Country Market to reopen

After an absence of 4.5 months, Titchfield Country Market will be opening it’s doors again at 10:00 on Friday July 31st.

Our ‘new look’ market will be complying with government guidelines for COVID 19 and there will be measures in place to ensure the safety of all our customers and members.

We ask that all customers wear a face mask please and use the hand sanitiser provided. There will be a one way system in operation and social distancing must be observed at all times please.

We now have a card reader for contactless payments but will accept cash if customers prefer. The ‘new’ market will be open from 10:00 until 11:30 every Friday in the Parish Room.

The shorter opening hours are to allow us extra time for setting up and cleaning the market while we adjust to the new regime.

Produce for sale will include a selection of sweet and savoury items, preserves, cards, plants and we hope some vegetables. Regrettably we will not be able to offer refreshments or other craft items currently.

We have very much missed all our customers and look forward to seeing you again soon. In the meantime please keep safe!

Village pubs set to reopen

Both the Queens Head and the Wheatsheaf will open on Saturday 4th of July.

Following the government’s announcement earlier this week pubs can reopen, but only if they follow strict rules to keep customers safe.

At both venues it will be table service only. And the two-metre distancing rule will also be relaxed to one.

Mark, landlord at the Wheatsheaf in East Street, has been working hard to prepare the pub for the reopening, erecting screens and ensuring tables are not too close.

The pub will be open for drinks from 12 noon till 10pm but sadly there will be no food service.
The new landlord at The Queen’s Head, Alanna Ferriday, will also open the doors on Saturday but with a later time of 2pm, closing at 10pm. Other times are:-

Sunday - 12 midday - 9pm
Monday - Thursday 2pm - 9pm
Friday - 2pm -10pm
Saturday 12 midday - 10pm

Alanna ask prospective patrons to ring ahead to book a table as there will be some limited numbers due to seating space.” Call 07487679330

Titchfield mask maker

Vivian Stewart from Common Lane has been busy making face masks and giving them away to anyone that wants one.

The masks are reversible and made from 100% washed cotton with a piece of quilt liner sewn between the pattered material.

Vivian has been displaying her handiwork on her fence and so far, in the three weeks she’s been sewing, over 120 masks have been snapped up by passer-bys.

The masks can be easily put together using spare scraps of material and elastic. and Vivian says there must be many ‘quilters’, like her, who could use their skills during the current crisis.

Well done Vivian!

Take a look at our Covid-19 Gallery

Fareham VE Day Home Schooling and Stay at Home Street Party Pack Launched

Home schooling resources and a “Stay At Home Street Party” pack have today been launched by Fareham Borough Council to help residents across the Borough mark the 75th anniversary of Victory in Europe (VE) Day on May 8th.

The Coronavirus pandemic and lockdown has meant events planned to mark the 75th anniversary of the end of hostilities in Europe in 1945 have had to be shelved. The early May Bank Holiday has been moved to Friday 8th to allow for a weekend of national commemorations, street parties and other events; these may now be held later in the year.

However, VE Day was May 8th in 1945 and Fareham Borough Council wants its residents to be able to mark the occasion on the actual 75th anniversary.

The Council has teamed up with a teacher to produce home schooling lesson plans and supporting resources for parents to help young people in the Borough learn about VE Day. The home-schooling pack is designed to be used each day in the week leading up to May 8th.

• The Council has also produced a “Stay At Home Street Party” pack for residents. It includes:

• A competition for residents to design their own bunting to hang or stick in their front windows, with a chance to win a home-delivered afternoon tea.

• A VE Day themed quiz that they can use with family and friends virtually on video conferencing services, or among the family at home.

• A VE Day themed Word Search.

• Some war-time recipes based on the rations available in 1945 for residents to try at home themselves.

• The words to We’ll Meet Again, the Dame Vera Lynn song made famous during the war and recently referenced by The Queen in her address to the national during the pandemic.

• A Spotify playlist of war-time songs compiled especially by the Council for the VE Day Stay At Home Street Parties

Fareham Borough Council Executive Leader Councillor Sean Woodward said: “VE Day is an important anniversary in our country’s history and we want to be sure that, despite the pandemic lockdown, residents have the chance to mark it in their own way.

“We know parents have been superbly tackling the difficult challenge of home-schooling their children - our lesson plans and resources will support their teaching and learning throughout VE Day week, and help children to understand the importance of VE Day to the nation.

“In 1945 the country celebrated the end of hostilities in Europe like never before, with street parties and other events. We had hoped to recreate that for the 75th anniversary this year until the Coronavirus pandemic put an end to those plans. Our Stay At Home Street Party pack will help all those who do still want to mark this very significant milestone.

“It would be fantastic if everyone across Fareham would join in a Borough-wide singalong of We’ll Meet Again at mid-day on Friday May 8th as we pay our own tribute to all those who fought in the Second World War for our freedom today, and at the same time to think about those nearest and dearest to us that we are missing seeing right now.

“I know how frustrating and difficult it continues to be for residents who are staying at home because of this lockdown. We want our VE Day packs to be something families and individuals can make use of to help mark this important anniversary.”

The downloadable home schooling and Stay At Home Street Party packs, and the Spotify playlist link, can be found at www.fareham.gov.uk/leisure/veday75.aspx.

Extra help for local parents during Covid crisis

Baby Bundles Bank based in Titchfield Common was set up to help struggling families with preloved or new baby items donated by the generous public.

But during the Covid-19 crisis they are extending their help further into the community and helping all families who may be struggling to get items, this might be nappies, baby wipes, clothing etc.

To learn more contact them via their Facebook group which you are welcome to join. HERE

Clare Monkton from Baby Bundles Bank says, “If you require support due to being in isolation or not being able to get what you need from a shop etc please contact me at clare.monckton@gmail.com if we have what you need we will help.

This is a free service and is usually done by referral via health professionals, but at this time we are able to open it up to include ALL families who may need it, we rely totally on donations of baby items from the generous community. “

They collect and distribute the following items - Baby clothing -good condition and not stained. Blankets and sheets- cot and moses size Bottles and sterilisers Dummies Toiletries Nappies Towels Muslin cloths.

They also take- moses baskets Baby baths Changing bags Baby chairs Toys Prams and cots on a need basis due to storage space.

Fareham and Gosport Basics Bank provides vital supplies despite closure

Fareham Borough Council would like to thank the Fareham and Gosport Basics Bank for providing vital food supplies for those in need. The Basics Bank was forced to temporarily close last week as a number of its volunteers identified as vulnerable. Despite its closure the organisation worked with the Council and local voluntary groups to ensure that none of its food was wasted.

All food has now been moved ready for distribution

On Monday a large group of Acts of Kindness volunteers spent the day collecting and transporting many tonnes of supplies from the Basics Bank in Fareham and put it in storage in a warehouse provided by Fareham Borough Council

Yesterday the Council mobilised a team of officers to collect several more tonnes of food from the Basics Bank storage facility in Segensworth and transferred it to its newly set up distribution centre. Acts of Kindness and Waypoint Church will play a crucial role in helping to ensure that essential food is delivered to those in need across the Borough

Since 2003 the Basics Bank has been providing practical help such as food and toiletries for people in crisis in a caring and welcoming environment. In the last year alone they have helped nearly five thousand people. They will reopen to continue their vital work as soon as it is safe for them to do so.

Executive Leader of Fareham Borough Council, Councillor Seán Woodward, said:

“The coronavirus pandemic has created enormous challenges for every element of society including the voluntary sector. We know it was an extremely difficult decision for the Basics Bank to take to close last week, but the health and wellbeing of their volunteers is important. I would like to thank the Basics Bank for their agreement to ensure their supplies will still go to people who need it and for their hard work over the last 17 years. I know this hard work will continue once the pandemic is over.

"It was wonderful to see first-hand our community pulling together on Monday to move vast quantities of food and I am pleased that Council staff were able to continue that effort yesterday. This work is critical to ensure that those most in need are able to receive the food they require to enable them to stay safely at home.”

Acts of Kindness can be contacted on 07766 521314 or ActsofKindnessTeam@outlook.com
Waypoint Church can be contacted on 07934726212 or help@waypointchurch.org.uk

Clapping for our carers

UPDATE

Right across the village people stood at their doorsteps tonight to applaud NHS workers and all others helping to keep the country running.

A round of applause for our NHS staff and all those caring for us at this time is being proposed for later this week.

At 8pm on Thursday, March 26, people across the country are being asked to stand at their windows, front doors, balconies for a round of applause.

Many streets in Titchfield are already bedecked with flags and banners to show our support and defiance in the present crisis.

While the majority of people are now safely working from home and social-distancing to lower the chances of ourselves and our loved ones catching the deadly virus, for those working on the front line this isn't possible.

Doctors, nurses, porters, emergency call workers and other NHS staff are still going to work every day to keep the health system working - putting themselves at risk of getting sick.

Give them a big round of applause on Thursday!

Coronavirus: Sainsburys shopping arrangements

A statement to Sainsburys customers about opening hours.

I wanted to write to you again to update you on the steps we are taking to make sure everyone has access to food and essential items. I'm also sharing more information about how we are supporting our colleagues in these challenging times and how you can help.

An increasing number of you have told me that you're not always able to get the items that you need when you need them. We are working with our suppliers to get even more stock of essential items and we are adding warehouse capacity on a daily basis. You will have seen that we put restrictions in place this week to ensure that more products are on shelf for longer.

From Monday 23rd March, we are consolidating our opening hours and all our supermarkets will be open from 8am to 8pm, Monday-Saturday, including those with an Argos store. Sunday opening, Sainsbury’s Local and petrol station opening times will stay the same.

This means we can focus our store colleagues’ time on keeping shelves stocked and serving our customers well during the times that most of you are already shopping.

Last Thursday, we set aside an hour for elderly and vulnerable shoppers in our supermarkets. Many of you have told me how much you appreciated this and that you would like this to become a regular event. Some of you also said we should extend this to members of our hardworking NHS and Social Care workers. And we will be doing just that.

Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, all our supermarkets will dedicate 8am - 9am to serving elderly, disabled and vulnerable customers, as well as NHS and Social Care workers. They will just need to show us their pass or ID when they visit. Some of you fed back that you couldn’t find what you wanted during that hour, so we will try our best to have essential items on shelf for these customers. We will be working to keep our shelves well stocked and would encourage customers to arrive throughout the hour to prevent queues forming and to help everyone keep a safe distance.

Hundreds of you have written to me to thank our amazing colleagues who are working around the clock to serve our customers. A number of you have also shared your concerns for the safety and wellbeing of our colleagues. I want you to know that we are doing all we can to support everyone who works in our business. We have committed to paying all colleagues who are unwell or need to self-isolate for the full period of fourteen days. We have also committed to paying vulnerable and elderly colleagues in full if the government decides they should isolate for 12 weeks.

We hope this will go some way to helping our teams through this uncertain time and we are looking at other ways to thank our colleagues for their extraordinary efforts.

To keep our colleagues safe, I need to ask again for your help. Please do your best to stand one metre away from colleagues in our stores where you can. And we would prefer you to pay with card rather than cash at our tills. Please also treat our colleagues and other customers with kindness and respect.

These are unprecedented circumstances and our colleagues are being asked to come to work every day while so many others are being asked to stay at home. We all need them to keep coming to work to feed the nation – a small thank you goes a really long way.

I hope you will join us in looking out for each other and the communities that we serve.

Coronavirus: Bin collection update

Recycling and rubbish collections are currently continuing as normal and Fareham Borough Council will do everything possible to continue this service.

Residents are being asked to protect our staff by taking precautions when disposing of their rubbish.

• Please can all rubbish be disposed of in sealed bags and make sure your bin lid is firmly closed.

• For people with symptoms associated with coronavirus (COVID-19) or self-isolating at home, please seal personal waste such as tissues and disposable cleaning cloths in smaller plastic bags and store them for 72 hours before double bagging your waste and placing it in your refuse bin.

• Recycling must remain loose in the blue-lid bin as usual. No absorbent paper, such as tissue or kitchen towel, is recyclable.

The Council is aware that glass banks are filling up fast. We are currently running this service, but please do not leave glass on the ground around banks, where it poses a risk to people and animals. If the bank is full when you visit, please take your glass back home and re-visit at a later date.

The garden waste service has been suspended, so the Council can focus on rubbish and recycling collections.

The fridge/freezer collection and bulky waste service have now been suspended and there will be no collections.

No new bookings will be taken for fridge/freezer or bulky waste collections until further notice.

Do you need help - Can you help

Village support group being set up to support the vulnerable during the Coronavirus crisis.

“To update you as to where we have got to with setting up our Titchfield Village group, to offer support to those isolated and without family support and in need.

We have agreed that we can manage to cover Titchfield centre and out to Prosbrook Lane to the end of Bellfield.

We are now setting out a leaflet which will give a telephone number for people to contact.

These leaflets will be delivered from Tuesday onwards.

Please bear with us and remember that we are all volunteers.

The Titchfield website www.titchfieldnews.com has set up a page which will give links to other support groups as well.

Thank you all who have come back to me re. volunteering, I will be in touch with you further this weekend.

I will also be asking for volunteers to cover certain streets, yet to be covered so please watch this space.”

Thank you all Pat Shirley

Visitor guidance at QA Hospital

We are asking the public to limit visiting Queen Alexandra Hospital (QA) and to consider other ways of keeping in touch, like phone calls.

From Thursday 19 March 2020 and until further notice, visiting is now restricted to one hour per day between 6pm and 7pm.

Visitors must be immediate family members or carers.

Visitors should not visit any health and care settings (including all inpatient, diagnostic and outpatient areas) if they are:

• unwell, especially if they have a high temperature or a new, persistent cough

• vulnerable as a result of their medication, a chronic illness or they are over 70 years of age

Visitors should be limited to one per patient unless:

• the patient is receiving end-of-life care

• the visitor needs to be accompanied – accompanying visitors should not stay in patient, ward or communal areas, and this applies to inpatient and outpatient settings

• they are a partner and birthing partner accompanying a woman in labour

No children under 12 should be visiting without the ward sister or charge nurse’s prior permission.

Slightly different rules apply to paediatrics and neonates.

In the paediatric department, only one parent or appropriate adult is able to be with their child at any given time and currently no other children will be able to visit.

We ask for the public’s help in respecting these rules.

Moviola Film Nights cancelled until September

The Moviola team have announced that In light of the Governments latest guidance Titchfield Moviola has taken the decision to cancel 'Film Nights' until September.

They say, “We hope by then that 'Film Nights' will be able to continue and we will be back in touch.

“We will give full refunds for the 9 tickets purchased in advance for 'Downtown Abbey', please email annette.devoil@btinternet.com so that we can arrange for this to happen.

“We hope that all our cinema goers stay fit and well during hese uncertain times.”

Update on Breast Cancer Haven's Big Tea Cosy

In the interest of reducing risk and keeping everyone safe during the COVID-19 situation, Breast Cancer Haven has made the very difficult decision to postpone their Big Tea Cosy at the centre on 24 March until further notice.

Following the current NHS England advice, your own personal health and safety, and that of our wider community, remains our key priority.

Community Fundraising Officer, Ellie Hughes added, “This turn of events does leave Breast Cancer Haven in a vulnerable position as we are an events-based charity and all our fundraising events are now postponed for many months.

“If you feel you are able to help us during this time, so we don’t have to stop our vital services when people need us the most, I would be most grateful if you would consider donating to our urgent Fundraising Appeal.

“This appeal was launched to coincide with Mother’s Day but now becomes vital for our charity.

“I would like to take this opportunity to offer a heartfelt thank you for your continued support at this difficult time.”

LINK

Breast Cancer Haven Wessex

FBC suspend garden waste services

Due to the Coronavirus outbreak Fareham Borough Council is suspending its garden
waste collection service with immediate effect.

This is so that the Council can focus resources on the most important collections.
Residents should not put out any garden waste at this time.

Executive Member for Streetscene at Fareham Borough Council, Cllr Simon Martin,
said: “In these unprecedented times, we need to take steps to prioritise our most
important services. This measure will ensure that we can continue to empty waste
bins.

We would like thank residents for their understanding, and please be assured
that we will return the service to normal as soon as possible.”