As Cambridge moved out of the November restrictions into the government’s ‘High Alert’ category this week, many local shops and restaurants have started to open again. Here are the previously-closed businesses where we’ve seen things happening so far! We’d recommend checking before going (most require pre-booking anyway).
The Queen Edith’s Community Food Hub (see below) is welcoming donations of Christmas puddings, commercially purchased and labelled, in a variety of sizes, to be distributed to its visitors. These can be dropped off, together with anything else you’d like to donate during this special time of year, at St James Church (Wulfstan Way) next Friday (11 December) between 3pm and 4:30pm.
American Express ‘Shop Small’ is back
If you have an American Express card, enrol it by 20 December 2020 and get £5 back when you spend £10 or more in a single in-store transaction at certain local businesses from tomorrow until that date. The refund just gets credited to your account. Participating businesses include Elajé, Double Seven, Eddie’s, Taj, Harpur’s Café, Numark Pharmacy, Sparkles, Go Glass, Maharani, Cambridge Wine Merchants, Cherry Box, Cambridge Re-Use, Express General Convenience Store, Khangs, New Winfield, The Queen Edith Pub and others. Learn more here.
Home delivery from Cambridge Fruit Company
Our local home delivery fruit and veg specialist The Cambridge Fruit Company can deliver up to the week before Christmas, and can also offer goose and turkey Christmas boxes if you want something really special on your Christmas dinner table. The company has been a magnificent supporter of local help initiatives this year, and online ordering from their website is very simple. More information in their latest newsletter here.
Latest Coronavirus news
There are still some misunderstandings around the government’s ‘High Alert’ (or ‘Tier 2’) restrictions which we are now under. Remember, indoors we can only meet with friends and family who we either live with, or have formed a support bubble with. Outdoors we can see those we do not live with but only in a group of no more than 6 – children count in this total.
This week’s Cambridge Independent front page story is worth reading. The director of public health for Cambridgeshire, Dr Liz Robin, says that the risk of catching the coronavirus will be increased by a mixture of households sitting around a table for Christmas dinner: “It is quite straightforward, really. This virus does flourish indoors and particularly in poorly ventilated environments.” She therefore recommends that “the safest thing to do is to meet outdoors.” If you don’t think that’s practical for your Christmas dinner, then do think very carefully about whether you really need a large gathering this year, despite it being permitted by the government.
The city’s Food Hubs, including the Saturday morning Queen Edith’s Community Food Hub, are operating as usual through the current restrictions.
Our local parks, playgrounds and community gardens are still open! This includes places such as the Nightingale Garden and Joy’s Garden.
Opening hours of local pharmacies, post office counters and banksare available on our site here. Please let us know of any changes.
Volunteer van drivers needed in the new year
Last year the Arthur Rank Hospice Charity picked up and composted over 2500 Christmas trees, raising over £36,000 for the Hospice! This year’s collection will be from 7–10 January, and the charity is looking for volunteer van drivers (preferably with vans!) and general help. There’s a video about the operation here and if you’d like to to help, please contact the Hospice’s fundraising team on 01223 675888 or email fundraising@arhc.org.uk.
Advent Wreath-making
St James Church will be handing out Advent wreath-making activity packs tomorrow afternoon (Saturday 5th December). Pop along to St James Church, Wulfstan Way between 1pm and 3pm to collect yours!
Escape to our online bookshop
Buying books for Christmas? Visit the Queen Edith’s Community Forum branded store at online seller Bookshop, and profits go straight to the Queen Edith’s Community Food Hub. Just like any other online store, but helping local people! This week’s recommendation list from our team is Sam’s books about cities, spaces and community. We could all do with some of that. Or browse the whole bookshop here.
Christmas at St James
St James church on Wulfstan Way has published a poster listing its various services over Christmas. It includes services on Sunday 20 December, as well as Christmas Eve (Thursday 24) and Christmas Day (Friday 25). Take a look here.
Police and crime information for the area
Cambridgeshire Constabulary has developed a new website showing a range of data on crime on this side of the city. There’s still some information to be filled in, but what’s already there is very interesting. You can visit the site here. Meanwhile, the latest police neighbourhood alert email mentions that there have been a number of catalytic converter thefts across Cambridgeshire in recent months. Toyotas and Hondas are high on the list, it would seem. There’s more information here.
How are your pavements?
Living Streets Cambridge is conducting a survey on the state of pavements in our city, in the hope of stimulating action to repair or improve them. It would help them to have as many responses as possible; you can name specific streets which have pavements in a poor state of repair or which are regularly blocked, and even include photographs. The survey can be found here.
Where should the County Council spend its money?
Cambridgeshire County Council expects to need to find savings in the region of £30million to balance next year’s budget. Financial support provided by the Government is not enough in the long term, so if the council cannot raise additional income, it will have to reduce the current levels of service. Our responses to a new survey will apparently help them think about this, so give it a go. You can find the survey here.
Sam’s talk about Queen Edith’s
If you missed it live, Camcycle last week offered Queen Edith’s Community Forum chair Sam Davies a chance to talk about what’s been going on in this community during 2020, and the full presentation – “The neighbourhood is the unit of social change” – is now available to watch on YouTube. It’s a really interesting watch for those interested in community issues in this neighbourhood.
Anthony Browne MP reports
Vaccines, the next Local Plan and East West Rail are all tackled in the latest newsletter from our MP. You can read it here.
Caretaker position at Morley School
Morley Memorial Primary School in Blinco Grove is looking for an Assistant Caretaker to work 3pm to 6pm on weekdays, all year round. You can find more details on the school’s job opportunities page here.
Light Cinema reopening
The Light Cinema at Cambridge Leisure will reopen next Friday, 11 December. The film lineup and times will be revealed on Monday but they tell us we can expect “some festive favourites plus some amazing new films too!” You can see a selection here.
Food Hub open tomorrow
The Queen Edith’s Community Food Hub remains open as usual every Saturday morning, with free fresh and packaged food supplies and household goods for anyone experiencing hardship. We really appreciate any food donations, which can be dropped off on Fridays. The full list of what we need is here.
The Food Hub is open to all, from 10.30am to 12.30pm every Saturday morning at St. James Church in Wulfstan Way.
St John’s Church on Hills Road has released its calendar of services for the remainder of Advent and Christmas. The full listing is here. You’ll need to book to attend the main Christmas services this year, as numbers attending are having to be limited. More details of services, booking information, information on how services at St John’s are COVID-19 safe, and a selection of resources and weekly reflections for Advent and Christmas are available at the church website.
A reminder that services for St James Church in Wulfstan Way can be found here.
‘Street Advent Calendars’
We’ve spotted several ‘street advent calendars’ as we’ve been out and about, with residents putting displays in their windows each day. These include Rathmore Road, Rock Road and Field Way. We love it when we see neighbours organising this sort of thing! Also look out for one of our local Queen Edith’s posties, Becks, who has decorated her trolley rather fetchingly for Christmas. Just some of the things to keep an eye out for if you’re walking around the area! More to follow next week.
Put up a poster for a ‘Christmas Hunt’
Following on from their successful Halloween Hunt, a group of local residents is planning a Christmas Hunt as a family activity between Christmas and New Year. They’re looking for volunteers to host an A3 or A2 poster in a window for a few days. You don’t need access to a printer – just a window to display the poster. Ideally these should be homes within a 15-20 minute walk of Queen Edith Primary School. Please get in touch if you can help.
Restaurants open this week
We’ve been doing our best to support local restaurants and takeaways. Social distancing and levels of cleanliness have been excellent at everywhere we’ve visited, but please remember that under the ‘High Alert’ tier in Cambridge, we can only eat out with people we live with. Here are some to try!
We’ve been nagging our three local pharmacies for holiday opening hours and have now got a full set for you, so here goes:
Numark pharmacy on Cherry Hinton Road has the longest hours by far and will be open on 24 December from 7am to 11pm; 26 December from 7am to 7pm; 27 December from 9am to 5pm; and 29/30/31 December from 7am to 11pm. It will be closed on 25 and 28 December and 1 January.
Boots pharmacy on Cherry Hinton Road is changing hands in the new year, and until then will only be opening Monday to Friday, 9am to 1pm. It will be closed on the Christmas Day, Boxing Day (Monday 28 December) and New Year’s Day bank holidays.
Kays Chemist on Wulfstan Way will be open on 24 December from 9am to 1pm and 2–6pm; 26 December from 9am to 1pm; and 29/30/31 December from 9am to 1pm and 2–6pm. It will be closed on 25, 27, 28 December and 1 January.
Post Office opening times over Christmas
Only the Essentialz Post Office, on Hills Road opposite Cambridge Leisure, has announced holiday hours. The counter will be open on 24 December from 8.30am to 5pm; on 27 December from 9am to 6pm; on 28/29/30/31 December from 8.30am to 7pm; and on 1 January from 9.30am to 5pm. It will only be closed on 25/26 December.
Food Hub Christmas dates
The Queen Edith’s Community Food Hub will be open across the holidays, thanks to your kind donations, but will be on Wednesdays instead of Saturdays in the two weeks over Christmas. Click here for the calendar of opening times and when you can drop off donations.
Latest Coronavirus news
We remain under the government’s ‘High Alert’ (or ‘Tier 2’) restrictions. Remember, indoors we can only meet with friends and family who we either live with, or have formed a support bubble with. Outdoors we can see those we do not live with but only in a group of no more than 6 – children count in this total.
For families with school-aged children who need additional support at this time, Cambridgeshire County Council has a Direct Food Voucher Scheme and additional support services. These are explained in this letter.
The city’s Food Hubs, including the Saturday morning Queen Edith’s Community Food Hub, are operating as usual through the current restrictions.
Our local parks, playgrounds and community gardens are still open! This includes places such as the Nightingale Garden and Joy’s Garden.
Next Friday (18 December), the National Trust will be releasing booking slots for many of its places over the Christmas and New Year weeks. They expect demand to be high! Blocks of tickets will be released throughout the day, so if slots haven’t appeared early on the 18 December, please check back later in the day. Local properties include Anglesey Abbey, Gardens and Lode Mill; Wicken Fen National Nature Reserve; and Wimpole Estate. More details here.
‘Coping with Christmas First Aid’ talk
The Patients Group of Queen Edith Medical Practice has a public talk online at 2pm next Wednesday (16 December) by Michele Conway, a committee member with First Aid teaching and practising qualifications. Michele will talk about the various hazards of Christmas (to persons of any age), how to treat them at home without a First Aid Kit, and when a hospital visit or an ambulance is required. She will also suggest some basics to keep at home for emergencies. To get the Zoom link, please email Alan Williams here.
Chicken owners – a bird flu outbreak warning
There is a serious bird flu outbreak in England and cases have been found in Cambridgeshire. We know that a number of local people keep hens, so please note that from next Monday (14 December) you must all follow new rules and keep your hens inside. This is the government (DEFRA) advice and this is the news from the National Allotment Society.
Please keep our pavements clear
Hilary, a co-ordinator of one of the area’s Neighbourhood Watch schemes, would like to draw attention to how we can all can make it easier for people to walk around our streets. You can read Hilary’s letter here.
Web chat from Cambridgeshire Police
Cambridgeshire Constabulary reminds us that for reporting non-emergency items, they have a web chat facility on their website. Use this to have a text-based chat with an operator. Visit their website and click the green speech bubble.
Cambridge Arts Theatre Panto is back!
It’s a little out of our area, being in the city centre, but we couldn’t resist letting you know that Cambridge Arts Theatre is back on stage, with a “Socially Distanced Panto Themed Adventure”, starting today and running until 3 January. Yes, it’s live theatre but suitably ‘COVID-safe’. Dave Murphy from the theatre says: “This is us putting our best foot forward at the end of the most challenging year in our history. Amidst the COVID gloom I can promise you laughter, panto madness, feel-good songs, familiar faces and some much-needed festive cheer. Please join us for the fun.” Find out more about Dame Trott’s Panto Palaver here.
Christmas offers at Cambridge Wine Merchants
Our favourite local wine, spirits and beer shop, Cambridge Wine Merchants on Cherry Hinton Road, has a huge list of special offers for Christmas. They include £10 off some top-class champagne and £7 off a Tim Smith Reserve Shiraz 2014 from Australia. Full details here.
Volunteer Walk Leaders wanted
Cambridge City Council’s Active Lifestyles Team is looking to recruit volunteers to set up and lead group walks in their local areas. Full training is provided to volunteers as well as ongoing support. Walks can be on a weekly, fortnightly or monthly basis, depending on how much time you are able to commit. Being a Walk Leader is a great way to meet new people and connect with your local community and it gives you a great excuse to get active outdoors on a regular basis. We used to have one of these walks on Nightingale Recreation Ground, and it would be great to see it back. To find out more, email the Active Lifestyles Team.
Light Cinema reopening with pizza offer
The Light Cinema at Cambridge Leisure reopened today, 11 December. And here’s a treat: from next Wednesday (16 December) enjoy a delicious handmade pizza, a ticket to any film, and a glass of wine/beer/soft drink for just £15! Tickets for the epic Wonder Woman 1984 are on sale now, along with a tonne of festive favourites including Peter Duncan’s Jack & The Beanstalk. See the full what’s on list here.
Food Hub open tomorrow
The Queen Edith’s Community Food Hub remains open as usual every Saturday morning*, with free fresh and packaged food supplies and household goods for anyone experiencing hardship. We really appreciate any food donations, which can be dropped off on Fridays*. The full list of what we need is here.
Huge thanks this week to Cambridge Water for their donation. We continue to be immensely grateful for the generosity of local agencies and businesses.
The Food Hub is open to all, from 10.30am to 12.30pm every Saturday morning* at St. James Church in Wulfstan Way.
*Note: The Food Hub will be open across the holidays but will be open on Wednesdays instead of Saturdays in the two weeks over Christmas. Click here for the calendar of opening times and when you can drop off donations.
The Queen Edith’s Community Forum is delighted to have collected artwork from local artists and from children at Queen Emma school, which we will be mounting outside Wulfstan Way shops and at Joy’s Garden in Baldock Way from tomorrow. They’ll be there for everyone to enjoy over the holiday period. Thanks to everyone who contributed.
Christmas at St James and St John’s
St James Church on Wulfstan Way and St John’s Church on Hills Road have Christmas services on Sunday, on Christmas Eve and on Christmas Day. Some require pre-booking this year, as numbers attending are having to be limited. More details here:
St James Church and St John’s Church are both broadcasting services online for us to watch at home, including on TV. Sunday’s Carol service at St James is on Zoom, as is the Christmas Day service. Please email the vicar Steve Rothwell here for details. St John’s will be live-streaming its Carol Service this Sunday at 6pm here, as well as Midnight Mass from 11.30pm on Christmas Eve. It also has a pre-recorded carol service and Christmas Day service to watch at your leisure. Those are – or will be – available here. Don’t forget that if you get TV through Sky Q or Virgin Media, there’s a YouTube channel or app – you can find the St John’s services by searching for ‘st johns hills road’.
‘Street Advent Calendars’
The ‘street advent calendar’ in Hinton Avenue – one of several in the area – is featured as a news story in this week’s Cambridge Independent newspaper, available at local newsagents such as Cherry Hinton Mini Market on Cherry Hinton Road, near Rock Road; the Daily Store on the corner of Cowper Road; or Megha Traders on Wulfstan Way. We understand that the street is also having some socially distanced carol singing! Several other streets have joined in with the advent calendar window decorating idea, and it’s great to see!
Latest Coronavirus news
We remain under the government’s ‘High Alert’ (or ‘Tier 2’) restrictions. Remember, indoors we can only meet with friends and family who we either live with, or have formed a support bubble with. Outdoors we can see those we do not live with but only in a group of no more than 6 – children count in this total.
For families with school-aged children who need additional support at this time, Cambridgeshire County Council has a Direct Food Voucher Scheme and additional support services. These are explained in this letter.
The city’s Food Hubs, including the Saturday morning Queen Edith’s Community Food Hub, are operating as usual through the current restrictions.
Our local parks, playgrounds and community gardens are still open! This includes places such as the Nightingale Garden and Joy’s Garden.
The Nightingale Garden elves have been having fun decorating the garden for winter. They hope it will be a welcoming place for people to meet friends and family over the next few days and weeks. You’ll find the garden on your right if you enter Nightingale Recreation Ground through the car park entrance. More details here.
Adventure Trail for kids
Cambridge City Council’s Active Families Project has installed an adventure trail for children aged 4 to 11 years on Nightingale Recreation Ground. It should take 45 to 60 minutes and they promise it’s great fun! You’ll need to download Wildgoose’s Mobile Adventures app to your smartphone – it’s available free from Google Play and the App Store. There’s more information here, including a video, and an instruction sheet here.
Worts Causeway housing estate plans update
There’s a major update from the developers of the 200-home Netherhall Farm housing estate being built between Worts’ Causeway and Beaumont Road. This “addresses the outstanding comments” received and proposes a number of changes. Queen Edith’s News editor Chris Rand has put all the links on his Queen Edith’s Online website, and opened up a discussion, which you can find here.
Restaurants open this week
We need to support our local restaurants and takeaways. Social distancing and levels of cleanliness have been excellent at everywhere we’ve visited, but please remember that with the ‘High Alert’ tier operating in Cambridge, we can only eat out with people we live with. Here are some restaurants to try!
A reminder of our three local pharmacies’ holiday opening hours:
Numark pharmacy on Cherry Hinton Road has the longest hours by far and will be open on 24 December from 7am to 11pm; 26 December from 7am to 7pm; 27 December from 9am to 5pm; and 29/30/31 December from 7am to 11pm. It will be closed on 25 and 28 December and 1 January.
Boots pharmacy on Cherry Hinton Road is changing hands in the new year, and until then will only be opening Monday to Friday, 9am to 1pm. It will be closed on the Christmas Day, Boxing Day (Monday 28 December) and New Year’s Day bank holidays.
Kays Chemist on Wulfstan Way will be open on 24 December from 9am to 1pm and 2–6pm; 26 December from 9am to 1pm; and 29/30/31 December from 9am to 1pm and 2–6pm. It will be closed on 25, 27, 28 December and 1 January.
Queen Edith’s Christmas Hunt
Local residents have organised a Christmas Hunt around Queen Edith’s, to keep children entertained. It will run between Boxing Day (26th December) and New Year’s Eve. It’s a good excuse to get some fresh air and work off the excesses of Christmas! Use the map to find festive objects and unlock a magic phrase to help a lost elf find his way back to the North Pole. You will probably need to complete the hunt over two walks (or use a bike).
The Barclays Bank branch on Cherry Hinton Road has now closed permanently, including its cashpoint. The Lloyds Bank branch opposite remains open, with its cashpoint, and there are also cashpoints at Cambridge Leisure.
Food Hub Christmas dates
The Queen Edith’s Community Food Hub will be open across the holidays, thanks to your kind donations, but will be on Wednesdays instead of Saturdays in the two weeks over Christmas. Click here for the calendar of opening times and when you can drop off donations.
Wonder Woman 1984 – on every day at the Light cinema all over the holidays
Light Cinema Christmas film season
The Light Cinema at Cambridge Leisure is fully open again, with the biggest selection of Christmas films we’ve ever seen, as well as the big new releases. The lineup includes A Christmas Carol, A Christmas Gift from Bob, Christmas at Claridge’s, Christmas Mystery, Come Away, Die Hard, Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch U, Dreamland, Elf, Gremlins, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Home Alone, Home Alone 2, How The Grinch Stole Christmas, It’s a Wonderful Life, Katherine Jenkins: Christmas Spectacular, Last Christmas, Let Him Go, Love Actually, Mank, Miracle on 34th Street, Nativity!, Peter Duncan’s Jack & The Beanstalk, ROH: The Nutcracker, Space Dogs: Return To Earth, Superintelligence , The Greatest Showman, The Grinch, The Holiday, The Midnight Sky, The Muppet Christmas Carol, The Nutcracker, White Christmas and of course Wonder Woman 1984.See the full what’s on list here.
The Snow Queen in your living room
Cambridge Junction’s Christmas show runs from this Sunday – direct to your living room. Suitable for ages 5+, The Snow Queen is a brand new family adventure which has been filmed especially to be watched in your home. One ticket is required per screen. Once you have the link, you can view the film at anytime until Sunday 3 January. Get involved and play along with the film using the accompanying downloadable activity pack. ‘Pay What You Feel’ tickets are from £2.50 per screen. More details and watch the trailer here.
Food Hub open tomorrow
The Queen Edith’s Community Food Hub will be open across the holidays, thanks to your kind donations, but will be brought forward to Wednesdays instead of Saturdays in the two weeks over Christmas. Click here for the calendar of opening times and when you can drop off donations. with free fresh and packaged food supplies and household goods for anyone experiencing hardship. We really appreciate any food donations, which can be dropped off on Fridays*. The full list of what we need is here.
Huge thanks this week to Anglia Ruskin University, Queen Emma and Queen Edith Primary Schools, and the 27th Cambridge Scouts for their generous collection and donations of food. We continue to be immensely grateful for the generosity of local organisations and businesses.
The Food Hub offers free food and supplies for any local households in need.
We’ve published a day earlier than usual this week, as you’ll probably have better things to do on Christmas Day than read emails. Happy Christmas from all your friends and neighbours at the Queen Edith’s Community Forum!
Latest Coronavirus news
As you’ll doubtless have heard, after the Christmas Day break, we are being moved to the government’s ‘Stay at Home’ (or ‘Tier 4’) restrictions. This means we should not leave our homes or gardens without a ‘reasonable excuse’, such as:
Work and volunteering
Essential shopping and food collection
Education and childcare
Visiting people in a support bubble
Providing informal childcare
Outdoor exercise and recreation
Medical reasons and compassionate visits
Communal worship and life events
In general, we must not meet socially with anyone from outside our homes, although we can exercise or visit a public outdoor place with one person from another household. We are not allowed to meet socially indoors with family or friends who are not part of our household or support bubble. Full government guidance – including travel information – can be found here.
Businesses required to close which we have in Queen Edith’s include theatres, concert venues, cinemas, museums and galleries, ‘non-essential’ shops, betting shops, cafés, restaurants, pubs, hotels, indoor gyms, indoor swimming pools, indoor sports courts, indoor fitness and dance studios, indoor climbing walls, amusement arcades, bowling alleys, hairdressers, beauty salons, tattoo parlours and community halls.
Art brightening up the area
After all that gloomy news, at least Queen Edith’s is looking great for Christmas! Volunteers have been posting up a gallery of seasonal art by the children of Queen Emma school and other local residents, at Joy’s Garden and at Wulfstan Way shops. And the residents of many streets have been decorating their windows as ‘street advent calendars’. If you haven’t seen any of this street art, you can get an idea of what it’s like in our photo galleries below. And you’re very welcome to take a look when out for a walk.
The Christmas tree at Wulfstan Way shops can also be seen in the photo gallery above, but sadly we weren’t able to get the electricity supply fixed in order to get the proper lights on this year. However, if you’re passing, how about adding your own bauble to the tree? We’ll keep them all safe, and you’ll be able to spot yours on the tree next year!
Queen Edith’s Christmas Hunt
Local residents have organised a Christmas Hunt around Queen Edith’s, to keep children entertained. It will run from this Saturday (26th December) until New Year’s Eve. It’s a good excuse to get some fresh air and work off the excesses of Christmas, and Tier 4 compliant in family groups! Use the map to find festive objects and unlock a magic phrase to help a lost elf find his way back to the North Pole. You will probably need to complete the hunt over two walks (or use a bike).
St James Church and St John’s Church are both broadcasting services online for us to watch at home, including on TV. The Christmas Day service at St James is on Zoom; please email the vicar Steve Rothwell here for details. St John’s will be live-streaming Midnight Mass from 11.30pm on Christmas Eve (tonight). This will be available here.
Do you know of a project that needs a grant?
Sam Davies writes: Every year, Cambridge City Council offers ‘Area Committee grants’, funding for activities “which reduce social and/or economic inequality.” Queen Edith’s generally fares poorly in getting these, compared to adjoining wards. One way of changing this might be to put in a wider range of applications, so here at the Queen Edith’s Community Forum, we thought we’d co-ordinate ideas. What do you think? Have a read of the sort of thing the council will fund, and if you’ve got any ideas, let us know by email. We’ll put in the application in January, but we need your ideas for the activities and services that the area could do with.
Robin Hood junction improvements
The crossroads at the Robin Hood pub will be getting its planned upgrade in the new year, with work starting on 18 January and scheduled to last until mid-May. Under the new £1.25M scheme, all arms of the junction will feature pedestrian crossings and red advance cycle boxes. More details here.
Visit Nightingale Garden over the holiday period
Nightingale Garden will be a welcoming place to visit over the holidays – it will be open every day. You’ll find the garden on your right if you enter Nightingale Recreation Ground through the car park entrance.
Morley Winter Walking Quiz
The Friends of Morley School have also created a local quiz. “Grab your clip-boards, pencils and a family member”, they say, “and take a walk around our local area to answer our questions. Keep your eyes open and try to spot the five cheeky Morley elves on your walk!” You can get the questions here.
Bin Collections
Bin collections next week and the week after will be at least one day later than usual, and normal collection days will not return until mid-January. In addition, green bin collections have moved to monthly for the winter. More details on the changes here and your personalised bin timetable can be found here. Please tell your immediate neighbours.
Community donations to Addenbrooke’s
Simon Eggleton, manager of The Marque Co-op, has again been declared a ‘Community Star’ by the Red Cross Area Residents Association, after helping RARA deliver gifts from residents and Re-Use to the children’s wards and staff at Rosie and Addenbrooke’s Hospitals. Here are just some of the bags being received by a very delighted Manager of Therapeutic Play, Stephanie Fairbain (right). Lu and Jo, RARA’s co-ordinators, were also able to give out boxes of mince pies to neighbours, kindly donated by the Co-op.
Pharmacy opening times over Christmas
A reminder of our three local pharmacies’ holiday opening hours:
Numark pharmacy on Cherry Hinton Road has the longest hours by far and will be open on 24 December from 7am to 11pm; 26 December from 7am to 7pm; 27 December from 9am to 5pm; and 29/30/31 December from 7am to 11pm. It will be closed on 25 and 28 December and 1 January.
Boots pharmacy on Cherry Hinton Road is changing hands in the new year, and until then will only be opening Monday to Friday, 9am to 1pm. It will be closed on the Christmas Day, Boxing Day (Monday 28 December) and New Year’s Day bank holidays.
Kays Chemist on Wulfstan Way will be open on 24 December from 9am to 1pm and 2–6pm; 26 December from 9am to 1pm; and 29/30/31 December from 9am to 1pm and 2–6pm. It will be closed on 25, 27, 28 December and 1 January.
The Snow Queen in your living room
Cambridge Junction’s Christmas show has been filmed especially to be watched in your home. Suitable for ages 5+, The Snow Queen is a brand new family adventure. Get involved and play along with the film using the accompanying downloadable activity pack. ‘Pay What You Feel’ tickets are from £2.50 per screen. More details and watch the trailer here.
Food Hub open next Wednesday
The Queen Edith’s Community Food Hub offers free fresh and packaged food supplies and household goods for anyone experiencing hardship. It is operating across the holidays, thanks to your kind donations, but will be next open on Wednesday (30 December) and not on Saturday 26 December.
We really appreciate any food donations, which can be dropped off the day before (see calendar above). The full list of what we need is here. Thanks this week to Express General Convenience Store on Wulfstan Way for their support.
Chris Rand
