Category: Community

I remember sitting in the village hall last November, listening to a young lad from the council talk about “digital engagement platforms” and “streamlined communication infrastructures.” It was all a bit much, if you ask me. You don’t need a subscription service or a degree in computer science to figure out how to set up […]

If you think joining a local history society means sitting in a draughty village hall listening to a man in a moth-eaten cardigan drone on about nothing but pottery shards and dry dates, you’ve been led astray. I’ve spent thirty years valuing properties from Salisbury to Winchester, and I can tell you that the real […]

I was out checking the boundary stones near the old mill yesterday—a fine piece of masonry from about 1840, if memory serves—when I heard that unmistakable, sickening thud of a front tyre hitting something it shouldn’t have. It was Miller, driving his Volvo, looking thoroughly defeated by a crater on the lane that’s been growing […]

I was standing by the old stone bridge near the mill—the one built in 1842, mind you, though the foundations are much older—waiting for the 10:15 that was supposed to take me into Salisbury. The rain was doing that fine, soaking thing that gets right under your collar, and as I watched the empty road, […]

I sat in the Red Lion last Tuesday—the one with the 17th-century timber framing and that slightly wonky floorboard near the hearth—and listened to a young man from the district council talk about “diversifying revenue streams” and “leveraging digital engagement.” It made my teeth ache. You don’t save a community asset by installing a high-speed […]

I was walking past the old parish hall last Tuesday—the one built in 1894, if memory serves—and noticed the damp is finally starting to creep up the north-facing wall. It’s a bit of a worry, seeing as the roof hasn’t seen a proper slate replacement since the late seventies. It got me thinking about how […]

I’ve seen plenty of people get themselves into a right muddle trying to figure out how to start a book club, usually by treating it like a high-stakes committee meeting. They start talking about formal memberships, complex voting systems for the next month’s reading, and renting out function rooms that cost more than a decent […]

I walked past the old oak near the parish hall yesterday and noticed the noticeboard is looking a bit sorry for itself; the wood is greyed, and half the flyers are curling at the edges from the damp. It’s a common sight in most of our small settlements, where these boards end up looking more […]

I remember the 1992 Jubilee celebration down on Mill Lane—the one where the marquee collapsed because someone thought a bit of twine and a prayer was enough to hold up heavy canvas. We spent more time arguing about the exact placement of the folding tables than we did actually talking to one another. Most people […]

I spent forty minutes yesterday clearing a collapsed section of dry stone wall near the old mill—built, if memory serves, around 1840—and it struck me how much people overcomplicate things. You’ll see those glossy brochures online claiming that starting a community garden requires expensive raised beds, automated irrigation systems, and a committee of twelve people […]