Now Booking: Friends of Southwold Library present Slaughter in Southwold: Southwold Library Crime Writers Festival

Saturday 17th & Sunday 18th June At Southwold Arts Centre, St Edmunds Hall

Authors Talks by: David Blake, Chris Carter, Helen Fields, Anthony Horowitz, Lesley Kara, Simon Mayo, Kate Rhodes, & Rebecca Tope.

Tickets £6 per talk, £20 per day or £40 for the weekend (lunches not included)

Lunches with the authors – provided by  Café 51 & Mark’s Fish Shop

Plus: Kate Ellis’ “The Case of the Late Cook” Murder Mystery Night Friday 16th June 7.00pm

Fun Crime Quiz Night Saturday 17th 7.00pm

Whodunnit Puzzle Sheet available from 1st May – £1.  Solve the crime and you could win a £10 Book Token

Raffle for a Luxury Crime Related Hamper (raffle tickets available from 1st May at Southwold Library)

Book at the library, by phone 01502 722519 or on the website www.suffolklibraries.co.uk/slaughter 

Free Easter Dinosaur Crafts for Kids

Wednesday 5^th April 11.00am-12.00 noon & 2.00-3.00pm

Make a variety of dinosaur themed Easter crafts including dinosaur egg decorations, dinosaur Easter cards and dinosaur bunny masks.

Crafts supplied by the Friends of Southwold Library

No need to book.

Spinning Wheel Theatre presents: The Velveteen Rabbit

Thursday 6th April 3pm

@ Southwold Arts Centre

Based on the book by Margery Williams

Created by Spinning Wheel Theatre

Original songs by Rosie Adediran

Not long after being unwrapped on Christmas morning, the Velveteen Rabbit is cast aside to gather dust.  Shunned by the other braver, more glamorous toys, with expensive motors and flashing lights, he fears he’ll never be played with… but a chance encounter makes him the favourite toy, and with a little magic and a lot of love, he might even become real!

This beautiful tale is brought to life on stage by two actors, inventive puppetry and original songs. A joyful and uplifting tale of magic, friendship and hope, this is a show for all the family!

This piece contains integrated Makaton signing and is suitable for ages 3+

Running time approx. 50 mins

Tickets are £6 per adult & £4 per child with a

Family ticket (2 adults, 2 kids) for £18.

Tickets available from Southwold Library 01502 722519

www.ticketsource.co.uk/suffolklibraries

Terrific Train Fun! Trainmaster Suffolk

Thursday 13th April 12.30pm & 1.45pm

@ Reydon Village Hall

Miles of track and trains to play with plus ride on train and a train roller coaster!

£4 per child for 1 hour’s play!

Limited spaces.  Book your place today!

01502 722519 southwold.library@suffolklibraries.co.uk

www.ticketsource.co.uk/suffolklibraries 

How Climate Evolution comes to Southwold: A new look at an old idea

Monday 17th April 10.00am

A Free Information Event with Dr Roy Gill (BA, MA, PhD Cantab)

@Southwold Library

Covering Sea Level Rise, Ethics, Law & Politics, Rebuilding Infrastructure, Geoscience, Temperature Rise, Humans, Extinction, The Future and Answering What If Questions

Friends of Southwold Library Book Stall!     

Saturday 22^nd April  9.00am – 1.00pm

Outside Lloyds Bank

Wide selection of books

For further details contact Southwold Library, 01502 722519

All funds towards supporting Southwold Library

Compassionate Care: Planning for your Future

Monday 24th April 2-4pm @ Southwold Library

This information event is about planning for YOUR future care needs, plans that are shared and recorded, so that if you cannot speak for yourselves those caring for you will know what you want.

Suffolk Libraries & St Elizabeth Hospice will take you through the Personal, Clinical, Legal and Financial components.  Live for today but plan for tomorrow

Free event, just turn up.

Southwold Library 01502 722519 southwold.library@suffolklibraries.co.uk

Chess Club

Every Friday from 4.30pm @Southwold Library

Free play every week for kids 7+ & adults

Beginners’ teaching & assistance from Phil weeks 2 & 4

Southwold Arts Centre & Southwold Library Present: Southwold Community Cinema

Thurs 30th March -2.30pm

Fisherman’s Friends: One and All 2022(12a)

Thurs 27th April-2.30pm

The Outfit 2022(15)

Thurs 25th May-2.30pm

See How They Run 2022(12a)

Tickets – £5 including refreshment

Book a ticket at southwoldartscentre.co.uk or visit the box office Tel : 01502 722572

Southwold Arts Centre, Cumberland Road, Southwold. IP18 6JP

Mah-jong Group

Friday 28^th April  2.15-4.15pm

4th Friday of the month

Can you play mah-jong?

Do you want to learn?

Come along and join the group at Southwold Library. £1 per person

Come Together Tuesdays @ Southwold Library

Every Tuesday 2-4pm

Free Social Afternoon for Adults

Complete the ongoing jigsaw, play a card or board game or bring along your knitting or other crafts.

Free hot drinks

Crochet Club

Every Wednesday 2.15-4pm

£2 each.

A friendly group for all abilities of crocheter.  Barbara will be on hand to teach beginners, add to your crochet skills or troubleshoot problems.  Or just bring along your latest project and crochet together.

Bring your own equipment  or Barbara can supply at a price.

Refreshment break in The Canteen 

Blyth Poets “The isle is full of voices”

A poetry group meeting at Southwold Library

Friday 31^st March 2.15-3.30pm

First Friday of every month

All welcome to read or just listen.

We invite contributions of original work or well-loved poems.

Refreshment break in The Canteen

Scrabble Club

Thursday 20^th April:  Third Thursday of Every Month 2.15pm

All Equipment Supplied

Refreshment break in The Canteen

Lego Club!

Sundays 12.15-1.00pm

Open to kids (and adults) of all ages

This Spring we’re building: Wonderful Wildlife

All donations of Lego welcome

Free event, no booking required.

Adults: Would you like to help with Lego Club?  Just ask staff

Kids, Come & Read to Ash the PAT Dog

Wednesdays 4pm @ Southwold Library

The Read2Dogs scheme provided by PAT helps to improve literacy skills and wellbeing in young people by developing their confidence, interest, and enjoyment in reading.

Dogs are non-judgemental and great listeners – they don’t interrupt or correct – so they aid confidence and concentration levels.  PAT Dogs are also known to encourage positive social behaviours, enhance self-esteem and inspire young people to relax and have fun.

Come and read to Ash for up to 15 minutes at a time plus enjoy a range of dog themed games, jigsaws, and crafts while you wait.

Free event, no booking required.

Southwold Library, Old Hospital Hub, Field Stile Road, Southwold IP18 6LD 01502 722519 southwold.library@suffolklibraries.co.uk

Southwold Library Reading Group

This month we are reading:

“The Librarian” by Salley Vickers

Thursday 27^th April 6.30pm @ Southwold Library

Pick up a book at Southwold Library

Free event, no booking required.

01502 722519 southwold.library@suffolklibraries.co.uk

Baby Bounce & Tot Rock Southwold Library

Every Sunday & Tuesday 10.30-11.00am. 

Instruments, clapping, jogging & action rhymes.

For babies & toddlers of all ages.

Be part of an energetic and progressive newly elected Parish Council, where things get done! In the last 18 months the Parish Council has provided many benefits for the community, including: 

• Commissioning 2 quiet lanes in the village 
• Distribution of The Reydon Robin, the free news mag, to all Reydon homes
• Extensive planting in our green spaces
• Distribution of the ‘Better Together’ cost of living leaflet, to all local homes 
• Organising national anniversaries and community events on Jubilee Green

We are working on the complete rejuvenation of ‘The Rec’ and The Allotments, and soon we will be opening a new Community Pantry at Reydon Village Hall. If you’d like to apply to be a Reydon Parish Councillor, please get your application forms in by 4th April. To receive the forms, please visit the East Suffolk Council Elections page or call 01502 523320.

Community fridge and pantry projects have been cropping up across the UK for some time with the cost of living crisis accelerating their popularity.

Originally designed to help to tackle food waste, and redistribute short-date supplies, they have also now become a welcome part of many communities. In the last few months, Kessingland Parish Council has opened one, situated in the village library.

In April 2023, Reydon Parish Council will trial a new Community Fridge & Pantry, after the initiative was proposed and received unanimous support at February’s Parish Council meeting. The project is being run in conjunction with Southwold Town Council. 

The Reydon & Southwold Community Fridge & Pantry will be situated in a room at Reydon Village Hall. It will be open in the morning, and late afternoon, each Friday. The launch date and exact opening times will be announced on our website and Facebook page as soon as we have confirmation.

Our pantry and fridge will stock both fresh and dried goods, based on what we’re allocated or donated from local businesses. We’re working with organisations like Caboodle and Fair Share, which specialise in helping communities to tackle food waste across the UK. The food will be free and the pantry is open to everyone, although the number of items per household may be limited.

We want to invite our gardening community to bring any surplus fruit or vegetables from allotments or gardens along to us. This is exactly the sort of thing we’d love to distribute at the Pantry, and we invite any keen growers to get in touch. We also plan to provide pet food, donated by the RSPCA, and over time we hope to extend the range of items we have available and provide a place for other sustainability and affordability ideas like book swaps.

Do you want to help? We need a team of volunteers to help us to run the project, and we would love you to get in touch if you think you could lend a hand. This could be the occasional local food pickup if you drive, or you might be happy to come and help us at opening times for a few hours. Volunteers working at the Community Pantry will receive free training in Food Hygiene level 2, paid for by the project funding. We are aiming to limit the time needed to one Friday per month for each person, although of course, anyone wanting to help more is welcome. 

Email us at reydon.pc@gmail.com

The project is being funded by a number of organisations, who have all generously donated to help us get this initiative off the ground. Reydon Parish Council (also a funder) would like to give huge thanks to: The Reydon Trust, Southwold Town Council, East Suffolk Council, Suffolk County Council and Adnams.

See you at the Pantry! Councillors Jessica Gregson and Madelaine Senior.

Throughout the winter, the Blyth Valley and Southwold wildlife group, organise monthly meetings where they invite guest speakers to present on various topics of interest. Here, Penny Mansfield reports on their latest meeting.

Farming and Wildlife.

The Wilder Landscape Manager of the Suffolk Wildlife Trust, Sam Hanks, gave a talk to our local group about the wider aspects of land management and biodiversity in our county, with a particular reference to farming. The Trust is part of a wider network of organisations encouraging farmers to participate in regenerative agriculture. The aims are to combat climate change by focusing on nourishing the soil, increasing crop diversity, improving water quality, capturing carbon, and regenerating lost woodlands and hedgerows. There is no single organised approach yet, and pesticides and herbicides are still in use, but there is enthusiasm across the region , with organisations such as the Nature Friendly Farming Network taking part.

The Trust sees its role as enabling people to bring about change, and thus it gives free advice to farmers, community projects and individuals. There are farm clusters – locally the Blyth Valley, where farmers can meet together, share ideas, and receive support. There are Stewardship projects, one of which is to alleviate flooding with attenuation ponds, which flood in the winter, reducing the run off downstream. Encouragement to add diversity to the land is exemplified at Nonsuch organic farm, where Sam is the manager. Here, the fertilised hayfield will return to its old meadow status. Hedgerows are being replanted: one stretch is to be four metres wide, and has been hand-strewn with local hedgerow seeds in an experiment to see how well this method will work. Elsewhere on the farm, ponds have been excavated to add to biodiversity, and to supply drinking water for stock animals. A range of fruit and nut trees are being planted. It’s very much a work in progress.

There were some inspirational ideas, and we were heartened to remember that we can all help in the process , both in our own plots and gardens, and  by supporting local producers.

 Our next meeting is at the Arts Centre, Southwold, IP18 6JP, on Thursday, 13^th April at 7:30pm. There will be a brief AGM, followed by a film, “Secret Rivers – the Waveney”, featuring Paul Heiney. No admission fee but a small charge for drinks.

Reydon Community Quiz took place on 17th March, with 9 teams taking part and quizmaster Jim Archer leading the evening. A light-hearted evening ensued with six entertaining rounds which featured, among other things, tests of musical knowledge and our recall of ‘Thunderbirds’ !

Winners were ‘Three’s Company ‘with 126 points, ‘What! No Broadside?’ in second place with 123 points, followed by ‘What the Ecc?’ in third place with 120 points.

With proceeds from the quiz and the raffle, the total raised was £335. A good cause was chosen at random from suggestions made by the quizzers, and this months recipient is the Rural Coffee Caravan. This provides ‘coffee and kindness’ together with all sorts of advice and assistance to communities in the more isolated parts of the area (They will be in Sotterly on 6 April)

A huge thanks as always to our loyal quizzers, hosts Sole Bay Bowls Club and raffle helpers. Thanks also to Southwold Press for providing paper for the quizzes.

The next quiz will be held on Friday 21^st April, and this one will be raising money for Friends of Southwold Library ( FOSL). 

The final quiz for this season will be 9th May (All fall on the third Friday of the month).

There is sometimes space for another team so do contact me if you are interested in joining us, on ahumphry@talktalk.net.

Is this consultation period long enough?

Reydon Community Quiz took place on 17 February with quiz master Brad taking charge. Quizzers enjoyed a wide range of rounds, some of which proved quite a challenge, but nonetheless very enjoyable!

Winners were ‘If Onlys ‘with 94 points, ‘Nirvana’ in second place with 118 points, followed by ‘Treacle Tarts’ in third place with 89 points.

With proceeds from the quiz and the raffle, the total raised was a generous £350. Reydon Community Quiz usually supports local charities and good causes, but it was requested by quizzers that this month we also make a donation for those affected by the terrible situation in Turkey and Syria.

Therefore funds raised by the January quiz have been split equally, with both £175 each sent to the Turkey & Syria Earthquake appeal via the DEC, and also to Southwold and Dunwich Lifeboat.

How wonderful for our community to be able support those both far and near who work to save lives. Our thoughts and appreciation are with you all, and those you help.

A huge thanks as always to our loyal quizzers, hosts Sole Bay Bowls Club and raffle helpers. Thanks also to Southwold Press for providing paper for the quizzes.

The next quiz will be held on Friday 17 March. Dates for the remaining quizzes after that are 21 April, 19 May (all fall on the third Friday of the month).

There is sometimes space for another team so do contact me if you are interested in joining us, on ahumphry@talktalk.net.

Are you a baker, an artist, a photographer, a crafter, a sewer, a knitter, a gardener or a flower arranger?  Then why not enter the Reydon Show?  The show celebrates your talents big and small plus small cash prizes and various trophies to be won. 

The show takes place on the first Saturday of August each year so save the date for 2023 – Saturday 5th August. 

Entries have to be in on the Friday night or the Saturday morning and the exhibition opens at 2pm.  Also this year we have introduced some new children’s categories open to kids under 12 so if your child is a keen baker, gardener or arts and crafter they can enter too – and kids’ enter free!  So, plan your preserves, ready your radishes and corral your carnations ready for August.  Programme of categories available at Barbrooks, Reydon nearer the date.

Throughout the winter, the Blyth Valley and Southwold wildlife group, organise monthly meetings where they invite guest speakers to present on various topics of interest. Here, Penny Mansfield reports on their latest meeting.

Beach-nesting birds of the East Anglian Coast

Paul Davies, from RSPB, came to the Blyth Valley and Southwold wildlife meeting in February to talk about the range of coastal birds in our region. The main focus was on the endangered Little Tern and Ringed Plover populations, which often share breeding areas.
There are several places where numbers of these birds are doing well, such as Winterton-on-Sea, in Norfolk. Here, abundant food stocks allow the colonies to thrive. Elsewhere, numbers are small, and help is needed if the birds are to survive. Kessingland has been home to little terns, and monitoring and encouragement there will hopefully see a more settled group. Predation is a major cause of nesting failure. Crows and gulls will take what they can. A major predator, the kestrel, can clear a colony in two days. Badgers and hedgehogs will take eggs, but these and all raptors are also protected species, so it is a question of how to discourage or distract them.

Beaches are popular places to walk, and so small areas are protected. Electric and pop-up fences help deter animals and people, and there are even night-time observers during the short but crucial egg and fledgling period when thermal imaging is used, and foxes are quietly encouraged to go elsewhere. On some sand bars, nests are raised onto boxes if a storm surge is predicted, and this has worked surprisingly well.

Paul emphasised the importance of the delicate balance between help and interference. All such activity requires the appropriate permissions, and is carefully monitored. Public information and engagement about the need for protected areas encourages interest from walkers and dog lovers. Paul stressed how essential volunteers and local community involvement are for the future of these colonies, which might otherwise decline.

The passion of those involved with this work was evident, and we left with a clearer understanding of the conservation issues at stake.

Our next meeting is at a different venue: Wenhaston Village Hall, IP 19 9EQ, on Thursday, March 9 th at 7.30pm. Admission is £4, refreshment included. Sam Hanks, the Wilder Landscapes Manager atthe Suffolk Wildlife Trust, will talk about Farming and Wildlife. All are welcome.
Contact us at swtblythvalley@gmail.com