The March 2020 edition of the Bride Valley News can be read HERE
BRIDE VALLEY NEWS
The deadline for copy for any month’s issue is mid-day of the second Thursday of the preceding month. All material for publication
must be sent to the Village Correspondent. For Litton Cheney this is:John Firrell, Tel: 01308 482313 email: jfirrell20@gmail.com
NEWS & INFORMATION
Want to contribute to the well-being of Litton? Why not join the Premier Crew, a group of well-intentioned citizens of our village who
clean and tidy up areas when they need a little bit of care and attention. Your ability to help will undoubtedly depend on your
availability and you are not expected to turn up everytime there is a call to arms. Gender equality is alive and well, as is the
bonhomie or bonfemme on offer whenever we meet. With enough volunteers we could even become the Grand Crew! If you would
like to join us, please contact John Firrell on 01308 482313.
Premier Crew – Come & Join Us
Lambing/Loose Dogs
Dorset Council Consultation on a Dog Related Public Space Protection Order (PSPO)
Dorset Council invites public responses to the Council’s consultation concerning dog control in the Dorset Council area (not
including Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole).
The Council is required to consult on any Order produced under the Antisocial Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014 every three
years, to ensure that they continue to be current and appropriate. This proposal aims to help ensure consistency, fairness and
clarity for residents and visitors to Dorset and will assist the efficient use of enforcement resources.
A number of current orders from the previous councils of East Dorset, West Dorset and Weymouth and Portland are having to be
extended before they expire to ensure adequate time is given for the completion of this Order for public safety and animal welfare.
North Dorset is not due to expire until 2022 and Purbeck remains an Order until it is superseded. For further information about the
dog warden service in Dorset, the current orders in place and the confirmation of their extension until December 2020, visit
https://www.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/environmental-health/dog-warden-service.aspx.
Following a 12 week consultation period, results will be published online, and will guide councillors’ decision making for the PSPO
relating to dog control. It would be much appreciated if you could give 15-20 minutes of your time, to complete the survey which can
be found at https://www.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/dogspspo.
The survey will begin on 24 January 2020 and close at midnight on 19 April 2020 and will then be reported to Dorset Council’s
Place Scrutiny Committee and Cabinet in due course.
Portesham Surgery Newsletter
The Litton Cheney Trust continued to serve individuals and the community during 2019.
Payments totaling £5350 covered Christmas gifts to older residents on limited means and grants to young people going into higher
and further education or moving from school into employment. Grants were also made towards refurbishment of the Chalk Pit Lane
finger signpost (£250) and the renovation of the floor in Litton and Thorner’s Community Hall (£1466).
Income for the year amounted to just over £7500, comprising rent for a grazing field owned by the Trust, dividends on investments
and bank interest. The Trust’s investments performed strongly during the year, showing capital growth of 15% to a total of just under
£145,000. The full accounts may be inspected on application to the treasurer, Richard Jones (482602).
The Litton Cheney Trust
Coronavirus Advice
A timely reminder that we are coming up to the main lambing season, and dogs must not be let off the lead in fields where there is
livestock - ever. A farmer has the right to take whatever action they feel is appropriate if a dog is worrying their flock, and this
includes shooting the dog. Picking up after your dog is important and necessary wherever you are but particularly in fields where
there is livestock. Dogs are carnivores and livestock vegetarians and diseases can be transferred between species via poo – but
you know that and there is really no need for this reminder.
We did it last year and it was such a success we are giving it another go this year. Sponsored by Keep Britain Tidy and Dorset
Waste Partnership we are hoping to give the village a little facelift for Spring and we hope you will join us. Leaflets will be delivered
through your letterboxes giving you details of how it will be organised. All you have to do is turn up and pick up – protective clothing
and “tools” will be provided.
BT have informed us that there have been no calls made from our village telephone kiosk in the last year. The Parish Council is now
considering whether to adopt the kiosk and put it to another use. If you have an idea as to how it could be best used, let us know.
There will be more to come on this in due course. Watch this space.
The Great British Litter Pick – Clean Up for April
Telephone Kiosk
Village Information v
Local Amenities v
Village Amenities v
OFFICIAL GOVERNMENT ADVICE: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-information-for-the-public
Attempted Robbery
The following warning message has been received from a villager:
“We have just had our boiler serviced and discovered that the oil tank has been tampered with. It looks like someone has tried to
'jemmy' the top off to get at the oil. They did not succeed - but it appears that water has got into the gap and caused the tank to
bulge. Have you heard of anyone else around who has had problems?. It might be worth making villagers aware.”
VE Day – Friday 8
th
May
A Special Day commemorating the day 75 years ago that the war in Europe came to an end in 1945. Friday 8
th
May this year has
been declared a public holiday so that due acknowledgement can be given to this commemoration. Please look in May’s BVN,
village website, Litton Cheney Observer Facebook and notice boards for more details of what events are happening in Litton.
Although Litton Cheney has not experienced the
coronavirus yet it may only be a matter of time before we do
so. If you find out that someone in the Village has been
forced to self-isolate please consider helping them with
essential needs using the above form, copies of which can
be downloaded HERE
Waste: Guidance for people with confirmed or possible coronavirus (COVID-19) infection
Personal waste (such as used tissues) and disposable cleaning cloths can be stored securely within disposable rubbish bags.
These bags should be placed into a second bag, tied securely and kept separate from other waste in the room in which you are
self-isolating.
Keep these bags aside for at least 72 hours before putting into your usual black wheelie bin.
People without wheelie bins who use authorised blue bags for their rubbish should place personal waste in a securely tied
disposable rubbish bag (like a black bin bag) before placing in your blue sack. This also applies to those who use gull-proof sacks.
Recycling, glass, food and garden waste can be placed in your usual bins.
We thank you for your co-operation. You can find our latest advice here.
Dorset Council Waste Services
We are contacting all our patients to let you know the arrangements we are making to deal with the Coronavirus situation. The
situation is changing daily and we expect further changes to be announced by the government in the next few days so our best
advice is:
•
If you have access to the internet, check our website (www.porteshamsurgery.co.uk) for updates about arrangements at the
Surgery (see also below);
•
Check reputable sites such as NHS England's coronavirus page. Search for "NHS England coronavirus" or type into the
address bar: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
•
If you don't have access to the internet, keep listening to reputable news broadcasts on television and radio.
•
If you have symptoms of a new cough or fever, you should check these with NHS 111. If it is hard to get through on the phone,
there is a very easy symptom checker online at https://111.nhs.uk/covid-19 This takes you through the same questions as you
would be asked by NHS 111 on the phone.
•
If your symptoms suggest Coronavirus, NHS 111 will advise you to stay at home and self-isolate for a minimum of 7 days.
Check the NHS England website for advice on how to self-isolate. If you feel seriously unwell at home or your condition
worsens, call NHS 111 or speak to us for advice if you can't get through. Do not come to the surgery!
Arrangements at Portesham Surgery:
•
We are moving all doctors' appointments to telephone consultations wherever possible. If you have an appointment booked
please contact us to confirm if we can telephone you at the appointed time to save you coming to the surgery.
•
We are moving all face to face appointments (doctors and nurse/HCA) to the mornings.
•
If patients have respiratory symptoms, we will ask you to check those symptoms on the NHS 111 online site given above. We
can do this with you on the phone if you don't have internet access.
•
If your symptoms do not suggest Coronavirus, call us for advice or an appointment. We will see all respiratory patients in special
afternoon clinics. In this way we can protect vulnerable patients who still need to be seen by a GP or nurse.
•
For the same reason we ask you to collect your prescriptions from the dispensary in the mornings before 1pm.
•
Nurse and blood-clinics continue as normal at the moment, but in the mornings, again to protect you.
•
If you prefer to cancel a non-urgent appointment, please remember to rebook it in due course.
Contacting Portesham Surgery:
•
At this very busy time, please try to telephone us only with urgent medical queries. We only have 4 phone lines and if we are
doing telephone consultations it will be harder to get through to us on the phone.
•
We are now live on eConsult. You can start an "e-consultation" with one of our GPs by clicking on the link our website
www.porteshamsurgery.co.uk and completing a simple questionnaire online. This is emailed to us and you will get a response
within 48 hours from your GP or our medical secretaries, depending on your query. This will be especially useful for non-urgent
medical or administrative queries if it is hard to get through to us on the phone.
•
We are texting and emailing our patients with any urgent updates about arrangements at the Surgery. Please make sure we
have your up to date details if we can contact you in this way.
Letter from Parish Council
Dear Litton Cheney Resident, Parishioner & Neighbour,
At this time of uncertainty, we want you to know that you are not alone and that there are people in the village to support you. If
you are concerned about leaving your house at the moment, there are a team of villagers who are able to help. So, if you need
anything, please do give one of us a ring. This might be for nipping to the shop for some groceries, collecting prescriptions, a chat
on the phone, looking on the internet for information. We will find someone to help.
Everyone in the village has been very quick in offering their assistance including those on the Litton Cheney Observer Facebook
Page, The Premier Crew, and various individuals who phoned or emailed to say they were available to help where necessary,
More information has been made available on the Litton Cheney Website and there are notices on boards in Litton and other
villages in the Bride Valley. This is the time when we all need to pull together, and that seems to be happening without any
prompting - Thank You!
If you know of someone who needs help or keeping an eye on, and you perhaps are not always available to offer that support,
again please let us know. This is a fast changing situation. Already many local events in and around the village have been
postponed or cancelled, including church services - many more will follow. There are going to be times of hardship for many,
young and old, and imposed loneliness for some so if it is possible to hear a cheery greeting, or a "Hope you're alright?" it might
just help. The Litton Cheney Trust have asked us to mention that if anyone is suffering severe financial hardship to contact Trustee
Richard Jones on 482602.
Once this is hopefully all over perhaps we can organise a gigantic village celebration where we can congratulate and thank our
community as a whole for being hugely supportive to all in the face of adversity. We shall overcome!
Good Health & Stay Well, and do please find time to check on a neighbour.
Very best wishes,
Bill Orchard (Chairman) - 482669, Kathryn Brooks (Deputy Chairman) - 482548, John Firrell - 482313, Andy King - 482594,
Andrew Price - 482828, Bella Spurrier - 482367 and Clerk Maggie Walsh - 281561
Scam Alert
Officers are urging residents to remain vigilant following three phone scams across Dorset.
At 1.28pm on Wednesday 11 March 2020 Dorset Police received a report from a Poole woman, aged in her 80s, that she was called by
someone who claimed to be a police officer in Croydon. They advised the victim that her bank card had been used fraudulently to
purchase a washing machine. The victim did not provide her bank details and terminated the phone call.
A similar call was made earlier on the same day at around 9.30am to a man aged in his 70s in the North Dorset area. It is reported that
the caller said he was from London police and asked the victim to confirm his address, before the line disconnected.
A third report was received at 2.36pm of a call to a woman in Weymouth aged in her 70s from someone purporting to be from the fraud
squad. They told the victim that she needed to transfer her money to a safe account.
Fraud Investigator Shane Cherrett, of Dorset Police, said: “Thankfully, no bank details were passed in any of the three incidents and the
victims were given advice and support. I am appealing to anyone who may have been targeted in a similar way recently to please get in
touch. Our advice is very simple. Always be aware and take steps to verify the identity of a caller who is asking for money. A genuine
caller will not mind waiting or calling back to allow you to do this. The police will never ask for personal information over the phone and
neither will your bank. If you are concerned about the validity of something – stop and speak to someone for help and advice. Anyone
with concerns can contact Action Fraud or Dorset Police.”
For information and advice about scams in Dorset, go to the Fraud Alert page of our website – www.dorset.police.uk/fraud. To contact
Action Fraud call 0300 123 2040.
Anyone who has information about the scams or who wishes to report an offence can contact Dorset Police at www.dorset.police.uk, via
email 101@dorset.pnn.police.uk or by calling 101. Alternatively, contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via
www.crimestoppers-uk.org.
Message Sent By
Adrian Lowes (Dorset Police, Neighbourhood Alert Assistant, Dorset)
