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Sunday Email: Issue 107
Welcome to the 107th issue of the Sunday Email.
Doug
07785 223707
Spectacular Scarecrow Festival
Anyone who took the time last weekend to drive around the four villages participating in the scarecrow festival, or just walked around Topcliffe, will have been amazed at the creativity of those who entered the competition.

There were some fantastic ‘royal’ scarecrows on display and it’s expected that a significant amount was raised for the two organising groups – the Friends of Topcliffe School and the Friends of Carlton Miniott School.

All the entries can be viewed on this Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/FriendsofCarltonMiniottSchool/

The winners hadn’t been announced as this email was being finalised, so they’ll be mentioned next week.

Well done to everyone who made the effort to enter a scarecrow and a big thank you to all those who viewed them and donated cash.
Topcliffe’s new Parish Council
Congratulations to the five candidates elected last Thursday to serve as Topcliffe Parish councillors:

Roy Beckwith – 147
Chris Bumby – 170
Ben Collard – 125
Jamie Moores – 137
Debbie Roberts – 203

Commiserations to Paul Bumby who gained 124 votes, but was pipped at the post.
North Yorkshire Council election
Mark Robson, who has represented Topcliffe for many years on Hambleton Council, failed to be elected as our new councillor on the new North Yorkshire Council. The seat was taken by Green Party candidate Dave Whitfield who got 1090 votes, compared to Mark Robson’s 1010.

In Harrogate’s Wathvale & Bishop Monkton ward, which includes Asenby, Nick Brown won the seat for the Conservative Party with 1334 votes. Hannah Corlett, Green Party received 455 and Chris Knight, Liberal Democrats got 559.
Asenby Parish Council
Asenby Parish Councils AGM will be held at 7.30pm on Wednesday 18 May in Topcliffe & Asenby Village Hall. That will be the final meeting of the existing council. As no nominations to stand as councillors have been received the Parish Council will not be able to operate in the normal way. The next step will see Harrogate Borough Council appoint representatives to deal with village affairs. At that point, local people will be able to be co-opted on to the Parish Council, if they wish.
Welcome for Natalie
We have a new resident in Topcliffe! Nataliia, a refugee from Ukraine safely arrived in the village on Thursday evening after a long journey from her homeland. She is now a guest of Liz and Dave Marsh at the Elm Gallery in Topcliffe. Along with her parents and older sister, Nataliia fled from the family’s apartment in Kyiv. Nataliia, who speaks perfect English, is looking forward to living in Topcliffe and to meeting other villagers over the coming weeks and months. There’s no doubt that Topcliffe will give Nataliia the warmest of welcomes.
Yorkshire to Ukraine Raffle
Tickets for the raffle to raise funds for Yorkshire to Ukraine are now on sale at the Post Office in Topcliffe. They are £2 a ticket or a book of five for £10. There are some fantastic prizes, including a gift hamper, afternoon teas, ten pin bowling tickets, pet portrait, £25 vouchers, restaurant & pub vouchers, local artwork and many, many more! The raffle draw will take place on 27 May at the Frankland Arms in Thirsk from 4.30pm.

The funds raised from the raffle will help pay for the seventh articulated lorry to travel to the border of Ukraine carrying urgently needed supplies. Please don’t forget that local volunteers are still wanting donations. Sadly, the invasion of Ukraine is intensifying and its people need our help more than ever, so the Yorkshire to Ukraine depot at Unit 7, Martree Business Park, Sowerby continues to collect donations of aid. The important things still needed are bottles of water, hygiene products, sanitary wear, new underwear, baby milk, baby bottles, baby nappies and wipes, footwear, children’s colouring books and crayons, children’s entertainment, warm clean clothing, dried foods, tinned foods, sleeping bags and pet food.
St Columba’s services

  • TODAY – Sunday 8 May at 10.45am – Holy Communion
  • Sunday 15 May at 10.45am – Sung Matins
  • Sunday 22 May at 10.45am – Holy Communion
  • Sunday 29 May – No Service.
Soup & sweet lunch
The next soup and sweet lunch will be held at the Village Hall on Wednesday 11 May at 12 noon. Donations raised at this lunch will go to the Village Hall.
Platinum Jubilee Tidy Up and Litter Pick
The date of the pre-Platinum Jubilee village tidy up in Topcliffe has been set as Saturday 14 May. It is being organised by Topcliffe Parish Council. Ben Collard and Malcolm Morley are taking the lead and on the day volunteers are asked to gather at the Village Hall at 8.45am for a 9am start. Consideration is being given to what jobs need to be tackled and volunteers will be allocated to work teams on the day. Bacon butties and drinks will be served at 11.15am as a thank you to all volunteers.
Rural Arts classes
Rural Arts ‘Hearts and Crafts’ classes will be held at Topcliffe & Asenby Village Hall at 10am on Tuesdays over the coming months, the next is on 17 May and will look at mixed media and illustration. In later months the programme includes:

  • 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.
Knit and Natter
The next Knit & Natter session at the Milk Churn Farm Shop will be on Wednesday 18 May between 1.30 and 3.30pm. It doesn’t matter how experienced you are, this is about enjoying an afternoon chatting and maybe trying something different whilst making new friends, or meeting old ones. A drink and cake is included in the price of £3. Bring your knitting or crocheting and share your knowledge or just come along to natter. Please ring the shop to confirm your seat 01845 400446.
Sion Hill Hall plant fair
Sion Hill Hall is surrounded by five acres of beautifully landscaped grounds, including a formal garden based on a parterre, plus colourful herbaceous borders, a woodland walk, and a traditional kitchen garden. The Hall, close to Kirby Wiske, is opening its gardens and holding a plant fair in the stable yard on Sunday 22 May. There’ll be huge choice of plants and garden accessories, plus refreshments. Opens 11am. £5 cash on the gate. http://www.flowerpowerfairs.co.uk
The Angel celebrates the Platinum Jubilee
There’ll be a special celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee at The Angel between 12 noon and 5pm on Thursday 2 June and Friday 3 June. Activities will include a bouncy castle, treasure hunt, games and live music. Vintage harmony duo, The Cherry Tones, will perform songs from across the seven decades of the Queen’s incredible reign. These promise to be a family-friendly, feel-good days out. Free Entry for all.
Platinum Jubilee Party in the Park
The main event of the Platinum Jubilee weekend in Topcliffe will be Party in the Park, which will be staged on the village playing field. It will start at 2pm on Saturday 4 June and everyone is invited to come along with their own picnic and drinks. Arrangements are being made for afternoon teas to be available by pre-order. More details and price to follow.

The organisers will put on an inflatable assault course, children’s games, live music and arrange for an ice cream van to be present. There’ll also be a flat green bowls competition at the adjacent bowls club. Families can pre-book a pitch on which they can erect their own gazebo. It will be £10 a site and bookings can be made via Jenny Bumby on 07840 468672.

Will you help?
Volunteers will be needed to help organise activities on the day and generally help to get the playing field ready beforehand and make sure it’s clean and tidy afterwards.
A view from up above!
On the afternoon of Saturday 4 June there’ll be an ‘open-church’ event at St Columba’s for visitors to look around the church and enjoy refreshments. The church tower will be open for guided tours for those who wish to see how the village looks from above in its Platinum Jubilee colours.
Platinum Jubilee Sunday Brunch
This event will take place in the Village Hall from 10am to 12 noon on Sunday 5 June. There’ll be a full range of breakfast buns, cakes and a plentiful supply of hot and cold drinks. There’ll be Sunday newspapers available and all money raised will go to help maintain the Village Hall.

The plan is to have the paintings on a ‘royalty and crowns’ theme (prepared by pupils of Topcliffe Academy) on display and they’ll be judged to pick winners from each class or age group.
Bringing the Platinum Jubilee Weekend to a close
St Columba’s Church is organising a Platinum Jubilee Choral Evensong, with the full choir, at 6.30pm on Sunday 5 June. The service will be followed by suitable refreshments. It’s hoped that our two villages might find this a nice way to close the extended weekend’s celebrations. Everyone is warmly invited to attend.
Comedy Night at The Angel
The next Hilarity Bites Comedy Club will be held at The Angel on Tuesday 7 June. Doors open 7.30pm and show starts at 8pm. Tickets £10 in advance and £12 on day of the show. Call 01845 578000.
Catton Kitchen
The Catton Kitchen’s current opening times are Friday and Saturday 10am to 2pm and Sunday 10am to noon. This is for market garden sales and the takeaway service.
Deershed Festival
The 12th Deer Shed Festival will be staged at Baldersby Park between 29 and 31 July. There’s a fantastic range of music, comedy, arts, science and sport planned for people of all ages. Full ticket details are available at http://deershedfestival.com
Parish & Village Hall meetings
• Asenby Parish Council will meet at 7.30pm onWednesday 18 May in the Village Hall – www.asenby.net
• Topcliffe Parish Council will next meet at 7pm on Thursday 19 May 2022 in The Angel (conservatory) – www.topcliffe.org.uk
• Village Hall Committee – The AGM and an Ordinary Meeting of the Committee will be held consecutively starting at 7.30pm on Tuesday 7 June in the Village Hall – www.topcliffe.org.uk/village-hall/
The Ritz Cinema

  • To Thursday 12 May – The Outfit
  • Friday 13 to Thursday 19 May – Operation Mincemeat
  • Friday 20 to Thursday 26 May – The Lost City
  • Friday 27 to Thursday 2 June – Downton Abbey: A New Era (Proceeds from the shows on 28 and 29 May will be donated to The Red Cross in aid of Ukraine.)

Subtitles
Starting Sunday 15 May all Sunday evening films will have subtitles for a trial period.
Updates
Please keep checking the website for the latest details – https://www.ritzcinema.co.uk/
Rural Arts events at The Courthouse, Thirsk

  • Monday Makers – Every Monday to 23 May. 10am – 1.30pm. Develop your creative and business skills on this course for unemployed people.
  • Wednesday 11 May, 10.30am to 12.30pm – A Taste of Art: Decorative Bunting – All materials are provided.
  • For more information and to book places, go to https://www.ruralarts.org/:
Local traders
Most of these traders also have a Facebook page where you can check out latest information.
Bin Collections .

Hambleton (Topcliffe):

  • Refuse – Mondays 9 and 23 May.
  • Recycling & Garden Waste – Thursday 19 May.

Harrogate (Asenby)

  • Recycling – Mondays 9 and 23 May.
  • Refuse – Mondays 16 and 30 May.
  • Garden waste – Thursday 19 May.
LATEST INFORMATION & NEWS ABOUT COVID
The week’s UK Covid statistics
• The R number range remains at 0.7 to 0.9 meaning that on average every 10 people infected will infect between 7 and 9 other people.
• There have been 176,212 UK deaths within 28 days of a positive Covid test and 192,464 deaths that had Covid mentioned on the death certificate.
That’s all for this week. Keep safe and remain well.