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Churchyard wall repairs

Sunday, July 30, 2023 - 12:26

What were they doing for four days? Why was only part of the wall repaired? How much did that cost?

When I walked past, no one could be seen working, the van was parked within the closed-off area and the engine was running. Why?

The low-level wall still looks a mess.

Fred Smith, Bircham Road, Reepham

How to keep deer out and the vegetables in

Tuesday, April 11, 2023 - 12:24

When I moved to Reepham Moor eons ago, when the world was young, the only mammal pest in the vegetable garden was rabbits.

They were easily fended off with a chicken-wire fence, 18 inches high, supported on canes, easy to erect and remove, if a bit unsightly.

Then the Muntjac began to appear, wonderful at first, then more and more annoying as prime veg started to disappear.

We soon found that visual scarers like "glitter bangs" were useless. Rags soaked in diesel work, but who wants smelly rags all over the garden?

Fences proliferated and got higher and higher until the veg garden came to resemble an abandoned concentration camp, yet still they got through and losses continued.

Obviously, a completely deer-proof fence around the whole vegetable garden was needed if we were to go on growing vegetables.

So, giving up not being an option, we thought a bit and did some preliminary experiments.

The design criteria were: not too intrusive; as tidy as possible; lightweight; removable; and as economical as possible.

The final design has worked 100% for two years:

Posts: 2 inches by 5 feet, treated and pointed, spaced 6 feet apart. Bore a pilot hole with an augur in an electric drill to take the work out of putting them in. 2½ or 3 inch posts at the corners.

Fencing: 4-foot, green, plastic-coated wire with quite a large rectangular mesh so as not to be too visible, attached to the posts with removable plastic ties. Leave a gap at the bottom for strimming weeds.

Gates as required. Tile splines simply fastened at the corners with angle brackets from the “middle of Lidl”. Put in one diagonal to prevent sagging. Hook-and-band hinges to make gate easily removable. Simple latches.

This design works well on the deer. (Given their success in the wild, beavers might become the next pest.)

Ian Sinclair, The Moor, Reepham

Mysterious excavations in the fields

Thursday, March 9, 2023 - 09:58

Some months ago I noticed what appeared to be an archaeological excavation to the south of the Bawdeswell road at Pettywell.

Another has now appeared on the bend of Cawston Road where the Salle road forks off.

I assume they are preliminary investigations for the wind farm cable trenches, but what is being investigated and why?

There is no apparent information at the sites and nothing online that I can discover.

I am sure others in the area are interested in what’s going on.

Can any of your correspondents enlighten us?

Ian Sinclair, The Moor, Reepham 

Catalytic converter theft in Station Road car park

Sunday, March 5, 2023 - 17:26

I just want to make people in Reepham aware of an incident that happened in Station Road car park on the night of 28 February.

My vehicle was parked there as it usually is and the catalytic converter and lambda sensor was stolen, meaning someone must have jacked up the car in the night and cut this out, which meant I wasn’t able to get into work the next day.

I’m not aware of any CCTV in the area but am wondering if this has ever happened to anyone else in Reepham and if the council have ever considered fitting CCTV in the area?

It is very upsetting and unnerving to know that this has happened in Reepham.

I just want to make others aware so they can take precaution when they park here overnight.

Imogen Langley, Station Road, Reepham

The ‘invisible army’ find benefits in volunteering

Thursday, March 2, 2023 - 17:59

This letter was prompted by the question mark hanging over the local branch of the Royal British Legion (Uncertainty over future of Royal British Legion branch, Reepham Life, 1 February 2023), which shares the problem of how to attract new volunteers with many small organisations, clubs and charities.

Yet volunteers are the vast and invisible army that contribute enormously to the quality of life in rural areas, whether it’s football coaching, history, gardening, birdwatching, food banks or community events.

The list is endless – and it includes Reepham Life – and all depend on the work, time and ideas freely given by volunteers.

This was brought into focus when I attended a session in Norwich about fundraising and found myself in a room with a least ninety people, many of them past retirement age, who were looking to find ways to support their particular charity.

A few years ago, opportunities for early retirement were greater, which meant the pool of fit and energetic volunteers was also greater than it is now that the retirement age has been raised – an unintended consequence, no doubt, but one that will have a significant impact.

Over the course of their lives people may dip in and out of volunteering, depending on their interests and circumstances.

When my sons were young, I helped run the youth club, dropped out for a few years then came back to the village hall and parish council.

The need for volunteers has not gone away and if anything, it’s growing. But it’s not a one-way street: the benefits for those who do volunteer are considerable.

Much is being written at the moment about the importance of being out in the world and having good relationships in maintaining mental and physical health in later life. It helps, too, to get a better work/life balance.

Turning out on a winter’s night for the youth club was often hard going, but when we won a rounders competition it was great.

As a volunteer you get to meet people, to share and learn new skills, and have the satisfaction of knowing you are actively helping to sustain a stronger community.

So, next time the opportunity arises, say “yes”.

Ruth Goodall, Chair of Trustees, Hall for All, Weston Longville

Campaigning for a co-ordinated offshore electricity grid

Friday, November 18, 2022 - 12:53

Re: Why yet another cable trench? (Your Letters, 3 November 2022)

The starting point should be that offshore wind infrastructure should cause as little disruption as possible for communities in Norfolk.

I campaigned for an offshore transmission network as part of a national plan that co-ordinates the growth of offshore wind with the country’s onshore transmission network – it’s called a “holistic network design”.

The government agreed, but National Grid bizarrely excluded East Anglia from the plan, on the grounds that our offshore wind plans are too far advanced to change.

I disagree and have teamed up with other Conservative MPs in East Anglia to establish the Off-Shore Electricity Grid Task Force (OffSET), of which I am vice-chair.

We have established the group to promote a co-ordinated offshore electricity grid as soon as possible, while standing up for the countryside of East Anglia and ensuring our transition to net zero does not do unnecessary damage to local communities and the environment.

I have had multiple meetings with the relevant Ministers, the leaders of National Grid, the energy companies and officials from the Department for Business, Energy and Industry to press for an offshore ring main.

I have also raised this on no less than 10 occasions in Parliament, which you can see via this link.

These are challenging times where energy security is more important than ever, but that does not mean we should not also take care of our communities and our countryside where we can.

Jerome Mayhew MP, Member of Parliament for Broadland

Why yet another cable trench?

Thursday, November 3, 2022 - 16:17

Re: Equinor’s application accepted for offshore wind farm extensions (Reepham Life, 25 October 2022).

Am I missing something here? As I understand it there are currently two cable trenches due to be laid across our region from offshore wind farms, and I thought I had read that at least one of them was going to be built to accommodate future expansion.

If I am correct, why then is it necessary for new trenches to be dug every time a new offshore windfarm is created?

Why cannot there be one trench of sufficient capacity to accommodate current and likely future cable requirements, thus avoiding all the disruption and upheaval, cost, and the contribution to global warming that such engineering works must create?

Is this something that local councils should be taking up with our MP? It does seem on the face of it like a total lack of joined-up thinking.

Rupert Birtles, Pettywell, Reepham

Please reinstate the weekly market

Wednesday, September 21, 2022 - 12:10

When I was looking to move to Reepham, one of the things that attracted me was that it had a market in the square.

I was so disappointed to find that this hasn’t returned since the lockdowns lifted.

I would urge the town to endeavour to reinstate the market.

I am sure it would bring increased footfall to the town, which would be very welcome to the existing businesses and be an added attraction to visitors.

Chris Judge, Vouts Court, Reepham

Coronation tree in Kerdiston

Saturday, September 17, 2022 - 16:43

In 1953 I planted some horse chestnuts in the Reepham district.

The only surviving tree is in Kerdiston to the right of the cottages that were part of the farm owned by Mr Holmes in the 1950s.

The tree was still standing a few years ago when I was last in the area.

Just thought this may be of interest at this moment in time.

Alan Farrell, Welwyn Garden City

School sports hall ‘bribe’ should be for community benefit

Friday, September 9, 2022 - 12:36

I have read that, despite objections from the residents of Reepham and concerns expressed by the town council, that Broadland District Council has approved the Broomhill Lane development.

Do other residents of Reepham feel the same as me over the use of the £1.5m “bribe” from the developers being used to pay for a new sports hall at the high school?

That money should be used for facilities that could benefit all the Reepham residents, such as expansion of the Stimpson’s Piece pavilion to make a proper community centre.

Any improvements at the high school should be financed by the academy trust that now owns and runs the school.

An alternative that might satisfy both Reepham’s and the school’s needs could be building a facility on the school grounds as proposed that is both a sports hall and a community centre, owned by the town and let out to the school for two or three days a week.

Bryan Gostling, Bircham Road, Reepham

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