Natland Weather Report 2009

Summary of the Year

The total rainfall for 2009 was 50.9 inches which is slightly lower than average. Without November's heavy rain it would have been a very dry year for this area. 2008 rainfall was 65 inches which was very high.

January was much drier than last year but also much colder.We had gales on a few days but only one sprinkling of snow. We have now had three consecutive months of rainfall below 100mm.

The first two weeks of February were cold with sprinklings of snow but the second half of the month was mild. It was the first time I have recorded less than an inch of rain in a month.

March was another month of low rainfall, we will be having a drought if this continues! The temperature was fairly good but there were some frosty nights.

April was quite mild and mostly dry.  The last four days of the month brought the total rainfall up but it was still low.

A fairly average May, the temperature building up over the month and finishing with a mini heat wave. Most of the rainfall was in the first half of the month.

The most notable weather event in June was torrential rain on the 15th when 39mm fell in 90 minutes in the afternoon. Otherwise it was a dry month and very warm in the last few days.

July was very similar to the same period last year: fairly wet but this is becoming normal!  It rained on St Swithin's Day (15th) and we have had some rain almost every day since. Would it continue into August?

It did not rain every day for 40 days from St. Swithin's day but August was cool and fairly damp. The last day of the month was the wettest with 1.5 inches of rain.

September was very dry with hardly any rain after the 10th of the month. Although mild, we did not have a lot of sunshine.

This year was a huge contrast to last year when October was exceptionally wet. It was slightly dryer than usual with some very nice days.

November was the wettest month I have ever recorded. Not only did we have several days of over an inch of rain, but we had rain on every day of the month, another first! You could say it persisted it down! Even so, we are still heading for a very low annual rainfall, unless December is another deluge.

December started with a continuation of November's rain. The first dry day was the 11th,( prior to that 30th October) so we had 41 consecutive days when some rain was recorded! We then had a few days of cold, dry weather before it turned very cold on 19th December followed by snow in the week leading up to Christmas.

People who have lived here longer than me all state it has been the heaviest snowfall for at least 15 years. The rainfall statistics include snow which melts when the gauge is brought indoors.

 Statistics and comment kindly supplied by John Dobson

Natland.info Update

December continued the very strong showing for Natland.info and was the third consecutive month (and 5th time in the year) with over 1,000 visitors to the News page.

There were five Update Alerts in the month, each being opened on over 100 occasions. Our e-mailing list now has over 200 addresses of people interested in being kept up to date about the village.

Our thanks to everyone who has been involved with the website, whether by contributing information, articles or photographs, commenting on items, correcting my errors or simply opening the pages.  Please keep the information flowing in 2010; the more lively and contemporaneous we can make it, the greater its interest and benefit to residents and visitors.

Finally, I have harped on from time to time about scams and hoaxes going the rounds and pleaded that people check with websites such as Hoax Slayer before cluttering up the internet with more junk.  However, here is a warning recently received that is worth passing on.

New Scam Warning

This new scam is being pulled mainly on older men. What happens is that when you stop your car for a red light a young, nude woman comes up and pretends to be washing your windscreen. While she is doing this, another person opens your back door and steals anything in the car.

They are very good at this. They got me seven times on Friday and five times Saturday.
I wasn't able to find them on Sunday.

Happy New Year!

 Editor, 1st January 2010

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Log of visitors to the Natland.info News page:

Village Hall Fun Quiz 2010

The 2010 Annual Fun Quiz (with hot pot supper) will be held in the Village Hall on 30th January 2010 at 7:30 p.m..  Teams of four (but we can help to make up a team if you are short).  

Click here to download your Entry Form or contact Ray Richardson, 4 Killington Drive, Kendal LA9 7NY (tel: 01539 740845).  Entry forms to be returned by 24th January 2010.

Entry fee £6.50 per head which includes the supper and homemade sweet. Please bring own glasses and drink.

One round will consist of questions asked by the other teams so bring a question with you.

Ray Richardson, 26th December 2009

From the Scrapbook #25
A Five O'Clock Chat

You also get a good view of the old Wellingtonia that was felled in 2005

Editor, 26th December 2009

St Mark's Parish News

The new edition of St Mark's Parish News is now available in the church, price 50p
or it can be ordered from Peter Crossley on 01539 734835.

This includes:

• Dear Friends by Angela Whittaker
• Helm Parishes Away Day at Rydal Hall
• Ablaze by Aimiee Whittaker
• St Mark's Organ Appeal by Clive Walkley
• Advent Study Group by Angela Whittaker
• Emmaus Group by Elspeth Jayne
• Crafts and Costumes by Angela Whittaker
• Natland Parish Council Meeting Summary by Rhian Peters
• Help for Heroes Charity Event by Major D M Nelson RLC
• Moving! Manna House by Chris Sutcliffe
• Formation of Natland Allotment Society by Keith Jackson
• Old Hutton Gardening Club by Mary Dixon

• Plus details of all Church Services and Events this month

Old editions of St Mark's News can now be downloaded from the Church's dedicated page: St Mark's Church.

26th December 2009

Natland in the Snow: 2

Thanks to Matt Corry for two more memories of a snowy Natland:

Jamie Shore provided these photos:

You can see more on his blog: Jamie in Crete.

Stephen Baker, from Barrows Green which he describes as the "last outpost" of Natland, sent in these pictures:

Keep sending in your snowy Natland pictures!

Editor, 21st December 2009

Natland in the Snow

Today's snowfall was one of the best (or worst, depending on your viewpoint) that we have seen in Natland for some time.  For those of you who were not able to get out and enjoy the scenery, here is a selection of photos from a very pleasant afternoon stroll around the village after the downfall.  Contrast the pictures of the river with those taken last month in More Flood Photos.

St Mark's Church

Natland and Helm  from Hawes Lane 

If you have any snowy Natland photos, why not share them on Natland.info?

Editor, 20th December 2009

Attempted Credit Card Fraud

A gentleman in Maryport has received a call from a company saying they would protect his bank account from fraudsters. They were able to give him most of the details of his cash card but asked him for the security code from the back of the card. He felt threatened by the caller who said if he did not give them the code his bank account would be blacklisted.  This is a scam to get the security code of the card so that illegal transactions can be carried out.  Do not give any information to anyone cold calling and report all incidents to Police on 0845 33 00 247.

Keith Bennett, Cumbria Police, 18th December 2009

From the Scrapbook #24
Natland: a Post-War View 2

At first sight, you would be forgiven for thinking that this picture from Barry Charnley was the same photo as shown in Scrapbook #22.  

But if you look very closely at the bridge on Hawes Lane, you will see that a train has miraculously appeared on the line!

Editor, 17th December 2009

Low Flying over Natland at Night

Muriel asked the Ministry of Defence and was advised that the transporter aircraft were probably USAF C-130 Hercules from RAF Mildenhall which have to train with low flying to avoid enemy radar.

She referred to a "good website" but the mechanics of Open Forum submissions, for internet safety reasons, prevented the transmission of hyperlinks. Consequently, Natland.info asked Muriel which websites she had visited.

She drew our attention to the MoD's Low Flying pages which explain the whats, whys and wheres as far as the MoD is concerned.  However, the schedules shown for this area do not contain any night flights, so presumably they are not revealing the USAF details.

A Google search for "USAF Low Flying Cumbria" proved unfruitful except for a reference to another website that Muriel mentioned: LowFly. It contains a fascinating and well organised selection of photographs of low flying aircraft, plus guidance on the best places to view them.  It mentions, in passing, that the USAF train at low level in the UK but nothing else that I found relevant to the flights passing over Natland.  However, it is well worth spending a few minutes surfing the site to view the dramatic pictures.

Editor, 14th December 2009

200 Club Winners

The winning numbers in the recent Natland & Oxenholme Village Hall prize draws were:   

For only £1 per month you can support the Village Hall and win the chance of a prize every month in the 200 Club draw!  To learn how you can join in the fun and support your Village Hall at the same time, see 200 Club.

Midge Fairhurst, 13th December 2009

The Winter Cumbrian Mountain Express

There will be a double header northbound through Oxenholme on Wednesday 30th December: The Winter Cumbrian Mountain Express with locomotives 44871 and 45407. They will pass through Oxenholme (hopefully) at 10:40 a.m..

Pat Williams, 13th December 2009

If you get a good photo, why not share it on Natland.info?

From the Scrapbook #23
Early Memories by Brian Nicholson

I don't know whether they were English or German!

I can remember seeing searchlights on clear nights, probably over Barrow. Finally, V.E day when everyone hung flags out of their windows. The Punch Bowl Inn seemed to have more than anyone else.

I remember going for walks and picnics on Helm but cannot remember much about Natland. I cannot remember seeing my father much until he came home from the war in India and Burma. When he finally arrived home in the middle of the night, he threw pebbles at the bedroom window to wake us up.  I remember him putting his Chindit regiment hat on my head.  I used to wear it a lot!

Natland from the Air: 5

Barry Charnley has provided this 1980 aerial photo of Natland.  This clearly shows the extent of the old flood pond before the St Mark's Fold development.

As with Natland from the Air: 2, we are unsure of the provenance of this picture so if you own the copyright please acccept our apologies for any infringement and get in touch with Natland.info.

Summary of Natland Parish Council Meeting

30th November 2009  

• In response to a query from the acting Area Highways Engineer, Natland Parish Council requested that the four-yearly full-width cut of verges be continued because of the benefit to flora.
• Three councillors will attend the first meeting of the South Westmorland Local Area Partnership.
• The Clerk will request SLDC not to allow excessive trimming of trees at Appletree that are subject to a Tree Preservation Order.
• The council decided to donate £300 to the victims of the recent flooding in Cumbria.
• The Highway Authority will remove a maple tree outside No 2 Charnley Fold.  In response to the suggestion that a rowan outside No 5 might be removed at the same time the council requested that it should remain as there had been no complaints about it.
• The council's annual precept will increase from £7000 in 2009/10 to £7300 in 2010/11.
• It was noted that a commemorative window to the late Rena Blight is to be installed in St Mark's Church during its centenary year.
• The council agreed its "Statement of Intent on Training" which is required in order to achieve 2Quality Council Status".  An in-house training session for councillors will be held in January.
• The next parish council meeting is on 25th January at 7:30 p.m. in the village hall  

 Thanks to Rhian Peters for the report. 

Click for Summaries of earlier meetings

For more information see Minutes section on the Parish Council page.

Formation of Natland Allotment Society

Bryan and Ronnie Holmes have indicated that they may be prepared to sell some land for allotments at the "growing fields" off Oxenholme Lane, Natland. At this stage we are unsure exactly how much land will be available and at what price, but in order to progress matters we need to have our own society.

A meeting will be held in Natland Village Hall on Wednesday 13th January 2010 at 7:30 p.m. to formally create an Allotment Society.

If you are interested in being involved please contact me. Nominations for Chair, Secretary, Treasurer and committee can be sent to me beforehand by , or on the night.

Keith Jackson, 5th December 2009

Natland from the Air: 4

Another Dacebow picture that Will Cross of Skycam Aerial Photography UK has kindly allowed us to publish on Natland.info.  Here we have a much clearer view of the development of Abbey Gardens.

Editor, 5th December 2009

Natland.info Update

This time there was no doubt- November was a record month for visitors to the Natland.info website with 1,303 visitors to the News page.  No doubt the floods had something to do with the increased level of interest.

I am planning a partial revamp of the Natland.info website early in 2010 under which each page would have a different banner photo at the top.  If you have pictures of any aspect of Natland that you think would be suitable, please send me a copy- electronic or paper. The subject matter will need to be capable of being cropped to a ratio of 3:1 (i.e three times the width to the height) in order to fit in the banner.

 Editor, 5th December 2009

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Log of visitors to the Natland.info News page:

Nativity Play: Help Wanted

If so, please come along to Natland Vicarage on any/or all of the following Saturdays:
28th  November, 5th, 12th & 19th December from 4 - 6 p.m.. All ages are welcome.

Refreshments will be provided, and also a take home craft for anyone who would like one.

Even if you can't come along to the activity afternoons any donations of silver or gold tinsel, shiny wrapping paper, checked tea towels (or 'flat caps' & waistcoats), old ties/old cloth belts, old fabric/sheets/pillowcases/curtains, elastic, cardboard boxes, soft toy lambs or anything else you think might be useful would also be much appreciated and can be left at The Vicarage or in St Mark's Church. Thank you.

For more details please speak to Rachel Ellis (015395 61770) or Revd. Angela Whittaker (015395 60355).

Rachel Ellis, 29th November 2009

St Mark's Parish News

The new edition of St Mark's Parish News is now available in the church, price 50p
or it can be ordered from Peter Crossley on 01539 734835.

This includes:

• Dear Friends by Angela Whittaker
• Tribute to Colin Milburn by Andrew Milburn
• Nativity Play: Help Wanted by Rachel Ellis
• Natland Parish Council Meeting Summary by Rhian Petersl
• Pro Nobis Christmas Concert by Clive Walkley
• Plus details of all Church Services and Events this month

Old editions of St Mark's News can now be downloaded from the Church's dedicated page: St Mark's Church.

29th November 2009

Natland from the Air: 3

Sometime in the mid 1990s there was a knock on our door and there stood a man offering me an aerial photo of our house.  He also had some more general pictures of the village that I bought from him.  On the rear of the photo is the name Dacebow Ltd.  On making enquiries, I discovered that the owner of Dacebow died some years ago but the very large library of aerial photographs is now in the possesion of his friend, Will Cross, who runs Skycam Aerial Photography UK.  Will has kindly granted permission for the pictures to be published on Natland.info.

In the above picture you can see that the houses on Abbey Gardens are in course of construction, which should enable someone to date it more accurately.

Don Shore, 29th November 2009

The End Of Another Year On Helm

Our last work party was on Saturday 14 November - a little damp, but none the less enjoyable!  Over a small fire to burn some gorse that had been cut down, we decided on our plans for 2010. We will be continuing with drystone wall repairs, as well as managing the gorse, bracken and thistles among other tasks. Dates will be available soon and more help is always welcome!

Dawn Groundsell, Communications Officer, Friends of the Lake District
25th November 2009

More Flood Photos

In response to the request for flood pictures, Jim Lancaster sent Natland.info this photo of swans enjoying the flooded meadow at Prizet.

John Fisher cunningly took photos of and from Hawes Lane bridge on Thursday 19th November when the water was at its highest and again on Sunday 22nd.  The comparisons clearly show how high the river had been.

And here are a couple of photos that I took in Kendal on the Thursday evening.

If you have pictures of the effects of the recent weather, do send them to Natland.info.

Editor, 23rd November 2009

Burglary Alert

Over the past few days there have been three reported burglaries of commercial premises in South Lakeland.

If any suspicious activity has been seen, please call 0845 33 00 24 7.

Neighbourhood Watch, 23rd November 2009

Natland And The Floods

With Kendal having been much on the news lately due to the Cumbrian floods, kind friends from away have enquired how we were faring.  I have been able to reassure them that Natland has not borne the brunt of the problems and indeed that, so far, the problems that we have encountered have been less than in recent winters.

Of course, this is largely due to Natland being elevated above the River Kent, although higher up still, the busy A65 has problems with several large pools of standing water.  

As you approach the river on Hawes Lane (the minor road to Prizet), the beck has overflowed its culvert and taken over the road.  At Hawes Bridge, (still unrepaired following the incident with the Italian lorry) the river is so full that it has swamped the gorge and ironically looks less spectacular as a result, although the speed and force of water is very evident. Further downstream, where the gorge is deeper, is more exciting!  Upstream the Prizet mill race is overwhelmed and looks more like a weir.

In the village, the Green has been wet but not as bad, say, as in summer last year: Natland: The Lake District?  The storm pond behind St Mark's Fold took a long time to fill but eventually did so with the usual consequence of the grids being inadequate (or blocked*) so that the water is flowing down Sedgwick Road into the village.  Again however, not as bad as October 2008- Natland: The Lake District!  Again!

In the fields behind our house, Cracaltwater has reappeared.

Cracaltwater

But all this is nothing compared to what villagers north of Kendal have experienced where the floods are the worst for many, many years.  However, there is much more rain to come- it is too soon for us to be complacent!

Don Shore, 20th November 2009

* Paul Singleton subsequently informed Natland.info that after pressure from Ann Parnham and himself, the Highways Department cleared the grids on Tuesday and the problem now is purely volume of water in excess of the capacity of the grids.  He reckons that the grids are removing about half the water which would explain why the impact on the road is much less than in 2008.

Do you have any interesting photos of the floods?  
Why not share them with Natland.info?

SLDC Planning Applications

Several planning applications have been lodged with SLDC recently.

• SL/2009/1014 Natland Hall Barn, Natland LA9 7QQ
  DISCHARGE OF CONDITIONS 3, 4, 16 AND 18 ON APPLICATION SL/2009/0672
• SL/2009/1003 Natland Hall Barn, Natland LA9 7QQ
  DISCHARGE OF CONDITIONS 2 & 3 FROM APPROVED APPLICATION SL/2009/0673
• SL/2009/0966 The Old Water Mill, Natland Mill Beck Lane LA9 7LH
  REAR SINGLE STOREY EXTENSION
• SL/2009/0888 Helme Foot, Helm Lane, Natland LA9 7PS
  ALTERATIONS, EXTENSION & DETACHED GARAGE
• SL/2009/0885 Highfield Lodge, Barrows Green LA8 0AA
  REMOVAL OF CONDITION 2 (LOCAL OCCUPANCY) FROM PLANNING PERMISSION SL/2007/0858

If you click on the reference you will be taken to the SLDC website where you are able to see the plans and make online comment, either in favour, against or just general observations.  

Editor, 20th November 2009

O Magnum Mysterium

Sunday 13th December at 8 p.m.

The Pro Nobis Christmas Concert this year is entitled O Magnum Mysterium. It begins with three different settings of this lovely Latin text, which depicts the scene in the stable when even the animals gaze in rapture at the Christ child in the crib.

The programme continues with several new settings of familiar texts. Cumbrian-born composer Phillip Cooke, from Cockermouth, has written two of the pieces in this year's programme; his settings are quite dramatic but not difficult to listen to. There is also what will be the first British performance of a hauntingly beautiful carol by the contemporary Slovak composer Vladimir Godár.

As last year, we have invited an orchestra to join us; the orchestra will accompany some carols and contribute two items, Vaughan Williams' lovely arrangement of "Greensleeves", and Corelli's "Christmas" Concerto grosso. Interspersed with the carols will be readings - serious and humorous. Wine, or fruit juice, and mince pies will be served after the concert.

Why not come and join us for what is always a popular event in Natland at Christmas? Programmes £9 and £8 (concessions) will be available shortly from Gill and Clive Walkley (01539 723482). More details can be found on the choir's website.

Clive Walkley, 11th November 2009

Craft Fair Report

The 10th Annual Craft Fair & Exhibition was held in the Village Hall on Saturday, 7th November, and was very well attended by local people and visitors.

There were 23 stalls selling many different locally made crafts including jewellery, knitted items, photographs, hand made cards, pottery, wood turned items, willow baskets, cakes etc.

There was also a display of 60 items beautifully made by local people and loaned to the exhibition for the day. Visitors are asked to vote for their favourite item and 249 votes were cast.  That the quality was high is reflected in the fact that 41 entries received at least one vote for "Best Exhibit" and 19 received 5 or more nominations.

In reverse order, the most popular entries were:

• Dorothy Horn's needlework rendering of her granddaughter Charlotte; 12 votes
• Olive Gordon's painting of flowers on silk; 13 votes

• Sheila Mason's terracotta bowl; 14 votes
• Rachel Watkinson's crossstitch of Horses; 17 votes

• Margaret Smith's découpage of a lady standing in a doorway; 19 votes
• Joan Hodgson's découpage of children; 22 votes

The winner, with 24 votes was, once again, an appliqué by Whin Inglesfield; this year her entry portrayed Kendal Market Place.

The Natland & Oxenholme Village Hall Management Committee would like to thank all the stallholders, the exhibitors and the visitors who helped to make this event such a success.  £820 was raised for Village Hall funds.

Midge Fairhurst, 11th November 2009

2009 Christmas Quiz

Do you know a carol beginning with four words, the intials of which are A I A M ?  

Or the date of St Stephen's Day?  

If so, you are well on the way to completing the 2009 Christmas Quiz of the Friends of St Mark's School.

Copies, £1, are available from Natland Post Office or at the school office and also at the Toy Sale being held in the School from 10 a.m. to 12 noon on Saturday 14th November.

Jen Dalziel, Friends of St Mark's School, 9th November 2009

A Pheasant Surprise

Morris Minor For Sale

1969 Morris Minor, partially dismantled, for sale. Many new parts and spares (including new front wing). Ring  01539 723482 for further details.

Clive Walkley, 2nd November 2009

200 Club Winners

The winning numbers in the recent Natland & Oxenholme Village Hall prize draws were:   

For only £1 per month you can support the Village Hall and win the chance of a prize every month in the 200 Club draw!  To learn how you can join in the fun and support your Village Hall at the same time, see 200 Club.

Midge Fairhurst, 2nd November 2009

Natland From The Air :2

Stan O'Connor provided this superb aerial shot of Natland, Oxenholme, Helm and beyond to the Howgills.  We are unsure of the provenance of the picture so if you own the copyright please acccept our apologies for any infringement and get in touch with Natland.info.

Editor, 2nd November 2009

St Mark's Parish News:

The new edition of St Mark's Parish News is now available in the church, price 50p
or it can be ordered from Peter Crossley on 01539 734835.

This includes:

• Remembering by Angela Whittaker
• Great North Run by Kay Tiffin
• The Parish Day Out by Elspeth Jayne
• Harvest Celebrations by Mike & Anne Bagnall
• Natland Brownies by Ann Tilney
• Get Ready To Be Refreshed By St Luke by Martin Jayne
• Plus details of all Church Services and Events this month

Old editions of St Mark's News can now be downloaded from the Church's dedicated page: St Mark's Church.

1st November 2009

Summary of Natland Parish Council Meeting

26th October 2009  

• Councillors noted the improvement to lighting outside the village hall resulting from the new light provided by the council.
• The council considered its policy towards the growing number of requests from parishioners to trim or remove trees in the highway verge outside private properties.  It was agreed that trees were the property of the owner of the subsoil and should be maintained by them where possible, and that there should be a presumption that the subsoil of highway verges belonged to the adjoining landowner unless it could be shown otherwise.
• In response to consultation from SLDC, the council asked for an application to convert redundant farm buildings at the Helm into camping barns to be refused because of the traffic it would generate along the road over Helm, where traffic already causes a nuisance to walkers and cyclists, and at its dangerously substandard junction with the B6254 near the Station Inn.
• Footpaths Officer Colleen Harrison reported that all Natland's footpaths and bridleways had been walked and inspected.  Defects have been reported to CCC which has programmed repairs for completion by the end of March 2010.
• The next meeting is on 30th November at 7:30 p.m. in the village hall.

 Thanks to Rhian Peters for the report. 

Click for Summaries of earlier meetings

For more information see Minutes section on the Parish Council page.

Natland.info Update

It looked as if October was going to be a record month for visitors to the Natland.info website but numbers tailed off in the last few days and June's record remained intact. Just! The News page had 1163 hits.  

I wrote last month about plausible e-mail warnings that have metamorphosed into chain letters and more have been doing the rounds this week.  I suggested that if you receive such a message, you should check its authenticity via Google.  A weakness of that is that if you don't know what to look for, you may find the Google results swamped by webpages put up by people that have taken the warning at face value and published it.  

However there is one website that is particularly useful for such items, called: About.com.  If you put a key part of the message into its search box, it will check its Urban Legends and let you know what it knows about the item including whether it is genuine, fake or just plausible, how long it has been circulating and possibly where it originated.  You can then make an informed decision as to whether it is sensible to pass on the information or to send it back to the person from whom you received it with the facts!

 Editor, 1st November 2009

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Log of visitors to the Natland.info News page:

Tragedy at Appletree

An eleven year old boy from Mersyside, a resident of Appletree School, Natland, was found hanging in his room last Wednesday. The emergency services took him to Royal Lancaster Infirmary where he died.

The police are investigating the circumstances of his death.

Appletree Principal, Clair Davies, told Natland.info, "He was a lovely young boy who will be greatly missed.  This is a terrible tragedy and our thoughts are with his family. The children and team are very upset and they are our priority at this time.  We are working closely with the ongoing investigation so it would be inappropriate for me to comment further at this time."  

Editor, 21st October 2009

An Evening of Entertainment

Upper Kent and Kendal Forum Summaries

The Summary of the recent Upper Kent Neighbourhood Forum can now be downloaded from the SLDC website.  Click on the link above to be taken to the relevant page.  Topics covered included: Information about Raines Hall and Sedgwick, Stainton Chapel, Invasive Plants and The Hincaster Trailway

Natlanders may also be interested in the Summary of the Kendal Neighbourhood Forum where the topics discussed include: Britain in Bloom, New Road Car Park, Manna House, Mint Fest and various other items relating to Kendal Futures plus some warnings about cold calling scams.

The next Forum meetings, to which all are welcome, are:

Upper Kent: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday 9th December at Grayrigg Coronation Hall

Kendal: 7 p.m. 14th December, Kendal Town Hall

Cathy Craig, 19th October 2009

Cumbria Image Bank

Those of you who like to see old photos of the area will be interested to know that Cumbria County Council has introduced a new website that is an archive of such items.

You can search the archive by keywords.  The tagging is not very precise; there are no pictures tagged as Natland or Sedgwick.  However if you visit Cumbria Image Bank and enter Kendal in the Search box you will be presented with 38 pages with miniature pictures of 376 photographs covering not just the town but the surrounding areas.

Clicking on a minature produces an enlargement but, frustratingly, it is not possible to scroll through the enlarged pictures.  Nevertheless, it offers a wide range of fascinating reflections of by-gone days.

Editor, 18th October 2009

A Silent Leander

5690 Leander passed through right on time this evening without disturbing the cows.
In fact, it was so quiet that it almost took me unawares!

Editor, 17th October 2009

Scam or Spam?

Neighbourhood Watch contacted Natland.info with what was initially thought to be a new credit card scam.  However, this one turned out to be a message that may have started off some years ago as a genuine warning but has metamorphosed into a chain letter, borderlining on spam.

Nevertheless, its core message is worth repeating.  If someone phones you, never give them any details whatsoever about your credit card or other financial information. Tell them you want to check they are who they say they are, phone the institution (not the number the caller gives you) and verify the call.  If it genuinely is your bank that called, firstly they won't mind and secondly, they won't want the details of your card as they already know it!

On the other hand, If you receive an email from the Department of Health telling you not to eat canned pork because of the swine flu risk, don't worry.

You can safely ignore it.  

It's just Spam ! ! ! ! !

Editor, 16th October 2009

From the Scrapbook #22
Natland: a Post-War View

In response to the request for old photos of Natland, Michael Duff sent in this picture.

Editor, 12th October 2009

Natland Craft Fair & Exhibition

The 10th Annual Craft Fair & Exhibition will be held on Saturday 7th November, in the Village Hall from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m..

This will be an opportunity to browse at over twenty stalls selling craft made locally and perhaps buy some Christmas presents.

In addition there will be an exhibition of items made and loaned by local people.  

Refreshments will be served all day and there will be a raffle.  Admission 50p with all proceeds going to the Village Hall funds.

Midge Fairhurst, 10th October 2009

Tornado at Bolefoot

There was a large crowd to greet Britain's magnificent new steam engine when 60163 Tornado stopped at Bolefoot in the twilight last Saturday.  The plaque underneath its nameplate states: Peppercorn Class A1 No. 60163 Tornado was named by HRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall on Thursday February 19th 2009.

Pulling the Royal Scot, she was scheduled to stay for almost twenty minutes to take on water but disappointed the spectators by pulling out some ten minutes early.

The passengers waved, seemingly apologetically, from the train and the assembled throng waved back. Come back soon, they wished but that is unlikely. 5690 Leander is expected sometime next weekend and that is the last known steam visit before Christmas.

Editor, 10th October 2009

200 Club Winners

The winning numbers in the recent Natland & Oxenholme Village Hall prize draws were:   

For only £1 per month you can support the Village Hall and win the chance of a prize every month in the 200 Club draw!  To learn how you can join in the fun and support your Village Hall at the same time, see 200 Club.

Midge Fairhurst, 10th October 2009

Tornado to Visit Natland

Our Steam correspondent, Pat Williams, informed Natland.info that, due to workings on the Settle to Carlisle line, the new steam locomotive Tornado is expected to be watering at Bolefoot, Oxenholme on Saturday 10th October from 6:09 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. before travelling southbound through Natland.

There was a fine picture of the engine in this week's Westmorland Gazette but unfortunately it does not appear on their website.  If you manage to get a photo, do send it in to Natland.info.

Also the Duchess of Sutherland will pass through northbound around 11:44 a.m., returning soutbound approximately 5:12 p.m..

Editor, 9th October 2009

Camping Barns on Helm Update

Further to the item on Natland.info about Camping Barns on Helm?, SLDC now seems to have woken up (been woken?) to the fact that its consultation had been inadequate and a large number of letters has now been issued to potentially interested parties, including ones to the Chairman of the Commoners of Helm and to Natland Parish Council.

It is understood the matter will be discussed at the NPC meeting on Monday 26th October, which will enable its comments to be submitted in good time for their 4th November deadline.

Editor, 8th October 2009

Conservation Day on Helm

Saturday 17th October is the Friends of the Lake District's Conservation Day on Helm.  If you would like to find out more or take part, please contact Cassie Nelson on 04539 720788 or .

Click on News for the latest information about Friends of the Lake District.

Dawn Groundshell, FoLD, 8th October 2009

Bridge Strike Update: Hawes Lane
According to the Westmorland Gazette, the lorry that damaged the Hawes Lane bridge on 29th September was a 7.5 tonne Italian goods vehicle that was towing a trailer.

The 47-year-old Romanian driver had been heading towards the A591 when he got stuck on the bridge and some stonework was knocked into the River Kent below.

Editor,  7th October 2009

Natland From The Air

For some time I have been contemplating changing the photograph used at the top of every page of Natland.info.  Not because it is inappropriate.  Far from it, Barry Evan's picture, which was lifted from the original Natland website, works well.  However, it has been scanned and blown up and isn't therefore as clear as I would like.  I had intended to go over to Helsington on a fine day to seek to replicate Barry's photograph but somehow never got round to it.

I started thinking how best to capture the essence of Natland in a frame that has a ratio of approximately 3:1.  Ideally it would include the Church and the Green and possibly Helm.  The only way to include all these is from the air.  There are a couple of miniature pictures on the About Natland page that might have worked but the originals are not sufficiently large or clear for this purpose.

Then I remembered that, some years ago, I bought an aerial photo of the village.  That could be cropped to fit the page top but it isn't sufficiently clear to blow up big enough for that purpose and it is rather out of date, clearly showing the development that took place in Natland in the early 1990s.  However I thought it might be of interest to Natlanders so I contacted Alastair Butler of Fotoaire, Knaresborough and he kindly agreed that it could be displayed on Natland.info.

Natland from  the air; photo copyright: Fotoaire

If you are interested in aerial photographs of the area you can contact Fotoaire on 01423 797 133.

If anyone has a more recent aerial photograph of Natland (or, indeed, an older one) that we could put on Natland.info, please let me know.

Editor, 6th October 2009

Camping Barns on Helm?

Another potentially controversial planning application has been received by SLDC.  
This time it for the conversion of redundant farm buildings, located just off Helm, to "camping barns".  

Something seems to have gone wrong with the consultation procedures.  Whilst the barn itself is in the parish of Oxenholme, the intended access is from the Over Helm road which lies in Natland. However, it is understood that the application has not been referred to the Natland Parish Council for comment.  Kendal Town Council has been given until 12th October to respond.

The application reference is

• SL/2009/0787 Barns at The Helm, Oxenholme
  CONVERSION OF REDUNDANT FARM BUILDINGS TO CAMPING BARNS

If you click on the reference you will be taken to the SLDC website where you are able to see the plans and make online comment, either in favour, against or just general observations.  

If you do have a view on this proposal, why not share it with Natland.info through the Open Forum? 

Editor, 5th October 2009

St Mark's Organ Appeal

At the cost of £3,500 (excluding VAT), this seemed to me a very reasonable price and I was delighted when the Parochial Church Council agreed to make this part of our forthcoming Centenary Appeal.

Hopefully, work on the project will begin before Christmas; but this depends, of course, on funding. Having already obtained the necessary Faculty for the project, we shall shortly be applying to various charitable bodies for assistance; but, clearly, as a congregation, we will be expected to play our part in fund raising.  

If you would like to support this appeal, please contact John Chandler, Keith Clarkson or Marion Thornton.

If you would like to know more about what is involved - technical or non-technical details - please have a word with me. We have a fine instrument which we need to preserve for posterity. Moreover, this is probably the last opportunity we shall have to make improvements and additions to the organ; put simply, there is no more room in the organ case to add more pipes!

        Clive Walkley: Organist, St Mark's, 4th October 2009

Natland Ward Profile Updated

South Lakeland District Council recently published an updated version of the Natland Ward Profile.  This shows the extent of the ward (which includes Brigsteer, Sedgwick and Hincaster) and its Socio-Economic and Crime & Disorder Profiles.  The crime statistics are based on the period from June 2008 - May 2009 and show a small decrease compared with October 2004 - September 2005.

Despite that, the Natland ward has risen somewhat through the rankings from 43rd to 39th of the 47 wards in the District and from 160th to 145th of the 168 wards in the county for Total Crime per 1000 Population.

Click on the links to see the full reports for 2009 and 2005:
Natland Ward Profile 2009               Natland Ward Profile 2005

Editor, 3rd October 2009

The Forsinard Reserve- Dinner & Film

David Stocks, 3rd October 2009

Where Are They Now?

Continuing the occasional series featuring former Natlanders

Meg, Mog and Helen Nicoll

That Helen Nicoll was born in Natland in 1937, was discovered from the Puffin Books website whilst googling the word "Natland".  It goes on to say:

She was educated at schools in Bristol; Dartington Hall, Devon; and Froebel Education Institute, London. Helen Nicoll married Robert Kime in 1970 and they have one daughter and one son.

Helen Nicoll was a television producer with the BBC for many years. It was here, as Producer of the children's educational series Watch, that she first met Jan Pienkowski. After working together for four years, they decided it was time to preserve their creativity in book form for future generations of children to enjoy. The result is the immensely popular Meg and Mog series.

In addition to the Meg and Mog series, Helen has a long and varied association with Puffin - as editor of the Junior Puffin magazine The Egg from 1977 - 1979, as compiler of the popular children's poetry anthology Poems for Seven Year Olds and Under, illustrated by Michael Foreman, and through her partnership with Puffin, the enormously popular series of Puffin Cover to Cover story tapes of which Helen is the Producer.

This information is, to an extent, repeated on several literary websites; one French site suggests that she grew up in Westmorland which might be accurate or just a loose translation of a summary the above.

The Guardian described her, in 2004, as "... tall and thin, with straight, dark hair and Yohji Yamamoto shoes; iconic shoes that never date. He [Pienkowski] is rounder, fuzzier at the edges, but punctuated by a very precise beard. Naturally, she is Meg and he is Owl [Og], straight out of those storybooks the two of them created together, a look as distinct as a fashion house, pictures in unmistakable colours, loud and clear, like jelly beans."   

The article goes on to describe how they used to conjure up their stories by meeting at a service station halfway between their homes.

The Bookseller.com describes her significant part in producing the cassette tapes of the Harry Potter stories, narrated by Stephen Fry.

Curious to find out more about Helen Nicoll, Natland.info wrote inviting her to contribute her memories of Natland, if any!  Unfortunately, despite several direct and indirect attepts to involve her, no reply has been received. Although she currently lives in Wiltshire, it seems that she maintains links with the area as the Lake District National Park Authority records Mrs Helen Kime as applying last year for permission for the "Repair, alteration and refurbishment of house. Conversion of barn to form ancillary domestic accommodation to house a library" in Longsleddale.  So maybe Meg and Mog may yet make an appearance in the area!

Does anyone remember Helen Nicoll from their youth?

Editor, 3rd October 2009

Are you in touch with any former Natlanders with a tale to tell about their life since they left the village?  

If so, please encourage them to contact Natland.info.

St Mark's Parish News:

The new edition of St Mark's Parish News is now available in the church, price 50p
or it can be ordered from Peter Crossley on 01539 734835.

This includes:

• From the Vicarage by Angela Whittaker
• The Mouse and the Cake by Eliza Cooke
• St Mark's Organ Appeal by Clive Walkley
• Summary of Natland Parish Council Meeting: September 2009
• Prayer Page
• Plus details of all Church Services and Events this month

Old editions of St Mark's News can now be downloaded from the Church's dedicated page: St Mark's Church.

3rd October 2009

Bridge Strike: Hawes Lane

Perhaps the problem was caused by the lorry driver blindly following his sat nav, not having calibrated it for the nature of his vehicle or just ignoring the warning signs, thinking the sat nav knows best?

Editor, 2nd October 2009

The Natland Mill Beck Lane Story

Phil Livesey of Natland Mill Beck Lane told Natland.info recently that the late Hubert Williams once produced a booklet on the history of Natland Mill Beck Lane.

Please contact me if you have a copy of that leaflet or know where one could be found.

Editor, 2nd October 2009

Age Concern Seeks Volunteers

Why not VOLUNTEER to work with us and:   

• Have Fun! 
• Make new Friends! 
• And at the same time do something rewarding in your local community!

Our shop in Finkle Street, Kendal, raises much needed funds to support our services across South Lakeland, including those provided to Natland residents..

We urgently need volunteers to help on Mondays and Saturdays.  All expenses paid, full training and support provided.

If you would like to help enrich the lives of local residents please ask for Jean Park, Volunteer Support Officer, or call on 01539 728118 for more information and an informal chat. I look forward to hearing from you.

Jean Park, 1st October 2009

Natland.info Update

There was a slight increase in the number of visitors to the website in September, stimulated partly by the controversy surrounding the Natland Hall Barn conversion proposals.  The News page had 845 hits.  The publication online of the Welcome to Natland leaflet proved useful with a number of villagers pointing out the need for further amendments which have now all been included.  If you are associated with a Natland based organisation, please do check this leaflet and make sure that your information is correct.  Ditto the Contacts page on this website.

Keep the Internet Uncluttered!

What do you do when you receive an e-mail from a friend with a piece of plausible advice suggesting that you forward it to all your friends, urgently?

If you comply, then the chances are that you are just helping to clutter up the internet with junk messages that at best are meaningless and at worst are misinformed to the point of downright dangerous.

So what should you do?

Firstly be suspicious of anything that, in effect, is a chain letter.  Do not feel compelled to oblige.  Either delete it or, better, check out its authenticity.  Use the internet to the public benefit.  Find a key phrase in the suspect e-mail and put it into Google and see what comes up.

The chances are that you will find a long list of references that show that your urgent message is in fact years old and based on misinformation or is actually malicious.

If either is the case, don't send it on to anyone.  Instead, send the message back to the person who sent it to you with the evidence together with some comment along these lines.  That way you will be doing your bit to help keep the internet uncluttered.

 Editor, 1st October 2009

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Log of visitors to the Natland.info News page:

Natland Welcomes Its New Anglican Priest

The children and young people from all three parishes had made a commemorative plate for the occasion.

The service was followed by refreshments at the primary school when everyone had a chance to welcome Angela and her family personally. There was a tangible air of goodwill throughout the occasion, something which we feel confident will stay with Angela in her ministry with us.   

Elspeth Jayne, 26th September 2009

From the Scrapbook #21:
Two Natland Postmistresses

Ruth Booth from Stoke on Trent recently contacted Natland.info with some photographs of the village taken many years ago.

She knew that her grandmother, Miss Shepherd, ran the Village Post Office and Shop until about 1944 when she moved to Rodley.  

Ruth's father, Derek Shepherd, was born in 1924 and joined the Merchant Navy when he left Natland.  He married her mother in 1948.

Who, What, Why and When?

Editor, 25th September 2009

Afternote:  
Dora Bianchi told Natland.info that the girl holding the pony is Jennifer Temple, daughter of a Kendal Solicitor who lived in the big house opposite Oxenholme Station. She added that they always had horses - there used to be two stone winged horses on the gateposts of the house but someone stole them.  She thinks the boy on the left sat on the donkey could be one of the Wightman boys.

Anthony George added:

My wife and I have looked at the photo with the children and horses and we think the boy on the donkey behind Jeniffer Temple could be my late father Jeffrey George.

The photo is right opposite our former home Lea Green, which was built on land purchased from the Swindlehurst family in 1930.  The cost of buying the land plus building the house was a total of £506/9s.

Natland's New Vicar

By one of life's strange coincidences, she was taught at Sunday School by the grandmother of her husband-to-be although she did not actually meet Andrew until many years later in the northeast.

It was while Angela was teaching R.E. at a school in Darlington that it was first suggested to her that she should train for the ministry.  Some five years later, she became the curate at Houghton-le-Spring.  Subsequently, when she saw the job of Team Vicar for Kirkby Lonsdale advertised, she thought it would be a good opportunity to move back to the northwest.  As Team Vicar she was deeply involved with a number of parishes but did not have overall responsibility for them.  As Priest-in Charge for Natland, Old Hutton and New Hutton, she will now have that responsibility.  

Sharing her time between her three parishes so that each feels fully supported is clearly a major priority for her.  She is keen to help the parishes work together as a team, both in terms of ministry and also of the congregations.

Angela comes to Natland at an important time in the life of the church and the village- next year sees the centenary of that fine building and a programme of events is being planned around it.  She looks forward to being involved with this and all aspects of village life.  But first she has to be licensed by the Bishop of Carlisle, the ceremony that invests her with the authority and responsibilities.  This takes place in St Mark's Church at 7:30 p.m. on Friday 25th September.  Be there early to be sure of a seat.  

Editor, 20th September 2009

Telephone Scam Explained

June Tower has alerted Natland.info to a very plausible telephone scam, of which the unwary could easily fall foul.

The gist of it is that you receive a call from someone purporting to be a representative of BT. He claims that you have an unpaid bill and unless it is paid immediately you will be disconnected.  The cost of later reconnection is far higher than if you pay now.

If you argue that you get your service from another provider he will counter along the lines that the unpaid bill relates a line rental payment to BT that is part of the arrangement with the other provider.

If you express doubt, he will invite you to phone BT- he will give you the number to ring- but to prove he is genuine he will disconnect you to prevent the call taking place.

You then ring off and try to phone BT. However your line is dead.  It appears that he has done what he said he could do.  Shortly afterwards he phones you back, and demands that now he has proved he is genuine you should pay up immediately with your credit card.

DO NOT BE FOOLED.

The secret to the scam is that when you put the phone down on him, he does not put his phone down but instead presses the mute button.  As he has not cleared the line, it is still connected to your number.  When you pick up your phone, your line appears dead. He can hear your attempts to phone out to BT and once this stops he then clears the line and rings you back straight away.  His claim to have disconnected and reconnected you appears substantiated.  But it is not; it just a scam based on how the phone system actually works.

Editor, 19th September 2009

West Highlander Steam Train

Leander 45690 will be traveling north bound at some point on Friday 25th September, probably in the morning, and returning on Sunday 27th September in the afternoon or evening.

The West Highlander is a three day trip, firstly to Glasgow, then Glasgow to Malaig and then returns via Carlisle to Preston.

Pat Williams 18th September 2009

Summary of Natland Parish Council Meeting

14th September 2009  

• Eight members of the public were present.
• Stephen Bennett, the applicant for the proposed conversion of Natland Hall Barn into a single dwelling enquired about the process by which the council had decided to oppose the application.  The Chair explained that, because the consultation period fell between meetings, the response to SLDC about the application had been made by the Clerk under his delegated authority after consulting individual councillors, amongst whom there was a clear majority view.  Mr Bennett expressed his disappointment that although the views of affected neighbours had been obtained, the fact that none of them objected had been disregarded.  The Chair said that Mr Bennett's comments would be noted, but the council's view had already been formed. He also stated that public participation in council meetings was an opportunity for asking questions and making comments, and not for opening a debate.
  
  The Council's response to SLDC can be viewed by clicking on objection.
• Judith Martin was co-opted to the council to fill a casual vacancy.
• Colleen Harrison was appointed Footpaths Officer.  She has already inspected most of the paths and will report back at the next meeting.
• Following a request from a parishioner for improved lighting at the village hall access, the council agreed to equip the hall with an additional exterior light.
• The council noted the Proposed Submission Core Strategy (part of the South Lakeland Development Framework), but felt unable to formulate representations to the Secretary of State about the overall soundness of the document. The council will however be commenting on the Allocation of Land consultation document expected in December/January.  
  
  Background note: All the consultation documents can be found on SLDC's website. The main document has 113 pages and the 'Appendicies' (sic) take that up to 198 pages.  Appendix D expands on the tricky subjects of affordable housing and local occupancy housing, which may be of interest to some.  Appendix L Housing Trajectory on pages 194 to 198 is particularly interesting as it reveals the target number of new houses for Natland (66 from 2003 to 2025, of which 13 have been built so far) and shows graphically the 'pie in the sky' nature of the District's overall target. There is also an 8 page summary which includes a broad description of how the new housing and employment development will be distributed among the Principal, Key and Local Services Centres.  Natland is shown as a Local Service Centre.  The summary also explains on page 8 the limited nature of this final consultation. 
• There had again been no report from the police despite some recent incidents of crime in Natland. The Clerk will remind the police that the council wishes to be kept informed.
• A request from a parishioner to trim or remove a tree had been received.  The council will consider a more pro-active policy towards trees at a future meeting.
• The next meeting is on Monday, 26th October at 7:30 p.m. in the village hall.   

 Thanks to Rhian Peters for the report. 

Click for Summaries of earlier meetings

For more information see Minutes section on the Parish Council page.

Kendal Freecycle Becomes Kendal Freegle
Along with many other UK Freecycle groups, Kendal Freecycle has broken away from its US parentage and has become part of the Freegle Group.  For more information about the change, see this Guardian article.

Freegle's objectives remain similar- Don't throw it away - give it away!

You might not need your old sofa or wheelbarrow any more - but there might be someone just round the corner who does. Or if there's something you'd like, someone nearby might have one that they might just throw away if they don't know what else to do with it.

Freegle groups make this happen online. To sign up, post an OFFER of something you want to get rid of, or a WANTED for something you need.  Just visit the Kendal Freegle website.

We are a national grassroots organisation of people who are giving and receiving free unwanted items in their immediate communities. All groups within this organisation operate with a basic principle - all offers and requests must be freegle (free and legal).

Our aim is to keep anything reusable out of our landfill sites.

We hope you enjoy freegling with the freegle community!

Dave Whitehead, 14th September 2009

We are desperate for staff at MOSAICS breakfast club at St Mark's School and are looking for two morning people to work the breakfast club. The hours are 7:35 a.m. until 8:50 a.m. and provides a calm but socialising start to the day for the children.

It's a lovely select small group of children and I was wondering if anyone in the Village would like to help out? We need one staff to be qualified with NVQ3 or equivalent to lead the session, but the other person can just be working towards a qualification or not and help out.

You can contact me on 01539 72679 or 07973 970724 or by  

Jane Faulkner, MOSAICS (St Mark's Out of SChool Care Scheme),
13th September 2009

Larry Walters' Book Launch

It was a time of great contrasts; a time of vast wealth for some and untold misery and dreadful poverty for the many.  After considering the past, the book ends with the Cartmel Quakers of today. What kind of people are they, what are their hallmarks; and what do they believe?

This small and informative book of 96 pages is a valuable contribution to understanding an important aspect of our local social history.  From 20th September it can be purchased for £5 from Larry Walters at 3 Smithy Close, Natland.

Larry's previous book, his tale of triumph over severe disability, was featured on the old Natland website in 2005 and the item is archived on Natland.info - see From the Mountain Top.  Copies of this are also available from Larry, price £13.90.

Editor, 10th September 2009

News from the Pond

Last October (see Wildlife 2008), I reported that we had discovered three baby goldfish and three baby Shubunkins in our small pond.  By May this year we had begun to think that the winter and the heron between them had completely wiped out our fish population. We hadn't seen anything for weeks.  Some friends gave us two small lemon goldfish and two small Sarassa Red Comets to start the restocking process.  No sooner had they been introduced than one adult goldfish and one adult shubunkin reappeared.  We waited in hope that more would surface and eventually last year's three baby goldfish were spotted.  Much larger now but still a ghostly black colour so hard to see.  Sadly, none of the baby shubunkins have survived and six adults (two goldfish, one lemon goldfish, a shebunkin and the golden orfe) are no longer with us.  No carcasses, so something must have eaten them, be it heron or cannibals!

A few weeks ago, I was casually looking into the pond when I noticed something tiny moving amongst the vegetation.  After a while, I realised that we had several very small fry in the pond- some under 1 cm in length.  Only having one adult goldfish and one adult shubunkin left, I was perplexed but then I read that goldfish, shubunkins and comets will interbreed so it seems that we have started a new strain of Cracaltfish.

But then, more recently, I thought we had lost nearly all of them.  Most days I saw none, occasionally one. Had they been eaten?  Not at all, just hiding.  Today's sunshine revealed that we had one shoal of eight about an inch long and another of at least two which are much smaller.

The task now is to feed them up that they have enough body mass to last the winter- but not enough to excite the heron!

Don Shore, 9th September 2009

St Mark's Parish News:

The new edition of St Mark's Parish News is now available in the church, price 50p
or it can be ordered from Peter Crossley on 01539 734835.

This includes:

• Journeys by Angela Whittaker
• Volunteering in Ecuador by Catherine Porter
• Summary of Natland Parish Council Meeting: July 2009
• Confirmation for all Ages by Angela Whittaker
• Prayer Page
• Plus details of all Church Services and Events this month

Old editions of St Mark's News can now be downloaded from the Church's dedicated page: St Mark's Church.

1st September 2009

Natland.info Update

It is doubtful that this episode significantly affected the visitor numbers to the website as most regulars come in via the News page which had 822 hits, the lowest total of the year which more likely reflects it being the holiday period and there not being a great volume of news.

 Editor, 1st September 2009

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Log of visitors to the Natland.info News page:

 Steam: Here She Is!

6201 Princess Elizabeth approaching Oxenholme Station

Despite the long wait and almost abandoning all hope,  Martyn Hill managed to snap 6201 Princess Elizabeth approaching Oxenholme Station on Saturday 22nd August. It was well worth the wait!

Another steam visitor passed through at short notice, southbound, on the evening of Monday 24th August - the streamlined 60009 Union of South Africa.  This one was on time but came so quietly that it caught me by surprise and I was unable to take its picture.

Editor, 24th August 2009

Kate Beattie Marries In Natland

Kate Beattie, elder daughter of Ingrid Beattie and the late Archie Beattie of Natland married George Robinson, younger son of David and Nicky Robinson of Great Langdale on 20th June 2009 at St. Mark's Church, Natland.

The bridesmaids were Kate's sister, Elspeth, and her friend from Stirling University, Jessica Wilson.  The couple are now living in Leeds.

Also shown in the photos are the cousins from Bergen and Lofthus, Norway.

Ingrid Beattie, 22nd August 2009

Steam:  Where Was She?

The sun was shining, I found a good position to take a photo for Natland.info and waited. And waited. And waited. But 6201 Princess Elizabeth didn't show up.  After three quarters of an hour I gave up only to find other Natlanders wandering around asking "Where was she?"

Natland.info's Steam Expert, Pat Williams, commented "She must have missed her time window. Service trains have priority. She went through about 11:45 a.m.. As I`ve said before, train watching is not an exact science!"

Pat went on to say that Princess Elizabeth is expected next Saturday, 29th August, northbound at 10:40 a.m..  Or thereabouts!  Plus another steam visit on 25th September. If you get a good photograph, do send it to Natland.info.

Meanwhile here are two trains that I did see!

And a view of Natland's roof tops from the railway!

Don Shore, 22nd August 2009

From the Scrapbook #20:
The PT Lesson

Standing smarkly to attention are two boys from St Mark's School, waiting their turn to summersault over the box.  Note the "short back and sides" haircuts!  Can you identify anyone in this photo from David Tatham's scrapbook?

Editor, 21st August 2009

Have You Lost Your Trainers?

Pair of trainers found on Helm Lane.
To claim them please contact Barry Evans on 015395 60382.

Barry Evans, 15th August 2009

Planning Application: Natland Hall Barn

One of the more interesting planning applications has been received by SLDC. The proposal is to convert Natland Hall Barn, which is a listed building, into a single dwelling.

Extensively illustrated with photographs, these documents provide a comprehensive account of the history, structure and intentions for this fine old building.

There are actually two applications which appear identical, one being for planning consent and the other for listed building consent.

SL/2009/0672 and SL/2009/0673 Natland Hall Barn, Natland, Kendal LA9 7QQ
CONVERSION OF BARN INTO DWELLING, WIDENING OF VEHICULAR ACCESS AND DEMOLITION AND REBUILDING OF GARAGE BUILDING

 Editor, 15th August 2009

Next Steam Visit

On Saturday 22nd August, 6201 Princess Elizabeth will pass northbound through Oxenhome at 10:40 a.m. or thereabouts.

Pat Williams, 12th August 2009

Upper Kent Neighbourhood Forum Report

Extracts from summary of meeting held at the Bryce Institute, Burneside on Tuesday 28th July 2009.

Lakes Line Rail User Group

Ian Conway provided copies of the Group's 25th anniversary bulletin and mentioned that passenger use of the Lakes Line has increased by well above the national average.  He mentioned problems with the public address system at Burneside and said the Group is having a meeting with Trans-Pennine to try to resolve this.  The main issues for the group currently are:-

• For all trains to stop at Burneside
• The 42 steps at Staveley station.

Ian also mentioned the need for more trains later in the evening and the need for an easier ticketing system.

Queries were raised regarding the access road to the station at Burneside?  Ian confirmed the access road is owned by the people who own Station House, but that people are allowed to drive up to drop off and pick up, but not to park there.  He also confirmed the owners do not have the authority to 'clamp' vehicles and suggested if anyone has any problems, they contact the Lakes Line Rail User Group who will take up the issue with Trans-Pennine.  Concerns were also raised regarding parking issues on Station Row.  Ian will check the 12 year rule with regard to access and parking with Trans-Pennine.

The Lakes Line Rail User Group is looking for people to join the group.  Contact Ian on 01539 733844 if interested.

Community Transport

As transport was highlighted as a concern at the recent Achieving Better Community Development Meeting, Sinead McCann provided information of the following schemes:

• Rural Wheels - bookable, on demand, transport, costing the user 30p per mile.  Users need to register with Cumbria County Council and pay £5 for a 'smart' card.  Money is deducted from the 'smart' card for each journey and cards can be 'topped up' at Kendal library or the mobile library.
  
  Contact Caroline Watson on 01228 226721 for more details.
• Voluntary Car Scheme - operated by Community Transport South Lakeland who will provide a volunteer driver to pick you and up and take you to where you want to go.  There is a charge of 40p per mile to the driver to cover expenses and you also have to pay for 'dead' miles incurred by the driver travelling from and back to their home.   More information from Community Transport South Lakeland on 01539 742637 who would also like to hear from anyone interested in becoming a volunteer driver.
• Community Minibus Brokerage - is a sharing scheme which enables community groups and organisations to use accessible and affordable minibuses.  The scheme is operated by Cumbria Community Transport.  Groups need to register and there is a mileage charge of 80p per mile which includes fuel.  Minibuses are based in Kendal, Coniston and Ambleside.  Call 01539 727001 for more information.  

National Blood Service

The National Blood Service requires donors.  Call 0300 123 23 23 or visit www.blood.co.uk for more details on how to give blood.  Session will be held at the Castle Green Hotel on Mondays 10th and 17th August, 2 - 4 p.m. & 5:30 - 7.30 p.m.

Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults

If anyone is concerned over issues of safeguarding vulnerable adults, please call Adult Social Care on 01228 606060.

Local Area Partnerships

South Lakeland District Council and Cumbria County Council are setting up Local Area Partnerships whereby groupings of Parish Councils will deliver some services in partnership with local authorities.  A meeting will be held at 7:30 p.m. on 5th August at New Hutton to look at the implications of such a scheme and how to move forward.

Next Meeting

The next Upper Kent Neighbourhood Forum will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday 15th September at Sedgwick Village Hall.   All welcome.

Kath Criag, 12th August 2009

Two Steam Visits

Matt Corry was wandering over Helm on Saturday 18th July when at about 12:35 p.m. he spotted 6233 The Duchess of Sutherland heading north and sent Natland.info the left hand photo.

On the right is 6201 Princess Elizabeth approaching Oxenholme station at about 10:40 a.m. on Saturday 1st August as photographed by John Lannaghan.

Thanks, guys!  For more Natland steam photos see Steam in Natland.

Editor, 4th August 2009

Summary of Natland Parish Council Meeting

27th July 2009  

• The resignation of Councillor Keith Jackson was announced.  The casual vacancy will be published on the notice board.  If a poll is not claimed by at least 10 electors within the requisite period, the council will have to fill the vacancy by co-option.
• County Councillor Brenda Gray informed the meeting that each County Councillor has an annual sum of money (£12,000) to spend at their discretion on community projects in their division.
• The council was pleased to note that the Sedgwick Road footway had been cleared. The work had been done by Russell Armer because the footway has not yet been adopted by the Highway Authority.
• Blocked gullies at the Helm Lane / Robby Lea Drive junction have been cleared in response to a call to the Highways Hotline.
• The council will need to produce a training plan for councillors in order to achieve Quality Council status.  The first step will be to circulate a self assessment questionnaire.
• A letter had been received about a holly tree obstructing visibility at the junction of Robby Lea Drive with Helm Lane, and about the lack of adequate lighting at the village hall access.  Volunteers will trim the tree and the lighting question will be considered at a future meeting.
• It was noted that residents of Oxenholme had formed an association in order to address community issues.  They meet at Natland Village Hall at 7 p.m. on the last Tuesday of each month.  Anyone interested is welcome to attend.
• The next parish council meeting is on Monday, 14th September at 7:30 p.m. in the village hall.   

 Thanks to Rhian Peters for the report. 

Click for Summaries of earlier meetings

For more information see Minutes section on the Parish Council page.

Flower Show Results

The third Annual Natland and Oxenholme Flower Show was held in the Village Hall on 4th July and again proved a successful and enjoyable event with over 160 visitors.

This year, there were many more Children's classes and this Section was a special delight - with a display of imaginative work in the miniature gardens, animals made with vegetables and fruits, decorated cards, posters and poetry created by children from the ages of 2 upwards.

Despite the hot weather of previous weeks, there was still a lovely display of Flowers in both the Floral and Floral art classes.

Teas were served and a raffle was held to bring the afternoon to a close.

Results:        

 Margaret Cummins, 3rd August 2009

Emma Shore Marries Scott Massara

Natlander Emma Shore married Scott Massara on Saturday 18th July 2009 at the Unitarian Chapel, Kendal.  Emma's bridesmaids were her school friends Nicola Broady and Cathy-Ann Davies and her god-daughter, Lily Shore.

The wedding was followed by a reception and ceilidh at Cracalt House, Natland.  

It was a very happy occasion bringing together guests from the many different places that Emma and Scott have lived.

Emma, who attended school at Natland's St Mark's, Holme Park and then Casterton, first met Scott, who comes from Slough, in Madrid.  He was there teaching chemistry when she was studying Spanish and Chinese at Leeds University.

After their honeymoon in Iceland, Emma and Scott will return to Munich where they both teach at international schools.

Don Shore, 1st August 2009

Natland.info Update

July was a quiet month for news, despite which there was still a large number of visitors to the website.

Geoff Dixon has sent in a useful tip. Did you know that once you have clicked on a photo to enlarge it on the Natland website, by holding down the CONTROL (Ctrl) key and clicking on  the '+'  (PLUS )  and  (MINUS) keys  you can expand or contract the picture on your screen? This  also applies when viewing internet pages generally, enabling you to  match the layout to your monitor screen. Try it now ! ............ Hold down Ctrl & press the + key.................  Did that work?

 Editor, 1st August 2009

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Log of visitors to the Natland.info News page:

 St Mark's Parish News:

The new edition of St Mark's Parish News is now available in the church, price 50p
or it can be ordered from Peter Crossley on 01539 734835.

This includes:

• The Date We Have All Been Waiting For: Licensing of Reverend Angela Whittaker, 7:30 p.m. 25th September
•  Fair-trade Communion Wine
• The Helm Team: report by Anne Bag