Lyminge Online

Please Help – New Editor Required

Due to ever greater work commitments, as well as two small children to run around after, I find myself unable to continue to edit the Newsletter. Needless to say I am disappointed by this, because it is rewarding and I find myself meeting many new and interesting people living and working in our community.
The new editor will be responsible for putting together this Newsletter – a job not as daunting as it sounds, because Jean Howard does so much work behind the scenes: typing, organising advertisers and chasing payments. I would like to take this opportunity to say a big THANK YOU to Jean, I have enjoyed working with you. The new editor will need to complement Jean’s word processing skills, share in dealing with some of the enquiries and have access to a computer and email. If the new editor wishes, I will be on hand to help initially. Please consider this opportunity and give me a ‘no obligation’ call on 862907.

The Lyminge Newsletter needs you to ensure its continued success.

Etchinghill Update

We record our really grateful thanks to Little Burton Development Ltd for the provision and erection of our Village Hall "finger post" sign and the height/weight restriction signs for Westfield Lane - their help is very much appreciated.
We can also "announce" that we have recently received Planning Permission for the Etchinghill Notice Board and the Etchinghill Website is soon to "go live" - so on both of these.....watch this space..!!

Friends of Kent Churches Bike Ride

Well, we’ve done it again! The annual sponsored bike ride is over for another year, and it just seems to get better and better. This year, despite the absence of a few ‘regulars’ through holidays etc, we recruited new first timers and ended up with a record turn-out of 17 cyclists. It was like party time at the Church as we prepared to leave on our day’s adventure. Even the Press were there! Did you see the write-up in the Kentish Express the following week? How much money did we raise? We raised an excellent total of over £6,700. Once again we must thank the riders, the helpers in the Church and the generous sponsorship.

How do I get in the Newsletter and how do I not get in the Newsletter?

Submissions to the newsletter usually fall into one of five categories:

Sponsor. The sponsor has a large advert on the front of the Newsletter. The sponsor contributes £30 towards our production costs.
Articles. These are usually placed near the front of Newsletter.
Letters. Letters to the editor are greatly valued because they reflect your opinions. They are published free of charge and will usually not be edited unless they are libellous or offensive. Names and addresses can be withheld with replies published rather than names passed on.
Charitable/Social Club Adverts. These appear in the ‘Dates for the Diary’ or ‘Reports & Notices’ sections. The cost for these is £1.50.
Business Adverts. These appear in the four pages near the back and cost £7.50.

You can leave your submission at either the Newsagent on Station Rd, Lyminge or the Library by the 16th of each month. It is regrettable but we cannot accept late submissions because we would not meet our editing, printing and distribution deadlines. Submissions must be accompanied by appropriate fee if applicable (cheques can be made to The Lyminge Association) or you can email your submission to the editor gcaldow@hotmail.com Electronically submitted material must also be paid for before publication by depositing money with a short covering note at the Newsagent or the Library. In some case long submissions may be edited. That is how you get in the Newsletter. The way to not get in the Newsletter is simple: don’t pay! Jean Howard has spent a great deal of her time chasing payments, and so we shall have to be strict with this policy unless contact and a payment arrangement has been agreed with Jean.

Lyminge Pre-School Playgroup Reg Charity No 1029226

Lyminge Pre-School is a day care facility where “the environment is warm and welcoming to children and parents” according to the latest OFSTED report. It is a place where your child can make friends, play and make a smooth transition to school whilst being supervised by trained & experienced staff. Sessions are weekdays during term-time at Lyminge Village Hall on: Mon 9am to 12/1pm; Tue to Fri 9 to 12 or 1 or 3pm. The extended places to 3pm are funded by the European social fund. Packed lunch should be provided if your child stays to either 1 or 3pm.
The Pre-School is a member of the Pre-School Alliance & meets KCC & OFSTED The most recent, excellent Ofsted report stated, “in this thriving playgroup the children are making good progress towards the Early Learning Goals. There is a strong partnership with parents and carers which contributed positively to the children’s good progress”. We also have a very close liaison with the local primary school. Further information can be obtained from Lynn Hussey on 862831(Admin) or Julie Murphy on 862634 (Supervisor). Phone us to arrange a visit!

Space in the Newsletter or, specifically, lack of it

You may have noticed as a reader – if you’re a club or society been told– that we are not carrying large notices or adverts because the newsletter has limited space. Large Notices/Adverts take more precious space and the Lyminge Association Committee is agreed on the Newsletter not becoming merely an advertising sheet but rather an information point, through which our community can discuss ideas, develop our social organisations and, of course, promote our local business. For the Newsletter to do these, copy space has to be set aside for people to write in – that means YOU! Anyone can contribute. It’s your Newsletter and the Committee would welcome new contributions.

At the moment, the newsletter really has two types of paid inserts: Notices/Dates for the Diary and Adverts. The above aims will affect Notices/Dates for the Diary and Adverts in the following way. In future all societies/clubs etc will only be given space for a standard size notice. If you or your club wants greater coverage in the Newsletter then please consider submitting an article which has more detailed information. An example of this is on Page 3 in which Helen Burr enlightens us on the History of St Nicholas’ Fair (this has made me really want to go). Indeed, the chances are that you, too, took time to read this because it was more than just a notice: it is information of interest. Of course not everyone will choose to do this because in many cases it won’t make sense for your club or society, but if you do want to promote a special event, then by (1) telling people why you’re doing what your are doing and (2) what benefit you hope people will get out of it might be an alternative. Naturally space is still an issue so no guarantees of inclusion, but if you send in your article early then it gives us time to make any changes necessary.

Advertising is necessary because everyone who pays for advertising space not only covers the cost of producing the magazine but also allows the Lyminge Association to put that money back into the community through the grants it makes to charitable organisations. Yet there are only so many adverts we can carry, and the people wishing to advertise has increased dramatically because people have realised that advertising in the Newsletter is good value for money. Consequently, we try to limit business advertising to pages 9-12. It has also been decided that business adverts must be restricted to people who live or have their business in our area and, unfortunately, this area does not include Elham. This does not apply to Elham social events, however, which may appear in the ‘Dates for the Diary’ section, because we wish to support every local event that contributes towards rural life. In other words, this policy only affect commercial advertisers. Current advertisers who do not meet these criteria will be informed on an individual basis, but pre-paid adverts honoured. As the Newsletter serves many villages already, adverts from residents of our villages should be given preference.

As a final note, everyone involved in the Newsletter is an unpaid volunteer who freely gives their time because they feel a Newsletter benefits our villages. As volunteers we assume everyone will understand that because we don’t get paid, we cannot spend as much time producing or delivering it as we would like. We understand that not everyone will agree with all our policies, but we also hope everyone understands that these decisions have been made based on practical considerations. We just want to ensure the Newsletter best meets the needs of the community it serves.

Your Letters

Dear Editor:
Further to your paragraph re shops, the closure of Mayfield Stores is a sad loss. But I think that our local shops should realise that a high proportion of householders are single. And therefore need smaller quantities.
We used to be able to buy ham slices singly: ½ packet sausages, or ½ cabbage or cucumber. But not now – one is firmly refused – cabbage etc will not be cut. And we singles are forced to travel to Tesco and Waitrose at Hythe with cash which could have helped the local shops
Name and address supplied

Dear Editor:
If Roma Hodges cares to contact me there are various records to which she can probably gain access which may provide further details about her mother etc. There is probably an updated version of Tracing Missing Persons by Colin D. Rogers, Manchester University Press 1986 which has details not only about adoptions but other relevant records.
Duncan Harrington - history.research@btinternet.com

Dear Editor:
This letter is a plea to the Parish Council to put traffic-calming measures at the top of their list of priorities for Lyminge.
This afternoon my mother was sitting with my nine-month old son on the bench at the bus stop on Canterbury Road, between the junction of Brady Road and Longage Hill. A dark blue Jaguar came speeding over the brow of the hill from the direction of Elham, lost control and spun round, finally crashing into the bushes on the corner of Longage Hill. For a split second, though, my mother the car was going to hit her and my son.
Far from getting out to see if she was alright, the driver - a middle-aged man - gave her a cheery wave and drove off down the hill into Lyminge.
The noise was enough to bring some residents of Canterbury Road out of their houses to see what had happened. Who knows if this driver had been drinking (which could explain why he didn't get out of his car), but he was definitely going fast enough to lose control of his vehicle. Luckily there was no other traffic about otherwise there could have been a serious accident.
I hope that most readers will agree that we need to do something to slow these irresponsible drivers down.
Mrs Michala Luff