MANY thanks to Nicola Ingham, owner of The Luxe Clinic (TLC) in Skipton for this wonderful picture (below) of a stoat stealing an egg from her garden in Cononley. Nicola tells me she has hens which lay eggs under the hedges in her garden, and this stoat, resplendent in its winter colours, has clearly happened upon them. She and her partner watched, and took pictures, as the stoat carefully rolled an egg off to its lair. And, it clearly liked it, as it returned a while later to get another one. Clever little thing.

ALDI supermarket says it is embracing the season of goodwill, and is calling on charities and community groups across Skipton and Craven to register so that they can collect food donations this Christmas Eve.

Following the launch earlier this year of the successful partnership with Neighbourly (pictured far right) , a community engagement platform that links businesses to key charitable organisations, 95 per cent of Aldi stores are now donating surplus food up to five days a week, all year round.

Christmas provides an opportunity for even more charities to benefit from the initiative, and are therefore calling on all charities and community groups in the area to get in touch for a Christmas Eve donation.

As part of the Christmas initiative, charities and community groups will be paired with local Aldi stores and can collect fresh food products that are near the end of their shelf life such as fruit, vegetables, fresh meat, fish and bread after the store closes at 6pm on Christmas Eve.

Last Christmas, Aldi donated just under half a million meals to charities across the UK, and is hoping to increase this for Christmas 2019, spreading Christmas cheer to even more families.

Fritz Walleczek, managing director of corporate responsibility at Aldi UK, said: “Our Christmas food donation scheme is something we’re really passionate about, and we’re working with Neighbourly this year to pair as many stores up as possible.

“Last year we were able to reach thousands of people across the UK, and some charities were even able to prepare fresh meals that fed families well into the New Year. This is our third year of Christmas food donations and we’re hoping this year will be just as successful, and we look forward to working with local charities and food banks in Skipton in the future.”

Charitable groups interested in working with Aldi this Christmas should contact Neighbourly at aldichristmas@Neighbourly.com before Monday, November 11. In order to apply, groups must have a level two hygiene certificate, be a registered charity, Community Interest Company (CIC) or community group, and must be able to collect, transport and store chilled food.

WE have already reported on the official opening of Embsay’s community cafe, but were unable to include the picture at the time, so here it is, (right) complete with scene-stealing whippet. The picture shows children from Embsay CoE Primary School and Shelagh Marshall, chairman of Embsay and Eastby Good Neighbours. The children went on to do a great job of serving up tea, coffee and cake to all the folk who called in for a celebratory cuppa, so I’m told. The idea for a community cafe sprung from a meeting of the Good Neighbours group where someone mentioned how there was nowhere for mums and dads, who weren’t rushing off to work, to go after dropping their children off at school. Members of the Methodist Chapel offered the use of their hall on Monday mornings, and with the help of volunteers, the cafe opened in the middle of September.

Basic equipment and an attractive ‘seaside’ theme was paid for thanks to North Yorkshire County Council’s Inspire Fund. Since opening, the cafe has welcomed well over 100 visitors, including both young and old, four dogs, many passing cyclists, and a workman, all making the most of proper (filter) coffee or tea, toasted teacakes, crumpets, bagels, and often a selection of homemade cakes. There is also a play area for toddlers, and guest WiFi, and future plans hope to see the introduction of craft activities. Mrs Marshall, who is now retired from the county council, but was its older people’s champion for North Yorkshire, says: “I am so supportive of community cafes. I recall saying when the village hall was opened in 1989 that many people would not know each other if we didn’t have places where people

could meet socially. Both café customers and volunteers are enjoying the Monday morning experience—let us hope it continues to grow.”

Embsay’s community cafe is open on Mondays from 9am to 11.30am.

PENDLE Leisure Trust, which runs the West Craven Sports Centre in Barnoldswick, is helping the National Lottery mark its 25th birthday with offers from some of the facilities it has helped to fund.

Since the first draw took place on November 19 1994, more than £40 billion has been raised for good causes in the areas of arts, sport, heritage and community – and some of Pendle Leisure Trust’s facilities and initiatives have benefitted from the money, including help to fund the extension at the West Craven Sports Centre in 1997, and again in 2005, with an inclusive fitness initiative gym equipment.

There will be a free family swim at West Craven Sports Centre on Sunday, November 24, and 25 people will receive one month’s free fitness membership through a social media competition.

100 YEARS ago, on November 7, 1919, the Craven Herald reported on the success of Skipton artist Reginald Brundrit, who had been given a prominent and well deserved place in the exhibition of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters with his painting ‘A street in Asiago’. The exhibition was being held in Piccadilly, London at the Institute Galleries. The picture was the result of sketches made by Mr Brundit while he was on active military service on the Italian Front. The Telegraph reported that “In technical power, there is nothing in the present show that equals Mr Reginald Brundrit’s winter scene.”

IN the same edition of the Craven Herald, composer, Harry Harrison of Clapham, was commended for his peace hymn, ‘Pax Triumphans’. Mr Harrison had received from Lord Burnham, chairman of the trustees for the King’s Fund for the Disabled, an acknowledgement of a second donation of £5 from the proceeds of the sales of the composition. The secretary of the fund added that the council wished to express their ‘keen appreciation’ of Mr Harrison’s ‘splendid efforts’ on its behalf. The composition had been received with much favour throughout the country and had been played by many leading bands, including the famous Wingate’s Temperance, the premier combination in England in 1918-1919. The hymn had gone through four impressions and editions had reached a total of 8,000 copies.

50 years ago, on November 7, 1969, Wilf Proctor, head warder of the West Riding section of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, borrowed a three ton lorry from County Highways department and set about clearing verges in the Dales of rubbish. He put in a call to the Police Cadet Training School in Buckden, and was given the help of eight cadets. Over the course of a day, the three tonner was filled and emptied during the course of the day. Its load included a washing machine, two beds, complete with mattresses, one armchair, 12 bags of picnic rubbish, roll upon roll of rusty pig netting, one abandoned car, and enough empty beer cans to represent a ‘fair-sized orgy’. As well as the driver, who worked on his day off, the public health department at Settle also helped with the disposal.

ALSO reported was the filming of the Bentham works of Messrs Ford Ayrton and Co by Yorkshire Television as part of a series on firms that had been forced to close down.