Village News – 21 December 2023

Community Carols

A group of around sixty villagers and friends gathered in the Village Hall on Thursday evening, 16^th December at 7:00pm.   Members of the Rattlejag Morris dancers were on hand to accompany and encourage those present as they sang a selection of well-known carols and Christmas songs. The gathering was in fine voice and seemingly ready for the festive season ahead. Thanks must go to the organisers, the Rattlejag Morris dancers and all concerned.

Gate Inn Drop-in Session

A drop-in session was arranged to take place in the Village Hall on Friday 15^th December from 5:00pm to 8:00pm, with the objective of discussing the former Public House as an Asset of Community Value (ACV). Interested parties arriving after the stated drop-in starting time of 5:00pm were surprised to find the majority of those present seated and any informal talks had already taken place! Some information about ACV status and how to apply was on show, but with nobody to guide the gathering through the paperwork on display.

During the session, it was estimated that between 50 and 60 people had made the effort to attend. Those present exchanged information in small groups, and some put their names forward and showed interest in any future developments.

St Bartholomew’s Church

See more about the church here

Church Services

On Sunday 24^th December, a Blessing of the Crib ceremony will take place in church at 6:30pm, all welcome.

On Monday 25^th December, Christmas Day, Holy Communion will take place, at the usual time of 9:30am, once again everybody welcome!

Grant for the Church

At last, some good news for St. Bartholomew’s Church: A recent press release from the national churches trust (issue date: 6 December 2023) indicates that the historic church at Sutton cum Lound will get a grant to modernise the church to meet growing demands.

Bartholomew’s church in Sutton cum Lound, Nottinghamshire, has no kitchen or toilet. If the church wants to provide any hot drinks, the church must use kettles and disposable cups – but this is no longer meeting the need for this growing church and the community it serves. St Bartholomew’s church is not only the only parish church for Sutton cum Lound, but for the neighbouring villages of Lound and Barnby Moor, since the churches in these villages have been closed down. The village has no pub or shop either. For centuries, the church has met the needs of its local community, but can no longer do so without modern facilities. Thankfully, help is on hand. The much-loved Grade I Listed church is to share in a £496,625 urgent funding pay-out from the National Churches Trust.

Sutton Village Hall

See what’s on at the Village Hall here

New Year Party

Join us for our New Year’s Eve Party on Sunday 31 December 2023 from 8:00pm to 1:00am. Tickets are £15.00 each in advance to include disco and buffet. Reserve your tickets by phoning our answerphone service on (01777) 854 410 or emailing tickets@suttonvillagehall.net and leaving your name, contact phone number, email address and number of tickets, so payment information can be sent to you.

Gardening Club

In January, we will be starting our meetings on a THURSDAY, so as from THURSDAY 4 January 2024 the new venue is at Sutton cum Lound Village Hall, 7:15pm for 7:30pm start. There is a car park to the right of the hall and the gate will be open for you to park on the grass. There are a few spaces in front of the building, however one space will be needed for the guest speaker, and please do not park directly in front of the kitchen door (down the left side of the building), or main entrance, as these are potentially a fire exit. There are no steps and access is all on the flat.

Although you have a program for 2024 meetings, these dates will have to be tweaked on occasions due to the hall being used as a polling station on some Thursdays. We will give you notice about this in advance.   As a committee we are proposing to increase the annual subscription from £15.00 per person per annum to £20.00 per person per annum (from April 2024 when you next pay your subs). Tea/coffee and biscuits will still be supplied! Guests will still pay to attend the meeting.

There will be more information about this in the new year.

Email: gardeningclub@suttoncumlound.net

See more about the Gardening Club here

Mobile Library

The mobile library has completed its visits to the village for this year 2023, but will be back again on Monday 22^nd January 2024, stopping at all the usual places at the usual times. Any changes in next year’s visits will be notified accordingly

Post Office

The Post office operates in the Village Hall on Wednesdays from 10:00am to 12:30pm. Services offered include banking, Cash Deposits, Cash Withdrawals, Bill Payments plus lots more.