Sustainable Woodstock
Hilary's Newsletter
Hi everyone,
It's been a miserable January for so many but there are reasons to be
grateful .... those folk who attempt to cheer us up by posting lovely
wildlife photos on the We Love Woodstock Facebook site, vaccines are
being dispensed by the 100s of thousands bringing light at the end of
this long tunnel... thanks to the hardworking scientists for getting us
this far.
And other good news .... last week the new US President Joe Biden made a
pledge for strong action on the climate crisis and has lifted
international hopes that 2021 can be a breakthrough year, resetting the
world on a greener path to net zero greenhouse gas emissions.
This month we have;
For teens and teachers, the next Eventbrite events from Oxford Climate
Club (Feb 3rd and 10th) ... YOU NEED
TO REGISTER SOON; a meeting held between the local villages,
Blenheim and VeloCity that aims to increase the possibilities of safe
cycling, walking and links with public transport; if you haven't
already, we hope you are able to set aside a very small amount of time
to sign the petition or write
to Robert Courts MP and ask him to
support the Climate and Ecological Emergency Bill CEE (he hasn't
to date); for investors, we suggest ideas for green and socially
responsible investment; we suggest you complete the WWF (World Wildlife
Fund) survey to find out what your Carbon Footprint looks like.
Thanks to our regular contributors .... from James Price of Perdiswell
Farm where you can find out what it takes to be a farmer in our area and
our Woodstock Birder,
Bob Pomfret reminding us what we should
be looking out for; and we
remind you of our litter pick and invite you to join us once again .....
all things considered.
Special thanks to our Woodstock Surgery
who are organising the vaccinations and special thanks too for all key
workers who are saving lives and keeping everything else in our lives
going. My thoughts and thanks to all those pupils, teachers and
home-schoolers who are doing their level best ... easy to say but stay
strong.
Feel welcome to get in touch to share your ideas, solutions and local
projects for reducing carbon in our lives or helping our
environment recover.
Safe times everyone. Hilary Brown
Photograph: Suzanne Plunkett/Greenpeace
Green, Sustainable and Socially
Responsible Investment Ideas
Graham Brown
If you are fortunate enough to be in a position to invest or concerned
about the low interest rates in deposit accounts (take the NS&I for
example), you may wish to consider a green alternative.
Ethex
www.ethex.org.uk is
a way to invest positively, to put your money directly into businesses
whose missions, impact and
outcomes you support. There is a wide range of options from renewable
energy, social enterprises and community projects. For example, there is
Low Carbon Hub,
a local social enterprise which develops and manages renewable energy
projects in collaboration with businesses, schools and communities
across Oxfordshire.
Kirtlington’s Village Hall
rooftop solar panel array is an example of how Low Carbon Hub can help
bring projects to fruition. Low Carbon Hub’s ‘Current Community Energy
Fund’ is open to investment until 31st March 2021. As with any
investment, take care to read their terms and conditions, it's a
suggestion, no guarantees!
CLICK HERE
to watch a short Low Carbon Hub video.
Or you may be interested in the increasing number of share funds
promoting ethical and sustainable investment in socially responsible
projects. This has partly come about by governments around the world
acting on the Climate Emergency and partly due to public pressure on
where pensions and investments are being used .... many for example
wishing to move away from fossil fuels. A suggestion .... something to
think about for 2021.
SAFE ROUTES UPDATE
Colin Carritt
A Network for Safe Cycling, Walking
and Public Transport
Bringing Together Villages, People & Communities?
During the November lockdown, (remember that one?) our neighbours in
Stonesfield and in Combe wanted a safe bike route for the Marlborough
School kids, from their villages to Woodstock. They talked with the
people at the Blenheim Estate office and came to an arrangement that
allows the pupils to cycle through the park. A safe route, mostly free
of traffic, and avoiding using the school bus with all the associated
infections risks. Congratulations all round!
Stonesfield and Combe’s campaign chimed with what Sustainable Woodstock
was trying to do here. With the new housing developments in the town,
it was high time that the A44 main road was made safer for pedestrians
and cyclists, particularly those from Old Woodstock who have no other
means of access to the schools and to the town centre other than to run
the gauntlet of the 40 tonners. We want a 20mph speed limit on the A44
and an off-road cycle footpath. We want more pedestrian crossings and
more substantial crash barriers.
The people of Bladon have been fighting for a 20mph speed limit through
the very narrow and tortuous A4095 that runs through the heart of their
popular tourist village.
Hanborough parish is a sizeable community with a popular train station
in its midst. But how are commuters to get there other than by car or
bus, adding to congestion levels and further dissuading people from an
active travel life choice? Hanborough residents are mindful of the new
Eynsham Garden Village and want to see safer facilities for cycling and
walking in Lower Road as well as a good pedestrian and cycling link
between Hanborough and Woodstock.
Wootton is close to Woodstock. Close enough to bike to the shops or to
the schools. But do Wootton residents really want to take their lives
in the hands on the A44 with its (largely ignored) 50mph speed
limit? Woodstock primary school is over-subscribed. Wootton primary
school is in danger of closure through lack of pupils and it's a great
little school... popular and the new houses in Old Woodstock are within
its catchment. All Wootton needs is a safe cycle pedestrian route and
hey presto, problem solved.
As for the hamlet of Glympton, it doesn’t even have a 30mph speed limit
on the B4027, let alone anything more conducive to encourage people to
walk or cycle.
As all these campaigns and concerns were being voiced, Blenheim had,
quite independently, commissioned a report from an award winning
partnership of planners, architects and designers to come up with a
“vision” of how the estate’s future plans and its relationship with its
neighbouring communities might best be developed. The “VeloCity”
partnership came up with ideas that dovetail very closely with the
aspirations of the communities that surround the Park.
So it made sense for us all to begin to try and work together to make
our communities safer and stronger, to encourage the vast numbers of
short trips that we all make to be done on foot or by bike. We are not
anti-car but we want the balance of need to be tilted back towards the
needs of pedestrians and cyclists and to reduce our carbon footprint.
Representatives from all the villages, from VeloCity and Blenheim
Estates office met on 25th January to set up a Villages
Travel Network to work together, to lobby the County and District
Councils and others and to investigate innovative ideas for funding
streams, to commiserate when, inevitably, things don’t work out, and to
jump for joy when they do. More
information:
http://www.sustainablewoodstock.co.uk/villages_travel_network.html
It's such a satisfying thing to do for our community because you instantly see the results. We also stop chemicals leaking from the litter from polluting the nearby water and soil, stop the chemicals from entering animal and human food chains and reduce the possibility of animals and birds being injured or dying.
CLIMATE & ECOLOGICAL EMERGENCY BILL (CEE)
CLICK ON the image above to watch a 3 minute video that explains why the CEE Bill is so important to us all. We have an emergency and need to make sure our representatives are doing what’s needed. It really does work if you contact your MP and let them know about the things that you care about. Thanks to those who have already written or signed the petition or both.
Sign the petition and if you have time ....
please write to your MP.
"We are at a unique stage in our history. The future of humanity and indeed, all life on earth, now depends on us"
Sir David Attenborough
OXFORD CLIMATE CLUB
CLIMATE IN THE SCHOOL CURRICULUM
Free Event Eventbrite - Register Now
Let your children be the future ....check out their website.
Wednesday 10th Feb 2021.
WWF FOOTPRINT SURVEY
Bob Pomfret Woodstock
A month into 2021 and until lockdown
eases (soon, I hope) I’m still living down the road in Oxford. These
days my birdwatching is almost entirely inside the ring road. Without my
regular visits to the OWL Reserve in Woodstock I’ve become a friend of
Aston’s Eyott Nature Reserve alongside the Thames in Iffley and do a
regular weekly survey of the birdlife. It’s quite small and it’s the
place where everybody goes to walk their dogs and their children. In
spite of that the wildlife seems unbothered. Resident tawny owls, great
spotted and green woodpeckers are all a joy. Redwings and blackbirds are
busy stripping the blackthorn and ivy at the moment, and siskins
sometimes join the goldfinches on the alder trees that fringe the River
Cherwell where it joins the Thames. Several times I’ve seen a
kingfisher, usually just a flash of electric blue but that’s exciting
enough for me. This is not a bad place to be locked down.
I’m sure you will all have seen, and maybe joined in with the Big Garden
Birdwatch at the end of January. Every year I spend an hour looking to
see what birds turn up in the garden. In Budds Close I would expect 20
to 30 birds of ten or a dozen species. This year in our small garden off
the Iffley Road it was a little quieter. Two blackbirds turned up for a
bit of flirting, and a wren and robin each popped in for a while.
Luckily we have two feeders and for most of the hour we were joined by
two coal tits, two blue tits and a great tit. I took some photos of each
of these little charmers. Our other visitor was the bird feeder
saboteur, but he’s fluffy and quite charming in his own way. Bob
Pomfret
Here we are, a month into the New
Year and it has not started so well. I do hope you and your loved ones
are safe and well and that you are starting to get vaccinated, there is
a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.
January has seen a slow start to the year on the farm, both Sam and
George have had some much needed time off with lockdown Mk3 delaying
Georges return by a week. I’ve been busying myself planning and
catching up on accounts in the office before escaping to clean something
in the afternoons. With the guys both back we hit the ground running
though with one moving cow muck and the other cleaning ergot from
the final batch of wheat at the contract farm. We have an arrangement
with a local stock farmer whereby he has as much straw as he wants and
in return we have all his muck. This has many benefits for both sides
but principally for me we get lovely cow muck back that is great for the
soil and also doesn’t contain any weed seeds from anyone else’s farm. A
visit from our soil guru, Ian, was very worthwhile and proves that, on
the whole, the farm is in great shape. Ian and I spent a few hours
driving around the farm and digging holes in both planted and unplanted
fields. By analysing the profile of the soil we can work out not only
what we’ve got right or wrong but also a strategy for the coming
spring. Because our soil is in such good condition we will be drilling
direct into the stubbles for most of our spring cereals. All we need now
is some dry weather to actually get into the fields.
The best news of the month is that the new cattle shed is finally
finished, well almost finished. The roof went on in a few days and the
cattle moved in on the 20th, a great relief for us and them. They looked
very comfortable on Sunday morning when the snow arrived, unlike me when
the phone started ringing with requests for the snow ploughs. We have
been clearing snow for a few years now but it’s not something I relish,
this time of year the last thing I want to be doing is sitting on a
tractor at midnight. Sam and George, on the other hand, think it’s great
fun so I happily delegate to them!
One of my Christmas presents was a bird box with a camera in it and I
put it up at the start of the month. Fortunately when I built my house I
put wires and ducts in for any future plans, not that I had a birdbox in
mind, but connecting it up to the network was straightforward. Two weeks
later and my first guest arrived in the form of a Bluetit. She has been
back every night since and it’s great to login and see her there all
puffed up in the dry. Fingers crossed she finds a mate soon and we get
to see them with their nest. Once again we have been putting plenty of
wheat out in our bird feeders around the fields which helps all the
wildlife when we have cold wet weather. If you see the odd blue barrel
in the corner of a field or under a hedge then please be assured we’re
not littering the farm as they are full of wheat. The huge number of
fieldfares has been lovely to see again and the starlings have been
chattering away around the farm yard this week. My mother and I have a
constant game as to who can attract the most birds to their feeders and
I have been losing for a few weeks now. Maybe it’s because mine are
higher of the ground and that little bit more exposed but the peanuts,
wheat and fat balls are left completely untouched, even in the snow. If
anyone has any suggestions to help me gain the advantage back then I’d
be interested to hear.
Looking forward then the next few weeks will see us trying to sort out
the many drainage issues that this wet weather is highlighting and also
trying to get back on the land to start preparations for spring
planting. Here’s to February being a better start to the year than
January! James
COMMUNITY WOODLAND & ORCHARD UPDATE
Not so much activity otherwise right now as we wait for better conditions for spending time in the Community Orchard and Woodland ..... COVID and weatherwise. Wildlife pond still unfinished but will be completed. Winter-pruning of the apples and pears is our next task; pruning in Winter establishes the structure of the trees, making it easier to maintain.
If you feel like joining Friends of the Community Woodland and Orchard ... please email us and ask to sign up to be a "possible" volunteer. You're not obliged to come along to "events" ... it's an excellent way to meet new people in your community, make new friends if you're new to our area .... on the other hand if you prefer to work alone ....we can also set you to working alone.
Please stop and say hello if you see us working there and ask away if you have any questions sustainablewoodtockuk@gmail.com
Add your planting to Countryfile's Plant Britain Interactive Map. Go to their website HERE. If you're renting .... ask your landlord to plant a new tree or shrub for the climate, wildlife and for your wellbeing.
Can
You Cut it ... Reducing Hazardous Pollution ?
Hilary Brown
Sustainable Woodstock Chair
Colin Carritt (definitely not pictured)
Vice-Chair and responsible for website!!!
Hilary sustainablewoodstockuk@gmail.com
OR Colin Carritt.
PERFECT
GIFTS
Selling our bags to you and local businesses is the only we generate funds for our projects - one at a time is fine by us.
Prices Jute bags @ £2
Canvas large and small Reduced to £3