lowe, Father Paul Messum, Viv Riddle, Veronica Scargill and Nikki Williams.
Nigel Jacobs had asked to stand down as Chairman and Secretary. Nigel was duly thanked for all he had done during his many years of service.
The following trustees agreed to stand as:-
Chairman Eric Benton; Secretary Anne Lowe; Treasurer Nikki Williams.
Senior Citizens New Year Tea Party 2025
The date has now been confirmed as Wednesday 15th January 2025 commencing at 3.00 p.m. An invitation and how you can respond will be in the November and December issues of this newsletter.
Anne Lowe for the Trustees. September 2024
Bedford Foodbank
Thank you for your continued support. We have already fed 1,700 people this month and handed out over 14 tonnes of stock.
This our list for September:
Long life fruit juice, jars of curry sauce, tinned tuna, long life milk, long life sponge puddings, tinned meat, jars of coffee100g, bars of chocolate, deodorant, shampoo, tin openers.
Bedford Foodbank, 8/9 Murdock Road, Manton Industrial Estate, Bedford MK41 7PE
Office: 01234 268569
Why not become a school governor?
As a small village school, Wilstead Primary is at the heart of our community and many of us have fond memories of it as a pupil, parent or grandparent. The school is overseen by the board of governors, a group of volunteers from different backgrounds who want to help the school to be even better.
We're looking for several new people to join the governing board and are keen to welcome people from across the community. Maybe you have professional experience that would be valuable, in areas such as business, management or data analysis, or even experience of sitting on a company board. Or perhaps you are retired and have time to give something back to the community.
What's involved?
Governors leave the day-to-day running of the school to our experienced school staff, and focus on providing support and challenge to leaders, and setting longer term priorities to ensure that all our children can reach their full potential.
If you'd like to find out more about what's involved, we'd love to speak with you. Simply contact the school office at office@wilstead.school or 01234 302303.
Wilstead & Wixams Good Neighbours
Thanks are due to the couple of potential volunteers who responded to my last missive. Due to changes in the way DBS forms are now processed we now have to do them online, as BRCC are no longer able to process them for us free of charge, so these current applications are being held back to ensure we use the right agency and do not incur extra fees. Other Good Neighbour Schemes have indicated that this will speed up applications and make it easier to maintain.
The usual reminder that the next Wilstead Community Cafe dates in the village hall are Fridays 4th & 18th October. 1st & 15th November at the normal times 2 to 3:30pm. And don't forget Wixams at the Lake View Village hall every Tuesday 10:30 to 12 Noon. All ages welcome!!
Rick Baxter
Chairman 740854
WWGNS Phone 07807 408928
Have You Played Table Tennis In The Past?
Do You Fancy The Idea Of Starting Again?
Over 60's Table Tennis Club has now moved to Wilstead!
How about coming along on a Monday morning at 9:30am to Wilstead Village Hall and join our friendly group playing table tennis. We have a superb coach, coffee/tea (and sometimes cake!) and a chance to play with a range of abilities for 3 hours – all for £10.
We started life as an Over-60's club but many of us have been coming along for so long because we enjoy the camaraderie so much that we may have to change the name soon!
So why not come along for a free taster session – equipment can be provided. We play from 09:30 till 12:00.
If interested, please contact either:
Simon Collier simoncollier33@gmail.com
or
Dave Fosbrook david.fosbrook@ntlworld.com
Pre-School Quiz Night
Friday 18th October
Wilstead Village Hall
Doors open 7.00pm. Questions start at 8.00pm.
Bar available, raffle and a fantastic fun evening awaits you with our super quiz master Sammy.
£5 per person entrance, up to 8 people per team.
Please feel free to bring your own nibbles. Please book a table early to avoid disappointment.
To book text or phone 07948565992 or Pre School 01234 742546.
Please support our fundraising event, all welcome!
We are a charity run Pre School so your support is vital and hugely appreciated.
Look forward to seeing you there.
44th Annual Wilstead Flower, Produce And Handicrafts Show
Another successful annual Wilstead Flower & Produce Show took place on 31st August this year and thank you to everyone who entered and visited the show.
Our thanks also go out to all who contributed prizes to what was an excellent raffle:
Wilstead W.I., Mark Brooks (Useful-Bloke), Chris & Mark Haynes, 9th Kitchen Chinese Take-Away, The Woolpack Pub/Restaurant, Wilstead Tandoori, Empire Cars, Herons Green Activity Farm, Wilstead Bowls Club, Wilstead Bowls Club Mid-Week Triples, Burrs Garage, Wilstead Garden Club, Chris Toms, RWB Bespoke Builders.
Secondly the people who helped the committee on the day and with the show’s organisation:-
Wilstead Post Office, the Ladies who helped with the refreshments, all those who made cakes for the refreshments
And lastly the Judges without whom events such as these would not be possible:-
Carolyn Cranswick, Mary Koukkoullis, Colin Stennett, June Wheat, Shirley & Bob Field, Mark Smith.
The AGM for the Wilstead Produce Association will be held on Thursday 24th October at the Village Hall Small Room at 7:30pm. This is a public meeting and you will be very welcome to attend. If you have any points to raise, or suggestions concerning the show you can raise them here and discuss them with the association committee.
Linda & Ken Cook