Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future.
Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future.
Sustainable Chulmleigh
Working towards a greener future.
Newsletter #02
December 2024
A HUGE welcome to our December newsletter.
Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future

Thank you for your interest in Sustainable Chulmleigh. We very much hope to meet you at one or more of our forthcoming events, or on our Facebook group. And if you would like to get more involved in any of our events or projects please let us know. Email: info@sustainablechulmleigh.org.uk. We LOVE involving more of the community in all we do.

In this edition:
Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future
January 4th and 5th 2025 Tree and Hedge Planting at Cadbury Cottage (jack@relaxed.org.uk for more)
February/ March Pied Flycatcher nest box building at West Week Farm
March (mid to late) Repair café - Bring your broken items to be repaired.
March/ April A guided walk around Taw River Dairy with Sam Bullingham
April Plant Hunt at Cadbury Cottage
May Chalk and Talk
May/ June Summer Conference
June Repair café - Bring your broken items to be repaired.
TBC NEW: Sustainable Chulmleigh Book Group
On-going Sustainable Chulmleigh now has its own community allotment space
On-going Cadbury Cottage Pond - developing the area for community use
On-going Rewilding the churchyard - join our working group
On-going Blue Heart Campaign - rewilding Britain, garden by garden
Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future
Highlights from the last few weeks
Maddy Harland - A huge thank you to Maddy for her talk In November on Permaculture and Rewilding. Maddy's deep knowledge and passion for our natural world shone through as she guided us through the relationship of growing and maintaining a healthy soil. A lively Q and A session followed, with plenty of discussion. Food for thought!

Pond Day at Cadbury Cottage - When many hands make light work !! We had a great turnout for our November pond margin planting day at Cadbury cottage. David and Jack are slowly rewilding their former smallholding… and in return for a couple of hours labour rewarded us all with delicious home made bread, soup and cake. Some of the tasks we helped with were removing a redundant wire chicken coop in preparation for planting willow, and planting perennials around the outside margin of the pond. A shallow shelf was dug within the pond itself to allow easy access / exit points for wildlife. All in all, a great days work. And with lots more to be done, more coming soon.

'Six Inches of Soil' Screening - A great evening for our screening of ‘Six Inches of Soil’ co-hosted by North Devon Biosphere and Sustainable Chulmleigh. Attended by over 80 people. A film about young regenerative farmers, it offered great insight into the challenges facing farmers in this changing climate. Followed a lively discussion with a panel of local farmers, expertly chaired by Mike Moser. Huge thanks to the panel: Sam Bullingham, Leica Lucas Ridge, Tim Budden and Amy Thomas.
Following on from this please see the boxes below for the North Devon Biosphere's 'Pledge for Nature' and a request from Jack Wolfenden at the Taw Valley and Little Dart Facilitation Fund (part of North Devon Biosphere) who was the inspiration behind showing the film.
Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future
The Biosphere has launched an ambitious new Nature Recovery Plan as part of our contribution to tackling the ecological emergency here in northern Devon.
​​​Aligning with the Government’s 25 Year Environment Plan and the Prime Minister’s pledge for 30% of the UK land to be protected by 2030. The plan includes five action plans which details the priorities for the key land types in the Biosphere. Sign the Nature Recovery Declaration here
Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future
The Countryside Stewardship Facilitation Fund supports people and organisations that bring together farmers, foresters and other land managers to improve the local natural environment at a landscape scale. The Taw Valley and Little Dart Landowners Group Facilitation Fund, a group co facilitated with Devon Wildlife Trust, is running from the 1st June 2023 for three years until May 2026 and has over 60 signed up farming members. The area covered is over 37,000Ha of farmland between North Tawton and Bishops Tawton, including the Little Dart catchment. The group is able to provide help and advice, workshops and training and support with grant applications.
Jack is very keen to hear from any new farmers who wish to join the group and from anyone who, having watched 'Six Inches of Soil', is keen to talk further about regenerative farming techniques and practises. jack.woolfenden@devon.gov.uk
Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future
Meet Elisha Connolly and her mum, Lynne Stokes, the wonderful duo who run the newly opened Station Yard Farm Shop at Eggesford

Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future
Q. You have had quite the tumultuous start to running the Farm Shop thanks to road works, road closures, Storm Darragh and power cuts. How have you coped??
A. If it wasn’t for the support of the local community we would have been in pieces. We have struggled to cope to be honest and it really knocked the wind out of our sails. We had to make difficult decisions in our initial weeks, to try and limit any wastage we postponed a lot of our fresh orders and had to be careful with any spending as there was limited income. We then had the snow which meant we couldn’t receive our deliveries for another week. When all our produce started arriving it was very exciting but then we had another challenge as darragh took the power and we had to move all the fridge and freezer contents to other locations. We were very lucky to have people step in to help us and accommodate all the stock! So a big thank you to Sim, Emily and Amy for literally saving our bacon. The lovely thing that has accompanied these challenges is that we have been overwhelmed by messages of support and the kindness of the community we are becoming a part of and it has really warmed our souls and can’t wait to settle into some form of normal…. Whatever that is.

Q. What was the inspiration behind setting up the shop?
A. We are lucky to be surrounded by very talented and passionate people who create, grow and produce some amazing things and it was becoming frustrating to watch dreams dampen and wonderful activities lose momentum because the link between producer and consumer seems so difficult to penetrate. I really wanted to provide an outlet for ‘the little one’ giving people with a creative hobby or green fingers a place and an opportunity to sell their stuff, a reason to create. Also I couldn’t get my head around how and why village shops have become outlets for sugary drinks and pre-made sandwiches.. in them we find milk from Cornwall at best, veg from Europe and heaps of mass produced sugar variants.. but why? When some of the finest stuff going comes from Devon! I think I complained to anyone who’d bear me for about a week before seeing the station yard site unoccupied… which I again couldn’t understand.. why was it empty? Why was no one doing it? Then I remembered “be the change that you wish to see in the world” and mum, being the supportive and optimistic being that she be, jumped or board without hesitation. Now here we are… trying to do retail!!! Hoping to bring local and ethically sound produce to you!

Q. Have you worked together before? Do you have quite discreet roles when it comes to running the business. (And do tell, who’s the real boss?)
A. We have never worked together like this before but we have always been close and we have certainly worked through stuff together. We make a good team and support each others ideas. We don’t have specific roles really as of yet but I like the food side of things and mum is crafty… so that’s where our two passions have created the shop. Neither of us like the computer or accounts. We actually take it in turns to be the boss! Depending on the day! I am definitely bossier though I’ve noticed … but really mums in charge, obviously. And I’m here to tell her when she’s wrong!

Q. In just one sentence tell us what is your overall aim for the shop.
A. We aim to create a social and vibrant shop for our community to both buy and sell quality local produce and craft in an ecologically conscious fashion that nurtures nature.

Q. What are you especially proud of so far?
A. We are especially proud of the refill station!! As with this method of retail we can bulk buy organic and ethically produced store cupboard items and dried goods, for a good price, pass that saving on to you and dramatically reduce packaging waste. You can also buy as much or as little as you please!! Win win win!!

Q. When sourcing your products, what are the main criteria each one must satisfy?
A. We would prefer everything to be organically produced but ultimately we must see respect for the environment and animals as priority from our producers. As local as possible, I hope this will come closer to home as people come forward with their produce. Some of the cupboard goods are never going to be produced in Devon so we aim to use wholesalers that have a good ethos towards the environment and people, such as Riverford and essential trading Co-op.

Q. Favourite part of the job?
A. Meeting all the wonderful people , restoring my faith in humanity. Being with my family.

Q. What is your perfect weekend (when you aren’t working)?
A. Oh blimey well both mum and I have dogs and love exploring so there has got to be a bit of moor, some sea, good food, family and a fire. We do both love a dance though and before Joia came along we would often go out together in Bristol or London for a good boogie. But it’s been a while!

Q. What can we, the locals, do to help your business really flourish?
A. Come down and see us!! Use the refill stand, make it your shop by offering feedback suggestions hints and tips are always welcome. We do not claim to be experts here, we are learning as we go!

Q. What are your hopes for the future?
A. We hope to encourage people to grow and make produce. We aim to run casual craft workshops throughout the seasons and be part of a community that laughs shares and creates together to make this a world we wanna live in.
Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future
Have yourself a very merry Sustainable Christmas
Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future
Recipes for Christmas treats - all tried and tested
Gingerbread cookies: Recipe - Recommended by Claire and her decorations were way superior!!
Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future
Coconut Macaroons: Recipe - Recommended by Jack - always baked by my mum at Christmas, she added a cherry on top (which I dutifully remove every time as I hated them...)
Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future
Local food producers: an exciting idea from Jo Moser
After the well-attended talk on regenerative farming (see above) it was clear that there is an appetite to support local regenerative and organic farmers selling directly to the public. The question was asked how do we find them? Jo Moser has offered to compile a local list of farmers for our website, with a brief spiel about each one, beginning in the new year. Happy to go Devon wide. But we need your help to find these farmers. Happy to include those starting on the sustainable journey. Please email contact details now (with very brief info – meat, dairy, veg etc) to jomoser@btinternet.com. We also plan to include farm shops which are buying local.
Survey Results
Huge thanks to everyone who filled in our short suvey - you can see the results by clicking on this link.
We will be running another survey early next year which will be a little more in-depth.
Our overall aim is to gain a more insight into how best SC can understand and support the local community.
Supporting your local community

Catkin Blooms - Winkleigh - Pop in for Barista Coffee & Fabulous Cakes. Buy a bouquet of Seasonal Flowers, choose a plant or look at our eco gifts

Station Yard Farm Shop - Eggesford - Packed with fresh local produce, arts, crafts, gifts and more.

Tarka line Bistro - Eggesford - Licensed Bistro/Cafe with a great range of food for both eat in and takeaway.

Charities Together - Chulmleigh - Charity shop and fundraising organiser in Chulmleigh for multiple charities, including Devon Air Ambulance. Raising in the region of ÂŁ300 a week.

The Old Dairy Deli - Chulmleigh - Situated in the beautiful town of Chulmleigh, our charming tearoom and deli is at the heart of the local community. We offer hot and cold drinks..
Newsletter #02
December 2024
Sustainable Chulmleigh ... Working towards a greener future.
Email: info@sustainablechulmleigh.org.uk

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