Help make the final push for Otford ‘Surgery Pod’ by taking part in Fun Quiz Night
OTFORD PATIENT GROUP is holding a Fun Quiz Night at 7.30pm on Friday 30 November in St Bartholomew’s church hall, High Street, to raise funds for a ‘Surgery Pod’. his allows patients to make simple checks at the surgery such as body mass and blood pressure before seeing the Doctor or Nurse and this saves valuable time. The Group has nearly raised the required sum but just needs one last push. You are invited to go along, preferably making up teams of 6 to 8 people, but its open to all. There will be a cash bar but please take along your own food or nibbles. Entrance £7 per person. Contact Ken Cardinal to book a table on 01959 522513 or email: kencardinal2@gmail.com.
ST BARTS CHRISTMAS MARKET takes place between 10am and noon on Saturday 24 November in the church centre, adjacent to the Otford church. Stalls will include gift wrapping, cards, Christmas tree and table decorations candles, cakes, bulbs, Christmas sweets and chocolates and a herb and spice craft stall. A Christmas raffle is also planned and refreshments will also be on sale for visitors to enjoy.
STAN THE BARBER’S picnic bench will be unveiled on the Otford High Street Recreation Ground at noon on Sunday, 25 November, and all his old customers and contributors are invited to the ceremony. Please do go along on the day to once again thank Stan for his contribution to village life. The bench is situated just behind the children’s play area, adjacent to the allotments.
THE 1940’s SOCIETY is meeting at 8pm on Friday 30 November in the Otford Memorial Hall for a talk by Mike Brown entitled ‘Christmas on the Home Front’. In this seasonal talk Mike will explore how Christmas was celebrated in Britain during the war years. Refreshments will be available, admission £3, all welcome.
DENISE THOMPSON DESIGNER FLORIST is holding a Christmas Workshop in Otford Memorial Hall on 30 November at 7pm. She will be explaining how to make a Christmas Wreath and on Friday 14 December there will be a table/mantle arrangement workshop. The cost for each workshop is £40, everything will be provided except scissors/secateurs and so you will need to take your own. Light refreshments will be available. To book a place at either of the workshops call 01959 525009.
OTFORD PRIMARY SCHOOL PTFA Christmas Bazaar is being held between noon and 3pm on Saturday 1 December at the school on Otford High Street. There will be an Outdoor Christmas Market and a Winter Wonderland Santa’s Grotto, plus lots of stalls, crafts, games, raffle, a silent auction, face painting and festive food and drink. Entry £1 per adult and free for children.
THE TRAFFIC SURVEY GROUP public meeting organised by the parish council attracted a large number of visitors on Saturday November 3. The public consultation on the proposals is1 now underway and will run until midnight on Saturday 1 December so residents are reminded to complete the Traffic Questionnaire in this month’s Parish Newsletter or complete it online at: www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/L9C67T6 Details on the Traffic Proposals can be found on the Otford Parish Council website at: www.otfordpc.kentparishes.gov.uk under ‘Traffic Management’. For a paper copy of the report or more copies of the questionnaire please contact the Parish Office 01959 524808.
GIRL GUIDES & CHRISTMAS POST: Stamps for Otford’s Christmas Post go on sale on 29 November for the 36th year running and will be available until Friday 21 December. The special charity post service, which is one of the longest running in the country, delivers Christmas cards with the scheme’s special stamps to addresses in Otford village. Stamps cost 30p and are available to purchase in Otford Library during normal opening hours or in the Parish Council office every weekday morning. Christmas cards can be posted in the special post boxes located in the same places. Otford’s Brownies and Guides will collect, sort, frank and then deliver the cards over the two weekends before Christmas.
This year the money raised from the sale of the stamps will be divided between Embrace Ability, a charity working with disabled children and their families in Cambodia and for whom one of their leaders is currently volunteering in Cambodia, and Sevenoaks Community First Responders. Please support them by purchasing the special stamps and posting your cards early.
Library opening hours: Monday and Thursday 9am – 1pm; Tuesday 9am – 5pm; Wednesday Closed; Friday 1pm – 5pm and Saturday 10am – 2pm. Parish Council Office opening hours are Monday to Friday 8am – 12.30pm.
SEVENOAKS RSPB will be meeting at 7.45pm on Thursday 6 December in the Otford Memorial Hall. Members will be celebrating 25 years of the Sevenoaks Local Group and welcome back one of their favourite speakers, Simon Ginnaw, who will be presenting My Patch (Mote Park), with the photographic competition results, wine and Christmas nibbles. Admission is £2.50 for group members and £3.50 for non-members. Outdoor meetings for the month are at Sevenoaks Nature Reserve and Bough Beech on Wednesday 5 December, (contact Ann McGregor 01732 454304 to book a place) and Rye Harbour Nature Reserve on Sunday 9 December, (contact John Waterman 07935 206618 to book a place). For more information see www.rspb.org.uk/groups/sevenoaks/events
OTFORD YARN CRAFTERS held their first meeting at the Hospice of Hope Tea Rooms in the High Street on Tuesday 13 November when lovers of yarn crafting met to inspire one another, share their projects, skills and knowledge and to offer help and support when projects weren’t going right. The group meets on the second Tuesday of the month in the morning between 10 and 11am at the Hospice of Hope Tea Rooms in Otford High Street, and the fourth Tuesday of the month in the evening between 6 and 8pm in The Woodman. The next meeting is 27 November. You are welcome to go along to either one or both meetings. You don’t need to book, there are no joining fees, but they do ask that you purchase a hot or cold drink at the venue.
MEET THE MAKER DAY is taking place in Otford Saturday 1 December. Otford has a diverse range of independent shops in the village and this is an opportunity for customers to get a sneak peek behind the scenes. There will be signs in the windows of participating shops. Those involved are Otford Interiors, Denise Thompson – 11am Wreath making, 2pm Christmas arrangement – Sally’s Cake Emporium, Howlers, The Studio, Hall & Co, Bill Skinner, and Mille Fleurs which is offering pre-booked 45-minute millinery tasters throughout the day. To book, email millefleurshats@gmail.com or call into the shop. Ann Bridges will be the event’s Artist in Residence, recording the day’s activities in a series of sketchbook drawings.
