Pastoral View

As I stand on Barrow hill
I take my fill.
Of the countryside from which I grew
Still so natural with it’s view,
Of woods,and sheep,and fields of corn,
Evolving,as to the manor born.

Sulgrave nestles down below
Of villagers with their own life flow.
Some off to school or work at speed
Others taking life at a more leisurely need.

The Church, the Shop and the Pub
Together form a vibrant hub
It is quite unique to have all three
And thankful we are in unity.
For they keep us up together
And do we gossip? Oh no never!!

The Manor strives to attract the public
With concerts, plays and re-enactments
School children come on many days
To learn the history of the Tudor ways
Whilst the cottages decay,
Hoping for a better day.

The Parish Council keeps us up to date
With many minor matters to debate.
A group of men go for a pint
Ladies meet up for a talk.
In summertime Aunt Sally is played
So by living here,we all are blessed

Sent in by “Magpie“.

The Parish Council has received the following communication from the Northamptonshire Police and Crime Commissioner:

Dear Parish Council,

We have now launched a public consultation regarding proposals for the governance of Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service to transfer from the Fire Authority which currently sits in Northamptonshire County Council, to the Police and Crime Commissioner, who would therefore become the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner.

The government wants our emergency services to work much more collaboratively and has recently changed the law to allow this to happen. We already do this really well in Northamptonshire but there is scope for this to increase and for our fire and police services to work more closely together to keep our communities safe.

We want to ensure as many people who live and work in Northamptonshire have their say and tell us what benefits and concerns they may have. We have produced a leaflet and a short animated film to describe the proposal. Please click here to view the short video:  

We have created an online survey to capture people’s views, which can be accessed at www.northantsfireproposals.co.uk (a postal survey and easy read version are also available on request).  The survey closes on Tuesday 1^st August 2017.

We would really appreciate it if you would take the time to watch the short video clip and complete our online survey, and share the link with your friends, family and community.   We would like as many people to have their voice heard as possible.

For further information or if you having any questions please contact Sam Ward, Involvement Officer at: samantha.ward@northantspcc.pnn.police.uk

Views will be collated and will inform a business case that will be sent to the Home Office in mid August

Thank you for taking part in advance.

Stephen Mold

Northamptonshire Police and Crime Commissioner

The Prish Council urges residents to access the video and then send in any views they may have as suggested above. Remember that the consultation ends on Tuesday 1st August 2017.

On Sunday 18th June, ten Sulgrave gardens were open to the public in aid of charity, under the National Gardens Scheme. Nationally, over the last 90 years this scheme has raised more than £50m for nursing, caring and gardening charities  The gardens open to visitors were: Allotment Gardens, Church Cottage, Eagle House, Forge Cottage, Mill Hollow Barn, Rectory Farm, Sulgrave Manor, Sunnymead, Threeways and The Watermill. The day being exceptionally warm, sensible animals sought cool places to snooze the day away, as can be seen above and in the first pictures in the rest of this entry:

Read the rest of this entry »

See here for details of the powers of Parish Councils

and here for the Roles and Responsibilities of Parish Councillors.

The Good Councillor’s Guide

On Sunday 11th June, in beautiful if somewhat windy weather, a Midsummer Tudor Fair took place in the appropriately historic setting of Sulgrave Manor. The many spectators and especially the children of all ages, enjoyed a feast of entertainments, notably knights jousting for the hand of a beautiful maiden but also Maypole dancing, archery, close contact with birds of prey, Manor tours showing preparations for a Tudor wedding, traditional music, children’s games, with refreshments ancient and modern.

More pictures on the next page.

Read the rest of this entry »

Step back in time and see the Manor transformed and learn about life in Tudor times. Open air performances, knights jousting, re-enactment stalls, birds of prey, archery, children’s activities, beer and cider stall and more.

Please note:

VILLAGE SHOP AGM AT THE COURTYARD HALL, SULGRAVE MANOR, ON THURSDAY 29TH JUNE AT 7.30 PM. ALL ARE WELCOME.

Former villagers Carol and Austin Pirie have kindly supplied an amazing postcard showing the results of a lightning strike in 1911 on the tree which once stood in Madam’s Close. The tree was effectively cut in half but produced further vigorous growth and survived for almost another 100 years. A more detailed reproduction of the postcard, together with later images of the tree, can be seen on the next page.

Read the rest of this entry »

Troy Daniels, Vice Chairman of the Parish Council, writes:

Villagers may have noticed that BT have removed the public pay phone from the kiosk next to the shop.  BT advised the Parish Council in October last year that they would be removing the payphone due to low call numbers.

The Parish Council sought to adopt the telephone kiosk and reuse it to house a defibrillator and village guide for visitors to Sulgrave.  Unfortunately, BT since advised that due to structural safety issues with the telephone kiosk’s foundations, the Parish Council would not be able to adopt the kiosk and that the kiosk would be removed in due course.  The Parish Council also sought to use the site of the kiosk for its own structure to house a defibrillator and village guide once the kiosk was removed.  Unfortunately, BT advised that because the kiosk was on land owned by BT, the Parish Council would not be permitted to place a structure on the site.

BT has not advised the Parish Council of its timeframe for removing the kiosk structure, however it is possible that this could be done in the coming weeks. The work will involve: the removal of the kiosk structure and concrete slab on which it sits; the reinstatement of the surface to match the surroundings; the disconnection of the power supply and its pot ending – the safe sealing of electrical wires below ground level.  Villagers should expect some noise and disruption around the village shop while the work is undertaken.

The Parish Council continues to feel that a village guide and a defibrillator will be of significant value for the village.  The Council will seek to progress these projects and is actively seeking suitable alternative sites.  The Parish Council wishes to thank all villagers and community members who contributed to the village guide and defibrillator project.

Troy Daniels

Diane Kenny writes:

I am writing to ask if you could let the village know that the Courtyard Tea Room is open at Sulgrave Manor and welcomes the residents of Sulgrave to join us for lunch, light refreshments, high quality coffee, tea and cakes.

We are open every weekend from 11am and entry to the Tea Room is free of charge.  Full opening details are available on Sulgrave Manor’s new website www.sulgravemanor.org.uk

All of our food is homemade and freshly made and we cater for special dietary requirements and always have a gluten free option available.

I am attaching a press release we issued recently which gives background.  If you would like any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Diane Kenny, Director “First We Eat”, Woodford Halse.