Toft 2020

December
This is the final diary entry for 2020, it hasn't been the year we foresaw at the beginning of the year and we hope and trust things will improve in 2021. Nationally Coronavirus numbers have risen significantly with a new, more virulent, strain emerging. The daily death toll is about 550 with 50,000 new cases each day. On the positive side two vaccines have been approved and the vaccination programme is kicking off. People are booking summer holidays but there isn't much optimism about the next 3 or 4 months.
But back in Toft, you can't go for a walk around the village without catching up with somebody to talk to even though there have been no Christmas or New Year Celebrations. The tree on the green has been decorated and lights put up in the phone box.
The houses at Bennell Farm are coming on well. Some have already been sold and I'm sure some will be occupied early in the new year.

There has been some joy in the village as more than 100 people of all ages attended the village Christmas carol singing in Saint Andrew’s churchyard on 20 December. The gathering was compliant with COVID-19 regulations for public worship, with virtually everyone wearing a mask and correct social distancing maintained throughout.
The event raised £179.84 for Action for Children.
And finally, more joy as Vicky Unsworth married Aaron Saul in the church on 22nd December. They were limited to 15 people in the church for the service but several villagers wished them well outside the church and the weather was fine.

A year in which we had only two meetings but nevertheless a productive year. At the two meetings we held in February and March we made more of the special cushions needed by Addenbrookes breast cancer surgery clinic plus the tote bags they go in. Covid, and the shortage of PPE and bags in which to carry PPE in, was our next project and we made a large amount of scrubs bags for Addenbrookes and for some local nurses plus around 70 bags for Home Meadow. Following this most of us made masks for family and friends and then a Christmas project. This was making Christmas tree decorations and we were able to give the 51 people in the village who live on their own a little plastic sack containing 3 decorations for them to hang whether on a tree or cupboard handle. We also decorated the tree on the village green for Remembrance in November with hundreds of our homemade poppies.

2021 has begun and we have already started our next project.

A quiet month again as England has another lock down to curb the virus. It seems to have worked with case numbers and deaths dropping. There are still 205 deaths per day and 12330 new cases although case numbers in South Cambs have dropped significantly. There are 25 volunteers in the volunteer group supporting the community.
Martin S organised a couple of well attended Zoom quizzes. 
The Sewing, Knit and Natter group decorated the tree on the green this month with a beautiful display of handmade poppies in support of  Remembrance Day and a short service was held outside the Methodist Chapel with 10 yr old Emma Mitchel sounding the Last Post.
 

A quiet month again as England has another lock down to curb the virus. It seems to have worked with case numbers and deaths dropping. There are still 205 deaths per day and 12330 new cases although case numbers in South Cambs have dropped significantly. There are 25 volunteers in the volunteer group supporting the community.
Martin S organised a couple of well attended Zoom quizzes. 
The Sewing, Knit and Natter group decorated the tree on the green this month with a beautiful display of handmade poppies in support of  Remembrance Day and a short service was held outside the Methodist Chapel with 10 yr old Emma Mitchel sounding the Last Post.
 

October
Coronavirus cases are increasing again this month. Last month I reported 70 deaths and 7000 new cases daily; this month it's around 280 deaths and 23000 new cases.
A bit of excitement as Tyne Cottage, the thatched cottage next to the People’s Hall came onto the market at £295K. We got to the stage of the PC authorising spend on surveys and solicitors but a cash buyer emerged and the PC couldn't compete with the timing or assurance of a sale and so lost the opportunity. We are just hoping for nice neighbours next to the hall.
There have been some discussions regarding the East West Railway including an agreement to consider a station north of Cambourne. If this happens, there is a possibility of the route not passing close to Toft. We are crossing our fingers. Proposed possible routes will be announced early in 2021.
Our Dr Peter Johnson was awarded the Etheldreda Medal by the Bishop of Ely this month at Ely Cathedral. This is a medal awarded every other year to exceptional people whose good works come close to being nominated for a Queen’s Award for voluntary service.
At the Harvest Thanksgiving on 4th Oct Justin and Jenny were presented with a cheque for £2305 following a collection from residents to thank them for their support for the village during the difficult lock down period earlier in the year.
Martin Sebborn has started hosting the Zoom quizzes once again with occasional social evenings on Zoom. And on Oct 17 Toft Social Club presented its first ever live streaming virtual gig....Chris While and Julie Matthews Live.
The other club that has been meeting regularly on Zoom is the Toft Internet club.

September
We end the month with national concerns about the increase in Coronavirus cases now with around 7000 a day.  At the beginning of the month 3 deaths a day were recorded but this has risen up to 70 by the end of the month. Linda has kicked off the community response team once again.
So, still not much activity in Toft.
As recorded elsewhere, the fine work that Jenny and Justin did to support the community during the lockdown was recognised with a village collection and a cheque has been presented to them. Unfortunately, the pleasure of this appreciation was tinged by news of a planning application for a new Co-op next to Bennell Farm. A petition in opposition was signed by over 500 people and many residents have posted comments online on the SCDC planning website.
The other issue of concern is the East West Railway, which is currently proposed to run within a few hundred yards of the village. There are other possible routes being pressed for by various parties, including the PC. It will be Jan 2021 before the detailed route options are presented for consultation by EWR.
But are we downhearted? Well yes, just a little.

August
A quiet month in the village. Coronovrus numbers have increased slightly to 1200 new cases each day. Folks are going on holiday but mainly in the UK. Currently anybody returning from most of Europe need to quarantine for two weeks. The Village College ad Meridian Primary school are gearing up to be open for all students next week.
The village celebrated VJ day with a small event at the Memorial at the Methodist Hall. A full report is posted on the Toft 2020 website.
We are waiting to see if an additional 45 houses are to be built at Bennell Farm, whether planning approval will be given for a new Co-op by Bennell Farm and what route the EWR will take close to the village. Several of the houses at Bennell Farm are nearing completion.

July
It’s difficult to report the statistics regarding Coronavirus to give a comparison with previous months as the figures reported are significantly affected by the amount of testing and there is a lot more testing taking place. The numbers of deaths are very low and the new cases in our area are also very low. Some areas, particularly in the north-west are almost locking down again due to spikes in the numbers. Pubs and restaurants and shops have been reopening. The Hairdressers are open again and several from Toft have taken advantage of that.
Not a lot else has been happening in the village with the highlight being Koran’s 80th birthday. The social club is still, sensibly, closed and the beer festival has been, sensibly, cancelled.
Harvesting has started and there’s a virtual rebuild off Wood Barn Farmhouse. There’s been regular sightings of Red Kites over recent weeks, it’s still a treat although much more common than it used to be.

June
The country is still in lockdown with shops now open and pubs opening in July. There’s still just under 1000 new cases a day. I believe Toft is still free of the virus. Martin has continued to “virtually open” the social club on a Friday evening with an occasional quiz on a Saturday. The weather has been brilliant again this month which has certainly made the lockdown more pleasant. The Black Lives Matter campaign has been very active across the world following the death of George Floyd in Mineapolis and several posters have been posted around the village.
Heather Yeadon and her partner Oriol give us a taste of the Catalonian celebration Patum with some brilliant giants.

Here in Toft, Sewing, Knit and Natter continued throughout April and May in the "war effort" versus COVID-19 to make scrubs bags, for use by staff in local hospitals. When Addenbrookes made the request for scrubs bags the group in turn appealed for fabric, and were then inundated with not only new fabric but pillowcases, sheets and duvets from generous friends both in the village and beyond.

As a result the group was able to send more than 100 scrubs bags to Addenbrookes for distribution to staff. More bags were also given direct to local nurses who expressed the need for these bags for themselves and colleagues.

The group then moved on to making bags for Home Meadow here in Toft and along with every member of staff being given a bag they were able to give the home as many again for stock plus more for a sister home.

Thanks go to everyone who helped make the bags - not everyone a member of Sewing, Knit and Natter.

May
The Coronavirus lockdown continued during May. The basic rules have been to stay indoors, with the only exception being some exercise and essential visits for groceries etc.  Most folks have been working from home or furloughed. Slowly it is now beginning to open up with people being encouraged to return to work if they can do safely and in June there can be some small gatherings with social (2m) distancing. I'm not aware of any confirmed cases in the village but there are still about 2000 new cases in the UK everyday compared to about 5000 at its peak.
So, the village has been quiet. We have had excellent record breaking warm and sunny weather throughout the month.
The planned VE Day celebrations and Spring Feast events were of course cancelled. However, VE Day was marked by many residents in Toft who put out bunting, flags and, in one case, a photo exhibition of family members who had served in the war. David Mitchell played the last post at 11.02 and just before 3pm on the village green. Some residents had socially-distanced tea parties and also celebrated with other, stronger refreshments. In the evening, after the Queen’s address to the nation, people sang Vera Lynn’s WWII classic song We’ll meet again, which was played from Toft People’s Hall for those living nearby to sing along to. Other streets had similar sing songs.
We've had excitement in the sky with two Spitfire fly pasts, one to celebrate the VE day 75 year celebrations and one for the last of the evening clap for the NHS. We were also treated to a splendid heart created in the sky by Mark Jefferies. We also saw the first commercial manned spacecraft cross the southern sky on 30th May on its way to the International Space Station. The events have been recorded elsewhere on the web page.
Martin S has started regular quizzes via Zoom and a regular virtual opening of the Social Club on Friday evenings. I think it's true to say that most folks are of good spirit despite the circumstances.

The link below takes us to a piece of music written to remember a Consultant Neonatologist Dr Vishna Rasiah who died from Coronavirus. The opening singer is the daughter of Sally and Brian Elsdon;  Rebbecca Ledgard who spent her first 24 years here in Toft and is now married living in Stratford upon Avon and is the Director of Education for Ex-Cathedra. Ex-Cathedra is a leading UK choir which also does extensive education and participation projects as well as some valuable charitable work.
It's a beautiful piece.  
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCB9j6HKlKciq3_Tanhzvnkg

April
The lockdown in the village due to Coronavirus continues. There have now been over 26,000 deaths in the UK. Fortunately, I am not aware of any confirmed cases in the village and I understand the care home is clear. As Mike Mc put it, lets hope we can yet again be a Thankful Village.
The community continues to applaud the NHS and frontline workers every Thursday evening. Toft Social club has “virtually” opened with a zoom open evening and a Countdown Quiz and more planned for May. The weather has been beautiful with record amounts of sunshine and very little rain until the last few days of the month.

March
The news this month is entirely around the Coronavirus Covid 19. The village and the country are in virtual lock down. All pubs, restaurants and shops not selling essential items are closed. Everybody is encouraged to work from home. The Church and the Social Club is closed. In the UK there are 22141 cases and 1408 deaths. Toft was well represented in an “Applaud the NHS workers” during the month when everybody came to the front door to clap at 8-00 in the evening. Linda Hollow is leading a Volunteer Support network set up to provide support to vulnerable residents. The Toft Shop is providing home deliveries and deliveries to the boot of your car. I don't know of any Toft residents who have contracted the virus. Long may that continue.
It was decided that the Spring Feast and VE-Day Commemoration, calendared for 8-10 May, would be postponed in the hope that an autumn celebration might be held later in the year.
The daffodils are particularly fine this year.

Another very hectic meeting with just 9 of us stuffing cushions and doing the final bits of sewing to complete them. We now have around 25 sets for Addenbrookes and more still to be made. We finalised our discussions on the project for the VE weekend and some of the group were able to show us what they have already made. Next time we meet two of the group are going to show us how to do quilting by hand with very small templates.

February
Toft had three named storms. Storm Ciara, on 9th Feb, left some damage with a tree down on Hardwick Road and one down in Church Road taking out the telephone line. (No internet for the church!!)
It also lifted of the top of the garages in Beldams Close and blew down a fence or two.

Ciara was followed by Storm Denis on 15th Feb. This storm was less severe in Toft but added to a month of strong winds and wet weather with extensive flooding on the Severn and Wye Rivers.
Storm Jorge hit on 29th Feb but again Toft was not badly affected. It was said to be the wettest Feb since records began!

Coronavirus hit the headlines this month. It began in China at the end of 2019 and is now in in 40 countries with 80,000 people affected. In the UK at the end of Feb there are 23 cases (but rising). Let's hope this isn't a relevant story for Toft 2020.

The second of the Saturday Coffee mornings, organised by Liz Tomes, was very successful with around 40 attendees.
The Toft Junior session had an event with 6 young musicians attending.

10 of us met to make cushions and tote bags for the Breast Cancer Clinic at Addenbrookes. It was a hive of industry with one member ironing the fabric for the bags and two sewing machines being used at full pace sewing cushions and bags. Four ladies were stuffing the cushions and two who were very expert with the needle sewed the openings in the cushions. Around 15 sets of cushions and bags were made. Again much discussion on the VE weekend project. The group also decided in future to meet on the second Wednesday of each month.

Last Monday we held our second session of 2020 – the group meet on the first and third Mondays of each month (excepting bank holidays).
It’s hard to explain to younger generations how difficult it is for some of us who didn’t benefit from a formal technological education to deal with the quirks and rapid changes that technology has brought over the last few decades. Our way of learning is different from theirs, and must be taken at a slower pace.
Our principal aim, functioning as a self-help group, is to offer support and guidance to people – generally older people – who currently feel excluded from today’s technological world, or lack the confidence to explore all that the internet can offer. We exchange useful (and sometimes useless) information, solve problems, print out documents … we all learn something new at each session. Some arrive with no computer experience at all – and within a few months are ordering everything and anything online!
All are welcome to join us – with or without a tablet or laptop, we’re always happy to see you.