Swaffham Newsletter

SWAFFHAM 

newslet ter 

Winner of Rotary's “Capture Swaffham" 

50 th Anniversary photographic 

competition selected: 

May 2019 

Find out more and see the runner up pictures in the 

Rotary's article on p. 19 

published by 

*Neighbourhood Plan Centrefold Pull-Out Edition*

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01760 722 800 

swaffhamnewsletter@gmail.com 

Swaffham Newsletter 

Iceni Partnership 

Swaffham Community Centre 

The Campingland 

Swaffham 

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Comments or queries welcomed. 

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Swaffham Town Council - details at rear of magazine. 

Deadline for editorial and advertising is the 

12th day of the previous month. 

Advertisers - We operate an industry standard 

pre-paid system of billing. We have not increased 

our rates in 2019 and our 6 for the price of 5 offer 

will be available to all. 

Contents 

4 Upcoming Events / Regular Events 

8 School Speak 

9 Church News 

11 Merle Boddy Centre 

12 Swaffham & District Lions 

14 WI 

16 Age Concern 

17 SCALGA/Home Hospice 

19 Swaffham Rotary 

20 WEA/Swaffham Players 

22 Camera Club/Rural Writers 

26 Swaffham History Club/NNAB 

28 Wissey U3A/Silver Social 

30 Museum Matters 

31 Swaffham Hosptal LOFs/Lionesses 

32 Swaffham WEA 

34 ESCAPE Project 

37 Mayor's Parlour 

38 Swaffham Town Council 

Directors Needed at Merle Boddy 

The Swaffham & District Mental Health Association 

is the charity (reg. charity no.1050124) which runs 

the Merle Boddy Day Centre. The organisation was 

formed over 30 years ago and has gone from strength 

to strength since the days when the day centre was 

only open 1 or 2 days per week. As readers of this 

Newsletter know, the Merle Boddy Centre is now 

open 5 days per week and is an important part of life 

in Swaffham. The charity is currently looking to recruit 

some new directors and the Chairman, Eddie Doran, 

would like to invite anyone who has a little time, some 

energy and a lot of interest and enthusiasm to contact 

him to find out out more and to ask any questions you 

may have. Eddie can be reached on 01760 725220 or 

evdoran@btinternet.com. 

Swaffham Relief in Need Charity 

Registered Charity No. 1072912 

Relief in Need is a Registered Charity which meets 6 

times a year, offering grants for a specific purpose for 

the relief of persons resident in the area of benefit 

(i.e. Swaffham) who are in need, hardship or distress. 

Application Forms are available from the Town Hall 

or reliefinneed@swaffhamtowncouncil.gov.uk. 


Sheep Fair 

Swaffham Saturday 

Saturday 

RAF Marham 

Operational History 1916- 

2019 

The RAF Marham Aviation 

Heritage Centre has published the operational 

history of the airfield from its opening in 1916 to 

the end of the Tornado era in 2019. This is a very 

significant date for the RAF, with the final retirement 

of the amazing Tornado, and the start of the career 

of the F-35 Lightning. 

Market is celebrating all 

things ‘woolly’ with rare 

breed sheep, spinning & 

25 th May 

SWAFFHAM 

weaving demonstrations 

and lots more… 

8am to 3pm 

#COMMUNITY FRIDGE 

450kg 

1 

swaffhamsheepfair

Upcoming Events 

Northwold Village Yard Sale and Scarecrow Trail Monday 6th 

May, 9.00am – 2.00pm. Free entry. Find all the Scarecrows on the Trail! Light 

refreshments, raffle, maps and guess the scarecrow's name competition available 

in the Village Hall (IP26 5NB). Organised by Northwold WI (tel: Rita 01366 728615) 

Necton Village Yard Sale Sunday 12th May, 9am - 1pm. Contact Emma 

on 07512 063394 to book a place on the map or at the car boot sale at Necton 

Primary School. 

Swaffham Community Hospital LoFs AGM Monday 13th May at 2pm 

at the Community Hospital, Sporle road, Swaffham. All welcome. For further 

details ring Chairman Mr C Houghton on 01760 336025. 

Make a Mosaic with Maggie Campbell Tuesday, 21st May, 2-3pm, 

Swaffham Library. Join Maggie for her decorative arts workshop and learn how to 

make a mosaic picture or place mat by sticking coloured glass tiles to ply boards 

to make a pattern or picture of your choice. All art materials will be included in 

the workshops along with tea and cake! These sessions are open to all ages, with 

particular focus towards the elderly. The workshops are FREE to attend, voluntary 

donations are welcome. Reserving a place is recommended. Call: 01362 656870, 

email: community@breckland.gov.uk or book online at www.thesilversocial.com 

‘A Little Learning … Educating the People’Talk by Rosemary Steer 

for Beachamwell Local History Group. This talk takes place at Beachamwell Village 

Hall on Tuesday 21st May at 7.30pm. Admission £3 on the door (members free). 

More information at www.beachamwell.org.uk or Tel: 01366 327023. There 

was a time when practically every village had its own school. That time has now 

disappeared. However the next event organised by the Beachamwell Local History 

Group will look back at that era and trace the history of elementary education 

from 1700 to the twentieth century. Rosemary Steer will explore a period of great 

change in both attitudes to teaching and the provision of schools. Rosemary is a 

local historian and researcher based in Norfolk who specialises in the history of 

education and care of young people. 

The Big Swaffham Sheep Trail Starts Saturday 25th May and runs 

throughout half term week until Saturday 1st June. Find the sheep hidden around 

town to be in with a chance of winning a prize. Trail maps available from Swaffham 

Community Centre. 

Nar Valley Ornithological Society (NarVOS) Illustrated Talk 

Tuesday 28th May 2019, 7.30pm at the Barn Theatre, Sacred Heart Convent 

School, Swaffham. Access and parking from Sporle Road. Please come along to 

this illustrated talk by Trudy Welham & Ben Knights, entitled: 'From the Gadder 

to the Galapagos'. This will be the first visit to NarVOS of ‘Norfolk born and bred’ 

couple, Trudy Welham and Ben Knights. Ben is son of wildlife photographer Chris. 

The Galapagos Islands are probably better known than the Gadder - the stream 

at Gooderstone. Visitors most welcome. Admission £2 on the night if you are not 

a NarVOS member. For more information about this meeting or NarVOS call Ian 

Black on 01760 724092. 

Necton FOSA Summer Fair Saturday June 15th, 11.30am - 2pm. To book a 

stall contact Romana at nectonfosa-stalls@outlook.com 

West Acre Village Fete Saturday 15th June, 1pm - 4pm, in the lovely grounds 

at Abbey House (behind the Church). £1 adults, 50p children (5-16 years). Events 

include: welly wanging, duck racing, rifle shooting competition, nail bashing 

game, coconut shy, human fruit machine, bowling for the pig and tombola. Also 

birds of prey, art\crafts and West Acre Garden plant stalls + raffle, bar, BBQ, Trout 

and tea & cake stall. Charity No. 1163696. 

Celebrating 100 years Archive items from West Acre Miniature Furniture 

will be on view at West Acre Village Fete - Saturday 15th June 2019 From 1 – 4 

pm. Today the original pieces are much sought-after by collectors. Demonstration 

pieces on view and fabrics for sale in aid of West Acre Village Charities. 

Dog Show and Family Fun Day Sunday 14th July, 10am - 4pm at the East 

Park, Holkham Estate NR23 1SF. Free entry, parking £3 per car. Gates open 1am, 

with doggie classes from 11am - 4pm. Lots of fun activities for your dog, together 

with a huge array of children's entertainment including circus acts, climbing wall, 

pet 'cuddle corner', funfair stalls and much more. For more information contact 

Wells Community Hospital Trust on 01328 711996 or admin@wellshospital.co.uk. 

Westacre Theatre www.westacretheatre.com 01760 755800 

Fri 3 and Sat 4 May: On Stage with The Pantaloons: THE ODYSSEY a brand new 

hilarious show 7:30pm £15 

Wed 8 May: BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY (2018) [PG] 2pm £8 

Sat 11 May: Part of LitFest 2019: Meet the Author, Dr JANE HAWKING 3pm £15 

Tue 14 May: On Screen Live from The Old Vic in London: ALL MY SONS by Arthur 

Miller. 7pm £15 

Wed 15 May: GREEN BOOK (2018) [PG] 2pm £8 

Fri 17 and Sat 18 May: A WOMAN OF NO IMPORTANCE – a Taking Head 

monologue by Alan Bennett. 7:30pm £12 (under 21s £8) 

Wed 22 May: STAN AND OLLIE (2018) [PG] 2pm £8 

From 7 May and then all through May and into June: Norfolk and Norwich Open 

Studios Art Exhibition with GREAT MASSINGHAM ARTISTS – KAREN WADHAM, 

SUE KINGSTON and PETER LAWTON. 

Regular Meetings & Events 

MONDAY 

1st Swaffham Scouts 7-9 at Cockley Cley, Iceni Village, Scout Hut. 

For ages 10 1/2 -14. New recruits welcome. Boys or girls. Contact Scout 

Leader Adrian Searle on 07771 603409 or group Secretary Ali Plomer 

on 01760 441175 

Art Class at The Old Art Room 93 Market Place. Techniques, 

tutoring and tips, Inspiration in a modern equipped Art Studio. 10am 

until 12.15 £10 Tel.01760 337181 je.clark176@btinternet.com 

Central Norfolk Dog Training Club Upstairs in Church Rooms, 

Campingland. 4 classes available, from puppies to intermediate.Tel: Chris 07745 

892417 

Citizens Advice Swaffham Community Centre, 10am until 12:30pm 

Free Meal Monday Every 3rd Monday of the month, 11am - 1pm, 

Swaffham Assembly Rooms. Join us for a free 2 course vegetarian meal. 

Kickboxing Club Juniors 5+ 5pm – 6pm, Inters 6-7pm, Adults 7pm – 

8.30pm Plowright Place. Call Trevor on 07585707196 

The Phoenix Singers rehearse each week in the Methodist Church 

Hall at 7:30pm. New members welcome. Contact Marion 01760 724 473 

Playdayz – Parent/toddler group Sacred Heart School 9.30- 

11.30am term time only. £1 per session/per family (includes a snack) 

Contact: Tor Howman 07854 736 920 

Rotary Club of Swaffham Meets at The George Hotel - 1st Monday 

of the month, 12:45 for 1pm, other Mondays 7 for 7:30pm. Tel Claire Dunne 

722504 

Seniors Keep Fit 6.15pm at Stanley’s, Lynn Road Tel Gemma on 

07702 197994/07425 607667 

Swaffham 1894 Squadron Air Training Corps 7.00 - 9.30pm. 

TA Centre, Sporle Road, Swaffham. Ages 13 to 18 years. Tel: 

01760724617 

Swaffham History Group 2nd Monday, 2 – 4pm, Swaffham 

Museum. New members always welcome – no charge. Tel 01760 

724470 

Swaffham Lions Meet on the 2nd Monday of the month at 

Swaffham Assembly Rooms,7:30pm. All welcome. Contact Peter Young 

01760 724120 

Swaffham Players every Monday and Wednesday, 7:30pm Baptist 

Church, Swaffham. If you are interested in joining a fabulous team 

please contact John or Nicky on 01760 721568 or email swaffhamplayers@ 

gmail.com 

Swaffham Voluntary Stroke Group meet on the 3rd Monday of 

the month at The Maltings on Cley Road, 10:30am until 12:30pm. Call Sarah 

Neall on 7507 494103 for further details. 

Junior Snooker & Billiards 4-7pm @ The Norfolk Snooker 

Academy, West Acre 01760 755337 for details and to book, 9 -16 years 

TOSH community drama group meets 7pm - 8.30pm at Great 

Cressingham Village Hall. More details Fiona 07768211087 

Youthie 5.30 - 7pm, age 8 - yr 6. Swaffham Community Centre. 

Contact 01760 722800 for more info. 

TUESDAY 

1st Swaffham Cubs Meet Tuesday 6:30 to 8:00pm at the Scout Hut at 

Cockley Cley. For boys and girls aged 8 to 10 1/2. New members welcome. For 

more information contact Group Scout Leader, Carolyn Cooper 07816 208687 

gsl1stswaffham@gmail.com 

Swaffham Army Cadets TA Centre, Sporle Rd 7.30-9.30pm. Ages 12 – 

18. www.norfolkacf.org 2907pea@armymail.mod.uk 07899 189 973 

The Art Studio Modern Art Evening Classes By Peter Henry 

PGCE, BA. Tuesdays 7-9pm Church Rooms, Campingland. Refreshments. 

Adults/all abilitiesEmail: salsum06@aol.com/01760 720540 

Swaffham Bridge Club The Church Rooms,Church of Our Lady of Pity 

31, Station Street. Swaffham PE37 7HP 6.30pm for 6.45pm. Sue 01328 

701545 

Child Health Clinic at Swaffham Children Centre. 01760 721101 1st 

Tuesday monthly 1.15 - 2.45pm run by local Health Visiting Team 

Civil Service Retirement Fellowship Coffee Morning, third 

Tuesday at 10:15am. Methodist Hall, London Street. Tel: David Moore 

01760 723740 

CAMEO Coffee 10am-noon. ‘Come And Meet Each Other’. Free tea, 

coffee & hot chocolate in a relaxed cafe style setting. Discovery Hour: 10am 

- 11am. Looking at and discussing a small bible passage. Oasis Centre 01760 

723 175 

Crafts, Textiles and Dressmaking at The Old Art Room 

93 Market Place. Techniques, Tips, Inspiration in a modern equipped Art 

&Textile Studio. 10am until 12.15 and 12.30 until 2.45 £10 Tel.01760 337181 

Holme Hale Whist Club Meets at Tony Evans Centre of Holme Hale 

Village Hall on the First and Third Tuesdays @ 1.30pm. Contact Mrs Sue Ludlow 

on 01760 441660 for more details. 

Jump, Jive & Swing Swaffham Community Centre, 7.45pm. Classes 8pm 

until 9.45pm with social dancing until 10.30pm. www.jumpjiveswing.com 

Pickenhams’ WI 2nd Tuesday 2pm St Andrew’s Church (not August) 

PROBUS Club of Swaffham Meet second Tues of the month for lunch 

at the George Hotel, 12.30 for 1pm. Rod Goddard 01760 722 834 rodgoddard@ 

hotmail.com 

Royal British Legion, Swaffham & District Branch 8pm, 

3rd Tuesday Swaffham Conservative Club. Tel: David Thorogood 

01760622751 

Royal British Legion (Women’s Section) We meet the 2nd 

Tuesday of the month at Valentine Barker Court, Swaffham, from 

2-30pm – 4-30pm. All welcome, you do not have to be ex- service 

personal or have connection with the Armed Forces. Please Contact 

Frances on 01760 724445 or Iris on 01760 721430, 

The Royal Elizabethan Lodge Meets alternate Tuesdays, 8pm in 

the Conservative Club. Tel: W Rogers 01760 720632 or S Trattle 01760 

721760 

Swaffham Rugby Football Club Tuesday Seniors Training 7:30 - 9 

Seniors Keep Fit 3pm See Monday’s Senior’s Keep Fit 

Stitch, Mardle and Mend A group of keen crafters covering 

Patchwork, Knitting, Crochet, Cross Stitch etc 7-9pm, £1. 

Tel Adrienne 01760 336268 

Slimming World Conservative Club, 10am. Swaffham Asssembly 

Rooms 5.30pm & 7.30pm. Edyta 07428 516814 

SNAP (Safer Neighbourhood Action Partnership) Meetings 

held quarterly 3rd Tuesday at Town Hall, 7pm. Next meetings in 2019, 

16th April, 16th July, 15th October. 

Sporle WI 3rd Tuesday, 1.45pm ready for our speaker at 2pm. For any 

further information please ring Celia on 01362 687316 

Swaffham St John Ambulance Cadets 7.15pm until 8.45pm,10 

to 17 year olds. Natalie Rudd on 07771620634/natalie.rudd@ 

btinternet.com 

Taekwondo 6:30 - 7:30pm Swaffham Community Centre 01760336044 

Tai Chi beginners welcome East Dereham at 11am 01760723102 

Swaffham Wellbeing Group Are you feeling low, or recovering 

from ill health? Just want to meet other people? Make new friends at 

Community Centre, every Tuesday 10.30 – 1.00. Contact Family Action. 

Tel: 01760 725801 

Tom’s Kickboxing Academy 6pm - 7pm Juniors, 7pm - 8.15pm 

Seniors (16+) , Holme Hale Village Hall IP25 7DP 

West Acre Carpet Bowls Club West Acre Village Hall, 2 - 4pm. £2 

per session. Equipment and refreshments provided – all welcome. Tel: 

Belinda 01760 755184 or Betty 01760 755235 Email: Belinda_Bush@ 

hotmail.com 

Weight Watchers 5:30-6.30pm Swaffham Community Centre. 

Nikki 07970316054 

Yoga at Great Dunham Village Hall 10.30am till 12.00pm, £8 per 

session, please contact Jayne on 07544974342 

Yoga at Necton Community Centre 

2pm till 3.30pm, £8 per session, please contact Jayne on 07544974342 

Zumba With Becks Swaffham Assembly Rooms 7-8pm bectuff@ 

hotmail.co.uk £5 

WEDNESDAY 

1st Swaffham Rainbows Term time only, 17:00-18:00 Swaffham 

Infant School. Girls aged 5 to 7 yrs. Tracey Clements 07770236689 

2nd Swaffham Brownies Term time only, 18:00-19:30. Meeting 

at Swaffham First School. Girls aged 7 to 10 yrs invited to join. Contact 

Clare Smith 07917468057 or Chrissie Brown 07970104771. 

Conservative Party, Swaffham Branch meets every 3rd 

Wednesday every other month. The next meeting is at the Conservative Club, 

7th April, 10.30am start. Speaker Dr, Richard Butler D.L. All welcome. 

Swaffham 1894 Squadron Air Training Corps 7:00-9:30pm. 

TA Centre, Sporle Road, Swaffham. Ages 12 (yr8) to 18 years. Tel: 

01760724617 

Alzheimer`s Society Dementia Café first Weds of month, 

10am-12noon. Swaffham Assembly Rooms. Support, information and social 

activity. Refreshments provided. 01603 763556 

Arts Lounge beginners/refreshers art classes Weds, Thurs & 

Friday 10-1pm or 1.30-4.30pm, £25 per session Call 01760 723624 

Bingo First Wednesday of every month, Holme Hale Pavilion. Eyes 

down 7:30pm. Cash prizes. Tel: June Hewing 01760 441327 

Bingo Swaffham Conservative Club 7:00 – 9:00pm (eyes down for 

7:30). Non-members 30p entry. 

Swaffham Camera Club 1st and 3rd Weds of every month, 7 for 

7:30pm at Lydney House, Norwich Road. All abilities welcome! Steve Ward 

01366 328567 

Creative Textile Certificate 10 Week Course at The Old Art Room, 

93 Market Place Swaffham. Tel Jane 01760 337181 

Dementia Café Free cafe offering support, information for those living 

with dementia and their families/carers. Assembly Rooms. 01603 763 556 

Swaffham WI Methodist church room on the first Wednesday at 

7.30pm. Telephone Fiona Walker on 01760 722879. 

Healing Rooms The Oasis Centre, Cley Road 11am - 12noon. Book 

a session to experience the healing power of Jesus. Tel: 01760 723175 

Henchmans Beginners games night. A night of games especially for 

people wanting to give it a try. We'll play a variety games tailored for beginners 

and those wanting to dip their toes in the games pond. Refreshments 

available. From 7pm. 13 Station Street, Swaffham. 01760 788427 

The Swaffham and District Branch of the Labour Party 

meets in the Community Centre at 7.30 pm, last Weds of the month. 

Life Drawing Class Courses cost £8 per class starting Wednesday 27th 

March until May. 6.30pm to 9pm in the Dickens Room at Swaffham 

Community Centre. To book visit http://www.lifedrawingeast.co.uk or call 

Digby 07921 037773 

Stitch, Mardle and Mend A group of keen crafters covering 

Patchwork, Knitting, Crochet etc. From 10am at Market Cross Inn, Swaffham 

Oasis Wednesday Worship: 10am - 11am. Worship and prayer 

Acrylic/Oil painting workshops Arts Lounge Gallery Studio, 15 

Market Place Swaffham are on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Two sessions 

each day, 0930-1230 or 1pm-4pm, £30 per session includes all equipment, 

materials and refreshments. Call 01760 723624 to book. 

Baby Signing Classes -Sing and Sign Swaffham Community 

Centre (Dickens Room). Help your baby to communicate before speech with 

our award winning music classes. 10am Stage 2 14mths - 2yrs. 11am Stage 

1 6mths - 14mths. Term time only. Booking is essential as places are limited. 

Contact Andrea 07905 061336 or Email kingslynn@singandsign.co.uk 

Swaffham Players every Monday and Wednesday, 7:30pm Baptist 

Church, Swaffham. If you are interested in joining a fabulous team please 

contact John or Nicky on 01760 721568 or email swaffhamplayers@gmail.com 

Swaffham Veterans Snooker Group (60+) 10am-1pm at West Acre 

Village Hall, PE32 1TQ. £3 per player. Call Phillip on 01760 755337 

St. John Ambulance - Swaffham (Adults) Every Wednesday 

7.30pm - 9.30pm First Aid training 18 years upwards. 07900927233 

Swaffham VIPs A social club suitable for those with failing sight and 

degenerative medical conditions. Swaffham Community Centre 4th Wed 

(except August) 1.30-3.30pm £4. 01760 722800. 

Tai Chi beginners class 11.30am Swaffham Community Centre 

01760723102 or barbara.smith58@yahoo.co.uk 

http://www.academytaichi.co.uk 

Tom’s Kickboxing Academy 6pm - 7pm Jnrs, 7pm - 8.15pm Seniors 

(16+) , Holme Hale Village Hall IP25 7DP 

TOSH community drama group meets from 7pm to 9pm at the 

Methodist Rooms in Swaffham More details Fiona 07768211087 

Whist Drive Bradenham Village Hall, 7:30pm. All welcome. 01760 440038. £3 

THURSDAY 

1st Swaffham Beavers Meet Thursday 6 to 7:15 at the Scout Hut 

at Cockley Cley. For boys and girls aged 6 to 8. New members welcome. For 

more information contact Group Scout Leader, Carolyn Cooper 07816 208687 

gsl1stswaffham@gmail.com 




materials and refreshments. Call 01760 723624 

Beachamwell WI 1st Thursday 7.30pm. New members or visitors always 

welcome. Contact Maggie 01366 327023 or Helen 01366 328589 

Swaffham Bridge Club See Tues for details. 6.30pm for 6.45pm 

start except for the first Thursday in the month 2pm to 6pm 

Crafts, Textiles and Dressmaking at The Old Art Room 

93 Market Place. Techniques, Tips, Inspiration in a modern equipped Art 

&Textile Studio. 10am until 12.15 and 12.30 until 2.45 £10 Tel.01760 337181 

Great Massingham Film Night Great films every third Thursday of 

the month. 7 for 7.30 at the Village Hall, Station Road. £4 with refreshments. 

Email:massinghamfilmnight@gmail.com or phone 01485 520628. 

Happidojo Marham Judo Club Sandringham Centre 

PE33 9NP Contact Colin McCallum on 07905 278857 or www. 

happidojomarhamjudoclub.btckco.uk for details. 

Henchmans Board games. £2.50 per person. 7-11pm. Henchmans, 13 Station 

Street, Swaffham. 01760 788427. New players always welcome (over 18) 

Holme Hale Carpet Bowls Every Thursday 7-9pm, Holme Hale 

Community Hall. No experience or equipment needed. £2 

4 

5

Iceni Stitchers Ladies group meeting on 3rd Thursday of the month at 

Swaffham Community Centre, 1.30 - 4.30pm. Kate Davies 01760 622254 

Kickboxing Club Juniors 5+ 5pm – 6pm, Inters 6-7pm, Adults 7pm – 

8.30pm Plowright Place. Call Trevor on 07585707196 

Kirtan for Health Relax and enjoy the meditative benefits whilst 

singing/chanting beautiful songs and ancient mantras. Sessions every 

other Thursday. £6 including refreshments. For details contact Chris on 

07957 405823 or chrissywillis57@yahoo.co.uk 

Free Lipreading Classes for people with an acquired hearing loss. 

Thursday’s at 10 am to noon in the Catholic Church Rooms, 31 Station 

Road, Swaffham. Contact Hayley at lipreadingwithhayley@gmail.com 

RAF Marham Food and Craft Market 1st Thursday 12am to 5 pm. 

Sandringham Centre Upper Marham PE33 9NP (Behind Spar) 07766 078123 

Mothers’ Union The Swaffham branch of the Mothers’ Union – the largest 

organisation within the Church of England – usually meets on the 2nd Thursday 

of the month. Enquiries to Julia 720041 

Swaffham Lioness Club First Thurs of every month, 7.30pm in Our 

Lady of Pity Catholic Church rooms, Station St., Swaffham. Enjoy friendship 

whilst serving the community. All ladies welcome. Tel: 01760 723377 

Pilates 3 – 4pm, Swaffham Community Centre. Call Di Graham – 01328 

851970 – before your first session. 

Swaffham Rugby Football Club Seniors 17+ training 7:30-9, 

Salsa 7-9pm Swaffham Assembly Rooms. 07912366661 

Swaffham Sparklers Swaffham branch of the Red Hat Society meets 

2nd Thurs of the month, 7 pm: Jill Neale 01760 723466 

RockaVoX Every Thursday, 7pm - 9pm, Swaffham Community Centre. 

Contact Tiggy on jdtmusic@hotmail.co.uk for more information. 

Tom’s Kickboxing Academy 6pm - 7pm Juniors, 7pm - 8.15pm Seniors 

(16+) , Shipdham Pavillion IP25 7LU 

U3A The Wissey U3A 1st Thursday of the month at Holme Hale 

Pavilion, 09.45 - 12 noon. Annual Memb. £10. Contact 01760 721247. 

Weight Watchers 10-11am Swaffham Community Centre. 

Cheryl 07941 319 742 

Youthie Plus 5:30 – 7pm, Swaffham Community Centre. 

For years 6, 7 & 8 Free entry. Contact 01760 722800 for more info. 

Youthie Hub 7.30 - 9pm, Swaffham Community Centre. Age 13 +. Contact 

01760 722800 for more info. 

West Acre Carpet Bowls Club West Acre Village Hall, 2 - 4pm. £2 

per session. Equipment and refreshments provided – all welcome. Tel: 

Belinda 01760 755184 or Betty 01760 755235 

Email: Belinda_Bush@hotmail.com 

FRIDAY 

2nd Swaffham Guides Term time only, 18:30 - 20:30. Methodist Church 

Rooms. Girls aged 10 - 16yrs invited to join. Contact 07769294414 

Acoholics Anonymous Every Friday at 1pm in Parish Rooms at St 

Dominic’s RC Church,Howdale Rd, Downham Market 

Adult Ballet For Beginners 6:15pm See Monday’s Senior’s Keep Fit 

Age Concern-Swaffham Support Services at Community Centre 

Volunteer recruitment 10.30am - 12.00 noon 1st Friday of the month 

Adult Tap 7:15pm See Monday’s Senior’s Keep Fit 




materials and refreshments. Call 01760 723624 to book. 

Art, Printing and Paper Craft Session at The Old Art Room 

93 Market Place. Techniques, Tips, Inspiration and printing presses in a modern 

equipped Art &Textile Studio. 10am until 12.30 £10 Tel.01760 337181 

Bingo at Narborough Community Centre Doors 7pm, eyes-down 

7.45pm Contact Brenda 01760 337916 

Swaffham Bellringers Practice St. Peter & St. Paul Church, 7:30pm on 

the Friday preceding the 2nd Sunday of the month. Beginners welcome. Tel: 01760 

724944/lindaringer0447@gmail.com 

Swaffham Carpet Bowls Community Centre. 2 hours from 6.30 for £3. 

Tea & biscuits inc. Call Alan on 01760 723 910 

Coffee Morning At Ashill Community Centre 2nd Friday every 

month, 10am until noon. 01760 441 651 

Country Music Last Friday of each month at the communal lounge at 

Valentine Barker Court, 7.30 to 22.30. Families and friends, free raffle & donations 

for Wish Upon a Star children’s cancer charity. 0370 192 4797 

Games Evening & Social 2nd Friday/month Swaffham Baptists Church 

Hall - 7:30. All welcome 

Swaffham’s Green Gym Friday 8.30am Recreation Ground, Haspalls Rd 

Henchmans Early Friday Night Magic at Henchmans, 13 Station Street. 2pm 

to 6pm. Friday Night Magic at Henchmans from 7pm. 01760788427 

Iceni Lunch Club Swaffham Community Centre, £6.50 for two 

courses and tea/coffee every Friday 12.30pm. 01760 722 800 

Indoor Market Swaffham Assembly Rooms 9am-2pm, free entry. 

Refreshments, various stalls… bookings contact Haydn 07957 862 239 

6 

Judo Sacred Heart School 6-7:30pm £2.50 5 years+ Tel. 07920440235 

Oasis Messy Church 6pm every 3rd Friday Fun event for all ages. £1. 

www.facebook.com/oasiscentreswaffham 

Rise and shine Baby & Toddler Group: 10am - 12noon. Large play area. 

£1.50 per adult/chld. 50p any extra persons. Incl drink & a biscuit 

Screen Printing Session 10am-2pm. The Old Art Room Swaffham. Learn 

how to design, make and print your own screen on many different surfaces. 

£20 the session additional cost for materials. Tel 01760 337181 or email jane on 

je.clark176@btinternet.com 

Senior Snooker (60 years +) @ The Norfolk Snooker Academy, West 

Acre £4 per session Facebook - Norfolk Snooker Academy 01760 755337 

Sporle Art Group Meets every Friday at 1pm-3pm. in the community hall. No 

tuition given, bring your own materials. Free intro then £2 per week. 01760 724615 

Swaffham Senior Section Term time only. 19:30- 21:00. For young 

women aged 14 to 25yrs. Contact Tracey Clements 07770236689 or Chrissie 

Brown 07970105771 

Tai Chi for Health 10am. Swaffham Community Centre. Tel: 01760 

723102 or barbara.smith58@yahoo.co.uk http://www.academytaichi.co.uk 

Yoga at Dunham Village Hall 10.30am till 12.00pm, £8 per session, 

please contact Jayne on 07544974342 

SATURDAY 

Swaffham Bingo Club Community Centre last Sat in month, 7pm for 

7:30pm start. £2.50 annual membership, 50p for visitors. 

Paul Darby 01760 622725 

Buzzbox A hive of activity for young families, 10am to noon. On the 3rd 

Saturday of each month, in the parish church. Each session has a themed 

‘Sharing Circle’; illustrated and acted stories from the Bible; children’s 

discussions; songs; prayers; and birthday celebrations. All are welcome. 

Children’s Art Club 1st Saturday of the Month. 10am until 12.15 £10 

All Equipment, Snack and Drink provided Tel. 01760 337181 

Childrens Sewing and Textile 2nd Saturday Monthly for over 7-14 yrs 

10-1.15pm at The Old Art Room Swaffham. £15 a session addtional cost for 

materials 01760 337181 or email Jane on je.clark176@btinternet.com 

Henchmans Warhammer Day. Join us for a day of playing, painting and 

modelling in store. from 10am to 5pm. £3 for the entire day or part thereof. 

All ages welcome. Customers are welcome to bring their existing models to 

paint and battle with but we do now stock Games Workshop paints, models 

& accessories. Terrain/accessories and rules for in-store battles are provided. 

13 Station Street, Swaffham. 01760 788427 

Over 14's Textiles The Old Art Room Swaffham. 10am-2pm £15 a session 

addtional cost for materials 01760 337181 or email Jane on je.clark176@ 

btinternet.com 

Parkrun Every Saturday at 9am on the filed adjacent to the Nicholas Hamond 

Academy, Brandon Rd, Swaffham. For further details contact David Wickerson: 

davidwickerson@btinternet.com 

Pentney Country Music Club www.pentneycowlsclub.co.uk 

weekly 01760 337 392 karenpentneycountryclub12@yahoo.co.uk 

Pilates Class 9-10.15am All Saints Centre, Church Lane, Boughton. 

Beginners welcome. £8 per session. 07515834729 

Pokemon; Yu-Gi-Oh! Magic: The Gathering for beginners alternate 

Sat. www.henchmans.com. Children welcome. 10.30am – 2pm 

Swaffham Market Traditional market, now 800 years old! Every 

Saturday 6am until 3pm. Swaffham Market Place. Details 01760 722 922 

Swaffham Rugby Football Club SwaffhamRUFC@outlook.com 

West Norfolk Crafters & Needleworkers Stitchers, crafters and 

knitters who meet at Leziate Village Hall on the 2nd Sat. 01553 765870 

SUNDAY 

Henchmans Yu-Gi-Oh trading card game from 12 noon until 4pm. £2.50 per 

person.Regular friendly tournaments. Konami registered store. Henchman’s, 13 

Station Street, Swaffham PE37 7LL. 

Kuk Sool Won Narborough Com. Centre 5.30 - 6.30pm. 07541261713 

Pentney Indoor Bowls Club bowls coaching for beginners and 

improvers Sundays 10am - 12noon. G Freezer 01760 722262 

Star Wars @ Henchmans 12-4pm www.henchmans.com 

Swaffham Rugby Football Club Minis 10:30-12. Games see Saturday 

Snooker @ The Norfolk Snooker Academy West Acre 

3 hours play £9. Facebook - Norfolk Snooker Academy 01760-755337 

Spiritual Awareness Group Most Sundays 5:15pm to 6:30pm for 

Healing and 6:30pm to 8:30pm Service at Swaffham Community Centre 

Icenima - You decide 

For those of you who don’t already know, we 

show a film in the Community Centre on the third 

Wednesday of each month at 2pm. We try to select 

a varied choice of films to cater for all tastes, but 

realise we might not always get it right. Therefore, 

we want to ask for your suggestions, would you like 

more comedy, drama or documentaries? 

You can send in suggestions to swaffhamnewsletter@ 

gmail.com or contact us on Facebook, just search for 

‘Iceni Partnership’. We may even set up an online 

poll so you can vote for your favourite from the ideas 

sent in. It would be great to widen our audience, so 

please get in touch. 

7 

Volunteers Needed For WNDA 

West Norfolk Deaf Association (WNDA) are looking for 

kind, patient and helpful Hearing Support Volunteers 

in the Swaffham area. Our Hearing Support Volunteers 

support people who wear NHS hearing aids. They do 

this by: 

• explaining how the hearing aids work and how 

to look after them • helping people put them in 

properly • supplying and replacing batteries • 

replacing tubing • cleaning the hearing aid and 

mould • diagnosing faults and repairing where 

possible • making referrals to Audiology • providing 

information on assistive technology • referring 

people to the Sensory Support unit. 

We provide full training and supervised sessions until 

our volunteers feel confident to visit people in their 

own homes, care homes and to provide cover at our 

monthly drop-ins at GP surgeries. You can volunteer 

for as little as two hours a month. 

Volunteers will need to be checked by the Disclosure 

and Barring Service (formally CRB) and will be provided 

with training for dealing with Vulnerable Adults. 

Our volunteers are the lifeblood of our organisation 

and provide a vital service to deaf and hard of hearing 

people. We would love to hear from you if you feel 

that you would be interested in this rewarding role. 

Our volunteers say that watching someone put their 

hearing aids in and being able to hear again is an 

amazing feeling; it makes such a difference to their 

lives. Please join our small, friendly team and make 

a difference to the lives of many isolated people. 

Proposed Litcham School Bus Service 

Parents is currently investigating and collating 

numbers of students living in the Swaffham area who 

are interested in transport via bus from Swaffham 

to Litcham School and return during School term 

(starting September 2019.) 

If parents/carers are interested in this proposed 

service and would like more information please 

contact Mick on 07760 252576 or Krissie on 07739 

746482 (after 5pm weekdays).

The Nicholas Hamond Academy 

Celebrating International Women’s Day 

International Women’s Day did not go 

unmarked at TNHA. A group of our Year 10 girls were 

invited to take part in a conference at The Nest in 

Norwich. Guest speakers shared their inspirational 

stories as well as focusing on the future of women's 

careers. The second part of the day was organised 

by Vattenfall who are investing in the renewable 

energy sector here in Norfolk. Overall, it was an 

exceptional day, our students, the next generation 

of inspirational women, thoroughly enjoyed this 

fantastic opportunity and were a credit to the 

academy. 

International Day Of Happiness 

International Day of Happiness is the day when 

people around the world aim to appreciate the 

people and things in 

life that bring true 

happiness. Our Year 

8 students got into 

the spirit of the day 

really enjoying their 

drama class (their 

own interpretation of 

the Three Pigs ‘with 

a twist’). Our Year 9 

students proved that 

there is nothing that 

makes most of smile 

more than tasty, well-prepared food, whilst learning 

all about wonderful traditional dishes served to 

celebrate Chinese New Year. 

Raising Awareness Of Autism 

Silly socks were the 

order of the day for 

staff at TNHA to raise 

awareness of autism. 

Students from across 

the academy took 

part in a ‘Fun Run’ 

adding proceeds to 

the cause. Great fun 

in support of the 

national awareness effort! 

8 

Workshop With Actor Frazer Hammill 

Actor Frazer Hammill joined our Year 9 & 10 students 

for a Drama Workshop after they were lucky enough 

to catch the play in which he plays a lead role, as part 

of the national tour. The workshop forms part of a 

study into the approaches used in this classic tale of 

a Yorkshire night out which has been re-booted for 

the 21st century. 

Celebrating Sporting Success 

The Sixth Annual Sports Awards Evening celebrated 

over 130 students recognised for their sporting 

achievements during the past academic year. 

Categories for nominations included showing 

excellent progress in lessons and demonstrating an 

outstanding ability in specific sports or exams. The 

guest speaker this year was sports journalist, Sarah 

Juggins. She shared her experience of her journey in 

writing the award-winning book, The History Makers, 

which tells the story of the Women's GB Hockey team 

winning Gold at the Rio Olympics. 

TNHA Sports Person of the Year 2019, Oli Wynne (Y10) 

with Sarah Juggins. 

The Parish Church of St Peter & St Paul 

The May services in Swaffham parish church will be 

as follows:- 

Wednesday 1st 

10.00am 

Holy Communion (BCP) 

Sunday 5th 

8.00am 

Holy Communion 

9.30am 

Sung Eucharist 

6.00pm 

Evensong (BCP) 

Wednesday 8th 

10.00am 


Sunday 12th 

8.00am 


9.30am 


Wednesday 15th 

10.00am 


Sunday 19th 

8.00am 


9.30am 


11.15am 

Family Service 

Wednesday 22nd 

10.00am 


Sunday 26th 

8.00am 


11.00am 

Rogation Sunday Service at 

Town Farm, Sporle, followed by bring-and-share 

lunch (this is a united benefice service in place of the 

usual 9.30am service at Swaffham) 

Wednesday 29th 

10.00am 

Thursday 30th 

10.00am 

NB 

Sunday 2nd June 

8.00am 

9.30am 

6.00pm 


Ascension Day 

Holy Communion (CW) 



Evensong (BCP) 

Christian Aid Week 

The 2019 Christian Aid week will take place between 

the 12th – 18th May – please look out for the National 

TV campaign. The Swaffham street collection, 

organised by Swaffham Churches Together, will take 

place on the 18th May from 9am to 12noon and the 

local volunteer collectors will be out and about the 

town centre on this date - or you can use a donation 

envelope which will be available at local churches. 

Christian Aid Week was founded by the Christian 

Church, and every May, for more than 60 years, 

thousands of churches across Britain and Ireland 

have collected vital cash to help the world's most 

vulnerable people. 

Do please help us this May to raise money and act for 

the world's poorest people - together we can make 

a difference. 

9 

Mothers’ Union 

The Swaffham branch of the MU usually meets on 

the 2nd Thursday of the month - now in the Baptist 

Rooms - and the next meeting will be on Thursday 9th 

May at 10.00am. The speaker will be Mr Tim Lenton 

on the subject of ‘The Paston Family’. Coffee/tea is 

served from 9.30am. Enquiries to Julia on 720041 

Buzzbox 

Buzzbox is a ‘hive of activity’ for young families at 

10.00 am to 12.00 noon on the 3rd Saturday of each 

month, in the parish church. Each session is varied, 

and with a themed ‘Sharing Circle’, together with 

illustrated and acted stories from the Bible, and/or 

activities, crafts, children’s discussions, songs and 

prayers, and birthday celebrations. The next meeting 

will be in church at 10.00am on Saturday 18th May. 

All parents and children are most welcome. 

Coffee Morning By The Mothers’ Union 

Saturday 18rd May 2019 in the Parish Church, 

9.30am – 12 noon. ‘Bring and Buy’ stall (donations 

will be welcome). 

Parish Church Stewarding 

The Parochial Church Council (PCC) try to keep the 

parish church open during the day, for visitors and 

those wishing to have some solitude or personal and 

silent prayer. The PCC also tries to ensure that there is 

at least one steward at all times to welcome visitors. 

Most of the stewards (sometimes called ‘churchsitters’) 

come from members of the congregation, 

but the PCC would like to encourage anyone else, 

who would like to assist in this way, to volunteer 

the occasional hour or so. This would be much 

appreciated and if you wish to be involved in this way 

please contact Mrs Sheila Fowler 01760 722224 

Churches Together 

A date for your diaries. Swaffham & District Churches 

Together members and friends are invited to come 

along to a `Bring n Share` picnic on Saturday 8th 

June from 2.30pm to 4.30pm. The venue is The 

Community Centre, Campingland, Swaffham. Please 

come along to share a friendly social afternoon - 

hopefully bathed in warm sunshine.

Swaffham Methodist Church 

Thurs 2nd May "The Meeting Place" drop in with 

Tradecraft stall 10am -12noon. Tea/coffee & biscuits 

available. All are welcome. 

Fri 3rd May Power of Prayer 9.30am. 

Sat 4th May Coffee Morning 9.30am -12noon. 

Sun 5th May Morning Worship 10.45am followed by 

refreshments. 

Tues 7th May "The Meeting Place" drop in 10am 

-12noon. Tea/coffee & biscuits available. All are 

welcome. 

Thurs 9th May "The Meeting Place" drop in 10am 


welcome. 

Thurs 9th May Thursday Group 2.30pm - 4pm. Jill 

Bowers talks about "Hotels in the 40's & 50's". All 

welcome. Refreshments served. 

Fri 10th May Power of Prayer 9.30am. 


Sun 12th May 10.45am Morning Worship led by 

Revd Andrew King. Followed by refreshments. 



welcome. 



welcome. 



Sun 19th May Morning Worship 10.45am. Local 

Arrangement led by Worship Leaders. Followed by 

refreshments. 

Tues 21st May "The Meeting Place" drop in 10am 


welcome. 

Thurs 23rd May "The Meeting Place" drop in 10am 


welcome. 

Thurs 23rd May Thursday Group 2.30pm - 4pm. Final 

meeting before Summer break. 



Sun 26th May Morning Worship 10.45am followed 

by refreshments. 

Mon 27th May Ploughmans Lunch 11.30am -1pm. 

Cost £7 including dessert and tea/coffee. 



welcome. 



welcome. 

Fri 31st May Power of Prayer 9.30am. 

Swaffham & Sporle Church 

All of May is in the Easter season, which lasts 

for 50 days, and it is full of joyful celebrations of 

christenings and weddings too. Easter, when we 

celebrate Jesus Christ rising from the dead, is what is 

known as a ‘moveable feast’, worked out according 

to a very complex system, and this year the date fell 

almost as late as it possibly can (21st April). With the 

Easter flowers in church and in the churchyard, the 

church is looking beautiful for our many visitors: it 

is a season which is all about new life and hope. The 

fabric team has also been working hard on renewal, 

with replacement of the one remaining ‘green’ 

window in progress, thanks to generous donations, 

and with a project underway to preserve our stained 

glass for future generations. Many thanks to all who 

have already offered help, such as the Pot of Gold 

(Swaffham Shanty Crew) who provided wonderful 

entertainment, and 

others who have 

given of their time 

and money. More 

information will be 

available in church 

and on our website 

https://www.swaffhamparishchurch.org/ 

The Ascension Day service at the parish church 

will be a Holy Communion service with hymns at 

10am. on Thursday 30th May. The Easter season 

runs right though to Pentecost (Whit Sunday) which 

falls on Sunday 9th June this year and will include 

a Confirmation service at 4pm in the parish church, 

with the Bishop of Lynn – all welcome. From 

Ascension Day (Thursday 30th May) until Pentecost 

there will be special events in many of the churches 

across the country, as part of the Thy Kingdom Come 

wave of prayer initiative, so do look out as these are 

announced. 

With every good wish. 

Revd. Janet Allan, 

Vicar of Swaffham and Sporle 

Donations of food 

are always gratefully 

received. If you have 

any ingredients to 

spare you could help 

give someone a meal. 

Merle Boddy Centre 

Margaret celebrated her 90th birthday at the centre 

with balloons and 

cake, which was 

specially made by our 

in house chef Jennie. 

Margaret, you don't 

look a day over 70! 

Thank you to all 

who turned up and 

supported us at the 

charity race night. 

The lovely ladies 

pictured below came 

out winners. Thank 

you to Linda for her 

selling skills at the 

raffle, Paul for the use of the room, Necton Sports 

and Social Club for the professional way they they 

kept crowd control. Commentating was provided by 

Woody, Janet, Kim, Alan and Shep. Finally, a thank 

you must go to Tesco for providing bread and cheese 

and of course all my staff who support me in these 

fund raising events. 

St David's day was 

celebrated with a 

beautiful display 

of daffodils and 

a quiz on Wales, 

then we had St 

Patrick's day with 

a leprechaun and a 

pot of gold game, 

lunch was stout 

and beef casserole 

with chocolate and 

Guinness cake for 

pudding. 

As many of you know Tesco have a bookcase full of 

brilliant secondhand books and the donations go to 

charities. Our thanks go to Candy for choosing us as 

the named charity, the amount raised was £94.67. 

We would like to take this opportunity to thank 

Candy for all her help and wish her every success in 

her new job at Kings Lynn Tesco. 

Thank you Sylvia for a massive amount of wool. As 

you are reading this it is already being made into 

blankets by Jeanette, our very busy crochet expert. 

They will be raffled off later in the year. 

We may not be able to 

race any more but we 

had fun with a pancake 

game, where skill came 

before stealth! Flipping 

the pancake and lots of 

laughter was the order 

of the game. 

These chicks were made by the very talented Pam 

Tallon and donated to us. They have a cream egg 

inside, yummy or what?! 

Linda our lovely lady from Swaffham bingo organised 

a tombola and raised £90. Thank you to everyone 

who took part and of course a huge thanks to Linda. 

If you need day care for your loved one who is living 

with dementia please give me a ring to discuss details 

ask for Georgie or Steph 01760 724527. 

10 

11

Swaffham & District Lions 

Sixteen Swaffham Lions enjoyed 

a 10 pin bowling evening at 

Fakenham. Following a meal at 

a local restaurant the bowling 

competion started with ten members competing. 

With much banter and a considerable lack of skill, 

from some members, Pam Tallon emerged as the 

winner retaining the ladies trophy from last year, 

Tony Lakey came a close second and received the 

men’s trophy. The Trophies were presented by Lion 

President John Collins. 

Forget the Grand National; Swaffham Lions held their 

own Charity Race Night in aid of the East Anglian Air 

Ambulance and Home-Start in Swaffham Assembly 

Rooms. With eight filmed races the packed audience 

of over 100 enjoyed the thrills of watching their horse 

compete and sometimes win. The winning owner of 

each race won a bottle of Champagne which was 

presented by Past President Pam Tallon. The evening 

raised £2300 for the charities. 

Marham Village Preschool is run as a non-profit 

charity. The day-to-day running costs of the 

preschool are quite high, so they often have to resort 

to fundraising for larger purchases. Swaffham Lions 

were only too glad to support them in their quest 

to provide an outdoor play area that could be used 

all year round. The project will cost between £5- 

6K and will involve laying artificial turf in the play 

area. The manager, Julie Walkey, said that the £250 

donation from Swaffham Lions was a great start to 

their fundraising for the project. Two children Izzy 

& Madison presented Lion President, John Collins, 

with a wonderful handmade Lion thank you card. 

Swaffham Lions were awarded the Scribe of the 

Year trophy at the East Anglia Lions Convention. The 

award is in recognition of 

the amount of articles and 

photographs submitted to 

the Lions Roar Magazine 

about the work that 

Swaffham Lions do in the 

community. This is the 

fourth time in in past five 

years that the award has 

gone to Swaffham Lions. 

The award was presented 

by Lion President John 

Collins to Dennis Tallon Swaffham Lions Press Officer. 

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12 

Swaffham Lions have two new members, David and 

Diana Merchant, who have just moved into the area 

from Newbury, where they were both members of 

the Lions. David and Diana, who are retired from an 

educational background, have a history of working 

with the Lions and both have held senior offices in 

the organisation. They were welcomed into the club 

by Lion President John Collins. 

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Beachamwell WI 

April’s WI meeting was all about 

fitness and health. Our speaker, Susi 

Hancock, gave us an entertaining 

and informative talk and demonstration, with tips 

and suggestions for different ways to keep strong 

and supple into “advancing years”. She showed us 

exercises which can be slotted easily into everyday 

routines. So we will now all be standing on one leg 

while we brush our teeth! A competition to devise a 

healthy snack was a delicious follow up. 

Because of elections, May’s meeting will be at 

Barton Bendish village hall. On May 2nd, our speaker 

will be Diana Mullis, who specialises in storytelling. 

It promises to be another entertaining evening. As 

always, visitors are very welcome to come along. 

Enquiries to Helen Ranger 01366 328589 

Maggie Mackenzie 

The Pickenhams WI 

Our new WI Banner made by some 

of our members was unveiled and 

we sang Jerusalem. Phylida Scrivens 

our speaker then spoke about her book “Escaping 

Hitler”. This described 

the life of Gunter Stern 

a 14year old Jewish 

lad who eventually 

escaped to England 

changed his name to 

Joe Stirling and finally 

created Stirling Travel 

at Attleborough. He 

was made a Sheriff of 

Norwich in 1975 for his 

charity work with the 

Lions International and 

he is still alive today. 

Reports - 

Members who went to the Annual federation 

Meeting thoroughly enjoyed it particularly Pam 

Ayres. 

Future Plans in May - 

Sat 4th May - “Walking the World your Way 2019". 

Leaving the Blue Lion at 2pm for a circular walk. 

Tuesday 21st May - Coffee and Chat. 10.30am at 

Tutankhamen Coffee Shop, Swaffham. 

May Meeting - 14th May 2pm in North Pickenham 

Church. Speaker - Heather Flint. “ Smocking Past and 

Present”. Competition - A Smocked Garment, either 

your own work or somebody else's. 

Interested need more information. Ring Melonie 

Cousins - 01760 440456. 

Sporle Afternoon WI 

What a lovely month March turned 

out to be - a truly spring time and 

what a lovely speaker we had. A 

representative from The Dogs Trust accompanied by 

her most attentive and well behaved assistant gave 

us a detailed and informative presentation, all about 

the work that this charity does. They never turn a 

dog away. Sometimes, very rarely, is it necessary 

to put a dog to sleep. We all love to see dogs and 

give them a loving ”pat” and some people think they 

can handle having one at home but all to often this 

proves impossible and the Dogs Trust are often the 

only ones willing or able to step in. 

A happy afternoon with friends, a good speaker, 

tea and cake and plans for the coming year. May's 

meeting is when we discuss the WI’s resolutions for 

2020 and then a long time member of the WI is going 

to tell us of her amazing Life & Times much of which 

was spent in Sporle. The mother of 5 children who is 

now in her 89th year has quite a story to tell! 

Sporle Afternoon WI each 3rd Tuesday of the month 

l.45pm – 4pm – visitors welcome £3.50 per visit if 

not a member of the WI. 

Swaffham WI 

On Friday 12th April 2019 the 

Centenary of the Woman’s Institute 

was celebrated by the Norfolk 

Federation of WI’s in Norwich Cathedral. Four 

ladies from Swaffham WI attended the event, they 

are pictured below, L to R: Maggie Clews, Jose 

Strong, Jo Trick and Fiona Walker 

Offering a wide variety of affordable transport to get you on the move. 

SWAFFHAM FLYER 

A regular, fully accessible, 

service for the Swaffham area. 

DIAL-A-BUS 

A fully accessible, door to door 

service for the rural communities. 

The @LITTLE_BIG_BUS service you can trust 

Please call 01760 720906, 

email enquiries@wnct.co.uk 

or visit www.wnct.co.uk 

for all your transport needs! 

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A regular, local bus service, 

operating in multiple locations. 

VOLUNTEERS 

A door to door service provided 

by our volunteer drivers. Covering all kinds of 

transport from GP, Hospital and Dental 

appointments to social trips. 

Registered Charity Number: 1069180 

01760 788407 

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14

Do y 

Age Concern Swaffham & District 

For our March members’ meeting we had a most interesting talk all about Oxbrough Hall, 

which of course included all the problems they have had recently when one of the dormer 

windows fell into the courtyard. As a result there has been a full survey of the building 

and of course other urgent work has been revealed the repairs for which are ongoing. If 

you haven’t been to one of our meetings before, and you are 55 years or over, do please 

come along to one of our “in house” meetings (see below). You can join our Group (a 

registered charity) there – we usually meet on the last Tuesday in each month, 2pm in the 

Assembly Rooms. You can also contact our Membership Secretary Vicky, see details below. 

The annual membership subscription is £5. 

Upcoming events are: 

• May 28th AGM (in house) plus Musical Quiz 

• June 18th (note date) – Trip out, Broads sailing trip – Wroxham to Horning and Bure Valley Railway. 

• July 30th Talk on The Samaritans and an entertainer. 

For trips out, our contact is John 

Clarke, 720140. Acting Chairman, 

Barbara White, 720756, Deputy 

Chair, Barbara Clarke, 720140, 

Treasurer, Keith Nash, 724801; 

Membership Secretary, Vicky 

Slater, 627031. General factotum 

– James Dean 720756. For the AGM on May 28th our Committee is keen to encourage members of Age 

Concern to volunteer as new Committee members, especially to help organise the various events we are 

already planning for the rest of the year. Anyone interested, please contact Barbara White, phone as above, 

or barbarawhite346@btinternet.com. 

16 

Befrienders & Hospital 

Buddy Drivers Needed 

You can make a difference 

Befriending Client 

"I really look forward to seeing my Volunteer 

Befriender. He always cheers me up.” 

Hospital Buddy Client 

“Having someone with me at my appointment, 

took away all the worry.” 

Do you have 1-2 hours free a week? 

Do you enjoy driving? Or maybe just 

visiting a lonely elderly person near to you 

Are you caring, compassionate and a good 

listener? 

If YES, we NEED you to join our team of 

fantastic Volunteers… 

We are here to 

improve the 

quality of older 

people in 

Swaffham & the 

villages nearby 

Tel: 07393 981 295 

EMAIL: swaffhamsss16@outlook.com 

www.swaffhamsupportservices.co.uk 

The Community Centre, Campingland, Swaffham. PE37 7RB 

SCALGA 

Greetings from the allotments. 

We were saddened to hear of the death of Brian 

Baxter our Honorary President. Brian was one of the 

original initiators of SCALGA. At that time there was 

great concern about the closing down of some areas 

of the allotments. Plot holders were enraged and 

public meetings were held. Without his help and 

knowledge, SCALGA would not be in the position it 

is today. 

Brian was a passionate crusader for growing without 

harmful pesticides, he was firmly convinced of 

their long lasting detrimental effect on the soil and 

subsequently the produce we eat. Hopefully his 

doctrine will be taken on board for future growing. 

We shall certainly miss him. 

On a happier note, the start to spring was warmer 

than usual although the high winds once again 

wreaked havoc on the allotments. We lost new 

covering to two of our sheds; a table was picked up 

and smashed along with fence panels, luckily the 

chicken shed stayed put. Hey Ho, now we have to 

get everything put back together again to enable us 

to get on with normal growing. 

Because of the warmer March we got our potatoes 

in earlier than we would normally do and kept our 

fingers crossed that we would not get a hard frost. As 

we move about the plots we can see others thought 

the same and small plants are showing. 

April is the time to start off all the tasty summer 

produce, tomato seeds, sweetcorn, cucumber, 

lettuce etc. can be grown in a propagator or indoors 

ready to transplant when the weather is warmer. 

A fact about lettuce 

Lettuce is thought to have been cultivated by the 

Egyptians as long ago as 4500BC The Romans first 

brought it to Britain 2000 years ago and Gerard’s 

Herball of 1597 lists eight varieties. It is sleepinducing; 

the white juices that run from the cut stem 

have similar properties to opium or laudanum, but 

are not as strong. 

Now we know, watch out for mass lettuce production. 

Forward dates for your diary. 

• AGM, 29th May 7pm in the Assembly Rooms. 

• Best Kept Allotment judging. 10th July. 

• BBQ, 11th August, 3pm. 

• Afternoon Tea and Prize giving, 8th September, 

2pm at the Regency Rooms. 

• Christmas Get Together, 14th December, 7.30 pm 

at the Methodist Church School room. 

We have some Starter Plots on the Tumbler Hill site 

still available. If you are interested in taking a plot 

or a starter plot, please call Graham or Jennifer 

Edwards on 07919 888870. 

17 

Swaffham & Litcham Home Hospice 

On the 22nd March we held a successful Quiz at the 

Conservative Club with 16 teams competing. All those 

competing seemed to have enjoyed themselves and 

helped us raise £545 for our funds. After 11 rounds 

of questions, there were only 8 points separating 

the team who finished fourth from the winners. 

Our thanks to everybody who took part and those 

helping with the scoring, selling raffle tickets etc. 

May 11th is the date of our annual street collection 

in Swaffham. We will be collecting from 08.30 to 

13.00 at various points around the Market Place. 

Our thanks in advance to those who will be helping 

with the collection. If you want to know more about 

who we are and what we do, then come and talk to 

us during the morning at our Gazebo which will be 

on the forecourt of Clenshaw Minns in the Market 

Place. Alternatively, if you wish to enquire about 

volunteering, then please ring or call in at our office 

and ask for Wendy Martin, our co-ordinator. Our 

address is 17-19 Brocks Road, Swaffham (just up the 

road from Tesco) –telephone 01760 722937. 

Adrian Adcock 

Benefits for the elderly 

Many older people are entitled to claim benefits – 

but not everyone is aware of what their entitlements 

are, and how to claim. Age UK Norfolk is working 

hard to raise awareness so that those in later life, 

and their carers, can claim; and helping them along 

the way to make those claims. 

The awareness campaign begins in January and the 

charity is aiming to ensure that the people concerned: 

• Will be better informed 

• Know their rights 

• Are claiming their entitlements 

• Are fully informed about attendance allowance, 

pension credit, council tax benefit etc 

• Get the help and assistance they need to claim 

those benefits. 

Age UK Norfolk hopes to achieve this by offering: 

• Benefit entitlement checks. 

• Free and confidential advice about home safety, 

housing, care issues etc. 

• Providing this service in a place of a claimant’s 

choice, either in their own homes, at Age UK 

Norfolk’s premises, in a care 

home, or any other venue 

that is deemed suitable. 

To find out more about 

benefit checks, call the Age 

UK Norfolk advice line on 0300 500 1217, 

Monday-Friday 10am-4pm.

Swaffham Jazz Club 

Lee Vasey Trio and Guests 

For our April session we welcomed back Lee Vasey 

on guitar, Matt Furness on drums, Ian Hireson bass 

guitar and Pete Oxborough clarinet and saxophone, 

along with guest vocalist Stella Goody, all playing to 

a very appreciative audience that filled the room. 

But I have written about this excellent line up before 

so instead of my usual comments on the evening’s 

music I am writing an appreciation of Lee, who is 

one of the best guitarists I have ever heard. He was 

born and brought up in Middlesbrough. At a young 

age he started to visit a local folk club and was 

particularly attracted to the sound of the acoustic 

guitar (electric guitars were not common then). 

At the club he experienced a wide range of music 

including not only British and Irish Folk Songs, but 

also Blues and Jazz. 

At the age of eleven he bought his first acoustic 

guitar, from a second hand shop. He now realises 

how lucky he was as it turned out to be a really good 

instrument. At the age of fifteen he joined his first 

band which was fronted by his elder brother. (His 

brother now lives in London and is a professional 

bass guitar player.) His next major step came when 

he swapped his 8mm film projector for a professional 

standard guitar. During this growing up period he 

never had any guitar lessons, although he took 

lessons on the piano. After having five teachers he 

sailed through Grade 8. He also studied and passed 

A-level music. In both working through the grades 

and studying for his A-level, all the music had to be 

classical. (Nowadays there are exams for both Rock 

and Jazz.) The performers he most admired when 

growing up were the jazz guitarist Barny Kessel and 

the rock guitarists Jimmy Hendrix and Eric Clapton. 

All the above helps explain why Lee can move so 

smoothly through different styles of music. He now 

rates - above all others - the solo acoustic guitarist 

Tommy Emanuel. 

Lee had lived in Manchester, Liverpool, Nottingham 

and the Canary Islands before settling down in 

Norwich where he met his wife. They have been 

married for 26 years and have two daughters. He 

assures me they have no intention of moving out 

of Norfolk as they love it so much, which means we 

will be able to welcome this world class guitarist 

here for many years to come. 

Coming up: 

Tues 14 May at 7.30 pm. Bays River Jazz with a 

Mark Jolley on electric fiddle, Diana Hare and Hugh 

Lynch vocals. 

Tues 11 June at 7.30 pm. Les Prisiennes 

Swaffham Conservative Club 23 London Street, 

PE37 7DD. £8 on the door, 

Geoff and Norman 

The Grange 

Wildlife and Wellbeing – Free Opportunities for All 

at The Grange 

The Grange in Great Cressingham has been 

welcoming people through 

its doors since 2012. In 

particular, we have worked 

closely with organisations 

supporting marginalised 

groups including adults with learning difficulties, 

young people with autism, asylum seekers and 

refugees. The project is based in an old rectory set 

within 10 acres of picturesque grounds bordered 

to the north by the River Wissey. We regularly 

welcome volunteers from the local area and 

beyond to our Workday Wednesdays and Tuesday 

Gardening Clubs. We also have close connections 

with projects such as New Routes and Stepping 

Stones in Norwich, Volunteering Matters and Sail 

Close supported living service based in Gayton. 

Thanks to the Norfolk Community Foundation 

we have recently received grants from Breckland 

Council Match Fund and North Pickenham Wind 

Farm Community Fund to host a year-long series of 

free activities and opportunities open to everyone in 

the local area and designed to get people outdoors 

in a friendly, relaxed and welcoming environment. 

Under the title of ‘Natural Wellbeing in Wayland’, 

activities will include weekly health walks, wildlife 

experience days, family fun afternoons, dawn 

chorus walks, community cooking events, bat & 

moth evenings and opportunities to help out in the 

gardens and grounds on regular volunteer days. 

There will also be a series of craft workshops in 

weaving, pottery, green woodwork, willow work 

and natural dyeing. 

Keep an eye on our Facebook page for all the latest 

news and dates. Search for @thegrangenorfolk. And 

get in touch with Chris McGaw (Centre Manager) on 

coordinator@thegrangenorfolk.org.uk if you’ve got 

any questions or would like to find out more. We 

hope to see you at one of the events soon! 

Swaffham Spiritual Awareness Group 

Meets in the Community Centre, 

Beech Close, Campingland, Swaffham 

at 6.30pm. 

12 May, Trisha Drewery, Norwich 

26 May, BANK HOLIDAY, NO MEETING 

We offer healing from 5.30pm prior to our Sunday services 

Our trained healers can help with various types of pain and tension from 

stress. This service is free although donations are gratefully received. 

CELEBRATING 

President’s Corner 

Swaffham 5 

April saw the end of the first quarter of our “Capture 

Swaffham" 50th Anniversary photographic 

competition with a tremendous 35 entries. The 

winning photographs are shown below: 

YEARS 

Swaffham Reflections by Michael Gattuso 

A lovely shot of the Marching Band and the 

reflections in the brass instruments 

Looking through the Church Gate by Elaine Besfor 

A well spotted shot through the gates of the Church 

Market Cross at Night by Stephen Ward 

Shot in black and white giving the impression of 

the Market area in Winter 

We have said before in introducing the competition 

that we wish to capture the essence of Swaffham in 

2019 so we can compare the town with bygone days 

- as captured by Leslie Kendle’s marvellous collection 

of Victorian and early 20th century photos which are 

now housed in the Museum. To do this I give below 

a suggested list of subjects for photographs which 

would enable this to be done: 

town signs, old houses/new houses, Church Walk/ 

inside Church, shop fronts, people at work, Swaffham 

characters, Hospital, Station Area, sports clubs, aerial 

shots, Shire Hall etc. We would like the young people 

of Swaffham & District to enter, so there are three 

categories: 

• 1. Younger than 11 years old. 

• 2. Less than 18 and older than 11 years old. 

• 3. Over 18 years. We look forward to more entries 

for the second quarter which runs from April 1st to 

June 30th. 

On the 15th May the Rotary Club invites you all to 

enjoy delicious homemade scones and cakes at a 

Purple for Polio afternoon Tea in St. Peter & Paul’s 

Church, Swaffham 2pm to 4.30 pm, entry £4.50 This 

is part of our End Polio Now International Appeal.We 

do not have this dreadful disease but there are still 

parts of the works where it is still endemic, so do 

come along and enjoy! 

At the end of the month the first of the 50th 

Anniversary Town Trails will take place on Wednesday 

May 29th. Sue Gattuso of the Museum will conduct 

the tour around the local places of interest around 

Swaffham town centre giving interesting facts and 

information about the town, its heritage and Egyptian 

interest. The trail starts (and finishes) at the Museum 

at 7.15 pm. It will last approximately one hour. The 

ground underfoot is level throughout and generally 

over paved or metalled roads. It is suitable for both 

push- chairs and wheelchairs. The Trail is free with 

any donations going to Swaffham Heritage. There is 

a maximum of 30 people, so it will be first come first 

served! Further town trails will take place on June 

28th and July 29th. 

It was lovely to see the Prunus Snow Goose tree that 

we donated to the Swaffham Community Garden in 

bloom last month and the Garden Sign restored and 

erected again. 

Malcolm Whittley 

18 

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at time of going to print. 

Tel: 01553 616200 

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COMMUNITY SERVICE 

Providing peace of mind at the 

push of a button; 

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Helping adults in west 

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their community 

Telephone information line 

Online directory 

Lily Advisor home visits 

Community locations 

Careline alarm 

BuddyButton 

(GPS tracker) 

KeySafe 

Tunstall Lifeline 

in association with 

Supporting you to live safely and 

independently in your own home. 

T: 01553 616200 W: careline-cs.org.uk 

E: careline.operators@west-norfolk.gov.uk

Downham Grange 

State of the art, loving care in Downham Market 

Welcome to Downham Grange Care Home, a striking new 

purpose-built development in Downham Market. 

We provide meaningful person-centred exceptional care for those in 

need of residential, respite, nursing or dementia care. 

free meal Mondays 

Join us for a free vegetarian meal on the third Monday of the 

month. Lunch is served from 11am till 1pm in Swaffham Assembly 

Rooms. Please call 01760 722800 if you’d like to attend, 

• mon 21st Jan 

• mon 18th feb 

• mon 18th march 

• mon 15th april 

• mon 20th may 

• mon 17th june 

dates for 2019: 

• mon 15th july 

• mon 19th aug 

• mon 16th sept 

• mon 21st oct 

• mon 18th nov 

• mon 16th dec 

meals cooked with ingredients donated to swaffham community 

fridge. we look forward to dining with you! 


Branch 

01760 

725801 

http://www.family-action.org.uk 

building better families 

Tai Chi for health 

Tai Chi has been found to be beneficial for: 

• Helping relieve arthritis 

• Improving balance & posture 

• Toning muscles 

• Improving mobility 

• Promoting good health 

• Physical & mental wellbeing 

Our classes are relaxed, friendly, fun, 

& a good way of meeting new friends. 

01760 723102 or 07587 567406 

e:academytaichi@yahoo.co.uk 

East Dereham 

Tuesday 11am 


Wednesday 10am 

Friday 10am 

Boasting 62 en-suite bedrooms, the home has 

been finished to the most luxurious standards, 

with extra-wide corridors, a variety of large 

spacious and comfortable lounges and dining 

rooms with kitchenette areas that help to promote 

independence and social inclusion. 

The home has been designed to meet the needs 

of people who require nursing and dementia 

care. This exciting new development meets our 

Kingsley care ethos, responding to individual 

needs and providing the highest standards of care. 

Like all Kingsley Healthcare Homes, our care is 

focused around each person’s individual needs and 

wishes. We value and respect how each person 

chooses to spend their day. 

Our strong ethos of person-centred care runs 

through everything we do. Our staff are all highly 

experienced and receive on-going training to make 

sure that we deliver only the very best quality care. 

We really want to make a difference 

to the lives of the people we care for. 

With this in mind we have built the 

home to the highest specifications, 

giving particular consideration 

to making the design and layout 

suitable for people living with a 

dementia. 

This new home will enable us to 

continue to provide high-quality 

surroundings and environment. It 

will ensure our staff deliver quality 

of service and improve the quality of 

life of our residents every day. 

The staff at Downham Grange go 

that extra mile to make the home 

feel comfortable and relaxed. We 

like Downham Grange to feel like 

a ‘home from home’. We encourage 

people to take part in the daily living 

activities as well as other ongoing 

activities that take place throughout 

the day. 

“It took me just a few 

days to feel at home 

because the staff are 

so welcoming and 

caring” 

www.academytaichi.co.uk 

Under 65 yrs 

Single 

Over 65 yrs 

Single 

Under 65 yrs 

Joint 

Over 65 yrs 

Joint 

1st year initial joining fees £5.00 £5.00 £10.00 £10.00 

1st year initial Association £2.00 £2.00 £4.00 £4.00 

Downham Grange Care Home 

Clackclose Road, Downham Market, 

Norfolk PE38 9PA 

Tel 01366 387054 Fax 01366 385861 

downham.manager@kingsleyhealthcare.co.uk 

www.kingsleyhealthcare.co.uk 

joining fees 

Total 1st Year £24.00 £22.00 £42.00 £38.0 

Thereafter 

£17.00 £15.00 £28.00 £24.00 

Annual full membership

Swaffham History Group 

At our last meeting one of our members, Richard 

Strange, who volunteers with the Museum, gave us 

a very interesting insight into the work he has been 

doing - the mammoth task of going through every 

photograph in the museum archives and starting to 

index them fully on the computer. 

A retired London policeman, Ric was then recruited 

to work with the London Ambulance Service and 

acted as advisor to the police section of their 

museum and ended up as their official archivist. He 

then went on to take a Management and Gallery 

Management degree at Leicester University and 

gained an MA. 

Apart from undertaking his own local researches, 

particularly on WWII and North Pickenham, Ric 

for nearly the past year has been working in the 

museum archive room. In that time he has scanned 

over 10,000 images, discovered practically all of 

the 'missing' items which had been listed (misfiled 

or in the wrong folders etc.) as well as preserving 

some images which had been sadly mishandled. 

The photograph illustrated is of the Swaffham Fire 

Brigade and dated 1st August 1925. Ric digitised 

this from a tiny black/white snap which was torn 

and had both bluetack and cellotape disfiguring it, 

repairing it sufficiently to ensure future researchers 

have something more tangible to use. He is still in 

the process of fully indexing all the images so that 

anyone who needs to see pictures of a particular 

Swaffham scene can see an immediate list. For 

example, the former Bagge Memorial has over 40 

entries. 

Ric supplied all the members with a useful reference 

list of the correct way to the safe handling of 

archives, together with details of the 36 albums of 

images, and the 100s of archive boxes containing a 

variety of subjects. His work continues! 

The History Group can be contacted at 

littlebethany7@gmail.com 

26 

NNAB 

The Norfolk and Norwich Association 

for the Blind (NNAB) is an organisation 

that supports people with sight loss to 

live independent lives. Our offices in West Norfolk, 

Norwich and Great Yarmouth offer a wide range of 

equipment, services, activities and support across 

the county We could not offer all of this without 

the support of our many fantastic volunteers 

who assist us in bringing our services, activities 

and support into communities all across Norfolk. 

Volunteering is a great way of gaining confidence, 

new skills, of meeting people and of taking part in 

the local community. 

We are currently looking for volunteers in the local 

West Norfolk area with opportunities from minibus 

drivers, to sports and leisure activities, telefriends , 

fundraising and much more. 

If you would like to discuss the opportunities we 

have at the NNAB then contact the West Norfolk 

Volunteer Engagement Co-ordinator Penny Parker 

on 01603 630808 or email volunteers@nnab.org. 

uk for a friendly and informal chat and see if we 

have an opportunity that is just right for you. 

Other opportunities are available at our Norwich 

Office and any interest for these should be emailed 

to the same address for the attention of Rachael 

Green. 

Calling all 

budding artists 

Gallery Iceni 

needs you! 

At the Iceni Partnership, we are always looking 

for new art groups, or individuals who would 

like to showcase their work in our 

gallery in the community centre. 

If you or someone you know would be 

interested, then please call us on 

01760 722 800 or pop into the office and speak 

to our gallery co-ordinator Jelena 

FUNERAL SERVICES 

INDEPENDENT FAMILY 

FUNERAL DIRECTORS 

CHAPMANS & 

THORNALLEY 

FUNERAL SERVICES 

Lynn Road, Swaffham, Norfolk PE37 7AY 

24 Hour Caring Personal Service 

Pre-Paid Funeral Plans 

Private Chapels of Rest 

Memorials 

01760 721305 

www.tfs.co.uk 

OWNED & 

MANAGED BY THE 

THORNALLEY FAMILY 

Volunteers 

Needed! 

Do you remember those 

early years?...... 

Sleepless nights, tantrums & teething? 

Home-Start Norfolk would love to hear from you if 

you have parenting experience, We have families 

waiting for support and all we ask is for a couple of 

hours a week commitment. 

We deliver volunteer training preparation courses 

throughout the year. These run for one day a week 

09:30-14:30 over 8 weeks. (term-time only) 

* Volunteers will be subject to an enhanced DBS check. 

So, if you think you can make a difference to a 

family needing a little help contact us today to 

find out more. 

Home-Start Norfolk 

The Community Centre, 

Campinglands, 

Swaffham, PE37 7RB 

Tel: 01603 977040 

Email: 

admin@homestartnorfolk.org 

Registered Charity 1106362 

Welcome to Swaffham 

Community Centre 

Feel free to pop in and admire our 

gallery of work by local artists 

and then treat yourself to tea and 

home made cake in Patisserie Iceni. 

GALLERY 

ICENI 

OPEN WEEKDAYS 9AM - 5PM 

www.iceni.info 01760 722800 

The Campingland, Swaffham PE37 7RB

Wissey U3A 

On the 4th April Mark Walsh gave one of the all-time 

best talks about Music Halls entitled ‘Now there’s a 

funny thing’. Mark's friendly and endearing personality 

took members from the very early days of Music Hall 

with light-hearted anecdotes and reminiscences of 

the Good Old Days to the music halls of today. Mark 

had fine words for Danny La Rue who he’d worked 

with for over 10 years. Mark is an accomplished banjo 

and ukulele player and he played wonderful pieces for 

the members who applauded and gave him a standing 

ovation which, according to one long-time member, 

had never been done before. If I could, I’d get Mark 

back to repeat his presentation all over again every 

month – thank you Mark! There will be a Special 

General Meeting on 2nd May followed by an AGM on 

4th July. A presentation by a representative of the Nat 

West Bank entitled ‘Friends against Scams’ will be on 

6th June. This presentation, which is in conjunction 

with Norfolk Trading Standards and the Police, is sure 

to be very popular with U3A members. 

The U3A is an international movement whose aims are 

the education of retired members of the Community 

or those in their ‘Third Age' of life. U3A membership is 

open to any individual who by definition is not in fulltime 

gainful employment, so anyone working ‘parttime’ 

can also apply for membership. By definition, 

the U3A is non-political and non-religious. Wissey 

U3A meetings are held at Holme Hale’s Pavilion on 

the first Thursday of the month from 09.45 until 12.00 

mid-day. 

For anyone of a certain age (!) and new to the area, 

membership of the U3A a good and quick way to get 

to know others and to find one’s way around. If you 

have a hobby or pastime which you would like to share 

with others why not make enquires about joining the 

Wissey U3A. Group leaders only need an interest in 

a subject and be prepared to share their knowledge 

with other like-minded members. 

Members of the Wissey U3A can take part in a wide 

variety of activities such as Art, Hand-bell Ringing, 

Table Tennis and Walking. There are currently over 30 

interest activity groups. 

For more information about the U3A movement, go 

to www.u3a.org.uk or visit the Wissey Homepage at 

www.u3asites.org.uk/wissey. Annual membership of 

the Wissey U3A is currently £10. 

Swaffham Man's Allotment Journey 

Swaffham resident Ralph Butters took on his first 

allotment in the town in 1959 at the age of 24, now at 84 

he is still a regular gardener on his plot. 

Ralph's family always had an allotment and he grew up 

working on the family plot with his father and brother. 

Ralph's first solo allotment was located on Day's Field and 

now he is on Tumbler Hill. His current plot was worked 

first by his uncle, then by his father, with Ralph taking 

it over around 30 years ago. Both of Ralph's allotments 

were extremely well kept and he has won numerous 

awards for his allotment, mostly 1st and 2nd, but a few 

highly commended too. 

Over the years Ralph's produce has been enjoyed by lots 

of family and friends, well done Ralph! 

Pictured above: Ralph's plot on Tumbler Hill looking abundent with 

vegetables planted in neat rows. Below: The man himself! 

Even ironing! 

PROFESSIONAL DOG GROOMING 

Qualified and Insured 

For appointments and enquires 

contact Donna Smith on 

01760-336527 or 07905825333 

9 Swaffham Road, Cockley Cley PE37 8AW 

Tracy: 01362 820 966 

Caroline: 01953 882 154 

Mobile: 07927 161 201 

U3A Table Tennis Tournament - Wissey v. 

Downham Market in the Community Centre 

28

Galleries 

The Ben Emmerson Room - Swaffham Treasures 

The Monique Slaven Room – Archaeology and the 

Sporle with Palgrave Collection 

The David Butters Room – The Rotary Capture 

Swaffham Display 

Conflict and Consequences – The Effects of conflict 

on a small market town and its environs 

The Carter Connection - The story of Howard Carter 

and the Discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun. 

Also available on application 

• Guided walks 

• Talks 

• School Activity Day - Carter meets Tutankhamun 

• Loan Boxes for schools, groups or families 

The Day The Fossils Made An Entrance 

Swaffham Infant School Nursery School spent time 

examining the fossils held at Swaffham Heritage 

when they brought us their own fossils for a display 

in the foyer. 

Museum Opening 

Swaffham Museum is open. Come and see new 

displays. Mon-Fri 10am-4pm, a small admission 

charge applies. Sat 10am-1pm. For 2019 we are 

offering FREE entry to the Museum on Saturdays 

(10am - 1pm). 

FoSH (Friends of Swaffham Heritage) 

We support the Museum financially. 

Our Membership Scheme is a one off Life Membership 

payment of just £10 for an individual and £15 for a 

family. This gives you free access to all the museum 

galleries for life. 

For more information please contact Secretary James 

Dean 01760 720756 or jamesdean@uwclub.net 

FoSH 100 Club 

Run by the Friends - open to ALL 

A yearly subscription of £20 could win a prize of 

£40, £20 or £10 each month with special extra prize 

of £100 in May and November. For more information 

contact Barbara White Tel: 01760 720756 or 

jamesdean@uwclub.net 

Prize winners: 

April draw - £40 No.67 / £20 No.8 / £10 No.39 

WANTED – Volunteer Stewards 

For ‘front of house’ – to welcome visitors, explain 

Museum, work in shop and TIC. Steward sessions 

are 3 hours – 10am-1pm, and 1-4pm 

Contact Steve Gregory – Volunteer Co-ordinator – 

on (01760) 721230 or 755596 

Swaffham Museum, 

Town Hall, London Street, 

Swaffham PE37 7DQ 

Tel: 01760 721230 

Open 10am to 4pm Mon to Fri. 

Sat. 10am to 1pm 

Prices: 

adults £3. 

Concessions £2.50 

Children 5 and over £1. 

Family tickets available. 

Saturdays – free entry 

To keep up to date join us on our website: 

www.swaffhammuseum.co.uk or follow us on facebook 

Swaffham Community Hospital LOFs 

Now into spring and our newish garden at the 

rear of the Hospital is looking good. We hope to 

maximise its use for both occasional events and 

primarily for the wellbeing of the patients. 

As you are aware the hospital beds are always full 

and the staff cope daily with more patients of a 

higher dependency. Also, because the Hospital has 

a large catchment area it does mean at times that 

local Swaffham residents cannot access all services. 

We are still in dialogue with the Hospital Trust 

regarding the purchase of the “high tec” patient 

bedside chairs. More news soon. 

Thanks to all who supported the last coffee morning 

at the Methodist Church. Our next one is planned 

for Saturday 21st September. 

On Wed 15th May we will be participating in the 

annual “health roadshow” in town. This is where 

lots of organisations associated with health matters 

get together to promote well being and keep you 

informed. Well worth a visit. 

Our next fundraising event is on Saturday 18th May 

in the Assembly rooms at 7pm. This time something 

new, James Parry, a Norfolk based writer will talk 

and discuss about a lady called Emma Turner who 

is a well known photographer and naturalist. It will 

be a social evening with a welcome drink, cheese 

and wine, plus pay bar. It should prove to be an 

entertaining evening, so please get your tickets 

(priced £7) from Ceres bookshop or Just Hair. 

Also on the afternoon of Sunday 14th July we 

are planning a garden party/fete at the hospital 

seeking to involve as many patients as possible. 

More publicity on this later. Bring the children as 

well. 

On 7th September it will be time again for our town 

street collections. Help is always welcome for this, 

so lend a hand if you can. 

On a more formal note, as a Charity we hold an 

annual general meeting to formally adopt last 

year's accounts and a Chairman's report. This is 

scheduled for 2pm on Monday 13th May, 19 in 

the meeting room at the Hospital. It's an open 

meeting so come if you wish and learn more about 

what we do. 

As ever we welcome new people to join our small 

committee and help us with our activities. If you 

think you might be interested, call me for an 

informal chat. 

We have received some lovely letters and donations 

from past patients and their families. As ever be 

assured we put the money to good use. 

Colin Houghton (Chairman) 01760 336025 

Swaffham Lionesses 

The Pride of Swaffham. 

We had lots of fun at the Lions District EA 

Convention at Ipswich, especially on Caribbean 

Night when Anne won the trophy for the best fancy 

dress! 

We also entered a team into the Home Hospice Quiz 

and put up a good show. Our Easter Egg Tombola in 

the Assembly Rooms was popular as usual, and we 

sold out, the proceeds being donated to the Lions 

Eye Project, to provide Eye Test equipment which 

can be used in local schools. Many thanks to all 

those who supported us. 

At our April meeting President Anne was pleased 

to badge up a new member, Thelma Hansell, who 

was sponsored by Lioness Susan Hoole. Thelma 

has attended several meetings already, and also 

helped us with fund-raising, and we are delighted 

to welcome her into our Club. 

We were also pleased to man the raffle at the 

Mayor’s Reception on 12th April in support of the 

Mayor’s chosen Charities. 

Our 1950's Supper Dance And Grand Draw will be 

held at Stanley’s on Friday 17th May, to help the 

Homeless. There will be a 1950s Disco and a Swing 

Dance Demonstration of Jump, Jive and Swing. 

Tickets are £20 (including supper) and are available 

on 01760 723377. 

30 

31

Swaffham WEA 

Development of the Royal Portrait 

Our kings and queens are known to us through their 

portraits – whether the power and bulk of Henry 

VIII or the severe and serious demeanour of Queen 

Victoria. In a forthcoming course presented by 

Swaffham WEA tutor Michael Nash will be tracing 

the development of the royal portrait through 

five centuries. He will explore how the image of 

the monarch has been used to show status and 

authority, and he brings the course up-to-date with 

the advent of photography and its impact on the 

portrayal of the royals. Combining both history and 

art, this promises to be a fascinating course with 

wide appeal. 

Development of the Royal Portrait starts on Friday 

3rd May at the Swaffham Community Centre, 

Campingland, Swaffham, PE37 7RD. The fee for 

the seven week course is £52. You are welcome to 

attend the first session as a ‘taster’ for £7 with no 

obligation to continue. Fees may be waived for those 

in receipt of benefits. More information is available 

at www.wea.org.uk where you can also sign up in 

advance to attend. For further information please 

phone 01760 723558. 

Swaffham Town Bowls Club 

Swaffham Town Bowls Club re-opened on 14th April 

at 2.00 pm. New and old members are welcome. We 

have roll-ups on Tuesday and Thursday afternoon. 

If you are interested please contact Ivy Tinker, Hon 

Secretary on 01760 722332. 

32 

Campingland PPG 

Health and Wellbeing Roadshow, Weds 15th May 

This is a chance for you to see and talk to the many 

agencies offering help to members of the public. This 

help and advice ranges from mental and physical 

through to the stress and strain of modern life. I’m 

sure that most people’s circle of family and friends 

will have someone who could benefit from what 

is available in the way of support. The past shows, 

(this will be the fourth), have been very successful 

so come along and see what can be done to help you 

or your family on Wednesday 15th May between 

10am and 2pm. These events also provide a useful 

platform for the various local organisations to talk, 

(network!) with each other – a chance not often 

available to them. 

From a public perspective we already have many 

already booked in, ranging from help within the 

family, befriending services, caring for carers, end of 

life support to help with mental and medical issues, 

access to out of hours medical help, occupational 

help and many other ways of improving quality 

of life. If any charity or health related organisation 

have not been contacted by the Campingland Group 

and would wish to attend please contact Liz Wing, 

Practice manager at the Campingland surgery as 

soon as possible. 

There will also be light refreshments available so 

you can sit with a cuppa and have a rest, and a raffle 

should you feel lucky. Do come along we would love 

to welcome you – there is bound to be something 

there that will be of help or interest to most people 

and family groups. 

Another date is an Update and Discussion on a recent 

patient survey carried out by the Campingland 

Patient Participation Group inviting comments on the 

surgery and services provided. This is on Wednesday 

8th May at 7 00pm at the Campingland surgery. 

All are very welcome whether you are a patient of 

this surgery or not. Again light refreshments will be 

provided. We would love to see you! 

The Pink Box 

If you need sanitary 

products, there is now 

a basket located in 

the Community Centre, 

please help yourselves. 

Dog lovers 

wanted 

For short stays and holiday cover 

Companionship, friendship 

and fun are guaranteed! 

• Dogs to suit your lifestyle 

• Trial stays to ensure compatibility 

• Full support and advice 

• Join our local host community 

01485 205715 

Tania.Stowe@barkingmad.uk.com 

BarkingMad.uk.com 

reg no: 277789 

The Charity is currently inviting applications from 

individuals under the age of 21, living in the 

Breckland District Council area, seeking financial 

assistance in cases of need for such items as 

books, tools, equipment, instruments, outfits plus 

educational trips; including assistance for those 

leaving school, in preparation for taking up further 

education or apprenticeships. 

The Trustees will review and consider all 

applications received. Application forms can be 

found on our website: 

www.hamondeducationalcharity.org.uk. 

If further information is required please contact 

the Clerk via email at: 

contact@hamondeducationalcharity.org.uk 

Iceni Youth Clubs 

Youthie: 

8 years to year 6 Mondays 5:30pm – 7:00pm . 

Youth Voice: 

Wednesdays 6:00pm – 7:30pm 2nd and 4th 

Wednesdays of each month 

Youthie Plus: 

Years 6, 7 and 8 Thursdays - 5:30pm – 7:00pm 

Youthie Hub: 

Year 9 to 19 years Thursdays - 7:30pm – 9:00pm 

Staff are happy to give information, guidance and 

advice. Call us for further details on: 07772 852 284 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/iceniyoungpeople 

FREE drink at The Red Lion with 

any main meal 

when you show this voucher! 

87 Market Place, Swaffham PE37 7AQ 01760 721022 

87 Market Place, Swaffham, Norfolk. PE37 7AQ Tel:01760721022 

EAT 

come and enjoy our fresh homemade 

food using local produce also 

Swaffham Counselling 

see our specials 

and 

boards 

Psychotherapy 

for more 

choice. Please book for evening 

meals with our delicious menus 

Barbara O'Hanlon MA is now working from her private 

practice in Swaffham. For more information or an initial 

Have a warm relaxing and restful 

consultation contact Barbara 

SLEEP 

sleep in one of our newly completely 

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Come and go as you please. 

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great choice of draught beers and 

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EAT 


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Media Frenzy at ESCAPE Project 

With the 2019 Chelsea Flower Show being just 

around the corner, all eyes have been on Swaffham's 

ESCAPE project 

on Tumbler Hill. 

The project run by 

Family Action is 

going to be a big 

part of the charity's 

artisan garden at 

Chelsea this year. 

The garden has been 

designed by garden 

designer Alistair Bayford as part of Family Action’s 

150th Anniversary celebrations and is based around 

the theme of 'family monsters', issues that can cause 

difficulty within families such as addiction, mental 

heath issues and divorce. ESCAPE participants have 

painted words on pebbles that will be placed in the 

pond in the garden 

and ESCAPE Project 

Co-ordinators Katy 

Fullilove and Karen 

Bek have started 

work on a willow 

sculpture that will 

also feature. Some 

of the plants for 

the garden have 

been grown at the 

allotment, these include wild garlic and honey garlic. 

On Tuesday 9th April, film crews from the BBC, ITV 

and Family Action's head office were all on site to 

interview staff, volunteers and beneficiaries. There 

were also reporters from the EDP and Lynn News. 

The BBC news segment was broadcast live from the 

allotment and was a great source of excitement for 

all involved. 

The show will open to the public on Tuesday 17th 

May and a large group of volunteers from the project 

will make their way to the show in London via a 

coach from Swaffham. A number of participants will 

be involved in the build week at Chelsea too. 

We wish everyone involved lots of luck and can't 

wait to see the completed garden on the big screen. 

You're already winners in Swaffham! 

Charity Hog Roast Success 

A huge thank you to our friend Kay, owner of 

the Market Cross for hosting the hog roast for 

us on Saturday 6th April for the Just Hair London 

Marathon run for The National Autistic Society. 

Many thanks to Alex and Abi from Impson's for 

suppling a fantastic hog roast. Many thanks to Pot 

of Gold - Swaffham Shanty Crew for entertaining 

everyone. To all our girls from Just Hair and Lucy for 

the super deserts and raffle as always. To Kay's girls 

who worked so hard behind the bar all evening, and 

the biggest thank you of all is to everyone who came 

and supported us on a really cold evening, you are 

all amazing and we can never thank you enough 

for helping us to raise an amazing £1,000, bringing 

our total now to £22,000, just unbelievable. We 

are overwhelmed with everyone's support and 

generosity for us. We would also like to say thank 

you so much to Anthony Sims and Waitrose staff 

and customers who popped their green tokens into 

our collection during February, giving us a cheque 

for a very generous £370 we are very grateful to 

you all. We thank you all from the bottom of our 

hearts. 

With love Gill, Keith, Tanya, Lucy, Terry, John and 

all the girls at Just Hair. Xxx 

34


EAT 

Have a warm relaxing and restful 


refitted and refurbished rooms 

choice of Doubles, Twins or Family. 


DRINK 

come and enjoy our fresh homemade 

food using local produce also 

see our specials boards for more 



SLEEP 

Enjoy a refreshing cool drink with a 


lagers also try our real ales and a 

large choice of spirits and mixers. 

www.redlionswaffham.co.uk E-Mail: redlionswaffham@gmail.com 

PLEASE SEE OUR SPECIAL VOUCHER SOMEWHERE IN THIS EDITION 

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Call us today for a free quote and experience the difference. 

We offer competitive quotes on all interior and exterior jobs 

TEL: 01760 - 722511 

MOBILE: 07902 013785 or 07789 906854 

52 Filby Road, Swaffham, Norfolk PE37 7SX 

Unique Computers Norfolk Ltd 

Sales Upgrades Repairs 

Home Calls For Tuition 

Broadband Installations 

and General Maintenance 

Tel 01760 751218 or 01362 685447 

Personal Service 

Professional Technician 

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Pre-paid and pre-planned funerals available 

A different sort of accountant 

• Sole trader accounts 

• Company accounts 

• Management accounts 

• Buy to let returns 

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Come and see us for a free chat and advice session -‐ no obligation 

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email info@gybea.co.uk 

7a Corn Exchange, Market Place 

Next to War Memorial 

01760 723830 

37 

Mayor's Parlour 

Like most good things, this year, as 

your Mayor has passed by so quickly. 

It has been a very enjoyable year for 

me and has allowed me to meet 

so many people in Swaffham and 

surrounding areas at local events 

and gatherings. Swaffham is an old 

historic market town and with the improvements 

seen in the town centre and Buttercross I feel we 

should be very proud of what has been achieved. The 

Buttercross has undergone a much needed overhaul, 

we have new seating and lighting to showcase the 

iconic grade II listed building which is the centre 

piece of the market place. There are new electricity 

bollards, new electric car charging spaces and of 

course new free Wi-Fi available in the town centre. 

We were successful in delivering some really great 

events last year – Beat Retreat with the Royal British 

Legion, August car event and Family Fun Day, Norfolk 

Day, Pumpkin Saturday and of course our annual 

Christmas Lights event which I think was our best 

yet. Myself and my fellow Councillors, who sit on the 

Town Council, do our level best to listen to residents 

and attempt to improve things for the majority; 

although it can be challenging at times it can be very 

worthwhile. 

Regarding the Green Britain Centre, I am aware there 

has been interest from prospective new occupants, 

however Breckland Council (the owners) are not 

releasing any news at this time. It is hoped that 

whatever is agreed will benefit the wider town now 

and in the future. 

At the time of going to press, the resurfacing work at 

the Theatre Street car park will be completed, and 

the revamped car park will be looking very inviting 

for residents and visitors - no more uneven surfaces. 

We still await the parking meter installations for the 

Market Place and Pedlar's car park; the plan is to 

restrict parking to a maximum 2 hours in each car 

park which will allow more people to park in the town 

throughout the day which can only be beneficial to 

residents and businesses alike. A penalty charge 

will be levied for anyone parking beyond the 2-hr 

restriction. Car parking is managed by Breckland 

Council 

Some of you will be aware of the recent planning 

application regarding the Old School site in the 

Town centre. The owner and developer have sought 

guidance from the Planning Committee and together 

we hope that the proposed site is developed in a 

sympathetic way which will enhance the town.There 

will be lots of new challenges ahead as our Town 

develops and a new Town Council will take over after 

the local elections on the Thursday 2nd May. I would 

encourage all residents to take the opportunity to 

get out and vote for your new Council: there are 21 

candidates standing, new faces , personalities and a 

common goal to continue to improve Swaffham for 

its residents. Fresh thinking is never wrong!! 

On a personal note, I would like to thank my fellow 

Councillors, staff and you the public for your support 

over this last year. Let’s all move on together.

In Touch With Your Town 

Breckland Council Elections – (Swaffham Ward) 

Event Dates for your Diary 

May 

'In Touch 

Editorial 

with 

2019 

your Town' is put 

There Mayare Editorial 6 candidates 2019 for the 3 seats on Breckland Wednesday 22nd May – Fashion Show at the 

together by the Town Clerk Richard 

Council (Swaffham Ward). At the District Election Assembly Rooms - Strictly Ruffles Fashion Show. 

May EditorialBRECKLAND 2019 Bishop occasionally COUNCIL by the ELECTIONS Deputy – on BRECKLAND (Swaffham the same day Ward) COUNCIL as the Town ELECTIONS Council Election – (Swaffham on Doors Ward) open at 6.30 for a 7pm start. Tickets are 

In Touch with your There Town Town are Clerk May 6 candidates Claire 2019Smith. forIt the deals 3 seats with on Breckland Thursday There are Council 2nd 6 candidates May, (Swaffham residents forWard). thehave 3 seats At up the to onDistrict 3 Breckland votes, Election Council on available (Swaffhamfrom Ward). Ruffles Atand the are District £10 (to Election include ona glass 

'In Touch with your Town' is put together by the Town Clerk Richard Bishop or occasionally by some of most topical items of 

and Deputyyou Town Clerk can Claire vote Smith. for It deals less withthan 3 if you wish. The of bubbly or juice) all funds raised will go to fund the 

some of the most topical the itemssame of the day day and the asodd the itemTown where theCouncil want Election to share information onthe Thursday with same the Town. day 2 nd May, as theresidents Town Council have up Election to 3 votes, on Thursday and you2 can 

nd May, residents have up to 3 votes, and you can 

the day and the vote odd foritem lesswhere than 3the if you Council wish. want The candidates to 

candidates 

vote are as forfollows: less 

are 

than 

as 

- 

follows: 

3 if you 

- 

wish. The candidates are as follows: Christmas - Lights. 

share information with the Town. 

Saturday 25th May – To run alongside the usual 

SWAFFHAM TOWN Name of COUNCIL Candidate – 2015 - 2019 Home Address Name of Candidate Description Home (if any) Address Description (if any) 

Saturday Market the Sheep Fair will be back, more 

Swaffham Town COLMAN Council Ed – 2015 - 2019 

(Address in Breckland) COLMAN Ed Conservative(Address Party Candidate in Breckland) Conservative Candidate 

May Editorial 2019 

DARBY Paul (Address in Breckland) DARBY Paul Conservative(Address Party Candidate in Breckland) details to Conservative follow. For Partythe Candidate 2nd consecutive year 

May Editorial 2019 

NAVARRE Joanna 3 Lynn Mews, BRECKLAND NAVARRE Lynn St, Swaffham COUNCIL Joanna ELECTIONS – Labour (Swaffham PartyWard) 

3 Lynn Mews, Lynn St, Swaffhamwe shall be Labour welcoming Party sheep back on the Market 

There are 6 candidates for the 3 seats on Breckland Council (Swaffham Ward). At the District Election on 

May Editorial SHERWOOD 2019 Ian (Address inthe Breckland) SHERWOOD 

same day as the Town 

Ian 

Council Election onConservative Thursday 2 

(Address Party Candidate in Breckland) Place. On Conservative Saturday 25th PartyMay, Candidate alongside our regular 

nd May, residents have up to 3 votes, and you can 

y 2019 In Touch with WICKERSON your Town David May Sydney 2019 

38 White Cross vote WICKERSON for Road, less than Swaffham 3 ifDavid you wish. Sydney The candidates Independent 

are as follows: - 38 White Cross Road, SwaffhamSaturday Market, Independent we’ll be celebrating all thing woolly 

Name of Candidate Home Address Description (if any) 

the Town Clerk 'In Touch Richard with Bishop your ZIELINSKI or Town' occasionally is putJohn together by the by Deputy the Town ClerkRichard Claire Smith. BishopIt 4or deals Glasbury occasionally with by ZIELINSKI the DeputyJohn Town Clerk Claire Smith. It deals with 

COLMAN 

Walk, 

Ed 


(Address in 

Labour 

Breckland) 

Party4 Glasbury 

Conservative 

Walk, 

Party Candidate 


– with a road 

Labour 

closure 

Party 

to welcome rare breed sheep, 

the odd itemsome where of themost Council topical wantitems to share of the information day and the with oddthe item Town. where the Council want to shareDARBY information Paul with the Town. (Address in Breckland) Conservative Party Candidate farmyard characters, ‘Woolly Roadshow’, Swaffham Sheep Trail and lots more…… 

NAVARRE Joanna 3 Lynn Mews, Lynn St, Swaffham Labour Party 

spinning & weaving demonstrations, extra stalls, face 

SHERWOOD Ian (Address in Breckland) Conservative Party Candidate 

WICKERSON David Sydney 38 White Cross Road, Swaffham Independent 

CIL – 2015 SWAFFHAM - 2019 TOWN COUNCIL – 2015 - 2019 

painting, farmyard characters, ‘Woolly Roadshow’, 

ZIELINSKI John 4 Glasbury Walk, Swaffham Labour Party 

Swaffham Sheep Trail and lots more…… 

Swaffham Town Councillors at their last full Council meeting on 10 th April before the 2 nd May Local elections. 

Swaffham Town Councillors at their last full Council 

Flowers were presented to four retiring Councillors Jan Buckley-Stevens, Anne Thorp, Brenda Bowler and 

85 

meeting on 10th April before the 2nd May Local 

th percentile speed 

52.1mph 

50.1mph 

Terry Jennison. 

(ave. speed that 85% of all 

vehicles were travelling) 

elections. Flowers were presented to four retiring 

90mph 

95mph 

Fastest recorded speed 

TOWN Councillors COUNCIL Jan Buckley-Stevens, ELECTIONS Anne Thorp, Brenda 

21/3/2019 at 5.25a.m 

In My Back Yard 


Bowler and Terry Jennison. 

Elsewhere in this newsletter you will find lots of publicity for the forthcoming town referendum asking you to vote in 

There has been a lot of interest shown in becoming a Town Councillor Elsewhere recently with in 21 this candidates newsletter now you will find lots of 

confirmed Town Council as standing Elections for election. At the ballot box on 2 nd support of our Neighbourhood Plan. This plan has been developed over a long period and after public consultation 

May residents andof input Swaffham from a wide will cross section be able of local toresidents. vote It sets out our views on many local issues however its prime 

purpose publicity is to seekfor to give the us, as forthcoming a town, more say andtown control toreferendum determine how our Town asking grows and develops over 

for There their 13 has Councillors been a who lot of will interest take office shown the following becoming week at the Town Hall, when the Council meet for 

the first time on Wednesday 8 you to vote in support of our Neighbourhood Plan. 

a Town Councillor recently th the next 20 years. The question that will be asked in the Referendum is: 

May. Please remember you have up to 13 votes, any more will invalidate 

with 21 candidates now 

Swaffham Town Councillors at their last full Council meeting on 10 This plan has been developed over a long period and 

confirmed as standing for election. At the ballot box 

th "Do you want Breckland Council 

April before the 2 to use the Neighbourhood Plan for Swaffham to help it decide planning 

your ballot paper, although you can vote for less than 13 if you wish. The full applications list ofin Candidate the neighbourhood is May as area?" follows: Local elections. - 



Name Flowers of Candidate were presented to four Home retiring Address Councillors Jan Buckley-Stevens, Description after Anne public (if any) Thorp, consultation Brenda Bowler and input and from a wide cross 

ANSCOMBE on Terry 2nd Jennison. Judy May Ann 

Elsewhere residents in of this Swaffham (Address 

newsletter 

in Breckland) will you be will able find to lots of 

Independent 

publicity YouElsewhere can view paper forcopies in thethis offorthcoming thenewsletter Plan during normal town you openingwill referendum hoursfind at: lots of asking publicity you to forvote the forthcoming town referendum asking you to vote in 

section 

Breckland of Council's local Offices, residents. Elizabeth House, Walpole It sets Loke, out Dereham, our NR19views 1EE on 

BARTRAM 

vote for 

Robert 

their support 13 Councillors of our Neighbourhood 87 

who 

Market 

will 

Place, 

take 


office Plan. This the plan hasupport been Swaffham developed of Town our Council, Neighbourhood Town over Hall, a4 London longStreet, period Plan. Swaffham, and This Norfolk, after plan PE37public has 7DQ been consultation developed over a long period and after public consultation 

BEECH Lindsay Jayne (Address in Breckland) Conservative many Swaffham local Party Library, Candidate issues The Pightle, however Swaffham, PE37its 7DF prime purpose is to 

following 

TOWN 

week and 

COUNCIL 

at input the 

ELECTIONS 

Town from aHall, widewhen cross section the Council of local residents. and 

Swaffham input It sets Community from outaCentre, our wide Campingland, views cross onSwaffham, section manyPE37 local of7RB 

local issues residents. however It its sets prime out our views on many local issues however its prime 

S BELL Stewart Earnest Charles 75 Lynn Street, Swaffham Conservative seek to Party give Candidate 

purpose is to seek to give us, as a town, more say 

Youpurpose and 

can alsocontrol read 

is 

it online 

to to us, seek 

at the 

determine as council 

toa give 

website town, us, how 

– www.swaffhamtowncouncilgov,.uk. 

more asour a town, Town say and more grows control say and andevelops to controlover 

to determine how our Town grows and develops over 

BENSLEY meet Wendy 

There 

for 

has 

the Ann 

been 

first 

atime lot of 

on 

interest 

Wednesday (Address in Breckland) 

shown in 

8th 

becoming 

May. Please Conservative Party Candidate 

a Town Councillor determine recentlyhow with our 21 candidates Town grows now 

DARBY Paul the next 20 years. (Address The question in Breckland) that will be asked and develops over 

remember confirmed as you standing have for up election. to 13 votes, At the ballot any more box onwill 

2 nd Conservative It isthe really thenext important, Referendum Party 20so Candidate years. I ask on behalf The is: of question us all, please take that thewill opportunity be asked to read through in theReferendum Plan and use your is: 

EDWARDS Graham John (Address in Breckland) May residents vote at the 

Residents4Residents 

the next of Referendum Swaffham on 2 

20 years. nd May. will The be able question to votethat will be asked in 

GEE invalidate Eddie for their 13 your Councillors ballot who paper, will 58take although Queen office Street, the you Swaffham following can vote week at the Town Hall, when the Council meet for 

"Do you want Breckland Council to use the the Referendum is: 

HOLMES for the less Brendan first than time13 onif Wednesday you wish. 8The (Address th Event Neighbourhood "DoDates you for your want Diary Plan Breckland for Swaffham Council to touse helpthe it Neighbourhood decide planningPlan for Swaffham to help it decide planning 

May. full in Please Breckland) list of remember Candidate you haveIndependent 

up to 13 votes, any more will invalidate 

HOUGHTON "Do you want Breckland Council to use the 

is as 

your 

follows: 

ballot Colin applications in the 

paper, 

- 

although you9 can Warstade neighbourhood 

vote Way, for less Swaffhamarea?" 

Wednesday 

than 13 if you wish. Conservative applications 

22 nd May 

The full list Party ofCandidate 

in– the 

Fashion 

neighbourhood 

Show at the Assembly Rooms - Strictly Ruffles Fashion Show. Doors 

area?" 

open 6.30 for a 7pm start. Tickets are is as available follows: from Ruffles - and are £10 (to include a glass of bubbly or 

LISTER Sheila Joy 

(Address in Breckland) 

juice) 

Name of Candidate Description Home(if Address any) 

Neighbourhood all funds raised will go to 

Description (if any) Plan fund the for Christmas Swaffham Lights. to help it decide 

MARTIN Lee (Address in Kings Lynn & West Nfk Conservative Party Candidate 

ANSCOMBE Judy You Ann can view paper Independent copies (Addressof in Breckland) the Plan during normal planning You Independent opening can view applications hours paper at: copies in the of the neighbourhood Plan during normal area?" opening hours at: 

MATTHEWS Shirley Mary (Address in Breckland) Conservative Party Candidate 

BARTRAM Robert 

87 Market Place, Swaffham 

MORGAN Natasha Dawn 

Breckland 

(Address 

Council's 

in Breckland) 

Offices, Elizabeth House, 

Labour You Walpole 

Party can Breckland view Loke, paper Dereham, Council's copies NR19 Offices, of the 1EE Plan Elizabeth during House, normal Walpole Loke, Dereham, NR19 1EE 

BEECH Lindsay Jayne Conservative (Address Party inCandidate 

Breckland) Conservative Candidate 

NAVARRE Joanna Swaffham 3 Lynn Town Mews, Council, Lynn St, Swaffham Town Hall, 4 London Labour 

BELL Stewart Earnest Charles 75 Lynn Street, Swaffham opening 

Party Street, 

Conservative hours Swaffham, 

Partyat: 

Town Norfolk, Council, PE37 Town 7DQHall, 4 London Street, Swaffham, Norfolk, PE37 7DQ 

Candidate 

PILCHER Ian William 8a Princes Street, Swaffham Residents4Residents 

BENSLEY Wendy Ann Swaffham 

Conservative 

Library, 

(Address Party 

The 

inCandidate 

Breckland) 

Pightle, Swaffham, PE37 

• Conservative 7DFSwaffham Breckland PartyCouncil's Candidate 

Library, The Pightle, Swaffham, PE37 7DF 

SANDLE Keith 9 New Sporle Road, Swaffham Independent 

Offices, Elizabeth House, 

DARBY Paul Swaffham Conservative Community (Address Party inCandidate 

Breckland) Centre, Campingland, Conservative Swaffham, Swaffham Party PE37 Candidate Community 7RB Centre, Campingland, Swaffham, PE37 7RB 

SCOTT Leslie Greenhoe, Norwich Rd, Swaffham Independent Walpole of Loke, NationalDereham, Politics NR19 1EE 

SKINNER 

EDWARDS 

Jill Marion 

Graham YouJohn can also read Residents4Residents 

7 Mill it online (Address 

Lane, Swaffham at in Breckland) the council website Independent – You www.swaffhamtowncouncilgov,.uk. 

Residents4Residents 

can also read it online at the council website – www.swaffhamtowncouncilgov,.uk. 

GEE Eddie 

58 Queen Street, Swaffham • Swaffham Town Council, Town Hall, 4 London 

WOODS Robbie (Address in Breckland) Conservative Party Candidate 

ZIELINSKI 

HOLMES 

John 

Brendan 

Edward Andrew 

Independent 

4 Glasbury 

(Address 

Walk, 

in 


Breckland) 

Labour Street, Independent 

Party Swaffham, Norfolk, PE37 7DQ 

HOUGHTON Colin It is really important, 9 Warstade so I askWay, on Swaffham behalf of us all, please It Conservative is really takeimportant, the Partyopportunity Candidate so I ask toon read behalf through of usthe all, Plan please andtake usethe your opportunity to read through the Plan and use your 

LISTER Sheila Joy vote at the Referendum (Address onin 2 nd Breckland) May. 

• vote Swaffham at the Referendum Library, The on Pightle, 2 nd May. Swaffham, PE37 7DF 

MARTIN Lee Conservative (Address Party inCandidate 

Kings Lynn & West Nfk • Conservative Swaffham PartyCommunity Candidate Centre, Campingland, 

MATTHEWS Shirley Mary Conservative (Address Party inCandidate 

Breckland) 

Swaffham, 

ConservativePE37 Party Candidate 

7RB 

MORGAN Natasha Event Dawn DatesLabour forParty 

(Address your Diary in Breckland) Labour Party 

NAVARRE Joanna 3 Lynn Mews, Lynn St, Swaffham You 

Event 

Labour can 

Dates 

Party also read 

for 

it 

your 

online 

Diary 

at the council website – 

PILCHER Ian William WednesdayResidents4Residents 

22 nd 8aMay Princes – Street, Fashion SwaffhamShow at www.swaffhamtowncouncilgov,.uk. 

Wednesday the Residents4Residents Assembly22 Rooms nd May - Strictly – Fashion RufflesShow Fashionat Show. the Assembly Doors Rooms - Strictly Ruffles Fashion Show. Doors 

SANDLE Keith open at 6.30 for a 7pm 9 New Sporle start. Road, Tickets Swaffham are availableIndependent 

It open is from really at 6.30 Ruffles important, forand a 7pm are so start. £10 I ask (to Tickets on include behalf area available glass of us ofall, 

bubbly from Ruffles or and are £10 (to include a glass of bubbly or 

SCOTT Leslie Independent Greenhoe, of National Norwich Politics Rd, Swaffham Independent of National Politics 

SKINNER Jill Marion 

juice) all funds raised 

7 Mill 

will 

Lane, 

goSwaffham to fund the Christmas please juice) 

Independent 

Lights. all take funds the opportunity raised will goto toread fundthrough the Christmas the Plan Lights. 

WOODS Robbie Conservative (Address Party inCandidate 

Breckland) and Conservative use your Party vote Candidate at the Referendum on 2nd May. 

ir last full Council meeting on 10 th April before the 2 nd May Local elections. 

etiring Councillors Jan Buckley-Stevens, Anne Thorp, Brenda Bowler and 

shown in becoming a Town Councillor recently with 21 candidates now 

. At the ballot box on 2 nd May residents of Swaffham will be able to vote 

ke office the following week at the Town Hall, when the Council meet for 

ay. Please remember you have up to 13 votes, any more will invalidate 

n vote for less than 13 if you wish. The full list of Candidate is as follows: - 

Home Address 


87 Market Place, Swaffham 


75 Lynn Street, Swaffham Conservative Party Candidate 




58 Queen Street, Swaffham 


9 Warstade Way, Swaffham Conservative Party Candidate 


(Address in Kings Lynn & West Nfk 



3 Lynn Mews, Lynn St, Swaffham Labour Party 

8a Princes Street, Swaffham 

9 New Sporle Road, Swaffham Independent 

Greenhoe, Norwich Rd, Swaffham 

7 Mill Lane, Swaffham Independent 


4 Glasbury ZIELINSKI Walk, Swaffham John Edward Andrew Labour Party 4 Glasbury Walk, Swaffham Labour Party 

Saturday 25 th May – Sheep Fair to run alongside the usual Saturday Market the sheep fair will be back, 

more details to follow. For the 2 nd consecutive year we shall be welcoming sheep back on the Market Place. 

On Saturday 25 th May, alongside our regular Saturday Market, we’ll be celebrating all thing woolly – with a 

road closure to welcome rare breed sheep, spinning & weaving demonstrations, extra stalls, face painting, 

SAM2 Traffic Analysis Report 

Location 

- Norwich Road – incoming traffic to the town 

Speed Limit 

- 40mph 

Period 

Current 

15 th Mar – 8 th Apr 2019 

Last 

4 th Oct – 2 nd Nov 2018 

Peak times 8-9a.m & 5-6pm 8-9a.m & 5-6pm 

Total Vehicle count 49,979 67,471 

6/10/2018 at 11.20a.m 

38 39 

Highway problems 

Highway problems should be reported to Norfolk 

County Council: Tel. 0344 800 8020. Give the 

location of the problem and a telephone number 

where further information can be obtained. 

Faulty street lights can be reported at the Town Hall 

during office hours or by telephoning Norfolk County 

Council 0344 800 8020. Reports should give a precise 

location of the light and the number on the column. 

Alternatively visit www.norfolk.gov.uk. Search: 

Street Lights/Pot Holes 

Town Council Dates 

Thursday 2nd – Town Council Elections 

Wednesday 8th - Full Town Council meeting. 6.30 

pm - 9pm, Council Chamber, Town Hall. 

Monday 20th – Relief in Need meeting, 4.30 pm - 

5pm. Open Spaces meeting, 6.30pm – 8pm, Council 

Chamber, Town Hall. 

Tuesday 28th - Planning meeting, 12noon, Council 

Chamber, Town Hall. 

The Town Council 

Mayor – Cllr Colin Houghton 01760 336 025 

Deputy Mayor – Cllr Jill Skinner 01760 336 121 

Cllr Robert Bartram 

01760 721 022 

Cllr Terry Jennison 

Cllr Stewart Bell 

01760 720 608 

07885636924 

Cllr Sheila Lister 

Cllr Wendy Bensley 

01760 720 114 

01760 722 524 

Cllr Shirley Matthews 

Cllr Brenda Bowler 

01760 723 205 

01760 788 519 

Cllr Les Scott 

Cllr Jan Buckley-Stevens 

01760 720 465 

01760 722 604 

Cll Anne Thorp 

Cllr Paul Darby 

01760 722 611 

01760 622725 

Breckland Councillors: 

Cllr Paul Darby, Cllr Shirley Matthews and 

Cllr Ian Sherwood 07795 236878 

twitter@ CllrIanSherwood (your.cllr@breckland.gov.uk) 

Your County Councillor is Cllr Ed Colman 

07940 406356 / email ed.colman.cllr@norfolk.gov.uk 

Officers 

Richard Bishop – Town Clerk 

townclerk@swaffhamtowncouncil.gov.uk 

Twitter - @SwaffhamClerk 

Claire Smith - Deputy Town Clerk 

deputyclerk@swaffhamtowncouncil.gov.uk 

Hannah Duggan – Office Administrator 

administrator@swaffhamtowncouncil.gov.uk 

Swaffham Town Council 

Tel: 01760 722 922 

www.swaffhamtowncouncil.gov.uk 

Town Hall Opening Times 

Monday 9.30am-1pm and 1.30pm-4pm 

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday : 9:30am-1pm 

Breckland District Council 

www.breckland.gov.uk Tel: 01362 656870 

For all enquiries regarding: Planning, Refuse Bins, 

Housing, Recycling, Licensing &Benefits.

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