The artists are back with their handcrafted gifts!
Paintings, photographs, jewellery, wooden boards, ironwork, garden pottery, soap, papier mache birds, blown glass and ceramics are all there.
Open 10.00am – 4.00pm Friday to Sunday.
A group of ten local artists and crafters return for their popular annual visit to Jacques Barn, bringing their wide range of handcrafted Christmas gifts.
Along with our regular exhibitors of everything from art and photography to wood, ceramics, jewellery and ironwork we have the first visit of Trilby Jones with his beautiful papier mâché birds.
A cool, dry morning gave ideal conditions for the start of this year’s tournament. After a morning of hard-fought tennis around the three villages, everyone congregated at Brook House to watch Liz Maycock and Alan Moug defeat Jax Jarvis and Alex Poignant in the final.
The players and friends and family then enjoyed a delicious potluck lunch, with an unplanned but very tasty Mediterranean theme.
We were particularly pleased to welcome five new faces to the tournament, including finalist Alex. Other newcomers included two players who have recently dusted off their rackets after a lay-off of more than two decades.
Several spectators want to be part of next year’s tournament and some have already started practising.
Thank you to everyone who took part, lent a court, helped organise and set up. And to Jonathan and Nicole Stolerman for hosting the lunch and George Monk for the photograph of the winners.
A Date for the Diary
Been looking at the weather and wondering about dusting off your tennis racquet and getting onto a court? Or enjoying playing regularly?
Why not play in the Village Tennis Tournament on Saturday 16th August? All standards are welcome. As long as you live, or have lived, in Cherington, Stourton or Sutton you are qualified to play.
We play tennis in the morning at various courts around the villages. Then watch (or play in) the finals and enjoy a potluck lunch.
If you want more information, please contact Sally Clubley on sallyclubley@gmail.com or 07989 330729.
I’d like to thank everyone who has sent me messages, cards and letters since Eric’s untimely death. It has been a great comfort to hear people’s reminiscences and reflections on his life in the village.
Please join me and our families and friends for a celebration of his life in St Mary’s Church, Chipping Norton at 2.00pm on Saturday 2nd November and afterwards at The Hall.
Sally Clubley
Didn’t quite make it to Wimbledon or the Olympics? Haven’t played for years? Why not enjoy a morning’s tennis followed by a sociable lunch?
Why not come and play in the Village Tennis Tournament on Sunday 1st September? All standards are welcome. As long as you live, or have lived, in Cherington, Stourton or Sutton you are qualified to play.
We play tennis in the morning at various courts around the villages. Then watch (or play in) the finals and enjoy a potluck lunch at Brook House, Cherington.
If you would like to play or want more information, please contact Sally Clubley on sallyclubley@gmail.com or 07989 330729 by Monday 25 August.
The Safari Supper is returning. It’s a great way to meet new neighbours or catch up with those you already know.
Volunteers will host a starter or main course for any number from 6 upwards. The evening starts with everyone meeting for a drink, where you will be told where you are going for your starter.
Starter hosts are given the list of where their guests are going for their main course. You will be with entirely different people.
And finally we all meet up again for pudding and more chat.
More details will follow in due course. But please contact Sally sallyclubley@gmail.com or Sue sueeileenmaaz@gmail.com if you want more details or to offer to host a starter or main course.
‘I thought I should let you know how things are going with our pub. The short answer is, not well. It’s going to take longer than I thought and the consultation delays and costs mean it’s going to be significantly more than I budgeted. But the pub will re-open.
I appointed builders in November and they started work around 1 December and they’re doing a really good job…at least they were.
A few weeks in, Stratford District Council told me that someone had seen the scaffolding going up and had called them. As a result, their Enforcement Officer got involved and required any structural work to stop immediately because the pub is Grade 2 listed. Of course, it’s up to me to know that, and I did, but I wrongly assumed because only the pub at the front of the property is listed, that we could tidy up the rear garden and improve the restaurant & cottage at the rear – basically all the eyesores!
I have now learned that, because the pub is listed, everything (including the eyesores) within the curtilage of the property, which also extends to the car park, is listed. This means, for example, that we can’t replace any fencing in the garden or move the LPG tank further back and out of the line of sight. Basically, we can’t touch anything. What we can do is to repair and redecorate.
I also have to appoint a specialist conservation architect, produce full structural drawings and provide various reports and surveys which will add around £25,000 to the costs. That hurts. But my best estimate, when I add in all the consultation delays, is that it will take around seven months to obtain the relevant permissions and this will significantly delay the re-opening of the pub.
I’ll work with my various advisors and we’ll do the best we can to get the pub open again in some form while we wait for Stratford DC to issue the relevant permissions.’
Martin Craddock
19 January
Great news for the village. Although the pub closed last week, it is hoped it will reopen in a few months time.
See message from Martin Craddock below.
Keep watching this space for further updates.
“There has been speculation for a while now about the viability and future of the Cherington Arms so I just wanted to let you know that I am in the process of buying it in order to preserve it as a village pub and prevent it being converted for residential use. That is my sole objective.
As I’m sure you know, the pub has been losing money and is in a very sorry state behind the scenes. This means that a significant investment is required simply to make it safe and comfortable for tenants to live in. I’m going to call that ‘Phase 1’ because I believe that it would be impossible to attract new tenants in its current condition. Therefore, unfortunately, it will have to stay closed until the work can be completed and new tenants found, although I’m hopeful that this will take less than six months.
After that, the pub would require a further and much larger sum to improve it and make it attractive and that may be a case of throwing good money after bad. You don’t need me to tell you that these are tough times for pubs. Over 150 were shut down in England and Wales in the first three months of 2023 and, in 2022, 386 pubs were lost for good (figures from the British Beer and Pub Association). So, while my aim is to complete Phase 1 and secure good tenants I really can’t speculate at this point as to whether there will be a ‘Phase 2’. But at least we will still have a village pub.
I aim to provide regular updates over the coming months to keep you up to date about how it’s going.”
Martin Craddock
Didn’t quite make it to Wimbledon this year?
If you live in one of the three villages, why not join us at the Village Tennis Tournament next Saturday instead. All standards are welcome.
The competition will take place on various courts around the villages in the morning, followed by a picnic lunch at Brook House, Cherington (thank you Jonathan and Nicole).
If you would like to play, please contact Sally Clubley by Sunday 2 July.
Cherington and Stourton Village 