The April 2025 edition of the Bride Valley News can be read HERE

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

Return to top of Page

Return to top of Page

Litton Cheney Parish Council The Next Parish Council Meeting will be the Annual Meeting and Parish Assembly on Tuesday 20 th May commencing at 7pm. The Annual Parish Assembly is a meeting of village residents and a chance to discuss the local issues of the day affecting the village, a chance to put forward any cracking and inspirational ideas you may have that allows the community to come together and get involved and, if you really must, to have a moan, or more hopefully celebrate local services and happenings. Have your say, but more importantly come and meet your fellow villagers! Openreach have mostly completed the infrastructure in the village. There are however some planned works coming up, which involve traffic management: 10 April Closure of Cow Lane to allow for overhead works. 23 June request made to close Chalk Pit Lane, although this has not yet been granted and I have no information as to what works are to be carried out. Apart from that, as said before, if you have signed up via the voucher scheme then that is an obligation to do so. I would also recommend to anyone who asks, that the upgrade to Full Fibre is well worth doing, not only because of the performance, but also because of the connection benefits (fewer dropouts). If you have any questions or problems then please contact me, Rob Matthews robertmatthewslcpc@gmail.com 80 th Anniversary of Victory-in-Europe (VE) Day - 5 th to 8 th May Plans are now coming together to enable as many residents/families as possible to enjoy commemorating this event during the week 5 th to 8 th May. Monday 5 th May is a Bank Holiday and current thoughts centre around a Bring your own Picnic (Street Party) Lunch at LATCH when we hope the Litton Cheney Community Choir comes together again as we celebrate and relive the songs of the 1940’s. A little later, and for those a little older, there will be jollifications, music and food of the period – did we hear Sausage & Mash? - down at the White Horse. On VE Day itself (8 th May) as well as aligning ourselves with the national events of the day, there will be a special school church service at St Mary’s (see church entry above for more details), and at lunchtime the school children will have their own street party. In the evening there will be a chiming of church bells across the nation, a lighting of beacons and lanterns of peace and we will pause in silence remembering those whose ultimate sacrifice made victory in Europe possible, an event we still celebrate and remember in 2025. More details closer to the day, but be prepared to celebrate, and also remember. What’s on at Litton and Thorner’s Community Hall (LATCH) in April REGULAR EVENTS Mondays 3.30 – 4.30pm Big Q (term time only) Tuesdays 4.45 – 5.45pm Short Mat Bowls (Ron Davidson 482661) Wednesdays 4.45 – 5.45pm Table Tennis (Ron Davidson 482661 or Paul Kingston 482162 7.00pm Mindful Movement (Jane Hutchins 07882 527697) Thursdays 9.15 – 11.15am First Steps Toddlers (fortnightly, term time only) Fridays 10.00 – 12.00 am Art Group (4 th ) in Meeting Room OTHER EVENTS Thursday 3 rd 7.30pm Film Night “Conclave” Saturday 5 th Morning Village Café run by the W.I. Monday 7 th 7.00pm Pastoral Skills Course (Main hall) Friday 11 th 7.30pm Bingo Night Monday 14 th 7.00pm Gardening Club meeting (Main Hall) 7.00pm Pastoral Skills Course (Meeting Room) Monday 24 th 7.00pm Pastoral Skills Course (Main Halll) Sunday 27 th 10.00am Yoga with Nadiya Wynn Monday 28 th 7.00pm Pastoral Skills Course (Main Hall) Coming up in early May: Thursday 1 st Film Night. A very special showing of “Bottle Shock” – the story of Steven Spurrier’s “Judgement of Paris” which rocked the wine world. Village Cafés: The hall is available for hire free of charge on Saturday mornings for a Café to raise funds for any group. It’s a good social event for the community and always popular. Hall Bookings/viewings: Wendy Firrell 01308 482532 wtlitton@gmail.com Thank you to everyone who supported the ‘pop up’ Coffee and Chat in LATCH on Thursday 20 th February. The donations raised £70 for Fledglings. We are grateful for the village’s support of the event. Thank you Elizabeth and Sarah for organising. ‘Litton Cheney – It’s Historic Sites and People’, a history of the extended parish of Litton Cheney, is a 276-page A4 book and is available from the author Paul Kingston. paulkingston1440@btinternet.com A fascinating and intriguing detailed record of Litton’s days of yore. Bingo Evening – April 11th On Friday 11 th April Bride Valley Bingo Fundraising Group will be holding an Easter Bingo Evening at LATCH, School Lane, Litton Cheney to raise money for University Hospitals Dorset NHS charity towards their BEACH Appeal (Birth, Emergency, Critical Care & Children’s Health). Doors open at 6.30pm and eyes down at 7.30pm. Great prizes, raffle, refreshments and bucket draw. All welcome! Since we started the Bingo Nights in 2019 we are very proud to announce that this will be Fundraiser Number 10 for Dorset based charities and we always have great pleasure in welcoming you all, and truly appreciate your continued support. Please tell your friends to come too – don’t keep it to yourself! Easter Sunday - 20 th April. An important date for your diary everyone! This year’s Annual Great Litton Cheney Duck Race will take place on Easter Sunday 20th April. We will be selling ducks in aid of Julia’s House from 10.30am at the start line ready for the off at 12 midday. If you want to be super organised, Andy and Liz at the White Horse will be selling ducks during the week before the big day, Thursday 10th to Thursday 17 th April. There will be a BBQ at the pub from 11.30 until 2 pm, either indoors or outdoors depending on the weather, and from 1 pm you can also enjoy musical entertainment from Greg Agar - The Piano Man. Really hope to see you all there! Ralph, Sam, Liz and Andy The White Horse After a difficult start to 2025 we are beginning to get back in the driving seat and working on future plans for the White Horse, particularly the food offering. For now, we are continuing as before with the pub menu, and the highlights of Friday night "Traditional Pub Night" with Fish and Chips from 5.30pm, Happy Hour from 6.30pm to 7.30pm and our popular Meat Draw at 8.15pm, and Sunday Roasts from midday to 2.30pm. We really do advise booking for both of these to avoid disappointment - 01308 482539. We have Pizza Basilico food van every other Tuesday to coincide with our fortnightly Snowball Quiz (drinks only on the alternate Tuesdays). We also have lots of other activities going on in April, with Live Music every Sunday afternoon at 4pm, and don't forget we are the finishing post for the Great Litton Cheney Duck Race on Easter Sunday, 20th, at 12 o'clock with a BBQ from 11.30am and the fantastic Greg Agar, Piano Man at 1pm. Easter Monday we have Knock 'n Run at 4pm, a band of young teenagers with amazing musical talent - not to be missed! For May, keep an eye open for news on celebrating the 80 th Anniversary of VE Day. We look forward to seeing you all in April. Andy & Liz Bride Valley Garden Club The sun is out, the sky is blue – but still very cold. Hopefully by the time this plops through your letterbox the weather will be warmer and gardening will be tempting again. With the tidying up completed there are usually some newly discovered spaces and 'planting opportunities' and this means good reason to visit one of the many plant fairs on offer locally. If you are already a member of the club you'll know that good plants are regularly for sale at monthly meetings and on TUESDAY 22 nd April (a departure due to Easter from our regular Monday spot) there will also be opportunities to buy young fuchsias when our speaker Derek Dexter will talk to us about the care and growing of these plants. Be sure to keep some pocket money for visiting some of the other plant sales which often support a local charity as well. Saturday March 29 th 9-12.30 outside Bridport United Church. Bridport Garden Club offer plants for sale as part of their Spring Show with proceeds going to The Harmony Centre, supporting those with mental health issues. Easter Saturday morning, April 19 th From 9 am. Stepping Out – the local cancer rehabilitation exercise scheme - celebrates their 10 th anniversary in Bucky Doo Square and has a large plant stall offering a huge variety of plants, many of them unusual or hard to find. Grown by just two enthusiasts, of whom I'm one ,100% of sales will be donated. Sunday April 13 th 10-4 on a more grand sale, will be the annual Mapperton Plant Fair offering a range of profesional nurseries and a wide selection of plants. £7 admision includes seeing the garden and a % of sales will go this year to Weldmar Hospice. Our club meeting on TUESDAY 22 nd April will begin with the AGM at 7pm followed by drinks, plant sales and the Fuchsia talk at 7.30. Doors open at 6.30. As always, visitors welcome , £2. Of course I'm biased but hope to see you in Bucky Doo square! Ali (balletboots@live.com)

The Bridport Local Area Partnership (BLAP) is here for the community. Current members of the partnership include Bridport Town Council, 10 Parish Councils and more than 80 community organisations and individuals working to improve the social, economic, and environmental wellbeing of Bridport and surrounding areas. For information or if you have a piece you would like included in the BLAP Bulletin, please contact Jo Hughes by email at jo.hughes@bridport-tc.gov.uk Bridport Town Council Ward Meetings The five wards of Bridport Town Council hold regular community engagement meetings to provide an informal and friendly opportunity for residents to drop in and chat with their ward councillors about matters of interest or concern to help improve the community in which they live. The next ward meetings will be taking place over the coming weeks/months: West Bay Ward - Wednesday 12th March, 6.30pm at the Salt House Bridport Central Ward - Monday 17th March, 3.00pm at Bridport WI Hall West & Allington Ward - Monday 14th April, 11.00am at Flaxhayes Communal Room Bothenhampton & Walditch Ward - Tuesday 29th April, 11.00am at Bothenhampton Village Hall Bradpole Ward - Monday 19th May, 7.00pm at Bradpole Village Hall Bridport History Society - Talk The next meeting of Bridport History Society is on Thursday 13th March and to mark 200 years of train travel since 1825, Professor Colin Divall will give a talk titled 'Who Planned the Victorian Railways - and Did They Get It Right?’ Colin Divall is professor emeritus of railway studies at the University of York and was until 2014 head of the Institute of Railway Studies & Transport History. The talk, which follows a short AGM, will be held at the United Church Hall on East Street, Bridport. Doors open at 2.15pm for a prompt 2.30pm start and all are welcome, visitors are £5pp. For more information, please visit: www.bridporthistorysociety.org.uk Hazlemead Bridport Co-housing Tour The next tour of Hazlemead Co-housing, Hospital Lane, Bridport DT6 5FQ will take place on Saturday 15th March from 2.00pm - 4.00pm. Beginning with an introductory chat in the Common House the tour group will be shown round the site paying particular attention to specific key features of living at Hazlemead and shown around a couple of BC homes. Tea and cake will then be served in the Common House, with the opportunity for questions and answers. Please book your place by emailing info@bridportcohousing.org.uk. Limited parking is available, please reserve when booking. Dorset Council Economic Growth Strategy Engagement Event Dorset Council is inviting the local business community to help shape its new economic growth strategy. Growing the economy is a key priority for the council and it wants to work with the business community to ensure the future success of the county. From 14th - 25th March, there will be five engagement events in Wool, Bridport, Wimborne, Shaftesbury and Portland. The events will be used to gauge the views of businesses on the challenges they face plus the opportunities for growth. The Bridport business engagement event will be held at Mountfield, Rax Lane, Bridport DT6 3JP on Monday 17th March, 8:30am - 10:00am. To reserve a space, click here. Bridport Town Council - Annual Meeting The annual meeting of Bridport Town Council will take place at the Town Hall on Tuesday 18th March at 7.00pm. Bridport Artisan Market Dorset Independent Makers local pop up market will take place on Saturday 22nd March, 9.30am - 3.30pm at St Mary's Church House Hall, South Street, Bridport DT6 3NN. A chance to buy direct from the maker. Bridport Choral Society - Coffee Morning Bridport Choral Society will be hosting a coffee morning, cake sale, plant stall and tombola on Saturday 22nd March from 10.00am at the United Church Hall, East Street, Bridport. Pop along for a super morning of delicious coffees and cakes! Bridport Millennium Green - Talk In support of Bridport Millennium Green, Bruce Upton will give a talk entitled 'Dorset Women in Trouble - How the Courts dealt with Troublesome Women 1800 - 1850.' The talk will be held at the WI Hall, North Street, Bridport on Thursday 27th March at 2.30pm. £5 payable on the door (£4 members). Bridport Gardening Club Spring Show This year's Spring Show will take place on Saturday 29th March, in the United Church Hall, East Street, Bridport from 12.00pm. Admission is free and there will be light refreshments and a silent auction. There will also be a charity plant stall outside the hall from 9.00am - 12.00pm. The schedule and entry forms for the show can be downloaded here. The closing date for entries is 7.00pm on Wednesday 26th March at 7.00pm. All classes at the show are open to members and non- members. For more information please click here. WATAG Public Transport Meeting The next WATAG (the Western Area Transport Action Group) public transport meeting will be on Thursday 3rd April 2025 at 6.30pm in the WI Hall, North Street, Bridport. For more information, please contact WATAG at: watag@hotmail.co.uk West Bay Car Boot Sale The West Bay Car Boot Sale which takes place in West Bay Car Park is scheduled to start on Sunday 13th April, continuing weekly until October. Last year's stall fees provided a grant fund of £7,000 which will be distributed to local groups this month. The Harmony Centre - Trustees Needed The Harmony Centre is a Bridport based mental health and wellbeing charity providing support to hundreds of local people from across West Dorset each year. They offer friendly support, advice and free weekly activities at their welcoming Centre on St Michael’s trading estate as well as crisis mental health support via the Community Front Room service. In April they will be launching their new Access Wellbeing service, initially in Bridport and then in sites across West Dorset. You can find out more at The Harmony Centre. The Centre are looking for new Trustees with a commitment to and understanding of their work, whilst also trying to ensure that all the skills needed to provide good governance of the charity are held within the Trustee team. Ideally the Centre need to strengthen their HR, marketing, IT, data and finance expertise. If you would be interested in finding out more, please contact the Chair, Rachel Coney, on rachel.c@theharmonycentre.org.uk. Bridport Museum - Volunteers Needed Bridport Museum are looking for volunteers particularly front of house on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The volunteer team are a friendly and welcoming bunch so if you would like to get involved, please get in touch. Alternatively, call the museum on 01308 458703. Bridport Community Plant Swap This is a plea for all growers out there! Flowers or vegetables, we don’t mind. Please consider growing a few extra plants this spring to donate to the Bridport Community Plant Swap. This will be happening on Saturday 17th May at the Charter Fair and we are expecting our stall to be very busy. We will organise collecting them from you or a drop off point prior to the event so that we have a fantastic choice of plants for visitors to choose from. If visitors to our stall don’t bring plants to swap they will be asked to make a donation and all money collected will go to the Bridport Food Matters project and the Edible Gardens Scheme at St Mary’s School and Bridport Primary School. Please contact Debbie Smith on 01308 422559 for further information.. Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue - Safe & Well Visits A Safe and Well visit is a free service offered by Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service to help keep people safer in their homes. During a visit we carry out a room by room check that enables us to provide appropriate advice aimed at keeping households safer from the risk of fire.Visits will cover topics including: Using electricity safely Cooking safely Escape plans What to do if there is a fire Carbon Monoxide awareness Identifying and discussing any further support you may need. For more information and to see if you are eligible visit Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Safe and Well Visits. Chideock News The March edition of the Chideock News including Seatown and North Chideock is now available. Eggardon & Colmers View Magazine The latest Eggardon and Colmers View magazine is now available. This includes updates from Askerswell, Broadoak, Dottery, Eype, Loders, Powerstock and Symondsbury. The Bridge Magazine The March edition of the Bridge Magazine includes updates from Bridport and surrounding parish churches, Weldmar's Stampede by the Sea, West Dorset Singers, the Golden Cap Association local clubs and more.