Party at the Pavilion & The Villages’ Horticultural Show

Saturday 13th July 2024
Barnack Community Association is excited to welcome everyone from the Parish & surrounding areas to this event. 
We are very grateful to Fordson Developments Ltd, Barnack , for sponsoring the event this year. Fordson have been providing building services to Barnack and the surrounding area for 50 years.
We are delighted to be able to bring back The Villages’ Horticultural Show, a lovely tradition that has been part of Barnack’s event armory since 1892. All adult and children’s classes are shown overleaf and we encourage as many of you to take part in as many classes as you can. There are 1st, 2nd and 3rd prizes up for grabs in each class and cups to be won!
The entry form is available from Sally Hullock – please contact Sally for details – bookings.barnackca@gmail.com or phone 07795 565658.
Deadline for entry forms: Wednesday 10th July at midnight
Bring exhibits between 9 am and 10.30 am on event day – Sat 13th.
Judging from 11 am
The tent will be open to the public from 12 Noon.
Remember: If you can help – Thursday 11th, Friday 12th for setup. Event day 13th- contact the volunteer team: bookings.barnackca@gmail.com
Donate a bottle for the infamous bottle tombola – it can be alcoholic, non-alcoholic, toiletries, cleaning products – if it’s in a bottle – we’ll have it! We’ll come collect if you let us know.
So all that’s left for you to do is put the date in your diary; get your best carrots picked; make your recycled alien and enter the Hort Show; put your donated bottles to one side, ready for collection and you’re ready!
Look forward to seeing you on the 13th
The Volunteer PAP Team:
Sheila Bates, Harry Brassey, Beryl Burrows, Martin Divers, Rose Divers, Paul Doubleday, Alix Doubleday, Judy Francis, Ann Garrett, Sally Hullock, Naomi and Darren James, Sally Longden, Mary-Clare Miller, Sophie Moore, Debbie Moss, Ellie-Rose Moss, Sean O’Sullivan, Emma Stephens-Dunn

Buttercross Club

On Wednesday, June 5th, the Buttercross Club went to Rutland Garden Centre. There were not many of us as afternoons are very often taken up by other commitments. However, those of us who were able to attend had an interesting and enjoyable time. On arrival we visited the amazing shop.
There were many beautiful items. They were expensive but we agreed that it is clearly a great place to go if one is looking for a special present such as a lovely wedding or birthday gift. There was also an array of toys and games for children/grandchildren.
We wandered round the greenhouses full of bedding plants and house plants. Interestingly we were told that everyone has had real problems this year with slugs in their gardens as a result of all the rain we have had over the last few months. As a consequence of this, the garden centre had run out of slug pellets! All of their shrubs and plants were in beautiful condition – clearly very well looked after.
We concluded our visit by sitting down to tea and scones in the huge restaurant. A good natter was had by all and this rounded off a very enjoyable afternoon!
Diary Dates: Next month’s Buttercross is on Wednesday, 3rd July at the usual start time of 7pm. Mrs. Ashcroft will be talking about the canal from Stamford to Market Deeping. Please note that guests are invited to attend as this will be an open meeting.

PICNIC AT BURGHLEY

There is an open invitation to everyone in Barnack village (and beyond!) to join the usual Coffee Stop crowd who are having a summer picnic at Burghley House on Wednesday 28th August from 10.30 onwards.
We will meet on the area near the logs on the left hand side. There is disabled parking nearby for those who need it and also close at hand is the Garden Café and toilet facilities.
Please bring your own chair and picnic and any suitable outdoor games.
If it’s a great day and folk want to stay on longer than the usual finish time of 12 noon that’s absolutely fine of course. If the weather is very inclement we will meet at the pub as usual.
For more information, or if anyone is in need of a lift, please contact Carol Pickering on 740438.

Concert in Ufford Church

HYMN TO ST CECILIA
The St Peter’s Singers return to St Andrew’s Church on 6th July at 7.30 pm to perform a summer concert entitled ‘Hymn to St Cecilia’. Benjamin Britten had long been attracted to the notion of dedicating a work to St Cecilia, partly because he was born on St Cecilia’s day, but also because she is the patron saint of music. It is a brilliant setting of words by WH Auden – a challenging and dynamic piece for singers, but an established favourite among choirs. The remainder of the programme is made up of choral works by Parry, Stanford, Grainger, Ravel, Walton and Holst, with organ solos played by Jeremy Jepson, our Musical Director.
Tickets £15, to include interval refreshments, are available from Keith Lievesley 01780 740679 or Sally Hudson 01780 740475, or on the door.

BARNACK HILLS AND HOLES VILLAGE FORUM

Terms of Reference of the Forum
To bring the Village Community, Natural England and Burghley Estate together to help promote the management of the Barnack Hills and Holes National Nature Reserve, for the benefit of the internationally important grassland habitat, the village, local community and interest groups.
News from meeting held on 12th June 2024
This year’s count of Pasqueflower plants in the monitoring plots was up from 3,570 last year to 5,022 this year. The total for the whole Nature Reserve is unknown but it is now obvious that the Hills and Holes is one of very few places in the country where this attractive and threatened species can still be seen in abundance.
The wet winter and spring may not have been a handicap for Pasqueflower, but other species are not faring as well. There were once three patches of Frog Orchid on the Hills and Holes, but now there is only one. 39 plants were recorded in 1994. In 2014 and 2016 there were 18,and this year only two could be found. Will we witness the extinction of the Frog Orchid from the Hills and Holes within the next few years?
Butterflies, have been struggling this spring. Like us, they need sunshine. The Reserve Manager (ross.edgar@naturalengland.org.uk) would welcome records of Black Hairstreak, whose larva feeds on Blackthorn.
There is plenty of nectar for insects on the ‘replica Hills and Holes’ at Sissons Close. This area is meant to mimic the topography and flora of the Nature Reserve and to compensate for the added footfall resulting from the increase in Barnack’s population. The ‘replica’ site remains very unlike the real thing. The Sissons Close mounds are now waist-high in Oxeye Daisy,Hardheads (Lesser Knapweed) and the pink spikes of Sainfoin. Sainfoin isn’t recorded from the Nature Reserve and unfortunately the robust, non-native variant was sown at Sissons Close.
As mentioned previously, automated people-counters at the eight perimeter gateways into the Hills and Holes registered 112,815 human visitors in the year ending in October 2023. Charlotte Smith has looked closely at the data and produced a report as part of her Duke of Edinburgh award. She found that the most heavily used entrance is the one opposite the Cricket Club, followed by the car park entrance. The most popular months are June and April. Unsurprisingly, weekends and bank holidays see increased numbers of visitors. Rain affects visitor behaviour, with days following rainfall seeing a fall and dry days a temporary peak in numbers.
Tasks undertaken recently on the Reserve include removing the timber from the 40 felled Turkey Oak; installing tree guards around 30 native trees, including spindle, elm and ash; and renovating noticeboards and gate catches. The sheep have gone off on their summer holiday to Castor Hanglands, some appearing reluctant to leave the Hills and Holes.
Margaret Palmer

BARNACK BOWLS CLUB

ROLL-UP 4 A ROLL-UP
Wednesday 10 July
6.30 – 8.30 pm
Here is your chance to try BOWLS
All equipment provided.
Please wear flat shoes
Contact: 01780 740133

Benefice Quiz III

Thanks to everyone who turned out for the Quiz at the Millstone on Tuesday 18th June. Congratulations to our winners, “Quiz Team Aguilera”, winning their third successive quiz. Surely someone can stop them next time?

Safeguarding

A subject that is so important and yet gets some people thoroughly riled up.
Safeguarding for those of us in church posts can seem repetitive. And where you have multiple roles in caring organisations, you can end up being repeatedly “DBS Checked”. And yet behind it is the most important moral principle in the Bible. Care for those who are vulnerable. The failure of church leaders, and church organisations, to take this seriously, and the ways church leaders have used their power to evade detection, have been a scandal and disgrace.
So we take the safeguarding rules seriously in our benefice. I’m grateful to Kate Hinchliff, who does all the running about to keep everyone trained and checked. And thanks to everyone who goes through the hoops to keep themselves up to date. We should have safeguarding notices inside and outside all our churches – so please let Kate or me know if there is anything needing updating.
Safeguarding contacts are:
Rev. Gary Alderson on 07503975588
or Kate Hinchliff, our group’s Safeguarding Officer on 07745116621 .
You can call the Diocesan Safeguarding Officer on 01733 887000 or email safeguarding@peterborough-diocese.org.uk. Where you fear any child or vulnerable person is at risk of imminent harm, phone the police.
Revd Gary

Five Special Church Services  …. Coming up in July

The Evening Praise service at Bainton on 7 July will be held in the grounds of Bainton House, at the end of the Bainton and Ashton Fete. Timing is approximate, but should be around 4pm – 4.30.
An Evensong for the John Clare Festival, featuring the 9 Bridges Choir and Guests, will be on Friday 12th of July at 6 pm at St Botolph’s Helpston. This will be a traditional Common Prayer Sung Evensong, with hymns and psalm setting by John Clare.
We’ll continue to thank God for his creation, and specifically our pets, at St Mary’s Bainton on 21st July at 4.30 pm; at All Saints Wittering on 28th July at 10.30 am and the same day at St John’s Barnack, at 4.30 pm.
St John’s will also have its regular morning service. Pet services will be in the churchyards if the weather is good! Please no ponies if it is raining, and dogs on leads. Small creatures, should you bring them, thoroughly caged up!

Messy Church

The July Messy Church will be a bit different! Instead of meeting in Barnack Church, we’ll be having a barbeque and games at Holly Cottage (PE9 3EY, at the end of Wittering Road, opposite the carpark for the Hills and Holes).
Also, it will be on a Saturday (20th July) rather than Sunday, and slightly longer than usual (from 3.30pm to 5.30pm), so we have plenty of time to eat loads and have lots of fun! After all, it is the summer, the weather will be great (??), and the Olympic Games will start a few days later.
So please come and join us for some family fun and relaxation.
BBQ food and drink will be provided, so just bring yourselves!
If you are organized and remember, please tell Mike Mills (phone or text on 07523 312 387) in advance that you’ll be coming, to help with planning.
Also, if you can help organize and supervise some of the games, please let us know as volunteers are needed! Many thanks.