Enstone Ensign
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Enstone Ensign

ENSTONE ENSIGN
Number 467 December 2023
Newsletter for Enstone Parishioners

THE CHASE BENEFICE – DECEMBER
Sunday 3 December 8am Enstone (BCP)
10am Spelsbury
Sunday 10 December 8am Chadlington (BCP)
10am Ascott
6.30pm Carol service at Chadlington
Sunday 17 December 8am Spelsbury
10am Enstone
4pm Carol service at Ascott
6.30pm Carol service at Enstone
Wednesday 20 December 5pm The Christmas Story Puzzle –
family celebration
Christmas Eve 10am Benefice Family Crib Service at
Chadlington
Christmas Day 10am Services at Ascott, Chadlington,
Enstone and Spelsbury
Sunday 31 December 10am Ascott
Coffee morning at St Kenelm’s Church, Saturday 16 December, 10.00-12.00
Everyone is welcome to come for a cup of coffee or tea, and cake and a chat.
Christmas Carol Service, Sunday 17 December, 6.30pm
Our traditional service of lessons and carols, followed by mulled wine and mince pies.
The Christmas Story Puzzle, Wednesday 20 December, 5pm
Join us at St Kenelm’s Church on for a celebration of Christmas with songs and activities, suitable for families. Come dressed as a character in the nativity story, if you want to.

RIP Hilary Molloy
Hilary Molloy, “a petunia in an onion patch”, gone but not forgotten, lived in
Enstone all her life, died in November 2022, aged 98.
(Sheila Woodward, daughter)
All items for the January Ensign in by 29th December (or sooner, if you have it ready) please, to Hillside (blue door opposite the Harrow Inn) or ring 677231 for shorter items. You can also email me at info@andreabates.co.uk

LETTER FROM THE RECTOR – DECEMBER 2023
Dear Friends,
What a year it has been, with world events going from bad to worse.
As well as the war in Ukraine, we have had unprecedented wild fires, storms and floods across the world, and now we have the war in Israel and Gaza. Meanwhile, the cost-of-living crisis continues, and food banks in the UK look set to be overwhelmed. Many of us now are facing a hard winter, with seemingly little to be cheerful about.
This year one carol will be sung with particular poignancy.  It retells the message of angels, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom His favour rests” and continues:
Yet with the woes of sin and strife, 
The world has suffered long;
Beneath the angel strain have rolled,
Two thousand years of wrong;
And man, at war with man, hears not
The love song which they bring:
O hush the noise, you men of strife, 
And hear the angels sing.
The angels’ goodwill message will persist despite all that is going on in the world, for it proclaims God’s all-embracing and eternal welcome.  Heaven’s doors are ever open: it is home for everyone.   The final biblical vision is of an all-encompassing city: “On no day will its gates ever be shut… the glory and honour of the nations will be brought into it.”
Jesus, for whom there had been no room at the inn, taught that God’s kingdom is home for every race: “I say to you that many will come from the East and the West, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.”  He reassured those anxious about the future: “Do not let your hearts be troubled.  You believe in God; believe also in me.  My Father’s house has many rooms…”
The message of Christmas is just as real for us today as it was 2000 years ago, and it can still bring us hope and joy for our long-term future. Emmanuel has come, the Prince of Peace, the Son of Righteousness. God is with us. And God’s kingdom will have no end.

With every blessing for Christmas and the New Year.

Mark Abrey

PARISH COUNCIL NEWS- NOVEMBER
WODC License Application:-
• Kala Trading Ltd, Enstone Post Office & Adams Stores, W/23/01238/PRMW – Enstone Post Office & Adams Stores has applied to extend its trading hours, closing at 22:00 hours seven days a week.
Decision Received:-
• Fairytale Farm, Oxford Road, Southcombe, 23/01803/FUL – Approved

PARISH COUNCILLOR:-
Vacancy:-
There is a vacancy for a Parish Councillor – please do get in touch regarding
this important role within the community.

GRAFFITI ….
The Police have been informed regarding the graffiti on the playing field
equipment and recently refurbished bus shelter opposite Worths Garage. The
bus shelter has been repainted and paid for by the Parish Council.

CONSULTATION – PROPOSED 20 mph & 30 mph SPEED LIMITS –
APPROVED
Oxfordshire County Council has approved the 20s Plenty Scheme for Enstone
Parish.

PARISH QUESTIONNAIRE – SURVEY RESULTS
Thank you for responding to the questionnaire – the majority decision is for the
grass verges/Village Greens to be cut five times a year (currently seven times
per year) in April, June, July, August & September to aid biodiversity. The
ECO group and Parish Council will monitor this carefully. The responses to the
Parish Survey will be put onto the website. The Parochial Church Council will
be managing the maintenance of the churchyard/cemetery in 2024.

LIDSTONE ROAD
The Parish Council is seeking quotes for wigwam flashing signs (they operate
during school hours) and white gates to slow vehicles travelling from Chipping
Norton that are approaching the school parking area.

PAVEMENT – COXS LANE
Many responses included the request for the pavement along Cox’s Lane be
extended to the junction of the Charlbury Road. The Parish Council is seeking
quotes for this work.

WINTER HUB – AGE UK
As we move into the colder and darker months, we become acutely aware of
the role we all have in looking out for vulnerable older people in our
communities. Winter can be tough at any age, but it’s particularly challenging
for older people who face additional health risks, and increased feelings of
loneliness and isolation. In addition, the cost-of-living crisis with rises in food
and energy prices, is causing many local older people to worry about staying
healthy and keeping their homes warm. We are asking please for your support
in supporting older people in Oxfordshire this winter. We have brought
together some useful information and resources in the form of an online
Winter Hub – please share this resource with both older people and those
supporting them this winter.
https://www.ageuk.org.uk/oxfordshire/about-us/winter-hub/
Enstone Parish Council welcomes volunteers who would be willing to
organise a monthly get-together at the Parish Hall for vulnerable older
people in the parish and will fund the renting of the room. For
anyone who can help with this, please contact the clerk.

WEST OXFORDSHIRE DISTRICT COUNCIL & OXFORDSHIRE
COUNCIL
www.westoxon.gov.uk www.oxfordshire.gov.uk
There are grants and consultations for residents to access at the above websites.
These include grants for the cost of living crisis (WODC) and the Health &
Wellbeing Survey (Oxfordshire County Council)

Dates of Next Meetings – 7.00 pm Enstone Parish Hall
• Wednesday 13th December
• Thursday 18th January
• Thursday 22nd February

Parish Website …..
The parish website is for information from all organisations within the parish so please let me know if you wish to have any information put onto the website (https://enstone-pc.gov.uk). The Parish Council thanks Mrs Rachel Hunt, webmaster honorarium, for all her dedicated and hard work relating to the management of the website.

Mrs Beth Sinclair, Enstone Parish Clerk, Briery Cottage, 9 Alexandra Square, Chipping Norton, OX7 5HL

Tel: 07776 534584 Email:- clerk@enstone-pc.gov.uk

ENSTONE PRIMARY SCHOOL NEWS
In October we celebrated Harvest Festival with a sharing assembly and two fund-raising competitions: “Design a Scarecrow” and “Design a Fruit or Vegetable Character”.  Our pupils learnt all about food miles and gave an entertaining presentation, including some new autumn and harvest themed songs.  Money raised from the competitions went to “Farm Africa” and we also made a large donation of goods to the North Oxfordshire Food Bank.
Our new outdoor learning project is progressing, with the removal of the old PortaKabin building and exciting plans drawn up to reimagine the space.  This will be a tremendous asset to the school, enabling even more active, creative, outdoor learning opportunities for all year groups.
As we hurtle towards Christmas, we will soon begin preparations for our festive concerts.  Here at Enstone Primary School we place a strong emphasis on the creative arts, and our pupils thoroughly enjoy the opportunity to get up on the stage and perform.  Our instrumental music groups are already practising their Christmas carols, and our school choir are working hard on their performance, with the added bonus of the opportunity this year to perform at the Alpine Formula 1 Christmas Fayre.
Seasons greetings to you all!
Sarah Mann
Headteacher

ENSTONE WI
The speaker for our November meeting had cancelled his talk earlier in the week so we spent the first part of the evening discussing and planning next year’s program. We then played a round of Beetle Drive, which proved to be both extremely frustrating and very enjoyable.
14th December is our Christmas craft evening, we will each be making a Christmas table decoration, whilst enjoying mulled drinks and mince pies.
For more information about our group please contact Cathy on 678136

ENSTONE ECO
Step into an Eco Christmas!
As you open your Advent calendar this year, why not think of something that you could do each day for nature and the environment.
Here are some suggestions to get you started:
Crafts Have some fun and make your own wrapping using brown paper or material, use ribbon instead of tape & save it for next year, make sure you don’t use glitter; Make your own dried orange slices, use in your decorations and your house will smell all Christmassy; Make your own table decoration using a potato and foliage from the garden.
Food Plan for a low waste Christmas. Meal plan to avoid food waste.
Gifts Look for Eco gifts from WWF, RSPB, or gift a Tiny Forest Tree with Earthwatch.org.uk
Walk and Talk Take a walk around the village enjoying the trees, fields and fungi, pick up any litter safely as you go. Talk about your Eco friendly habits and track them using the WWF Nature Friendly calendar. Enjoy a cosy hot chocolate with your family and talk about Enstone School’s Eco -Code from the Eco Warriors. What else could you do? By taking small steps, learning more about how to care for our environment and helping our bees and birds thrive, you’ll be doing your bit! Why not share your ideas, get in touch on enstoneeco.gmail.com

2 DAY WATERCOLOUR COURSE WITH BBC TV ARTIST DERMOT CAVANAGH IN THE COTSWOLDS VILLAGE OF CHURCH ENSTONE FROM 30TH TO 31ST JANUARY 2024
Expert daily tuition 10:00am to 4:30pm with all painting materials provided. Price: £199.00 – Suitable for painters of all abilities, including beginners. Dermot Cavanagh is the artist behind 74 episodes of the hit BBC TV series, ‘Awash with Colour’, Dermot has inspired millions of viewers and taught a host of celebrities to paint the landscape. Charlie Dimmock, Gloria Hunniford, Suzanne Dando, Barry McGuigan and John Craven to name a few all took up painting under Dermot’s expert guidance.
Join him now for this 2-Day learn-to-paint experience in a comfortable and tranquil setting, where he will help you and demonstrate many invaluable watercolour tips and techniques. People say they’ve learned more from Dermot’s courses in a couple of days than from years attending other classes.
Lunch is available at the village pub beside the venue. For further information or booking, Call 02887784166 – Email info@dermotcavanagh.com

WYCHWOOD CHORALE CHRISTMAS CONCERT
The Wychwood Chorale are performing their Christmas concert in St Mary’s Church, Chipping Norton on Saturday 2nd December 2023 at 7.30pm.
The theme of the concert is ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’ and contains a varied repertoire of pieces by composers from Benjamin Britten to John Rutter.
This will be our first concert under the direction of our new Musical Director, Matthew Foster, who graduated from Lincoln College Oxford earlier this year.
As always there is no admission fee but we invite donations, which will be divided between the church and our chosen charity for this concert, Cotswold Arts Through School, a local charity enabling school children to engage with and enjoy the benefits of art and music around the Cotswolds.
There will also be our usual offerings of free food and drinks after the concert, so come and enjoy a wonderful start to the festive season and, if you enjoy the performance and would love to sing with us in the future, please speak to any member of the choir who will be happy to tell you more or call Emma Goodman on 01608 659737.

KATHARINE HOUSE HOSPICE
Lights, Tractor, Action!
The much-loved RC Baker Tractor Run is back and once again the festive fleet with be making their merry way around Banbury and local villages on Saturday 16 December. Since 2016, the Christmas Tractor Run has already raised in excess of £97,000 – with £27,000 of that raised last year alone! Could you help to make it even more? Find the route map, timings and details of how you can donate to this event here: www.khh.org.uk/tractor.
Sowing the seed
We’re already starting to think about our Open Gardens for next year and sowing the seed with our supporters… Could you help us grow our scheme and sign up to host your own Open Garden? Why not encourage your neighbours to take part in a whole village event? Find out more about what’s involved here: www.khh.org.uk/gardens

RBL POPPY APPEAL 2023
Many thanks to all the residents of Enstone and the surrounding villages in raising a total of £2100 for the 2023 Poppy Appeal, a fantastic sum for a very worthy cause.  Thanks to all of the individual Poppy Collectors for their sterling efforts and also to The Crown Inn, Alpine F1, Enstone Flying School, Worth’s Garage, Adam’s Store and Enstone School for their contributions.
Commander Martin Juckes RN – Enstone Poppy Appeal Organiser

Enstone Sports & Social Club
New members welcome
Premier League Live on Sky, plus other sports too.
TELEPHONE NUMBER: 01608 677823
The club would like to thank the Parish council for their support in renewing the sports club new lease.
The club is open every Friday 7pm-11pm, Saturday 3pm till close and Sundays from 12pm to 3pm
Sky sports on every Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Friday 22nd December – kids Christmas party 6pm – 9pm
Christmas opening times: Christmas eve 12 – 7pm, Christmas day closed, Boxing day 12pm till close, Friday 29th and Saturday 30th Normal times, New year’s eve 8pm onwards.
All welcome.
Ros would like to thank everyone that helps out at the club and we wish you a merry Christmas and a happy New year!
The club is open to everyone.
Committee Meetings:- December 11th 7pm
Memberships: Adults £10, under 18’s and Over 65’s £5

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
December 13 Parish Council meeting, 7.00pm, Parish Hall
14 W.I. meeting, Parish Hall
16 Coffee morning, 10.00-12.00, St Kenelm’s Church,
17 Carol Service, 6.30pm, St Kenelm’s Church,
20 The Christmas Story Puzzle, 5pm, St Kenelm’s Church,
22 Kids Christmas party, 6pm-9pm, Sports & Social Club
29 Final date for copy

Current & previous Ensigns as pdf.