Sunday 7 December         11.00am  Informal Service with Kid’s group
Sunday 14 December        11.00am  Informal Service with Holy Communion and Kid’s Group
Wednesday 17 December   7.30pm  Beer & Carols in the Boot and Shoe
Thursday 18 December       6.00pm  Greystoke School Pageant
Sunday 21 December         6.30pm  Carol Service
Wednesday 24 December   3.00pm  Christingle Service
Thursday 25 December     10.30am  Family Christmas Service
Sunday 28 December        11.00am  Service of the Word

St. Andrew’s Greystoke, Church Services January 2026

Sunday January 4      11.00am  Informal Service with Kid’s group
Sunday January 11    11.00am  Informal Service with Holy Communion and Kid’s Group
Sunday January 18    11.00am  Informal Service with Kid’s Group
Sunday January 25    11.00am  Traditional Holy Communion

All Sunday morning services serve coffee and cakes from 10.30 onwards. We look forward to welcoming you to our range of services over the next two months.

Greystoke’s New Together Correspondent

At the time of writing, this will be the last online Greystoke News as, after nearly 10 years, the time has come to pass the baton over to a new correspondent. Please contact me at the email address inside the front cover of November’s printed magazine if you’d like to find out more or, if you are willing from January 2026, to provide no more than a day a month collating articles, and updating the village website.

Village Hall Bingo

Come join us for Christmas Bingo on Friday 19 December – some festive fun with mulled wine and mince pies. Pop on your Christmas jumper and bring your festive spirit! Doors open 6.40pm, eyes down 7.00pm prompt.

Thank you for everyone’s generosity donating prizes. The first bingo raised £401 – helping to keep the hall maintained and available for all. The final bingo for this season will be Friday 23 January.

Greystoke Parish Council

The next Parish Council meeting is at 7.00pm on Tuesday 20 January in the Village Hall.

Village Hall AGM – Tuesday 27 January, 7.00pm

Come along to the AGM, your Village Hall belongs to you and we’d love to hear your ideas how we can make it even better. Everyone is welcome! Come and meet the committee, share your thoughts and see what’s planned for the year ahead. Anyone interested in joining the committee can drop us a message at GreystokeVillageHall@gmail.com or contact Laura on 07828 741 354. See you there!

Greystoke WI – The Penultimate meeting

Our meeting on Thursday 6 November began with the minutes of the meeting between the President, Secretary and a WI trustee which was held to count our votes and declare Greystoke WI suspended. 100% of members had voted in favour of the suspension.

On a more cheerful note, we then turned our attention to a dabble craft session. We could choose from silk painting, embroidering Christmas designs onto baubles and making a lantern covered with tissue and Christmas designs. There was also an opportunity to look at the archive. After our hard work we enjoyed beautiful homemade mince pies and a cup of tea thanks to Violet. We now look forward to our last session on Thursday 4 December when we will be entertained by MUGS – the ukulele group.

Friends of St. Andrew’s Building

Winter Quiz Nights in Greystoke Village Hall at 7:30 pm, on Friday 30 January, 27 February and 20 March. The Quizmaster will be Harry Upton, and includes a bar.

All proceeds will go to FoSAB (Friends of St. Andrew’s Building).

The number of FoSAB group members continues to grow. If you have an interest in our beautiful church building and would like to become a member at a minimum charge of £10 per annum or just making a donation please contact Maureen Hardy.

Greystoke and District Sports Association

The Future Pool Project: After a well-attended public meeting on the Pool Sustainability Project, we are awaiting the outcome of our Planning application. Meanwhile, Greystoke Pool and St. Andrew’s Church have received funding (Community Energy Fund Northwest Hub, and the Church of England Pilot and Innovation Fund) to explore a Feasibility Study on a Community Energy Network in Greystoke. To find out more, please come to our Public Meeting at Greystoke Village Hall on Thursday 8 January at 6.30pm. All Welcome.

AGM: Everyone is welcome to the AGM of the Sports Association on Thursday 22 January 2026 in the swimming pool café. It’s a great chance to find out more about the past year and our future plans. Do come down!

Café opening times: Our lunchtime cafe takes place on Mondays, 12 noon – 2.00pm. Homemade soup and cakes with hot drinks available.
Saturday café is also open when Greystoke football teams are playing at home. Please check Facebook for up to date information.

Save the Dates:

• Film nights Saturday 7 February and 7 March 2026
• Dance the night away to Soul Junction Saturday 28 February 2026

Greystoke Community Land Trust

Survey Results: Thank you to everybody who filled in the housing needs survey. We achieved a response rate of 35% which is excellent (30% would be considered good). 82% of respondents supported new affordable homes for local people and the survey identified an affordable housing need for 14 households. The need for (some) smaller, cheaper houses for sale on the open market was also identified. In summary the survey will help us understand what any new housing in the parish might look like.

Thank you also to those who expressed an interest in getting more involved. The most important thing you can do now is to join us as a member, and help spread the word about what the Community Land Trust could achieve – but only with the support of the community!

Membership: Join the Community Land Trust (CLT) for just £1. This will give you membership for life and a vote at all general meetings, including who should be on the board. You can join online at greystokeclt.org.uk/join or see us at various community events and meetings to join via a paper membership form. The more people who join, the more representative of the community we will be. A CLT is a democratic, non‑profit organisation run by and for the community.

Help get the housing we need, not the housing that developers want to build. Take control – decisions made by the community for the community

Together we can do this by:

• developing a small number of affordable houses for local people;
• leading the local community in representing our interests when new building developments are being planned.

The Land Trust is not just a vehicle for housing – it can be used to help buy any community asset – such as your local shop – if we need to. Join now to be a part of something really powerful.

What’s next? Look out for a meeting in January to go over the key findings from the housing survey – date TBC. We will publish this via facebook, let supporters and members know via email, and have posters on the noticeboards.

Questions? Email chair@GreystokeCLT.org.uk

Greystoke & District Sports Association – Monthly Draw

The draw is a fantastic way to raise funds for the pool and playpark and every ticket sold helps keep our pool afloat. The draw runs January to January so December is the time to renew your membership or come on board and join us. Only £15 per number with great odds each month. It’s easy to join online.

Join to today, support the pool and playpark, support your community.

£20 – Andy James – 34
£15 – Andrew Wilson – 11
£10 – Max & Becka – 60
£5 – Lesley Lamb – 163
£5 – L Watson – 93
£5 – Will Nielsen – 69
£5 – Bridget Jardine – 190

Get Fit 4 Life, Tuesdays 3pm, Greystoke Village Hall

It’s been wonderful to welcome new faces to Get Fit 4 Life at Greystoke on Tuesdays from 3.00pm to 4.00pm. The group has a lovely energy and size, but there’s still room if you’d like to join. It’s a brilliant way to get moving, meet others, and enjoy yourself. Feel free to contact Debbie on 07776 162 125 or debbie@get‑active.co.uk – or simply pop down and give it a go.

Sunday 2 November – Informal Service with Kid’s Group
Sunday 9 November – Remembrance Service 10.15 am followed by prayers and last post at the cross (11.00)
Sunday 16 November – Informal Service with Kid’s Group
Sunday 23 November – Traditional Holy Communion
Sunday 30 November – Ullswater Mission Community Service

All services, apart from Remembrance Sunday which is 10.15am, begin at 11.00am. Coffee and cake will be served from 10.30 am onwards. We look forward to seeing you.

Greystoke’s New Together Correspondent

After nearly 10 years, the time has come to pass the baton over to a new correspondent. Please contact John Bridges at the email address inside the front cover of the printed magazine if you’d like to find out more, or if you are willing, from January 2026, to provide no more than a day a month collating articles, and updating the village website.

Get Involved – Join our Village Hall Committee

We have a great bunch of people who come together to help run our village hall, ensuring it is available for the whole community. It’s a place for gatherings, clubs, celebrations, school lunches are more. We are currently looking for friendly motivated people to join the committee and help shape its future. Do you have ideas for events, activities or improvements?

So, what’s involved?

• Attending short, friendly meetings (usually 4 times year)
• Helping plan or support local events
• Sharing ideas to improve our space and services
• Help make decisions that benefit the whole community.

No experience needed – just enthusiasm and a bit of time. There are lots of ways to be involved. Whether you’re a long-time resident or new to the village – your voice matters.

Interested? Have questions? Drop us a message or contact Emma.

Greystoke Parish Council

The next Parish Council meeting is at 7.00pm on Tuesday 11 November in the Village Hall.

Greystoke WI

Greystoke WI was very honoured to welcome Alan Hinkes OBE, one time Yorkshire Man of the Year and first Brit to climb the 14 peaks over 8,000 metres as our speaker at our October Guest Night.

He gave an engaging and hair-raising talk about his 17 year long ambition to scale the 14 peaks over 8,000 metres. It took so long because many attempts failed, sometimes because of the weather and on one occasion because his party came upon a man who would have died if they had not helped him to walk down. It was hair-raising because at 8,000 metres you are in the death zone where humans are not adapted to survive. He spoke of the numbers of climbers who had attempted the 14 peaks but had either died or given up. He mentioned many friends who had died from falls, avalanches or from acute mountain sickness whilst climbing. He was very proud of still possessing all ten digits whereas many of his acquaintances had lost fingers or toes to frostbite. He was acutely aware of the risks he was running and the possibility that he would never get back to Fiona, his daughter, whose picture he carried to each summit. Tellingly, he said he would never climb any of the 14 again.

Alan was not shy of including gory detail and told us about a very nasty wound he suffered to his leg when he fell off a path on the way to a climb. This entailed a lengthy stay in hospital and much training to recover his fitness.

Kangchenjunga sounded like Alan’s worst experience. He felt that he came close to death at the summit rather late in the day and was faced with the prospect of descending in the dark. However, he managed to talk himself out of his fear and down the mountain. He has written about his 17 year mission in a book called 8000m All 14 Summits. We were very grateful to him for coming to Greystoke WI to speak about his experiences.

Our meeting on Thursday 6 November is a dabble craft session starting at 2.00pm. There will be an opportunity to look at the archive as well as try your hand at something new.

If you would like to join us at WI meetings, please contact Sue, Val on or Jennifer.

Friends of St. Andrew’s Building Frost Fayre

Saturday 22 November between 10.30am and 2.00pm in Greystoke Village Hall, we will be serving our ever popular Turkey Rolls and Delicious Home Baked Cakes.

Christmas Stalls where you can have a good old Cumbrian ‘ratch’ for Christmas presents, cards, decorations, mouth-watering food and produce. Games for children and hopefully Father Christmas will pay us a visit between 12noon and 1.00pm.

At the time of writing there are still 2 stalls available to hire. Please contact Shirley or Maureen.

The number of FoSAB group members continues to grow. If you have an interest in our beautiful church building and would like to become a member at a minimum charge of £10 per annum or just making a donation please contact Maureen Hardy.

Greystoke & District Sports Association – Future Pool Project

A well-attended event took place on 29 September in the pool café, when plans for the future of the pool were revealed and discussed. Thanks to all who came along and supported the ideas for development and provided useful feedback. Our aim is to create a replacement pool that is more energy efficient, will last us the next 50 years, and be more accessible than the current pool. If you were unable to attend and would like to know more please contact any Committee member or email us at GreystokePool@gmail.com and we will get back to you.

We have benefitted from the community support over the years and will need continued help with fundraising to carry through the ambitious plans. Our next step is to submit a planning application – where letters of support will be welcomed! We will provide regular updates in this newsletter.

Greystoke & District Sports Association – Events

• Monday café – open from 12 noon until 2.00pm. Come and enjoy warming soups, homemade cakes and hot drinks. Great company too.
• Football café – we open the Pool café every time Greystoke play at home for hot drinks and tray bakes. Come and support your local team and the Pool.
• Film nights – Saturday 15 November showing the excellent film, Viceroy, with Hugh Bonneville and Gillian Anderson. £16 for a film, meal and interval ice cream. Licensed bar available. Tickets available from Greystoke Post Office and online.

Village Hall Bingo

Join us for an evening of fantastic prizes, laughs and good old fashioned fun for all ages raising funds for the hall. Our first event is on Friday 7 November 6:40pm doors open, eyes down 7:00pm. Tea/coffee/soft drink included.

The second event will be on Friday 28 November and the Christmas Bingo on Friday 19 December. Thank you to those who have donated prizes to date, our collectors will be collecting until mid-November – look out for your flyer.

Greystoke Pantomime December 11/12/13 December

It’s showtime! The Greystoke Pantomime Troupe will be performing Aladdin. Tickets will go on sale via Greystoke swimming pool website from beginning November. Or contact Clare Morton.

Greystoke Community Land Trust

A huge thanks to everyone who filled in the housing needs survey. ACT are pulling together the results so they can be shared with the community for discussion and any next steps. We hope to be able to share that with you before the end of the year.

We are now officially registered with the FCA.

The community land trust is here for the community and not just our members. Any assets we hold or profits we make must be reinvested for the community’s benefit – often called an ‘asset lock’. We will be looking to open up membership as soon as we can – we’re just waiting on some grant funding coming through and then we can open a bank account. Join for £1 for life!

Stay tuned for more news on this and see our slightly updated website.

Greystoke Pool Draw

Congratulations to the winners of pool draw for October

£20 – Bridget Jardine – 135
£15 – Maureen & Ali – 74
£10 – Gary & Marie Ratcliff – 114
£5 – Ella & Johnathan Tiffin 1– 27
£5 – Annie Swarbrick – 35
£5 – Sarah Dobinson – 70
£5 – Tim Nicol – 7

Get Fit 4 Life, Tuesdays 3pm, Greystoke Village Hall

I’m thrilled to see more people attend the Get Fit 4 Life class, as it means it can keep running and I can bring movement to your community. Classes run during term time only, and drop-ins are always welcome. Cost is £8 for a block booking. Whether you’re looking to improve mobility, boost your mood, or meet others, we’d love to see you. All abilities catered for. For more information, contact Debbie on 07776 162125 or eMail.

New bus timetable from 17/11/2025

• The route (previously designed to accommodate connections with the X4/5 to Keswick) will be simplified with all journeys running via the same anti-clockwise loop Penrith – Clickham – Greystoke – Motherby – Newbiggin – Clickham – Penrith. So will pick up on the same side of the road in each village on every trip.
• The variations in the afternoon timetable with certain journeys only running on Saturdays and on School Holidays have been eliminated. The only variation will be the 14.45 journey on the return to Penrith will end at the Rail Station, rather than the bus station on schooldays.
• The second journey of the day has been re-timed later, to pick up after 09:30, to allow English National Concessionary Travel passes to additionally be used for free travel on Monday to Friday
• The 07:10 from Greystoke will be withdrawn, and is replaced by a 08:05 arriving in Penrith for 08:50, which is better for workers starting at 9.00 (the 17:10 will run at 17:25, to accommodate a new service 106 journey)
• The 11:15 and 16:05 are withdrawn and the 14:35 and 15:00 merged to make a new 14:45
• At the suggestion of the Bus User Group, the bus will run into and out of Penrith via Castletown. It will run the rail station (for the retail park) on the way from Penrith, but use the Booths stop on the way towards Penrith
• The new route will allow the stops outside the Clickham Inn to be served

Greystoke’s New Together Correspondent

After nearly 10 years, the time has come to pass the baton over to a new correspondent. Please contact me at the email address inside the front cover of the printed magazine if you’d like to find out more, or if you are willing, from January 2026, to provide no more than a day a month collating articles, and updating the village website.

Greystoke WI

At our October meeting we enjoyed Alan Noble’s presentation on the subject of Architecture of Local Railway Stations. Alan began by showing us a map of the extent of the railway network in Cumbria before Beeching and picking out what remains now. After a few technical difficulties with the projector, heroically solved by Malcolm Kane, Alan was able to continue with his visual tour of the remaining stations in Cumbria. Some of the buildings were very attractive indeed. Some have since been turned into residences or cafés, or replaced with some pretty brutal looking buildings. A very striking water tower at Settle had become an unusual home which had featured on the TV. Alan explained the need for Harrington Humps on certain platforms where the level of the platform needed to be raised so that passengers could alight safely. We also got to see the beautiful viaducts on the Settle Carlisle line. Alan picked out beautiful details which will enhance our future railway journeys in Cumbria.

On Thursday 2 October we have an Open /Guest Night with Alan Hinkes, the mountaineer. There is no charge, but we are raising funds for the North Air Ambulance through a grocery hamper raffle. Items for this can be dropped in to Eileen in advance of the meeting or brought on the night. We will be providing tea and a light buffet. Anyone is welcome to attend, including partners, but we would like to have an idea of numbers so would ask you to ring Sue or Jennifer if you would like to join us. We no longer run a competition, although we would love you to bring pictures of you on the fell for a display.

If you would like to join us at WI meetings, please contact Sue , Val or Jennifer.

St. Andrew’s Church Frost Fair

Saturday 22 November in Greystoke Village Hall. Further details in next month’s New Together. In the meantime contact Shirley or Maureen to book a stall.

Greystoke Parish Council

The next Parish Council meeting is at 7.00pm on Tuesday 21 October in the Village Hall.

Greystoke Social Club

Monday 6 October – Have you ever wondered about solar panels or air sourced heating and the cost? Chris Silver from Rural Energy will be speaking about these and the grants available for people in the rural area. Maybe you don’t think you are eligible for a grant to help save energy and keep your home warmer? Well, come along on Monday and I’m sure you may be pleasantly surprised.

Monday 20 October – Mystery trip followed by an ‘Afternoon Tea’. Contact Shirley for further details and to book.

Visitors are always welcome at our meetings and on our trips. Meetings are held in Greystoke Village Hall and start at 2.00pm. There is a charge – visitors £3, members £2, includes tea and biscuits.

Bus User Group

Despite lots of positive stories and lovely messages of support, the data on volume of passengers is low and Mark Hodgkiss at Westmorland and Furness Council gives us a stark message: “… on current data, I cannot see the contract being renewed when it comes to an end in March”.

I arranged a meeting with Mark immediately after receiving that email. Stagecoach is still adamant that diverting the X4 / X5 is not an option they will consider, so we looked at simplifying the timetable / route and reducing the number of journeys per day so it’s less costly to run. Mark is discussing those proposals with Stagecoach with a view to the changes coming into effect in November.

I’ll be sure to update you, but please, if you want to keep the bus, use it whenever possible and encourage the people around you to use it too.

Thank you, Pam Wood.

Greystoke & District Sports Association

Thank you to everyone who has helped to make the 2025 season a great success. The weather helped but we couldn’t do it without all our fantastic volunteers. We are holding a volunteer evening on Friday 26 September at the pool to say ‘thank you’.

Winter Café is back!

Held every Monday from 12.00pm until 2.00pm and run by volunteers. Serving some lovely soups with cheese scones and cakes, it’s a great place for lunch. Coffee and tea available too. It starts on Monday 13 October until Monday 22 December, then from Monday 5 January until the end of March. We look forward to welcoming you down at the Pool Café.

The Future Pool Project

The pool is over 50 years old and has served us well but it’s time to replace it. We are holding a drop-in session on Monday 29 September from 4.00pm in the Pool Café with a presentation/Q&A at 7.00pm. We will have the plans on show and information on how we intend to make the pool more sustainable and accessible. If you missed this event but want to know more then please email the Greystoke Pool.

Greystoke Film Nights

A French themed evening on Saturday 11 October in the Village Hall sees the start of our winter film nights. The meal will be beef bourguignon or vegetarian cassoulet followed by an optional French apple tart. The delightful Amélie is our film for the evening. A visual feast and much loved film, we know this will be a popular evening. As the film has subtitles we are limiting ticket numbers so everyone can see the whole screen.

Tickets £16 for meal, ice cream and film. French apple tart £3.50, payable on the door. Licensed bar available. Tickets available from the Greystoke Pool website and Greystoke Post Office.

Date for your diary: next film night Saturday 15 November 2025.

Greystoke Beer Festival

Greystoke recently held its 14^th annual Beer Festival, showcasing Cumbrian Beers by local breweries along with low and no alcohol options, wine and Prosecco. Local and up-and-coming bands played live music both nights in Greystoke Village Hall and garden marquee, filling the dance floor with revellers.

The beer festival is now an annual event and a firm fixture of the village social calendar. Importantly the event is the main fundraiser for the community open air swimming pool and this year is set to raise over £6,000!

Sue Richardson, Chair of the Greystoke and District swimming pool, said “putting this event on takes a great deal of work by a lot of volunteers but to raise that amount of money in support of the pool is just fantastic and makes the effort worthwhile. We really do try and put the fun into fundraising and actually hold events all year”.

This amount would not be possible without generous support from festival sponsors, and so if you would like to sponsor next year’s festival, or make a donation to help us keep the pool open during the summer please get in touch by eMail.

Volunteers at this and the pool café are always warmly welcomed, and you can find out more about the beer festival at our website.

Friends of St. Andrew’s Building

We have made a good start with building up the funds for the maintenance of our beautiful village church. Over the last few months we have been recruiting new members who pay a minimum of £10 per annum. If you are interested in becoming a member or making a donation please contact Maureen Hardy.

We recently had two events. The first was the heritage day in conjunction with National Heritage Week when folk were able to find out about the history and architecture of this remarkable building. The second event, which took place on the same day, was a ‘Cello concert and talk. This event was hosted at Greystoke Castle with thanks to Tom for facilitating this. This was the first of many concerts we hope to organise over the next few years. Next year we are hoping to have a concert by Encore Opera, a group of Cumbrian opera singers. Their programme is a wonderful selection of well-known arias and choruses. This will be held in the summer of 2026.

Our next event is the ever popular Frost Fayre on Saturday 22 November to be held in the Village Hall (more details in the next issue). If you would like a Christmas Stall at this event please contact Maureen Hardy.

Shwapping Evening

Refresh your wardrobe for less. Friday 17 October Greystoke Village Hall. £3 cash entry.

Shwapping is an opportunity to be environmentally friendly by sorting out your wardrobe of clothing, shoes or accessories, taking them to the Village Hall and finding yourself some beautiful nearly-new clothing, shoes or accessories.

7.00pm: drop off up to 10 excellent quality, washed pieces of clothing, shoes or accessories to swap. Clothes for everyone, not just ladies.

7.30pm: choose up to 8 gorgeous new pieces of clothing, shoes or accessories to take home, wear and love!

Make an extra donation to the village hall and receive a free glass of wine or soft drink.

Village Hall Events – Save the date

Greystoke Pool Draw

Congratulations to the winners of pool draw for September

£20 – Steve & Lesley Grisedale – 207
£15 – Annie Swarbrick – 35
£10 – Sue Munro – 66
£5 – Laura Hipple – 106
£5 – William Cummins – 186
£5 – Jo Bond – 51
£5 – Stewart Newall – 46

Cellist, Poet and dreamer, Kenneth Wilson set off in the summer of 2022 on a 2000 mile trip from Hadrian’s Wall to Rome on a 50 year old bike, towing a carbon fibre cello strapped to a trailer. He performed every day on the way – either formal concerts and pop-ups or busking. On his way, he played in a variety of locations including Canterbury Cathedral and the lawns of the Leaning Tower of Pisa to a final performance in front of the Vatican. Since his return he has written a book about his journey called Highway Cello.

We have been lucky enough to persuade Kenneth, after his recent trip around the Cathedrals of England, to come and play his cello and recite some of his funny and witty poetry. With the kind permission of Tom Nash, Kenneth will play at Greystoke Castle on Saturday 20 September at 7.30 pm. This will prove to be a very entertaining evening with a variety of music. Tickets £10 adults, £5 under 16s

For further information and reservations please contact, Shirley Mounsey, Maureen Hardy or Phil Lambert.

Leeds Excursion

An excursion has been organised with JD Coaches to Leeds for a shopping trip, visit to the museum or just a walk along the canal. Please book before Wednesday 3 September. Contact Shirley.

Greystoke Social Club

Monday 1 September – Forensic Scientist David Holme of Cumbria Police will be explaining how the use of Forensics, Fingerprints and much more help to solve crimes. This should prove to be a very interesting talk.

Monday 6 October – Have you ever wondered about solar panels or air sourced heating and the cost. Chris Silver from Rural Energy will be speaking about these and the grants available for people in the rural area.

Visitors are always welcome at our meetings and on our trips. Meeting are held in Greystoke Village Hall and start at 2.00pm. There is a charge, visitors £3, members £2, includes tea and biscuits.

Greystoke Church Choir

St. Andrew’s Church is expanding the choir to include children. Does your child love to sing? Come to our rehearsal and have a go! Wednesday 10 September, children 18:30-19:15, adults 19:00-20:00. New adults also welcome. Contact Isabella Wilson for further information.

Greystoke WI

At our August meeting, our speaker was Harry Navinski from Cockermouth who is a self-published writer of crime fiction. Harry admitted that this is his pen name, created during his time in the RAF, where he started as an apprentice navigational instruments fitter on aircraft. We heard about his exciting life in the RAF and his love of sports which led to sports writing for an RAF magazine. After the RAF, he spent time in India working to provide employment for vulnerable young women to prevent them being trafficked, a theme which feeds into one of his novels. This was followed by time in Cumbria, a writing course at Higham Hall and a career as a crime writer. It was very interesting to hear about the writing process that Harry has developed and the difficulties of getting published.

On Thursday 4 September, our speaker will be Alan Noble talking about the architecture of local railway stations. It is an Open meeting so all are welcome. There will be the usual refreshments of tea and biscuits, and there will be no charge for visitors. You are invited to bring along any memorabilia to do with railways.

If you would like to join us at WI meetings, please contact Sue, Val or Jennifer.

Greystoke & District Sports Association

We are working on an exciting Energy Sustainability Project for the Pool. There will be a public meeting about our Future Pool ideas late in September. Everyone will be welcome. The date will be confirmed soon on facebook and the Pool website. Meanwhile, please contact one of the Pool Committee members or the Greystoke Pool with any queries or comments.

Greystoke Film Nights

These ever popular Saturday evenings are returning this autumn on 11 October, 15 November, 2 February and 7 March. Put the dates in your diary! Films are to be confirmed, and there will be a bar and food. Look forward to seeing you there.

Greystoke Parish Council

The next Parish Council meeting is at 7.00pm on Tuesday 9 September in the Village Hall.

Village Hall Meeting Room Upgrade

We listened to your feedback and work has been completed to make this room a warmer, more inviting space. Walls have been thermally insulated and a complete redecoration, including new blinds, has transformed this room. Available to hire by the hour, reduced rates for locals – email Greystoke Village Hall to book.

Greystoke Village Hall

Since 1939, Greystoke Village Hall has been part of the village, standing centre stage, used by locals for all manner of things including child and youth groups, WI, school meals, meetings, weddings, exercise classes, pantomimes, hand bells, fundraising events and the beer festival to name a few. We sometimes may even forget it’s there but it is a valuable well used community resource run by a friendly bunch of volunteers. One such volunteer, Allan Marshall, joined the committee in 1974 and has shown nothing both dedication and commitment to the hall (and indeed the village) for over 50 years. Unforeseen circumstances have resulted in Allan stepping back from the hall however. Each hall committee has been lucky to work alongside him and he will be dearly missed. His contribution has been invaluable and if he couldn’t fix something himself he always knew someone that could. The hall committee wish to thank Allan for all that he has done and wish him good health.

Allan’s departure has left a large role to fill so we are now looking for 2 or 3 locals to come and join in helping to run and maintain the hall. We don’t expect 50 years’ service or skilled tradespeople, as any major items are contracted out, just a bit of time here and there is all that is required. If you feel you could contribute in any way or want to chat it over please do call Laura (07828 741 354) or Emma (07890 987 051). We are also looking for a new Chairperson from February 2026 to join the current knowledgeable long standing committee. Want more info? Please contact Laura. We look forward to welcoming new faces.

Village Hall Events – Save the date

Housing Group Update

It’s been a very busy summer for us! As well as organising the housing survey, we’ve also made great progress on our other key objective – registering as an official community land trust. Our application is now with the FCA. This means we should shortly be able to open up membership – more on this to follow. Meanwhile, we now need to focus on opening a bank account and writing up various policies.

Housing Needs Survey – deadline Friday 12 September

By now, everyone in the parish (and some of you beyond the parish) should have received (at least) one copy of the Housing Needs Survey. The Greystoke Affordable Housing group commissioned this in conjunction with the Parish Council, so we can understand the housing need for the community – not just affordable. Please take the time to fill this in before the deadline on Friday 12 September.

A reminder of why this matters: This is your chance to have a say in the future of housing in our community. This survey gives every resident a voice. It will help us get the right homes for our community – not speculative developments that don’t serve our community, but homes designed to support the future of our village.

If you need extra copies you can pick one up at the shop, email ACT or ourselves at the Greystoke Community Group

Once the survey results are in we’ll be organising a meeting to discuss them,

Greystoke Pool Draw

Congratulations to the winners of pool draw for July and August

Get Fit 4 Life

We’re back at Greystoke Village Hall, so join us Tuesdays from 3.00pm–4.00pm, starting 9 September, for a fun and friendly mobility class designed for all abilities. We’ll warm up, build strength for everyday life, enjoy games or partner work, improve how we move – and finish with a relaxing wind-down. Led by Debbie Jackman, a fitness professional with 20 years’ experience and a passion for inclusive, community-based exercise. No need to book – just come along or contact Debbie (07776 162 125) for more info!

Pop-Up Persiana

Dacre Village Hall committee is hosting a pop-up style restaurant with a Middle Eastern three course buffet prepared by professional chef Lee Cooper and with paired wine recommendations from The Wine Society in Dacre Village Hall on Saturday 6 September. Tickets are £37.50 (excl. drinks) from Dacre Village Hall or 017684 86 507.

Roy Reminisces

I would like to thank the people who have looked after certain grassed areas on the entrances to our village, and the Parish Council for the Village greens and verges. However, the grass verge alongside the footpath towards Greystoke Gill is a disappointment with dockings and rubbish a yard high. Also the field belonging to Story Homes could do with attention as I understood at the time of them getting permission to build Fawn Meadows it was going to be a recreational area. It would be better if they asked a farmer to put some sheep in and make use of it instead of wasting it!

We also remember the ending of the ending of the Second World War in Japan and the thousands of lives that were sacrificed 80 years ago on the 15 August. Still today lessons have not been learned and wars still rage and innocent lives are still lost.

St. Andrew’s Greystoke, Church Services July and August 2025

Sunday 6 July – Family Service with Holy Communion
Sunday 13 July – Holy Communion
Sunday 20 July – Family Service
Sunday 27 July – Holy Communion

Sunday 3 August – Family Service
Sunday 10 August – Holy Communion
Sunday 17 August – Family Service
Sunday 24 August – Holy Communion
Sunday 31 August – Joint Benefice and Holiday Club service, Greystoke Village Hall

All services begin at 11.00am and, except for 31 August, will be held in St Andrew’s Church.

Coffee and cake will be served from 10.30am onwards. We look forward to seeing you.

Friend of St. Andrew’s Building

FOSAB are pleased to announce their first concert. K Shoes Male Voice Choir will be singing at St. Andrew’s Church, Greystoke on Friday 25 July at 7.30pm. Tickets £10 (under 16s £5.00) can be purchased from Shirley Mounsey or at the door on the evening.

Please note that all profits from the various functions, Plant sale and Frost fair will be going into a fund set up by the Trustees for the maintenance of the Church fabrication.

Durham Excursion

There will be an excursion to Durham on Wednesday 23 July, leaving Greystoke at 9.00 am and Penrith RUFC at 9.15am. Maximum cost £25 (the more people who go the cheaper it becomes).

To book your seats contact Shirley.

Greystoke Social Club

Julie Boothman gave the group a really interesting talk about her new vocation as a ‘Field Nurse’. Julie goes to a number of different farm auctions and events offering the opportunity for farmers and families to have a quick health check and a chat about their lives.

Monday 7 July – a talk by Rev Beth Honey about the work of the charity shop “Restore”

Visitors are always welcome at our meetings and on our trips. Meeting are held in Greystoke Village Hall and start at 2.00pm. There is a charge, visitors £3, members £2, includes tea and biscuits.

Greystoke WI

Our speaker in June was Archie Workman who spoke about how his career began as an engineer working on ships. New challenges continually opened up for him, including the opportunity to learn Russian. During his time spent working on a Russian vessel he enjoyed a brief stay in a Russian hotel and painted a vivid picture of the privations at that time such as brown bathwater, lack of a bath plug and paper towels. The number of guns around sounded scary. Archie accepted a part time job which involved encouraging the top 100 companies, like McVitie’s, to stay in Cumbria. He was instrumental in bringing the Great North Swim to Windermere. Then came the pinnacle of his career when he stood in for someone as a Lengthsman and he hasn’t looked back since. It was his job to maintain the roads, cutting the verge, cleaning signs and clearing drains. He began to photograph drain covers and made a calendar which took off. The most interesting drain covers were made by long vanished foundries and have the makers’ names printed on them. The Dull Men’s Club of Great Britain contacted him to feature on their March calendar. They christened him ‘Drainspotter’ and gave him a certified dull certificate. This has led to various radio and TV appearances and even a short film which has won awards. He also restores black and white sign posts, which led to another calendar, and has refurbished bus shelters and benches.

Our next speaker on Thursday 3 July is Ros Downing, giving a talk called Snap-Crackle and Pop about breakfast cereal. On Thursday 7 August we will welcome Harry Navinski and hear about his journey to become an author.

If you would like to join us at WI meetings, please contact Sue, Val or Jennifer.

Greystoke Swimming Pool and Playground

The 2025 season is now well underway here at Greystoke Pool and we would love to see you all down here for a swim/café visit/playground visit/chat. Our opening hours are every school day between 3.00pm and 6.00pm, and we now have 3 available sessions between 1.00pm and 6.00pm on weekends and throughout the local school holidays. Full details and booking details are available on our website.

AquaFit4All is coming to Greystoke Pool every Thursday at 11.00am from 19 June until 7 August (no session on Thursday 10 July). Run by Roo Bannister and Rhiannon Douglas at just £4 a session, it is a great way to do low impact exercise that’s fun. Book in advance via our website, some walk in spaces on the day. The café will be open so come and have a catch up with your friends as well as doing some exercise. All money goes directly to Greystoke Pool as the classes are subsidised by WaF council and the NHS.

Greystoke Pool is also available for private hire. Great for birthday parties or just getting a group of friends and relatives together. Please contact us via the website for further details and to check availability.

Big thanks to AW Jenkinson for donating us some more playground chippings and to all the volunteers who helped distribute them between the two playground areas.

If you would like to join our team of brilliant volunteers then please get in touch via the website.

Greystoke Beer Festival will be on Friday 5 and Saturday 6 September. Tickets will be available nearer the time online via our website. Support the pool while enjoying excellent bands and food and beer from the local area. Other drinks will also be available.

Greystoke Parish Council

At the Parish Council meeting on Tuesday 10 June, a special presentation of the Freedom of the Parish was presented to the family of the late Eddie Walker. Eddie was an unsung hero in the parish. As a councillor for many years, doing many good deeds, he will be sorely missed.

Other business included, consultation on 20mph speed limits, and also a housing needs survey for the parish. Fliers for both of these will delivered to each household. Please do fill in these forms as it is important to know our local needs.

The next Parish Council meeting is at 7.00pm on Tuesday 8 July in the Village Hall.

Adam Fawcett (Chairman).

Have your say on Waste and Recycling

Westmorland and Furness council is asking residents to share their views on options for future waste and recycling services across Westmorland and Furness.

If you have not already responded, the online survey is open until Friday 11 July.

Housing Needs Survey

In the next few weeks, every household in our community will receive a Local Housing Needs Survey. The survey will be open for a few weeks to allow everyone plenty of time to fill it in. We’re asking people to take just a few minutes to complete it and return to Action for Communities in Cumbria in the pre-paid envelope. It will also be available online. We are running this in conjunction with the Parish Council and Action for Communities in Cumbria.

This is your chance to have a say in the future of housing in our community.

Like many rural communities, we face real challenges: rising house prices, limited rental options, and a shortage of homes that meet the needs of local people. Whether you’re a young adult hoping to stay in the village, a growing family, an older resident looking to downsize, or simply someone who cares about the future of our community – your voice matters.

This survey gives every resident that voice. It helps us understand who lives here now, what kind of homes people need, and how things might change in the future. This isn’t about encouraging large-scale development. It’s about ensuring we can plan for the right homes in the right places – for the people who already live and work here, and those who want to stay.

With strong local evidence, we can make the case to housing associations, developers, and local councils for more affordable, appropriate homes – homes that support the long-term future of our village, not just the short-term market. It helps us push for the right types of homes – affordable, suitable, and sensitively built in the right places. Not speculative developments that don’t serve our community, but homes designed to support the future of our village.

Without this data, we risk being overlooked or misunderstood. With it, we take control of our future. It’s about keeping our community together, preserving the heart of rural life, and ensuring that local people aren’t forced to move away.

Please take part when the survey arrives. Together, we can make sure our housing reflects the needs of our community – not just now, but for generations to come.

You’ll be able to request extra printed copies of the survey should you need them, or it can be filled in online.

At time of writing we don’t have exact dates yet so please keep a lookout on the noticeboards, our facebook group, the village facebook group and the website for more information as we get it.

website: housing.greystokevillage.co.uk

email: greystokecommunitygroup@gmail.com

Greystoke Pool Draw

Congratulations to the winners of pool draw for May and June

Roy Reminisces

On Wednesday 4 June, the Peile family were the hosts of NSA North Sheep. I am sure that Neville Howard was indeed proud of the event they allowed to be held on their farm; I know that the late Stafford and Gracia Howard would have been. I thought the bonfire and Fireworks we used to hold up there brought in a lot of people (maybe about 300 cars?) but this event was on a different level with some 9,000 farmers and some 3,000 cars – what a glorious sight to see so many, it blew you away. The people who attend are the backbone of our country life, looking after the flora and fauna, and providing our food, the amount of trade stands, I believe in the region of 190 in all making a living off farmers, we cannot do without them, if we do we perish. The old saying is if a farmer has money, he will spend it, and wouldn’t it have been great if all the people who have come to live in the village had gone up to see what it involves running a farm. My background is farming. My father was a farmer, and although my life led a different path, I finished up running my own Animal Health business so yes, I know what farming is all about and at times how arduous it can be. It was a pleasure to have seen it.

Pop-Up Persiana

Dacre Village Hall committee is hosting a pop-up style restaurant with a Middle Eastern three course buffet prepared by professional chef Lee Cooper and with paired wine recommendations from The Wine Society in Dacre Village Hall on Saturday 6 September.

Further details, including ticket prices, are to follow.

To register an interest, please contact Morna Sims.

St. Andrew’s Greystoke, Church Services June 2025

• Sunday 1 June – Family Worship, 11.00am in St Andrew’s
• Sunday 8 June – Holy Communion, 11.00am in St Andrew’s
• Sunday 15 June – Family Worship, 11.00am in St Andrew’s
• Sunday 22 June – Open Air Service, 11.30am at Dalemain House
• Sunday 29 June – Benefice Service, 11.00am in St Andrew’s

At our 11.00am services in St. Andrew’s Church, coffee and cake will be served from 10.30am onward. The Family Services will include children’s activities.

It will be a pleasure to worship with the Christian communities from the churches around Ullswater on Sunday 22 June at Dalemain House. Please bring something to sit on, e.g., a chair or picnic rug.

Greystoke Social Club

• Monday 2 June – a talk by Julie Boothman about her work
• Monday 7 July – a talk by Rev Beth Honey about the work of the charity shop “Restore”

Visitors are always welcome at our meetings and on our trips. Meeting are held in Greystoke Village Hall and start at 2.00pm. There is a charge, visitors £3, members £2, includes tea and biscuits.

Excursion to Hawes and Wensleydale

This trip, on Thursday 19 June, leaves Greystoke at 9.00am and Penrith RUFC at 9.45am, and will include the Dales Museum (£5 or £4.50 cons) and the Wensleydale Cheese experience (£5.95). Coach £25.

For further information and to book, please contact Shirley.

Greystoke WI

At our May meeting we remembered VE Day and enjoyed a visit from jewellery maker, Lesley Connolly. Lesley told us about the materials she works with such as pewter and silver, and old silver such as spoons or sugar tongs. We also heard that she picks up supplies from all around the world whilst on her travels. Lesley had brought along lots of stock. There were new and old wooden boxes which Lesley had covered with pewter and given a raised design. There were beautiful pieces incorporating haematite and cinnabar and others using shells and pearls. Lesley told us how nothing is wasted so pieces of silver are melted together to make decorative silver drops on a chain. It was fascinating to learn something about Lesley’s methods and creativity.

We celebrated VE Day with bunting, readings, ration books and war time food such as sausage rolls, Anzac biscuits and a WI VE Day cake.

At our meeting on Thursday 5 June we will hear from Archie Workman who will be giving a humorous talk on Drainspotter.

If you would like to join us at WI meetings, please contact Sue, Val or Jennifer.

Greystoke Parish Community Housing Needs Survey

We, along with the Parish Council, are currently reviewing the draft housing needs survey, and we hope to agree it at the next Parish Council meeting for distribution in July.

Some key points to note. The survey is entirely confidential. It has been prepared, and will be reviewed by, an arm’s length organisation (Action for Communities in Cumbria). The survey will be available online, as well as in paper form, and we encourage everyone to fill this in. You do not need to be living in the parish to complete the survey. If you have a family member, for instance, who cannot afford to return to the parish to live, please get them to fill it in. You may be an employer who has staff who would like to live closer to work – and we would encourage you to get them to fill in the survey too. Only by building an accurate picture of what our community needs will we be able to try to get the housing we need.

Greystoke Swimming Pool and Playground

Hurrah! The Pool is now open every school day between 3.00pm and 6.00pm, and between 1.00pm and 6.00pm on weekends and school holidays. Full details and booking details are available on our website.

We can only open because of our brilliant volunteers. If you’d like to join this friendly group please get in touch via the website.

A big thanks goes to the Parish Council who have provided a generous grant to help us maintain the playground. Following the annual inspection there will be lots to do.

• Splash Squad: Every Tuesday local primary school children can swim for just £2, including a glass of squash and a biscuit. Only 20p for family members. Just come in uniform. (Greystoke, Penruddock, Skelton and Stainton schools)
• Fundraising Butty Morning: As the last one went down so well we are running it again. We always need funds! Come down on Saturday 7 June for a bacon/veggie butty and drink. A great opportunity to meet the volunteers who run the Pool.
• FIT4ALL Coming to Greystoke Pool: Water Aerobics run by Roo Bannister and Rhiannon Douglas will start on Thursday 19 June at 11.00am. At just £4 per session, it’s a great way to do low impact exercise that’s fun. Bookable on the booking page of the website.

Finally – save the date! Friday 5 and Saturday 6 September 2025 is Greystoke Beer Festival!

Greystoke Parish Council

The next Parish Council meeting is at 7.00pm on Tuesday 10 June in the Village Hall.

After-School Fun at Greystoke Pool’s Splash Squad!

All local primary school children are invited to a special after-school swimming session at beautiful Greystoke open-air village pool! Every Tuesday from 3.30pm to 5.00pm, bring your children for fresh air, exercise, and fun with friends.

For just £2 per child, little swimmers will enjoy a refreshing dip, plus a hot or cold juice and a biscuit to keep their energy up! If you’re already a family member, refreshments are just 20p. No booking is needed – simply come along in your school uniform to show the volunteer staff you’re from a local primary and get ready to splash and play. There’s a slide for little ones, floats, toys and a lifeguard on duty at all times, plus there’s the playground and playing field to enjoy once they’ve dried off.

This is a great way for children to unwind after school, make new friends, and build confidence in the water in a safe, friendly environment.

Children must not be left unaccompanied during the session. There is a fee of £1 for adult spectators. If adults wish to swim, normal prices apply. Term time only. First-come, first-served. If the pool is at capacity, we will operate a one-in, one-out policy until the session finishes at 5.00pm.

For any more information, please visit the Greystoke Facebook page, eMail us or pop along.

Greystoke Bus User Group

Hello! Two months in and we’re hearing great stories of how the bus is being used, along with receiving valuable Intel on issues people might be having.

There is an opportunity to change the timetable in the autumn, but only if we know what people want, so please, eMail me or post on our Facebook page.

There will be a small meeting in the village hall on Thursday 26 June 7.00pm, where we’ll have a think about what changes to ask for, so do please let us know.

Above all though, please enjoy using the bus!

Pam

Sunday 4 May – Family Worship
Sunday 11 May – Holy Communion
Sunday 18 May – Family Worship
Sunday 25 May – Holy Communion

All our services start at 11.00am, coffee and cake are served from 10.30am onward, please join us. All services over the summer period will be held in St Andrew’s Church and, now that the tent has been packed away for the summer, services will be in the nave.

Children’s activities are available at the Family Worship services.

We would love to see you at our services.

Greystoke Social Club

We held our AGM on Monday 7 April and elected Malcolm Kane as our new Chairman. He will be supported by Jenny Burden as Treasurer, Sue Kane as Secretary, Shirley Mounsey as Vice-Chair and Outings Organiser. Diane Hetherington will continue to act as our Press Correspondent. After the formalities, we all enjoyed the cut and thrust of a Beetle Drive, when Roy Fisher, Jenny Burden and her husband Chris all won an Easter Egg.

Thursday 22 May – why not join us on an Outing to Liverpool – there is much to see and do. We will leave the village at 8.30am and the fare is £25.
To book a seat, please contact Shirley.

Meetings will start again in June, once we are over the Bank Holidays.

Visitors are always welcome at our meetings, which are held in Greystoke Village Hall and start at 2.00pm. There is a charge of £3 (Members £2) which includes tea and biscuits. Come along and see what we have planned for the remainder of the year.

Greystoke Parish Community Housing Initiative

A Housing Needs Survey is one of the critical things we need to do before we can even think about building any affordable houses. It will tell us how many and what type of houses we need.

We can report that Action for Communities in Cumbria is in the process of drafting a survey to help us and the Parish Council assess the housing needs of the parish – affordable or otherwise. We hope to be able to distribute this survey in late June / early July. It’s really important that we get as many people to fill this confidential survey in – so expect to hear a lot more about it in the coming weeks!

Stay up to date with news and housing opportunities on facebook and online.

St Andrew’s Church Plant Sale

Spring is coming with the snowdrops now gone and the daffodils in flower, and our thoughts turn to gardening and dividing plants and growing seeds. St. Andrew’s is organising its annual Plant Sale in the Village Hall on Saturday 10 May from 9.30am to 2.30pm, to raise funds for the church building.

We are planning to sell plants outside (weather permitting), and have, in the hall, a café and home produce stall selling bacon baps, soup and rolls, and scones, a variety of cakes, and tea and coffee, all at reasonable prices.

There will also be a tombola and a books and jigsaws stall.

We are requesting donations of plants (flowers, vegetables and tomatoes) and unwanted garden implements and equipment. Please contact Shirley to arrange collection, bring to the village hall after 3.30pm on Friday 9 May, or bring on the day.

All are welcome and, if you are new to the village, please come and join us for this village community event. Watch out for further information on the village notice board and Facebook page.

Greystoke Parish Council

The next Parish Council meeting is at 7.00pm on Tuesday 6 May in the Village Hall.

Greystoke WI

The speaker at Greystoke WI’s April meeting was Bob Price from the Acorn Bank Watermill who gave a very interesting and engaging presentation about the history of bread making. We heard about the development of the grinding stones from the very effortful saddle stone used by the Egyptians through to modern milling methods. He explained that the mill was derelict in 1980 and that volunteers got it back into working order. After Covid they formed the Acorn Bank Watermill Trust which earns income from selling flour. Bob mentioned that last summer the wheat crop was so poor after that cold summer that he had to buy wheat from Norfolk and Turkey to get the correct level of protein to make their flour. His talk was packed full of interesting snippets of information as well as showing us how sayings from milling have entered our language. Some examples were fair to middling, grist for the mill and rule of thumb – the way a miller tests his flour.

On Thursday 1 May, we have Lesley Connelly giving a jewellery demonstration. We will also be commemorating VE Day.

If you would like to join us at WI meetings, please contact Sue, Val or Jennifer on.

Greystoke Swimming Pool Opening 2025

Thanks to the efforts of many volunteers, Greystoke Pool will hopefully be opening in early May for the 2025 season with our newly qualified lifeguards. Well done to them all! We have a great group of volunteers who run the café and admissions but we are always keen to welcome anyone who is interested in helping out. There are many different volunteer roles.

Having listened to suggestions from our users we have a few changes this summer which we hope you like.

The price of public sessions has been reduced: under 2 years free, 2-16 years old £4, over 16 years £6. We’re pleased to say season tickets have been held at 2024 prices. A new family pass is available for public swimming either term time (including half term) or the summer school holidays.

At weekends and in school holidays, we will have three sessions between 1.00pm and 6.00pm. School days will just be one session 3.00pm – 6.00pm.

The pool is available for hire, a great location for children’s parties and family gatherings.

Further information on all the above and how to book can be found on the pool website.

North Sheep Comes to Greystoke

On Wednesday 4 June 2025, NSA North Sheep will be held at Greystoke Castle Farm, by kind permission of the Peile Family.

North Sheep is a biennial event organised by the Northern region of the National Sheep Association (NSA), designed to showcase the best of the British sheep farming industry. It serves as a key gathering for farmers, industry professionals, and agricultural suppliers, offering a comprehensive look at innovations in sheep husbandry, breeding, nutrition, and land management. The event is always held on a working sheep farm in northern England and includes technical demonstrations, competitions, expert talks, and a wide array of trade stands.

For someone not involved in farming, NSA North Sheep is a fascinating glimpse into farming life and the vital role agriculture plays in the economy and environment. It offers the public and local schools a chance to see first-hand the complexities and challenges of modern sheep farming – from sustainable practices to animal welfare and food production. The event also features family‑friendly attractions such as sheepdog trials, a speed shear competition, cookery theatre and educational displays, making it a unique day out that bridges the gap between consumers and producers.

The team at North Sheep would like to make residents aware that there will be an increase in traffic in the surrounding area on the day of the event, and during the event set up (which will predominately take place on Tuesday 3 June). We would like to assure people that this will be controlled by trained stewards, signage and information prior to the event. Further event information can be found at www.northsheep.org.uk or you can contact the team directly at northsheep@nationalsheep.org.uk.

Join us in Greystoke Village Hall, on Tuesdays from 3.00pm until 4.00pm,for a fun and inclusive mobility class!

Suitable for all abilities, this session is designed to help you stay active and feel great.

No fancy gear required – just bring yourself and a smile!

Between 2.00pm and 4.00pm, every third Saturday of the month from May until September, there will be tea, coffee and homemade cake in Dacre Village Hall. Note though, that it is cash only.

Congratulation to the winners of the pool monthly draw for March and April

Sunday 6 April – Family Service – 11.00am (Greystoke Village Hall)
Sunday 13 April – Palm Sunday – 11.00am
Thursday 17 April – Maundy Thursday – Holy Communion and Vigil – 7.00pm
Friday 18 April – Good Friday – Music and Reflection – 7.00pm
Sunday 20 April – Easter Day – 11.00am
Sunday 27 April – Holy Communion – 11.00am

All our services are in St. Andrew’s Church unless otherwise indicated above.
At all our Sunday services refreshments are served from 10.30am.
Children’s activities are available at our Family Services.

Easter Cross

As is our practice, a bare wooden cross will be erected on the Village Green following our Maundy Thursday service. It will remain there over Good Friday and Holy Saturday as a reminder of the events that took place on the first Easter. On Easter Sunday, you are invited to contribute to the decoration of the cross with spring flowers as we remember the resurrection of Jesus.

Greystoke Social Club

Monday 7 April – Annual General Meeting and Games
Thursday 22 May – Outing to Liverpool
Monday 2 June – a talk by Julie Boothman about her work

Visitors are always welcome at our meetings and our trips. Meetings are held in Greystoke Village Hall and start at 2.00pm. There is a charge of £2 (Visitors £3) which includes tea and biscuits.

Greystoke WI

At our March meeting, Greystoke WI held its AGM then enjoyed an engaging talk with slides from David Bell about his three Safaris. David showed beautiful photographs of trips taken to Kenya and Tanzania. We were able to enjoy shots of The Big Six as well as many other fascinating creatures. The slides gave the impression of a land brimming over with wildlife. Having felt constrained by the first highly organised tour, four of them hired their own guide on the second trip and were able to take a more relaxed approach rather than always hurrying on to the next arrangement. It was noted that safety was always paramount as well as the wellbeing of the animals. David was happy to answer questions at the end of his presentation. Having been complimented on his photography he volunteered that Simon King had seen his work and said it wasn’t bad.

On Thursday 3 April, our speaker will be Bob Price from Acorn Bank, talking about daily bread.

If you would like to join us at WI meetings, please contact Sue, Val or Jennifer.

Greystoke Parish Council

The next meeting is at 7.00pm on Tuesday 22 April in the Village Hall.

Community Housing Group

We have had a huge amount of support for the ambition to build affordable housing, and that is really heartening – and confirms the results of the housing survey last year. But we knew this was never going to be easy, nor without challenges.

The feedback we’ve received, particularly on the potential site, has really helped us to focus on our next steps. We are now progressing on 3 main fronts:

• Arranging a formal Housing Needs Survey so we can determine the housing need (not just affordable) for the community. We hope to arrange some meetings on this in the next couple of months.
• Incorporating as a Community Land Trust – a funding application has been submitted to Westmorland & Furness. Once this is done we can open up membership (£1 for life – and voting rights!)
• Addressing the flood risk – not only on the potential site, but also working with residents, the Parish Council, Judith Derbyshire and relevant authorities to try to address the wider existing flooding issues on Howard Park, and by extension Church Road.

Sign up to the mailing list and follow us on Facebook to make sure you don’t miss any updates.

St. Andrew’s Greystoke Friends Group Plant Sale

Spring is coming with the snowdrops out and the daffodils beginning to flower, and our thoughts turn to gardening. So if you are dividing plants and growing seeds, please think of us.

St. Andrew’s Friends Group is organising the annual Plant Sale in the Village Hall on Saturday 10 May from 9.30am to 2.30pm to raise funds for the church building, and to keep our historic and beautiful church in good repair.

We are planning to sell plants outside and have a café in the hall, selling bacon baps, soup and rolls, scones, a variety of cakes, and tea and coffee, all at reasonable prices.

There will also be a home produce stall selling cakes, preserves, etc.

We are requesting donations of plants (flowers, vegetables and tomatoes).

Please contact Shirley to arrange collection, or bring to the Village Hall after 3.30pm on Friday 9 May, or bring on the day.

All are welcome and, if you are new to the village, please come and join us for this village community event.

Watch out for further information on the village notice boards and Facebook page.

Salvation Army Food Bank Appeal

For some years contributions for the Salvation Army Food Bank in Penrith have been left by members of our community in St. Andrew’s Church. I deliver the donations once a fortnight.

In recent months, the Salvation Army has reported a decline in donations. This is entirely understandable in view of the high cost of living for most people, but your donations needn’t be expensive items.

The people who are dependent on the food bank need small, nutritious items which are easy and cheap to prepare and cook, and basic toiletries.

The Salvation Army has requested the following items in particular:

• Cup a Soups
• Tinned Vegetables (but not Sweetcorn, thank you)
• Tinned Meat
• Pasta in Sauce (pots not jars, please)
• Packets of 2 in 1 Instant Coffee
• Hot Chocolate
• Cooking Oil

All contributions, however small, are greatly appreciated – as the old saying goes, Every little helps!

If you have any queries about how you can help please get in touch with Allan Buckle

Easter Journey

Once again, as they have done for over ten years, the Open the Book team, augmented by members from other local churches, have invited the Key-Stage 2 children from Greystoke and Penruddock schools to embark on an Easter Journey. The Open the Book team tell and act out bible stories in both schools throughout the year.

Easter Journey is an opportunity not only to hear of the events of the first Holy Week but also to experience them as the children take part in a series of tableaus starting at Palm Sunday and finishing at the resurrection of Jesus on the first Easter Day.

The children gather in the chancel of Greystoke Church with their ‘palm branches’, laying their cloaks on the ground, listening for the ‘clip-clop’ of the donkey’s hooves as they wait for the entrance of Jesus. They then move on to the temple, taking part as money changers, selling doves and lambs for the sacrifice, shouting out “best prices here”, “finest doves for sale” – until Jesus appears and tells them to stop and upends their tables.

They then move, quietly, into the upper room where Jesus is seated with his disciples. They watch as Jesus washes the feet of Peter, despite his protestations, and they listen as Jesus blesses the bread and wine, and they then share in the meal – eating pitta-bread and grapes to represent the unleavened bread and the wine that Jesus used.

They then follow the disciples to the Mount of Olives where they sit in silence, listening to the sounds of that night from a CD. The snores of the disciples who could not keep awake, the prayers of Jesus to his father, the heavy footsteps of the soldiers coming to arrest Jesus, and finally the crowing of the cock reminding Peter that Jesus foretold that he would deny knowing him.

Then watching a video entitled The Miracle Maker, the children observe Jesus carrying his cross to his crucifixion, his assurance given to the thief hanging with him, the centurion who understood and cried out “surely this man was the Son of God”.

The children then proceed in silence to a quiet place to experience the waiting and expectation of Holy Saturday, before moving to the tomb on Easter Day and watch as first Mary comes and finds the stone rolled away, then having fetched Peter they both rush off to tell the other disciples the glorious news.. “HE HAS RISEN”.

The journey ends for the children with a time of discussion led by their group leaders, who have been with them throughout, to try and explore some of the questions which can be simply answered and some which cannot, before returning to their schools.

John Danks, Open the Book, Greystoke Church

Sunday 2 March – Family Service – 11.00am – Greystoke Village Hall
Sunday 9 March – Holy Baptism – 11.00am – St. Andrew’s Church
Sunday 16 March – Family Service – 11.00am – Greystoke Village Hall
Sunday 23 March – Holy Communion – 11.00am – St. Andrew’s Church
Sunday 30 March – Benefice Service – 11.00am – St. Andrew’s Church

At all our services refreshments are served from 10.30am. Children’s activities are available at our Family Services. For our services in St. Andrew’s we shall have returned to the more comfortable warmth of the tent, apart from the Baptism, which will be in the nave.

Ash Wednesday

There will be a service of Holy Communion and the imposition of ashes on Wednesday 5 March, the first day of Lent, at 6.00pm in St Andrew’s Church Greystoke.

Greystoke Social Club

Monday 3 March – a talk by a representative of Pine Tree Nurseries – gardening time will soon be here!
Monday 17 March – David Bell will give a slide presentation entitled From Thailand to Penrith & Dives in between

Visitors are always welcome at our meetings, which are held in Greystoke Village Hall and start at 2.00pm. There is a charge of £2 (Visitors £3) which includes tea and biscuits.

Greystoke WI

In February, we gathered in the meeting room rather than the main hall to watch a presentation by Marie Hamer about tackling educational disadvantage. Marie outlined how she became interested in trying to make education fairer for children growing up in poverty, and how she and colleagues developed structured professional development programmes. This system is known as The Golden Thread and has been well received by teachers, unions and government. It has led to improved levels of teacher retention. Hopefully, in the years to come, students will see improved outcomes in terms of jobs, income, and physical and mental health.

Before Marie spoke, we had a chance to look at some books which we had loved in childhood. Some of the examples were from the 40’s such as a Sunday School prize and an early Rupert Annual. There was also a Richard Scary vocabulary book which had helped English children growing up in Africa learn about their home country.

On a more sombre note, members voted unanimously to start the process of leaving WI. It was felt that the rising fees have become unsustainable. We hope to continue until Christmas or January 2026.

On Thursday 6 March, we will be holding a brief AGM. David Bell will show slides of a Safari he enjoyed. You are invited to bring along a wildlife photo to briefly talk about.

If you would like to join us at WI meetings, please contact Sue, Val or Jennifer.

Greystoke Parish Council

The next meeting is at 7.00pm on Tuesday 18 March in the Village Hall.

Community Housing Group

Following last year’s survey where the village overwhelmingly supported an objective to create additional affordable housing, our first public meeting on Thursday 30 January and our Monday surgeries represent the next phase in our consultation process. More meetings will follow! A housing needs survey is in the pipeline – we need you to fill it in. When we launch the Community Land Trust, you’ll be able to join as a member and get a vote in all key decisions.

Please keep an eye on the notice boards, website and Facebook for upcoming meetings and venues.

Ways to stay up to date:

• Keep an eye on the notice boards;
• Visit our website;
• Join our mailing list;
• Follow us on Facebook;
• eMail us

Swimming Pool Draw

Thank you to each and every one of you who rejoined the monthly draw for 2025. We have now sold 260 draw numbers which is just fantastic! A new record. That equates to £2340 of funds for the pool, sports field, playpark and café.

Congratulations to the winners of the January Draw
£20 – Norman & Christine Bell 27
£15 – Susan Dowie 217
£10 – Andrea & Nigel Raper 176
£5 – Lynn Cowperthwaite 111
£5 – D & J Scarisbric 234
£5 – Annie Swarbick 35
£5 – Ian Forrester

Sunday 2 February – Family Service – 11.00am – Greystoke Village Hall
Sunday 9 February – Holy Baptism – 11.00am – St. Andrew’s Church
Sunday 16 February – Family Service – 11.00am – Greystoke Village Hall
Sunday 23 February – Holy Communion – 11.00am – St. Andrew’s Church

At all our services refreshments are served from 10.30am. Children’s activities are available at our Family Services.

For our services in St. Andrew’s we shall have returned to the more comfortable warmth of the tent, apart from the Baptism, which will be in the nave.

Greystoke Social Club

Monday 17 February – a talk by Danny Sawrij giving an overview of the work of Omega Proteins
Monday 3 March – a talk by a representative of Pine Tree Nurseries – spring is coming, time to attend to the garden.

Visitors are always welcome at our meetings, which are held in Greystoke Village Hall and start at 2.00pm.

There is a charge of £2 (Visitors £3) which includes tea and biscuits.

Greystoke WI

Our December meeting consisted of Christmas music and supper. The Hand Bell group played carols and other seasonal pieces. There was also a chance to play a bell or a chime and follow the numbered music. On the Twelfth Day of Christmas gave the opportunity for WI to participate with some daft actions. It was good fun. Thank you very much to the bell team for entertaining us. Thank you to Maureen, who put much thought into planning for the evening. Thank you to everyone who contributed towards making the evening a success especially Eileen with her very popular mulled wine and also to all our members who brought food to share.

We met together for a New Year meal on Friday 10 January at the Brantwood Hotel in Stainton. The time was switched to 12.30pm because of the adverse weather, which seemed to suit everybody.

On Thursday 6 February, Marie Hamer will talk to us about tackling educational disadvantage. The competition will be a favourite book from childhood.

If you would like to join us at WI meetings, please contact Sue, Val or Jennifer.

Greystoke Parish Council

The next Parish Council meeting is at 7.00pm on Tuesday 18 February in the Village Hall.

St. Andrew’s Church

St Andrew’s church wishes to thank everyone, from the groups and clubs and individuals who took part in their annual Christmas Tree Festival. There were ten trees, the font was decorated, and they lit up the church and made it magical particularly at the Candlelit Carol Service.

So thank you to The Boot and Shoe, the playgroup, the school, the Community First Responders, the Book Club, the WI, the Hand Bells, the Monday Social Club, the Swimming Pool, and Annie’s Quirky Workshops who decorated the font.

Thanks also to those who very kindly gifted the church Remembrance Tree and all those who helped to decorate it with messages on hearts to loved ones. There were many heartfelt messages on the tree.

Judith Derbyshire, our local councillor, judged the trees. She said it was a very difficult task, and she loved the Remembrance Tree, the Swimming Pool Tree and the Book Club’s Wines between the Lines made her laugh. She gave top marks for style to the Font, The First Responders, the Hand Bells, Greystoke WI, the Boot and Shoe, and the Playgroup.

But the winner was the school. A joyous tree decorated with lots of effort, with the very important theme of Peace in the World at this time. The Social Club was second as it celebrated all the effort everyone puts into community life.

Thanks again to everyone and a Happy New Year from St Andrew’s.

Greystoke Village Hall

Greystoke Village Hall invites you to join us for a delicious homemade soup and pudding lunch in the Hall on Sunday 9 February from 11.30am to 2.00pm. Come along for a sociable lunch whilst raising funds for maintenance of the hall. All welcome and we look forward to seeing you there. Donations of soups and puddings gratefully received, contact Julie Boothman.

Greystoke Village Hall AGM is being held on Wednesday 29 January at 7.00pm in the hall meeting room.

The hall is a community facility run by a friendly volunteer committee whose aim is to ensure the hall is suitable and meets the needs of the local community users. New members are always welcome, whether it’s helping at community events, organising fundraisers, taking on a committee role or any other specialism you have that may benefit the hall. It would be wonderful to restore the village May Day back to the community event it once was and also the Children’s Halloween and Christmas Parties. Come along and help us better provide for the local community. For more information contact Laura Seel or Emma Nielsen. Hope to see you there.

Greystoke and District Sports Association

Over the next few months we will be preparing the pool for opening in May. There will be lots of opportunities for people to volunteer for various tasks. Keep an eye on our facebook page for more information or let a committee member know you’d like to volunteer.

We are also looking for lifeguards for the coming season. We will be open from May until September and are looking for people to register interest in working at the pool. You must be aged 16 or over, have the right to work in the UK, and have good time keeping, organisation and interpersonal skills. This is an ideal job for students or adults with a few hours spare. You must be a competent swimmer, and full training will be provided. If you are interested in applying please get in touch via eMail.

• Pool Café – Come and enjoy soup, scones, cake and hot drinks in the swimming pool café every Monday from 12 noon to 2.00pm.
• Match Day Café – The café will open when Greystoke football teams are playing at home on Saturday afternoons. Keep warm with a hot drink! Check our facebook page to confirm opening times.
• Film Night – Our next film night with a lovely meal is Captain Fantastic on Saturday 8 February 2025. A comedy drama sees a family making a road trip across America after having lived in the wilds for many years and now coping with society. Tickets on sale at www.greystokepool.org.uk and Greystoke Post Office for £15. Licensed bar and interval ice cream.
• Soul Junction – Saturday 22 February 2025. Cumbria’s only Soul and Motown band are coming to the Village Hall. This 7 piece band will get everyone on their feet for an evening of great music. Tickets on sale at www.greystokepool.org.uk and Greystoke Post Office for £17. Licensed bar available.

Community Housing Group

We are holding our first public meeting on Thursday 30 January at 7:30pm in the village hall. If you can’t make it, don’t worry, as we’ll make the slides and speaker notes available afterwards. We’ll also be attending the pool café every Monday from February to answer your questions, hear your ideas, or allow you to sign up for membership.

Sign up to the mailing list on our website to make sure you don’t miss anything. You can unsubscribe at any time!

Bus Update: From BAG to BUG

Thank you to the 60+ people that attended the meeting we held at Greystoke Castle on Monday 9 December, what an amazing turnout! It was a great meeting and we were well supported by the representation we had by our local MP, Councillor and Council representatives.

At that meeting we were shown the proposed timetable and if you did not attend I have put a copy on our website (plus the local noticeboards for the not as digitally minded). This is still draft and we have been liaising with Mark Hodgkiss to try and influence the final version.

Then earlier this month ITV came to film us. We wanted to use this as a way of getting a timetable we’ll use and asking for a through fare (i.e., dayrider tickets) to Keswick, not all of that made it to the final edit, but it was very good publicity for the pool and the castle, hopefully bringing people into the village on the bus and using it that way.

So next steps, Stagecoach and the council will agree the final timetable and start date and then we need to make sure we use it! I very much welcome suggestions, ideas such as Chatty Bus Tuesday or holding social trips or even an MP surgery on the bus are innovative ways to keep us using (and then not losing) the bus.

The next meeting will be held on Thursday 23 January 7.00pm, the Village Hall. We’ll show the ITV news clip of us and have a chat about how to use the bus. Mark Hodgkiss will be on hand to answer any questions we have. Meanwhile, if you have questions or comments, please email Pam.

Finally, thank you to the whole community for their support during 2024, we’ll see you on the bus in 2025!

Greystoke Hand Bell Ringers

Greystoke hand bell ringers had a busy Christmas, playing at the Keswick Victorian Market one rainy Sunday, at WI and then, lastly, in the Village Hall. As it was the third time of playing through our repertoire we were quite relaxed and felt it had gone well. At the end of the morning we presented Maureen with a Christmas bouquet to thank her for her leadership of the group. We appreciate it takes a lot of planning and at times, stress.

We want to thank everybody who supported us that Saturday before Christmas. We had a lovely time playing and hope you had a lovely time listening and enjoying the refreshments. Thank you very much for all your donations which will be used to help us buy new music and pay our hall fees. Thank you also for joining in with On the Twelfth Day of Christmas. It took the pressure off us!

The Dacre Do

You are once again warmly invited to the ever-popular Dacre Do, taking place in Dacre Village Hall from 7.30pm on Saturday 1 March 2025 until midnight.

Pie and peas supper, pudding, a cash bar and dancing, with live music from Pete Lashley.

Tickets £20 from Lynne or Morna.