Stratford-upon-Avon Living Sep - Oct 2021

Join us for our Open Morning 

Saturday 18 September, 9:30am - 12noon 

To find out more, visit: 

www.warwickprep.com/admissions/open-day-booking 

admissions@warwickprep.com | 01926 491545 | @warwickprep 

An Independent Day School and Nursery for boys aged 3-7 and girls aged 3-11

Contents 

A Note 

from the EDITOR 

15 

A 

A Culinary Journey through 

Northern 

delicious Ireland 

bake from expert Richard Bertinet 

“There is something so special 

in the early leaves drifting 

from the trees–as if we are all 

to be allowed a chance to peel, 

to refresh, to start again.” 

– Ruth Ahmed 

There is something so special about 

this time of year - it has a grounding 

effect which forces us to consider 

the passage of time and the tangible 

changes around us. As the hues 

of the trees shape our landscape, 

we settle down into the embrace 

of those cooler, darker evenings 

- a sense of quietude before the 

inevitable Christmas rush begins. 

Garden Designer 

Adam Frost 

21 

We hope this edition makes a good 

companion to a cosy evening or 

a peaceful morning with a cuppa. 

We’ve filled it with interviews with 

some titans of their fields - firstly, west 

country expert baker (via France!) 

Richard Bertinet and Chelsea seventime 

gold medal winning garden 

designer Adam Frost. 

Our interview with 

Richard Bertinet 

12 

Editor Katie Thomson 

e katie.thomson@minervapublications.co.uk 

Publisher Sally Thomson 

Pre-Press Manager Kate Norris 

Contributors Rebecca Rose, Peter Thomson, Sue Cooke, Matthew Biggs 

Angela Cave and Pete Lawrence. Front cover courtesy of Richard Bertinet 

Key Account Manager Marion Cassidy 

e marion@minervapublications.co.uk 

d/l 01225 984502 

twitter: @LivingStratford 

26 

Planning for a 

happy retirement 

MINERVA PUBLICATIONS HQ 

Paxcroft Farm, Hilperton 

Trowbridge BA14 6JB 

t 01225 984 550 

visit our website www.minervamagazines.co.uk 

Disclaimer: The publishers shall not be held liable for any loss occasioned by failure of an 

advertisement to appear, or any damage or inconvenience caused by errors, omissions and 

misprints. No part of this publication may be reproduced without prior permission from the 

publishers. The opinions expressed within are not necessarily those of the publishers. 

These lovely chats fall alongside 

some delicious recipes and some 

inspiration for the home and garden 

- plus some advice on getting those 

finances in order for retirement - 

it’s never too early to start thinking 

about it, nor to late to make an 

assessment of where you are. 

It wouldn’t be right to have an 

edition without one of our most 

popular pages - the competitions! 

You can enter all the ones listed on 

the page, plus some web-exclusives 

at minervamagazines.co.uk - you 

can also opt into being the first to 

hear about new giveaways when 

they are launched. 

We are looking forward to seeing 

you again in November, where we 

will be unapologetically thrusting 

you into the Christmas swing. Don’t 

say I didn’t warn you! Until then, 

take care and enjoy this issue. 

Katie 

Katie 

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SCHOOLS 

GUIDE 

2019 

WEST MIDLANDS 

INDEPENDENT 

SECONDARY 

SCHOOL 

OF THE YEAR

An enriching life like no other 

Which school should my child attend? 

Choosing the right educational 

environment for your child is one of 

the most important decisions you’ll 

ever have to make as a parent. But if 

you’re looking for a boarding school 

for your child, how do you choose 

the right one? Robin Fletcher, CEO 

of the Boarding Schools’ Association 

(BSA), explains. 

‘How do I choose the right boarding school 

for my child?’ That’s a question we’re asked 

more often than any other at BSA. And 

when you consider the UK boarding market 

is one of the largest in the world, with more 

than 450 schools of all sizes and types, in 

all sorts of different locations, there isn’t a 

straightforward answer. 

But having such a wide range of choice can 

really work to your advantage. If you know 

exactly what to look for in a prospective 

boarding school, your child will enjoy a 

first-class education and gain invaluable life 

skills, boost their confidence, become more 

independent, and have the best possible 

preparation for adult life. 

The first key piece of advice I would always 

offer when choosing a school is that it must 

be a joint decision between you and your 

child: they have to be happy with the final 

choice. 

As I’ve mentioned, one thing there isn’t a 

shortage of in the UK boarding sector is 

choice. You need to think about the best 

location for your child: will they be best 

suited to a large school attended by several 

hundred students, or a smaller school 

with fewer pupils? Would a school in the 

middle of a city be better for them, or would 

they prefer somewhere more rural? Would 

they be best suited to a single sex or coeducational 

school? Also, will full boarding 

be the best option for them? Schools can 

offer full, weekly or flexi-boarding, so you’ll 

need to decide which works best for you 

and your child. And is an academic school 

right for them, or one that focuses perhaps 

more on sport, music or more vocational 

subjects? 

Once you’ve considered all those factors 

and you’ve got a shortlist of schools you’re 

interested in, I’d always strongly encourage 

you to visit those schools in person. This 

is the best way to tell if it’s right for your 

child or not, as it will be clear very quickly 

whether they are comfortable there. 

Making that final choice of the right 

boarding school for your child can be a 

lengthy process, but taking the time to get 

your decision absolutely right is crucial. 

Boarding will not suit every child or family 

- but for the right child, in the right school, 

it can offer an enriching life experience like 

no other. 

For further information about the Boarding 

Schools’ Association, or to search for a 

boarding school, please visit www.boarding. 

org.uk. In 2020, BSA also teamed up with 

Bulldog Publishing to launch Schoolplaces. 

org, a dedicated live information resource 

for schools, parents and education agents. 

For more information, please visit www. 

schoolplaces.org. 

Image: Courtesy of Highfield and 

Brookham Schools 

8 | www.minervamagazines.co.uk

Age 14–19 • GCSE • A-LEVEL • BTEC • EPQ 

Open Day 

th 

Saturday 16 October 2021 10am - 2pm 

wmgacademy.org.uk 

• State-of-the-art facilities 

• Rated ‘Good’ by Ofsted 

• Careers-focussed education, 

supported by businesses 

• Partnered with the 

University of Warwick 

SCIENCE - TECHNOLOGY - ENGINEERING - MATHS 

WMG Academy Coventry Mitchell 

Avenue Coventry CV4 8DY 

info@wmgacademy.org.uk 

Book: 

www.wmgacademy.org.uk

Stratford upon Avon School 

Engage Enthuse Inspire 

Open Evening for Year 7 Entry 

22nd September 2021 from 4pm 

Sixth Form Open Evening 

17th November 2021 from 5:30pm 

“The advantages of a 

big school with the feel 

of a small school” 

Open Mornings and Tours 

Email openevents@stratfordschool.co.uk 

For details 

www.stratforduponavonschool.com 

@StraUponAvonSch 

Find out what Princethorpe can do for your child, come along to our 

Open Afternoon on Sunday 19 September 2021 

To book your place visit princethorpe.co.uk 

Year 6 Taster Experiences are also available on Saturday 25 September 2021. 

Registration deadline for September 2022 entry is Friday 1 October 2021. 

Princethorpe College 

An independent school for 11-18 year olds 

Registered Charity Number 1087124. 

For information call 01926 634201 

or visit princethorpe.co.uk 

#princethorpeandme 


HIS 

SUSTAINABLE 

BREAD 

HOUSING 

DEVELOPMENT IN 

GLOUCESTERSHIRE REACHES 

KEY MILESTONE 

& BUTTER 

Richard Bertinet is well-loved and well-known for being the 

UK’s baking ‘godfather’. His books about baking and his breadmaking 

courses alike have delighted audiences for many years. 

Sally Thomson talks to Richard to discuss books, baking and 

BBC Maestro, where you can catch him offering the ultimate 

online bread-making course... 

HOW ARE YOU ON THIS GLORIOUS 

DAY? 

Making croissants with this weather! It’s 

a bit hot in the kitchen but it’s nice to be 

open again so all is good. 

YOU ARE DOING WONDERFULLY 

WELL AT THE MOMENT APART 

FROM THE FACT WE HAVE ALL 

BEEN THROUGH THIS RATHER 

INTERESTING YEAR THINGS SEEM TO 

BE GOOD WITH YOU. 

We opened in April and we have just tried 

to push everything we could this year and 

last year. It’s very busy. 

SO, PEOPLE ARE ABLE TO COME TO 

YOUR CLASS NOW? 

Yes, we reopened in April. 

SO, THESE CURRENT RESTRICTIONS 

HAVEN’T CHANGED YOUR PLANS? 

No, we are Covid compliant and can still 

have the same number of people. 

In Bath 40% of the customers come 

from the rest of the World so Japan, The 

States and Australia. Obviously, they 

cannot come to Bath at the moment so 

we have a massive backlog of people 

wanting to come when they can 

travel*. 

YOU NEED TO BE CLONED SO THAT 

THERE IS ANOTHER ONE OF YOU 

AND YOU CAN KEEP UP! 

That’s true but there is only one of me 

I’m afraid. 

WHEN YOU FIRST CAME INTO BATH 

IN 2005 DID YOU EXPECT YOUR 

CAREER TO TAKE OFF AS IT DID? 

I knew the concept we had was good and 

if it worked out, we would have success. 

When I first moved to Bath a lot of local 

businesses gave us 6 months to survive 

but that made me more determined to 

make it. 


On his baking classes 

for children: “It’s good 

fun and nice to see 

them smile when they 

try something that they 

haven’t done before. I 

think it’s a shame that 

so many schools don’t 

use cooking and baking 

anymore.” 

TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR 

COOKERY SCHOOL - IT’S GOING 

FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH BY 

THE SOUNDS OF IT? 

Well, the school has been going since 

2005 and since then we have won a lot 

of awards, we then sold the bakery and a 

lot of things have happened in 15 years. 

The school is so busy it’s a worldwide 

attraction which means we bring a lot of 

people to Bath. We won the South West 

Tourism Award two years ago due to the 

number of people that we attract to Bath. 

We have a few guest chefs coming in as 

well, but the core classes are with me 

learning about bread making, as well as 

what I write about in my books. 

YOU HAVE SO MANY ACCOLADES 

AND EVERYBODY ENJOYS WHAT YOU 

HAVE BEEN DOING. 

We pride ourselves on the services we 

give our customers and also the way I 

teach is quite unique - I’m very hands on. 

Our school is quite small so it means that 

I can spend time with everybody. 

I SEE THAT YOU OFFER CLASSES FOR 

CHILDREN, HOW DO YOU FIND THAT? 

Teaching children was always very 

important to us and we also work with a 

lot of local schools in the area and teach 

some classes plus talk to the children. 

It’s good fun and nice to see them smile 

when they try something that they haven’t 

done before. I think it’s a shame that so 

many schools don’t use cooking and 

baking anymore. 

I SEE THAT YOU ALSO WORK WITH 

PING COOMBES. 

Yes, Ping does classes for me. She 

teaches Malaysian cooking plus stuff 

from my book. 

YOU HAVE PRODUCED 6 BOOKS SO 

FAR. HAVE YOU GOT ANYMORE IN 

THE PIPELINE OR DO YOU NOT HAVE 

ENOUGH TIME? 

I’ve got a couple of ideas but it’s getting 

the time to do it and I like to write a book 

for the right purpose not just for the sake 

of it so I need to get the time and wait 

until things get back to normal. 

DO YOU FEEL THAT YOU ARE 

GETTING BACK TO NORMAL? 

Until we get all our backlog of people 

who couldn’t attend last year’s classes 

hopefully then we will be back on an 

even keel but not yet I’m afraid. We are 

open and running and there are some 

businesses that can’t do that so in a way 

we are one of the lucky ones. 

I HEAR THAT YOU WILL BE GETTING 

INVOLVED WITH BBC MAESTRO. 

Yes, it’s been amazing. We have just 

finished editing. I absolutely loved it! It’s 

a challenge to do live broadcasts, it’s 

recipe lead and different from how I teach 

in my classes, but it was well done. The 

team were amazing. 

YOU HAVE BEEN ON OTHER 

COOKERY SHOWS SO DID YOU FIND 

THAT THIS WAS A STEP UP? 

Yes, I’ve been on Saturday Kitchen and 

on James Martin’s show so it’s a different 

buzz being filmed live and you have to be 

mindful of what you do and say. 

WHAT IS IT THAT YOU WILL BE 

SPECIALISING IN? 

It’s specifically about bread and things I 

like to do at home. It goes from making 

brioche, sourdough to bagels, all that 

kind of stuff and things to give people 

the confidence to bake at home and feel 

that they learn something. It’s going to be 

good. The production team was amazing, 

and I can’t wait for it to launch. 

YOU ARE FROM BRITTANY HAVE 

YOU HAD THE CHANCE TO GO BACK 

RECENTLY? 

We went to France last year, Provence. 

We have a house down there and 

managed to visit just before lockdown. 

*At the time of the interview there was 

uncertainty regarding travel to the city 

of Bath. 

BBC Maestro with Richard Bertinet 

is available now at bbcmaestro.com. 

The course costs £80 for 23 episodes 

including written class notes for 

each one. An additional bonus festive 

episode is expected to launch later in 

the year exclusively to subscribers. 

thebertinetkitchen.com 


CHOCOLATE, ORANGE 

& PISTACHIO LOAF 

INGREDIENTS 

150g good quality dark chocolate chips 

75g roughly chopped pistachios 

Zest of 2 oranges 

50g mixed peel 

1 tablespoon Cointreau (optional) 

125g unsalted butter straight from the 

fridge 

125g full fat milk 

3 medium eggs 

500g strong white bread flour (plus extra 

for dusting) 

15g fresh yeast 

45g caster sugar 

10g fine sea salt 

FOR THE GLAZE 

2 eggs 

Pinch fine sea salt 

METHOD 

Mix the chocolate chips, nuts zest 

and mixed peel in a bowl and stir in 

the Cointreau if you are using it. Place 

the cold butter between 2 sheets of 

greaseproof and bash it with a rolling pin 

to soften it and break it up into smaller 

pieces (without warming it up). 

Put the milk and eggs into the bowl of a 

food mixer and then add the flour. Break 

up the yeast and add to one side of the 

bowl. Add the sugar and salt on the 

other side of the bowl. 

Mix on a slow speed for 4 minutes. 

Increase the speed to medium for another 

2 minutes then add the butter piece by 

piece until it is all incorporated. Continue 

mixing on medium speed for 10-12 

minutes until the dough comes away from 

the sides of the bowl. 

Stop the mixer. Add the chocolate and 

pistachio mixture to the bowl and mix 

for no longer than 30-40 seconds on 

the slowest speed – you don’t want the 

chocolate and nuts to become mushy. 

Lightly flour your worksurface and turn 

the dough out onto the work surface. 

Form the dough into a ball and then place 

into a lightly floured bowl. Cover and 

rest for about 45 minutes until just under 

double in size. 

Lightly flour the surface again, turn out 

the dough and divide into 10 equal pieces 

of about 110g each. Form each piece 

into a ball and then press gently into 

cake or loaf tins until they are full. In the 

picture I have used tiny tins that only take 

one ball but if you use a larger one you 

will have a finished loaf or two that will be 

perfect to tear and share. Whether you 

have one or two will depend on the size 

of your tins. Cover and leave to prove 

for about 1 hour until just under double 

in size. 

While the dough is proving, pre-heat the 

oven to 190°C and beat the eggs and 

pinch of salt for the glaze. Brush the top 

of each loaf with the egg glaze and use a 

pair of scissors to snip into the dough for 

decoration. 

Place the tins on a baking tray and 

put into the pre-heated oven. Turn the 

temperature down to 180°C and bake for 

15-20 minutes until golden. 


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Following a refurbishment and newly built garden room the Garden Cafe is now fully open 

Come and visit us... 

The Farm Shop • The Cheese Shop • Deli Counter • Bakery • Hillers Fish Shop 

Ragley Estate Meats • The Garden Shop • 3 acre display garden free for all to enjoy 

Hillers Gifts & Interiors • The Garden Cafe open 9.00am–5.00pm 

The Hillers Hut is open for takeaway service 9.00am–5.00pm 

Dunnington Heath Farm, Alcester B49 5PD • Tel: 01789 772771 • www.hillers.co.uk

ADVERTISING FEATURE 

Hillers: the farm shop and so 

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Situated in a leafy corner of Warwickshire near the 

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It is owned and run by fourth generation 

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forefront of this busy, thriving Farm Shop. 

The Farm Shop always has an array of 

delicious products carefully selected 

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customers the very best in fresh, quality 

produce that is sourced locally wherever 

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Alongside the Farm Shop, which 

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Fish Shop (providing expertise in their 

respective fields to accompany their 

quality produce), there is also the well 

regarded Garden Cafe serving breakfast, 

lunch and afternoon tea. The Garden 

Café has had a refurbishment this year 

and now includes the beautiful new 

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from cards and stationery and beautiful 

home wares to children’s and ladies 

clothing and jewellery, an absolute must 

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So whether you want to browse in the 

award winning Farm Shop, enjoy a 

delicious meal in the Garden Cafe, walk 

around the beautiful Display Garden 

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Contact: 01789 772771 

info@hillers.co.uk 

Web: hillers.co.uk 

Facebook & Twitter 

“The Farm Shop always has an array of 

delicious products carefully selected from 

specialist suppliers to bring their customers 

the very best in fresh, quality produce that is 

sourced locally wherever possible. ” 


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Don’t miss our next edition which 

includes our exclusive interview with 

Amanda Owen. Amanda will also 

share her wonderful recipes with us.... 

plus tales of her life in Yorkshire 

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IT’S A 

GARDENERS’ 

WORLD 

Adam Frost is an 

award-winning British 

garden designer, 

television presenter and 

motivational speaker. 

Sally Thomson caught up 

with him to discuss all 

things green... 

TELL ME HOW THE GARDENER’S 

WORLD EVENT WENT AT BEAULIEU? 

I had a lovely weekend! I’d be lying if I 

didn’t say I was a bit nervous. I had just 

had my 2nd injection It was the first time 

I had done anything in a public arena for 

about 18 months! You realise that all the 

shows are now your general catch up. 

WITH THE PANDEMIC DID YOU FIND 

IT STRANGE NOT BEING OUT & 

ABOUT WITH THE GENERAL PUBLIC? 

Definitely, We run a school as well so 

we had to close that. I did some stuff on 

zoom like most people but that’s a very 

strange experience. I’ve never spent 

so much time at home or in the garden 

through the summer months with my wife 

and kids which was a mixed blessing and 

gave me time to stop which I don’t think 

I’ve done since I was 16. 

HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT BUILDING A 

GARDEN FOR CHELSEA? 

It can be 12 months to 2 years planning 

but at one point I was doing them back to 

back finishing one then moving straight 

onto the next one. But it’s fascinating, it’s 

how I built my career. 

HOW DID YOU FEEL ABOUT YOUR 

FIRST CHELSEA GOLD? 

If I’m honest, I think I was slightly 

oblivious to what they actually meant. 

My dad was a landscaper and he built 

early John Brooks gardens in the 70s. I 

recently met Professor David Stevens, 

garden designer, who also worked for 

John Brooks. We were talking about 

Chelsea and he said that my dad would 

have been a few gardens along from 

where we were. David also taught me a 

lot about design in that sense. 

WHEN YOU START A DESIGN IS IT 

FROM A THOUGHT OR ARE YOU 

PLANNING IT IN ADVANCE? 

It depends on whether its for a client. 

I think ultimately gardens are about 4 

things people, space, plants and place. 

It’s normally one of those that I tap into 

first and it might be a bit of landscape, it 

might be an individual picture I’ve seen, 

it might be the shape of something, 

whatever it is that gives me an insight 

into a person or if it’s a show garden what 

particular design will drive it. 

DO YOU THINK BEAULIEU WILL BE A 

REGULAR EVENT NOW? 

I think so, I walked in and thought 

what a glorious piece of landscape 

and the moment I walked in the gate it 

had a good feel. People really enjoyed 

themselves and as a setting it had quite a 

lovely intimate feel to it, even the stages 

had an open canopy, and everybody was 

sensible and had plenty of space. The 

standard of the displays was really good 

and Hilliers had gone there and built 

a garden, so it was great that you had 

something there of Hilliers quality. 

I think a positive out of the last 15 months 

is that people have slowed down have 

connected or reconnected with what’s 

outside their back door or in the area. 

I’ve seen a report saying we now have 

3 million new gardeners. Everybody 

you talk to in the industry says that the 

hunger from last year is still there which is 

great. I just hope in a way that stays. 

I FIND IT VERY THERAPEUTIC AND 

GOOD FOR THE SOUL 

It’s interesting that we are seeing 

statistics people moving out of cities 

and into the countryside and are wanting 

bigger gardens it wasn’t that long-ago 

people were downsizing and didn’t want 

a big outdoor space and this time has 

now changed that. 

I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU ARE AN 

RHS AMBASSADOR? WHAT DOES 

THAT ENTAIL? 

Yes, I’ve done that for quite a few years 

now. Basically, I help them with stuff 

looking at helping youngsters to engage 

more through events and I did a lot 

of work a while back with Homebase 

creating apprenticeships so that’s how it 

started. I also do a lot of community stuff 

with RHS and I’m just about to start a 

new project which I can’t say too much 

about which will be good. I have travelled 

all over to schools, events for them. I 

was brought up just outside London and 

wasn’t the best behaved, I’m dyslexic 

and obviously I’ve done OK and I think 

that’s why they wanted me to help. 

YOU ARE AT THE NEC IN THE 

SUMMER WHAT WILL THAT INVOLVE? 

I normally go from stage to stage and 

talk all things gardening and there’s 

different themes on different stages from 

talking about ‘Grow your Own’, ‘Unusual 

edibles’, ‘soil and compost’ so all sorts 

really. What I love about that show is you 

have the gardens and displays but it also 

interlinks with food and because its at the 

NEC if we do have poor weather people 

can get inside. Because it’s such a large 

venue everything will feel alright. 

SO, AT CHELSEA FOR EXAMPLE ARE 

YOU THERE WHEN THE JUDGES 

COME AROUND? 

You have a 2 minute conversation the day 


to do some presenting as they think I’m 

half decent”. He said “Are you sure that’s 

what you want to do?”. And I said “I don’t 

know but I’ll give it a go!”. And here we 

are now. 

before to explain if anything has changed 

or there have been any adjustments 

to the design. They then arrive at your 

garden anytime between 7:30 and 

9:30am on the day and you must be away 

from your garden. Then you have another 

24 hours until you find out the result. 

WHEN DID YOU REALISE THAT 

YOU HAD AN APTITUDE FOR 

PRESENTING? 

I don’t think I did really, I love what I do I 

think it just happened. I was talking to a 

Robert Hillier at Chelsea and I said “Can 

you remember the conversation we had 

in 2015 where you said the BBC want me 

WHAT WOULD YOU ADVISE OUR 

READERS TO DO TO THEIR GARDENS 

BEFORE AUTUMN? 

Don’t disengage with the garden, I think 

we get to September the kids go back to 

school and people pack up their gardens. 

I think our environment has changed 

so much that you cant month to month 

garden anymore you have to react to the 

month you are in. September, October 

and even going into November we can 

still have some cracking days and only 

have our first frosts going into December 

so I would say to anybody there is so 

much glorious flower colour foliage 

colour stem colour to be had and the light 

is different so the atmosphere is different 

you can still wrap up and enjoy it just 

don’t disengage. Don’t chase perfection 

just enjoy the moments. 

Adam Frost, along with other gardening 

celebrities, will be appearing at the NEC 

in Birmingham from Thursday August 26 

to Sunday August 29. 

For ticket information, please visit 

www.bbcgardenersworldlive.com 

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RETIREMENT 

PLANNING: 

A GUIDE 

Katie Thomson shares tips 

for getting your financial 

ducks in a row for a happy 

retirement... 

Retirement planning is a multi-faceted 

process which evolves over time - to 

have a comfortable and secure future, 

you have to have the means to fund 

it. Fewer people have access to the 

guaranteed income that comes with a 

final salary pension, and with longer to 

wait until eligibility for the state pension, 

it’s pertinent to start planning as early as 

possible for the retirement you want. The 

better prepared you are now, the better 

your retirement will be. 

There are many strands to retirement 

planning, and much of it depends on 

your stage of life. It’s important to seek 

advice from a registered financial planner 

who can help you make the most of your 

unique circumstances. 

There are some handy way points to help 

you get a grasp on where you are and 

what you will need - here’s a checklist of 

things to consider: 

Understand what your retirement 

income is likely to be: 

You will be adding to your pension fund 

during your working life, but it’s important 

you get a handle on your various pension 

pots to forecast the actual figure you will 

have access to. 

Check your state pension: 

The rising state pension age can have a 

real knock-on effect to your retirement 

planning - a state pension forecast will 

help you to gauge how much you’re on 

course to get from the government. 

Get an understanding of your 

expenditure: 

Having an idea of your expenditure will 

help you plan longer-term. Your living 

costs are likely to be a lot lower than 

in other phases of life - you might be 

mortgage-free and you don’t have the 

same costs for commuting, recreation or 

childcare for example. 

You may wish to improve your home 

or go on some amazing trips, so it’s 

important you know you have the 

financial reserves to do this. 

When should you start drawing a 

pension? 

You don’t have to stop working to draw 

down your pension - as long as you 

are over the age of 55 - but be aware, 

the sooner you start dipping into it, the 

sooner the pot will deplete. 

How much will retirement cost? 

This is the golden question, and really 

depends on the level of comfort or luxury 

you are looking for in your autumn years. 

A recent Which? study found that the 

average retired household (those living 

alone or as couples) spent an around 

£2,170 per month - this is covering all 

the basic areas of expenditure and some 

luxuries like European holidays. Those 

looking for a more luxurious lifestyle 

including longer-haul trips and new cars 

every five years would need to allow 

for approximately £3,400 per month, or 

£41,000 per year. 

Once you have a framework for the 

amount you’ll need, and what you are 

on track for saving, you also need to 

consider how you will access your 

pension pots - these might be state 

pension, a final salary pension and a 

money purchase/defined contribution 

pension. 

With your defined contribution pot, 

such as the one you might get in the 

government employee scheme, you can 

draw the entire pension pot in one go, 

but this will mean it’s entirely down to 

you to make the money last and you’ll 

invariably pay a substantial tax bill. Most 

people with these pensions will opt for 

income drawdown or an annuity, or a 

combination of both when it comes 

taking money out of their pension. 

With careful planning and accurate 

forecasting, your retirement can be 

something to really look forward to, but 

it is essential to make an assessment of 

your position as early as possible and 

use the advice of experts to make your 

money work harder for you. 


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At WCS Care we know moving into a care home is an 

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We’ve over 29 years’ experience of helping people to 

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housing21.org.uk 


ALSTERS KELLEY 

SOLICITORS OPENS FIFTH 

OFFICE WITH ACQUISITION 

OF BONELL & CO 

Coventry and Warwickshire solicitors 

Alsters Kelley recently announced the 

acquisition of Stratford-based Bonell & Co 

Solicitors, further extending its presence 

across the region as it brings its total 

number of offices to five... 

It is an exciting development for the Legal 500 firm which already 

operates in Coventry, Nuneaton, Leamington Spa and Southam 

and represents its first acquisition for 15 years. 

Bonell & Co, which is situated in Chestnut Walk, Stratford, has 

been established for over 30 years. It currently offers services in 

conveyancing and family law. 

The deal, which was conducted throughout the height of the 

COVID-19 pandemic, will allow the firm, which will become 

known as Alsters Kelley incorporating Bonell Co, to extend its 

range of services to the region*, whilst continuing to provide 

a high level of personal service for which it has always been 

renowned. 

Cathy Wahlberg, Managing Director at Alsters Kelley, said: “The 

acquisition of Bonell & Co marks the start of an exciting new 

chapter for both firms. 

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“Bonell & Co boasts an impressive pedigree and has a highly 

talented and experienced workforce. It has an excellent reputation 

throughout the Stratford region and the acquisition seemed like 

the next natural step in Alsters Kelley’s own journey. It provides 

us with an excellent platform for growth and we look forward to 

developing the business in the years to come for the benefit of 

both the staff and our clients.” 

Both firms pride themselves on their friendly, approachable 

service combined with expert legal advice with Alsters Kelley 

operating on the mantra of being kind, helpful and excellent in the 

delivery of its service at all times. 

*Alsters Kelley’s range of services include Family (divorce, 

finances, children matters) , family care (adoption, care 

proceedings, abductions), private client (wills, powers of 

attorney, tax and trusts), conveyancing, personal injury, medical 

negligence, dispute resolution and criminal cases including 

motoring offences. 

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Shipston-on-Stour, Warwickshire CV36 4PR 

01608 663535 | www.shipstonbathrooms.co.uk 


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WARWICK

Stratford-upon-Avon Living Sep - Oct 2021

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