Dear Editor,

Kilmersdon Village Hall Committee ran a "Pop-up Cafe" during July and August which was very popular and we had some lovely comments from our visitors. The café was supported by villagers, as well as those passing through the village and was a welcome stop off for walkers and cyclists.

Although our menu was fairly limited all the produce and ingredients were fresh and prepared with care. A special thank you goes to some of the Kilmersdon WI ladies (the WI meets every second Thursday of the month at 6.45pm in the hall) who supplied a selection of home made cakes and quiches, with a gluten free option available as well. We have decided to make the café a regular event at the village hall. The Community Cafe will be open once a month on a Saturday between 11am and 3pm. The next one will be held on November 15 although we won't be holding one in December.

Our parish councillors will be in attendance at the next Café event and will be happy to answer any questions that you might have for them.

In 2026 the café will run on the first Saturday of each month, starting on January 3. It's a great opportunity to get out of the house and enjoy some different company for a couple of hours as well as indulging in a bacon roll or a slice of cake! If you are in Kilmersdon during our opening hours please pop in for a cuppa and a snack. The Committee intends to hold other regular events in the coming months. We will be starting with bingo on Saturday, October 25, where there will be cash prizes with doors open at 7pm for “eyes down” at 7.30pm. If there is enough support for bingo we will make this a regular event. We are also hosting a Quiz Night in November on Friday, November 28, at 7pm for a 7.30pm start.

There will be a licensed bar and refreshments on sale at both of these events. The hall is now able to take card payments as well as cash. Please come and join us! The hall committee would like to thank everyone for their continuing support.

Angila Cook

Kilmersdon

Dear Editor,

Five-thousand new houses planned for our area! Want to know where, when, and why?

Maybe you’re concerned about new supermarket developments, interested in the new masterplan to transform our high street, or want to understand more about Police activities in Midsomer Norton, concerned about the Town Hall costs and delays — we’re here to discuss it all.

It’s your agenda — no topic is off the table — come along and have your say on the issues that matter most to our community.

Welton Rovers on Monday, October 27, from 7pm – everyone is welcome, and the bar will be open.

Shaun Hughes

BANES Councillor for Midsomer Norton North

Dear Editor,

For the last three years I have been a host to Ukrainian Refugees. Despite the Russian attacks on Ukraine having got more intense putting more Ukrainian lives in constant danger, unfortunately there are fewer host for Ukrainian Refugees today, compared to the beginning of the war three years ago.

Please I appeal to the kind hearted people who has a spare bedroom to offer a Ukrainian Refugee for six months. You are not required to feed or buy food for your Ukrainian guest only let them use your kitchen to cook their own food.

Within the six months your Ukrainian guest will be given help to find work, and after six months your council will help your Ukrainian guest to rent their own private rented flat.

The rewards of helping these desperate Ukrainian people find peace is a outstanding feeling of achievement and pride.

For your kindness your council will pay you £350 per month to host one Ukrainian refugee.

Over the last three years experience, I have found the Ukrainian people to be polite, considerate, and without asking my guest they have always help me with household cleaning chores.

So please if you might be interested in becoming a Host to Ukrainian Refugees or would like more information, contact me on 01884 841354 or 07707 235407 email; [email protected]

Thank you in anticipation.

Yours sincerely,

George Simon Budge

via email

Dear Editor,

Over the past few weeks, we have heard a number of politicians stating that the UK should leave the European Convention on Human Rights or ECHR. I find these statements alarming and thought that I might show why this retrograde step would not be desirable.

To put things in the correct historical context: at the end of WWII, the horrors perpetrated by Nazi Germany became all too horrifically apparent; and the British Government led by Winston Churchill decided that there should never, ever be a repeat.

Senior legal experts - many of them British - and top constitutional lawyers helped create a new Europe-wide charter to protect basic human freedoms, and provide a mechanism for individuals to obtain redress when the state fails them. This became the European Convention on Human Rights.

The legislation protects freedom of the press, and the right for people to speak out. Here in the UK, it has helped groups such as the Hillsborough families seek truth and accountability.

Occasionally, there will be issues arising from ECHR cases that seem wrong to the layman; but in reality they seldom happen.

Quite simply, I would not trust anyone who argued for the UK to no longer be a signatory to the ECHR. There can be only one real ulterior motive for anyone to do so; it’s so that they can do the things that the convention so importantly protects us all against.

Regards,

Tony Sutcliffe

via email