BROAD TOWN NEWS APRIL 2026
Keeping everyone in touch with what is going on in and around our parish.
BROAD TOWN CHURCH
April 5th Easter Sunday - 10.30 Communion
April 26th - 10.30 Communion
Please note that the service on April 12th 10.30 Communion will now be held in Bradenstoke and not Broad Town.
PLANT SALE - Made in Broad Town have again kindly offered us a table at the Plant Sale on Saturday 9th May.
If the warmer weather is tempting you into the garden and you are dividing or have surplus plants, we would much appreciate them for our table. Do get in touch with Carolyn on 07768543063 or Judy on 01793 731341 and we can arrange a plant drop off or collection. Many thanks
If you are passing, do take a moment to visit the churchyard which is looking beautiful with spring flowers in bloom. Thank you to everyone who helps in any way.
The Annual Meeting for Parishioners to elect churchwardens will be on Sunday, 26th April beginning at 11.30am (after the 10.30am Communion Service) and is followed immediately by the Annual Parochial Church Meeting. All are welcome. If anyone would consider being a churchwarden, please contact Janet Drury on 01793 850931.
BROAD TOWN FOOD BANK
PART OF THE SWINDON FOOD COLLECTIVE GIVING FOOD TO THOSE WHO NEED IT
Sat 28th & Sun 29th March
Always needed: Small jars of coffee, Sugar (500gms/1kg)
Tinned Fruit, Tinned Tomatoes, Tinned meat - meatballs, corned beef, spam, hotdogs etc,
Tinned vegetables - peas, carrots, sweetcorn etc.
Tinned puddings - rice, sago, semolina, custard, angel delight, jellies.
Plus any seasonal Easter items – chocolate eggs, hot cross buns, Easter cakes, biscuits, etc
Please note - all items should be in date & preferably with a shelf life of 6 months or more.
Thanks for your generosity in continuing to support people in need. Please drop off any unopened & unused items to the Village Hall.
BROAD TOWN WHITE HORSE – THE NEXT STEP
Broad Town White Horse restoration group presentation in the Village Hall, Broad Town at 7.30pm on Tuesday 5 May.
In 2025 the Broad Town White Horse Restoration Group started a project to record the White Horse after landslips in 2024 threatened its existence. The project plan was presented to the Community at a well-attended talk in the Broad Town Village Hall in July 2025 entitled “Discovering Broad Town’s White Horse”. Activities took place during the rest of the year that involved members of the community and now it is felt to be the time to deliver the results in a second public presentation. The presentation will be introduced by Jemima Sellwood from our sponsor North Wessex Downs National Landscape.
Andrew Law and Derek Greer will explain the major findings from two perspectives: the multiple detailed surveys of the horse and its surrounding landscape and the chronological history of the horse and its upkeep. We are fortunate to be joined by a guest speaker, Brian Edwards, a visiting research fellow at the Regional History Centre at the University of the West of England and local expert on the chalk figures of Wiltshire. He will talk to us about “White Horses, Historical and Now”. The evening will conclude with a presentation of the Broad Town History Website on which all the results of the Broad Town White Horse Restoration Group project will be displayed.
The talk will take place on Tuesday 5 May 2026 in the Broad Town Village Hall with doors opening at 7pm and the talk starting at 7.30pm. Entrance is free and all of those interested in their local history are encouraged to attend.
BROAD TOWN CHARITY PLANT SALE
Saturday May 9th 2 - 4pm, Village Hall
➢ Made in Broad Town plant stall ➢ Broad Town Church plant stall
➢ Refreshments including homemade cakes, hot & cold drinks
➢ Plant donations appreciated please!
➢ All proceeds to: PROSPECT HOSPICE.
Wide selection of plants, seedlings, hanging baskets & filled planters available.
BROAD TOWN VILLAGE HALL
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING to be held in the Village Hall on Monday 27th April 2026 at 6pm
Agenda
Apologies, Minutes of previous meeting, Matters arising, Chairman’s report, Treasurer’s report
Election of committee , Election of officers, Update of Health & Safety and Risk Assessment, Any other business
The Broad Town Village Hall has now gone digital and all bookings and enquiries can be made "On-Line" at the following web address:-www.broadtownhall.com.Look forward to seeing you at the hall. Thank you to Aidan for all his hard work in refurbishing the planters in front of the Village Hall ☺
COMMUNITY COFFEE MORNINGS
Our April coffee mornings will be after Easter on Wednesdays April 8th and 22nd. Community Coffee Mornings take place in the Village Hall on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month. We would like to extend a warm welcome to everyone in the village, and especially to those who haven’t been to a coffee morning before, to join us from 10 - 12 noon. Make new friends, have a chat and enjoy a range of delicious homemade cakes, sausage rolls, and hot drinks. We operate on a donation basis, there is no fixed price for anything, please just donate as much as you feel able to.We look forward to seeing you and we wish you all a very Happy Easter!
MADE IN BROAD TOWN CRAFTS & HOBBIES GROUP
At our last session artist Maggie returned to give us a demonstration on painting Easter cards with watercolours. The session was enthusiastically received. There will be three April sessions - on Wednesdays April 1st, 15th & 29th. On the 1st we will be making floral Easter decorations, on the 15th we will be tackling origami, and on the 29th, fabric bowls (postponed from March 4th).
Calling all gardeners...! Following last year’s very successful charity plant sale, Made in Broad Town are having another one this year, on Saturday May 9th, 2 – 4pm, please see separate poster in this newsletter.
Many of you in our village were kind enough to grow plants and seedlings for us to sell, and we would love you to do the same this year please – now is the time to start growing, dividing and propagating!
We can arrange collection of plants before the sale if necessary, and if you have any questions or would like to keep us updated on what you are growing, please email us at madeinbroadtown@gmail.com.
Thank you for your help.
SOCIAL CLUB
The social club is open every Friday from 8pm and members and their guests are all welcome. If you are not a member you can join for just £3.00 for the year - just ask Trevor behind the bar. Draught beers and lagers are for sale at just £3.50 a pint and there is a free pool table, so why not pop in and check us out. Find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/FourWaysBroadTown
Food for Thought Fish ‘n’ Chips Evenings will be selling their delicious Fish and Chips (and burgers, sausages, scampi etc) outside the Village Hall from 5 – 8pm on the last Friday in the month:
27th March
24th April
29th May
PARISH COUNCIL
Keep up to date at https://www.broadtownparishcouncil.org.uk
Village Tidy-Up
It’s the time of year for us to give the village a spring clean. Meet at the Village Hall for a village tidy and litter pick up. We will be providing litter picker tongs, gloves, bin bags and Hi-Viz vests to teams of willing helpers. We are also looking for volunteers with spades or shovels to weed the pavements. There will be bacon butties / refreshments provided as a reward!
Meet 10 am Village Hall Saturday 25th April
Next PC Meeting - will be at 6.30pm in the Village Hall on 13th April. All are welcome and the agenda will be posted on our website and on the notice boards in due course.
FUTURE WASTE SERVICES: CHANGES AHEAD, HAVE YOUR SAY!
Wiltshire is preparing for some important updates to waste and recycling services, all designed to improve sustainability, reduce our environmental impact, and deliver better value for money. These changes will shape how our communities recycle, reduce waste, and manage resources for years to come.
Before we roll anything out, we want to hear from you. We’re launching a survey to understand how these upcoming changes might impact you. Your feedback will help us tailor our advice, support, and communications as we introduce new services.
The survey runs from today until 5pm on Friday 17 April and should take under 10 minutes to complete.
Find out more about the upcoming changes to waste collections in 2027 and have your say at https://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/futurewaste
WHITE HORSE LIMING - SUNDAY 10 MAY 2026
Weather permitting, White Horse liming will take place on the morning of Sunday 10th May. It should be assumed that we will start at around 10am and conclude before lunchtime.
Protective equipment will be available at the site in the form of eye protection and face masks. All participants are requested to wear appropriate footwear and work gloves. If possible, they should also bring a tool that can be used for removing weeds or for spreading the lime. The event will be open to all those who wish to be involved with the only stipulation being that participants should be physically fit and in good health.
Would anyone who wishes to be involved please contact Andrew Law on 07841 381301
or andrewlaw456@gmail.com . Fuller details will be provided to all volunteers. Individuals who have already declared their availability to the organizer need not do so again. Andrew Law.
WHAT OUR S.I.D. SAW LAST MONTH
In Summary : 35,195 vehicles passed the SID located at Broadacres monitoring Southbound traffic (heading to Broad Hinton) which equates to approx. 858 a day. 26% of vehicles were speeding.
BISHOP ANDREW’S LETTER FOR EASTER
An eternal address. Living in two places at once, which most of us need to do at some point in our lives, can be a confusing business. Where should our post go? Where do we belong? To make dual residency of any kind work requires imagination as well as practical effort. Christians are called to do this in a spiritual sense, for we believe
Christ makes us at the same time citizens of earth and of heaven. At no season of the year is this most clearly evident than at Easter, when we celebrate God’s new creation in the midst of the old. We are people who inhabit the spring, seeing in it signs of this new birth, but whose true hope is in resurrection. The poet John Donne, musing upon life and death, wrote how Jesus makes ‘one parish’ of earth and heaven, which is a lovely image. He adds that ‘Christ was not out of his diocese when he was upon the earth’! Nor (we might add), when he ascended to heaven. The church, then, is a rehearsal space for the kingdom of heaven – and as such must allow for all the trial, error and excitement this involves. For Christ is risen, we have an eternal address and another country beckons.
CHURCHYARD
A big thank you to everyone who came to help at the work morning in March. The Churchyard is for the whole Community -more volunteers are needed and will be made most welcome.
The 2026 dates for future work mornings will be:
4th April,9th May,6th June,4th July,8th Aug, 5th Sept,3rd October.
We meet at 10am and refreshments are provided.
If you require further information, please contact Ray Manley, Tel: 731564.
BROAD TOWN SUMMER FETE
Come and enjoy the fun on the 13th June 2026 at Broad Town School. 12:30- 4pm Adults £2 entry.
THOMAS SPACKMAN EDUCATIONAL TRUST GRANT:
Are you, or do you know, a young person living in the Clyffe Pypard or Broad Town area who would benefit from The Thomas Spackman Educational Trust? The charity’s main focus is education or work-related training and apprenticeships, but the charity may also be able to help a promising individual develop a particular talent. Applying is very easy. If you wish to find out more about the application process, please contact Rosemary Greenway or
email: spackmantrust@gmail.com. All formal applications need to be in by 31st March for the spring round and 30th Sept for the autumn round of awards.
BROAD HINTON YOUTH GROUP
Come and join our youth club! We meet every Friday from 7pm until 9pm during term time in Broad Hinton Village Hall. The club is for 10-14 year olds and the cost is £3 per session (plus tuck shop money!)
Rising 10’s (ie if you will be 10 years old before September 1st 2026) are welcome to start after the Easter break
New members are always very welcome. We have table tennis, table football, a snooker table, an indoor net for badminton or volley ball, a PS4, a Wii and an Xbox, as well as a tuck shop.
We sometimes have other activities such as art and craft or different sports. During the summer months we have use of the school field behind the Village Hall for outdoor activities. We will start back after Easter on Friday 17th April 2026.Please visit our webpage on the Broad Hinton Village Hall website:
https://broadhinton.org.uk/clubs/youth-club/ and for more information please email bhyouthclub23@gmail.com
PLEASE NOTE that all copy to be included in the next edition should be emailed to:
BroadTownNews@gmail.com by the 22nd of EVERY month. Any queries should also be sent to this address.