Nasty scam reported in Essex!

 A nasty scam has been reported by Trading Standards in Essex, which, for many of us in South Suffolk is just down the road!  Please see the message and advice from Suffolk Trading Standards below.

We have been advised by Essex Trading Standards that they have received three reports of roofers calling at homes, claiming to be from Trading Standards.

The callers are claiming that a roofer who recently carried out work is being investigated. The caller claims that they can carry out a survey of the resident’s roof and that they will be able to claim compensation as part of the investigation. They are then asking the resident for sums of around £2,000.

Trading Standards Officers are highly unlikely to visit a consumer’s home unless they have already been asked to by the consumer or a trusted friend or relative.

Trading Standards Officers will NEVER ask a resident for money.

There are certain precautions that can be taken to guard against doorstep callers:

·         Fit and use a door security chain when you open the door.

·         Check the identification of a caller by ringing their employer. Use the telephone number from your telephone book and not one they might supply.

·         Do not let anyone to carry out work on your house until you get a second opinion and never agree to callers who say “we are only in the area today”.

·         Never keep large sums of money in the house and keep purses out of sight, not near the door.

For further information or advice on consumer issues or rogue traders please use the following contacts:

Phone: 0345 4040 506

Email: trading.standards@suffolk.gov.uk

Website: https://www.suffolk.gov.uk/community-and-safety/trading-standards-for-consumers/

Lavenham Chapel of Rest to be restored

I read in the Parish Council Lavenham Spring Newsletter that the council intends to restore the chapel in Lavenham Cemetery.

The red brick building, which I suspect is of late Victorian vintage, was once used as a chapel of rest.   Having fallen into disuse many years ago, it was vandalised in 2008 and stained glass was destroyed.

The bell from the Chapel, pictured below, which is dated 1896, was removed from the chapel in 1979 for safety reasons and now hangs to the rear of the Guildhall, adjacent to the village lock up and mortuary.

These days it seems it is used by some residents for storage.

If you want to assist with the restoration the Parish Council writes

'As a first step over the weekend of 13/14th May, we are asking all users of the Chapel to help us clear out the space. Any items to be retained must be taken to a new location, and anything unwanted can be dumped in the skips that will be available. Anything unclaimed will be dumped in the skips.'

Just doing his job, the sad tale of the monk, John Lakenheath

An impression of the Abbey at Bury St Edmunds prior to the Reformation

Don’t be too efficient because it could end in tears.

This is the message that might be taken away from a recent article on the British Library's Mediaeval Manuscripts site.  This tells the sad story of one John Lakenheath, a monk at th abbey in Bury St Edmunds at the time of the Peasants Revolt that took place in the summer of 1381.

Of course in Sudbury we all know about the late Fourteenth Century disturbances due to the sticky end that was met by our very own Simon of Sudbury, who was unfortunate enough to be Archbishop of Canterbury at the time.

This story from nearby Bury St Edmunds is no less gruesome and the fate of the victim possibly even more undeserved.

Lakenheath had made the mistake of reconstructing the abbey's  manor records which had been damaged in a much earlier riot by the local townspeople in 1327.  He created a book containing the information called the Lakenheath Register, which has survived to this day in the British Library.  

John Lakenheath;s introduction to his Register

 John was very proud of his work which was completed just a couple of years before the later troubles.   The existence of the Register meant, of course, that the monks were better able to continue to collect dues and fines from their properties.   It seems that they had set about this work with a vigour that was not much appreciated by the locals.  As a result when the abbey was attacked during the Revolt,  Lakenheath was singled out, among others,  for revenge.  The full story, with quotes from Lakenheath himself, and a witness of his fate,  can be found HERE.

How to avoid scams, plus other good advice; a chance to meet Suffolk County Council Trading Standards

It is not generally known but Suffolk County Council Trading Standards Department is one of the most highly respected in the entire country.   It has won several awards in recent years, and in general its officers are so busy doing what they do that it is rare to have the opportunity to meet them.

A representative, Matthew Spall, will however be talking about his work and answering questions at the next Articulate breakfast meeting at the Auberge at Yaxley on Wednesday 22nd February.   Booking for this event closes on 15th February, so there is not much time to reserve your place!


Why attend?   Jenna Cox of Articulate writes:

'You are doubtless inundated with spurious offers of service or product that can appear awfully good … but are they?

We all know the old saying …"If it looks like a duck and it quacks like a duck, chances are …"

But scammers, rogue traders and fraudsters are becoming ever more sophisticated and they are costing businesses, as well as consumers, a lot of money. They can also impact the reputation of your business through no fault of your own.

Is there no one/no body that can protect us?

In Suffolk, Trading Standards is campaigning hard so that you have a better understanding of what is afoot in the area and how to deal with/recognise when something is not as it seems. They are also proactively addressing the problem and identifying those who threaten us and taking action to stop it.

We hope you can be there to participate and get a new understanding of Trading Standards and how they might be of service to you.

Bookings close on 15th February
For details and to book, please visit

http://www.articulatehlc.co.uk/events/trading-standards-breakfast

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To blog on or not to blog on?

On January 30^th this blog passed an important milestone.   Exactly 10 years ago on that day I wrote the first post, and have been writing ever since.  Over the 10 years there have been 1363 articles on a diverse range of subjects.  The main thrust has been local government oriented (rubbish collection around the world has loomed fairly large) but I have also tried to promote local organisations in which I have an interest, and from time to time, indulged myself by writing the odd theatre review , comment on a book I have enjoyed, or a comment about Russian matters.

When I started the blog I was gearing up to stand for Babergh District Council in the elections in May 2007, and, aware that social media was becoming an essential tool for even the most lowly politician, I decided to take the plunge.

The audience has not been enormous but I think I have reached many people in the communities that I have served both in Waldingfield Ward and also in Cosford Division.  Interest from overseas has also been quite significant which I do find interesting.  I wonder what they make of this slice of life from South Suffolk?

So what next?  As is now generally known I will not be standing again for the County Council in May this year.  I may elaborate on my reasons once the elections have passed, provided I am still writing the blog.  And this is the point.   Should I continue?  Although I will still be involved in local government through membership of Sudbury Town Council for at least a couple of years, are people really interested to read my maunderings?  Would it just be an act of vanity to blog on ?

I had decided that the answer to the last question was yes and had thought that shortly I would metaphorically hang up my pen.   However, on Saturday I went into Sudbury and met two people (in Waitrose of course) who told me how much they enjoy reading the blog and then, yesterday, spoke to a resident of Sudbury North who was keen to be included on the ‘alert list’.  Now I am in a quandary.   

I shall have to think on.

Residents show keen interest in our local environment

Healthy activity in green spaces round town

Yesterday morning I went along to the Craft Fair in St Peter's Church, Sudbury.  I was aware that a number of ecologically minded groups had combined to man a stall at the event and it was good to see so many like minded people co-operating with one another to promote the establishment, protection and creation of green spaces around the town.

It was remarkable how many residents visiting the fair took time actively to engage with the representatives of the different organisations present.  This is clear evidence to my mind that local people  are very concerned about this issue.  They are both keen to see our local environment and wildlife protected, and also support the view that green spaces,  beneficial to wildlife and to man,  should be planned into the development of Sudbury as it grows.  Commitment to a green circular route around the town would in this connection be a really positive start.

This is not a party political issue.  People of all political persuasions are well aware that we ignore the future of our local ecology at our peril and even the most 'economic growth at all costs' politician understands the savings to the public purse that can be achieved by healthy activity in green spaces.

In this connection I have recently received the latest edition of  the Sudbury Area Wildlife Newsletter.  If you wish to receive this interesting publication on a regular basis you should contact nicknewmiller56@gmail.com. 

A week left to see Northanger Abbey at the Theatre Royal, Bury St Edmunds.

Nick and I much enjoyed our visit to The Theatre Royal in Bury St Edmunds on Friday evening to see their production of Northanger Abbey.

I must confess to being a little queasy about book adaptations for the stage.  They do not always work so well, and you take the risk, particularly in the case of a favorite work, that your imagined recollection of the book may be spoilt.

I am happy to say that this was not the case with this adaptation by Tim Luscombe of Jane Austen's early work.  The book is at one level a wry observation of the impact on society of the early 19th Century passion for the gothic novel. At another level it is about the development of the character and understanding of a naive young woman newly entering society, who, in the end, happily gets the right man.

Both these features contributed to an adaptation for the stage that worked very well.  The gothic references allowed for the introduction into the mix of entertaining moments of imagined melodrama, and the love story had sufficient twists and turns, triumphs and disappointments, to move the action along briskly, over the course of what was actually a relatively long play.

Well produced and brilliantly acted by what was necessarily largely a young cast, the play was a perfect fit for the early 19th Century Theatre, and a great evening out.

Northanger Abbey plays for another week and then goes off around the country on tour.   It is a Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds production and is directed by the theatre's Director  Karen Simpson.  I do urge as many readers as possible to give this Suffolk born show a good send off by buying a ticket!

(If you cannot go next week it does return to the Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich, later in the run).