April 2016 Newsletter

A round up of news and views

Grow Your Own Drugs - Herbal Remedy Workshop, Saturday 14th May, 10am to 3.30pm -  We have invited herbal expert Helen Ellis to share some of her skills with us. Helen practices European herbal medicine, her knowledge is grounded in the scientific understanding of plant properties. She is a member of the National Institute for Medical Herbalists and can prescribe herbal remedies to support your health. The cost will be £15 for this 1 day course, the price includes the jars, labels, infused oils and ointments that you will need to store the herbal remedies. Please bring a 'bring-and-share' lunch. Contact us via food@transitionmarlborough.org to book your place.

Air Quality in Marlborough- Claire Perry, M.P. has responded to our letter regarding this issue and has offered to chair a meeting between Wiltshire Council's Sustainable Transport Officers and other interested parties to try to come up with a solution that would reduce congestion on the A346.  She says that 'the situation may become intolerable when the Salisbury Road development progresses'.  Something that WC refused to accept at the recent public inquiry. In the meatime, we have submitted an Air Quality Action Plan (based on the outcome of the public meeting) to the Area Board and await their approval. The recent report on air quality, by a cross-party committee of MP's, described air pollution in the UK as a 'public health emergency' and called for the government to give more powers to local authorities so that they can ban polluting vehicles and create more 'clean air zones' in towns and cities.       

EU Referendum Question and Answer Session, Friday 27th May, 7pm at St Peter's Church - Two of our MEPs will be in town to answer your questions: Dr Molly Scott Cato (Green Party) and Dr Julia Reid (UKIP). Rev Canon Andrew Studdert-Kennedy will chair the session - it promises to be an extremely lively evening!

Free entry, but you can reserve places here: www.MEPs-in-Marlborough.eventbrite.co.uk

The Permaculture Group meets Marlborough in Bloom! - The Permaculture Group have been invited to take part in this year's Marlborough in Bloom event. We are planning to plant up 3 wooden tubs with edible and bee-friendly plants.  Two of the tubs are outside the RSPCA shop, on the south side of the High Street, so are in shade for most of the day.  This means that we will need lots of shade-loving edible plants that we can plant out by the end of May.  Please let us know via permaculture@transitionmarlborough.org if you can help.

Climate Aid 2016 in Bradford on Avon, Sunday May 15th - Fancy a fun day out for a good cause?  Wiltshire and Swindon Climate Action Network (WiltSCAN) are holding a musical event at the Wiltshire Music Centre, as well as a communal picnic, stalls and children's activities organised by the Witshire Wildlife Trust and live folk music, including the Yirdbirds and the Massed Youth Climate Choir, from 1pm. This event celebrates local successes and raises awareness about what we can all do to play our part in combatting climate change! Tickets cost £12 or £8 for under 16s.  Find out more here... 

Thanks

The Transition Marlborough team