Summer 2022 has brought record-breaking temperatures and endless sunshine. Why not find a shady spot to take some time out and enjoy the latest edition of Community News?

Our Summer 2022 Headline

BFOBRCA is joining with other Community Groups across Winchester to set up a Winchester-wide Repair Café. Winchester Repair Café will be launched during Winchester Action for Climate Change’s (WinACC) Green Week. Vital to the Café is the support of volunteers. People are needed to repair, facilitate and manage so if you are interested in sharing your knowledge and experience or your enthusiasm do come along and see us at at one of the Cafés or email bfobrca.manager@gmail.com.

News from the Community Centre

We were delighted to see that we now have 500 followers on Facebook. Almost every day we share posts on a variety of subjects which we hope will be of interest to you: local events, climate and the environment, health and wellbeing, travel and motoring and keeping safe to name a few. We also share things to brighten your day or make you go ‘Wow’! Do Like our page on Facebook @BadgerFarmCommunityCentre or Follow us on Twitter @BFCCWinchester.

Winchester Junior Chess Club are running holiday camps for 6- to12-year olds at the Community Centre during the summer holidays.

We hope to run more of our free self-defence classes for women in the autumn. If you would be interested in joining one, please let Ali know on bfobrca.manager@gmail.com.

Parish and Government News

Parish Councils

The local elections in May brought a number of changes to the team at Oliver’s Battery Parish Council. The new team continues to work with Winchester City Council (WCC) in the development of their new Local Plan. The Parish Council supports the work of local Groups in our community. It is encouraging to see collaborative sustainability initiatives happening regularly in both Oliver’s Battery and Badger Farm. The Sustainability Group (Sustainable Oliver’s Battery) plans to deliver local events on a monthly basis and the Events Group has already organised two highly successful events this year. The Handyperson Group continues to undertake small but essential routine and ad-hoc tasks, mainly at the Recreation Ground.

Badger Farm Parish Council has had mixed feedback on WCC’s new estate maintenance regime. They ask you to get in touch with your views of the scheme, whether good or bad, so they can understand and better represent the consensus. The Parish, along with WCC, were happy to financially support the improvement of the catering facilities at the Community Centre. The kitchen is in desperate need of updating and the new facilities will be a benefit to all who use the Centre.

Winchester City Council

Winchester City Council says thank you to all the community groups, streets and individuals that worked so hard to make the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee such a success.

The energy crisis and our impact on climate change was the topic of the June Carbon Neutrality Open Forum. The Council’s road verge scheme allows wildflowers to grow gives homes and food to our pollinators and insects, helping develop biodiversity and protect insect species!

Hampshire County Council

There is a new leadership team at Hampshire County Council. The council continues to work with key local partners to enable the provision of immediate support to Ukrainians arriving in Hampshire under the Government’s Homes for Ukraine scheme.

An investment fund to support community run renewable energy projects in Hampshire is to be established by Hampshire County Council. The ‘Revolving Community Energy Fund’ will invest up to £25,000 for any individual community project being launched in Hampshire as part of the Community Energy Pathways project. For more information, email climatechange@hants.gov.uk.

News from Westminster

Earlier this summer our local MP, Steve Brine, was very fortunate to travel to Africa as part of his ongoing work on global health. Uganda is a country where the population is ballooning and maternal mortality is among the highest in the world – some 336 per 100,000 new mums – and 17% of those deaths are among girls aged 15–19 years old. To give you some context, maternal mortality here in the UK is 11 per 100,000 live-births. Furthermore, infant mortality in Uganda – in the first 28-days of life – stands at 42 per 1000. Here in the UK it is 3.6.

Steve previously held part of the Overseas Development Aid (ODA) budget in his ministerial portfolio so it was really good to see some of the projects UK Aid funds in Uganda. What we’re talking about here is family planning clinics in and among the communities they seek to help where advice and education (and every contraception method known) are in plentiful supply. Yes, Uganda has one of the highest birth rates in Africa but UK taxpayers are helping women increasingly make informed reproductive choices and we should be incredibly proud of that.

Local Schools

Badger Farm Pre-school Playgroup

Family and community are embedded in the ethos at Badger Farm Pre-school where the staff pride themselves on building good relationships with parents/carers as well as the children. The summer term has been fun, celebrating the Queen’s Jubilee with a teddy bear picnic, fun, games and activities all dressed in red, white and blue. Moors Valley Country Park was a huge success with all the children very excited!

St. Peter’s Primary School and Little Fishes Pre-school

Little Fishes celebrated the Queen’s Jubilee by making crowns, flags, learning facts by joining in with a Royal Quiz and making invitations. After lots of play outside and time with our reception children they had a special treat of ice lollies.

The primary school made the most of being able to have a party to give thanks for our Queen’s service of 70 years. Following Mass, each year group looked at popular culture from a decade of the Queen’s reign, along with considering British values, such as democracy and the rule of law. However, for many of our children (and staff!) the highlight of the day was the ice cream van that turned up during the street party, courtesy of our PTA.

Oliver’s Battery Primary and Nursery School

All of the children in school took part in Science week carrying out lots of different activities with a focus on ‘Growth’. It was great to see the children’s passion, curiosity and interest in science coming alive. The school endeavours to keep this as a key element to their curriculum and hope to be creating future scientists that will someday change our world.

The staff are really pleased to share with our community some quotes from their successful local authority visit.

• The Senior Leadership Team and staff clearly have unconditional positive regard for pupils with SEN and those that are disadvantaged.
• In all the lessons it was evident that pupils are engaged and their behaviours for learning are strong ensuring good progress.
• Strong questioning across the classes which was engaging and thoughtful.
• Good use of catch-up funding with purposeful planned interventions enabling children to catch up.
• Strong use of assessment for learning.

Stanmore Primary School

This term, everyone at Stanmore Primary School enjoyed their second annual ‘Reading’ Festival, when they celebrate a love of reading at the school. The children arrived looking fantastic in all their colours and accessories. The theme of the day was ‘Legends.’ All the children read the Sword in the Stone and acted out parts of the story, exploring the characters.

Local Organisations and Clubs

Support and Advice

Chat-Tea Café

The Chat-Tea Café has been very busy and well attended over the last few months. Volunteers organised both a special ‘Easter’ and a ‘Jubilee’ Café. At the Jubilee-themed Café they decked out the room with Union Jack bunting and flags and arranged cakes on lovely cake stands for each table. They are currently in the process of planning and organising more talks and entertainment for Café guests. Do please keep a look out for their posters detailing events.

North Hampshire Prostate Cancer Support Group

What is geographic profiling all about? The NHPCSG was extremely privileged to have Colin Johnson as the speaker at their April meeting. Colin is one of only four with worldwide recognition in this field of forensic investigation, which is proving even more effective than criminal profiling. His experiences make fascinating reading.

Citizens Advice

Lesley Rose, from Winchester Citizens Advice, answers the following question:

I am a single parent, with two young children. I am already struggling to stay on top of my household bills; my weekly food shop isn’t stretching as far anymore and now my energy bill is going up too. I don’t know how I’m going to afford all of these price rises. What can I do to stop my finances spiralling out of control?

Nature and Environmental Groups

Sustainable Oliver’s Battery and Green Badger Farm

Our local sustainability groups ran 6 events this spring: Reducing Food Waste, Keeping Warm, Wildlife-friendly Gardening event, Getting Around featuring E-Bikes, Seedling Swap & Big Plastic Count and the Big Outdoor Swap. What should they do next? They have lots of ideas, but would like to hear what you want. What would help you most? Get in touch!

Hampshire & IOW Wildlife Trust

Winchester Local Volunteers of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Trust has just completed the successful relaunch of their spring and summer guided walks programme. They welcomed back members on a lovely spring morning for a walk along the field and river paths of Longparish in the beautiful Test valley. Closer to home, on a very hot summer’s day, members braved the heat on Butterfly Conservation’s Yew Hill reserve in Oliver’s Battery. Future events organised by the Winchester Local Volunteers this year include visits to the south coast for guided walks at Keyhaven marshes to look for autumn bird migrants and to Hampshire County Council’s national nature reserve at Titchfield Haven.

Winchester Horticultural Society

The Society’s autumn meetings include talks on ground covering plants, Land of the Somer People, heritage apples and Your Garden and Climate Change.

Other Groups

Oliver’s Battery WI

OBWI group members came together to make a yarn bombing for the Oliver’s Battery postbox located outside the Battery shops. Not only did the numerous corgis and royal figures bring a smile to the faces of passersby and the posties over the festivities but it has also received Royal acknowledgement.

Oliver’s Battery Brownies

Oliver’s Battery Brownies celebrated their 50th Anniversary at St Mark’s Church on 21st June. Family and friends of the pack attended, hearing a short history of Brownies and an explanation of their traditions. It was lovely to see many of the previous ‘Owls’ return to help the pack make and share memories – especially Sue Sadler who set up and ran the pack for over 40 years. County Archives lent the pack some old-style uniforms to look at, but Hope came dressed in her mum’s old dress which was the style in use when the pack formed.

General Articles for Summer 2022

A walk on the bright side

Wolvesley Castle was once residence of Bishop Henry de Blois who commissioned the 900 year old Winchester Bible, and who was grandson of William the Conqueror and brother of King Stephen. This awesome Bible can be seen at The Kings and Scribes Exhibition at Winchester Cathedral. Written in Vulgate (Old) Latin, it took one scribe five years to write.

Simon Lever explores Winchester’s history.

Green issues: front gardens

Most of us in Oliver’s Battery and Badger Farm have front gardens. They are odd areas – not usually used to sit in and enjoy, but mostly used for car parking. Yet they have become increasingly important for wildlife, as agriculture has become more intensive. Brian Shorter encourages us to help birds and butterflies, rather than give even more space to our cars. Both wild areas and well tended flower gardens give our wildlife a valuable helping hand.

Wildlife gardening

Our new Trustee, Peter Roberts, is NOT a gardener, in fact, far from it. He does like to eat produce that we have grown and he loves to see a garden full of life. As he learns how to garden, he has tried to balance out the love of flowers, yen for fresh produce and excitement at wildlife. He now shares those lessons and tips with us.

Wishing you well

Together with the soluble and insoluble fibres in beans, nuts and seeds, wholegrains, fruit and vegetables, copious research now demonstrates that certain fibres bring added advantages: fibre’s multifactorial benefits seem to impact our gut and the community of trillions of micro-organisms there which must be kept healthy. Think of your gut as an inner garden. And as with any garden, when you let the weeds take over, you get into trouble.

Local nutritionist Amanda Turner tells us all about that famous super-nutrient: fibre.

Going on a mole hunt

Our editor, Ann Jury, shares her personal experience of melanoma which left her with a 9cm long ‘shark bite’ scar and encourages us all to check our skin.

The Herbert Protocol

Caring for vulnerable people, including those with dementia or Alzheimer’s, can be challenging. There’s a risk they can at some point start to ‘walk about’. This may only be into the garden or street for a short time, but some people can get lost and go missing. So planning ahead to keep them safe is really important. The Herbert Protocol is a great tool to help you do that.

Tech talk

One of IT’s biggest barriers is jargon, where simple concepts are given overly complex names. Among those is 2FA (two-factor authentication) or MFA (multi-factor authentication).

Local computer tutor Ann Jury, explains that 2FA simply brings together something you know, something you have and/or something you are to beef up the security on your online accounts.

Nature notes

Spiders … love them or hate them! Wendy Bramall falls between the two so tells us about false widow spiders, wasp spiders and her favourite wolf spiders. ‘No mow May’ has revealed all kinds of wild flowers helping to prevent the declining insect population and bringing the plain green lawn to life. Wendy recently spotted a Bee Orchid amongst the tall grass in her neighbour’s garden.

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We hope you enjoyed reading the Summer/Autumn 2022 edition of Community News. If you have a community contribution for the next edition or would like to advertise with us, please get in touch with Ann Jury, Community News Editor, at bfobrca.cnews@gmail.com. The editorial deadline for the next issue is Friday 4 November 2022.

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