- Probus Club Report
- Crime Prevention Bulletin December 2020
- Rotary Roundup November 2020
- Basingstoke Voluntary Action – Members Update
Probus hears a story of Tilting at Windmills 
The classic book by Cevantes about the Spanish romantic, Don Quixote, who, thinking they were giants, futilely attacked the sails of windmills, has some similarities with the experience of Probus Club of Basingstoke member, Dave Kitson.
Some years ago. Dave and wife Jennifer, bought a house in Kent, moving from Teignmouth in Devon. They owned a motor home that they wanted to tour around Europe so moved to be close to the Channel ports.
However, the house had an interesting extension – a windmill. Known as Stanford Mill it had been built in 1857 as a corn mill. It was a tower construction of five storeys with four sails that drove a cast iron windshaft and had four pairs of millstones, two steel mills and two roller mills. Milling ceased in 1969.
The ravages of time meant that by the time of their purchase the sails had been removed and a corrugated asbestos roof built over the cap frame. But it was also Grade 2 listed which brings all the authoritarian problems should any owner wish to make any changes.
However, Dave thought it possible to make the place presentable and usable as an annexe to the house even if it was not permissible to make it a separate dwelling. Hoping for some assistance from Kent CC he was to be disappointed by their lack of support. He made enquiries about the background to the mill and had drawings made of its original features.
There was a lot of original machinery in the mill, which also had protected status, but some of the floorboards and ladders were rotten or missing. These should have lasted more than the 150 years the mill had been standing but there was an inherent problem of severe damp in the mill. Old photographs show that the mill had been coated with bitumen trying to prevent the ingress of water.
One day when working at the top of the mill Dave heard someone coming up one of the aluminium ladders he had propped up to replace one of the rotting fixed wooden ones, but there was nobody there. Spooky. Aluminium ladders make a distinctive squeaking noise, so he was beginning to think, ghost? A haunted mill? Surely not. After some time, still mystified he descended via the same squeaky ladder to the outside and then heard the same noise. It came from a man on an aluminium ladder painting the outside of a house but some 70 metres away and yet in the mill it sounded almost behind him.
Standing so long and so visible there were many occasions when the mill came under some form of attack. The solid construction of the mill stood it in good stead in the first World war when a passing Zeppelin dropped a bomb, presumably aiming at the nearby railway, instead landing nearby and caused a split in the brickwork on the ground floor.
Windmills were always getting struck by lightning and Stanford Mill was no different. When Dave and Jennifer were abroad in their motorhome a lightning strike did no discernable damage to the mill but the electric cables between the house and the mill blew out many of the power sockets in the house. This caused a small fire on the carpet in the lounge, which fortunately, extinguished itself.
Another time there was a local earthquake which left the sturdy mill undamaged but separated some of the partition walls from the outer brick skin of the house.
Enough was enough for Dave and Jennifer and when their daughter announced that she was pregnant they decided to move to Basingstoke to be near to her. But selling the house, complete with a potentially problem windmill, did not present any difficulties with the buyer wanting to take possession as quickly as possible. Perhaps he had deep pockets if the mill was to be brought back to some usable condition. Windmills may stand proudly on the landscape but, as Dave Kitson will attest, could need bottomless pits of money for their upkeep.
Update from the Force Crime Prevention Team
Bonfire Night and Fireworks
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Test and Trace Scams
The new NHS COVID-19 app is the only official contact tracing app for England and Wales.
Criminals may call claiming to be from Test and Trace to obtain personal information or ask for payments to send out tests. Find out more at covid19.nhs.uk
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Lights On as the nights are getting darker
Thieves can target homes that look empty, don’t make an empty home easier to find when it’s dark outside.
For improved home security, consider the following:
- Leave lights on to make your home look occupied
- Invest in timers that automatically switch lamps and devices on and off
- Gadgets are available that turn your main lights on and off
- Help lower your bills with energy saving light bulbs
- Thieves target homes that look empty
- Shut and lock all windows and doors when going out
- Only tell people you trust when going away
- Now you’ve protected your home, share the advice with family and friends
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Keeping children safe on Netflix
Netflix have collaborated with the internet safety charity SWGfl and the UK Safer Internet Centre to create a checklist of parental controls which include:
- How to set up children’s accounts
- How to add maturity ratings
- How to block shows
- How to lock profiles
- How to turn autoplays on and off
- How to access viewing history
Take a moment to look at the guide and ensure appropriate parental controls have been added.
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Email Scams
Action Fraud have had an increase in reports of various email scams from seemingly trusted organisations, these could be from:
- DVLA – claiming that your vehicle is no longer taxed
- HMRC – either offering financial support as a result of coronavirus or claiming that you are entitled to a tax refund
- Amazon – claiming there is an issue with your account
Do not click on any links within a suspicious email. Your bank, or other official organisation, won’t ask you to share personal information over email. If you need to check it is genuine, call them directly on a number obtained from their official website (do not follow any links to their website from the email).
You can also forward on any suspicious emails to the Suspicious Email Reporting Service (SERS) Report@phising.gov.uk
Rotary Roundup – December 2020
We wish you all a very Happy Christmas and a healthy and safe 2021
It has been a very different year for all of us and we must all hope for a return to more normal times next year
Rotary Christmas Shoeboxes
A huge ‘Thank you’ to all the generous local people who donated Shoeboxes for our annual Christmas appeal. It’s been challenging to get close to our usual numbers but by the time you read this the boxes will be on their way to give some seasonal cheer to under privileged children overseas. Rotarians from the UK and the destination country oversee the shipment until the children receive the boxes. A Romanian lady, now living in Basingstoke, told us of the joy she experienced as a child on receiving a Rotary Christmas shoebox, her first ever present. Look on YouTube to find video clips by Malcolm Dent about shoeboxes from our Rotary district
“A Healthier Hampshire in a Heartbeat”
Can you help Basingstoke Deane Rotary provide improved Cardiac Service at Basingstoke Hospital?
Rotary has already raised a substantial amount of money towards purchasing equipment that will treat Atrial fibrillation (a debilitating condition) but we still need your help for the final push to make this happen and achieve our goal to improve the lives of the numerous local people with this type of heart condition. Presently patients travel to Southampton for this essential treatment. With this equipment they can be treated in Basingstoke.
Find out more on our website: www.rcbd.org.uk
Still time to donate, go to: https://www.gofundme.com/f/a-healthier-hampshire-in-a-heartbeat
‘CHRI
STMAS CORONA QUIZ’
Below are clues to Christmas anagrams (number of words in brackets) and cryptic clues to Christmas Carols
1. To wishy washy, rare crummies (6)
2. Manage rain way (4)
3. Troubledly trim me (3)
4. Tinsel two (3)
5. This warm ethics (2)
6. Kneel dottily (2)
7. Jill begs len (2)
8. Sweet gherkin (3)
9. Dug maintain petrochemical (6)
10. In the glints (6,5)
11. Jubilation to the terrestrial globe.
12. Noise injunction 8.00pm to 6.00am.
13. Small equus africanus asinus.
14. Miss Willoughby + Hedera genus.
15. Was the earliest Edmonds or Gallagher?
16. Listen, celestial messenger is vocalising.
17. Summon twice footballer Adebayor.
18. Removed in an animal feeding trough.
19. Summon the entirety of believers.
20. Mr Beckham’s only visit to this noble place
Answers will be on our website and Facebook after Christmas
Basingstoke Deane Rotary is a group of 35men & women from a wide variety of backgrounds. All live locally in the borough but some commute to work outside Basingstoke. Most joined Rotary to help others less fortunate, and they find Basingstoke Deane Rotary adds another extremely enjoyable dimension to their lives.
If you would like to find out more about how we enjoy ourselves, just tune in to www.rcbd.org.uk to see what we have coming up, or contact Helen or Paul above to find out more . We think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Facebook: @RotaryBasingstokeDeane
Twitter: @RBstokeDeane
Basingstoke Voluntary Action – Members Update
Member’s Update – 13th November 2020 BVA
Annual Member Survey…
Help us Help You!
BVA need your help! You will have received the BVA digital AGM pack which had a link to our annual member survey. Please take a moment to complete the survey. As valued members of BVA, your feedback is vital to us!
Covid-19 Updates…
For your Information!
Given the current restrictions, we are keen to promote safe service delivery over the current lockdown. Please think about the services you deliver, whether that be face to face or otherwise. Can you deliver these differently, by phone? Online?
B&D Community Lottery…
Sign up now!
There’s still time to sign up for the community lottery and help support your local organisations! Our first draw takes place on 28th November 2020, so support our local community now to be in with the chance to win up to £25,000 every draw!
Voluntary Sector Forum…
Be Sure to Register!
The next VSF will take place Wednesday, November 18th 2020 10:00 to 11:30 via Zoom. We will be joined by Neil Morrow, who will be giving an update on the Basingstoke and Deane Community Lottery/ BOSS scheme and Carol Bode, who will be answering questions about the AGM.
Hampshire Adult’s Health and Care…
Did You Know?
Members of BVA and community groups attended a Zoom presentation to understand the work of Adults’ Health and Care in Hampshire and Connect to Support. This sessions aim was to talk about how Adults’ Health and Care in Hampshire is structured.
Basingstoke Voluntary Action
The Orchard, White Hart Lane, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 4AF
www.bvaction.org.uk | contact@bvaction.org.uk