This year only a small Act of Remembrance was able to take place to commemorate Remembrance Sunday and Armistice Day. Community groups were still able to lay wreaths at the war memorial during pre-agreed timeslots.

By Diane Neath and Peter Cowley

On 18th April 1985, Shipston-on- Stour was twinned with Torigni-sur- Vire, a town in the Departement de La Manche in Normandy, France. The signing of the Twinning Charter took place at Shipston High School and it was signed by Pierre Dupont (Mayor of Torigni), Christine Hedouin (President of the Torigni Twinning Association) and Brenda Broughton (Mayor of Shipston). Keith McCarthy (then Chairman of the Shipston Twinning Association) and Brenda Broughton were presented with a large framed picture of the Chateau of Torigni which they accepted on behalf of the Shipston Twinning Association. It was to be hung in the council chamber when the offices at Clark House were completed.  The following day, the Mayor and Committee of Torigni attended the official opening ceremony of Clark House the new premises of Shipston Town Council along with members of the public, architect John Bradley, builder Dennis Nason and all the craftsmen employed in the conversion of the building. Town, district and county councillors were also present. This was an important occasion as it was the inauguration of the first building owned by the Town Council, who had previously been tenants of the District Council. The building’s name commemorated the previous owners of the property, Clark Provision Merchants, who traded from the 1800’s to the 1980’s.

About Torigni

• Formerly crossed by two Roman roads and much like Shipston, it thrived as a settlement because of this position.
• One of the strongholds of the descendants of William the Conqueror who was born in nearby Falaise.
• The birthplace of Robert of Torigni, an influential 12th Century abbot and chronicler. Robert was godfather to Eleanor of Castile, the daughter of King Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitane.
• The main historical building in Torigni is the Chateau of the Matignon family, who were related to the Royal Family of Monaco, the Grimaldis. The Chateau now houses the town hall and art gallery.
• Torigni and the surrounding area suffered severe war damage during the Battle of Normandy which followed the D-Day Landings in 1944. Torigni was taken from German occupation by American troops on 31st July 1944 but 350 houses were destroyed in the fighting and there were many civilian casualties.

On 1st January 2016 , Torigni-sur-Vire was merged with the communes of Brectouville, Gieville and Guilberville to create the new municipality of Torigny-les-Villes. This new municipality has inherited the twinning relationship and had a population of 4,352 in 2017, which is very similar to that of Shipston-on- Stour (4,500).

About the Twinning Associations

The Shipston-on-Stour Twinning Association and the Torigny-les-Villes Twinning Association arrange alternate visits to England and France each year. Due to Covid 19, the visit to Torigny planned for this year has been postponed until May 2021. The journey is usually made by coach and ferry and a full and varied programme is arranged for each visit.

The Twinning Association in Shipston are a friendly group and welcome new members of any age. You will be guaranteed an enjoyable weekend and with a lot of English speaking hosts in France, please don’t be put off if you can’t speak the French language. It is an ideal opportunity to experience the food, customs and culture of France. Lasting friendships have been made over the  years. Our next visit is planned to take place from 28th to 31st May 2021.

If you are interested in visiting, please email Diane at: secretary@shipstontwin. co.uk or for more general information, take a look at our website www.shipston-torigni-twinning-association.co.uk. Also, please look out for any fundraising events in the future where you can meet members to ask any questions you may have.

Shipston Town Council is inviting the public to suggest potential new uses for the two chapels in the cemetery, allowing the buildings to be used for community benefit.

The Grade II listed structures were built in the late 19th century and consecrated in 1865. One was designated for use by members of the Church of England, meanwhile the other is nonconformist.

Before any change of use taking place, work will be carried out to ensure that the structures are weathertight.

Anyone with suggestions for alternative use cases should contact the Town Clerk t: 01608 662180 e: clerk@shipstononline.org

Shipston Library has now reopened and is offering a click and collect service where people can order books online or over the phone. People can also return books that have been loaned.

Quarantining and cleaning measures for returned books will be in place, before they are reused, to reduce the risk of spreading Covid 19. This means that returned items may not be removed from your account for up to 5 days.

Two computers are available for public use in the library and can be pre-booked online or by calling customer services.

The phone number for the library is 0300 555 8171 and lines are open Monday to Thursday 9am to

Four of the play areas managed by Shipston Town Council have now re-opened - Angela’s Meadow, Hawthorn Way, Mayo Road and Railway Crescent. This follows extensive work to put the necessary safety measures in place, including a deep clean and application of an anti-bacterial treatment. Signage has been installed and play area users must follow the instructions to help keep everyone safe.

The Sports Club will remain closed due to vandalism and the equipment at Queens Avenue has been deemed permanently unsafe. The Skate Park is awaiting repair. These play areas remain closed and should not be used by the public

The Shipston Forum was first published 20 years ago and has evolved from its early roots into the publication we know and love today. Current circumstances mean that this August edition is quite different from previous years, which were full of reports about another fantastic fortnight of Proms, fun-packed school fetes and sports days, and the adventurous activities that the Scouts have been enjoying at camp. In the absence of summer events, I thought now might be a great opportunity to have a flick through the archive…

Editors

There have been several editors of the Shipston Forum since it first started landing on doormats across the town, who have all left their mark in different ways. This is now my fourth edition and I can confidently say I am still finding my bearings!

Before August 2007, the publication was editorially independent of Shipston Town Council, despite the council providing funding and serving as the publisher. The masthead proudly proclaimed “The editors of the Shipston Forum have been granted editorial independence by the Shipston Town Council and the views expressed may or may not reflect the opinions of the said council” – reading some of the firey editorials that occasionally appeared it is clear that the editors relished this freedom!

I found Bob Tolley’s first couple of editions in 2007 especially poignant. In August, he wrote an introductory column, expressing his view that the Forum should be a true community publication and that in addition to news about the Council, it should “recognise the tremendous work and successes that are achieved by the range of clubs, societies, associations, businesses, groups and individuals.” – perfectly encapsulating what the Forum still is to this day. The following month, in the wake of the epic floods that struck the town, he wrote: “Little did I realise when I agreed to take over as editor of the Forum, that within days I would be writing about one of the worst disasters in Shipston for a generation.”… little did I realise that in 2020, this new editor would also have to grapple with producing a publication in troubling times!

Youngsters taking control

For several years, there was a tradition of handing over control of the Shipston Forum to local young people for special “Youth Forum” editions. For example, 15 years ago, in the August 2005 edition, Alice Hunt and Michaela Moore documented their recent visit to the Stratford Herald. They discussed meeting renowned editor Chris Towner (now retired) and “a guy called Duncan Smith”, an alumnus of Shipston High School who has since established himself as a journalist and producer for the BBC.

I haven’t handed over the reins this month, but if any young people would like to submit a contribution for inclusion in a future edition it would be gratefully received. Although we don’t have any pieces penned by young people this month, we do have a brand new section - ‘The Little Shipstonites’ - kindly prepared for us by Nikki Turner and featuring activities for our youngest readers – I hope you enjoy it.

Whilst life remains far from “normal” it is good to see the town centre busier again, with people eager to shop and socialise while following the latest public health guidance. Fingers crossed that next month we may start to hear more about upcoming events, though I suspect they may be delivered in different ways.

Chris Rowland

Editor

Increasing concerns for the safety of pedestrians crossing the river were expressed during the Town Council meeting on 13th July. The General Purposes Working Group have been examining the issue and potential solutions, including the long preferred option of a new pedestrian bridge.

It was felt that the introduction of a curbed pathway to create a dedicated space for pedestrians would likely need to be paired with traffic signals, as the bridge is not wide enough to accommodate two flows of traffic and a pedestrian channel.

The council resolved to ask the Planning Committee to consider the matter and report at the next meeting in August.

The Town Council has agreed to write a letter expressing support for the principle of developing a new integrated Health and Wellbeing Hub. This was in response to a request from the Medical Centre, who were seeking to demonstrate the business case to the Clinical Commissioning Group. Councillors felt that a new facility was needed, however, they expressed some reservations about the design, though it was revealed that the badger statues will be kept and the new building will share the pitched roof shape of the current structure.

Several Councillors noted that as plans were currently in the pre-application phase, now was the time for the Council and members of the public to express their opinion to assist with “ironing out any rough edges”.

As reported in the June issue of the Forum, the plans are available for inspection on the South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust website for public comment: https://www.swft.nhs.uk/our-hospitals/ellen-badger-hospital

Shipston Area Flood Action Group (SAFAG) has continued its programme of flood alleviation measures throughout the lockdown period with existing health and safety procedures augmented for social distancing and appropriate use of PPE for contractors where relevant.

As all our work is outside, and being blessed with good weather, our progress has barely slowed although the Environment Agency’s monitoring training sessions were cancelled causing the subsequent postponement of community team monitoring programmes.

It is worth reminding everyone that most works take place well upstream of Shipston as the aim is to slow the flow of water reaching the main river in heavy rainfall. I am pleased to report

that following 2018’s programme of more than 300 NFM (natural flood management) interventions and last years’s programme of more than 100 NFM interventions in and around the Upper Stour upstream of Stourton/Cherington, the 2020 programmes for Long Compton and Brailes are now well under way.

Work at Long Compton should be finalised in July with the installation of over 140 interventions on and around Nethercote Brook and its feeder watercourses.

In Brailes we have already completed 50 interventions around Sutton Brook with a further 70 planned after the harvest period. Some finishing off work is also to be done in the Sibford area with another 15 features planned for July/August.

Last winter’s rain caused damage to several of our dams on Pigbrook, Paddlebrook and Kneebrook which need repair. This has also highlighted the opportunity for some augmentation with 25 additional dams and some water retention areas now planned within the 2018 scheme area around Kneebrook. This additional work and repairs will be done later this year.

The damage from last winter’s rain has also led to Long Compton and Brailes’ Parish Councils agreeing to include funding for long term NFM maintenance within their annual precepts. It now seems clear that climate change will continue to deliver extreme weather at increased frequencies, so the interventions we are doing will require maintenance. We are therefore now encouraging all Town and Parish Councils to allocate the necessary funding.

By the end of summer 2020 our programme should total around 800 interventions on the main watercourses feeding into the River Stour above Shipston. Considering only 50% of these were in place last November when we had the heaviest rainfall since 2007 and we know that they helped alleviate flood risk to the town and downstream villages, this further work can be reasonably expected to improve protection still further.

We are also scoping out further programmes elsewhere in the catchment, including further upgrades to existing schemes, and we are seeking additional funding to undertake such work later this year or in 2021. Besides Long Compton and Brailes, other community groups from Cherington/Stourton, Darlingscote and Sutton-under-Brailes have also joined with us so we really do have full catchment wide community involvement.

There is a need for a major upgrade of SAFAG’s website which we currently do ‘in house’ as best we can. We simply do not have the professional skills, time or money to undertake this properly and despite being one of the leading flood groups in the country in terms of results the presentation and promotion of our achievements, particularly via social media, is being left behind. We need a modern website to promote our work and secure new funding to build on our success. This will also help us attract the volunteers young and old which we will need to sustain the programme into the future. If anyone with experience in web design would be willing volunteer their help it would be much appreciated.

Meanwhile, and as ever, we would like to thank all our agency and local authority partners for their help but especially the approximately 40 farmers, landowners and others in the catchment community whose unstinting support has made and is making all this possible.

Phil Wragg, Chairman.

Shipston Area Flood Action Group

The Town Council has continued to operate under a scheme of delegation that allows the Clerk to conduct business after consulting with Councillors. However, after several test sessions on Zoom to allow Councillors to experiment with the technology, future council meetings are now planned to be hosted on the platform until physical meetings can resume, allowing for democratic decisions.

The first ever virtual Annual Town Council Meeting in Shipston took place at 7pm 18th May, with Councillors gathering to conduct the election of a new Mayor and Deputy Mayor.

Dan Scobie as the outgoing Mayor opened the meeting by requesting that all participants remain on mute until called to speak, and that all contributions should be addressed to the Chair as would be normal procedure. Voting took place through the raising of hands, which were then tallied.

South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust and Shipston Medical Centre have been progressing plans to develop Ellen Badger Hospital.

To ensure the hospital is the best it can be for residents of Shipston-on-Stour and the surrounding local communities we have been working closely with  the League of Friends of Ellen Badger Hospital, Patient Participation Groups, and South Warwickshire Clinical Commissioning Group, as well as Shipston Town Council, Warwickshire County Council, Shipston Care, Shipston Home Nursing and other local partners and organisations.

Please find click here to download a 2-page PDF which provides an update on the project.

A group of Shipston residents are keeping busy during the coronavirus pandemic by researching the men listed on the Shipston WW1 Roll of Honour in St Edmunds Church. The researchers, led by Richard Willis, are now collating information about the 267 men listed on the Roll of Honour, following Richard’s appeal for support on the Shipston Noticeboard Facebook page.

They also plan on exploring the story of the women who worked at the Voluntary Aid Detachment in Shipston which was led by Dr and Mrs Stein of Park House on Church Street.

Once the research has been compiled the team will share this trove of information with the new Shipston-on-Stour and District Local History Society.

Mike Wells, a member of the Shipston branch of the Royal British Legion, has already conducted extensive research into Shipston’s fallen soldiers but the group hope to fill a gap in the details about those that returned. Their efforts so far have identified both born and bred Shipston residents, as well as those that had only began to call the town their home shortly before the war. Many of the men who returned from the battlefield went on to live long and happy lives in Shipston with their families and still have descendants here today.

They are currently focusing on sourcing military records for the 267 men and identifying where they lived in Shipston and the surrounding villages. The group would be pleased to hear if you have any information about family who fought in WW1 that they could include in their research, or if you’d like to volunteer to help the project. Richard can be contacted by email: r.m.willis@btinternet.com

Just before the Forum went to press, the Government announced strict social distancing measures to help protect people from coronavirus. These are challenging times for us all, but once again, Shipston is already proving to be a resilient community.

Local residents Nicky Hill and Charlotte Haines have set up a self-isolation support group on Facebook - Shipston SOS. They are coordinating volunteer efforts to ensure those having to self-isolate are supported with deliveries of urgent supplies, phone calls and dog walking. The Town Council has provided a dedicated phone line for people to call to request help during self-isolation - see the advert on the back page for details.

Please be aware that this new group - Shipston SOS - is a work in progress and all those involved are doing their best to provide help where they can, within the limits set by the Government regarding social distancing. To help avoid them becoming overwhelmed, please continue to rely on your existing support and social networks where you can - Shipston SOS will help to plug the gaps.

If you would like to request help or volunteer, please call 01608 495010, email shipstonsos@gmail.com or search for ‘Shipston on Stour self-isolation support’ on Facebook.

Shipston Medical Centre has had plans in place to manage a pandemic for over ten years and is well prepared to continue operating. Most appointments are now being offered over the phone or online - see the update on page 14 of the Forum for details.

This is a rapidly changing situation, so please be aware some of the content in the Shipston Forum may be out of date by the time it reaches you. For the latest information and advice on the virus please visit www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/ or www.gov.uk/coronavirus.

Town Mayor, Dan Scobie, said: “We know that everyone in the town is being affected by the restrictions put in place to try and protect people from coronavirus. On behalf of everyone at Shipston Town Council, I would like to say a sincere thank you to all those who are doing their bit to try and help those most vulnerable. I’d also like to urge everyone to be considerate to those who are doing their best to keep supplies going and caring for those who are sick or need support.”

The purpose of this column is to encourage you to take action to keep yourself well.

Wash your hands regularly - Washing your hands is one of the easiest ways to protect yourself and others from illnesses such as food poisoning and flu.

Stay hydrated - Drinking enough water each day is crucial for many reasons: to regulate body temperature, keep joints lubricated, prevent infections, deliver nutrients to cells, and keep organs functioning properly. Being well-hydrated also improves sleep quality, cognition, and mood. You should drink enough during the day so your pee is a pale clear colour.

Eat a balanced diet – we are what we eat and the better our diet the better we feel. Not only can eating well improve our sleep and our mood, it can also reduce our chances of getting diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, cardiovascular disease and some cancers. The Eatwell guide offers advice and guidance about how to have a balanced diet, see www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/the-eatwell-guide/.

Keep active – try to do some physical activity. The amount we need depends on our age, but even doing light activity is beneficial. Please observe the latest government guidance on social distancing and self isolation.

Take medications as prescribed 

If you have a long term condition it is important to take medications as prescribed. Tips for doing this are to:

•  Incorporate your medications into your routine until it becomes a habit – e.g. take your morning and night tablets after brushing your teeth.

•  Use a pill box marked with days of the week.

•  Keep an up to date medication list with you at all times or a recent repeat prescription.

•  Use an alarm – especially if you have time specific medications such as Parkinson’s disease medications.

•  Give yourself reminders – e.g. a sticky note on the mirror or kitchen cupboard to remind yourself to take your medications.

•  If you have a respiratory condition it is important that you regularly use your preventer inhaler as prescribed, only using the reliever if you suffer an exacerbation of your condition

Shipston Town Council has co-opted Peter Cowley as a new councillor, filling the one remaining vacancy on the council.
Peter moved into Shipston in December 2019, moving from Southport in Merseyside to be close to family. He spotted the advert in the Forum looking for new councillors and decided to put his name forward.

Although this is Peter’s first experience as a councillor, he is no stranger to local government, having worked as a lawyer for Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council for many years. “Although I’m new to Shipston, I’m keen to contribute to the town and my experience of working in local government means I’m able to offer up to date knowledge, particularly around legal matters.”

Peter intends to get involved in the Planning Committee but is also keen to support the Heritage and Leisure Projects Working Group. Having previously been a trustee of a charitable museum, art gallery and library, Peter is keen to maintain his interest in local history projects and bring his experience to bear.

Peter enjoys spending time with his two – soon to be three – grandchildren and in his spare time, is a speed sports enthusiast and lover of music. Peter has also joined Shipston Rotary and is looking forward to supporting local charitable initiatives.

Looking to bag a bargain? Then Shipston is the place to be, particularly during February’s Fiver Fest from 15-29 February.

The Shipston Totally Locally Fiver Fest is a big celebration of our town’s fantastic small businesses and shops, many run by families or individuals, but all contributing massively to the economy and the well-being of our town.

Along with other towns and High Streets across the UK, Shipston shops and businesses are putting on special £5 offers over the fortnight, to show the diversity and value of what they sell.

Shipston Totally Locally Co-ordinator, Lou Harvey, said: “The principle behind the Fiver Fest is that if every adult in Shipston spent just five pounds a week in local independent shops and businesses rather than online or in big supermarkets, that would mean an extra £1.1 million a year going into our local economy. That’s quite a difference!

“A thriving town centre benefits us all. We’re extremely fortunate in Shipston to have so many independent shops, businesses and tradespeople and we all really value the support from our local residents. As well as encouraging everyone to think about spending a bit more locally, the special offers available during Fiver Fest are our way of saying thank you to our customers.”

There are lots of businesses taking part in Fiver Fest - look out for posters displayed in shop windows and see all the offers on the Totally Locally Facebook page www.facebook.com/totallylocallyshipston.

Shipston Town Centre has seen some exciting changes recently with the arrival of new and expanding businesses. After years based in Sheep Street, Greys Opticians has expanded to a bigger shop right in the heart of the High Street. On Market Place, Shipston welcomes its first tattoo parlour - Flamin’ B’s - which is now open for bookings.

Personal Training Shipston on Stour (PTSOS) has opened a new studio on Sheep Street. The studio runs Pink Belt Kickboxing for women and is about to start kick boxing classes for youngsters from four years old.

Church Street has also recently welcomed a new business, Harry’s Barbers.

Sadly, the High Street is about to bid farewell to popular boutique, Campden Couture due to the owner retiring. The good news, though, is that plans are afoot for a new ladies clothing store in Granville Court in March.

Mayor, Dan Scobie, said: “It’s fantastic to start the new decade with positive news about local businesses opening in the town. The Totally Locally initiative is a great way to promote our fantastic local shops and businesses and I for one am looking forward to taking advantage of some of the Fiver Fest offers.”

The Townsend Hall was once again bustling with activity in the run up to Christmas, as preparations to host another community Christmas lunch were completed.

This year saw approximately 90 residents join the celebrations ranging from 21-99 years of age. The lunch is designed for people who would otherwise be on their own on Christmas Day – instead, they were part of the biggest party in town!

Shipston’s Community Christmas Lunch was originally started in 2016 and has gone from strength to strength thanks to the sterling efforts of volunteers, spearheaded this year by Tessa Hince, Kate King and Russell Critchlow. From the outset the plan was to make sure everyone who would otherwise be alone could take part, so the event is free to attend and made possible thanks to donations, be they money, time, or goods and services. Mayor, Dan Scobie, said “It’s a real community effort and one Shipston as a town should feel rightly proud of.”

Tessa Hince said: “It’s wonderful to see everyone coming together to enjoy Christmas. We simply couldn’t do it without the incredible support from volunteers and local businesses and we’d like to thank everyone involved for their help in making the 2019 Shipston Community Christmas a huge success”.

Shipston Town Council bid a reluctant farewell to Town Clerk, Georgina Beaumont, who retired in December.

Georgina has led the Clerk’s Office for over ten years, during which time she has become a fount of all knowledge to do with local services, events and activities. Having successfully acquired her Certificate in Local Government Administration, Georgina has been able to guide and support the town council, serving eight different mayors and seeing the town council through elections as well as a local referendum and a Neighbourhood Plan referendum.

In addition to her considerable responsibilities as Clerk, Georgina has contributed a significant amount of her own time to support local activities, including the Wool Fair and other Civic events over the years.

Mayor, Dan Scobie, said: “We are very sad to see Georgina go after over ten years of very dedicated service. Georgina works extremely hard and has an encyclopaedic knowledge of the town and our responsibilities as a town council. On behalf of the town and my fellow councillors, I would like to sincerely thank Georgina for all her hard work. We wish her a long, happy and healthy retirement.”