COMMUNITY OWNERSHIP OF RENEWABLE ENERGY - SATURDAY 26 JUNE

SUSTAINABLE ENERGY FOR HISTORIC BUILDINGS

Transition Town Training - 19th / 20th June in Worcestershire

Energy Champions – Free Training! - 12th June, Friends Meeting House, Maidenhead Rd, Stratford.

Positive Solutions for Shipston Town Centre?

Some comments on Shipston Online http://www.shipstononline.org/supermarket-threat.html#comment-35  show that there are Shipston residents who are in favour of the proposed large supermarket up the Campden Road. The main reasons they put forward are:

1.It could cost less to shop there

2.It would use less petrol than driving to the surrounding supermarkets in Stratford, Moreton, Banbury, Stow.

There are also Shipston residents, including Transition Town members (and me!),   who are opposed to the proposed supermarket, mainly because supermarkets on the edge of towns lead to the closure of small independent shops in the centre, and this group values highly the local shops, and being able to shop without driving.

There may be a solution to the needs of both groups. At present the two supermarkets in the town centre, owned by two different Co-ops, duplicate  basic goods and have little room for extra choice. It can be frustrating to have to visit both stores to complete shopping needs. If the two stores combined with a walkway connecting them, Shipston  town centre could gain a reasonably sized supermarket stocking a wider range of goods with more choice than at present. and shoppers would still be in the right place to buy from the excellent local shops stocking local produce among all sorts of other things. Many people from outside Shipston come here because they enjoy buying quality meat, veg, toys, electrical goods, etc, and this scheme could keep them spending money in Shipston while also meeting the hopes of people who live in Shipston and want to do their regular shopping here.

It would be good if all those with differing thoughts about the proposed supermarket could meet to listen to opposing views calmly and seek possible  positive solutions.

Helen Winnifrith

helenwin@tiscali.co.uk

Sophie Grigson to open Shipston Mid-Summer Festival


The celebrity chef and cookery writer Sophie Grigson has agreed to open the Shipston Mid-Summer Festival on 4th July organised by Transition Shipston. She is a keen supporter of organic and local food suppliers and, is an advocate for decent children's food. She is a patron of the Children's Food Festival
For more information contact: Geri Hunting geri@horsejoy.com

Wild Food Foraging - Skills Swap and Lunch - May 15, 2010 from 12noon-2pm

Do you know what wild foods are growing in your garden or the hedgerows, and better yet, some great recipes for them?

Community Gardening - at the bottom of Darlingscote Road

To encourage and raise awareness about the concept of Landshare new Transition Shipston supporter Mike Ashton has generously offered to allow his land at the bottom of Darlingscote Road to be used by Transition Shipston as a community space for growing vegetables and fruit in return for keeping an eye on it whenever he is away.