Extraordinary Kevin shows how to overcome challenges

A CALENDAR for 2007 from the Supporting People Partnership illustrates the tales of 13 extraordinary Somerset people - but none from West Somerset.
The ‘Supporting Extraordinary People Calendar 2007’ features people from across all the other areas of Somerset and describes how they overcame great challenges to achieve their goals.
However, details of West Somerset’s extraordinary residents were received after the print deadline for the partnership, which is led by Somerset County Council.
Now, though, The Crier can reveal the story of one such extraordinary person, Kevin (pictured), who lives in Watchet and has learning and concentration difficulties, which in the past has caused him to rebel.
With support, Kevin is now happy with his life, and he attends craft sessions with other tenants in his extra care housing community, which has helped with his concentration.
He makes cards which are sold at a Christmas fayre the residents organise each year to raise money for the scheme’s social fund and for outings.
Kevin enjoys this challenge and says he wants to make the most of his skills. He feels relaxed and at home in his extra care housing, which provides additional support to that which would be received in sheltered accommodation.
Kevin’s story is just one among many which the Supporting People Partnership comes across.
The problems faced by Kevin and other ‘extraordinary’ people include homelessness, significant illness, and family breakdown.
With the help of Supporting People services, they have rebuilt their lives and now look forward to a happier future.
The partnership all five of Somerset’s district councils, the NHS and the Probation Service, ensuring the right balance of support services is available for people across the county who are experiencing difficult times in their lives.
Supporting People services help people remain independent and live fulfilling lives, enabling them to reach their potential.
Copies of the calendar have been sent to local MPs, councillors, GP surgeries, and to representatives of the police, health and social services.
It is intended to help raise awareness of Supporting People services and show how, with support and a secure home, people can turn their lives around and fulfil their potential.
More information about Supporting People services in Somerset is available by visiting the website www.spdirectory.gov.uk or by telephoning Somerset Direct on 0845 345 9133.

Photo submitted.

Exmoor community art project reaches Winsford

A START has been made on a new and exciting stage of a community arts service developed over the past six years by ARTlife, the West Somerset arts consortium which works in partnership with West Somerset Council.
The ARTLife community arts development service is run for and by the people of the district, working in many different ways.
Residents of Wheddon Cross and Brompton Regis have already taken part in the project.
Wheddon Cross residents held a series of stained glass workshops during the autumn and contributed their ideas for a larger piece of work - a stained glass window for their recently refurbished village hall, which is currently being created by arts worker Avril Silk with help from local people.
In Brompton Regis, residents have recently started on a series of willow workshops to learn the skills needed to make individual small pieces with arts worker, Joolz Doncaster.
They will shortly begin to design and create a larger willow structure for their Millennium Green over the Easter holidays.
Now, residents of Winsford, led by the village hall committee, have spent time considering all the possibilities and have decided to look at making a tiled wall mural for the village hall, which is currently undergoing major refurbishment.
An introduction to the project is being held in the village hall at 10.30 am on Saturday, March 17, when anybody who is interested can attend and meet Simon Wyard and Anna Fraser to see a demonstration of their work and ‘have-a-go’ with some clay.
Following the first session, people in Winsford will then have the opportunity to attend further sessions during the next few months, to start on their own small mural for their home, and, at the same time, plan the larger village hall mural.
Project co-ordinator Jan Ross said: “We hope people will come along to the first session so that we can involve as many as possible, whether by just giving us their ideas for the final piece, learning the skills involved in making small pieces, or assisting Simon and Anna with the final mural.
“We have had a staggering amount of interest in the project so far, with 27 people
taking part in Wheddon Cross and 25 people in Brompton Regis, far more than we were expecting.”
Further information is available from Jan Ross by telephoning 01398 323818, or emailing janaross2003@yahoo.co.uk.
Image submitted.

Marco launches Jive Bar dance club in Minehead

FORMER national jive dance champion Marco Grove is to launch a regular Thursday evening club called The Jive Bar, based in The Hobby Horse public house, Minehead.
Marco, who moved to West Somerset two years ago, gave a demonstration of the country’s fastest-growing partner dance during the recent West Somerset Business Fair.
Together with a partner who had received just eight hours’ tuition, he presented a choreographed piece of work which fused many different dance styles into one.
The Jive Bar opens on March 15 and is designed for people who have never danced before, using all styles of music from 40s swing to the latest chart hits.
Marco, who previously taught jive in the Midlands, said: “It is easy to learn and it is a really good social evening out.
“The whole thing about the dance is about creating a really good feeling within people so they can achieve things and be inspired and build confidence.”

More information is available on 07970 718358.

• Our photograph shows Marco with partner giving a demonstration at the business fair. Photo by Mark the Photographer, ref M010114. Order image reprints online at www.tcpbymtp.co.uk.

Mignon's vindalho becomes an English favourite

TRADITIONAL steak and kidney pudding has been beaten as a favourite English dish, by a pork vindalho from West Somerset.
The choice of an Indian recipe from Mignon Johnson was unanimous by all five judges of a cook-off broadcast on UKTV Food prime time television.
The pork vindalho was cooked by celebrity chef Antony Worrall-Thompson for the show, The People’s Cook Book, which is a nationwide hunt for favourite family recipes best reflecting British contemporary food culture.
Mignon, who runs The Saffron Kitchen from her home in Lydeard St Lawrence, was up against a steak and kidney pudding cooked by another TV chef, Paul Rankin.
Said Mignon: “Everybody thought the steak and kidney would be a natural winner, and even Antony Worrall-Thompson said we would never get the vote of the Women’s Institute judge.
"But the judges all loved it, even the WI lady, and they commented on the delicious range of flavours and how they were surprised that it was not too hot.
“It was great to meet Antony Worrall-Thompson, he is a really nice person with a great sense of humour and is so knowledgeable about food, but I think we surprised even him.”
Mignon’s pork vindalho recipe can be downloaded from the UKTV Food website and it is also planned to be included in a book of the series, which celebrates home cooking.
Publicity surrounding the show has already produced an upsurge in orders for The Saffron Kitchen’s range of traditional home-cooked Indian food, which is available to suit any budget for weddings, dinners, banquets, parties, and corporate entertainment.
Mignon, who is an Indian national, said: “We have added pork vindalho to our regular dishes to meet demand at the farmers’ markets we attend in Minehead, Cotford St Luke, Wellington, Taunton, Crewkerne, Glastonbury, and Exeter, and we have also put it on our standard dinner menu.
“We are also finding more and more retailers want to stock our products.”
The pork vindalho recipe was handed down by Mignon’s mother, who cooked it at home in India whenever a celebration was held.
Mignon said: “I chose pork vindalho for the television programme because I know people think Indian food is blisteringly hot and I wanted to show that it can be can be quite mild enough to be eaten by all the family and what really matters is how you blend the flavours.
“Every dish we prepare at The Saffron Kitchen is real authentic Indian food with each of our sauces individually prepared with a combination of spices blended to recipes handed down through generations of my family so that they taste just as they would in India.
“We cater for all tastes, from the very mild right through to blisteringly hot if that is what people want, and we use as much locally-sourced produce as we can.”
The Saffron Kitchen now supplies select retail shops and delicatessens with its range of authentic home-cooked ready meals, including the SPAR shop, in Wiveliscombe, Bicknoller Village Stores, and the village shop in Stawley.
More information about The Saffron Kitchen and the pork vindalho recipe is available from Mignon and husband Andrew Johnson by telephoning 01984 656931 or emailing to enquiries@thesaffronkitchen.co.uk or by visiting the website www.thesaffronkitchen.co.uk.
They are also attending the Exeter Festival of South West England Food and Drink on March 30 and 31 and April 1.
The Saffron Kitchen is supported by the Exmoor and Quantocks Food Links and also by the European Regional Development Fund.

• Our photograph shows Mignon Johnson with some of the range of food products she uses for The Saffron Kitchen. Photo by Anita Corbin.

Christine gives £5,000 of community support in Dunster ward

DUNSTER ward Somerset county Councillor Christine Lawrence has presented the final £200 of her personal community budget to support the work of Home Start in West Somerset’s rural communities.
The cheque, the final instalment of Councillor Lawrence’s £5,000 allocation, was received by Alison Sanderson.
It completed a wide range of community projects which have been supported by Councillor Lawrence, who is also leader of West Somerset Council.
Councillor Lawrence said: “Many of the deep, rural areas chose to have new village name plates erected, including Nettlecombe, Pittsford Hill, and Rooks Nest, near Brompton Ralph.”
Monksilver parish chose to support the local EMN Hall and received £400 towards new seating, and Washford requested help with a notice board for the new multi-purpose games area.
Youth projects which received grants included Minehead Boxing Club, the junior section of Minehead Barbarians RFC, West Somerset Scouts, and the Minehead division’s Guides.
In Dunster, support was given to the ‘Days Gone By’ festival, Dunster Marsh junior playing field, and Dunster School, which received waterproof leggings for outside play and gardening.
Washford Play Group financed a new laptop computer, and Carhampton villagers were delighted with a contribution towards a replacement bus shelter.

• Our photograph shows Alison Sanderson receiving the Home Styart cheque from Councillor Christine Lawrence. Photo by Mark the Photographer, ref DFF0700001. Order image reprints online at www.tcpbymtp.co.uk.

Do your bit for Red Nose Day on March 16

Lottery grant for Vikings to develop basketball for youngsters

NEWLY-formed Minehead Vikings Basketball Club has received a financial windfall from the National Lottery to help it develop the sport in West Somerset.
The club, which is also flying high in the Somerset Basketball League, has won a grant of almost £7,000 from the lottery’s Awards for All fund.
Club founder Alistair Johnson told The Crier the plan was to develop basketball for young people to enjoy, providing them with the self-confidence and skills to follow their interest.
Competitions would also run and training would be provided for members of the club to improve their skills in running the new group.
Mr Johnson said the Vikings was only formed five months ago as part of a Somerset-wide pilot to create satellite basketball clubs based around the established Taunton Tigers team.
He said: “We put in a lottery bid to try to get some funding to help because we do not have that many members, and it is very expensive to hire the hall.
“Basketball is a sport which keeps people active and is good exercise because it is a pretty fast game, not stop-start like some of the others.
“It is also quite easy to play because you really only need to be able to catch a ball and pass it.”
Some of the £6,986 lottery grant will go towards the purchase of playing strip and other equipment, while an electronic scoreboard is also on the list, and the club will also cover the cost of coaching courses for those who want to gain a qualification.
Mr Johnson said: “The more people we can get trained as coaches, the more it helps the younger members.”
Minehead Vikings presently have about 20 members aged from 14 to 51 years and the club trains on Tuesday evenings between 7 pm and 8 pm in the West Somerset Sports Hall, Minehead.
The club has an adult team and an under-16 team in the Somerset League and both have qualified for the play-offs by being in the top four positions.
There are also plans to set up under-14 and under-12 teams.
Anybody interested in joining the club should contact Alistair Johnson by telephoning 01823 365709.
Awards for All is a small grants scheme administered by the Big Lottery Fund on behalf of lottery good cause funders Arts Council England, Big Lottery Fund, Heritage Lottery Fund, and Sport England.
The scheme makes awards of between £300 and £10,000 to grass roots community groups and voluntary organisations.

New air ambulance quickly in action in West Somerset

THE new Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance helicopter went into service on Thursday, March 1, and almost immediately flew on a mission in West Somerset.
The air ambulance was called to Minehead when an elderly woman was taken ill during the afternoon.
It was only the crew’s third mission in the new Eurocopter EC 135 aircraft, which offers a quicker, quieter, and smoother flight than the Bolkow 105dbs it has replaced.
The distinctive yellow colour helicopter landed on the Minehead Town Football Club pitch off Irnham Road ready to airlift the patient.
Unfortunately, the woman was understood to have died before she could be flown to hospital.
The Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance service has been operating since 2000 and has helped to save hundreds of lives, receiving on average three to four calls a day.
It has taken the air ambulance trust two years of fund-raising to upgrade to the new generation of aircraft.
The helicopter costs more than £3,500 a day to run and is funded entirely by charitable donations.
The new aircraft was officially launched by the Princess Royal at The Fleet Air Arm Museum, RNAS Yeovilton.
It has moved from its previous base in Henstridge, between Sherborne and Shaftesbury, to a new home at AgustaWestland’s Yeovil airfield, which provides improved facilities for the aircraft and crew and should help it to more quickly reach the scene of an emergency.

• Photo by Mark the Photographer, ref M010015. Order image reprints online at www.tcpbymtp.co.uk.

Success for West Somerset Business Fair 2007

THE fourth annual West Somerset Business Fair was successfully held in the Queens Hall, Minehead, with more than 50 exhibitors and hundreds of visitors during the day.
The show was organised by the West Somerset Business Network (WSBN) and was opened with a performance by the West Somerset Community College Band.
The event used all three floors of the building, with a business ‘village’ in the basement area, a main exhibition arena on the ground floor, and a series of seminars presented upstairs.
It was designed to maximise opportunities for business people to network with each other and to allow exhibitors to showcase themselves and their products and services.
The star prize in the two draws which were held at the show was a free Toshiba laptop computer given by Westlabb Ltd, a not-for-profit company which has been administering a pilot project on behalf of West Somerset Council to provide broadband internet connections for rural communities.
It was won by Magna West Somerset Housing Association chief executive Graham Colls, who said: “I am flabbergasted, but I am sure we will put it to really good use.”
Westlabb director Bob Druitt said: “I am delighted the prize is going to benefit a local business.
“The West Somerset Business Network has provided an excellent forum for the business community to get together at the fair and it is great to see so many people here.”
WSBN chairman Sandra Wilson said: “We would like to congratulate Graham and thank our partners Westlabb and Connecting Somerset for sponsoring the prize.
“Entrants filled out homeworking surveys to enter the draw and the results will be analysed to find out what future needs the local business community might have, and to see if there is a demand for a high-speed broadband connection in West Somerset.”
The laptop computer was presented by the Mayor of Minehead, Councillor Ann Foxhuntley, who is also the district council’s deputy leader.
Councillor Foxhuntley said: “Westlabb has provided a great service to local communities by training over 300 people in IT skills with the help of the Exmoor Community Computer Centre.
“The fair is one of the most important dates in the commercial calendar because it provides a great opportunity for businesses to get together and network, while also attracting new customers, which is great for the local economy.”
The programme of seminars was started with Bill Wilson, of Ylem Ltd, talking about ‘Intelligent IT’, followed by Penny Ward, of Blackspot Broadband/Project Computer Ltd, speaking on ‘Internet and Wi-Fi Security’, and then Kevin Redpath, of Connecting Somerset, on behalf of WestLabb Ltd, spoke on the subject ‘Winning on the Web’.
Minehead’s JobCentre Plus manager Gillian Knight talked of ‘A New Direction’, while ‘The Smoking Ban’ was the subject for West Somerset Council environmental health manager Ian Timms, and Brenda Clare, from Wyndham House, Minehead, explained why ‘Life Begins at 80’.
Kevin Chambers, of the Shaw Trust, gave a run-down on the ‘Shaw Trust Employment Services’, and the programme concluded with Aron Cody-Boutcher, of Somerset Consulting, on ‘A Layman’s Guide to Understanding Website Promotion’.
The West Somerset Business Fair 2007 was sponsored by Connecting Somerset, NatWest Bank, Minehead Jobcentre, Ylem Ltd, DJ Miles and Co Ltd, Minehead Marquees, and Finishing Touches.

• Our photographs show: TOP - Seven-months-old Freddie Hirst with mum Julie Hirst enjoying the West Somerset Community College band’s opening performance. MIDDLE – The laptop computer prize being presented to Graham Colls (third from left) by the Mayor of Minehead, Councillor Ann Foxhuntley, watched by (left to right) business network chairman Sandra Wilson, and Westlabb directors Bob Druit and Iain Joyce. Bottom – The business fair scene inside the Queens Hall. Photos submitted.

Tell council if you want a home or place to work on Exmoor

WEST Somerset Council is appealing for people in central Exmoor, which includes Simonsbath and Exford, to let it know if they need affordable homes or business premises.
People are being invited to attend an informal drop-in information afternoon at the Exmoor Forest Hotel, Simonsbath, from 3pm to 7pm on March 13, where they can discuss the options with council officers and Rural Housing Project representatives.
The council’s ideas for the homes and workspace will also be on show, and it will be followed by a presentation by officers and a question-and-answer session from 7 pm to 9 pm.
It wants to hear from people living in and around Simonsbath, or those who have a long-standing connection with the area, who are in need of affordable housing or business premises.
The council’s housing, health and welfare portfolio holder, Councillor Mary Crowley (pictured), said: “House prices on Exmoor are over 14 times the annual average earnings in the district and we would like to help.
“We have some land in the parish which could be used to build affordable homes or ‘live/work’ premises which combine housing with small workshops for people who run businesses from home.”
Councillor Crowley said the council would also consider building small workshop units for new or existing businesses within the parish if there proved to be a demand.
She said: “So far, not many people have come forward and we are appealing for them to do so now.
“The council is currently building affordable homes and workspace in the district’s larger towns and villages, but we are equally prepared to explore these options in our smaller villages and hamlets if local people have a need for them.”
People wishing to register their interest or apply for more information on affordable housing and workspace opportunities on Exmoor should contact rural housing enabler Colin Savage on 01398 322249 or email cbsavage@exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk.
To register an interest in business premises, they should contact Nigel Furze on 01984 635276 or email nfurze@westsomerset.gov.uk.