If so, please email sam@lamertonparishcouncil.gov.uk in advance of the date so I can check numbers and make sure we have enough hi-vis vests, litter pickers and gloves. If you have your own, that’s great – please let me know.

The plan is to start at the sports field and play areas, then meander down through the village and on up into Chestnut Close & Terrace and another group along the avenue before meeting back at the School to finish up.

Weather permitting of course; I’ll still be doing it with a light drizzle – but anything more than that, please check the ‘Stop Press’ on the top left hand side of the homepage of this site for final decision before setting out.

Look forward to seeing you there – a great opportunity to spend time together and to set a great example for our children.

If you’re a business owner in Lamerton keep an eye out for this email inviting you to ‘renew the listing and confirm the company’s contact details are up-to-date’.

In case you were wondering what this ‘Business Listing’ was – what it costs and whether you want your details stored on it please consider the following:

• The operators set up a website called anyplace.parish.uk/business-directory for every town and village in the UK. They’re entitled to do this.

• They populate every location with the publicly-available information of businesses operating in that location (again nothing wrong with that although it is unsolicited)

• They then contact you to offer you to renew or update your listing at a price (from what I can see from going most of the way through their process for my own business, it’s about £20 a year)

Please bear in mind also the following:

– This ‘directory’ offer has no connection with the Parish Council, Borough Council or UK Government regardless of the appearance of its website and forms

– There will be little or no commercial value to you from having your business in their ‘directory’; it is highly unlikely to generate you new business in return for the fee of £20

Little icons on browser URL tabs…

– While this ‘Lamerton Parish Business Directory’ approach is likely to be legal and probably not a scam (there are however plenty of similar-looking real, dangerous local Business Directory scams around btw – I spent a decade busting them between 2005 – 2015) – it is definitely an unsolicited and somewhat risky proposition.

All in all, my recommendation as a local business person with a fair amount of experience in online business directory scams and as a Parish Councillor is to read the above information carefully before deciding whether or not you want to pay for a listing in this ‘directory’.

My recommendation to the operator of this directory is:

a) To certainly make a greater effort to distinguish your offering from the kind of online business directoryscams that have been running for more than 20 years.

b) To ideally demonstrate clearly the mechanism by which a paid listing in your directory will translate into tangible business results for a customer

c) To consider re-designing your material to avoid any possible mis-apprehension that your business is somehow affiliated with Government, Borough or Parish.

The GOOD news:

If you want some free, tangible and effective marketing for your business you would do far better to register your business on Google Business:
https://www.google.com/intl/en_uk/business/
When someone goes to Google and searches for (in my case) ‘Guitar repair near me’ or in your case ‘auto electrician / plumber / book-keeper Lamerton’ or ‘…near me’ then Google will return your business listing (complete with as much or as little business contact information as you want) AND a map showing exactly where you are, linking to your own website if you wish. There is no cost for doing this; it’s FREE and it actually works. I get real, paying local business now and then from having put my business on Google Business.

Councillor Sam Deeks 

The strangest thing we found was a squidgy black  rubber ‘ball’ object with a velcro strap – none of us could work out what it was for. It was in the hedge at the foot of a large telegraph pole so we wondered if it was something to do with comms. but there was no obvious electronic function to it. I’m sure someone will know what it is!

On the grass outside the school we found the first disposable vape we’ve found in the village. The number of children choosing to vape  – to take on a powerful addiction to nicotine – is a worrying recent development but it IS encouraging that we’ve only found this one so far.

The next litter pick is scheduled for Sat 3rd of August. Please email Cllr Sam Deeks – sam@lamertonparishcouncil.gov.uk if you would like to come along with or without your youngsters. We have litter picking equipment (hi viz vest, picker, gloves and bag hoops) for 4 adults and 4 children but if you’ve got your own kit, consider yourself invited.

Highest item of rubbish? A beer can in a hedge!

Most interesting / old item of plastic? The ancient-looking Safeways Christmas shopping bag shown on the ‘featured image’ on the upper left of this post.

On both weekends we had lovely weather.

Next event booked is a School-organised litter pick on the sports field and around the Sports and Community Centre and playground – this is currently scheduled for after school on April 22nd.

From here on we hope to organise at least one ‘youngster-friendly’ litter pick a month across the spring, summer and autumn (staying within the safer village roads) and possibly additional ‘grown-up’ picks to tackle further-flung and slightly riskier trouble spots. Keep an eye out on the village and school noticeboards for updates (and the regular Parish Newsletter) if you’d like to be involved.
– Cllr Sam

The Parish Council is organising two litter-picking walks through the village.

For each session there is equipment for 4 children each with an accompanying parent / guardian. Additional grownups very welcome (please bring hi-vis, gloves and litter picker).

We’re getting started on the two Sundays shown on the picture (to coincide with the Great British Spring Clean) and hope to continue with monthly walks throughout the rest of the year.

The School will be organising another, separate activity for children focused on the sports fields on a date TBC.

Please email Councillor Sam Deeks at sam@lamertonparishcouncil.gov.uk if you’d like to come on one of the picks with your child (equipment supplied) or without children (bring your own hi vis jacket, gloves and litter picker). Thank you, hope to see some of you there.

Note: due to file size, the link currently goes to ‘WeTransfer’, a reputable and safe file download service. Please select past the ‘cookies’ option and then click on the ‘DOWNLOAD’ button to access the PDF with the Consultation results.

Come along and review the findings of the recent Survey – and share your views about the issues that shape our Neighbourhood Plan. These issues include:

• Housing development and the Environment
• Heritage and Green Spaces and the Environment
• Employment, Local Economy and the Environment
• Low Carbon Development and the Environment
• The Defined Village Boundary

Visual display and audio presentation
Free refreshments!
Supervised drawing activity table for under 12s (until 6pm)
How well do you know Lamerton Quiz – with a cash prize!

Community and Wellbeing – SUGGESTION BOX

This is an opportunity to bring the community together through Projects and Actions that YOU tell us are important. There will be a suggestions box for ideas that the community can take forward and deliver.

If you are unable to make it, you can let us have your views on SurveyMonkey (note: survey opens at noon on 10/11/23) using the QR code below (if you have a QR Code reader on your phone) or by clicking this link.

Can’t attend? Give your views online

In his will of 1674 wealthy textile manufacturer and Tavistock resident Nicholas Watts created a permanent endowment for the residents of Tavistock. Over the years this fund has been widened to cover people across Devon but with priority to those in and near Tavistock and is currently in given via two awards: The Tremayne Fund and The Browndsen Fund. These funds are intended to help local people today in coping with their cost of living and home expenses with an additional award available to assist a Tavistock-educated youngster further their education or vocational training.

A full description of these awards and details of eligibility and how to apply is contained in this PDF document.

The Parish Council and the Community Centre Committee are collaborating to provide Parishioners with the opportunity to celebrate the Coronation of HM King Charles III. Afternoon tea / coffee will be provided at the Community Centre between 3 & 5pm on Sunday 7th May. Bring your own sandwiches and cake. A tree will be planted to commemorate the event in the grounds of the Community Centre.