Monday 24 January 2011

Half a House: Reading Room

This is a suggestion, put forward by an ex-Parish Councillor from a local village. We think it deserves consideration.

Convert the Reading Room into a house, for rent at current rates eg £400/month. Allow a young couple in the village to do some of that conversion work - the village funds materials, the young couple fund labour.

Then rent "desres" to said local couple for a 3-5 yr tenure on the understanding that:

Tuesday 18 January 2011

Social Media Surgery


Warcop will shortly be hosting a Social Media Surgery, thanks to funding from the north of Cumbria. This will be open and free to anyone - and we mean *anyone* to attend in the Village Hall. (Date to be confirmed shortly).

Whether you are on holiday in Eden, a local business, resident, or even from over the border - Yorkshire, Teasdale, Lancashire, you name it - come and learn what social media is all about with us.

We hope this will become a regular feature of the Exchange and SkillSwap so....see you there. Or if you can't make it, we'll see you on Twitter, Facebook, Skype, Digg, Stumbleupon etc!

And if that is all double Dutch, we *really* look forward to seeing you in the Hall so it can be explained and you can save money on phone calls, texts and your Internet usage.

Warcop & Sandford Exchange



These are always held on Saturdays and are becoming quite the social event, as well as being



  • an opportunity to support local projects
  • buy your Herald and local produce
  • find out about local goings on and events
  • get information about local services
  • organise events
  • get together with other like-minded individuals
  • drink tea and eat cakes
  • gossip!

The dates are (Saturday):

Contributing to this blog

This blog is for the Parish of Warcop, in Eden, Cumbria, which includes Bleatarn, Sandford and Flitholme.

Anyone can contribute, and the more that do so, the better it will become as a resource for all of us.

We are also not shy of our neighbouring parishes, so let us know if you are in Upper Eden and want to share news, events, etc.

You can learn how to use the blog, as well as anything on the Internet (Skype, Facebook, Twitter etc) at Warcop & Sandford Exchange or the Social Media Surgery.

Exchange Dates
to follow.......you should come! We have been and they really are worth attending - you never know who you will meet.

Village Hall- reminder to all residents of the Parish

Please submit your comments about the Village Hall as soon as possible.

This Parish needs to work together and to do so it needs your voice.

If you haven't received any info on the village hall proposals, please see Sue Fell or Ray.

Saturday 15 January 2011

The Pub Could be the Hub!


Here's a photo I found of the Chamley Arms on Google.


Let's hope Warcop can take some inspiration from this video...


English Heritage list the Chamley as a Grade II Listed Building as follows:-

"House, cottage and barn, now an Inn; late C18/early C19 with later additions and alterations. Rendered rubble with rusticated quoins to former house/cottage. Graduated slate roof with stone and brick chimneys; ball finial to west end. 2 storeys, 8 bays overall. Former house/cottage has 2 panelled doors in rusticated surrounds; 3 sashes to ground floor and 4 above, all with glazing bars in stone surrounds; 3 similar sashes to 1st floor of former barn,above two C20 garage doors. Single-storey C20 addition to east end not included."

Thursday 13 January 2011

WANTED in Warcop - your skills!

Warcop needs you!

Have you a skill from your work experience or life experience that you could share?

Are there skills you would like to brush up on or learn? Confused by computers and I.T. or in knots with knitting? Come to the SkillSwap!

Whether it is using a computer or chain saw, making jam, crochet, running a book club, or swapping a lift to Penrith for shopping or the hospital, someone in Warcop needs to know! And you may have the skill they are looking for.

Warcop SkillSwap and Social starts in February. It will fit in with the Warcop & Sandford Exchange - taking place in the Village Halls:

Warcop 12th February
Sandford 12th March
Warcop 9th April
Warcop 11th June
Sandford 9th July
Warcop 13th August
Sandford 10th September
Warcop - 9th October
Sandford - 12th November

See you there!

Cumbrian Community Assets

Cliburn Village Hall springs to mind as an A1 community asset, but there are also Reading Rooms, pubs, shops, and a multitude of projects which may operate below the radar for the majority of the villagers in Cumbria, and particularly in Warcop.

When we first moved to Warcop, the Kids Club, run by Ann, Joan etc was a godsend, and will never be forgotten, by parent or children!

Think about the assets in your village and how they should or could be used to better effect.

In Warcop, since I came here 8 years ago, we have lost (in order) Malcolm Peart's garage, the Reading Room, Michael Gregson's shop, the Post Office, and now the pub is closed.

We are also unable to have a community party on Rushbearing or the Village Green due to insurance costs; yet, we all know that Warcop Rushbearing was one of the highlights of the summer with Cumberland Wrestling, bands, and much more.

Enough is enough. Let's take back our assets and rebuild our communities.

Send in your village hall survey if you haven't already done so. Or go and talk to Sue Fell in the Square (ask here if you need to know where she lives!) so we can keep a Village Hall for future generations.

This year, there is also a Royal Wedding. For one day, we are allowed to party, so let's do so! Warcop has a great village and community spirit. We have a village green on which to party, and committees galore who can pull something really great together so that next year in 2012 and for many years beyond, with or without a Royal Wedding, Warcop can hold yet more duck races, BBQs, Cumberland Wrestling or Tae Kwondo tournaments, crochet competitions, a Village Show, Old Tyme Dance and Disco, and a little bit of something to suit everyone.

Think about it!

Wednesday 12 January 2011

News about the Chamley Arms

This letter was sent out to everyone on the Friends of Warcop Pub e-mail list on 12/10/11:

Happy New Year to all!

A letter has been received by Friends of Warcop Pub dated 11/01/11 from Mark Frankland, owner of the Chamley Arms, in response to our letter dated 16/10/09.

He confirms that the current tenant has given up the business, and he considers that there is little chance of it re-opening and trading in its present format.

He states that planning permission will once again be applied for on the bases (sic) that the pub is not viable, not trading, but keeping the village pub aspect in the hope that the site will once again become a viable proposition if planning were to be granted, and in which case, he would be prepared to offer the Village Pub aspect to the community as outlined in the Government Community Bills.

At the same time the Chamley Arms is to be put up for sale after a valuation, but before doing this, the freehold is being offered to the village at a price of £250,000. He states that this is the minimum price he is prepared to accept based on the purchase price and their losses at the premises.

Further to this letter, the Parish Council meeting on Monday was informed that an offer has been made to the Parish Council to purchase the pub on behalf of the village. In light of this letter, discussions will be ongoing about this option. Several people have also come forward with an interest in managing different aspects of the business, which is also good news.

There are likely to be views and opinions about the contents of this letter, and actions to be taken in the coming months, so a FOWP meeting will be called shortly. However, other meetings were already booked with concerned parties in the next fortnight before the arrival of this letter. It would be preferable to see the outcome of those before a public meeting is called, particularly as these meetings concern funding and ownership options already available to Warcop.

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It has taken 18 months to reach this stage. Stage 2 may not be as quick as many in the village would hope; I think all of us want to see the doors open again and a new era for the Chamley Arms. So to inspire you, watch this video from Pub is the Hub, all about Cumbrian pubs that are succeeding as community concerns.

There are plenty of ideas to choose from for helping to rejuvenate the pub, so let's get our thinking hats on!

Tuesday 11 January 2011

Online Village Newsletter & Events

The first 2011 Parish Council meeting for Warcop, and the Warcop & Sandford Exchange, have now been held, so shortly we will be issuing the first 2011 newsletter.

We intend to update the Parish about the pub, village hall survey, Gipsy Fair plans, Exchange dates, and more so if you have anything to add before publication, please let us know.

Events, for sale items, etc, please just post here on the blog, or give unwanted items away on Freegle.

Thanks!

Notes:

Upcoming Event: Broadband and Localism Event in Carlisle this Saturday. Car share available from Warcop.

Websites to check: BroadbandCumbria.com - for a lively debate about how Cumbria should be facing the Next Generation Broadband issue, community engagement and support, networking and the latest news from the IT world.