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Plans to launch Sherborne Business Awards

By
Editorial team
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0

Marketing West, the Dorset events, promotions and marketing company, has announced the launch of the Sherborne Business Awards.

The awards are the brainchild of Marketing West director Nigel Reeve, who runs a series of Sherborne area networking breakfasts and online events.

The businessman, who has enjoyed a high-flying career in marketing and the media, has had many years of experience of organising business conferences and awards.

Nigel Reeve

He said: “I first had the idea about a year ago, but it had to be put on hold. However, it didn’t go away.

“Sherborne is fiercely proud of its range of independent businesses and rightly so.

“Two business contacts in the area suggested I look again.

“The idea is to use the awards to promote the range of local businesses.

“The award ceremony will be a celebration of local business, not an excuse for a party.

“We have consulted with a number of businesses to ensure the categories cover the full range of local services.

“The awards will be free to enter and simple to enter.

“The entry form will be available online and will take no more than ten minutes to complete.

“We are planning a launch event in October and the awards lunchtime ceremony at the end of February.

“Both events will be held at Leweston School on the edge of Sherborne, while the awards event will also have live streaming.

“Entry forms will be available from early November.

“I believe we now need to be positive to get business moving again and hope that these awards will contribute in a small way.”

Declan Curry

Marketing West is also planning a breakfast seminar (plus live streaming) on Thursday, November 5.

Called ‘Relight the Flame – get business moving again’, it will be held at Minterne House between Dorchester and Sherborne.

The speakers will be business journalist Declan Curry, entrepreneur Sir Rob McCabe, and Brendan Rendall, talking about the art of positive thinking. All three will be at the venue face to face.

By: Andrew Diprose Dorset Biz News

More than 1,100 businesses register interest as applications open for £550k of recovery grants

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Editorial team
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0

Could your business be eligible for a non-repayable grant of up to £5,000?

Dorset Growth Hub has opened up applications for the Dorset SME Recovery Grant.

More than 1,100 businesses have already registered their interest in the grant.

Three new members of staff – two consultants and a full-time administrator – have been recruited to deal with the expected influx of applications and enquiries.

Just under £550,000 is available to distribute to eligible, Dorset-based SME businesses trading in the tourism sector as well as the wider economy.

The grant follows the government announcement that a share of £30m is to be distributed to each Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP).

The sum includes a £10m Kick-starting Tourism Package for small businesses in the tourism sector and a further £20m funding to help smaller businesses recover from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

Eligible businesses can now apply for £1,000 to £3,000 – or £5,000 in exceptional circumstances – via the Dorset Growth Hub website (http://bit.ly/SMErecoverygrant).

The non-repayable grants are funded by the European Regional Development Fund.

Grants will be spent on projects to aid job safeguarding and business survival, such as improving websites, implementing new technology, improving use of outdoor space, with awnings and heating, and also consulting and accessing expert advice on management, legal and HR.

The guidelines on the Dorset Growth Hub web page also point out what the grant can’t be spent on such as PPE and ‘business as usual’ items.

Nick Gregory

Nick Gregory, Operations Director, Dorset Growth Hub, said: “With over 1,100 businesses registering their interest in these grants, we are expecting a huge number of applications to flood in over the next few weeks.

“We have employed three new members of staff – two part-time consultants and a full time administrator – to deal with the influx of applications and enquiries.

“They will be doing their best to reply to businesses as soon as they can, process applications efficiently and give a decision on whether they have been successful.

“We are hoping to do this in a two week turnaround, but this is dependent on the number of applications we receive in the first instance.

“Please bear with us, we really want to get this money to the businesses in need.”

Businesses considering applying should read the full guidance to determine eligibility along with the project in mind.

The business must have been impacted by Covid-19 and applicants will be asked to outline how the grant will help the business recover.

Questions on the grant should be directed to enquiries@dorsetgrowthhub.co.uk

By: Andrew Diprose Dorset Biz News

The Cygnet Art Gallery, Shaftesbury, Dorset

By
Editorial team
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0

“As long as I can paint, I am on the Path to understanding what ‘it’ is all about.” (P Wolff)

A graceful Swan gliding slowly over a river is the archetypal image of elegance in motion; however, hidden beneath the water’s surface is powerful activity, making this an ideal metaphor for not only Swans Yard, where units are offered to encourage first-time local businesses, but also unique artisan shops like The Cygnet Gallery. No wonder this area is known as the creative heart of Shaftesbury.

Cygnet Art Gallery Shaftesbury

Swans Trust, a Community Development Charity, was set up 25 years ago to develop and promote Community facilities in Shaftesbury; and it rates Swans Yard as one of their main achievements. Situated in an historic area of the beautiful hill-top town, the Yard is named after a notable Coaching Inn that once stood on the site. It was a place full of activity where travellers stopped on their journeys for refreshment and rest, and where locals met to exchange news and views. This hubbub of chatter and laughter is still more or less the same today – for this pleasant open space includes not only shops but a bustling cafe, “The Ugly Duckling” with sheltered outdoor seating, a Garden Centre, a Dressmaker’s Studio, ‘Coconut and Cotton’ for all things ‘eco-friendly,’ and a Printer’s Shop soon to be opened. And, nestled in the heart of Swans’ Yard is the tranquil, hidden gem: The Cygnet Art Gallery (https://thecygnet.org.uk/index.html).

Eleven years ago, the Gallery began with only 12 artists; it was the combined vision of Dave Martin, an Award winning photographer, the artist Des Alner and ceramicist, Richard Lonnon. Still run as a Co-operative, it has since grown to the vibrant place it is now with almost thirty artists. By giving them vital gallery space, it continues to encourage local artists and crafts people (whose work has previously remained hidden from public view) the opportunity to share their expertise and excellence. The Higher Green Farm Unit within the Gallery is especially keen on promoting young and inexperienced artists. Many acclaimed artists who have now moved on to greater things in the Art World first ‘spread their wings’ at the Cygnet, whilst some have stayed and others have indeed returned.

Art Galleries can be intimidating places to enter but here there is a friendly welcome to be had and someone on hand to answer queries. Each artist rents a unit, changing their displays regularly so there is always something new and inspirational; and each does a shift. There is an eclectic and imaginative display of work to be seen, from fine art to silver- smithing, from glass work to textiles, from photography to ceramics, from calligraphy to sculpture, from leather work to wood-turning. Prices are very reasonable: rents for Units are subsidised by The Trust, and so artists (and therefore customers) do not have to pay the usual Gallery commission.

On entering this Art Gallery, I was immediately drawn to the ‘silver clay’ jewellery, for much of the work exhibited is inspired by the natural world of the Blackmore Vale, the Jurassic coast and Dorset landscape. Indeed, it would have been easy to start my Christmas Shopping – but I would have had to keep my favourite pieces! I contented myself by browsing through the racks of unframed artwork, shelves of various giftware items and purchasing unique, individually-designed greetings cards. The artists were eager to get back after ‘lockdown’ (all Government Health Guidelines are in place); and many are exhibiting exciting new artwork created during this time.

Swans Yard is very easy to find: it’s just off the High Street in Shaftesbury, opposite Boots the Chemist. So if you are seeking something that will give lasting pleasure, or looking for a gift – or if you merely want to browse amid such vibrant talent, a visit to The Cygnet Gallery is a must.

As one of the artists recently said: “Artists often live a lonely life. The Cygnet has introduced me to so many wonderful people l would never have known. This on its own is priceless.”

At the moment there are three units available to rent: if you’re interested, please contact Cali Norton (cali@thedorsetretreat.co.uk)

Have You Seen This Bee?

By
Editorial team
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0

With temperatures reaching up to 30 degrees in some parts of Dorset this week, it’s hard to believe Summer is nearly over and Autumn is on its way. But leaves are already turning, swallows are heading south, and, thought their very existence is unknown to most of us – Ivy Bees are on the wing. Ivy bees (Colletes hederae) are relative newcomers to the British Isles. First seen in Dorset in 2001, this solitary bee species has rapidly made itself at home, with sightings, last year, as far north as Cumbria. Ivy bees are solitary ground nesting bees, each female digging her own nest and providing for her own young. Unlike honeybees and bumblebees there are no ‘queens’ amongst solitary bee species – only males and females.


So what do Ivy bees look like, and where are you likely to find them? Well, the first place to look is, as their name suggests, on flowering Ivy. This plant is a rich source of pollen and nectar for many of our insects, and essential to the success of the Ivy bee, which looks similar to a honeybee (though slightly smaller) with a hairy, orangey-brown thorax, and distinct black and yellow stripes on its abdomen.
The other place you are likely to notice these bees, is where they have established large aggregations (clusters of hundreds, sometimes thousands of individual nests) in lawns, cliffs, and south-facing banks made up of loose, sandy soil. They are especially active during September when the males give the appearance of a ‘swarm’ as they buzz around nesting sites searching for females.

The good news is that the males do not possess a sting, and to be stung by a female you’d have to pick her up and squeeze her, which clearly you would not do!

by Brigit Strawbridge
http://beestrawbridge.blogspot.com
Twitter: @B_Strawbridge

Part Time Archivist required nr. Shaftesbury

By
Editorial team
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0

Please email your CV to gardener1948@yahoo.com

Posted Sept 2020

Nursery Worker required in Child Okeford

By
Editorial team
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0

Baby Room Practitioner to work in our thriving nursery 24hrs a week year round. Please contact The Ark Child Okeford for an application form on 01258 861007 or email thearkchildokeford@hotmail.co.uk

Posted September 2020

MARPOLE, Trevor

By
Editorial team
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0

Trevor Marpole

Landlord of the Gaggle of Geese, Buckland Newton 1987 -2005

Passed away peacefully on 18th august 2020 aged 78 years

The Blackmore Vale’s new Digital Magazine.

By
Laura
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10

Is the Blackmore Vale Magazine still being published? No, it’s not. But all is not lost for those of us who live in the Blackmore Vale – because the demise of the old Blackmore Vale Magazine was a huge loss.

Sadly it wasn’t alone – print publications are dying across the UK as costs spiral and physical readers move online for their news. But local people still need that hyperlocal community resource.
We are a husband and wife team who have lived in the heart of the Blackmore Vale for almost thirty years. We’re raising our children here. It’s home. And we happen to have the right skills…

So instead of saying
“why doesn’t someone…”
we’ve bitten the bullet and said
“WE should do this”.
(it seemed like such a brilliant idea at 2 in the morning…)

The BV magazine - the monthly digital Blackmore Vale magazine for north dorset and surrounds

So here we are in August 2020 – trying to pick up where the previously marvellous Blackmore Vale Magazine left off five months ago. We want to ensure the Blackmore Vale still has a gem of a local news source to serve our communities, just as we have since a similar husband and wife team (Alan & Ingrid Chalcraft) bought their local Parish magazine in 1978 and created the first incarnation of a magazine for the Blackmore Vale.

This is NOT the same ‘Blackmore Vale Magazine’ though. We’re a brand new venture (* eta: and in 2021 we newly branded as ‘The BV’ magazine to ensure there’s no confusion with the old magazine), so we’re starting by keeping things simple, with plenty of room to grow as the publication finds new legs. The biggest difference being that we’re moving to a purely digital publication – still in the same familiar local format, but available to read on your phone, your tablet or your computer. That way we not only keep running costs down, but can allow an interaction readers now expect – we are all used to reading and researching online, and to simply clicking on something when we wish to learn more.

For example, a local pub might advertise a fabulous curry night – what if you could just tap the ad to call them to book, or visit their website to see their menu and current opening hours?
Yes – we’re excited at the idea too.

We want to provide a voice for local people, packed alongside the ‘bible of local news and resources’ we’ve been missing.
There’ll still be ‘Letters to the Editor’, news and events, plus regular editorial columns by different entertaining expert voices from within the community. There’s a free What’s On calendar for all Dorset community events which everyone is free to use. We offer standard discounts for charities, free death announcements (one of the many benefits of being a family-owned publication; at a deep-rooted personal level it feels wrong to profit from a time of grief), and provide unstinting support for local small businesses.

a new digital version of the Blackmore Vale Magazine is published for North Dorset, home of Hambledon Hill

Yes, we live in a bucolic idyll – but as a region we’re connected, progressive and agile. We may have an above-average representation of farmers and country pubs – but we also have an abundance of tech start ups, small business entrepreneurs, and global enterprises with multi-million turnovers.
Our aim is for our new ‘local magazine’ to continue to reflect them in a new digital format.
Laura & Courtenay

Subscribe here to have every issue of The BV magazine drop into your inbox on publication day.

TROWBRIDGE, Stanley

By
Editorial team
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0

Stanley Trowbridge

Died peacefully on 16th July 2020 aged 88

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