BROAD TOWN NEWS OCTOBER 2026
Keeping everyone in touch with what is going on in and around our parish.
COMMUNITY COFFEE MORNINGS
It was lovely to see so many people returning for our first coffee morning of the autumn after our August break. Our October coffee mornings will be on Wednesdays October 14th and 28th, from 10 – 12 noon in the Village Hall. Please join us to enjoy homemade cakes, sausage rolls, and hot and cold drinks, lots of chat and good company!
Sad news… We are all mourning the loss of our fellow Coffee Mornings team member Carolyn Crocker who very sadly passed away in August. Carolyn had been such a valued member of the team since its inception in 2016. Her cheerfulness, kindness and willingness to help will be so sadly missed at our Coffee Mornings, our Made in Broad Town group and around the village. We extend our thoughts and prayers to David, their children and grandchildren.
If you have any questions about Coffee Mornings, please email Helen at hjgreer1@gmail.com.
BROAD TOWN CHURCH
Services Morning Worship -11th October - 10.30am - Holy Communion - 25th October - 10.30am.
WHITE HORSE UPDATE
A small group climbed up to the White Horse at the end of August to see how the chalk figure had fared after a summer of drought followed by periods of intense rain. The slip below the Horse didn’t appear to have spread upwards although there is some expansion laterally; indeed, a cane stuck directly into the slope above the newly developed slip in 2024 remained in situ. Of interest was a huge number of burrowing bees which had mined nests into the surface of the slip and were busy appearing and disappearing into small holes. The Horse itself appeared to be in good condition with a good crust of lime on the surface and very little weed growth on the figure itself. The hot summer had obviously restricted the growth of vegetation around the Horse although the grass is now probably flourishing with the return of more normal weather. Looking ahead, it is intended to strim and lime the Horse in May 2027 so please keep your eyes peeled for a request for volunteers in the preceding months.
THE SWINDON FOOD COLLECTIVE
An update from Andrew Law: Today I visited the Swindon Food Collective warehouse in West Swindon to drop off donations made by Broad Town residents during the food bank collection of the weekend 29/30 August. The items were loaded onto a pallet which registered a fantastic weight of 90kg. The staff at the warehouse asked me to pass on their huge thanks for your enormous generosity and asked me to stress how important these donations are to delivering their mission of reducing the impact of food poverty on people in crisis in the Swindon and District area. What happens to the food? In the warehouse the different types of food are divided into groups (e.g. tinned fruit, tinned meat, drinks etc) according to their use-by dates and stored. As required, the food is selected and packed into boxes which have a common content but which have an amount which will support either a single person, a couple or a family for 3-5 days. These boxes are then distributed via 12 distribution points including St Bartholomew’s Church in Royal Wootton Bassett. Interestingly, at the time of my visit, the foodstuffs most needed were UHT milk, puddings and potatoes. Swindon Food Collective Box Content Biscuits, Coffee, Fish Cooking Sauce, Meat, Pasta/Rice, Potatoes, Vegetables, Tea, Tomatoes, Soup, Cereal/Milk, Meal, Pudding, Fruit. Last, year alone, Swindon Food Collective provided more than 90,000 meals to local people in crisis. Of these, 33% of those meals went to children, highlighting the increasing number of families struggling to afford even the basics. The charity is now seeing demand rise by 11% year-on-year, while food donations have fallen by 12%. Although these figures relate to Swindon, they mirror a growing national challenge as foodbanks across the UK report increasing pressure on their services. The next Broad Town Foodbank collection will take place in the lead-up to Christmas with dates and requirements advertised in a forthcoming Broad Town News. In 2025 the response from the Village was exceptional and hopefully we can outdo our previous efforts this year. Thanks once again and let’s help those less fortunate than ourselves.
MADE IN BROAD TOWN
October dates: Wednesdays 7th and 21st, in the Village Hall from 10 – 12 noon, please just turn up. We ask for a £2 contribution towards costs, but this is voluntary and your first visit is free. On the 7th, artist Maggie will be returning to teach us more watercolour skills (booking required for this, but our normal session will still run alongside the art lesson). On October 21st we will be making Christmas bunting and there will also be Halloween or autumn colouring sheets available for any younger visitors who may be on half-term holiday, so please come and join us. Recent sessions have included dried flower cards, and floral tea lantern holders: Please email if you have any questions: madeinbroadtown@gmail.com, we would love to hear from you!
PARISH COUNCIL
Keep up to date at https://www.broadtownparishcouncil.org.uk
Parish Steward. We have a new Parish Steward (Sophie) who will be attending to various tasks around Broad Town (such as filling potholes and clearing culverts and gullies) on a monthly basis. If you see her out and about then please say hello and make her feel welcome. The types of task she can perform are listed at https://www.broadtownparishcouncil.org.uk/your-community/parish steward together with the dates of when she will be visiting us.
Help Prevent Flooding. Two years ago there was serious flooding in a number of places in the village. The Wiltshire Council parish steward visits monthly and ensures the drainage grips (from the roadway into the roadside ditch) are clear and tries to clear any obstructions where he is able, but we can all do our bit by ensuring that road drain gratings are clear of leaves and any pipes and ditches are free from obstruction. If you see any such problem and are unable to sort it yourself please let the Parish Clerk know at clerk@broadtownparishcouncil.org.uk. Similarly it’s time to ensure that all watercourses are free-flowing and cleared of any vegetation and obstruction. Watercourse owners, or ‘riparian’ owners, have a responsibility to maintain ordinary watercourses that run adjacent to, through or under their property. Riparian owners are responsible for reporting incidents such as flooding, and for letting water flow through the watercourse naturally by removing blockages that may cause flooding. The Environment Agency has published a guide for landowners which is available on the Parish Council website at Environment-Agency_Your_watercourse_rights_and_roles-2024.pdf
The next Parish Council meeting will be at 6.30pm in the Village Hall on 12th October. All are welcome and the agenda will be posted on our website and on the notice boards in due course.
WHAT OUR SID SAW LAST MONTH
31,113 vehicles passed the SID located at Broadacres monitoring Southbound traffic (Heading to Broad Hinton) which equates to approx. 864 a day 22% of which were speeding.
SOCIAL CLUB
The social club is open every Friday from 8pm and members and their guests are all welcome. If you are not a member you can join for just £3.00 for the year - just ask Trevor behind the bar. Draught beers and lagers are for sale at just £3.50 a pint and there is a free pool table, so why not pop in and check us out. Find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/FourWays.
Fish & Chips Food for Thought will be selling their delicious Fish and Chips (and burgers, sausages, scampi etc) outside the Village Hall from 5 – 8pm on the last Friday in the month:
• 30th October
• 27th November
• 18th December (with Carol Singing and mince pies)
The Social Club and bar will be open from 5pm on these Fridays so why not pop in and enjoy a drink while you are waiting for your supper.
WILTS AND SWINDON PCC LINKS
https://wiltshirepcc-newsroom.prgloo.com/news/pcc-reaffirms commitment-to-tackling-hare-coursing-following-court-hearing
https://wiltshirepcc-newsroom.prgloo.com/news/last-chance-to-have-your say-on-the-future-of-policing
https://wiltshirepcc-newsroom.prgloo.com/news/pcc-parish-column-7
https://wiltshirepcc-newsroom.prgloo.com/news/pcc-urges-public-to-report-signs-of-organised-crime-in their-communities
https://wiltshirepcc-newsroom.prgloo.com/news/pcc-welcomes-specialist-rape-courts-announcement but-seeks-clarity-on-local-delivery
PLEASE NOTE that all copy to be included in the next edition should be emailed to:
BroadTownNews@gmail.com by the 22nd of EVERY month. Any queries should also be sent to this address.