Welcome to the Rippingale Newsletter for February.

As you will have noticed, the format has changed as we try to incorporate more into the limited space available and improve the 
reading experience. Of course, there will always be updates from the workings of the Parish Council but I would also like to reflect other varied activities taking place within the village.
Therefore, if you represent a group or club and would like to spread the word so that both old and new villagers are aware of your activities, please get in touch via the email contact on 
the back page. I would also welcome any individual suggestions and views on the development of our Newsletter going forward. In the meantime, a special thanks to the small 
team of individuals who cannot just press “send”, but willingly make the effort to deliver direct to your letterbox each month. 

Editor 

ST ANDREWS CHURCH RIPPINGALE NEWS        

                                                                                                                                                                                                          
Since the last newsletter we have had two services (Carol Service and Plough Sunday) both very well attended with a real community feel about them. 
The Carol service was a traditional type service of Lessons and Carols. All the lessons were read very expertly with traditional carols following. The first 
verse of ‘Once in Royal David’s City’ was sung as a solo by Thomas Langdon, performed so well and set a precedent for the whole service. Afterwards 
mulled wine and mince pies were enjoyed by all. 

The Plough Sunday was really a service of celebrations with the congregation of Gosberton Clough joining us, to not only celebrate Plough Sunday, but also the birthday of Lorna Webb, soon to become a Centenarian. Lorna has been part of both Churches most of her life and was able to contribute to the service by reading a lesson. The service was started off by Jonathan Newell and David Dickerson with the 
Revd. Ian Walters joining us bang on time to give an address. An introduction was given by Julia Lister who gave a brief account of how the Plough Service was reinstated at Rippingale 30 years ago 
by the late Derek Webb. During the service the plough is wheeled to the middle of the Church where it is blessed. Afterwards hot soup, French stick and loads of other nibbles were served, not forgetting the Birthday 
Cake of course! All in all, a memorable occasion for everybody. Thanks to everybody beavering away in the background to make it such a fantastic event - we are all so very grateful. As they say on TV, “In other News”, we have had 
moles digging merrily in the Churchyard without a Faculty. Fortunately, we have an enthusiastic member of the PCC who can catch them. Hence, the problem has been solved; fingers crossed. It’s amazing, if given the chance, what a mess they 
can make in a short space of time. 

COMMUNITY COFFEE MORNING 
As a way of being different we thought we would rebrand our Coffee Mornings. Although they will still be held in the Church we want to try an emphasise that this is open to everybody within the community and we want you to come and join us. It really is a social affair. Apart from coffee and biscuits there is fresh veg., all grown very locally and loads of freshly baked cakes available to purchase. 
NEXT COMMUNITY COFFEE MORNING TUESDAY 4TH FEBRUARY 2025 10.15AM 

 
Parish News    

February 2025 
As we all look forward to 2025, the Parish Council felt that it would be useful to share what it had accomplished in 2024 and its aspirations for 2025. 

Planning – During 2024, your councillors dealt with quite a few planning applications on your behalf; some in support, some without comment and some 
with strong objections. The Parish Council only has one “vote” when it comes to commenting on planning applications and remind residents that it is 
vitally important that each individual submit their own comments on the SKDC Planning portal. 

Flooding - The past few months have proved challenging in avoiding flooding within the village. In December a flood was averted by clearing of 
the grille adjacent to the Willows care home, twice in the early hours of the morning.    In January 2025, unfortunately the dyke was breached before one 
of the Flood Wardens and a volunteer cleared the grille at 5 am.   It seems that the flooding generally comes in the middle of the night!    

The Parish 
council would like to thank those that helped and ensured that a bigger issue was averted.   As a reminder, these are members of the community 
who volunteer to brave the elements for the benefit of the wider community.  Maintaining the dykes and vegetation growth, in addition to helping 
unblock drains that are covered in mud or leaves etc is something landowners and the wider community could assist with. Any help would be 
appreciated. 
The Parish Council realise that in comparison to other local villages, Rippingale has not been as seriously affected, as our issue is predominantly due 
to surface water. Your Parish Council is considering joining with other villages in an attempt to provide a co-ordinated approach to the various agencies 
that can assist with flooding issues, such as the Environmental Agency, SKDC, Black Sluice and Anglian Water. 

The Emergency plan is currently being updated and we are keen to hear from anyone who can help either by monitoring and clearing drains in 
their area, or in the event of an emergency. The most likely emergencies are floods or a major road traffic incident. We are keen to hear from people 
who would be able to assist filling in and distributing sand bags, and checking on the vulnerable etc. If you have a 4 x 4 or tractor and would Iike to 
volunteer, then please contact Cllr Creek. Also, if you think you have skills to help in the emergency hub, especially with medical skills etc, please 
contact Cllr Creek. 
On the subject of vehicular access, please could we ask everyone to avoid Station Street if there is a flood. If you must use Station Street, especially the 
area most adversely affected, by the Old Surgery, please slow down. There may be debris in the road, drain covers may have popped, and the wake 
created by traffic forces even more water into already affected houses.   In the last flood there was a lot of traffic in the affected area, but we do 
realise that there may have been significant through traffic due to flooding in surrounding villages. If it wasn’t for the selfless actions of only 2 or 3 
people in the village, the damage caused by flood water would be significantly worse, and we thank those people once again their sterling efforts and 
ask that they be supported in the future.

   
Cllr Tony Creek 

FEAST UPDATE 

Thanks to the enthusiasm of residents coming forward to help our community we have a new Feast Committee. In addition, we have more 
people willing to help to organize and run the Feast in 2025. The Committee is meeting mid-January to develop more detailed plans and we will keep 
you updated via the newsletter and social media.

    
Cllr Annette Lumb 

Youth Engagement – The Parish Council would like to create a committee of residents who are keen to involve our teenagers in plans for the village.  We 
are proposing an informal group to engage with our young people, to get their views, gauge their interest and involve them in planning of resources. 
This would feed into the more formal committee to feedback to the Parish Council.  If you are interested in being part of this, please email 
julesjonesrpc@gmail.com 

Vandalism – Unfortunately, vandals have once again targeted the Jubilee Playing Fields, where a bollard & padlock have been damaged/removed. 
A vehicle was driven on to the field and got stuck, creating damage to the surface which will need repairing. This has been logged with the police and 
we await their comments and actions.  Please could residents with any information regarding this mindless act please contact the Police or members 
of the Parish Council. Residents are asked to please understand that any unforeseen expenditure to repair damage will result in other planned work or 
activities not going ahead. The Parish Council has a fixed budget for the year and will not be able to cover such additional costs without reducing costs 
elsewhere.  Councillors want Rippingale to have good quality facilities for all residents to take advantage of and are actively looking to provide a Basketball hoop 
and net in the tennis court and new goal posts on the Playing Field. Mindless acts of vandalism mean that the Parish Council is having to re-consider 
these facilities, as the limited funds available are being spent on repair rather than improvement.   Please do not let the majority suffer for the actions 
of a small minority. This is your community. 

Cllr Barry Ross & Chris Catt 

Street Champions – At present, there appear to be groups of people with positive and helpful intentions toward the benefit of Rippingale as a 
whole, but there seems to be a lack of a forum to bring these ideas to fruition. Councillors hope that in the coming months we can identify and promote 
representatives of the many local groups of residents to come together to help improve the communication lines within Rippingale.  We have a 
great village here and with the help of these “Champions” we hope that our future will see that we can tackle all challenges with one voice.   

Cllr Jules Jones 

Legal advice – The Parish Council are in the process of moving its bank account to a new provider, but need some guidance regarding its 
legal position.  Can we ask for anyone with experience in this field to contact the Parish Clerk (rippingalepc@gmail.com).  We could also benefit 
from anyone with experience of “Deeds of Easement” in connection with the installation of a water supply to the Allotment site across an adjacent property 

Following discussions with Black Sluice Drainage Board, the work that was due to be carried out on the dyke/beck to the east of the railway line is now 
not going ahead. The dyke will be maintained on an 'as and when' required basis to ensure its safety is maintained. This is great news for the protection 
of natural habitats in that area. Further information about local habitats will hopefully follow in future 

Row Garden Allotment Group AGM Just a reminder to members of the Allotment Group that the AGM will be held in the Village Hall on 
Saturday, 1st February at 1030. We welcome all plot holders, whether members of the RGAG or not, to attend. One of the items on the agenda is 
preparation for the annual Open Day event in August. This year we are celebrating 20 years since the re-instatement of the allotments on land 
originally set aside for such use. If you would like any 
further details about the meeting, contact secretary, Iain: janeiain@yahoo.co.uk (07784 783235) 

THE 200 CLUB 
There will be 2 months of draws with February being the big one!! 
Jonathan 

Contacts
Laura Davies (Parish Clerk) rippingalepc@gmail.com 07880 496440 
Barry Ross (Chair, allotments, welcomepack, Neighbourhood Plan, Newsletter liaison, Emergency Plan & Flood Warden Coordinator) 
Chairmanrpc4@gmail.com   07740 151601 
Tony Creek (Vice Chair, Emergency team liaison, Flood response team, Finance supervisor) 
tonycreekrpc@gmail.com  07886 622349 
Chris Catt (Jubilee Playing Field, Play area & Tennis Court) 
c.cattrpc@outlook.com   07515 492936 
Annette Lumb (Dykes & Hedges, PC liaison, Feast liaison) 
annetterpcc@gmail.com 07658 803891 
Jules Jones (Village Hall liaison, Youth Engagement team leader, Street Champions co-ordinator) 
julesjonesrpc@gmail.com 07786 222421 
St Andrews Church, Rippingale 
Website; www.ringstonegroupchurches.org 
Jonathan Newell (Churchwarden) ripps.standrew@gmail.com 07771 825422 
Newsletter Contributions, Comments, enquiries:Rippingalenews@hotmail.com