Breakfast Morning Attendance was good at last month’s Breakfast Morning at the Village Hall. Whether it’s was the smell of bacon being carefully cooked by Ian or the aroma of freshly brewed coffee luring Villagers in, we are always glad to see you! Thank you for supporting this popular event. Village Hall Annual General Meeting You are invited to Shapwick Village Hall AGM on Tuesday 20th October at 7.30pm at the Village Hall. Do come along and hear what has been happening with your hall over the last year, and what’s in store for the next. 100 Club Winners June - Alan Ferbert, Nerina Scott; July- Stuart Dennes, Lorraine Davies August - Penny Jones, Jane Lavick Numbers are still available for the 100 Club, if you wish to join and support the running of the hall. It costs £12 per year. Please get in touch with one of the committee or email shapwickvh@gmail.com. And finally: see pages 1 and 8 for our upcoming Village Hall events! Harvest Supper 17 October --- Quiz/Fish and Chips night 27 November --- Christmas Wreath Making 5 December To book for all these events, call Bridget 210185 or Nerina 210329 Your paragraph text ext POLITE NOTICE – SHAPWICK VILLAGE HALL A concern throughout this year has been cars and vans parking within the village hall car park. The use of the village hall car park is for hirers of the hall and their immediate users or guests during the period of hire. It is a simple and straightforward rule that helps to attract hi ers and so reduce costs to villagers and users. Please encourage all to respect this rule. Shapwick Village Hall Committee AUTUMN I S SUE | OCTOBER 2 0 2 6 Finding it hard because the photos a bFlack and white? Find a flourition of Shapwick News at: https://www.shapwickparishcounci l.org.uk/parish-newsletters/ 3 Shapwick Village Hall BRIDGET DAWES, NERINA SCOTT Village Hall Secretary The village hall is looking for a secretary. Meetings are usually held quarterly or in conjunction with events. If this is something you believe you can help with, please contact one of the committee or email shapwickvh@gmail.com. From the Horse’s Mouth TRACEY LOCKYER The summer of 2026 has seen an outbreak of Bluetongue, starting in the Southwest, with disastrous results. Bluetongue is spread by midges. Cattle, sheep and goats are at risk. July saw the first signs of the disease spread through sheep in Devon: lameness, flu-like symptoms or sore mouths (which stop the animals eating). To confirm the disease a vet had to take a blood sample which could be sent to only one testing centre in the UK. The backlog meant that the results took 3 weeks to come back. By then the sheep were either showing signs of recovering or had unfortunately died. The only treatment is a live injection, which was in such short supply vets had to get supplies from overseas. This left many farmers waiting for three weeks for their animals to be treated. The price of the injection doubled due to demand and cost £5 per sheep at the peak. The injection is given under the skin, and it takes at least 14 days to provide protection. Locally, sheep in Ashcott and Westhay were tested positive. In Shapwick, we injected our sheep in July and thankfully they stayed free from the disease. In future, the animals will have to be treated annually. Currently there is no funding available nor compensation from DEFRA. There are ongoing impacts such as on breeding. It is believed the disease can cause fertility issues in both ewes and rams, and no one knows whether particular animals are affected until the scanning of the ewes after tupping. Many farmers in Devon, the worst hit area of the country, lost hundreds of sheep and lambs and this was heartbreaking to see. Transmission and replication of Bluetongue virus from Kula Jiro: Blue Tongue in Sheep: A Systemic Review (2016) Red: the most severely affected areas. Source: gov.uk Bluetongue outbreak 2026
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