The Lowestoft Kittiwake Project

The March meeting of the Blyth Valley and Southwold Suffolk Wildlife group welcomed Rupert Masefield from the Suffolk Wildlife Trust to tell us about the local Kittiwake Project. Many people will be aware of the great numbers of kittiwakes nesting in Lowestoft, and Rupert discussed both the bonus of a nature success story, and the nuisance that this abundance of birdlife has brought with it.

Kittiwakes are of the gull family, but they are smaller, and spend their winters in the harsh northwest Atlantic waters. They come ashore in spring to nest, usually on tiny cliff ledges, and raise their two chicks. They feed exclusively on fish and sand eels, and each parent takes it in turn to fly out to sea for food, covering huge distances over three to four days. Kittiwakes are in serious decline globally, but numbers are increasing in Suffolk, and Lowestoft has become a centre of breeding. No-one really knows why, but kittiwakes first started to move into the town in the 1950s, and their numbers have continued to increase.

The smell of large amounts of guano and the noise of so many birds has caused a nuisance to town dwellers, and over the years many measures have been tried to persuade kittiwakes to leave public buildings and move to artificial sites. However, some measures, such as netting, were potentially harmful to the birds. As a result, the Suffolk Wildlife Trust has brought together local interest groups to form the Lowestoft Kittiwake Partnership, aiming to find safe solutions. There is to be a Kittiwake Officer, who will work with local people and businesses to keep kittiwakes safe and reduce the problems with nesting on buildings. The offshore ‘kittiwake hotels’ you may have seen were constructed by a windfarm company as mitigation measures for sea birds. Decoy kittiwakes are being used to encourage nesting activity, and it is hoped that with time, these will be inhabited by these attractive but vulnerable birds.

Our next meeting is on Thursday, 11th April, 7.30pm, at the Southwold Arts Centre IP18 6JP. There will be a brief AGM, followed by a film, ‘Secret Rivers – The Waveney, Part Two’, featuring Paul Heiney. There will be refreshments. Admission free.

Penny Mansfield

Contact us at swtblythvalley@gmail.com.

Medieval Knight Crafts

Tuesday, 2nd April, 11am @ Southwold Library

Accompanies The Canterbury Tales @ Southwold Arts Centre (see below)

Free crafts! Swords, shields, castles and much more! No need to book, just drop in.

The Canterbury Tales by Half Cut Theatre

Thursday, 4th April, 4pm @ Southwold Arts Centre

Packed full of laughs and loves, music and mayhem. Come on this raucous journey which will delight young and old alike.

Book for the show at www.southwoldartscentre.co.uk.

Terrific Train Fun! Trainmaster Suffolk

Thursday, 4th April, 12.30pm and 1.45pm @ Reydon Village Hall

£4 per child for one hour’s play!

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

Limited spaces. Book your place today! Tel: 01502 722519; e-mail: southwold.library@suffolklibraries.co.uk; or online: www.ticketsource.co.uk/suffolklibraries.

Free Unicorn Easter Crafts for Kids

Tuesday, 9th April, 11am and 2pm @ Southwold Library

Come and make unicorn decorations, unicorn Easter eggs, unicorn masks and much more! Plus unicorn tattoos. Crafts supplied by the Friends of Southwold Library. No need to book.

The Lowestoft Longshore Men Sing Sea Shanties

Sunday, 14th April, 5pm @ Southwold Library

Tickets £5 including hot drink and biscuit.

Book at Southwold Library – tel: 01502 722519; e-mail: southwold.library@suffolklibraries.co.uk; or online: www.ticketsource.co.uk/suffolklibraries.co.uk.

Lin Le Versha: Southwold’s Own Resident Crimewriter Extraordinaire

Monday, 15th April, 11am @ Southwold Library

Free event, no need to book.

Lin Le Versha drew on her experience in schools and colleges as the inspiration for the Steph Grant crime series, which now includes four books. Lin is the Director of the Southwold Arts Festival. Creative writing courses encouraged her to enrol at the UEA MA in Creative Writing and her debut novel, Blood Notes, was based on her final assessment piece. Lin will be talking about her writing, including her latest title, Blood Ribbons. Lin will be signing copies of her books.

Erica James: Join Her for Afternoon Tea

Saturday, 4th May, 3pm @Reydon Village Hall

Tickets are £6, including refreshments.

Erica James is the author of 24 bestselling novels, including Gardens of Delight, which won the 2006 Romantic Novel of the Year Award, and Sunday Times top-ten bestsellers Swallowtail Summer, Coming Home to Island House, Letters from the Past, Mothers and Daughters, and A Secret Garden Affair. Erica will be talking about her writing including her latest title, An Ideal Husband. Erica will be signing copies of her books.

Book at Southwold Library – tel: 01502 722519; or online: www.ticketsource.co.uk/suffolklibraries.

Friends of Southwold Library Present Slaughter in Southwold: Southwold Library Crime Writers’ Festival

Saturday, 15th and Sunday, 16th June @ Southwold Arts Centre, St Edmund’s Hall

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

• Authors’ talks by: Rev Richard Coles, Jane Casey, Nicci French, Elly Griffiths, Tom Hindle, Cara Miller, Jacqueline Sutherland, A K Turner and Ruth Ware.
• Plus: Kate Ellis’ Death at the Dig Murder Mystery Night – Friday, 14th June, 7pm.
• Fun Crime Quiz Night – Sunday, 17th June, 7pm.
• 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).

Booking from 1st April at the Library – tel: 01502 722519; or online: www.suffolklibraries.co.uk/slaughter.

Activity Afternoons

Weekdays from 2.15pm @ Southwold Library

Crochet every Wednesday; Scrabble second Thursday; Poetry first Friday; Mah-Jong second and fourth Friday; Ongoing jigsaw all other afternoons. Free hot drinks. Sponsored by East of England Co-op in association with East Suffolk Council.

Realise Futures Walk-in Advice and Guidance

Every Thursday, 10am–12noon @ Southwold Library

Do you have a learning disability/autism? Do you need some support, advice, or information?

Come along to one of our walk-in advice and guidance sessions. There is no need to book an appointment. Our advisors will talk to you about the support you need. We can provide advice, guidance, and information on housing, employment, benefits, training, money, travel, safety, health, bills/letters and social.

Please contact: Anita Fiddy, Service Locality Co-ordinator (East) – tel: 07598 582955; e-mail: anita.fiddy@realisefutures.org.

Chess Club

Every Friday, from 4.30pm @ Southwold Library

Free event, no booking required.

Free play every week for kids aged seven plus and adults. Beginners’ teaching and assistance from Phil weeks two and four.

Chess Club Volunteer Wanted!

Phil, our chess volunteer, can only do a couple of Fridays a month – we are looking for another volunteer for the other Fridays to help other players, especially beginners.

Training provided! Interested? Contact Charlotte – tel: 01502 722519 or e-mail: charlotte.clark@suffolklibraries.co.uk.

Blyth Poets ‘The Isle is Full of Voices’

Friday, 5th April, 2.15–3.30pm

First Friday of every month.

Free event, no booking required.

A poetry group meeting at Southwold Library. All welcome to read or just listen. We invite contributions of original work or well-loved poems. Refreshment break in the Canteen.

Mah-Jong Group

Friday, 12th and 26th April, 2.15–4.15pm

Second and fourth Friday of the month.

£1 per person.

Can you play Mah-Jong? Do you want to learn? Come along and join the group at Southwold Library.

Scrabble Club

Thursday, 11th April, 2.15pm

Second Thursday of every month.

Free event, no booking required.

All equipment supplied. Refreshment break in the Canteen.

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.

Kids, Come and Read to Ash the PAT Dog

Wednesdays, 4pm @ Southwold Library

Free event, no booking required.

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. Contact Southwold Library – Old Hospital Hub, Field Stile Road, Southwold IP18 6LD; tel: 01502 722519; e-mail: southwold.library@suffolklibraries.co.uk.

Lego Club!

Sundays, 12.15–1pm

Free event, no booking required.

Open to kids (and adults) of all ages. This spring, we’re building: Wonderful Wildlife. All donations of Lego welcome.

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

Southwold Library Reading Group

Thursday, 25th April, 6.30pm @ Southwold Library

Free event, no booking required.

This month, we are reading: The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams. Pick up a book at Southwold Library.

Tel: 01502 722519; e-mail: southwold.library@suffolklibraries.co.uk.

Baby Bounce and Tot Rock

Every Sunday and Tuesday, 10.30–11am @ Southwold Library

Free event, no booking required.

For babies and toddlers of all ages. Instruments, clapping, jogging and action rhymes.

Suffolk County Council gave an update on 6th March on the situation with Quay Lane:

“Due to the amount of standing water, an emergency closure was installed at this location. Teams were onsite yesterday and removed four tanker loads of water; however, were unable to stem the flow. Our teams will be reattending tomorrow to clear the water. Once the road is cleared of standing water, teams will clean the gullies and carry out further investigations. Following this the road will be reopened.

“Updates will be posted on our social media accounts and via the webpage – Temporary traffic management for Suffolk Highways roadworks.

Suffolk County Council”

SCC 8th March update

“Quay Lane, Reydon has been cleared of surface water, but there is still a large amount of debris across the carriageway that tankers are unable to remove. Works to remove the debris by hand are being arranged and will take place as soon as possible. The road closure will remain in place until further notice.”

Friday, 5th April, 6.30pm – Eyes Down 7.00pm @ Reydon Village Hall

£5 per person. Bring your own refreshments or purchase soft drinks/snacks.

Prizes! Raffle!

Book your tickets with Charlotte at Southwold Library (tel: 07715 388916; e-mail: frogclock@hotmail.com). All funds go towards the RVH Golden Anniversary Appeal Fund to repair, renovate and refit the Hall.

Saturday, 23rd March, 7pm @ Reydon Village Hall

If you like Bingo, you’ll love Beetle!

£5 per person. Bring your own refreshments or purchase soft drinks/snacks. Prizes! Raffle!

Never been to a Beetle Drive before? It is light-hearted and sociable fun suiting all ages. A dice based game where the aim is to complete your beetle first!

Book your tickets with Charlotte at Southwold Library (tel: 07715 388916; e-mail: frogclock@hotmail.com).

All funds go towards the RVH Golden Anniversary Appeal Fund to repair, renovate and refit the Hall.

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 2024 – Saturday, 3rd August. 

Entries have to be in on the Friday night or the Saturday morning and the exhibition opens at 2pm. 

We also have a range of 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 Bridgefoot Stores, Reydon nearer the date.

Photographic categories this year are:

• A Woodland Scene.
• A Suffolk Landmark.
• A Baby Animal or Animals.
• Something Mainly Orange.

Friday, 8th March 7–10pm

With the Once Bittern Ceilidh Band.

£10 per person, including buffet supper. BYO alcohol. Soft drinks & snacks available.

Book your tickets with Charlotte at Southwold Library – tel: 07715 388916; email: frogclock@hotmail.com.

All funds towards the RVH Golden Anniversary Appeal Fund to repair, renovate and refit the Hall.

February saw nine teams enjoying the Reydon Community Quiz, with Quiz Master Graham at the helm. As always, a good-humoured and entertaining evening was had by all!

Scores were very close this month: in third place were ‘What, No Broadside?’ with 115 points; in second place, ‘Treacle Tarts’ with 117 points; and winners this month were ‘Threes Company’ on 118 points.

Together with proceeds from the raffle, the evening raised £320. Quizzers suggested local charities to be this month’s recipients, and the Voluntary Help Centre was the one whose name came out of the hat, so our donation will be winging its way to the VHC with our thanks for all they do to support so many members of our community.

A thank-you card was received from Reydon Christmas Lights for January’s donation, and this was shared with the quizzers.

Many thanks to all who support our Community Quiz, it is hugely appreciated.

The next quiz will be held on Friday, 15th March 15. 

Dates for the next quizzes are 19th April and 17th May. (All 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 at ahumphry@talktalk.net.

Martlesham Wilds

The February meeting of our local Blyth Valley and Southwold Wildlife group welcomed Michael Strand from the Suffolk Wildlife Trust to talk about Martlesham Wilds. This is an exciting new reserve on the outskirts of Woodbridge, bordering Martlesham Creek and the River Deben.

There was tremendous support from the community to raise the £1 million needed to complete the purchase of the land, formerly an organic farm which already had a wonderful variety of habitat. There is ancient woodland, unimproved pastures, mudflats, and saltmarsh.

Although the rewilding will happen over time in a natural way, there are several initiatives to start the process. Both the restoration and creation of new ponds will provide essential fresh water across the site for a wide variety of wildlife. Ancient oaks and wild grasslands will provide plentiful seeds. Certain areas will be unobtrusively fenced, to allow grazing to take place, an essential component in diversifying the ground cover, and allowing messy scrub areas to develop. Shallow scrapes and meandering ‘foot drains’ have been excavated on the grazing marshes, providing an ideal habitat for migratory birds.

Local community groups are involved in the baseline monitoring of the flora and fauna. There are already healthy groups of voles, badgers, otters, snakes, and lizards, and it is hoped that over the next few years, species such as the nightingale, turtle dove, skylark and yellowhammer will become more abundant.

We are fortunate to have such an exciting new venture nearby, and Michael’s detailed knowledge and enthusiasm left us wanting to visit the Wilds, and enjoy the transformation of this beautiful reserve over the years to come.

Please note that our next meeting is at Wenhaston Village Hall IP19 9EQ, on Thursday, 14th March at 7.30pm, when Rupert Mansfield will talk about the Lowestoft Kittiwake Project. Admission is £4, to include refreshments; under 25s free. All are welcome.

Penny Mansfield

Contact us at swtblythvalley@gmail.com.