The Parish Council would like to take the opportunity to wish all residents of Stratton Audley Parish a very happy Christmas and to say how much we look forward to serving the local community in 2018.
With best wishes from Anthony Flack, Stewart Hopkins, George Nicholson, Mike Hedgecox, Anne Davies & John Honsinger.
On Tuesday the 18th December a band of twelve villagers carol sung around Stratton Audley.
The weather was kind and with a refuelling stop at Annette Jones we raised the grand sum of £258.37!! This is a fantastic amount and this money is going to the Homeless Hostal in Oxford.
Many thanks to all who participated and the people who donated.
Maybe same time next year?
Becky Adams
BLUE & BROWN BIN COLLECTION OVER CHRISTMAS.
PLEASE NOTE THAT ON TUESDAY 26TH DECEMBER THERE WILL BE NO BIN COLLECTION.
CHERWELL DISTRICT COUNCIL HAVE RESCHEDULED THIS COLLECTION FOR SATURDAY 30TH DECEMBER. I AM SURE YOU WILL AGREE THAT THE TEAMS WHO COLLECT OUR RUBBISH DO A GREAT JOB AND YOU WILL BE PLEASED TO KNOW THAT THE PARISH COUNCIL REGULARLY THANK THEM FOR THEIR SERVICE AND WOULD LIKE TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO WISH THEM A VERY HAPPY CHRISTMAS.
THANK YOU
The PCC would like to thank all those who take their place on the many rotas which keep the Churches so well maintained and such a welcoming place to visit; the cleaners, flower arrangers, providers of refreshments for services, readers, organists, meeters and greeters and those helping to keep the Churchyards in such good order by taking part in the mowing. Many, many thanks.
But how can YOU help? In Stratton Audley we have a goodly number of people who are prepared to help on the rotas but, inevitably, numbers are reducing as people move away. If you would be able to assist – probably around once every 6-8 weeks – we would be very grateful. If you are not currently a member of the congregation then you might like to help with the flowers, cleaning or mowing of the Churchyard which helps to keep the Church such a vibrant feature of YOUR village, but if you are a member (or are likely to become a member) of the congregation then an offer of help with the additional elements of refreshments after the service or meeting and greeting before the start of the service (or even occasionally reading a lesson!!) would be much appreciated. If this appeals to you please contact Becky on 01869 277471.
In addition to the above, the PCC and the whole congregation, would like to thank the bell-ringers, who give up their time – usually twice a week – to rehearse and then ring for services. The pealing of bells is a uniquely English tradition and really helps to lift the spirit prior to a service.
ANOTHER THANK YOU
This time to Stratton Audley Parish Council. During the heavy snow and the 15-hour power cut members of the PC checked out all the vulnerable – or potentially vulnerable – villagers to see if any practical help was required. In particular Stewart spent the day covering the village from end to end and, with the help of others, made sure that supplies of hot water and hot water bottles (where needed) were available and that immediate neighbours would be able to help if required. Many thanks and congratulations to all of you.
The power cut that affected the village and surrounding area was due to a pole cracking in a field next to the Old Huntsman House. The Parish Council asked Scottish and Southern to carry out an urgent review and they promptly sent a team out to inspect all local network and main network poles in the Stratton Audley area. Any poles considered to be dangerous have been identified and arrangements will be made for actions to be taken at the earliest opportunity. Any poles that need attention but are not considered to be dangerous will be put in to the schedule to be dealt with in due course.
The whole village and some of the surrounding area suffered a power cut starting just after 8.30am and lasted 15 hours, with the power coming back on at around 11.30pm.
Resilience team leader, Stewart Hopkins, did a great job visiting those we know potentially fall into the ‘priority service’ category together with support from other councillors. A number of weaknesses were identified which will be addressed such as the need to have a reserve of torches, hot water bottles and flasks that can be loaned to people who do not or cannot leave their homes.
At lunchtime the four main roads through Stratton Audley were snow ploughed by local farmer Richard Wise who has a contract with the Parish Council to undertake such work when required.
The reason why the village was particularly badly affected was due to a rotten wooden utility pole which collapsed in the field next to the Old Huntsman House (see photo below of new pole). It was fortunate that it fell in a direction away from the house! Scottish & Southern were not able to get a crew on site until mid-afternoon and they then had to bring in heavy lifting equipment and a new telegraph pole which meant the work went on into the evening.
We will be discussing this matter at the next PC meeting and proposing that we ask Scottish & Southern to carry out an urgent audit of all their wooden utility poles in the Parish, particularly where they are located close to buildings, as they present a clear and present danger if they are not fit for purpose.
Do let the Parish Council know if you have anything to add or contribute to this matter.
Christmas services at St. Mary & St. Edburga
“Carols by Candlelight” Service – Sunday 17th December at 6 pm
Crib Service – 4pm Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve Midnight Communion at 11.30 pm
Christmas Day Family Service at 11 am
GODINGTON
“Carols by Candlelight” – Friday 22nd December at 7pm
It is hoped that anyone in Godington who would like to attend a service on Christmas Day will join the congregation in Stratton Audley
CAROL SINGING
For one night only!!
Villagers of all ages are invited to join in carol singing around Stratton Audley in Tuesday 19th December. We will be meeting at 7.00pm at The Red Lion.
For many years over a couple of nights we used to sing carols but were slightly put off because of the extremely cold weather – which in itself was a bit sad because we were collecting for the night shelter. So with more determination and a couple of extra thermal layers we are going to do this again FOR ONE NIGHT ONLY and the collection will go towards the work of the Homeless in Oxfordshire.
Please come and join us. We look forward to seeing you