Great & Little Gidding Community Public Access Defibrillator (CPAD) APPEAL
We as a Parish are currently trying to raise £2000 to purchase and site a Defibrillator and Cabinet.
Cardiac Arrest or Heart Attack claims 150,000 – 200,000 lives each year in the United Kingdom. If a person’s heart has stopped the only thing that will get it working again is an electrical charge passed through the heart muscles. The first few minutes are the most vital and often an ambulance will be over five minutes away.
If you would like to help fund raise or donate towards this worthwhile equipment please contact;
2016 was a very busy year in terms of fabric restoration at both our churches.
Restored windows for St John’s Church, Little Gidding
At St John’s Church, Little Gidding, the restoration of the fabric at the east end has been completed with the provisions of new stonework. The three windows in the nave have been fully restored. This has been financed with generous donations from the United States, the Friends of Little Gidding and, appropriately, from Judith Hodgson in memory of her husband, Revd Tony Hodgson. Other minor works to the fabric of the Oratory, and the wooden arch in the nave have been completed. Work on securing the lectern will start shortly.
Work to be carried out in 2017 include the restoration of the text over the west door, and the treatment for woodworm (where applicable) to any woodwork in the church.
The one major project outstanding is the rehanging of the church bell (cost c.£7000) and that is being deferred for the moment.
Aerial view of St John’s in Little Gidding
A new roof for St Michael’s Church, Great Gidding
Moving to St Michael’s Church, in the early part of the year, the ‘window lights’ in the spire were repaired to stop the ingress of jackdaws into the bells.
Repair to ‘window lights’
Video of church roof repair in progress
However 2016 was dominated by a virtual re-roofing of the church. The collyweston roof of the chancel has been totally restored, and a new ceiling installed in the chancel. Shortly some of the lighting in the chancel will be upgraded.
Repair of Collyweston roof at St Michael’s Church, Great Gidding
St Michael’s newly restored roof
Lead burglary
Moving onto the areas where the lead was stolen, the south aisle roof has been restored using lead, whilst the north aisle roof has been restored using terne-coated stainless steel. At the same time the opportunity was taken to repair some small fissures in the lead on the nave roof which had been identified by the Quinquennial Inspection. Finally a roof alarm was installed to provide protection as well as to ensure total insurance cover. The water downpipes of the church have been painted with ‘anti climb’ paint, and appropriate notices erected.
New terne-coated stainless steel roofing on north side
Our deep thanks for the support
Thus the church is now watertight for the foreseeable future. None of this would have been possible without the generous financial support of the Government backed ‘Listed Places of Worship Roof Repair Fund’, for which the church authorities are very grateful. Equally the paperwork & project management associated with these two roofing projects has been enormous, and all this was successfully navigated solely by John De Val, to whom an enormous debt of gratitude is due.
Internally, water damage was confined to the north aisle. The prompt action of John De Val and Bruce Jordan saved the organ from major damage, and the instrument has now dried out and emerged unscathed. The two illuminated wall memorials were water damaged and are now being restored by a paper specialist. The walls of the north aisle will need some re-plastering and re-decoration and this will be carried once the new church architect is in place. All this work is covered by insurance.
New roofing being installed on the north side
Many other people within the community have given support in many differing ways, and we would like to express our deep thanks for that support during a very difficult year.
Finally, I include the maintenance of the churchyard within this report and would like to thank the Friends of St Michael’s Church, and our grasscutters for all their hard work and commitment.
New church architect
Earlier in this report, reference was made to a new church architect. In September, Canon Julian Limentani of Marshall Sissons retired as the architect to both of our churches, although he kindly kept an eye on things until the roofs were completed at the year end. Our thanks to him for his forty plus years in the post. Once a new architect is appointed shortly, his two immediate tasks will be the movement on the north side of the chancel arch and the restoration of stonework at the tip of the spire and the weathervane.
In conclusion, the church can be said to be in good condition.
Well we are now into the spring equinox & many of us will be enticed into the countryside by the sheer pleasure it brings to those of us who walk, cycle, ride or drive.
Everyone is encouraged to make sure though, that they are clearly visible to motorists. Hi-Viz jackets or waist coats are ideal & lights if you cycle. It is a misconception that these are only needed in the dark or fog!
‘See & Be Seen’ & stay safe.
Main Street now has triangular warning signs for equine riders, to help towards your safety. It would be really polite to see our riders fully aware of the Highway Code as it applies to them. This is most encouraging for motorists, if you expect them to respect your needs.
Dog walkers
Gt.Gidding welcomes its dog walkers, old & new. Lots have been seen out & about recently. Just a reminder to bin the waste & not leave behind in the bag!
Footpaths, bridleways & byways
We have a lovely selection of footpaths for you all to explore, also bridleways & byways. Please riders, remember that footpaths are for walkers only. If you use a farm track that is designated a footpath, please be sensible. Walkers have priority & if it’s wet please don’t use it, as it cuts it up for everyone.
So we hope you enjoy the fresh air this spring. There is plenty to experience in & around our lovely Parish.
Enjoy!
Rachel Giddens (on behalf of the Parish Council)
Calum and the GB team have arrived in Austria today Tuesday 14 March for the Special Olympics World Winter Games 2017.
Calum was the first Special Olympics figure skater to represent Great Britain back in 2012. He has won international titles in Finland, Iceland, Austria and the UK and most recently he brought back five medals from the World Figures event in Canada at Christmas 2016.
He is currently ranked Men’s No.1 in the World Rankings for Inclusive Skating.
Coverage of the SO WWG Opening Ceremony can be found on ESPN Saturday 18th March at 6pm.
Calum is competing on March 19th and 23rd in the Level 3 category.
Closing ceremony will be on Friday 24th March.
The team fly back to the UK on Saturday 25th March arriving at Heathrow at 1pm on a flight from Munich.
If you wish to keep up with Calum and the rest of Team GB while they are out in Austria you can find them on the following social media channels under these user names (some are general accounts for the games themselves)
Calum also has his own Facebook Group “Calum Titmus – Figure Skater”.
If you wish to post a comment about the games then please use the hashtag #SOGBWWG and @SpecialOlympicsGB for Facebook and @SOGreat Britain on Twitter.
Calum is also being featured on Inside Out (East). This programme is being broadcast on Monday 20th March at 7:30pm on BBC1. Trailer for this is also available online.
Just a reminder that the Cambridgeshire mobile library visits our village on the 3rd Thursday of every month and from the start of April 2017 the new times will be from 12.40pm to 12.55pm.
The library stops in the lay-by in front of the recreation ground and carries a selection of books, audio tapes and DVDs. To use the library you just need a library card issued from any library in Cambridgeshire. If there’s a particular book you require you can order it for the next visit.
A Gidding resident was getting quite excited as he turned the uphill bend towards his home and saw a wonderful array of supercars parked right outside his house. Racking his brains for any competitions he’d entered and forgotten about, his pace quickened.
Alas… it was just some lucky folk enjoying the B660 in their OWN cars (harrumph) who happened perchance to stop outside his house. Anyway, a friendly conversation ensued about the ideal merits of these particular road bends being particularly suitable for Lamborghinis and the like and all went on their merry way (well, almost all of them).
It’s grown over the years and spread into a really super parkland with so many different species to wonder at and be fascinated by. Nice cafe, giftshop, loads of children’s activities – well worth a visit.
Great Gidding’s Catalyst Video Services recently spent a few days videoing the animals and humans at the wonderful zoo and have produced a short promotional video.
New roofing being installed on the north side
