Recently in What's On Category

St Clements Hall in Cygnet Street has been in a sorry state for many years, but thanks to a lot of hard work and the determination of a small group of people the Hall has been extensively restored, and is on track to re-open this Spring.

Originally built by public subscription, Clements Hall aims to bring people together and to support and create community activities, which will provide resource, inspiration and entertainment.

The Trustees recognise the historic significance of the site and bring to the project a desire to improve the quality of life particularly for local people by being a catalyst and a vehicle for wide variety of opportunities across all ages, backgrounds and interests in the local and wider community.

The Hall is now available for bookings, so take a look at the Hall's own website at www.clementshall.org.uk for more details.

 

All are welcome at the next open meeting of the Bishopthorpe Local History Group when York City Guide Ivan Martin will present his illustrated talk, "Go with the Flow - The History of the River Ouse from Clifton Bridge to the Millennium Bridge".  Within that area, Mr. Martin explores the riverside buildings and open spaces on either side of the Ouse.  Following the talk there will be the opportunity to take a look at the Bishopthorpe Community Archive and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee.  The meeting will be held on Thursday, 29th October, at 7.30 pm at the Bishopthorpe Methodist Church Hall, Copmanthorpe Lane.  A small entry charge will be made.

On Sunday 4th October Brunswick Organic Nursery is holding a sponsored bike ride and walk in support of the Lord Mayor's Charities. The charities this year have been chosen by John Galvin, our Bishopthorpe-based Lord Mayor, and are York Against Cancer together with Brunswick Nursery itself, which provides craftwork and horticultural opportunities for people with special needs.

The event starts at 11am from Brunswick nursery, and the route takes you along the cycle path for 6 or 12 miles (or less if you prefer!)

The 12 mile route takes you to Riccall and back, while on the 6 mile route you turn back at a refreshment point at the 3 mile mark.

Finish is back at the nursery, and everyone should be back no later than 4pm.

The Greyhound in Riccall is providing sandwiches at £2 per person, and tea and soft drinks will also be available. There will be light refreshments at the 3 mile point too.

You can download a registration form here, or get more details by dropping in at the nursery or giving them a call on 01904 701869.

If you don't feel up to all this activity, don't forget you can sponsor someone else to do it!

 

The wooden hoardings have been removed from the car park; the tarmac has been laid; the paint pots, saws and drills have disappeared - the 'new' Village Hall is open for action!  Earlier this year the Parish Council received a grant from the Big Lottery Fund to extend and improve the building and, judging from the comments I have heard, everyone is delighted at the result.  The Village Hall Committee can be justly proud of what has been achieved, in particular, Lisa Thornton who spearheaded the project with great success. Having said that, Lisa doesn't rest on her laurels; she told me that if anyone spots anything that needs altering or correcting, then let her know.

The two-storey extension to the front has enabled the entrance area to be enlarged and now has a lift and new staircase.  A corridor running parallel with the main hall allows access to the kitchen and new toilet facilities.  

Upstairs, the walls of the main meeting room are covered with a large mural depicting scenes of the village - look closer and you may even be able to recognise a few local characters!  The mural vibrates with colour and was painted by a group of enthusiastic residents. Just along the corridor, past another new toilet with baby-changing facilities, is the room once mysteriously known as the 'carpet room'.  If this room ever had a carpet, I've never seen it but, from now on, it will be the Bishopthorpe Community Archive Room.  

It is a little bare at present as members of the Bishopthorpe Local History Group are still sorting out furniture and storage for the collection of material that has been gathered - and which continues to grow.  When the room is straightened out, it is hoped that it will be opened to members of the public on a regular basis.  Those who wish to search for their Bishopthorpe ancestors; browse through photographs; research the history of their house or, indeed, any aspect of Bishopthorpe history, will be welcome.  There will be more news on this at a later date.

Looking back to Saturday, 5th September, the grand re-opening of the Hall took place and many villagers arrived to view the changes for the first time.

Now that the new and improved Village Hall is up and running there are some great new developments for the young people of Bishopthorpe. The Urbie bus has been visiting the village and supplying a much needed youth resource while the hall has been closed, but there's now a designated space in the hall so the Urbie bus is going out of service to be replaced by the new Youth Club.

The club meetings will continue to be run by the youth workers from the Urbie bus, and the big launch night is on 16th September. Helen Jarvis is one of the team and gives us a flavour of what it's all about...

"Bishopthorpe Youth club will be open 3 Wednesdays of every month between the times of 7-9pm at the village hall, providing a space that is safe and well equipped for the young people of Bishopthorpe.
There are three fully trained youth workers, Hayley, Claire and Helen(myself), there to answer all your questions and provide fun activities and workshops. 
These will include a DJ workshop within the first month of opening, so come down and try your hand at dj'ing! We will also have a variety of arts and sports equipment, information leaflets, and a Nintendo Wii. We will also be offering a well stocked tuck shop and on the launch night, on the 16th September there will be free snacks and refreshments including pizza!!!
All we ask is that you are between the ages of 11-19 and that you pay an admission fee of 30pence per week (where else can you have 2 hours of fun for that price???)"

 
For any further information please contact Helen Jarvis on 07767318145 or helen.jarvis@york.gov.uk

Having been out of action since April, the Village Hall will re-open for business in September.

Lisa Thornton, Vice Chairman of the Parish Council, announced details of what will be happening at the Hall.

"To celebrate we are holding an Opening event at 11.00am on Saturday 5th September 2009. Everyone is welcome to attend and we hope lots of people will come along to see the revamped Hall and let us know what you think!

In addition to the many groups who have supported the Hall over the years we are pleased to announce two new activities that will start immediately:

New Youth Club - the Youth Club will meet on Wednesday evenings in the Hall. City of York Council Youth Service are providing Youth Workers to run the new Youth Club - see the Village Hall noticeboard for more details in the next few weeks.

Community Archive - At last Linda Haywood and the rest of the Local History Group will be able to clear out their lofts and garages as the new Hall will be home to a permanent Community Archive. More details about how you might use the Archive will be available soon.

Those of you who helped paint the Community Mural will also be able to view your efforts - it promises to be a true community treasure!

We hope that everyone will enjoy using the Hall for many years to come and that we see as many of you as possible on the 5th."

 

On Tuesday, 28th April, Bishopthorpe Local History Group is holding an open meeting at the Methodist Church Hall, Copmanthorpe Lane at 7.30pm.  We are delighted to welcome our guest speaker - and neighbour - Catrina Appleby, who will be giving an illustrated talk on, 'The History of Acaster Malbis'. 

During refreshments, there will be the opportunity to browse the digital archive collection of Bishopthorpe photographs.

All are welcome to join us for what promises to be an enjoyable evening. 
The charge for non-members: 2GBP.

Thursday 9th of October, 7.00 - 9.00pm, Village Hall, Bishopthorpe

What do you think about the local area?
Are there any particular good things about living here?
Are there any problems you think rural people are experiencing?

We are looking for people who would like to come along to a discussion about Bishopthorpe and the surrounding area. We will use maps to help us locate the things you are telling us about.

If you want to participate please contact Annemarieke de Bruin at adb503@york.ac.uk or call 01904 321267.

You have to register to come to this event. For more information have a look at our website: www.sei.se/relu/fieldwork.

The Bishopthorpe Bowling Club has challenged the Bishopthorpe Pétanque Club to a a two match competition in both sports.

The first match - Pétanque - will be played at 6.30 om Monday 4th August at the terrain at the rear of the Marcia, and the return Bowls match at the same time on Thursday 14th August at the Bowling Club green in Acaster Lane. Spectators are welcome to watch players coping with small steel balls on bumpy ground and large wooden ones on flat ground.