Denise Williams writes to tell us about the Oil Buying Cooperative: “Every month, the volunteer-led Allen Valleys Oil Buying Cooperative invites its members to take advantage of savings on oil prices by ordering in bulk. Allen Valleys Oil Buying…
Year: 2019
Allen Valleys Wildlife Group
Susie White writes on behalf of one of her favourite local groups: Curlews and lapwings, hay meadows, barn owls and red squirrels. Here in the beautiful landscape of the Allen Valley we are surrounded by abundant wildlife and it’s easy…
Time itself . . .
Since we’re on the subject of Dr. Who and the timelords anyway . . . why not a short discourse on time itself? Trudge through any field around these parts, in the snow, carrying a plastic bag full of groceries,…
Soli-dalek-y . . .
So . . . Soli-dalek-y is rampant: some sightings of curious Daleks have been made throughout Allendale over the past few days, in response to Katie Maughan’s clever Let’s Get MAD (Make a Dalek) suggestion. One was even snapped having…
Luncheon Club Thursdays
I dropped in to chat with Valery Stepney and Ruth Armstrong, the stalwarts who administer and coordinate this volunteer service. The Luncheon Club is partially self-sustaining, from weekly contributions (£5.50 for the hot meal) by the luncheon guests, and partly…
Neighbourly half-Wednesdays at the Chemist
Back in early August of last year, a sign suddenly appeared at the chemist: This Business is Under New Management, as of 1st August. And yet Claire Jackson, pharmacist over at least the past decade and so well-respected for her…
‘A hive of activity’ at the Dale Salon
Lindsey Weatherson greeted me cheerfully at the door as I stomped inside from the flurry of wet snowflakes drifting down, and we sat quietly beside the hair dryer to chat about the Dale Salon, a business she took over some…
Care award at Thornley Leazes . . . apprentice sought
It’s just down the Peth and up from Bridge End, but as Linda Charlton, manager of Residential Care, says, sometimes it feels like Thornley Leazes is a million miles away from the buzz and activity of the village centre. I’m…
Burns Night Supper . . .
A couple of months in the preparation, last night, Saturday the 26th, was the night for the Allendale Lions Club special Burns Night Supper, which is usually an annual fund-raising affair. Burns Suppers come in a vast variety of shapes…
Monthly Coffee Mornings
Shirley Brown drops me a note to chat about the monthly coffee mornings at St. Cuthbert’s Church Hall, like the one this morning: Jennifer Simpson with husband Charles co-ordinate the monthly coffee mornings held in aid of church funds on…