Odiham Consolidated Charities

Vacant Almshouse At Old Court, Odiham

The Trustees of the Charities GIVE NOTICE that they will shortly elect a person, or persons, to occupy an Almshouse, either single or double at Old Court, Odiham.

Application forms are available from Sue Laing, Clerk to the Trustees, Clifton House, Bunnian Place, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG21 7JE, telephone number 01256 370370 or email sue.laing@tenongroup.com.

The application forms should be returned to Sue Laing at the above address by Friday 19 December.

Persons resident in the Parish of Odiham or North Warnborough and in need may apply.

Application forms must contain name, address, age and occupation of the applicant(s) and include sufficient information and other evidence to show that they qualify for the appointment.

Note: In special cases (to be approved by the Charity Commissioners) persons who do not possess the prescribed residential qualifications may be appointed if otherwise qualified.

Short listed candidates will be interviewed.

Sue Laing
Clerk to the Trustees

Tickets can be purchased at the Odiham Cottage Hospital Shop in The High Street.

The Edge of Love (15) starring Sienna Miller, Kiera Knightley, Matthew Rhys

A beautifully drawn love story, The Edge of Love revolves around two feisty, free-spirited women, Caitlin Thomas and Vera Phillips, Vera's husband William Killick, and the brilliant, charismatic poet Dylan Thomas, who loves both women.

Broken promises, passion, betrayal, the shadow of war and the constant threat of imminent death push the protagonists to the edge.

The film explores the bohemian underworld of war-torn London, and the intimate complexities of two young couples whose lives and loves become dangerously intertwined.

It's a handsomely photographed film with fractured and distorted images, suggesting splintering bonds and fragile mental states. ; both the production and the costume design are spot-on, evoking an appropriately free-spirited squalor. . . Sienna Miller brings a damaged intensity to her performance - Caitlin's desolate anguish when she realises that her husband and her friend have betrayed her is uncomfortably raw and messy. The warm, instinctive connection between the two women makes their friendship as intense as any love affair.

We are absolutely delighted that Colin and Chris Clark have invited us to use their shop for a week commencing on the evening of 29th November, the night of the Odiham Extravanganza.

This shop at 74 High Street, Odiham (next to the Dress Agency) will provide an excellent opportunity to pick up a bargain in time for Christmas. We will be selling bric-a-brac, gifts, books, electrical items including a Yamaha electronic piano, small pieces of furniture and just a few items of clothing. There will also be a lucky dip and raffle.

Don’t miss out on this one-off occasion!

Pay us a visit between 10.00 am and 4.00 pm.
Funds raised during the week will be split 50/50 between the Neurofibromatosis Association and OCHRE.
If you have any enquiries please contact Tricia Stephens, NfATricia@aol.com, 01256 702197 or Helen Smith, HelenSmith204@aol.com , 01256 702885.

ODIHAM TODDLER GROUP (OTG)

From Friday 14th November the Odiham Toddler Group will be moving from the Cross Barn and meeting at North Warnborough Village Hall.

Please join us this Friday for a special first meeting in North Warnborough. Come and see our new location, we have a fantastic children’s entertainer coming, new toys and books for the children plus home made cakes for the adults !

We are a playgroup for children between 12 months and 5 years and their parents/guardians.
(We also welcome older siblings during school holidays, and younger siblings at any time.)

Come along to this very friendly group, make new friends and watch your children play with some wonderful toys whilst you enjoy a cup of coffee!

Plenty of parking

FRIDAYS 10.00 TO 11.30
NORTH WARNBOROUGH VILLAGE HALL

Contact Emma on 01256 701108 or
Claire on 01256 701990

Coming soon – our new website !!

www.odihamtoddlergroup.co.uk

Garden Birds 1

Colin Ryall’s talk on the 23rd was very well attended and proved to be most interesting. There were some lovely photographs, some from the BTO and some of Colin’s own and Colin answered those tricky questions like ‘Where do all the garden birds go in the autumn?’ (to the countryside where natural food is plentiful) and ‘Should I feed the birds in the summer?’ (yes, it gives the juvenile birds a good start). He also had his own theory as to why waxwings, a winter visitor, often frequent supermarket car parks (they are less shy than other birds who avoid these busy areas). If you would like to contribute to the BTO’s Garden Birdwatch, you can get more details from their website – www.bto.org. Thank you to all who were able to come.

Garden Birds 2

All it takes is a cold spell to bring those birds back into the garden. I have noticed far more numerous blue tits, great tits, goldfinches and chaffinches, but the real surprise was a pair of goldcrest – a first for my garden. They weren’t actually on the bird feeders but were hopping about on the apple tree and seemed totally unaware of my presence just a few feet away. Another surprise was a nuthatch and I haven’t seen one of those in my garden for a few years. It really is rewarding feeding the birds and you can now get bird food locally – the hardware shop in Fountains Mall now has supplies.

If you would like come and watch these birds from my sofa, armed with a cup of coffee and a biscuit, please let me know and I will arrange another session. Obviously, it will have to be a last minute event, dependent on the weather, so let me have your telephone number if you’re not on e-mail.

Winter Bird Walk Sunday 30th November

Peter Hutchins has kindly agreed to lead a walk for us around Butter Wood. We will meet in the car park (please park in the field) of the Fox and Goose at Greywell – which will be open for our custom when we return. We aim to start at 10.30 finishing about 12.30. Please wear warm clothes and suitable footwear. Cost £1.

Palace Gate Pond

Peter Fountain has told me that Hart District Council has agreed to do the work to restore the pond. Perhaps someone who lives close by can keep me updated on this?

Sad Paw-note

It was whilst walking Heidi – a West Highland terrier of mature years I inherited from my mother four years ago – that the idea of the Odiham Biodiversity Group was born. Walking with her led me onto footpaths that I never knew existed and made me really appreciate the countryside around us and notice the plants, birds, butterflies and changing seasons. Sadly, Heidi died this week and I miss her terribly, but really there is nothing like a dog to get you out into the countryside. The only time I have seen a kingfisher on the canal was a really horrible, murky day and I was only there because Heidi wanted to go out for a walk.

Tree Trail Leaflet

Don’t forget, the first Tree Trail leaflet is now available as a pdf attachment. We are also having a few printed, so if you would like one of these for a small donation please let me know. Now that the leaves are dropping – finding the trees will be even more of a challenge!

Surveys and Observations – what’s it all for?

A couple of Saturdays ago I went on a Mapmate course at the Hampshire Biodiversity Information Centre (HBIC). Mapmate is software for biological recording and is the preferred method for groups or individuals to submit records and observations to the county/national database. It is these records and more importantly the trends they indicate, that tell us what is going on in the countryside and the health of the environment we live in. The decline of the otter is a classic example – a direct result of pollution in our waterways. Clean up the rivers and the otters come back.

December Newsletter

A Christmas Competition, another Cross Barn talk and another winter walk – details of all of these happenings will be in the December Newsletter due out at the end of November. If you do not subscribe by e-mail nor have a hand delivered newsletter (i.e. you live on my route from Colt Hill to the Coop), they are available in the Library and the Post Office.

OTHER ORGANISATIONS EVENTS

Hampshire Wildlife Trust
Fungus Foray on Hook Common 10.30 am Saturday 1st November. £2. More details – Audrey Moss-Bradnam 01256 780074.

Scrub bashing on Velmead Common

Sunday 16th November. More details – Elliott Fairs 01256 381190.

Make a wreath at Bartley Heath

Sunday 30th November. £2. More details – Rachel 01256 381190.

RSPB

Basingstoke RSPB are visiting Keyhaven Marshes on the 16th November. More details from Peter Hutchins on 01256 770831.

For more information about the Odiham Biodiversity Group please contact Sheila Bates on 01256 701187.

An exhibition of original art work for purchase

Running on the 1st and 2nd November at Robert Mays School from 10am-4.30 pm

Entrance is free with Refreshments cakes plus artists Xmas cards and grand raffle.

George Lehmann has been attending ploughing matches and winning them in his class for nearly 30 years. He officially hung up his plough in the mid nineties. His pint tankards are to be found in most of the local pubs!

After a particularly stressful harvest George felt the need to unwind a little and decided to enter the ploughing match at Hartley Park Farm, Selborne in the reversible class. He took along the farm's John Deere 8220 (big) and a Kuhn Manager 7 furrow reversible (big), as seen in the picture.

He didn't win on this occasion but reckons to go back for more next year.

Why not pop along to the Hampshire County Ploughing Match on the 9th of November at Graces Farm, Martyr Worthy near Winchester. 1000 to 1030 is a good time to arrive.

Ahoy Landlubbers! Our Ships Spy informed us that Peter “Black Beard” Fountain was going to try to loot our stock of Fair Trade products. So Mateys - we have held him hostage!

We’ll return the scurvy knave to you unharmed if you help us with our aim of raising some Gold to give to the Odiham Cottage Hospital.

If you’d like to help free the infamous Peter Fountain (or maybe you could pay them to keep him?) then pop in to the Odiham Co-Op before closing time on Sunday and hand over your pieces of eight (that’s £1 in Landlubbers money) to buy a ticket to win a fantastic Fair Trade Hamper full of goodies and all ethically sourced.

The Odiham Co-Op, which was named the store of the month in their region in September, has held a two day event to promote Fair Trade foods.

So far the raffle, which was started yesterday, has already raised over £250, which will be donated to the Odiham Cottage Hospital.

Rumour has it Peter Fountain was going to do something unspeakable with the stores resident Banana and raid their Fair Trade stock so as punishment for his evil doings he was held hostage in the stocks.

Raffle tickets will be on sale in the Co-Op until the close of store on Sunday night and if they’ve let him out by then Peter will be drawing the winning ticket at noon on Monday

Come and meet Hampshire’s Bird Ambassador!

Colin Ryall, from the BTO (British Trust for Ornithology) is coming to talk to us on Thursday 23rd October in the Cross Barn. He will be talking about the birds in your garden, the Garden Bird Watch Scheme and will be available to answer all those burning questions! The talk will start at 7.45 pm and cost £2.

If you have been keeping garden bird records for OBG, please don’t forget to send your forms in at the end of September.

Local Butterflies on TV

The first Inside Out programme featuring the Purple Emperor Butterfly in Alice Holt Forest, just the other side of Farnham was well received. Watch out for the other programmes on Bentley Wood and the Isle of Wight (Chalk Hill Blue) and the final programme on the decline of the Small Tortoiseshell (have you seen one this year?). The Inside Out programmes are on BBC1 at 7.30 pm on Wednesdays.

Hedgehog Sightings

Those hedgehogs are still out there, so keep the sightings coming in! However, by the end of the month they may be settling down to hibernate, so please let us have any more records by the 27th of October and hopefully we will be able to compile a report for the Hampshire Mammal Group. Please send sightings to Maureen Cripps on 01256 702695 or maureen@cripps4.eclipse.co.uk

Deer Sightings etc.

Roe deer are a relatively common sight in this area but we are now receiving reports of Muntjac deer. Do let us know what you see on your wanderings – mammals, birds, butterflies etc. - it is all useful information that we can add to our data base on the biodiversity of the parish. Remember the information we need is WHAT, WHERE, WHEN and WHO.

We have lots of copies of the Parish Footpath map (courtesy of Odiham Parish Council) so if you would like some please let me know. They are also available from the Library.

The Magic of Ivy

It’s at this time of year that the magic of ivy becomes apparent. Ivy flowers late in the year and is therefore invaluable for many insects, attracting honey bees and many butterfly species, often in large numbers. The Red Admiral looks particularly striking against the dark green leaves and the pale yellow spherical flowers of the mature ivy. It really is worthwhile leaving some of that ivy!

Horse Chestnut Trees

So far, I don’t believe the horse chestnut trees around Odiham have been seriously affected, but I was struck by the state of the trees around Hampton Court back in July. The leaves were shrivelled up and brown and this was the result of attacks by the horse chestnut leaf miner (Cameraria ohridella). This is actually a moth and was first found established in the UK in Wimbledon from where it has spread rapidly. Although some trees lose all their leaves, damage is not long-lasting and the leaves re-grow. There is more information on the Forestry Commission website: www.forestry.gov.uk

Tree Trail No. 1

We’re just about there with the first tree trail leaflet – a short self-guided walk around the Churchyard and Chamberlain Gardens, identifying some 20 trees. If you would like to receive a copy (in pdf format) please let us know and we will e-mail a copy to you as soon as they are available.

Future Events

At our last Committee meeting we were discussing our ideas on future events. We plan to hold some more plant identification courses, a winter walk on the common, and maybe visits to the new nature reserve the other side of the Greywell Tunnel and an RSPB reserve (there is a new one at Farnham Heath). However, do let us have your ideas - what you would like us to arrange?

OTHER ORGANISATIONS EVENTS

Cliddesden Tree Planting Day Sunday 26th October
Cliddesden Community Conservation Group are planting more hedgerow trees to improve the wildlife habitat. If you would like to help or find out more, please contact Alison on 01256 352900.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust
Autumn Walk in Pamber Forest Sunday 12th October
Fungus Foray Long Valley SSSI Saturday 18th October
For more information please phone 01489 774400 or visit www.hwt.org.uk

Butterfly Conservation
Monthly Meander on Magdalen Hill Down Sunday 5th October

Walk to health Bentley Station Meadow Tuesday 7th October

For more information please contact Janet Jones on 01252 842174

RSPB

Fritham/Rhinefield New Forest 19th October
Please contact Peter Hutchins on 01256 770831 or Maureen Brailey on 01256 702006 for more information.

For more information about the Odiham Biodiversity Group, please contact Sheila Bates on 01256 701187