Category: Sunday Email

As there are six candidates and just five seats, there will have to be an election. It will be held on Thursday 5 May. Voting will take place at the Village Hall.

It is expected that Harrogate Borough Council will again seek nominations and arrange a further election at a date to be agreed. Unless at least three candidates come forward, which would make it quorate, Harrogate councillors will be appointed to run village affairs. The absence of local residents as parish councillors is most unfortunate for the village and a real knock for local democracy. 

Voting deadlines imminent
To vote in the elections on 5 May, you must be on the electoral register by Thursday 14 April 2022. Those who are 18 or over on polling day, should be making sure they are registered to vote. Help with electoral registration is available at Hambleton District Council (for Topcliffe residents) and at Harrogate Borough Council (for Asenby residents). Those who are on the electoral register will have received a polling card in recent weeks.

North Yorkshire Police have issued a warning saying that within the last week or two a number of people have fallen victim to the scam. Recipients of the message are sent a link from a friend which claims to offer a free chocolate product, such as an Easter chocolate hamper. The message is a phishing scam, where the fraudster aims to obtain personal details of the victim. Cadbury has made it clear that the offer is not genuine and social media users should be extra careful to avoid being scammed.
* If you receive a similar message – delete it and don’t open the link. 
* If you have opened the message, don’t provide any information.
* If you have provided information, which includes your financial information, contact your bank. 

All you have to do is create a scarecrow or group of scarecrows with a royal theme and display them in front of your home or in your garden over the designated weekend. 

All the details about registering an entry, joining the scarecrow trail and fundraising can be viewed here.

At the next stage, more information, including a map showing the location of all the scarecrows in all of the villages, will be available from Topcliffe Post Office and the Milk Churn Farm Shop.

Got any old paper notes at home?
If you have any old paper £20 or £50 notes at home please be aware that there’s only six months left before they stop being legal tender. The Bank of England has urged people to spend or deposit these old notes before they stop being legal tender. The Bank is replacing the paper notes with more durable plastic ones featuring artist JMW Turner and mathematician Alan Turing. More than £17bn worth of paper notes remain in circulation. After 30 September, people will not be able to use the paper notes for payments in shops and other businesses, though anyone with a UK bank account will still be able to deposit them into their account.

• April 12 – Harrogate and Knaresborough (Panel members: Wallace Sampson, Chief Executive Harrogate Borough Council and Neil Irving of NYCC).
• April 14 – Thirsk and Malton (Panel members: Stacey Burlet, Chief Executive Officer of Ryedale District Council, and Richard Flinton, Chief Executive Officer of NYCC).

To access the meetings, which will be held between 6.30 and 8pm, go to:
https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/new-council-virtual-roadshow,

• TODAY – Sunday 10 April, Palm Sunday, at 10.45am – the scheduled Holy Communion has been cancelled as the priest has gone down with Covid. Instead, there will be Sung Matins and the service will include the distribution of palms and the ‘dramatic’ reading of the Passion.
• Wednesday 13 April at 7pm – Service of Compline.
• Saturday 16 April, Easter Eve, at 7.30pm – Easter Vigil and First Mass of Easter. This is perhaps the most glorious service in the church’s year, starting in near darkness with readings and unaccompanied singing by the choir, then the lighting of the Easter fire, the Paschal candle and candles throughout the church, and concluding with a special Holy Communion for Easter. After the service refreshments including finger food and wine will be served.
• Sunday 17 April at 9am – Easter Day Service (not Holy Communion. The Easter Eve Service concludes with our Easter Eucharist).
• Sunday 24 April at 10.45am – Holy Communion.
• Sunday 1 May at 6.30am – Choral Evensong.

• 19 April – Mosaics
• 17 May – Mixed media and illustration
• 21 June – Silk printing
• 19 July – Fused glass

You can simply turn up on the day – it’s free to attend and materials are provided. 

• Children’s author James Harris will be signing his new books ‘Happytown must be destroyed’  and ‘The Unbelievable Biscuit Factory’ on Friday 22 April between 11am to 12.30pm.

• TODAY – Sunday 10 April from 10am to 12.30pm – Sahra Raynor will show you how to make a garden obelisk, using her home-grown willow, for flower and vegetable climbers. £40 per person including refreshments.
• Contacts: 07747 083155 and http://www.thecattonkitchen.co.uk

• To Thursday 14 April – Sideshow – When two inept criminals break into the home of a washed-up psychic in search of hidden loot, they get a lot more than they bargained for.
• Sunday 10 April and Wednesday 13 April (matinees only) – Disney’s Encanto – A Colombian teenage girl has to face the frustration of being the only member of her family without magical powers.
• Friday 15 to Thursday 21 April (with matinees Saturday 16, Sunday 17 April and Wednesday 20 April. No evening show 17 April) – The Bad Guys – Several reformed yet misunderstood criminal animals attempt to become good, with some disastrous results along the way.
• Friday 22 to Thursday 28 April (Matinee on Wednesday 27 April) – Phantom of the Open – Maurice Flitcroft, a dreamer and unrelenting optimist, managed to gain entry to The British Open Golf Championship Qualifying in 1976 and subsequently shot the worst round in Open history, becoming a folk hero in the process.

Please keep checking the website for the latest details – https://www.ritzcinema.co.uk/

• Throughout April – Tuesday to Saturday, 10am-4pm – Cafe Artist of the Month – born and bred in Ryedale, artist Jennifer Weston’s recent work is part of the ‘Scenes from Scarborough’ public art commission and highlights the decline of marine life in the North Sea.
• Monday Makers – Every Monday to 23 May. 10am – 1.30pm. Develop your creative and business skills on this course for unemployed people.
• Tuesday 12 to Friday 22 April, 10am to 4pm – Nel Hume exhibition, ‘Let the Light Back In’ – 
  a young artist living in North Yorkshire which, together with the Northumberland coastline, inspires her abstract expressionistic paintings that capture the essence of light and space.
• For more information and to book places, go to https://www.ruralarts.org/: 

• The Angel at Topcliffe – http://www.theangelattopcliffe.co.uk
• Asenbee Honey – http://www.asenbeehoney.co.uk
• John Aston Flooring Ltd – info@johnastonflooring.co.uk – 01845 421111.
• The Catton Kitchen – http://www.cattonkitchen.co.uk – 07747 083155.
• Chip ‘n Dales – Friday teatime – 5 until 7pm in Topcliffe.
• The Elm Gallery – http://www.the-elm-gallery.co.uk – 01845 577316 or 07709 223920.
• Fotiá Candles – http://www.fotiacandles.co.uk – 07879 447953. 
• Joanna’s Touch Photography – 07732 941758. Also on Facebook and Instagram.
• The Little Yorkshire Hamper Company – http://www.thelittleyorkshirehampercompany.co.uk 07793 775987.
• The Milk Churn Farm Shop & Cafe – https://www.milkchurnfarmshop.co.uk/ – 01845 400446.
• Studio 18 Hairstylist – Nicola James, 18 Long Street (opposite the surgery). 07851 034815.
• The Swan – 01845 595185  The Swan, Topcliffe | Facebook
• The Thirsk Food Bank – collection point at the Milk Churn Farm Shop. 
• Topcliffe Post Office – 01845 577517.

Hambleton (Topcliffe):

• Refuse – Mondays 11 April and 25 April.
• Recycling & Garden Waste – Friday 22 April (one day later than normal).

Harrogate (Asenby)
All garden waste, recycling and refuse collections will take place as normal the week commencing Monday 11 April. Week commencing Monday 18 April all collections will be a day later than usual. Normal collections will resume on Monday 25 April.

• Recycling – Mondays 11 April and 25 April.
• Refuse – Tuesday 19 April (one day later than normal) and 2 May.
• Garden waste – Friday 22 April and Thursday 5 May.

Covid guidance
Now that free testing has been scrapped for the majority of people in England a new set of guidance has been issued on what to do if you have Covid symptoms or if you’ve tested positive for the virus. The focus is on treating coronavirus as if it’s any other respiratory infection, like flu or a common cold.

There are now no rules on isolating if you get Covid, only guidance. If you have Covid symptoms, and a high temperature or do not feel well enough to carry on as normal, try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people. You can still leave your home, but guidance recommends wearing a face covering, avoiding crowded spaces, avoiding exercise indoors or in crowded spaces, covering your mouth and nose when you sneeze, and washing hands. The same advice stands for avoiding giving others you live with your infection, as well as opening windows for ventilation and regularly cleaning surfaces.

Covid symptoms

Nine new signs of illness have been added to the official list of symptoms – long after the World Health Organisation and other countries extended their lists. The traditional symptoms of a fever, new or persistent cough and loss or change in taste or smell have been extended to include shortness of breath, – feeling tired or exhausted, an aching body, a headache, a sore throat, a blocked or runny nose, loss of appetite, diarrhea and feeling or being sick. 

From April 1, those not classed as vulnerable have had to pay for a lateral flow test in order to find out if they have the virus or not. This change came as the number of cases of Covid reached record levels last week.

In the Covid section at the end of this email, the latest statistics are provided and there’s an article indicating that free lateral flow testing has now ended. It’s really quite worrying that these two things have clashed. On the same day free tests stopped being provided the number of UK Covid cases was 4.9 million, the highest weekly figure ever recorded. 

Doug
07785 223707

The festival will be staged on the Bank Holiday weekend Saturday 30 April to Monday 2 May.

The theme, not surprisingly, will be royalty, so there’s lots of opportunity to create an individual or group of scarecrows reflecting the monarchy, royal family…and even the corgis! You can register your scarecrow free of charge and request an information pack from FOS@carltonminiottacademy.org

The poster recently posted on Facebook can be viewed here:
https://www.facebook.com/1670647703190754/posts/3105495006372676/?d=n

At the next stage, more information, including a map showing the location of all the scarecrows in all of the villages, will be available from Topcliffe Post Office and the Milk Churn Farm Shop.

Mr Bateman, who is a former mayor of the Harrogate district, often attended Asenby Parish Council meetings. He worked for many years at Plumb Centre in Ripon and has been very active in charitable work in the area. 

In order to meet a tight schedule to add this by-election to those being organised for 5 May, the arrangements for selecting a new councillor have been squeezed considerably. Nomination papers must be with the Returning Officer at Harrogate Borough Council by 4pm on Tuesday, 5 April. 

Voting deadlines imminent
To vote in the elections on 5 May, you must be on the electoral register by Thursday 14 April 2022. Those who are 18 or over on polling day, should be making sure they are registered to vote. Help with electoral registration is available at Hambleton District Council (for Topcliffe residents) and at Harrogate Borough Council (for Asenby residents). Those who are on the electoral register will have received a polling card in recent weeks.

• April 12 – Harrogate and Knaresborough (Panel members: Wallace Sampson and Neil Irving of NYCC).
• April 14 – Thirsk and Malton (Panel members: Stacey Burlet, Chief Executive of Ryedale District Council, and Richard Flinton, CEO of NYCC).

They will be held via Microsoft Teams between 6.30 and 8pm. To access the meetings go to:
https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/new-council-virtual-roadshows

Under the plans, the current county, district and borough councils in North Yorkshire will be replaced by a single council in April 2023. Until then, services will continue to be provided by North Yorkshire County Council and the seven district and borough councils. From April 2023, the new unitary authority will deliver all services across the whole of the current county footprint.

• TODAY  Sunday 3 April at 6.30pm – Choral Evensong.
• Wednesday 6 April at 7pm – Service of Compline.
• Sunday 10 April, Palm Sunday, at 10.45am – Holy Communion (traditional language).
• Wednesday 13 April at 7pm – Service of Compline.
• Saturday 16 April, Easter Eve, at 7.30pm – Easter Vigil and First Mass of Easter. This is perhaps the most glorious service in the church’s year, starting in near darkness with readings and unaccompanied singing by the choir, then the lighting of the Easter fire, the Paschal candle and candles throughout the church, and concluding with a special Holy Communion for Easter. After the service refreshments including finger food and wine will be served.
• Sunday 17 April at 9am – Easter Day Service (not Holy Communion. The Easter Eve Service concludes with our Easter Eucharist).

• 19 April – Mosaics
• 17 May – Mixed media and illustration
• 21 June – Silk printing
• 19 July – Fused glass

You can simply turn up on the day – it’s free to attend and materials are provided. 

•   Village Hall Committee – 7.30pm on Tuesday 5 April. The AGM and an Ordinary Meeting of the Committee will be held consecutively starting at 7.30pm on Tuesday 7 June. www.topcliffe.org.uk/village-hall/
•   Topcliffe Parish Council – 7pm on Thursday 7 April – www.topcliffe.org.uk
•   Asenby Parish Council will meet at 7.30pm on Wednesday 18 May – www.asenby.net  

Both parish councils and the Village Hall Committee meet at Topcliffe & Asenby Village Hall.

• Photographer Lucy Saggers will hold a book signing session between 6.30pm and 9pm on Thursday 7 April. Her book ‘Ford of the Sorrel’, was shortlisted at the Belfast Photo Festival 2022. Books can be pre-ordered now and they’ll be personally signed on the night. Tickets £3, redeemable against a copy of her book. Light refreshments available. Email: sales@whiterosebooks.co.uk or telephone 01845 524353.
• Rob & Dave of Channel 5’s Cannon Hall Farm will be signing their book ‘Springtime at Cannon Hall Farm’ on Saturday 9 April. The book has all the animal antics but also tales of bygone days when traditional skills, crafts and daily practices shaped life in the countryside. Pre-orders taken and books will be personally signed on the day.
• Children’s author James Harris will be signing his new books ‘Happytown must be destroyed’  and ‘The Unbelievable Biscuit Factory’ on Friday 22 April between 11am to 12.30pm.

• TODAY – 12 noon to 3pm – Wedding Fayre – with a glass of Frizzante and canapes for all who call in, plus expert advice from experienced coordinators and suppliers.
• Tuesday 5 April – doors open 7.30 for 8pm – Hilarity Bites Comedy Night – £10 in advance or £12 on the night.
• Friday nights – 5 to 9pm – Land & Sea – steak or fish for two with a bottle of wine for £35.95
• Sunday roast – 12noon to 8pm – traditional Sunday Lunch.

Check the website at https://theangelattopcliffe.co.uk/ or call 01845 578000.

• Farm Shop/Breakfast – Fridays and Sundays – 10 to 12 noon.
• Fancy home-reared lamb at Easter? Orders now being taken.
• Saturday 9 April from 2pm for approx. 2.5 hours. In partnership with former Topcliffe resident, Diane West, there’ll be a fun event to make some fantastic lampshades. You will learn how to make a contemporary 25cm drum shade which can either be placed on a lamp base or ceiling pendant. You just need to bring 0.5m of fabric or you can purchase some on the day.  All other materials will be supplied. Price £40 per person. Just a few places still available.
• Sunday 10 April from 10am to 12.30pm – make a garden obelisk for flower and vegetable climbers. With Sahra using her homegrown willow £40 per person – @willowviewfarm
• Hot or cold drink and cake is part of all classes held.
• Vouchers are available if anyone wishes to gift the cost of the above events to a friend or family member.
• Contacts: 07747 083155 and http://www.thecattonkitchen.co.uk

• To Thursday 7 April – Dog – Two former Army Rangers are paired against their will on the road trip of a lifetime. Briggs (Channing Tatum) and Lulu (a Belgian Malinois) race down the Pacific Coast to get to a fellow soldier’s funeral on time.
• Friday 8 to Thursday 14 April – Sideshow – When two inept criminals break into the home of a washed-up psychic in search of hidden loot, they get a lot more than they bargained for.
• Saturday 9 April, Sunday 10 April and Wednesday 13 April (matinees only) – Disney’s Encanto – A Colombian teenage girl has to face the frustration of being the only member of her family without magical powers.
• Friday 15 to Thursday 21 April (with matinees Saturday 16, Sunday 17 April and Wednesday 20 April. No evening show 17 April) – The Bad Guys – Several reformed yet misunderstood criminal animals attempt to become good, with some disastrous results along the way.
• Friday 22 to Thursday 28 April (Matinee on Wednesday 27 April) – Phantom of the Open – Maurice Flitcroft, a dreamer and unrelenting optimist, managed to gain entry to The British Open Golf Championship Qualifying in 1976 and subsequently shot the worst round in Open history, becoming a folk hero in the process.

Please keep checking the website for the latest details – https://www.ritzcinema.co.uk/

• Throughout April – Tuesday to Saturday, 10am-4pm – Cafe Artist of the Month – born and bred in Ryedale, artist Jennifer Weston’s recent work is part of the ‘Scenes from Scarborough’ public art commission and highlights the decline of marine life in the North Sea.
• Monday Makers – 28 March to 23 May. 10am – 1.30pm. Free ten week course but you can still join.  From printmaking to marketing, develop your creative and business skills on this course for unemployed people.
• Tuesday 12 to Friday 22 April, 10am to 4pm – Nel Hume exhibition, ‘Let the Light Back In’ – 
  a young artist living in North Yorkshire which, together with the Northumberland coastline, inspires her abstract expressionistic paintings that capture the essence of light and space.
• For more information and to book places, go to https://www.ruralarts.org/: 

• Thursday, 7 April at 7.30pm – Northallerton & District Flower Club Spring Open Evening – Chelsea Gold Medalist Mark Entwistle demonstrates “The Secret Life of Colour” Former UK Florist Of The Year and innovative floral designer.
• Friday 8 April at 7.30pm – An Evening with Gill Sims – Gill will be interviewed by Jo Middleton, author of Playgroups and Prosecco and creator of Slummy Single Mummy. It should be an hilarious look at the changing face of motherhood as your children grow from toddlers to teenagers.
• Saturday 9 April at 3pm – Mark Thompson’s Award-Winning Spectacular Science Show – You think science is boring, think again! This is science like you have never seen it before. Designed for children and adults alike, the show explores the strange and magical properties of matter with exploding elephant’s toothpaste, vortex-generating dustbins and even howling jelly babies!

  Call 01609 776230. Tickets online at http://www.forumnorthallerton.org.uk

• The Angel at Topcliffe – http://www.theangelattopcliffe.co.uk
• Asenbee Honey – http://www.asenbeehoney.co.uk
• John Aston Flooring Ltd – info@johnastonflooring.co.uk – 01845 421111.
• The Catton Kitchen – http://www.cattonkitchen.co.uk – 07747 083155.
• Chip ‘n Dales – Friday teatime – 5 until 7pm in Topcliffe.
• The Elm Gallery – http://www.the-elm-gallery.co.uk – 01845 577316 or 07709 223920.
• Fotiá Candles – http://www.fotiacandles.co.uk – 07879 447953. 
• Joanna’s Touch Photography – 07732 941758. Also on Facebook and Instagram.
• The Little Yorkshire Hamper Company – http://www.thelittleyorkshirehampercompany.co.uk 07793 775987.
• The Milk Churn Farm Shop & Cafe – https://www.milkchurnfarmshop.co.uk/ – 01845 400446.
• Studio 18 Hairstylist – Nicola James, 18 Long Street (opposite the surgery). 07851 034815.
• The Swan – 01845 595185  The Swan, Topcliffe | Facebook
• The Thirsk Food Bank – collection point at the Milk Churn Farm Shop. 
• Topcliffe Post Office – 01845 577517.

Hambleton (Topcliffe):

• Recycling & Garden Waste – Thursdays 7 April and Friday 22 April (one day later than normal).
• Refuse – Mondays 11 April and 25 April

Harrogate (Asenby)
All garden waste, recycling and refuse collections will take place as normal the week commencing Monday 11 April. Week commencing Monday 18 April all collections will be a day later than usual. Normal collections will resume on Monday 25 April.

• Refuse – Monday 4 April, Tuesday 19 April (one day later than normal) and 2 May.
• Garden waste – Thursday 7 April, Friday 22 April and Thursday 5 May.
• Recycling – Mondays 11 April and 25 April.

The provision of universal free tests in England has ended. As of last Friday those not classed as vulnerable have to pay for a lateral flow test as free universal symptomatic and asymptomatic testing ended for the general public. The PM said testing had become “less valuable in preventing serious illness” because the dominant Covid variant – Omicron – is less severe, but critics suggest the financial impact of testing on the UK is the real reason the government wants to stop free provision. Universal free testing for almost two years has come at an astronomical cost to the taxpayer – the testing regime had a bigger budget than the Home Office last year and it cost £2 billion in January alone.

Limited symptomatic testing will be available for a small number of at-risk groups, however the government has not yet set out exactly who will be eligible. It is suggested people aged 80 and above are likely to be in that group, as well as NHS and social care staff. 

Mother’s Day is very special and I hope all mums reading this have really wonderful day.
Doug
07785 223707

Yorkshire to Ukraine is currently desperate for:
– Medical supplies, eg: first-aid bags, dressings, gloves, bandages, painkillers, cough and cold medicine, children’s medicines, life saving equipment.
– Food that can be eaten straight away, eg: biscuits, crackers, crisps, cereals, jelly pots, items that have a good date on them – tinned food like tuna fish etc. that doesn’t need cooking. Also needed are drinks, especially water.
– For children, eg: soft toys, books, crayons, colouring books & pens. Baby stuff, eg: nappies, new bottles,
dried baby milk, baby slings.

Address: 7 Marrtree Business Park, Sowerby, Thirsk YO7 3H. Follow the Facebook page for live updates from drivers delivering to the Ukraine border, updates on collection points, what is needed, volunteer roles and where to donate money: facebook.com/yorkshiretoukraine

Topcliffe Post Office continues to collect items to take to Ukraine. Items currently required are as above and cash donations to help meet fuel costs are also welcome. 

Emilia also raises cash for Ukraine
Ten year-old Emilia Brierley, who lives in East Lea, Topcliffe, has unlocked a load of cash for Ukraine by making keyrings. Despite her busy school work and other commitments, Emilia wanted to play a part and do something positive to help. So far she has raised £180 and she’s looking to boost that amount. If anyone would like to purchase one of the blue and yellow keyrings for £3 – or whatever you can afford – please call her Mum, Joanna, on 07732 941758.

All applications must be submitted by noon on Friday 8 April 2022. Applicants will be informed of the outcome week commencing Monday 25 April 2022.More details are on the council’s website – https://www.harrogate.gov.uk/grants/platinum-jubilee-community-grants

• TODAY  Sunday – 27 March, Mothering Sunday, at 10.45am – a Family Holy Communion service (using modern language) to be taken by Revd Robert Williamson. Families are warmly encouraged to join in this special occasion.
• Sunday 3 April at 6.30pm – Choral Evensong
• Sunday 10 April, Palm Sunday, at 10.45am – Holy Communion (traditional language).
• Saturday 16 April, Easter Eve, at 7.30pm – Easter Vigil and First Mass of Easter. This is perhaps the most glorious service in the church’s year, starting in near darkness with readings and unaccompanied singing by the choir, then the lighting of the Easter fire, the Paschal candle and candles throughout the church, and concluding with a special Holy Communion for Easter. After the service refreshments including finger food and wine will be served.
• Sunday 17 April at 9am – Easter Day Service (not Holy Communion. The Easter Eve Service concludes with our Easter Eucharist).

Lent Lunches
St Columba’s are hosting Lent Lunches at 12 noon every Wednesday in March. Donations at all of the lunches will go to the Christian Aid Ukraine Appeal. 

Lent Services of Compline 
Also every Wednesday throughout Lent (up to and including 13 April) St Columba’s will hold a short 15 minute service of Compline (a peaceful reflective service of prayers and readings for the end of the day) in church at 7pm.

• Best community group – awarded to groups carrying out voluntary activity/activities in North Yorkshire.
• Volunteer of the year – awarded to individual volunteers carrying out voluntary activity/activities in North Yorkshire.
• Making a difference – helping rural communities to flourish – awarded to individual or groups who have through their voluntary activity/activities made a real difference to a rural area of North Yorkshire. This award recognises unique, innovative, enterprising or resilient approaches to overcoming rural issues, challenges or disadvantage that have impacted on people, communities and/or the environment.

For more information and to make nominations go to: https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/community-awards The deadline is 6 May

Voting deadlines approach
The deadline for submission of nomination papers for candidates for parish elections in Asenby and Topcliffe is 4pm on Tuesday 5 April. There are five seats on both parish councils. If either parish election is contested (ie more candidates than seats), the polls will take place on Thursday 5 May.  If there are no more than five candidates, there won’t be the need for an election and all candidates will form the councils.

To vote in the elections on 5 May, you must be on the electoral register by Thursday 14 April 2022. Those who are 18 or over on polling day, should be making sure they are registered to vote. Help with electoral registration is available at Hambleton District Council (for Topcliffe residents) and at Harrogate Borough Council (for Asenby residents). Those who are on the electoral register will have received a polling card or letter last week or will get one this week.

If you know that you will not be able to get to the polling station on 5 May, you can apply to vote by post or proxy. You will need to complete and return your application by 5pm on Tuesday 19 April.

A proxy vote is when you apply for someone you trust to vote for you, but they must be eligible to vote in the election themselves. If you apply for a proxy vote, the person voting on your behalf can go to the polling station to cast your vote or can apply to vote for you by post. You will need to complete and return your application by Tuesday 26 April.

• Photographer Lucy Saggers will hold a book signing session between 6.30pm and 9pm on Thursday 7 April. Her book ‘Ford of the Sorrel‘, was shortlisted at the Belfast Photo Festival 2022. Books can be pre-ordered now and they’ll be personally signed on the night. Tickets £3, redeemable against a copy of her book. Light refreshments available. Email: sales@whiterosebooks.co.uk ot telephone 01845 524353.
• Rob & Dave of Channel 5’s Cannon Hall Farm will be signing their book ‘Springtime at Cannon Hall Farm’ on Saturday 9 April. The book has all the animal antics but also tales of bygone days when traditional skills, crafts and daily practices shaped life in the countryside. Pre-orders taken and books will be personally signed on the day.
• Children’s author James Harris will be signing his new books ‘Happytown must be destroyed’  and ‘The Unbelievable Biscuit Factory’ on Friday 22 April between 11am to 12.30pm.

•   Village Hall Committee – 7.30pm on Tuesday 5 April. The AGM and an Ordinary Meeting of the Committee will be held consecutively starting at 7.30pm on Tuesday 7 June. www.topcliffe.org.uk/village-hall/
•   Topcliffe Parish Council – 7pm on Thursday 7 April – www.topcliffe.org.uk
•   Asenby Parish Council will meet at 7.30pm on Wednesday 18 May – www.asenby.net  

Both parish councils and the Village Hall Committee meet at Topcliffe & Asenby Village Hall.

• Sunday 3 April – 12 noon to 3pm – Wedding Fayre – with a glass of Frizzante and canapes for all who call in, plus expert advice from experienced coordinators and suppliers.
• Tuesday 5 April – doors open 7.30 for 8pm – Hilarity Bites Comedy Night – £10 in advance or £12 on the night.
• Friday nights – 5 to 9pm – Land & Sea – steak or fish for two with a bottle of wine for £35.95
• Sunday roast – 12noon to 8pm – traditional Sunday Lunch.

Check the website at https://theangelattopcliffe.co.uk/ or call 01845 578000.

• Farm Shop/Breakfast – Fridays and Sundays – 10 to 12 noon.
• Fancy home-reared lamb at Easter? Orders now being taken.
• Saturday 9 April from 2pm for approx. 2.5 hours. In partnership with former Topcliffe resident, Diane West, there’ll be a fun event to make some fantastic lampshades. You will learn how to make a contemporary 25cm drum shade which can either be placed on a lamp base or ceiling pendant. You just need to bring 0.5m of fabric or, you can purchase some on the day.  All other materials will be supplied. Price £45 per person. Tea/coffee and cakes will be included.
• Contacts: 07747 083155 and http://www.thecattonkitchen.co.uk

• To Thursday 31 March (Matinee on Wednesday 30 March) – The Duke – In 1961, Kempton Bunton, a 60 year old taxi driver, steals Goya’s portrait of the Duke of Wellington from the National Gallery in London.
• Friday 1 to Thursday 7 April – Dog – Two former Army Rangers are paired against their will on the road trip of a lifetime. Briggs (Channing Tatum) and Lulu (a Belgian Malinois) race down the Pacific Coast to get to a fellow soldier’s funeral on time.
• Friday 8 to Thursday 14 April – Sideshow – When two inept criminals break into the home of a washed-up psychic in search of hidden loot, they get a lot more than they bargained for.
• Saturday 9 April, Sunday 10 April and Wednesday 13 April (matinees only) – Disney’s Encanto – A Colombian teenage girl has to face the frustration of being the only member of her family without magical powers.
• Friday 15 to Thursday 21 April (with matinees Saturday 16, Sunday 17 April and Wednesday 20 April. No evening show 17 April) – The Bad Guys – Several reformed yet misunderstood criminal animals attempt to become good, with some disastrous results along the way.
• Friday 22 to Thursday 28 April (Matinee on Wednesday 27 April) – Phantom of the Open – Maurice Flitcroft, a dreamer and unrelenting optimist, managed to gain entry to The British Open Golf Championship Qualifying in 1976 and subsequently shot the worst round in Open history, becoming a folk hero in the process.

Please keep checking the website for the latest details – https://www.ritzcinema.co.uk/

• Mondays, 28 March to 23 May, 10am – 1.30pm. Monday Makers – Free nine week course. From printmaking to marketing, develop your creative and business skills on this course for unemployed people.
• Wednesdays starting 30 March – 10.30am to 12.30pm – Boats in Acrylic – With all materials included and each workshop suitable for beginners, these Wednesday morning Taste Of…sessions give the perfect introduction to a range of artistic styles and techniques. £12.

For more information and to book places, go to https://www.ruralarts.org/: 

• Wednesday 30 March at 7.30pm – Jenny Eclair at Sixty – having hit 60 (but still a year younger than Madonna) the comedienne tells it as it is!
• Saturday 2 April at 7.30pm – An evening with Nigel Owens – Rugby Union icon Nigel Owens is one of the most engaging and humorous characters in the game of rugby.
• Thursday, 7 April at 7.30pm – Northallerton & District Flower Club Spring Open Evening – Chelsea Gold Medalist Mark Entwistle demonstrates “The Secret Life of Colour” Former UK Florist Of The Year and innovative floral designer.
• Friday 8 April at 7.30pm – An Evening with Gill Sims – Gill will be interviewed by Jo Middleton, author of Playgroups and Prosecco and creator of Slummy Single Mummy. It should be an hilarious look at the changing face of motherhood as your children grow from toddlers to teenagers.
• Saturday 9 April at 3pm – Mark Thompson’s Award-Winning Spectacular Science Show – You think science is boring, think again! This is science like you have never seen it before. Designed for children and adults alike, the show explores the strange and magical properties of matter with exploding elephant’s toothpaste, vortex-generating dustbins and even howling jelly babies!

  Call 01609 776230. Tickets online at http://www.forumnorthallerton.org.uk

• The Angel at Topcliffe – http://www.theangelattopcliffe.co.uk
• Asenbee Honey – http://www.asenbeehoney.co.uk
• John Aston Flooring Ltd – info@johnastonflooring.co.uk – 01845 421111.
• The Catton Kitchen – http://www.cattonkitchen.co.uk – 07747 083155.
• Chip ‘n Dales – Friday teatime – 5 until 7pm in Topcliffe.
• The Elm Gallery – http://www.the-elm-gallery.co.uk – 01845 577316 or 07709 223920.
• Fotiá Candles – http://www.fotiacandles.co.uk – 07879 447953. 
• Joanna’s Touch Photography – 07732 941758. Also on Facebook and Instagram.
• The Little Yorkshire Hamper Company – http://www.thelittleyorkshirehampercompany.co.uk 07793 775987.
• The Milk Churn Farm Shop & Cafe – https://www.milkchurnfarmshop.co.uk/ – 01845 400446.
• Studio 18 Hairstylist – Nicola James, 18 Long Street (opposite the surgery). 07851 034815.
• The Swan – 01845 595185  The Swan, Topcliffe | Facebook
• The Thirsk Food Bank – collection point at the Milk Churn Farm Shop. 
• Topcliffe Post Office – 01845 577517.

Hambleton (Topcliffe):

• Recycling & Garden Waste – Thursdays 24 March and 7 April and Friday 22 April (one day later than normal).
• Refuse – Mondays 28 March, 11 April and 25 April

Harrogate (Asenby)

• Refuse – Mondays 4 and 18 April and 2 May.
• Garden waste – Thursdays 7 and 21 April and 5 May.
• Recycling – Mondays 28 March and 11 April and 25 April.

The NHS Covid-19 vaccination programme will contact people when it is their turn to be vaccinated again and, once they have an invitation, they will be able to book their appointment through the National Booking System either online or by calling NHS 119. The fourth jab will be made available to more people later in the year.