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The Latest News & Snippets About The Village

(Contributions welcome - click on Contact Us)

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Village Newsletter
Here's the latest edition.
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Road Works and Closures
There is now a dedicated page for all road works and closures which
affect the parish, in order to make it easier for you to find them.

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Kilvert's Trail - A Walk Around Kington St Michael,
Kington Langley, Langley Burrell & Allington

The Rev Francis Kilvert 1840 – 1879 wrote diaries portraying everyday Victorian life. These were kept in many notebooks during his relatively short life, sadly, most of which were destroyed.  Thankfully 22 notebooks remain and these have been published in three volumes. His work has been acknowledged to be as important as that of Samuel Pepys.
Kilvert was a keen walker. Indeed he walked to Bath and back in one day.  He took delight in the countryside around him, never failing to note the beauty surrounding him.
To that end, some residents of Langley Burrell have compiled several local walks, taking in familiar landmarks that Kilvert would have known (Kilvert's Trail), and one of these comes through Kington St Michael - the Allington Walk (obviously you could join this walk at any point along it in Kington St Michael and complete the loop back to your starting point).

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Can You Help?

The Parochial Church Council is the group that keep our lovely church running. They need a new treasurer as Gerry Elms has stood down after many years of service. This is a crucial role in these challenging times, managing and maximising the church finances and preparing the accounts. You will need to be confident with figures and spread sheets and to be able to attend bi-monthly evening PCC meetings. Gerry will do a full handover. For a chat about what is involved, please give him a ring on (01249) 750423.

The PCC is also looking for someone to administor Gift Aid - please contact Alison Greenhalgh on (01249) 750742.


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Neighbourhood Watch

Neighbourhood Watch can help build safer, stronger and more active communities and connect people with their neighbours.  The Parish Council is hoping to get a local scheme up and running in Kington St Michael and would love to hear from you.
If you are interested in joining, or just want more information, then please contact
Cllr Vicky Ingham av.ingham@kingtonstmichaelparishcouncil.gov.uk

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Jubilee Flower Bed

The Jubilee flower bed (by the telephone box) will be planted up with summer bedding at the end of May, and grateful thanks go to Liz Allen for donating the money raised from the sale of Coronation mugs to this project.

The Jubilee flower bed is an on-going project maintained by Kim Perriman and Jessica Puddy, who voluntarily continue to weed and plant in order to keep it looking beautiful for the village.


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School Summer Fête
School Fete poster
Saturday 8th July, 11.30am - 2pm with a bar, BBQ, raffle,
stalls, cakes, games, tombola, refreshments, and tug-of-war.

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3 Peaks Challenge
3 peaks challenge poster
Look what these villagers (and one honorary villager) are up to!
Please support them if you are able to.

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Pick Up After Your Pooch!

Wherever you are in the village - street, public footpath, QE2 Field, Nymph Hay Wood or the surrounding fields - it still applies!  Do it for your dog!

If anyone sees an owner letting their dog foul in a public place please report it to Wiltshire Council, either by 'phoning 01249 706111 and asking for the Dog Warden, or email publicprotectionnorth@wiltshire.gov.uk or via an on-line form. Photographic evidence is always a help.  Your personal details will be treated in strict confidence and you will be informed of the outcome of the complaint. Please note that complaints regarding aggressive dogs should be made to the police.

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Get Snapping!
The church needs your photos of KSM and village life.  The church is holding a photography competition, to be judged in November, with the best of your digital pictures being made into a village calendar, celebrating KSM through the
seasons, to be sold in aid of church funds. Details to follow.

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Shop News
KSM Shop logo

Allyson, the new village shop manager, reported “It's been great to see so many new customers in the shop recently”.

The shop continues to stock an ever-changing range of new products and Allyson is working hard to keep prices competitive. Where she can, she matches and sometimes achieves lower prices than those at local supermarkets. 

Did you know Allington Farm produce is sold in the shop at the dame price as you will find at Allington?  As well as pies and pasties from Toby Haynes in Corsham there is also quality meat from Walter Rose in Devizes.

If you haven't visited the shop lately, the lovely volunteers would love to see you and you’ll be surprised at all the new stock on display, from delicious cakes and snacks to Easter produce.

All on your doorstep, with easy parking!

In response to demand, the manager is now trialling extended opening hours:

Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday: 9am – 5pm
Tuesday: 9am - 8pm
Saturday: 9am – 5pm
Sunday: closed

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Book Recycling Scheme
The 75th donation of £50 from this scheme goes to St Michael & All Angels Church, to help with heating costs.  The scheme is run from the shop foyer and books are only 50p each.  Village organisations that would like to be considered for a donation should contact Linda Durno via kingtonstmichael@btinternet.com.

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The Village Singers Summer Concert
Saturday 10th June, 7.30pm in St Michael & All Angels Church
Village Singers Summer Concert 2023 Poster
The programme will include:
  •     A selection of Bruckner Motets
  •     Magnificat (attrib. Durante) - Pergolesi
  •     Beatus Vir - Monteverdi’s Vespers
  •     Les Miserables, a Musical Medley

Tickets: £10 – under 16s go free
Tel. 01249-720190 / info@villagesingers.co.uk
www.villagesingers.co.uk

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A Bit of Village History

Baptism Certificate of Maurice Arthur Sage KSM Church Confirmation Certificate of Maurice Arthur Sage KSM Church

Many thanks to Tim Sage for sharing these photographs of the baptism
and confirmation certificates of his ancester, Maurice Arthur Sage.
The baptism took place in St Michael & All Angels Church in 1913 and the
confirmation at St John the Baptist Church in Charlton near Malmesbury, in 1931.


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Village Newsletter Deadlines for 2023

Here are the village newsletter 'cut off' dates for the rest of the year:
August/September  edition - cut off date Friday 14th July, 12 noon.
October/November edition - cut off date Monday 25th September, 12 noon.
December/January - cut off date Friday 24th November, 12 noon.
Send your information as a Word document only, please - posters, photos, pictures, tables, or any other format can't be accepted.  The newsletter is for village news and events, so no ads please.  Send your copy to Avril - kingtonnews@gmail.com.

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Advent Window Thank You
“A big thank you to everyone who took part in the KSM Advent Windows for Christmas 2022. There were so many imaginative and creative windows to spot round the village, and it was lovely to see the community spirit of houses making something for others to enjoy on a local wintry walk. I tried to photograph as many as I could and I put these photos on the KSM Facebook page, so do have a look. I know that many villagers really do love this event, so if anyone would like to co-ordinate the Advent Windows for December 2023, please get in touch with me. I would be happy to share my experience of organising them - it’s pretty straightforward. Many thanks, Yvonne Cole” (yvonne@coleplanet.com)

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Poppy Appeal 2022
Joan Gilbert would like to thank everyone who supported this year's village Poppy Appeal, raising £138.34, which supports the Armed Forces community past and present.

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Flexercise
Mondays, 11am in the village hall:
Flexercise poster

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Neighbourhood Watch
Neighbourhood Watch logo
Neighbourhood Watch can help build safer, stronger and more active communities and connect people with their neighbours.  The Parish Council is hoping to get a local scheme back up and running in Kington St Michael and would love to hear from you.
If you are interested in joining, or just want to find out more information, then please contact Cllr Vicky Ingham at v.ingham@kingtonstmichaelparishcouncil.gov.uk.

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Warm Spaces and Food Providers
Wiltshire Council has created an online interactive community directory to help you find out what warm spaces and community food providers there are in the county to support you through the cost-of-living challenges.

The directory has been created using information collected by the council, in order to establish what support is available in Wiltshire.

To find out the support that's available on your doorstep, and across the county, please visit the directory and select your postcode area - this will then automatically generate a list of what's available, as well as a host of other useful features:


For anyone wishing to make donations to the community food providers, there are contact and website details included for each with more information to find out how best to do this.

The council has worked hard to ensure that the directory contains a comprehensive list of the support available, but will continue to keep it updated regularly.

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Kington St Michael Parish Council now has a new website www.kingtonstmichaelparishcouncil.gov.uk.
KSMPC website home page photo
The website has been designed as a “one stop shop” for parishioners and the wider community, and is intended to provide up to date and historical information on all Parish Council related matters, including meetings and decisions.
This website has been created to comply with the latest regulations and will run alongside and complement this community website.

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KSM Netball Club
KSM Netball Club logo
"Our friendly village netball club continues to thrive.  We are delighted to have received further sponsorship recently, from The Jolly Huntsman, which will contribute to equipment and coaching fees.  A huge thankyou to the pub for its continued support.

The club has teams playing in Chippenham Rock Up Social League on Wednesdays, as well as matches in the Calne Social Netball League on Monday nights.

We train in the Chippenham Dome (near Chippenham Sports Club) on Thursday evenings, 8pm-9pm.  We welcome new members with one free session, and have a range of experience and abilities.  There is no pressure to play in matches - come along for fun and friendly fitness!

If you are interested in giving it a go please contact Alice Rymill - alicerymill@btinternet.com."

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Wiltshire Library Newsletter
Please click here to view the latest newsletter from
Wiltshire Libraries, reminding you of what's on offer.

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Church Coffee Corner
Every Monday from 11.30am - 1.30pm - meet others and enjoy refreshments:
all welcome.
Church Monday cafe poster
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Get in the Know!
Would you like to receive news and updates on local matters from the Parish Council and Wiltshire Council, etc, via email?  The Parish Council has set up an email database - if you would like to be included, please email the Clerk, Viv Vines - ksmparishclerk@gmail.com.

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Worried About Scams?
Wiltshire Police has suggested reading "The Little Book of Big Scams", which  is an excellent fraud prevention resource created to help raise awareness of the dangers of fraud ,and offer preventative measures to help keep everyone safe from the insidious creep being seen in financial crimes in recent years.

An audio version of the Little Book of Big Scams can be found at this link: https://soundcloud.com/metropolitan-police/the-little-book-of-big-scams

A business edition of the Little Book of Big Scams can be found at this link: https://nbcc.police.uk/images/guidance/the-little-book-of-big-scams-business-edition.pdf

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Accessibility Along Pavements
A repeat of a previous request, to help our disabled and visally impaired residents (and those with children in buggies):
~ Please do not block lowered pavements with parked cars.
~ Please don't block the pavement with wheelie bins or black boxes.
~ If your property is next to the pavement or footpath, please trim back any overhanging branches, shrubs, etc.  Of a dark evening, and with the new lower lighting, it's no fun walking into prickly or wet overgrowth!   Please trim back lower shrubs too, as these affect children.  Thank you.


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Village Help Facebook Page

Picture of painted hands in the air
If you are on Facebook, please search for the KSM Community Help page, where you will find lots of useful information and support (look for the colourful hands, as above).

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Phishing Scams
You can now report phishing emails by forwarding them to report@phishing.gov.uk and the National Cyber Security Centre (part of GCHQ) analyses them and remove the culprit sites.

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Pet Owners
The RSPCA is urging pet owners to make an emergency pet care plan, in case they have to be hospitalised - visit RSPCA for further details.

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Making A Planning Application

If you are considering or are about to make an on-line planning application via
Wiltshire Council's website, you will be redirected to the Planning Portal.
Unfortunately, if you choose to use autofill for your address, and if you happen to live along the main street (i.e. no.** KSM) then you will find that it submits your address as being in Honeyknob Hill or C154 Road.
This causes confusion to those wishing to or needing to look at planning applications, and, in fact, there are only 8 properties which have the Honeyknob Hill address (unsurprisingly 1 - 8 Honeyknob Hill).
The Parish Counil is asking affected residents who make a planning application to please check that "Honeyknob Hill" or C154 road" isn't included in the address (unless you are one of the eight!) and to enter the address manually.
If you spot this issue elsewhere, please let the Clerk to the Council know: ksmparishclerk@gmail.com.

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Village Hall Car Park
The Village Hall Management Committee would like to remind villagers that the village hall car park is only for village hall users and shop customers. Recently, a number of paying village hall users have not been able to park. Thank you!

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Pavements are for People!
Parents and carers with pushchairs are having difficulty walking down the village, due to cars parking on the pavement.  Some of our residents are also wheelchair users or have reduced vision, and are finding a trip to the shop becoming an obstacle course, especially when wheelie bins and black boxes are out as well.  Trying to cross between parked cars, which are blocking the pavement, is dangerous, and especially difficult if the kerb isn't dropped and, actually, the pavements are there for people not vehicles.
Please park responsibly and ask your visitors to do the same (and please give some thought as to where you place your wheelie bins!).

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Defibrillators
Just a reminder of where our defibrillators are kept in the village: map of defibrillators
and the instructions of what to do when someone collapses.
Please visit the Community Defibrillator page for further information

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Advertise Here!
Do you have a small business? Are you local?! Why not advertise on this website for only £24 per year? (That's just £2 per month!) Take a look at other advertisers by clicking on "Local Businesses Adverts" above. If you are interested please contact us kingtonstmichael@btinternet.com.