The Inner Wheel Club of Wellington celebrated the 50th Anniversary of its Charter into International Inner Wheel with a luncheon at Oake Manor Golf Club.

Four founder members who are still active in the club attended. Pictured standing left to right are, Christine Howe, President Rosemary Wharton and Margaret Knowlman and seated, Hilary Woodbury.

The ladies were presented with floral arrangements to mark their 50 years of faithful service to Inner Wheel.

Nynehead Court was filled with the spirit of spring and shared connection this week as we welcomed residents from a fellow Somerset care home for a relaxed and sociable afternoon tea.

The gathering brought together residents from both homes for a traditional tea service, prepared with care by our kitchen team.

Guests enjoyed dainty finger sandwiches, warm scones with jam and cream, and a tempting selection of homemade cakes — all served with freshly brewed tea and coffee in our Orangery.

As the afternoon came to a close, new friends had been made, stories exchanged, and return visits warmly discussed.

These kinds of gatherings are a much-valued part of life at Nynehead Court, reminding us of the joy and comfort that comes from spending time with others, especially in later life, when such moments can be truly meaningful.

At his month’s meeting, held at the Beambridge Inn on May 15, we welcomed members and guests, along with some new members.

The evening started with a presentation by Jan McNeill from Crewkerne on the versatility of a scarf, something that had been discussed and demonstrated when Jan worked on Seabourn luxury cruises.

She displayed a range of scarves of varying shapes and sizes, including some pashminas, all in various colours and patterns. Some had been purchased from foreign markets and some acquired from charity shops.

Jan then demonstrated the variety of ways that the scarves could be tied and worn, often to enhance an outfit. Occasionally elastic bands and safety pins also played a part in transforming a simple large scarf into a butterfly jacket or a sarong. Some methods were a little tricky and caused a lot of laughter.

Members were encouraged to practise on the scarves that they had brought along. There was more laughter and varying degrees of success. Practice makes perfect.

A coffee and cake break was taken, followed by the raffle, after which various club activities and events were announced, such as the Supper Club and the Repair Café where volunteers are always welcomed, as are donations of cake and offers of help.

A request for volunteers to help at the WI stall at the Taunton Flower show was also made.

This was followed by the AGM business. An account was given by the Treasurer of the club’s previous year’s expenditure. Reports from the Secretary and President followed, providing a review of all the events and activities which have taken place in the last WI year.

Thanks were given to all the Committee members for their hard work and continuing commitment.

A vote was taken for our chosen charity for the coming year, which is to be St. Margaret’s Hospice.

Members then had to vote for the continuation of the current committee and shared President roles. A new Secretary will be required soon, and any interested WI member is welcome to put themselves forward for the post or the Committee.

The next meeting will be on Thursday, June 19, at the Beambridge Inn, 7pm for a 7.30pm start. Dr Karen Stead-Dexter will talk about Animal and Natural Assisted Therapy. Guests are very welcome.

For further information please contact us at [email protected], or check out our website: wellingtonwi.org.uk

Wellington WI members vote annually for a charity to support, mainly with the income received from refreshment sales at the Wellington repair café.

Three of our members presented a cheque for £479.50 , the total for the financial year, to staff at the Reminiscence Learning base.

House manager of Abbeyfield’s Ivy House, Alisha Cordy organised a fund raising event to raise money for Alzheimer's week.

Alisha's mother Brenda Oliver sadly passed away after a long battle with Dementia in 2013 so its a charity very close to her heart.

A huge raffle and a cream tea was held on Friday, May 23, in the communal lounge.

Alongside this, Ivy House resident Brian Standring has raised more money by doing yet another skydive at the grand age of 86 on Saturday, May 24.

So far together Abbeyfield’s Ivy House has raised an astonishing £1,100, and still counting!

Alisha would like to mention how incredibly proud she is of her generous residents and would like to thank each and everyone who has supported this event.

Members of Wellington & District Townswomen’s Guild gathered for May’s meeting at Lodge Close Hall on Monday, May 12.

Our guest speaker this month was Diana Fox, who gave an engaging and entertaining talk, telling us about her happy childhood with her parents and siblings at Legglands, and about the various branches of the Fox family generally. She also told us about her interesting and varied career, which included working at plant nurseries both locally and in Worcestershire, a stint as a teacher following teacher training college, working as a matron in independent schools in Surrey and Worcestershire and training to be an occupational therapist.

Diana brought with her numerous interesting visual aids including family photographs, maps and paintings, including a beautiful watercolour of Mantle Street, painted in 1929 – coincidentally, the year the Townswomen’s Guild was born.

Chairman Mrs Joyce Jones gave the vote of thanks and presented Diana with flowers, some chocolates, and a card, as she was shortly to celebrate her birthday.

Refreshments followed, during which the raffle was held, and then it was time for the business part of the meeting. The minutes of the last meeting were read and approved, the possibility of having a cream tea at The Cleve for our August meeting was discussed, and news was given of the upcoming National AGM, to be held this year at Weston-super-Mare. Unfortunately, owing to a last-minute change of venue, the AGM is now sold out, so a Wellington delegate will not be able to attend.

The next meeting will be held at Lodge Close Hall at 2.30pm on Monday, June 9. We welcome potential new members, so do come along as a visitor if you are thinking of joining us.

On Monday, May 19, the Annual Parish Meeting was held in the Memorial Hall.

Wine and light refreshments were served to residents who came to meet their Councillors. Around forty people attended this annual opportunity for all the Nynehead clubs, societies and activities to come together, read out their yearly report, ask questions and give suggestions to the Members of the Parish Council for new or improved facilities.

Nynehead Parish Council Chair, Dr Jan Butterley announced her decision to stand down as chair (she will continue as a councillor). Members would like to express their gratitude to Jan for all her hard work as chair, she has contributed so much to the work of the council and to the community as a whole.

This year’s hot topic was the major refurbishment of M5 Junction 26 and A38 Chelston link which will be closed to all vehicles from mid-June to mid-September. Considerable extra traffic in the lanes around Nynehead is a likely outcome, causing concern to residents. Somerset Council Public Liaison Officer, Syed Shah attended the meeting to answer questions.

Mr Jeremy Toye was unanimously elected chair, with Dr Jan Butterley becoming the vice-chair. Members would like to thank Mr Toye for taking on this key role where he will direct his hard work and energy towards the many projects that the Parish Council undertakes, such as the Emergency Plan for Nynehead, continuing work to mitigate flooding, attending relevant briefings and drop-in sessions and reviewing planning applications, to name a few.

The next Parish Council Meeting is on Monday, June 16, at the Nynehead Memorial Hall commencing at 7.30pm. The village website, contains much more information including dates of the Parish Council Meetings and Minutes of previous meetings.

Total donations by St Mary’s Charity and Coffee Shop, Hemyock, have for the first time topped £1,000.

It is held every Tuesday and the first Saturday of each month in the Church Room and has continued its aim of giving some financial support to other groups this year.

Recipients included The Scout group (for their Tonder, Denmark, exchange), The Short Mat Bowls Club, The Hemyock Craft Group, and as a village supporting the organisation Children’s Hospice South West.

Thanks go to all who helped this to be achieved.

The Scouts were also the first group in the village to have a second donation, which says a lot about about the number of groups in the village, their first donation being back in 2013.