This month’s magazine is available for download as PDF. Here’s the introduction from the editor:

The Olympic Torch passes through Bitton on Tuesday, May 22. To mark the occasion a big celebration is being held at The Meadows Primary School from 4pm to 7pm to which everyone in our community is invited. There will be a barbecue, bar, and entertainment including an appearance by the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Bitton!
The torch is due to arrive at 5pm. The torchbearers for the Bitton leg of the journey have now been announced – along with Daniel Munden will be Terry Kirby, Philip Jinadu, Bobby Griffin, John Grant, Mike Baldock and Simeon Wakely. Bitton Village Residents’ Association will be putting up a welcome banner and bunting, and people living along the main road are encouraged to put up their own red, white and blue decorations to welcome the Olympic entourage.
During that week in May, a variety of sportsmen and women will also be visiting The Meadows to inspire our young people. One of the organisers of this week is John Evans, who many of you will know as the playwright who in recent years brought us the Son et Lumiere and Iniquitous Voyage productions at St Mary’s (and who edited Focal Point before me!). John had a distinguished international career in fencing and shares his memories with readers this month.
Breaking news just before we went to print was that development plans for the derelict Intier site in the village have been abandoned by the owners, who are putting the site up for sale. Find out more on page 25 where you can also learn about a scheme to bring the old nursery site in Brewery Hill back into horticultural use.
Becky Feather

Details of the Olympic Torch Relay’s journey through Bitton on Tuesday, May 22 were released just as we went to print.
Daniel Munden, a Bristol fireman, who captains the UK fire service volleyball team, and is a keen adventurer who has raised thousands of pounds for charity, will carry the Olympic Flame along our stretch of the route.
He is due to arrive in Bitton at 5pm from Bath and a warm welcome is guaranteed! The convoy will travel along the A431 from the Aubrey Meads lay-by, passing The Meadows Primary School, where a big community party will be taking place to mark the occasion.
The Torch will continue past Bitton Rec and over the roundabout before travelling under the railway bridge. Avon Valley Railway will welcome the Torch by positioning its resident RSH steam locomotive on the bridge.
Daniel will then cross the Keynsham Road roundabout and run up Willsbridge Hill into Longwell Green, then over the roundabout to Stonehill and along into Hanham before handing over to the next torchbearer to continue into Bristol.
In Focal Point this month, you’ll find all the times of Easter and other church services on pages 12 & 13. Bitton teacher Louise Pudner reports on her recent trip to Gaza City with the Rev Maria Shepherdson, and the green-fingered among us are encouraged to take part in Bitton’s Open Gardens in July. We’ve also got a great quiz that tests our knowledge of Bath.
Happy Easter!
Becky Feather

Sheila McGrath passed away last month. A mother-of-seven, granny to 19 and a great-grandmother-of-eight, as well as a friend to many, she will be sadly missed.
Although a Catholic, Sheila was very involved in St Mary’s, hosting and attending mid-week groups and supporting the Living Stones Appeal. Read more about Sheila’s life on pages 17 & 18.
Churchwarden Barbara Merritt, in her column on page 14, talks about preparing for change at St Mary’s when our vicar Paul Denyer, retires next year. Meanwhile turn the page to read Paul’s column in which he encourages us through the period of Lent.
It was lovely to hear from St Mary’s lay minister Dr David Bailey and his wife Stephanie, who are in Australia this year. While we have been shivering in sub-zero temperatures recently, they have been enjoying summer Down Under, along with some warm Aussie hospitality. Turn to page 16 to find out how they are getting on.
Anyone who would like to get involved with helping to organise Bitton’s Diamond Jubilee street party, which will be held on Bank Holiday Monday, June 4, in Church Road, is welcome to come along to the next planning meeting which takes place at the White Hart on Wednesday, March 7 at 8pm.
Find out more about the party on page 19 where you can also read about the celebration that’s planned to mark the Olympic Flame passing through Bitton on Tuesday, May 22. Everyone is invited!

Further details at St Stephen’s website.

This month’s magazine is available for download as PDF. Here’s the introduction from the editor:

Rain and roadworks sum up the start of 2012 in Bitton – we’ve had an excess of both! In January 2011 we were in the grip of the Big Freeze. So far this year we have had some astonishingly mild temperatures – apparently we are on track for one of the mildest winters since records began more than 350 years ago. And of course we’ve had more than our fair share of rain, with the River Boyd rising dramatically in early January.
Our front cover this month is a tribute to a much-loved member of our community, Sybil Watts, who has died at 97. Sybil had a long association with Focal Point – for 17 years she did the job that I do now, but in the days before new technology, putting together all the material for each issue on a manual typewriter and using a Gestetner machine. Read more about her life on pages 17 & 18. The picture of her on the cover, with Maureen Perrett, left, and Pearl Evans, right, was taken by Barry Smale in 2008.
There is also a tribute in this issue (page 17) to Bert Saunders, from Swineford, who has died at the age of 93.
Lent begins on Ash Wednesday (February 22) when we traditionally give something up. But vicar Paul Denyer is suggesting we should also ‘take something up’ for Lent. Churchwarden Barbara Merritt explains all on page 16.
The long-awaited Bitton Parish Plan was published in January. It represents the views and hopes of those who live and work here. Congratulations to all those involved in producing this document which will help shape what happens in our community for years to come. See pages 25 & 26.

This month’s magazine is available for download as PDF. Here’s the introduction from the editor:

Happy New Year! Have you made your resolutions yet? Ken Gibson has a suggestion on page 2 if you are looking for inspiration.
2012 will see us celebrating the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and planning will start in earnest soon for a street party in Bitton to mark the occasion. If you’d like to be involved please get in touch.
I was so sorry to hear that Violet Payne had passed away. You may remember that Violet and her neighbour Rose featured on our front cover in July 2010. Sadly Rose has since died and now Violet too has passed away. Read Sarah Craddock’s tribute to Violet on page 9.
We send our best wishes to lay minister David Bailey and his wife Stephanie who are off to live in Australia for a while. David will be keeping in touch with us via Focal Point and we look forward to hearing how they are getting on.
And we send congratulations to Bitton Parish Council chairman Cllr Mike Thomas, who has been made an Honorary Alderman of South Gloucestershire Council, recognising 40 years of service to South Gloucestershire Council and its predecessors, including Warmley Rural District Council.
Would you like to get more involved in the community? Bitton Village Residents’ Association is currently without a chairman and would welcome inquiries from anyone interested in taking over the reins – contact Nicola Bebb, the BVRA secretary.
You will notice the cover price of Focal Point has gone up as we have to cover the rising costs involved with producing it. There is a discount for an annual subscription, which most of you have, so you are now paying £7 a year instead of £6 – still great value for what is an essential read!
Becky Feather

What a year it’s been! And what a lot we have to look forward to in Bitton in 2012, what with another street party planned, this time for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in early June, plus the Olympic torch passing through Bitton in May on its way to the London Games! Find out more on page 11.
There is also the exciting possibility of a link between Bitton and the world-famous Kew Gardens in London, re-establishing the connection made in the 19th century by the Ellacombe vicars. Read Bob Willis’s interesting report on page 14.
And we will be able to toast in the New Year at the White Hart, which opened in early November after being closed for nearly three years. Kingswood MP and Bitton resident Chris Skidmore cut the ribbon at the official opening on the morning of November 4, and that evening the pub was packed to the rafters. It was a good night!
This time last year it was announced that the United Reformed Church, also known as the chapel, in Upton Cheyney was to close permanently. But the community has rallied to save it and the church has gone from strength to strength, as Stuart Turner has been reporting for us over the months. Read his latest update on pages 10 & 11.
Also in this issue there’s all the information you need to take you through the festive season in and around Bitton.
Like most of you, I am looking forward to seeing Bitton’s Christmas tree all lit up, and to the carol singing on the 21st, which begins at the tree at 6.30pm.
I wish you all a very happy Christmas and New Year and look forward to continuing as editor in 2012.
Becky Feather

November 2011 Focal Point

This month’s magazine is available for download as PDF. Here’s the introduction from the editor:

The new managers of the White Hart pub, Chris and Wendy, received a warm welcome at the AGM of Bitton Village Residents’ Association in October. There was a spontaneous round of applause for the couple, who came to the meeting to introduce themselves and find out more about the village that is their new home. They have come from Yeovil where they ran a pub but they are no strangers to Bristol, having once run The Huntsman at Downend. It is hoped that the White Hart, which has been closed for three years, will finally reopen this month. We look forward to bringing you a report of the opening in the next issue!
Also at the AGM, the BVRA committee made a presentation to Cllr Mike Thomas to thank him for his much-valued contribution to the association over the years. Mike is currently chairman of Bitton Parish Council and was our representative on South Gloucestershire Council for many years until the elections in May of this year.
Our cover picture was taken at the community consultation drop-in session about Aubrey Meads Play Area that was held at the church hall. Everyone in the village received letters inviting them to the session which gathered more feedback about how the play area might be improved. We now learn that South Gloucestershire Council has nominated Aubrey Meads to become a designated Queen Elizabeth II field in honour of the Diamond Jubilee in 2012. Turn to page 17 to find out more about the consultation and how you can show your support.
As we prepare to mark Remembrance Day, Ken Gibson looks at the work of the Royal British Legion in our Who Are Our Neighbours? series.
Also inside this month, we bring you news of The Meadows Primary School’s good Ofsted report and advance notice of Christmas events! Where has the year gone?

October 2011 Focal Point

This month’s magazine is available for download as PDF. Here’s the introduction from the editor:

Did anyone see Jonny Wilkinson in Bitton a few weeks back? The rugby star was a guest at a wedding at St Mary’s, and churchwarden Barbara Merritt says he signed the visitors’ book!
I may have missed Jonny but was lucky enough to meet another great sporting hero, Ian Holloway, in September. The Blackpool FC manager, who used to play for and manage Bristol Rovers, was invited to open the new community sports centre at his alma mater, Sir Bernard Lovell School in Oldland Common, which has fantastic facilities, including the courts used by Bitton Tennis Club.
It was the first time Ian had gone back school he left 32 years ago, although he still has close ties locally; his sister Sue lives in Bitton and his mum in Cadbury Heath. He admitted that the visit was emotional for him and his wife Kim, also an ex-pupil.
And no doubt two big school reunions taking place this month will reignite memories for many local people. Anyone who was a pupil (or taught) at any of the three schools in Oldland between 1950 and 1960 is invited to a reunion at SBL on October 22. Meanwhile pupils who started at Kingsfield (now King’s Oak Academy) in 1967 or 1968 are invited to a reunion also being held on that Saturday. Details of both events are on page 13.
Renovation work continues at the White Hart but we still had no firm completion date as we went to print. And in an interesting twist, a ‘To Let’ sign went up at the former Intier factory site the day before we went to print.
The derelict 24-acre site, which is earmarked for housing, recently changed hands. Could the ‘industrial premises’ there really be resurrected? It will no doubt be a subject for discussion at the residents’ association AGM, details of which are on page 22.