Villager Alconbury December 12

1

Your

FREEcopy

VILLAGERThe

and Town LifeLOCAL NEWS • LOCAL PEOPLE • LOCAL SERVICES • LOCAL CHARITIES • LOCAL PRODUCTS

Inside this issue...The History ofMandeville Hall

Plus your chance to WIN £25 in our prize crossword

Discover what’s going on in St. Neots Town Centre this Christmas

Issue 9 - December 2012

Please mention The Villager and Town Life when responding to adverts2

To advertise in The Villager and Townlife please call 01767 261 122 3

In this Issue

Safe Local Trades Raise £4K................................................ 11

Don’t Rest on your Laurels ................................................. 15

Winter Planters ....................................................................... 18

Seasonal Delights .................................................................. 21

Free Christmas Parking ........................................................ 22

Puzzle Page .............................................................................. 24

What’s On in St. Neots .......................................................... 26

Let’s Ditch Secret Santa ....................................................... 30

Advertising Sales

Christa Hallam - Tel: 07868 369257

[email protected]

Additional Editorial

Pippa Greenwood,

Tony Larkins and

Sarah Davey

Front Cover Photo:

Sandra Cunningham

Design and Artwork

Design 9 - Tel 07762 969460

Publishers

Villager Publications Ltd

24 Market Square

Potton, Beds SG19 2NP

Tel: 01767 261122

Email:[email protected]

DisclaimerAll adverts and editorial are printed in good faith, however, Villager Publications Ltd can not take any responsibility for the content of the adverts, the services provided by the advertisers or any statements given in the editorial. No part of this publication may be reproduced or stored without the express permission of the publisher.

1

Your

FREEcopy

VILLAGERThe

and Town LifeLOCAL NEWS • LOCAL PEOPLE • LOCAL SERVICES • LOCAL CHARITIES • LOCAL PRODUCTS

Inside this issue...The History ofMandeville Hall

Plus your chance to WIN £25 in our prize crossword

Discover what’s going on in St. Neots

Town Centre this Christmas

Issue 9 - December 2012

VILLAGERThe

and Town Life

4The Mandeville HallKimbolton

8,000 copies delivered free of charge to all homes in the following areas:

Abbots Ripton, Alconbury, Alconbury Weston, Barham, Broughton, Brington, Buckworth, Bythorn, Catworth,

Coppingford, Covington, Easton, Ellington, Grafham, Great Staughton, Hail Weston, Hargrave, Keysoe, Keyston, Kimbolton,

Kings Ripton, Leighton Bromswold, Little Staughton, Lower Dean, Melchbourne, Molesworth, Old Weston, Perry, Pertenhall, Riseley, Shelton, Spaldwick, Stonley, Stow Longa, Swineshead, The Stukeleys, Tillbrook, Upper Dean, Upton, Woolley, Yelden. (We also have over 150 distribution points, including pubs, garages, most shops, post offices, Supermarket Chains in all

of the above as well as in Huntingdon, Lt Staughton, Grafham Water Visitor Centre’s and Kimbolton.)

Prize Crossword£25 could be yours!

28

Wishing you a Merry Christmas

and a Happy New Year from everyone at The Villager


Before the building of the hall, village meetings were held in the school room in Grass Yard. In 1912 at a particularly well attended concert, a pregnant lady was greatly upset by the jostling she received. This gave the Rev Powys Maurice, the Vicar of Kimbolton, the impetus to fulfil his long held wish to have a public meeting place for the village. An approach to Lord Charles Montagu, the brother of the Duke of Manchester resulted in the Duke giving the land in Thrapston Road. Lord Derby, brother in law to Lord Charles, gave £100 and the rest was raised by public subscription. Completed in 1914 and built by Thackeray’s of Huntingdon at a cost of £800 the “Mandeville Hall” was officially opened on 25th July 1914 by Lord Charles as a memorial to his mother Louise, Duchess of Devonshire wife of the 7th Duke of Manchester. The name Mandeville comes from the courtesy title of Lord Mandeville given to the heir apparent to the Duke of Manchester.Soon after it was opened the Hall became a Red Cross hospital for soldiers and Miss Leicester and a group of local ladies cared for the wounded men A display in the foyer of the Hall remembers one such soldier.In 1918 the Hall resumed its duties as a village hall. William Abington recalls the mobile cinema, where the seats were hard and the film often broke. Kimbolton Gas & Coke Co provided the lighting and during a breakdown of the film, the gas mantles took some time to relight and provoked catcalls from the rougher elements.The Hall, over the years has hosted many diverse

The Mandeville hall KIMBOLTON

bookings from horticultural shows, dances and badminton to meetings and personal celebrations. The staging of plays from the production at the opening of the hall to the modern day pantomime have been enjoyed by many.Mothers brought their babies to be weighed and vaccinated. at the monthly baby clinic. The redoubtable Mrs Violet Welstead was in charge of weighing the babies and as she had only had sons, despite the babies wearing nothing, always referred to them as boys!The Hall is run by a group of Trustees, for the benefit of the community. In 2009 an annex was built to accommodate the local youth club. This smaller hall is home to Bytes which opens twice a week offering computer skills and a community cafe run by volunteers. A revamp of the toilets followed in 2011 by an upgrade of the kitchen and bar areas means the main Hall now offers every modern facility and looks forward to celebrating its centenary in two years time.





Now taking bookings for Christmas through December 22.

Join us for a New York themed New Year’s Eve Party starting at 7pm.

Watch our website for details.

Open Christmas Day for drinks, 12pm-3pm and Boxing Day from 6pm

The Three Compasses now features;» Real ales with regular guest ales» Selection of quality wines» Takeaway food available TUE – SAT» Takeaway wine and beer service» Top up your mobile phone» Functions catered for» Meeting area

Beverley & Will have taken over The Three Compasses, Upper Dean. Will is American and brings an American flair to a traditional pub.


S e a s o n a l F a y r e

6

Fortnightly on FridaysMarket Square, Huntingdon

8am - 2pm

December 7th + 21st

HuntingdonFarmers’ Market

Stock up for ChristmasEmail: [email protected] Tel: 01480 388388

Website: www.huntingdonshire.gov.uk/markets

@huntsfarmersmkt Huntingdon Farmers Market

The Three Compasses now features;» Real ales with regular guest ales» Selection of quality wines» Takeaway food available TUE – SAT» Takeaway wine and beer service» Top up your mobile phone» Functions catered for» Meeting area



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Each October, local company Safe Local Trades organise fund-raising events for their chosen charity Age UK Peterborough. This year there were two events - the Great Eastern Fun Run on 14th October and a Firewalk on 18th October.Both events were an overall success and the organiser, eileen Le Voi, owner of Safe Local Trades, said “we would like to thank all our runners and firewalkers for taking part in helping to raise £4,185 for this very worthy cause, and to everyone who supported us by donating to our teams.” Nineteen brave people hot-footed it across red hot coals of over 1,000 degrees fahrenheit. “It was an amazing and exhilarating experience for everyone”, said eileen, “following the preliminary seminar, you couldn’t hold anyone back, we were all on such a positive high!” The firewalk was run by Steve Consalvez of Success formulae, based in Thorney, Peterborough.eileen went on to say “it is a privilege to raise funds for Age UK – funds which help them to continue to deliver vital services to older people.” David Bache, CeO of Age UK Peterborough, who also took part in the Great eastern fun Run, said “we are once again thrilled with the amount of money that these great volunteers have raised for our charity. Without such generosity we would find it really difficult to continue supporting older people in our communities. My thanks go to all the people who took part in the events, all those who sponsored them, and of course eileen Le Voi of Safe Local Trades, who did a wonderful job in organising us all”.

www.safelocaltrades.com provides free access to highly recommended, vetted and approved local

tradesmen across the PE Postocode areaTel: 0800 014 1832



DO YOU WANT TO HOST AN INTERNATIONAL STUDENT FOR

BRIGHT WORLD GUARDIANSHIPS?Bright World Guardianships Ltd is an AEGIS Accredited, UK wide guardianship organisation and takes care of international children studying at UK boarding schools. We are looking for families to host our students for some weekends and half terms during the academic year when their school is closed but they are too far from home to return to their Mum and Dad.Please get in touch if you are interested.

‘hosting an international

student has been a rewarding experience. It has given a valuable

income as well as being a fun and cultural experience’


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t: 01767 600 300 e: [email protected]

Cambridge Coins and JewelleryBuying and selling old Coins, Military Medals, Tokens, Banknotes and bullion ...as well as Jewellery.

Absolutely ...Positively ...NO pressure to sell!We give you FREE VALUATIONS ....YOU DECIDE !

Coins, Medals, Banknotes, Tokens,Postcards.Anything GOLD any SILVER....even broken jewellery!


Don’T REST ON YOuR LAuRELSWhen you received advice from your financial adviser, it was probably good advice at the time it was given. 6 months later that advice was probably still relevant because stock markets and tax laws do not “usually” change that much without prior warning, but what about 1, 3 or even 5 years later? – Almost certainly not.Advice has a shelf life and rather like food it can go off and do more harm than good. You add to that, an individual’s changing needs from their original concerns of “Will I have enough money?” or “How much will I need?”, and you start to see the importance of even an ad-hoc review.From 31st December 2012, new legislation becomes effective, which will see many IFA’s cease trading and even more no longer being independent.Due to this, we have seen an increase in enquiries recently and anticipate this continuing as there will be fewer and fewer advisers going forward and of those remaining, many are starting to limit the clients they are prepared to advise.If it has been sometime since you last saw your

adviser, I urge you to do so or seek a new opinion elsewhere.Facts To Consider This Month- Families where one parent earns £50k-£60k will

have their child benefits reduced on a sliding scale from 7th January 2013. However, it may be possible to avoid losing benefits by making additional pension contributions.

- Men retiring after 20th Dec 2012 will see their pension income reduced.

- From 21st Dec 2012, the way insurance premiums are calculated will change in line with the European Gender Directive. This could result in paying more for your cover and if you stopped smoking over 12 months ago, you could miss out on significant savings.

You should always seek qualified advice from an IFA, preferably a Certified (CFP) or Chartered

Financial PlannerCM (APFS).If you have a financial question e-mail:

[email protected]

Tony Larkins CFP APFSGroup Managing Director / IFA

Chartered and Certified Financial PlannerBeacon Financial Limited &

Beacon Wealth Management Limited




Even if you’re sure you’re not going to venture out in to your garden much in the colder months, make sure you have every possible encouragement by creating a winter planter or two. A pretty planter on the front steps or gracing the patio will not only look gorgeous from the warm comfort of the house, but will also help to coax you outside from time to time. Grab a container, some compost and a selection of plants and be creative.Larger is better, as once temperatures drop a larger container is more likely to protect the roots on the plants due to the greater volume of compost. frozen roots are fatal, so this is really worth bearing in mind. I’d avoid any container less than 30cm (12in) diameter if possible, unless you live in a very mild area. Remember that summer bedding displays can be pulled out now, so you can always re-use suitable containers once the plants have been cleared.Any container will insulate the roots a little, but one made from thick wood (such as a wooden trough or window box, or a half-barrel) will be very effective. Good quality, fairy chunky plastic also works quite well. Try to avoid metal as this tends to conduct cold.Warm undergarments are all the rage for winter planters. A lining of bubble-wrap polythene or even a few layers of old fabric or carpet, sandwiched between the sides of the container and the compost will help to keep both compost and roots warm. I always save packaging materials from parcels for this sort of thing; why not pull out the bubble-wrap inner lining from a large padded envelope and use that?If you live in a particularly cold area, or simply want to decrease the risk of winter damage further, try to position winter planters out of the windiest areas. If possible place them fairly close to a house wall on the south or west side as this will help to provide a little extra warmth.A visit to your local plant nursery or garden centre at this time of year should fill you with inspiration as you’ll be amazed at the range of plants available for adding winter colour and interest to pots and planters. Some of my favourites are the universal or other winter flowering pansies or even hardier smaller flowered violas. for some seriously sturdy winter colour, try the winter flowering heathers as these make a good

WinTeR PlanTeRSBY PIPPA GReeNWOOD

base for the display and you can, if you wish, add trailing plants such as variegated ivies to help provide extra colour, texture and interesting leaf shapes. All these plants will last for years, not just the winter months.At this time of year you are likely to find many garden centres offer very tiny versions of shrubs such as skimmias, Pieris or hollies and many of the dwarf conifers. Although these obviously have the potential to grow considerably larger, they will provide good colour and interest in a container for a year or two and can then be planted out into the garden and allowed to reach their full size.In warmer areas, you will also be able to add bright patches of colour to your display using the ‘winter cherry’ or solanum which has bright yellow and orange fruits and also many of the polyanthus whose super-sized, primrose-like flowers come in a wide range of really showy colours. You could also use a few winter flowering cyclamen but these definitely need a very sheltered spot such as a window box on a protected wall.finally, don’t forget to prolong the time which the planter will look gorgeous by adding in a few early spring flowering bulbs such as miniature narcissus, crocus and miniature iris. There are many different forms, colours and shapes of all these bulbs available and if hidden beneath the roots of your winter bedding plants, you will forget they are there until they burst out in spring and produce a lovely flush of fresh, pretty colour and often some delightful perfume too.Visit Pippa’s website www.pippagreenwood.com and sign up for ‘Grow Your Own with Pippa Greenwood’. Choose from a fantastic selection of vegetables that Pippa will send to you at just the right time for planting AND each week you receive an email telling you all you need to know to ensure great results – from just £29 for up to 66 garden-ready plants.


Start your New Year off with a

Would you like to raise your profile and gain more business locally in 2013?

Advertising in The Villager & Town Life magazine is a great cost effective way of promoting your

business or service in your local area.

We distribute over 8,000 copies door to door, free of charge, giving you the largest potential customer audience out of any other local magazine in the area

To reserve your space in the January issue please call Christa on Tel 07868 369257 by Wednesday

12th December 2012.

Wishing you all a Happy Festive Season!


FLOORED

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SeaSOnal deliGhTSMINI CHRISTMAS CAKeS

inGRedienTS250g butter, softened

250g dark muscovado sugar4 medium eggs, beaten

350g plain flour2 tsp ground mixed spice½ tsp ground cinnamon

½ tsp ground clovesfinely grated zest of 1 lemon

800g mixed dried fruit100g glace cherries, rinsed, dried and chopped

100g chopped mixed nuts

For the decoration750g marzipan

Icing sugar, for dusting4 tbsp apricot jam, warmed and sieved

Mixed coloured glace cherries, walnut halves, Brazil nuts and chopped dried apricots

1 Preheat the oven to 150C/300F/gas 2. Grease and line the base and sides of a 20cm square cake tin with a double thickness of greased, greaseproof paper.

2 Place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and cream together until pale and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs. Sift together the flour and spices then fold into the creamed mixture. fold in the lemon zest, dried fruit, glace cherries and nuts and mix thoroughly.

3 Spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin and smooth the surface. Use the back of a metal spoon to make a slight dip in the centre (this will help to give an even rise). Bake in the preheated oven for 3¼ - 3 ½ hours or until firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin.

4 When the cake is completely cold, use a sharp knife to cut it into 9 smaller square cakes. Brush the sides of each cake with a little apricot jam. Divide the marzipan into 9 pieces. Dust a surface lightly with icing sugar and roll each piece out to a strip long enough to go around each cake. Wrap the strips around the cakes pinching the ends together to seal. Top each cake with a selection of cherries, nuts and apricots. Tie a ribbon around each cake if liked.

These delightful mini fruit and nut topped cakes are perfect for giving as a festive foodie present. Simply wrap in clear cellophane and tie with gold ribbon or place in small gift boxes.

Makes 9

Ready in 4 hours, plus cooling


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Huntingdonshire’s four market towns have a lot to offer in the run-up to Christmas, and to encourage shoppers to visit their local High Street, Huntingdonshire District Council is once again offering free parking in council run car parks.from 3 to 24 December, parking will be free after 3pm on weekdays. This special offer is valid in St Neots (including Waitrose car park), St Ives (including Waitrose car park) and Huntingdon. Parking is always free in Ramsey. The offer is not valid in the Sainsbury’s car park in Huntingdon as they already offer a refund for shoppers. Market Square in St Neots is an on-street facility so charging will remain there after 3pm. Parking is already free in the town centre car parks on Sundays.Executive Leader, Councillor Jason Ablewhite, said: “We really want to encourage residents to do their Christmas shopping in their local town. We have agreed to provide this special offer as an incentive to support the shop local campaign, and

FRee ChRiSTMaS PaRKinG AfTeR 3PM

are sure that this will provide a welcome boost to business for our local shops and services.”Shoppers will not have to pay and display a ticket during the special offer period. Signs and stickers will be on display in car parks, and on the car parking machines explaining the times when the offer is valid.



How to play It’s simple! fill in

the grid so that

each row, column

and 3x3 box,

contains the digits

1 through to 9 with

no repetition.

Use your logic to

solve the puzzle.

Watch out! Sudoku

is highly addictive.

1 2

3 4

5 6

7 8

9 10

11 12

13 14

15 16

17 18

19 20

21 22

23 24

25 26

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

9 X 9 PUZZle

COd

eWO

Rd

24 Please mention The Villager and Town Life when responding to adverts


Your home deserves the best...You deserve the best that money can buy!

Welcometo the world of GSN Conservatories...home of probably the largest outdoor display area you will ever see!

PRICES START FROM ONLY

,999 FULLY INSTALLED INCLUDING THE BASE

AND VAT

The conservatory of your

choice individually designed

by GSN to suit your home!£4 GSNCONSERVATORIES

The family �rm with NO commission paid reps and NO sub-contractors

Established since 1984

Pertenhall Road (1 mile from Gt Staughton) Gt Staughton, Nr St Neots Cambs PE19 5BETelephone 01480 860000Open Mon - Fri 9am - 5pm Sat & Sun 10am - 4pm

Also at: Season’s Garden Centre Wilstead (main Road - A6) Bedford Beds MK45 3HU Telephone 01234 740011 Open Mon - Sat 10am to 4pm Sun 11am to 4pm

www.gsn.co.uk

FREE TOP QUALITY CERAMIC FLOOR TILES

GOOD SELECTION OF TILES TO CHOOSE FROM

on all conservatory orders placed this month

With over 20 styles of conservatories on display at our head o�ce and 10 models on show at Wilstead we think you will be spoilt for choice!

All our conservatories are made-to-measure from modern, low maintenance materials so you can be sure that which ever conservatory you choose, it will continue to look as good as new in years to come.

Some ex-display modelsavailable from both sitesat incredible savings!Please enquire for details.


Keep up-to-date with the latest news and events for your Town

Visit www.stneots-tc.gov.uk Follow us

@stneotscouncil Like us on

This December there is even more going on with events for all ages happening in your Town Centre in the lead up to Christmas 2012! See overleaf for more details...



across1 South American animal (6)4 Clans (6)9 Whirlwind (7)10 Male duck (5)11 Casseroles (5)12 Surprised (7)13 Source of power (11)18 Cars, buses etc. (7)20 Dangerous (5)22 Tacks (5)23 Graceful (7)24 eighth month (6)25 Flow (6)down1 Painter (6)2 American handbag (5)3 Masterpiece (7)5 Wireless (5)6 Woollen cover (7)7 fast (6)8 Assembled (11)14 Departing (7)15 Right (7)16 Lines of a verse (6)17 Method (6)19 Clenched hands (5)21 Frighten (5)

28 Please mention The Villager and Town Life when responding to adverts

Name:

Address:

Tel:

2nd Prize£15

Complete the crossword, fill in your details below, cut out this section and send to the address

below before 14th December 2012 Prize Crossword, Villager Publications Ltd24 Market Square, Potton, Beds SG19 2NP

1st Prize£25

Last Month’s Crossword Winners. Congratulations to:1st prize - Mr Paul Note from Upper Caldecote and 2nd prize - Mrs C Williams from Godmanchester

For last month’s solution please visit www.villagermag.com

The VillagerPrize Crossword



advertising in The villager is easy.To find out more call Christa on

07868 369257 or email [email protected]

Business gone a bit slow?

Let us help!

Logs for sale Well seasoned mixed ash, willow and alder in bags of around 20 kilos each, suitable for open fires or log burners. £15 per bag, or will deliver 8 bags for £100 within 10 miles of Huntingdon.Call Andy on Tel 07968 145690

Logs

Secret Santa is a trial by ordeal - really! It’s one more gift to buy; one we may resent buying, and let’s face it, most Secret Santa gifts are pretty naff. So what could replace Secret Santa? We wracked our brains and came up with a few ideas.A Giving Tree: People bring in non-perishable goods and place them under a tree. The goods are then made up into hampers and taken down to a local homeless shelter or church, where they can be distributed. It’s a win-win situation because no-one has to take home a garden gnome, or floral bubble bath they’ll never use, they’re giving to those in need instead.Charity Swap: People bring in one really nice item of clothing and a pound coin. In return they receive a numbered ticket. The clothing is donated to a charity shop and the pound is put into a fund. finally a ticket is drawn and someone wins the fund. If the workplace (and therefore the fund) is large, it can be divided into smaller prizes. So there’s a chance of winning some cash and a

leT’S diTCh SeCReT SanTaBY SARAH DAVeY

charity benefits. What’s not to like?Quiz-Pick: Everyone brings in something - could be home made goodies or an unwanted DVD from the previous year. None of the gifts are wrapped, but they’re all placed on display. everyone picks a numbered ticket out of a hat, and in order they get to answer a Christmas quiz question e.g. name all of Santa’s reindeer. If they get the question right, they get to choose a gift: if not, they have to wait until their turn comes round again. It’s fun and inexpensive, though of course there’s always the chance you’ll end up with that garden gnome!


Sally Machin Tim Jackson - Waite Sarah Freer

Villager Alconbury December 12

Documents

neots town centre

issuesafe local trades

prize crossworddiscover

alconbury weston

history ofmandeville

little staughton

old weston

hail weston