Abbott's Pharmacy's new additions

There’s more movement at the top end of the High Street recently, with the change of ownership of Abbott’s Pharmacy.

Vipul and Ripal Patel took over Abbott’s on 1st March, and love the place so far! “Lindfield is a very attractive village with a strong community feel,”

Vipul commented. “We are looking forward to making a difference by providing a good service to residents here.” Vipul qualified as a pharmacist from Portsmouth University eleven years ago, and the couple designed and opened a new ‘100 hour pharmacy’ in Folkestone – a concept where the shop must be open 100 hours per week. However, with Vipul and Ripal having a young family, the pair were keen for a fresh challenge and ending up buying a new pharmacy in Oxted, Surrey (where they currently live) and Abbott’s in Lindfield.

“Whilst we have no immediate changes made, we do intend to reintroduce services like a travel clinic to the store, and will be promoting the influenza vaccination in the coming season,” Vipul explained.

Abbott’s Pharmacy – at 83 High Street - is open 8.30am until 6pm five days and week, and until 1pm on Saturdays.

Lindfield shops can help reduce plastic in our shopping

By Isabella Mortimer, age 12

When we go food shopping most of the items that we need are in plastic or are covered by a material that isn’t degradable or eco-friendly. So, in this article, I will be sharing with you some of the best places and ways to get everything you need on your weekly food shop but also be eco-friendly.

In our village there are loads of different shops that offer us stations to fill up our pastas, washing up liquids, fabric conditioners and many different foods that, when we buy them in the supermarket, are covered in plastic packaging. For example, Cloughs, Ounce (the new shop in our village) and Truffles (the new bakery) are all helping the fight against plastic by providing alternatives.

Researching places that are near you and that sell foods in non-plastic packaging, doesn’t take long, but it makes so much of a difference to the planet. It involves some planning but all you need are some jars, like mayonnaise and jam jars or Ounce sell them.

Lots of swaps are possible when you make it yourself:

• Easy homemade bread buns (https://bit.ly/3seZdwd)

• Easy granola (https://bit.ly/2OLFHty)

• Easy coleslaw (https://bit.ly/3uPhySq)

Tortillas are a real favourite but they come in packaging that can’t be recycled and this recipe shows how easy they are to make and freeze. No kneading, no proving – they can be made before school and work. Ingredients for tortilla wraps (this makes 12): 180g of strong white bread flower, 200g plain or wholemeal flour, ½ teaspoon of salt, 250ml lukewarm water, three tablespoons of olive oil and ¼ teaspoon baking powder.

Instructions: Mix the flours, salt and baking powder in a bowl, pour in the water and olive oil. Stir until it becomes a dough. After that slice the dough into 12 pieces and roll out each one with a rolling pin. Then cook each one on a frying pan (no oil) until it forms air bubbles and or starts to harden. And that’s all you need to do! It is so quick and requires no waiting!

Enjoy some great spring lunches and suppers.

Annabelle’s long story short at Denziloe Hair

Lindfield girl, Annabelle Sankey-Rigby, age 13, of Burgess Hill Girls school, decided to cut off (at least) 18 inches of her hair to donate to The Little Princess Trust, a charity who create wigs from hair donations for children suffering hair loss as a result of cancer treatment or alopecia and also fund research into childhood cancers.

“I’ve been watching a series on Netflix, called ‘Alexa and Katy’ about a girl my age living with cancer,” Annabelle explained. “In the series Alexa starts losing her hair due to cancer, and Katy, her best friend helps support her, even shaving off the hair that is still left in patches. As someone who’s always had extremely long hair for my age, from birth, my long hair has always been a big part of my identity and the series made me realise that losing your hair when it’s such a big part of your identity must be unbearable, especially when dealing with a serious disease as well. It made me appreciate just how important a real hair wig would be to me in that horrible situation. Although I was nervous about having so much hair cut off; knowing that I might help someone going through so much hardship was my motivation! I’ve realised that I don’t need my hair as much as children with cancer, alopecia or any hair loss condition do.”

Annabelle’s big cut took place at Denziloe Hair Designers on Wednesday 14th April. In addition to having 19 inches of hair cut off, Annabelle also asked people to sponsor her to help support Little Princess Trust to turn her hair into a wig; which take several weeks to make as they all have to be hand stitched. She has already raised over £850 at the time of publishing, but if anyone would still like to donate and help Annabelle to support this wonderful charity you can donate here: www.gofundme.com/f/annabelles-sponsored-haircut

Connecting Lindfield's telephone exchange - 1907

By Steve Turner

Lindfield switchboard’s ‘Hello girls’ sporting breast plate mouth pieces (1940s)

When you walk past the Limes Thai Kitchen at 67 High Street (or if you’re really lucky, and actually get to eat in there!) have a look around and see if you can spot anything of the building’s past history. It’s unlikely that you would ever guess that you are sitting in what was once Lindfield’s telephone exchange!

Opened by the GPO on Monday 18th March 1907, it was unusual for the exchange to be in a (then) private house, while for the rival NTC (National Telephone Company) this was the norm.

The GPO (or General Post Office), normally opened its exchanges in the local Post Office, so perhaps, as with Cuckfield, there was insufficient space. The single storey building on the corner of Lewes Road, that until relatively recently was the Post Office, simply didn’t exist, the PO being housed in a small two storey building to the left.

Haywards Heath exchange had opened five years previously, so Lindfield was keen to be connected to the world. It was customary to test the water and the local population would have been canvassed as to whether they would take up the service if offered. The GPO estimated that the cost of opening an exchange in Lindfield would be £385, ten people immediately signed up and the wheels were set in motion.

To place all the new lines underground would be very expensive (as it continues to be now), so in 1907 the new network was all overhead on poles and thin open copper wires on ceramic insulators. Look at any old photo of times gone by and the telephone poles are a dominant feature.

With the equipment and batteries downstairs, the switchboard was in an upstairs room overlooking the High Street and was a small single position. An operator would connect calls on request by plugging cords into circuits, and record the charge on manual dockets. Local calls were charged at 1d for unlimited duration – a trunk call to London in 1912 was three minutes for 3d. The annual line rental was £4.

Pick up a copy of May’s Lindfield Life magazine to learn about the original, local operators, how 999 calls still had to be through the board and so much more about Lindfield’s journey into the modern world.

Steve Turner also adds, “If you have enjoyed this and want more, I have written an 80 page book on the history of the Cuckfield and Haywards Heath exchanges – selling at a non-profit making £10 and hand delivered locally. You can arrange for one by email to: steve.c.turner60@gmail.com.”

Lindfield democracy in a time of Covid: exercise your right to vote safely!

The news that Reeta Chakrabarti brings to us on BBC1 at 10pm is dominated by Westminster politics, and - still – by the government’s handling of the Covid pandemic. But politics also goes on at a local level, albeit with less fanfare, and our councillors discharge important responsibilities.

Our parish council takes care of public toilets, the allotments, bus shelters and more. In Mid Sussex, the district council rules on planning issues, and is responsible for the Dolphin and other leisure centres, for social housing provision and much else. And West Sussex county council spends around £600m a year on services including schools, roads, care for the elderly and vulnerable adults, and fire and rescue.

It matters to all of us in the village whether these councils provide these services well and efficiently, or poorly and wastefully. And via the ballot box we have the power to reward a good council, or to punish a badly performing one.

Soon, we will have the chance to influence a local council again: polling stations such as the one in the United Reformed church on the High Street will be open on 6 May for the West Sussex county council election. All adults have the right to choose our representative for the Lindfield and High Weald electoral division. The vote for the Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner is on the same day.

A guaranteed safe way to vote
So how will that work, given that we will still be under some Covid restrictions? And can we cast our vote safely? Some people will have no worries about voting in person at the polling station on 6 May. The council staff who very ably run our polling stations will put precautions in place to allow for social distancing, hand sanitation and so on.

Voters are encouraged to wear a face covering, bring their own pen or pencil, clean their hands when entering and leaving the polling station and keep a safe distance. However, there is a way to avoid any risk or inconvenience when voting: to vote by post. A postal vote means you can mark your ballot in the comfort of your own home. And you can also be sure that you will be able to cast your vote. What happens if, on 6th May, you fall ill and cannot leave home, or some work emergency takes you away from the area unexpectedly? If you have a postal vote, you will be able to vote early – at least nine working days before polling day.

Applying for a postal vote is easy to do. If you are online, go to the Mid Sussex District Council’s elections web page1, print and complete the application form, and email or post it back to the council. If you are not online, you can telephone the council’s elections team on 01444 477003, and they will be pleased to help you. You only have to apply one time - the council will send you a postal vote for all future elections if you so choose.

It’s quick and easy to apply for a postal or proxy vote. Simply visit www.midsussex.gov.uk/elections-voting and complete the relevant application form. The latest the Council can accept postal vote applications is 5pm on 20th April, and for a proxy vote applications the deadline is 5pm on 27th April.

For more information about the elections on Thursday 6th May 2021 visit www.midsussex.gov.uk/elections, email elections@midsussex.gov.uk or call 01444 477003.

The churches in Lindfield reveal their Easter schedule 2021

Lindfield Evangelical Free Church

Maundy Thursday – 1st April
Service will be online only (Lindfield EFC YouTube Channel http://bit.ly/evanfree)

Good Friday – 2nd April
An hour at the cross (online only)

Easter Sunday – 4th April
10.30am in church (also online)
Please note limited spaces only available in church.

Please call the church office to book a seat 01444 483 576.

Lindfield United Reformed Church

Our Holy Week and Easter Sunday services will all be online only (www.lindfieldurc.org and www.facebook.com\lindfieldurc) or via the phone line (01444 711407)

Maundy Thursday – 1st April
7.30pm - Service taken by Reverend Keith Morrison (to include Communion)

Good Friday – 2nd April
10am - Service taken by Reverend Keith Morrison

Easter Sunday – 4th April
10am – Service taken by Reverend Keith Morrison

All Saints Church, Lindfield

www.allsaintslindfield.org/easter

St Augustine’s Church, Scaynes Hill

Online services can be found on St Augustine’s Church, Scaynes Hill YouTube channel (https://bit.ly/2UtMhnC). Please check the church website for up-to-date information about services: www.sash.org.uk

For further information, please contact: Reverend Beverley Miles on: 07786 924942 / 01444 216876 or email: rev.bev.sash@gmail.com.

Palm Sunday – 28th March
10am - Worship for All (online)

Maundy Thursday – 1st April
7.30pm - Service with Tenebrae (online)

Good Friday – 2nd April
10am - Children’s Service with Activities (online)
3pm Hour at the Cross (online)

Easter Sunday – 4th April
10am - Worship for All Easter Celebration (online)

What to do with used PPE face masks in Lindfield

A local woman and Lindfield business have worked together to combat the dropped littering of masks since the pandemic started. Sophie Lamb swapped her two hours of commuting to/from Surrey when the first lockdown started, which she joyously replaced with working from home and walking around Lindfield and Haywards Heath instead. “With less traffic at the time, I noticed more nature and enjoyed the peace and quiet of my walks,” she commented.

With the easing of restrictions last summer however, she noticed more and more litter appearing on her routes. Sophie bought herself a litter picker and decided to ‘do her bit’, often filling one or two carrier bags each time. “Whilst actively looking for litter, I noticed more and more discarded PPE masks, and in a two week period I collected well over 100 masks. My main concern (apart from them being unsightly), was the risk to our local wildlife, so I looked for a way to recycle them and came across www.Reworked.com.”

ReWorked makes a plastic sheet product called Stormboard from 100% recycled plastic – often from waste that is considered ‘unrecyclable’, including used disposable masks which are normally made from polypropylene.

Sophie invested in a collection box from ReWorked and - with the help of Maxine Hayes at Potential Personal Training – anyone with used disposable masks can drop them into the reception at Unit 7 Lindfield Enterprise Park, off Lewes Road (open seven days a week, can be posted in carrier bag out of hours). Businesses generating a lot of PPE waste like this, can order collection boxes from www.reworked.com

Stamp out litter and recycle to keep Lindfield tidy

Lindfield Parish Council is pleased to be working alongside Colin McFarlin to help keep Lindfield tidy. Colin McFarlin is a volunteer Waste Prevention Advisor with West Sussex County Council. You may also have seen his regular monthly column in Lindfield Life.

Lindfield is fortunate to have an excellent selection of coffee shops that offer takeaway drinks. We are keen for residents and visitors to support these businesses. If you do buy a takeaway coffee, please help keep the village tidy:

1) Take your waste home and recycle it. Did you know that if you put your used coffee cup in the litter bins around Lindfield, then it cannot be recycled? If you take it home, clean and dry, you can then recycle in your kerbside blue top recycling bin. The lid as well!

Are you going to create rubbish or recycle?

2) Ask the retailer if they can recycle the takeaway coffee cup once it has been used. For example, Lindfield Coffee Works are running a scheme for their customers where you can return your used coffee cup to be recycled. More information on this scheme can be found on page 14 of last month’s issue of Lindfield Life.

3) If you cannot take your waste home or return it to where you purchased it from, then please squash it before placing it in the litter bin.

Stamp out litter. This is the message we will be promoting throughout Lindfield. We will be working with volunteer groups, such as Love Lindfield (www.facebook.com/lovelindfield), to Keep Lindfield Tidy. We have also approached local businesses and look forward to working together with them on this issue.

Remember think before you throw. Waste costs whereas recycling earns. Once something goes in the rubbish bin there is a cost attached to collecting and disposing of it. Over a year, a typical household wastes 59kg of recycling by putting it in the wrong bin. Recycling saves money that could be spent on other public services. For more information see: www.thinkbeforeyouthrow.co.uk

Mid Sussex District Council are responsible for the collection of waste in Mid Sussex, including all public litter bins. Mid Sussex District Council owns the bins on Lindfield Common & Hickmans Lane playground. Lindfield Parish Council provides bins in other areas within the village. More information on waste and recycling in West Sussex Can be found at: www.westsussex.gov.uk/land-waste-and-housing/waste-and-recycling/recycling-and-waste-prevention-in-west-sussex/

If you have a question for Colin on our campaign, or would like to be involved, please email: climate@lindfieldparishcouncil.gov.uk

Truffles Bakery to open in Lindfield

Truffles Bakery to move in to old Post Office on High Street

Rumours are true: bakery to open Sussex bakery chain Truffles has confirmed that it will soon be opening a shop on Lindfield High Street.

Since the Humphreys building has been empty, various rumours have been going around about the village’s bread-based offering – but Truffles announced the news on its Instagram account on 29th January: “The secret is out. We hope to open our new shop in March 2021 in the lovely village of Lindfield”.

The family-run business is based at its main bakery near Henfield, and the company has 13 other shops across the county.

Truffles Bakery will open its Lindfield store in the former Post Office on the corner of Lewes Road.

More information to follow in next month’s Lindfield Life!

Lindfield locals making sense of dyslexia

By Claire Cooper

Teachers all over the country have been given a fresh insight into supporting children with dyslexia, thanks to Lindfield author, Jill Walkinton and her former colleague, Debbie Harris.

Jill and Debbie have worked with the BBC to create a series of short videos offering tips and strategies to help dyslexic pupils learn. Led by a team of dyslexic children, the films provide a unique insight into the challenges they face, along with tried and tested ways to overcome them.

Jill explained how the project came to life following a conversation with a parent: “When I retired from

teaching, I began private tuition for children with dyslexia, as that was what I had specialised in for many years,” said Jill. “It struck me that while so many dyslexic pupils are very well supported in class, this is not always the case. By chance, the parent of an ex-pupil contacted me to say how well her child had done at GCSE level and how she had utilised many of the tips and strategies that Debbie and I had given her daughter during her primary school years. “We had a conversation about what a shame it is that these tips and strategies, none of which are rocket science, aren’t more widely known. Knowing that the parent was a film maker, we suggested sharing our tips and ideas on video.”

Following the conversation, Jill and Debbie pitched ideas for films covering a multitude of tips that dyslexic children would find most useful in class. Lisa Fairbank of Factory Films, based in Hove, put the proposal to the BBC which resulted in a commission for five short videos that are now on the BBC Teach website under the title – Dyslexia: Make a Difference. They are therefore accessible to parents and children as well as teachers.

In addition, as so many parents are currently supporting home learning, they may find them particularly useful now.

“We became the consultants for the project,” said Jill. “Lisa wanted the films to be child led and pupils that Debbie and I have worked with are among the young people who appear in the videos.” Bizarrely, neither Jill or Debbie’s names appear anywhere on the programme, even though they supplied all the tips and strategies and were paid as consultants!

“The videos are short and therefore skim the surface, so we are currently planning to extend the provision of ideas in a child friendly book format,” said Jill. “But there are some child-centred ideas that teachers and home schoolers can take on board - patience being the key strategy!” Jill and Debbie have learned through years of working with children who encounter ongoing literacy and numeracy difficulties that the provision of specific support and promotion of self-esteem is key throughout the school years. After which, many dyslexic children are able to become highly successful dyslexic adults.

Debbie and Jill also have an Instagram account: @dyslectricks – which includes lots of tips, ideas and practical short demonstrations that parents and children might find helpful. Published author Jill (writing with Alison Lewis, as JILL LEWIS) is also continuing to champion the dyslexic child through her current writing project and has a dyslexic hero in her latest book, Special Delivery for Freddy Lyre which is currently being prepared for possible publication.

Jill and Debbie are also hoping that their idea of mini books, designed to give children with dyslexia a range of visual strategies and prompts, can be launched in the near future. Watch this space!

To watch the films, visit: https://bbc.in/3aA0wPH

Mid Downs Radio: broadcasting 24/7 to Lindfield's community and more

By Wendy Swinton-Eagle

Mid Downs Radio has continued to broadcast 24/7 throughout the pandemic from studios on the first floor of the Princess Royal Hospital. The station is a registered charity and provides music, entertainment and regularly updated information on health, hospital, social care and community matters to patients, staff and visitors to the hospital complex as well as to the wider local community.

All our presenters are volunteers who host a wide variety of shows. Local Lindfield Rural councillor and veteran vinyl DJ, Sol Mead, presents a weekly Soul, Blues & Rock Show on Wednesdays from 5-7pm. You may also have heard him compering at Lindfield Village Day and Lindfield Christmas Festival Night. He is preceded on Wednesday by more Lindfield residents, Linda Wishart, with her kaleidescope of music and lively chat and Simply Redhead duo Wendy Swinton-Eagle and Mopsy Whitworth who host a guest interview and live performance show. All have been active in supporting the wonderful Lindfield Arts Festival since its inception.

Since launching our Listen Live service through the website and TuneIn app there has been an increase in listeners and MDR continues to support other charities and organisations by publicising their work and events through interviews and in some cases providing promotional fillers that go out regularly on air and reciprocal website links. If you would like to know more about promoting your charity through MDR, contact Wendy Swinton-Eagle at: wendy@mdr.org.uk.

MDR funds itself through grants and membership fees but mainly through hiring out our distinctive Outside Events Unit and now the new fully equipped Mobile Disco complete with professional DJ Lee Gillett all at very competitive rates.

To find out more about Mid Downs Radio, to read our latest magazine or to Listen Live please visit our website www.mdr.org.uk . For membership enquiries contact Dave Hammond at membership@mdr.org.uk. To book the OEU or Mobile Disco contact Cathy Barnett at cathybarnett@sky.com.

Lindfield Primary Academy's call to the local community

By Lindfield Primary Academy PTA

At the time of writing, we once again find ourselves still in yet another lockdown. In the summer months the children of Lindfield Primary Academy loved spotting rainbows in the village windows whilst on their daily exercise. With the sun well and truly gone and grey skies a permanent feature, we put our thinking caps on to think of ways to brighten up daily walks.

We want to reach out to our beautiful Lindfield community, and invite you all to decorate your windows with beautiful stars that the children can enjoy spotting whilst carrying out their daily exercise.

Stars can be any size or colour and as many or as few as you like. All stars welcome! Let’s get Lindfield twinkling.

Editor’s note: When you’ve decorated your windows, why not send in a photo (editor@lindfieldlife.co.uk) with you or your children in it – so that we can showcase them in a future issue.

Lindfield Football Club's Under 10: running daily for NHS Charities Together

Dylan Humphreys

By Kirsty Warren

It’s been a bizarre start to the football season so far with surprising wins from teams such as Brighton, who’ve defeated the likes of Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur. Great for local Brighton fans but not so much for those on the other side. The silver lining? At least they get to play the game.

Clubs like our own Lindfield FC Juniors have to press the pause button a while longer, but how, without schools open and active PE lessons, do they keep healthy? LFC Juniors’ very own Dylan Humphreys made an awe-inspiring decision back in January this year to run 2k every day until he goes back to school. He told me: “Initially, I wanted to run to help with my fitness as I can’t play football or run around with my friends at the moment. But then I had the idea of challenging myself to run every day and look to raise money for an important cause at the same time.”

So, on 17th January Dylan began to run around the Ardingly Showground every single day, and with the help of his mum Clare, he set up a Facebook donation page where his supporters could donate to NHS Charities Together – a group of more than 250 charitable organisations that supports all of the National Health Service.
The page is still active where you can donate and see all of Dylan’s run times, photos and messages. You can find it here: Dylan’s fundraiser for NHS Charities Together

Lindfield U10s head coach Dominic Roberjot said: “Dylan’s commitment to staying fit and healthy, as well as his incredible fundraising efforts, have truly captured the imagination of everyone involved at the club. At a time when many of us were struggling for motivation during lockdown, his efforts have inspired his coaches and teammates to use this time as an opportunity to stay fit and active.”

In response to all his support, Dylan wanted to inspire his teammates further, explaining: “I challenged my football friends to run every day for a week wearing something unusual. Running gear has included crazy wigs, masks, cricket gear, party hats, a beach theme and a dressing gown! It has been lots of fun!”

The original target amount Dylan wished to hit was a modest £200, which got smashed in just 24 hours! They immediately raised the goal, but the new targets were reached again and again. At the end of January it was raised to a whopping £1,000, but as of the 12th February, Dylan’s charity had received a total of £1,450.

Clare posted on the Facebook page: “Dylan has been overwhelmed by the level of support! Not only from the donors but also from the messages of support and the encouragement that he has received. He even gets recognition from people when they see him out running, now that word has got out about what he’s doing.” Clare also mentions, “His running has been really helping Dylan’s wellbeing and fitness. It’s having something to focus on doing every day whilst there’s not a lot else to do at the moment. Therefore, I hope those having a go at their own challenges get as much out of it as he is.”

Did you spot the Juniors’ unusual dress runs in February? Or have you seen Dylan dashing around the Ardingly Showground? If you’ve been inspired to start running, let Dylan and his family know by commenting on his support page, where you can also keep up with his progress. With all this exercising, the Juniors will be ready to play a great game of football when the club can finally reopen!

Find more fun photos inside the March issue of Lindfield Life.

Lindfield High Street and the possible Traffic Restriction Order (TRO)

In 2019 an application was made to West Sussex County Council (WSCC) for a Traffic Restriction Order designed to limit HGVs from using the section of the Lewes Road between the High Street and Gravelye Lane as a short cut, avoiding WSCC’s recommended routing on the A272 and increasing pressures on the High Street junction. Despite all parties recognising the difficulties of the Lewes Road / High Street junction, residents’ support with over 1200 signatures and significant work by a group of Lindfield residents and Lindfield Parish Council (LPC), WSCC declined to support the application.

Since then, LPC and the residents have worked to gain further support, with Lindfield’s Mid Sussex District Councillors and Mims Davies, MP, visiting the junction and expressing their support.

Continued dialogue with WSCC has led to Highways advising that they are prepared to consider a further application to restrict HGVs but have recommended that a consultation be undertaken by a professional firm to independently analyse both the support for and objections against the proposal. Accordingly, as soon as coronavirus restrictions start to ease, the consultation will be launched by Lindfield Parish Council and the Project Centre via a dedicated website alongside direct communication with local businesses, schools, hauliers and other interested parties.

Lindfield Parish Council have underwritten the £6,500 cost of this consultation and MSDC hold ‘Section 106’ monies which can be used to implement the scheme, if the application to WSCC is successful.

Please look out for the launch of the consultation and contribute to it, both to evidence the support from the local community and underpin the reasons for WSCC to consider the application favourably.

All Saints Church 'walk the pipe' for Kagando's hydro-electric power plant

Members of All Saints Church have been making good use of their allowed exercise in January as a number of them supported a fundraising scheme for a partner charity project.

Kagando is a small village in Uganda which is home to a hospital serving the needs of the rural population around of some 350,000 people. The 250 unit has an unstable electric supply and so the charitable trust Friends of Kagando has begun fundraising the £1m needed to build a Hydro-Electric power plant to make use of a nearby mountain stream.

Lindfield resident and charity trustee Helen Tuddenham said: They experience almost daily interruptions to the electricity power supply. As trustees, we often discuss how we can best financially support the hospital in a sustainable way, allowing them to be more financially independent, and a hydroelectric power scheme would both save costs and generate income from selling surplus power to the local grid.”

Fellow church member Sarah Beeston commented: Having visited a hospital in another African country several years ago I have seen first hand the desperate need for resources. The more I heard about this Kagando project, the more I could envisage the need for the hospital to be self-sustaining and able to offer the best possible care to their community.”

Participants pledged to walk 2.5k each day in January – the equivalent of the length of pipe need to divert the water from the stream to the new power house. All Saints has set up a JustGiving page which can be found here: http://bit.ly/2KfjnGr

Cuckfield & Lindfield's Rotary stalwarts and the South Downs Marathon Walk

Undeterred by the cancellation of the South Downs Marathon Walk back in November, two Cuckfield and Lindfield Rotarians decided to do it anyway - on their own. The walk began in daylight at the Amex Stadium in Brighton and ended in darkness 43 km (26 miles) later at Eastbourne. No spring chickens, Andy Harrison (71), President of the Club and Philip Harrison (76) had been training for the event for weeks.

Waving goodbye to their transport at the Amex Stadium, they set off uphill to join the South Downs Way on the estimated 12 hour hike. First, they made their way over higher ground at Woodingdean, then descended to cross the River Ouse at Southease. before continuing on to Firle Beacon.

Progress over the Seven Sisters later on was hindered by the strong wind, which threatened to toss them over the edge at times. A short respite by the National Trust Café at Birling Gap was welcome as night fell and the rain got harder. With head torches on, and eyes down, Andy and Philip tackled the last six kilometres touching down earlier than expected at 6.15pm.

From family and friends, members of the Rotary Club of Cuckfield & Lindfield raised sponsorship of over £8,500 in support of the magnificent effort. At the next Business Meeting the Club decided on donations to:
The hospices of St Peter & St James and Chestnut Tree House
Family Support Work
Food Bank
Safe in Sussex
Mind in Brighton & Hove
Crawley Open House
Shelter Box
Impact

The Club also conducted an online Christmas Appeal specially for families in need, severely affected by Covid-19, and a street collection in Lindfield. If you would be interested in knowing more about a great group of people who enjoy making a difference, see: www.rotarycl.org

A recommendation for Bedelands Nature Reserve

By Claire Walter

Lockdown is back and so this means that some of the days out we had planned as ‘The Walter Ways’ are now on hold. I am therefore so thankful for our beautiful countryside. It’s good to get out and get walking in our local area when you can. We have so many places to choose from such as Blunts Wood, Ardingly showground (the road is great for the little ones on bikes and scooters) and Beech Hurst to name a few.

This time, I wanted to tell you about Bedelands Nature Reserve. It is in Burgess Hill so at the moment, this may not be deemed as local for some, but once restrictions are eased it is a wonderful place for you to get out and explore as it is a hidden gem. From the car park, you make your way into the woods to be instantly surrounded by so many different types of the trees.

Whilst walking through the woodland, be sure to look out for the wildlife, spot mushrooms hiding amongst the leaves, venture into the meadows and admire the ponds. As you wander further into the woods, you will hear the sounds of a waterfall in the distance. There are maps around the nature reserve to help you plan your visit and find the waterfall too.

The waterfall itself is always a wonderful sight. The last time we went, we happened to arrive there just as heavy rain poured down onto us, but this just added to the excitement with extra muddy puddles for the girls to jump into. It also meant the waterfall was a little more powerful than usual. Quite exciting to watch. A contrast to the flat, calm water in Mill Pond that leads into the waterfall itself. There is a small walkway which takes you across the top of the waterfall, so that the water gushes below you and you can look across the pond too. A breath-taking view all around.

We love to take time out here exploring, and if you have not been yet, hopefully we have inspired you to check out the wonderful Bedelands Nature Reserve when you can too.

For more ideas on places to visit, do follow us, @thewalterways, on Instagram and Facebook.

Virtual Scaynes Hill Flower Show - Live Sat 3rd April 2021

Scaynes Hill Flower Show is going high tech, no thanks to the secretaries but to a mother and son team who are very enthusiastic and have kindly set it all up so readers can still enjoy each other’s skills and talents, albeit a little low key. So many thanks to Debbie and Thomas.

There are only THREE RULES:

1) only one entry per Class
2) produce is home grown this year
3) the children’s entries are all their own work.
There are no size restrictions.

HOW TO ENTER
Simply take a photograph of your exhibit - each entry should be sent in a separate email to scayneshillflowershow@gmail.com with your name, the class number (and age if under 13 years) in the ‘Subject’ box, before 2pm on Saturday 27th March.

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A receipt email will be sent for each entry confirming the date of the Live Flower Show Display, YouTube link and details of how to vote.

GOOD NEWS
For parents whose children are home-schooling there are some fun classes for the under 13 year olds and the under 5s AND why not get the whole family involved in building a scarecrow in the FAMILY ENTRY. Please use old clothes as the winning scarecrow will have pride of place at Scaynes Hill Cricket Club scaring the wildlife away.

HOW TO ACCESS THE LIVE SHOW
Go onto YouTube (www.youtube.com) then search for ‘Scaynes Hill Spring Flower Show’ or use the following direct link: Scaynes Hill Spring Flower Show

HOW TO VOTE
The fun part of this Show is that you will be the judges. You can choose your favourite in each Class and submit your choice via email to scayneshillflowershow@gmail.com as follows:
e.g. Class 1 = Photo 4, Class 2 = Photo 7 and so on.

Sorry no multiple votes. These should be submitted by no later than 2 pm on Wednesday 7th April.

THE VIRTUAL FLOWER SHOW RESULTS
Will go live at 2 pm on Saturday 10th April. The winners will be marked in each category on the same YouTube link as above.

We hope you will enjoy our virtual flower show and all readers of Lindfield Life are welcome to enter.

We look forward to seeing all your entries. You can enter with immediate effect so start taking your photographs. Keep safe and take care.

Best wishes, Dianne (01444 831676) and Angela (01444 831599).

Lindfield 'Fills' Good at zero waste

Well-known Lindfield landlady Andi Frost has taken an unexpected turn in business as she tried to help the people of Denmans Lane during the first lockdown.

Remember the days when items like flour and pasta were in short supply? As Andi found herself without a pub to look after, she took the opportunity to focus on another passion of hers. Although nothing to do with the Stand Up Inn, she has been working on another project for about a year. One that is the beginnings of a zero waste store: Fill Good.

“During lockdown I started with just a couple of bags of flour,” Andi explained, “and each sale gave me just enough profit to add more to the list.” The most recent lockdown gave her the opportunity to finish off her own website (www.fillgoodstore.co.uk) which now has over 100 products listed on it. “I have invested in ethical and circular companies - ones that will refill and reuse containers rather than send them for recycling, like the milkman, rather than those that sell cheaply to gain the most profit.” Christmas and gift items from local businesses were also added to her store recently, as she seeks to support local sellers too.

Whilst this business is very new, Andi is hoping that the new year will enable her to get on the road with a vehicle and a mobile shop, where people can bring along their jars and boxes to refill.

“Being a positive example for my children is also a massive driving factor. I love that people can leave their jars on the doorstep on the morning school run and come back to them full, and that it’s so visible to the kids that they accept that’s how it should be.”

Christmas lights of Lindfield

With a rather wet and miserable lead into autumn, it seems many homeowners have taken matters into their own hands to brighten up the streets of Lindfield in the run up to Christmas this year!

Most streets in the village have numerous impressive displays of festivities adorning houses and trees, as residents find ways of staying positive in 2020 but also connecting with neighbours and walkers as they pass by.

Lindfield Life went out at dusk to capture a few examples…

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Check out the January issue of Lindfield Life for more twinkling photos!