Hi
Welcome to this week’s Sunday email. I hope that you are happy with what you read. If you have any information that you would like me to include in next Sunday’s email please feel free to contact me.
Stay at home, stay well and stay safe.
Doug
07785 223707
Staying at home continues to be the key to defeating the virus
After at least five weeks of lockdown there are signs that an easing of the stay at home policy may be on the cards. The Prime Minister Boris Johnson says the UK is “past the peak” of the Coronavirus outbreak, but has stressed that the country must not risk a second spike. An announcement is scheduled on Thursday, the day the current extended restrictions end. Who knows what the future holds for us all, but it’s looking as though some social distancing will be needed until at least the end of the year to prevent fresh outbreaks of coronavirus. Interestingly, research this week shows that 60% of people feel much safer and more secure under lockdown and they will be very reluctant to go back to normal too quickly. No doubt, there’ll be more to report next Sunday.
Have you signed up to help with COVID-19 research?
In the last email I provided information about research that scientists at King’s College London are undertaking to identify how fast the Coronavirus is spreading and who is most at risk, locally and nationally. It’s one of the most clinically detailed studies being undertaken in the world and you can be part of it, along with over 2.5 million people who have already sign up. All you have to do is download an app and report in each day. It takes less than 30 seconds. With your help the scientists will be able to better understand the national picture – how the disease presents itself to different people and how it progresses. No information you share will be used for commercial purposes. Download at: Android: https://tinyurl.com/wd5sspr, iPhone/iPad: https://tinyurl.com/vrhbpb4
NHS Volunteer Responders
If you require help from a Volunteer Responders you can find out more by looking at the website: https://volunteering.royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk/nhs-volunteer-responders-portal
If you meet the necessary criteria and need help collecting shopping, medication or other essential supplies or just want a telephone ‘check in and chat’ to help prevent loneliness, please call 0808 196 3646 (8am to 8pm).
Two local volunteers are on hand to help but so far have not had any formal alerts. But they are prepared to assist villagers with or without an official alert. They are Mary Manning of Topcliffe (07776 531415) and Charlie Halshaw from Asenby (07768 664780). They can help with: • delivering medicines from pharmacies • driving patients to appointments (non-wheelchair only) • bringing patients home from hospital (non-wheelchair only)
• making regular phone calls to check on people isolating at home • transporting medical supplies and equipment for the NHS.
Final Reminder: Bank Holiday Bin Collections…and applause for our binmen
All bin collections across Topcliffe and Asenby will be affected by the changes in this year’s May Day bank holiday. The bank holiday has been moved from Monday 4 May to Friday 8 May to coincide with Victory in Europe Day (VE Day), which marks the 75th anniversary of the formal end of World War II. In Hambleton (Topcliffe) collections during the week will move forward one day, so recycling and garden waste will be on Wednesday 6 May. In Harrogate (Asenby) refuse will be collected on Monday 4 May and garden waste on Thursday 7 May.
News of residents of Stokesley applauding their refuse collection team this week has prompted Dovecote Mews residents to do similar. They’ll be sticking a “thank you” message on the bins and greeting the binmen when they visit on Wednesday 6 May. It would be wonderful if other residents of Topcliffe joined in on the day.
VE Day – Friday, 8 May 2020
It’s understood that quite a few residents are planning “Stay at Home Street Parties” on Friday 8 May to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day. There appears to be enthusiastic support for the idea of celebrating by picnicking in gardens and decorating houses in red, white and blue. Party time is 4 ‘til 6pm, but no doubt some will want to extend on these hours.
Armed forces charity Royal British Legion has launched a “Tommy in the Window” campaign aimed at encouraging everyone to put a specially-designed figure of a soldier in a window. It would be nice to see our two villages really making an effort to make this an anniversary to remember.
Here’s an image that can be easily copied by anyone wishing to support the campaign.
Nationally, there’ll be a moment of Remembrance at 11am with a two-minute silence and it would be nice if everyone would stand on their front doorstep for this.
There’ll be a “Toast to the Heroes of World War 2” at 3pm when everyone is invited to watch a famous Winston Churchill speech on the BBC and simultaneously toast our war heroes. And at 9pm, the exact moment her father, King George V1, gave a radio address 75 years ago, The Queen will commemorate the occasion with a televised address to the nation. This will be broadcast on the BBC and afterwards there’ll be songs from the war years and a rendition of Dame Vera Lynn’s classic We’ll Meet Again, which everyone is invited to join in and sing. Here are the words:
We’ll meet again, Don’t know where, Don’t know when, But I know we’ll meet again, Some sunny day
Keep smiling through, Just like you always do, ‘Till the blue skies chase, Those dark clouds far away,
And I will just say hello, To the folks that you know, Tell them you won’t be long, They’ll be happy to know, That, as I saw you go, You were singing this song
We’ll meet again, Don’t know where, Don’t know when, But I know we’ll meet again, Some sunny day
And I will just say hello, To the folks that you know, Tell them you won’t be long, They’ll be happy to know, That, as I saw you go, You were singing this song
We’ll meet again, Don’t know where, Don’t know when, But I know we’ll meet again, Some sunny day.
Clapping for our heroes
Last Thursday saw the sixth consecutive week of clapping to show support for NHS frontline staff, care home staff and other key workers. The public demonstration of support is a massive tribute to their selfless commitment. There’ll be another clapping next Thursday evening at 8pm. But please, no fireworks as it upsets and traumatises our pets.
Scrubs ‘hub’ in Asenby
Liz Hall reports that she and her husband Steve are now running a fabric ‘hub’ in Asenby for distributing ready-cut fabric to volunteers who are sewing scrubs and scrub bags. Liz says she currently has three huge rolls of fabric on her dining room table which she’ll cut up into required sizes for the next stage of the production of much-needed items. Steve delivers these pieces of fabric to the volunteers in Northallerton, Ripon, Thirsk and villages in between. Steve and Liz volunteered to help out when the “scrubs co-ordinator” in Thirsk was over-run with work trying to organise the making o0f garments for the NHS.
There are lots of other local people involved in this invaluable work and their dedication and commitment has been reported in earlier emails. Anyone wanting to know more about Yorkshire Scrubs should check out their Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/groups/Yorkshirescrubs/
Topcliffe scrubs team are amazing
I’ve reported before on the sewing work undertaken by a dedicated team in Topcliffe but I’m sure you’d all like to know the latest. Debbie Roberts, Liz Marsh, Sandie Wright and Fran Eckersley have gathered together a huge collection of fabrics so that they can make scrubs and scrub bags. CB Furnishings donated the thread. In a post on Top Residents on Friday, Debbie stated that the team has just supplied 33 pairs of scrubs and 60 scrub bags to The Friarage Hospital. Well done everyone.
Yes please, Louise
Every week since the launch of this newsletter it has been reported that Louise Bumby has cooked and baked for a number of elderly and vulnerable villagers in Topcliffe. Today, Louise is baking cakes, using the eggs her own chickens lay, and all other ingredients at her own expense. They’ll be delivered around the village during the afternoon. Until now Annemarie Barningham has been doing the deliveries but we all know that she is already busy enough without these extra responsibilities, so now Jenny Bumby and her mum, Lynn Wallis, are taking over delivering whatever Louise prepares.
More good deeds acknowledged
The roll of honour recognising the good deeds of villagers during the pandemic continues this week. All names on the list from this and previous weeks will be saved in case there’s an opportunity to say a collective thank you at an appropriate event once the crisis is over. So continue to let me have your nominations.
• Steve Hall who has taken on the responsibility of delivering fabric to many of the sewers making scrubs and scrub bags for local hospitals.
• Linda Nuttall and Fran Eckersley who have joined local teams making the scrubs and scrub bags.
• Jenny Bumby and Lynn Wallis who have taken over the job of delivering Louise Bumby’s meals and cakes to needy residents.
• AND everyone else who has helped in any way. A big THANK YOU to you all.
Topcliffe Post Office
John Mulley is continuing to maintain services at the Post Office though he has had to restrict opening times and introduce social distancing rules. He said: “In an attempt to follow government rules and keep customers safe, only one person at a time is allowed inside the shop. Space is limited and it is impossible to maintain safe distancing in any other way. It can be difficult to see if there is already someone else in the shop, so I ask customers to stop at the door to check: if there’s nobody in then please proceed, but f you see someone inside stay back and give that customer space to safely leave. It might be a bit of a nuisance but it’s in every bodies best interest.” The PO (01845 577517) continues to operate post offices services, as well as the sale of newspapers and the usual product lines. Opening times: Mon-Fri: 7.30am-2pm, Sat 7.30am-11.30am and Sun: closed.
Burglars never sleep!
You might have thought that thieves and burglars should, like the rest of us, be staying at home and making no essential journeys. But regretfully that’s not the case, as a householder in Asenby learned recently. Burglars don’t follow the same rules as the rest of us – if they did, of course, they wouldn’t be burglars in the first place. The fact is they are still busy stealing during lockdown so everyone should be on their guard and keep windows and doors locked, even during the day, and especially if you’re out in the back garden.
Adam Jackson Plants, Sessay
Take orders for delivery the following week. The fixed bundles may differ each week (no compost is available). See the Facebook page AdamJacksonPlants for details. To order send your address, post code, phone number and which bundles you would like. Payment will be taken on delivery in cash or by contactless card. Facebook Messenger: m.me/AdamJacksonPlants, tel: 07743 870205.
Northdale Horticultural, Northallerton
There’s still time to order garden and greenhouse plants and vegetables from Northdale Horticulture for delivery in the next week or so. Northdale Horticulture, a Northallerton-based charity that provides training for people with learning difficulties, is providing a ‘mail order’ service. There will be a deliver to Topcliffe and Asenby, probably clumping orders together. Their web address is www.northdale.org.uk where you can check out what’s available. The site has separate lists of different types of plants (these change as plants sell out!) and an order form too, which you can print off, complete and email to northdalehort@aol.com
Northdale is working through orders already placed and will be in touch with people soon to take payment and indicate when orders will be delivered.
Community Support in Asenby
• Asenby’s community Facebook page ‘Asenby Institute Community Space’ is going strong keeping villagers well informed and in touch with each other.
• The bus stop library continues to be very popular. Villagers are welcome to borrow or supply books. Users are required to wear gloves and should sanitise books before leaving them or picking them up.
• Heather Allon continues to organise her magazine and book loan arrangement in the village. Anyone who can’t get out of the house because of infirmity or lockdown who would like to be involved should telephone her
on 01845 595080.
• Peter Palmer (01845 578057) and Judith Lowe (01845 577911) are co-ordinating a team of volunteers to assist any resident who needs help with shopping or collection of medicines….or maybe just wants a ‘phone chat.
• A range of Asenby Village Trails has been developed for village children (and adults) taking their daily stroll. Walkers should look out for rainbows and teddy bears in windows.
Watch Out for Roadworks around Asenby
It is understood that North Yorkshire County council are planning re-surfacing works on the following roads starting Tuesday 5 May. The proposals, which will require several road closures, would appear to be:
1. The road through Cundall towards Thornton Bridge will be closed from Tuesday 5 to Tuesday 12 May.
2. The off-slip road of the A168 from the A1/Dishforth direction towards the Crab and Lobster crossroads will be closed on Wednesday 6 and Thursday 7 May (diversion via Topcliffe).
Parish Chairman Peter Palmer said: “We haven’t received any formal notification about the roadworks, nor have any notices being put up or circulated to local residents. And I am certain the sign erected at the roadside is in the wrong place. As far as I can ascertain the above roads and junctions will be affected and alternative routes will be required, but I am convinced that access from Asenby to the A188 on slip will not be closed for seven days. It would appear from the county’s information that the whole of the Crab and Lobster crossroads and Whaites Lane, which leads from the crossroads up on to the bridge over the A168 and hence to the on-slip road joining the A168 towards the A1/Dishforth will be closed on 6 and 7 May, but the roadside sign would persuade motorists that it is closed for much longer, to the 12 May. Before the weekend I tried to get fuller information, and clarification about certain contradictions, from county highways officials, but unfortunately the engineer in charge failed to ring me back. If this contradiction is solved on Monday, I will ask Doug Allan to circulate a quick clarification on this point. But then, if past experience is anything to go by, all of the above may well change before next week anyway.”
Chippy to reopen?
If the government eases the rules on companies reopening for business this week, Paul and Karen Bumby are planning to be frying fish and chips from their regular site in Topcliffe this Friday evening (8 May). Obviously social distancing rules will apply and customers will be asked to form an orderly queue, with only one at a time at the counter. Opening times will be 5 to 7.30pm. They apologise, but they’ll be unable to take advance or telephone orders at this time.
Freecycle Stall
Every Saturday and Sunday, the Burnett family, who live in Pear Tree Cottage on Long Street in Topcliffe, organise a Freecycle Stall so that other villagers can pick up books, Magazines, toys and more. Feel free to pop by the stall, but don’t forget to observe social distancing when you’re there…and appropriate hygiene when handing the items.
Local shop opening times
This is a compilation of supermarket, convenience store, pharmacy and Post Office opening times, including priority times for elderly, vulnerable and key workers where known. It’s possible that sometimes may change on the Bank Holidays (8 May). If you’ve anything to add or correct please email me – doug@dougallan.co.uk
• Tesco, Station Road – Mon-Sat: 8am-10pm, Sun: 10am-4pm. Priority for elderly and vulnerable people – Mon, Wed and Fri 9-10am. Priority for NHS workers – Tue, Thu and Sat 9-10am. All the time: care workers, NHS
and emergency services will be invited to come to the front of the queue.
• Cooperative, Market Place – Mon-Sat: 7am-10pm, Sun: 11am-5pm. Priority for elderly and vulnerable people, NHS workers and carers – Mon-Sat 8-9pm and Sun 10-11am.
• Aldi, Topcliffe Road – Mon-Sat: 8am-10pm and Sun: 10am-4pm.
• Lidl, Station Road – Mon-Sat: 8am-8pm and Sun: 10am-4pm.
• Heron, Market Place – Mon-Sat: 8am-6pm and Sun: 10am-5pm.
• Nisa, Long Street – Mon-Sun: 7am-10pm.
• Morrisons, Boroughbridge – Mon-Sat: 7am-9pm and Sun: 9.30am-4pm. Priority openings for NHS workers and carers – Mon-Sat: 6am-7am, Sun 9am-9.30am.
• Boots pharmacy, Market Place – Mon-Sat: 9am-5.30pm, Sun: Closed.
• Boots pharmacy, Chapel Street – Mon-Fri: 8.30am-6.30pm (closed noon-1pm), Sat and Sun: Closed.
• Tesco Pharmacy – Mon: 8am-10.30pm, Tue-Sat: 6.30am-10.30pm and Sun: 10am-4pm.
• Thirsk Post Office, in Cooperative Supermarket – Mon-Sat: 7am-10pm and Sun: 11am-5pm.
• Carlton Miniott Post Office – Mon-Fri: 7am-6pm, Sat: 7am-5pm and Sun: 8am-noon.
• Topcliffe Post Office, Long Street, Mon-Fri: 7.30am-2pm, Sat 7.30am-11.30am and Sun: closed.
Shopping pick-ups and deliveries
Morrison’s continue to offer a special ‘essential’ delivery service to vulnerable and elderly members of the community who are unable to shop in-store. There’s an order form on the company’s website – you download it, tick your choices and then call 0345 611 6111 and press option 5 to place the order. Orders take 24 hours to process and payment is taken by contactless card by the delivery driver. Cash and cheques cannot be accepted.
Other local home delivery services include:
• Buck Inn, Maunby is supplying fresh produce and household essentials. Free delivery on orders over £25 or to any NHS cardholder. Email: info@thebuckinnmaunby.co.uk
• Carl’s Fruit, salad and vegetable boxes. Orders only by Facebook or email: carlsflowers@btinternet.com. Requires payment by Bacs two days in advance of delivery.
• Greengrocers, Thirsk will deliver boxes (£15 or £20) to Topcliffe every Monday. Plants and compost can be added if you order fruit and veg. You can put in an order any time before the delivery day. 01845 527899.
• Johnson’s the Butchers, Thirsk, are supplying the usual meats, plus fish and ready-made meals. Ring 01845 523212 or via Facebook.
• K E Bland of Ripon – home delivery service for supply milk, yoghurt, cream, bread, oil, water, fruit and vegetables. Ring 01765 603049.
• Mooshakes, Mocktails and Munchies – needs orders for milkshakes and cakes by 12pm for afternoon deliveries or 4.30pm for evening deliveries. Topcliffe deliveries Wed 1.30 to 2.30 and Allenbrooke 5.30 to 7.30.
• Upstairs Downstairs Deli, Thirsk are delivering to all YO7 postcodes. Check them out on Facebook.
Preferred method of payment for most dealers is by card over the telephone when ordering.
And I have just been informed that if you order from Johnson the Butchers, the Greengrocers and Upstairs Downstairs everything can be delivered together in one go. That’s an excellent service.
Take Away Food
A whole host of food companies continue to take away pick-ups or deliveries. Here’s a few that residents have recommended:
• Bambudda Oriental Cuisine, Ripon – 01765 278020 – Orders by phone only. Demand is very high so there may be a delay in getting through. On weekends the line opens at 3pm for pre-orders. Delivery charge £5.
• Bliss Café, Thirsk – Soup, main meals and puddings for the elderly and infirm. Can be delivered frozen or ready to eat within a five mile radius, 7 days a week. Ring two days in advance to discuss your needs, Phone 07584
633669 or email blisscafe@mail.com. Pay by card over phone, bank transfer or cash by special arrangement. Please phone 8am-1pm.
• Mozzarelli’s, Ripon 01765 603333
• The Old Red House, Thirsk has organised Carvery Sundays and also do free deliveries to Topcliffe 5-8pm Wednesday to Saturday. Ring 01845 525769 for bookings and information.
• Pizza Pronto, Catterick Garrison – 01748 833777
• Regency Pizza, Thirsk Industrial Estate – 01845 522331
• The Bay Horse, Rainton – 01845 578697 – on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Wide range of meals on offer.
• The TeaTime Café, Thirsk – Bake Boxes with varied contents changing each week, or individual items. Delivery on Thursdays is free to Topcliffe and Asenby. Orders by 2pm Tuesday. Full details are on the café’s website
at www.teatimeyorkshire.co.uk
• Westgate Fisheries will accept orders by telephone 07703 686774 – ring from lunchtime onwards to place an order for evening pick up (no deliveries to Topcliffe and Asenby). Open Monday to Saturday 4 – 9pm
Please note that the Racha Thai Bistro in Thirsk is closed for at least another week. Please check on the internet because supply details are always subject to change.
MESSAGES & INFORMATION FROM EARLIER EMAILS, BUT WORTH MAINTAINING FOR REFERENCE
• Both ‘Top Residents’ and ‘Topcliffe & Asenby Village Hall’ Facebook sites have lots of useful information and chat about what’s going on during lockdown.
• Our two Parish Councils are not meeting during the crisis. However, our Parish Councillors and Parish Clerks remain available to deal with any urgent matters. Details are on the two parish council websites –
www.topcliffe.org.uk and www.asenby .net
• Isolation and lockdown may well have a significant impact on the mental health of some people. If you want any advice during this period go to: www.mentalhealth.org.uk , www.nhs.uk/Mental/Health or
www.mind.org.uk
• Topcliffe Surgery requires seven working days’ notice for repeat prescriptions. Practice nurse Lesley Lowe is assisting Asenby residents who are in isolation and who don’t pay for their medication and are worried about
leaving home to collect their medications from Topcliffe Surgery. Ask when you order your prescription.
• The AA is offering free roadside assistance to any NHS worker if they have a breakdown on route to or from work. The number to call is 0800 072 5064.
That’s all until next Sunday. Stay at home. Keep safe and keep well.