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Our town is a very nice town

THE online community newspaper for Nailsea people, their family and their friends

November 2021

PROPERTY PEEPS

January homes for sale by Property Peeps page sponsors Hunters Estate Agents and Letting Agents in the High Street HERE. Plus news that district council has decided to go it alone with a Local Plan is also on this page

Property Peeps

Our Property Peeps page sponsors HENSONS estate agents sold two featured homes within days of Nailsea People posting details online. With more than 80 networked offices in the south west and London the Nailsea office is at Ivy Court, 61 High Street. Read more HERE about planning applications approved and in the pipeline as Nailsea moves towards welcoming hundreds of new home owners at Engine Lane, Netherton Grange + possibly The Uplands. Work has started at Youngwood Lane by Taylor Wimpey

Our Christmas
food and drink

Cheers, where to get a pint on Christmas day or go for a festive feast - hotels, pubs and clubs opening hours are HERE.

Other dates on the What's On page HERE. Panto previews and reviews all to come

Gallery 2021

There are nearly 300 images posted on the final Gallery of 2021 from September to December with still two full months to go! A BIG THANK YOU to everyone who has contributed their images. There are nine slideshows from the farmers' and craft market and street festival; and from Pink Ladies to Moody Blues And Other Hues taking in the countryside and creatures in our neighbourghood

FIREWORK FOTOS: All in a slideshow HERE and include four videos of the a colourful display in the night sky by Jasper White

Lest we forget

Nailsea will be marking Remembrance 2021 with services, wreath-laying and poppies.
The Nailsea and Backwell RFC community based at the West End ground is inviting all to join veterans and serving members for Act of Remembrance gathering from 10.45am on Sunday, November 14.
And large red sponsored remembrance poppies have been placed in one of four beds tended by Nailsea in Bloom.
Residents were able to sponsor a poppy with up to four names written on each wooden stalk for a minimum £5 donation per poppy.

The monies will go to the Royal British Legion.
Remembrance Sunday is a national opportunity to remember the service and sacrifice of all those that have defended our freedoms and protected our way of life.
We remember the Armed Forces, and their families, from Britain and the Commonwealth, the vital role played by the emergency services and those that have lost their lives because of conflict or terrorism.
We are told that on Thursday, November 11, at 11am RBL veterans will be assembling in Somerset Square for Remembrance Day.
And at Holy Trinity church on Sunday, November 14 at 10.30am the Act of Remembrance will start outside by the war memorial with the laying of wreaths and the roll call before going into the church for the Remembrance Sunday service.
However, there is limited seating so you will need to book if you would like to come in person.
Go to our BMD page HERE to learn more.

REMEMERING: Photos from the wreath laying at Holy Trinity war memorial and more in a slideshow HERE

Nailsea Library
50th birthday?

SLIDE SHOW: Of Nailsea library, past present but what future?

Nailsea Library in its present building is 50 years old although no one can remember the actual official opening date.

According to author Margaret Thomas in The Book of Nailsea ‘Nailsea Library and Reading Room was started in 1856 in a room at Christ Church School’.

Christ Church School which later became Four Oak Infant School closed in 2003 and was converted to housing in 2015.

Nailsea Library is an essential part of the community and apart from providing shelves full of books, it offers free computer courses, internet access, printing and photocopying facilities, newspapers, textbooks for children, CDs and DVDs for hire and games for teenagers, and lots of comic books.

Still rumours abound – it is closing, it is moving, it is full of concrete cancer.

Who knows? The late and much-loved librarian Judith Codrington certainly would.

The latest idea being muted is to take over the old Nat West bank in Somerset Square so that edge of Crown Glass Shopping Centre can be redeveloped for retail and housing, but no planning application has been submitted – yet.

Developments Bristol has purchased the former Weston College site in Somerset Square with a view to redeveloping it into apartments with a retail unit on the ground floor.

It was widely reported in January this year that it would also be possible that the town’s library building could be sold and included within the development, with the library being relocated elsewhere in Nailsea.

The firm, headed by local businessman Paul O’Brien, was in talks with Nailsea Town Council, North Somerset Council - which own the library - and the town centre owners Praxis.

Mr O’Brien said the plans were very much at the ‘discussion stage’ but said he hoped the development would provide a mix of private, shared ownership and affordable homes for local people.

The former Weston College building has laid vacant in the town for over a decade and over the years has become an eyesore.

Previous ideas have been to move the library lock, stock and barrel into Scotch Horn Centre but nothing came of this either.

When we moved to Nailsea in 1977 I thought it would have made a great restaurant and that the chains were fixed to hold it down and not as I subsequently found out a modern take on guttering.

Nailsea Town Council has done its best to save the structure even trying to get it listed building status.

We do not know who designed the library seemingly on stilts, in a hexagonal building.

The children's section is based downstairs on the lower floor, which means descending some spiral stairs which isn’t ideal for parents with buggies.

North Somerset Library Service would like to celebrate the anniversary but without a definite date this is proving a challenge.

If you have any information you can contact us via our Nailsea People Facebook page or email nailseapeople@gmail.com, thanks.

Catherine Hawkins added this to our Facebook page.

She said: "I work at the library we’re marking our 50th birthday this year.

"I’d love to hear any memories you have of us over the years or see any photos you might have.

"I’m hoping to put a display up and include these there.

"You can email anything to us at nailsea.library@n-somerset.gov.uk or to me at Catherine.Hawkins@n-somerset.gov.uk.

"If you know anyone who might like to contribute who’s not online, please pass it on and they can drop anything at the library for my attention.

"Thank you all so much."

Carol Deacon

LANE CLOSURE

Nailsea Town Council has advised that from Monday, November 15, Netherton Wood Lane – from the junction with Engine Lane/St Marys Grove, for 350m in southerly direction - will temporarily be closed to vehicles for five days for Independent Fibre Networks to perform blockage clearance and installation of new fibre network. It is not on the roadworks map here https://one.network/uk/northsomerset.

MORE TREE PLANTING

Funding to plant 3,000 smaller trees and 150 larger ones in our communities has been secured by North Somerset Council. Following a successful application to the government's Local Authority Treescapes Fund, the council has been awarded £126,000. This will cover the cost of planting the trees and their aftercare for the next three years. The new trees will contribute to the council's wider aim set out in its Green Infrastructure Strategy of increasing canopy cover across the area to help mitigate the effects of climate change and address some of the expected tree loss due to Ash Dieback disease. The council is asking town and parish councils with planting and looking after the trees. It is offering each council at least one standard tree which could be used for the Queen's Jubilee tree planting scheme.

AL FRESCO GYM

Nailsea Town Council is looking to install some outdoor gym equipment accessible to all in its parks and open spaces. But what to buy and where to put it? The council has put together a survey that will help us to find out exactly what Nailsea residents want. To complete go here – it takes around a minute to fill in

YOUTH CLUB NIGHTS

Now the dark nights are here we are calling out to all Nailsea Y7s.

Did you know Mondays from 6-8pm is Senior Group Youth Group Night.

Based Upstairs at 65 High Street there is a warm, safe space dedicated to young people to meet their friends, have fun, chill, and be yourself. Youth leader Karen Pike said: "We look forward to meeting you, first time is free then it’s just £1 per session."

More things for young people on their own page HERE.

Food, glorious food (and drink)

As life starts to feel like normal again we look forward to the return of the annual food & drink festival in Nailsea.

Eat:Nailsea was back for the third time on Saturday, October 9, and now it is nearly time for a festive edition on Saturday, December 4.

Nailsea People caught up earlier with the organisers, eat:Festivals to find out more.

Bev and Sarah Milner Simonds are the brains behind the street festival for foodies which will happen in the High Street.

Bev said: "We know that weekend shindigs, days out and socialising have all been turned on their heads over the past year with plans disrupted and many regular events cancelled. In 2021 we are hoping for the best, but ensuring our plans include a worst-case scenario.

"We managed to deliver six socially distanced and covid-secure events between lockdowns in 2020 - including the Gold Award winning eat:Portishead and eat:Nailsea.

"These events have been made possible by the support from local council officers helping us to plan a fresh series of adapted markets in 2021.

"So far this year we have worked hard to host seven major festivals and three pop-up versions.

"Nailsea has to have been one of the warmest welcomes we have ever had and it is great to bring so many local producers and visitors into town for the day.

"Nailsea Town Council and the Crown Glass management team have been very supportive and we work in close collaboration with Somerset Farmers’ Markets.

"Covid restrictions meant many event organisers weren’t able to adapt their model to enable them to continue trading and this cut off a vital revenue stream for these family businesses.

"We have changed how we work and are thrilled to be back working in Nailsea on the second of our two Saturday dates.

"This is a free one-day event with more than 80 regional food and drink producers well-spaced out along the High Street and in the Crown Glass Shopping Centre, with some socially distanced entertainment.

"The whole market is in the open air and it will have measures in place to minimise the risk of COVID-19 transmission.

"You can expect local favourites like Nailsea Cider, Nutts Scotch Eggs and Clevedon Pier gin - plus patisserie, charcuterie and deli options and of course a great range of street food.

"It has been great to reintroduce our entertainers and we will have DJs providing background music plus strolling entertainers and buskers too.

"At Christmas we will be back with added tinsel! Providing you a warm up for Christmas with many of our producers creating festive flavours and of course we have booked a visit from the ‘man in big red trousers’.”

More online details here www.eatfestivals.org.

UPDATE: Photos in slideshow and video taken by Nailsea Cider from October 2021 in our Gallery HERE.

PHOTOS: Bev and Sarah in sunglasses by Orbit all other photography by Nailsea People October 2019

More eating:Festival for 2022

There are plans to host a series of food and drink events across the four main North Somerset towns.

North Somerset Council and eat:Festivals, the food and drink events company, have partnered up to host a series of street fairs in Clevedon, Nailsea, Portishead and Weston to encourage footfall towards existing retail, hospitality and service businesses.

Each event will be designed to reflect the distinct character of its location such as eat:Portishead will have a seafood and maritime theme and eat:Clevedon will highlight connections with twin town Epernay and English sparkling wine.

The 2022 dates for eat:Nailsea have tentatively been pencilled in as Saturdays October 8 and December 3 but no theme as yet has been revealed.

However, the favourite is apples as the first date precedes Apple Day on Saturday, October 21, plus the village links to Coates cider factory.

This opened in 1788 and closed in the mid-1970s after 187 years.

Redvers Norman Coates, then aged 22, began the production and his is one of the famous three commemorated in the silhouette statues at Millennium Park.

Prior to Coates, there was Heath Brewery, owned by the Thatcher family, which was situated behind the former Friendship Inn.

The site of the old factory is now a small industrial estate named Coates and the former Queens Head pub was renamed Coates House to honour the cider heritage.

North Somerset Council executive member for placemaking and economy Mark Canniford is the Liberal Democrat ward councillor for Weston-super-Mare Hillside.

He said: ““Part of the council’s placemaking strategy is to create an attractive and vibrant place to live work and visit.

“The eat:Festivals events are hugely popular and I’m confident that they will benefit the community and local economy.”

North Somerset Council deputy leader Mike Bell is Liberal Democrat ward councillor for Weston-super-Mare Central.

He said: “I’m delighted we’ve secured this partnership with the award-winning eat:Festival team.

“This is an initiative that aims to attract increased footfall with high quality,

town centre food and drink events across North Somerset towns, while supporting local businesses.”

Beverley and Sarah Milner Simonds, of eat:Festival, said: "We are really pleased to have formalised our relationship with North Somerset Council and look forward to delivering a cracking series of events for them in 2022.

“There are so many great producers in and around North Somerset and we want to shine a spotlight on them all."

Grants from the Government’s Economic Recovery and Welcome Back Fund will finance the increased food and drink events across the four main North Somerset towns during the next 12 months.

Ring O'Bells, Nailsea

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www.thetekhut.uk

computer techies for the online community

The TEK Hut was started by Ben Parker in the summer of 2018.

For 12 years Ben had been one of the team at The ICT Workshop which provided a wide variety of computer services to Nailsea, Clevedon, Yatton, Backwell and even Weston-Super-Mare.

Ben felt it right to continue the same great service customers had previously experienced but under new branding for a new business and The Tek Hut was born.

Trading at the familiar location in Nailsea, The Tek Hut will continue to offer the same cost effective, new laptops and PCs, upgrades, onsite support for homes and businesses through to a wide range of workshop services and accessories.