Beckley & Area Community Benefit society Limited (BACBS)

CoronAvirus (covid-10) news flash

Pub closure: In light of the Government’s decision, The Abingdon Arms is now closed to customers. The good news is that the pub will now supply take-away food and drinks – see below. Take-away Sunday lunches will be available on Mother’s Day - Sunday, 22nd March.

‘More than a Pub’ programme: As you would expect, all scheduled ‘More than a Pub’ activities are cancelled or postponed until further notice, except possibly for modified community walks – please see below.

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The Abingdon Arms

Suzy, Alex and Vicky, our tenants at The Abingdon Arms, have developed the following plan in response to the Coronavirus crisis:

• Although now closed to in-house custom The Abingdon Arms will continue to trade, offering take-away meals and drinks.

• Customers who come to the pub to purchase take-aways will be expected to practise social distancing by avoiding close proximity to other customers, and by observing essential hygiene advice - including frequent thorough handwashing, and the 'Catch It, Bin It, Kill It' anti-germ policy.

• The Abingdon Arms now offers take-away meals, loaves of bread, and bottled drinks - see menus on “Coronavirus update” page of the pub’s website. Takeaway meals are available 12.00 – 2.30pm and 6.00 – 9.30pm, but check availability for Sunday evenings. Payment should be made by card at the time of order. If you are genuinely unable to collect your order because of enforced self-isolation or immobility, Suzy may be able to arrange delivery within the BACBS area.

• Take-away Specials may be offered in future weeks, e.g. a 'Pie Night'.

• Take-away bottled drinks can also be purchased - soft drinks, beers, ciders and wines. If you bring a suitable container, draught beers can also be provided.

• Of course, please stay at home if you have any symptoms.

• We will keep you informed as the situation develops – please see BACBS and pub websites: www.bacbs.org & www.theabingdonarms.co.uk/coronavirus-updates

In common with other local small businesses, The Abingdon Arms faces a very challenging future. BACBS will do everything we can to support Suzy, Alex, Vicky and their staff through this critical period. We have already given them a rent holiday, and will do more when needed. What can you do? Please make use of their new takeaway menus and encourage others to do so.

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Other local resources

The Village Shop in Stanton St John: (01865 351532 / www.stantonvillageshop.co.uk/) is offering delivery of grocery orders (preferably over £25) for customers who are self-isolated at home. Indeed, to focus on home delivery orders and to protect her own health, Rowan may close the shop to passing trade. Order by Monday for delivery later in the week please.

The Abingdon Arms collection point: Suzy has offered the pub as a delivery collection point for orders from the Stanton St John Village Shop. This could be particularly valuable for customers in Beckley, Elsfield, Noke, Woodeaton and Horton cum Studley.

Field View Farm Shop, Horton cum Studley: (01865 358933 / www.fieldviewfarmshop.co.uk) – Andy offers an excellent range of meats, pies and fresh vegetables.

Rectory Farm Shop, Stanton St John: (01865 351677 / Imogen 07976 126810 / www.rectoryfarmpyo.co.uk/) will open for the season on 2nd April, offering locally-sourced vegetables and fruit until their own produce becomes available. Home delivery to local villages may be possible. Come the spring, there should be no difficulty maintaining required social distancing while picking fruit out in the fresh air!

Islip Community Shop: (01865 375715 / islipvillageshop.org/) is open every day of the week (but see opening times on website) and sells a broad range of groceries and other essentials.

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New for this season! - BACBS ‘Even More than a Pub’ programme

All 'More than a Pub' activities are suspended until further notice. We will review eventual reintroduction of the programme in light of public health advice. However, we will now explore the possibility of introducing alternative forms of our community walks, arranged to comply with public health advice about maintaining a distance of at least 2 metres / 6 feet from one another, and ‘virtual’ talks.

Community walks: If there is interest, we might introduce short walks (30 minutes or so) from The Abingdon Arms car park once or more each week, finding routes which allow participants to walk with appropriate spacing, at least 2 metres apart. Dates and times will be posted on the BACBS website, or email Mike Hobbs at mike.jd.hobbs@gmail.com.

BACBS supports the following statement issued by the Ramblers:

Independent walking – Official Government advice states that, apart from people who are in households with symptoms or who have pre-existing health conditions that put them at increased risk of contracting COVID-19, going for a walk independently can continue and is an excellent way to maintain health and wellbeing - provided independent walkers stay more than two metres from others. We ask independent walkers to stay well within their limits, and to avoid any need to call on emergency services.

‘Virtual’ talks: We are exploring the possibility of streaming talks and interviews. This might allow us to feature some of the speakers who had been scheduled in the now cancelled MtaP programme. Further information will follow.

Community volunteers; One of the few good things to have come from the coronavirus crisis is the offer by a number of local residents, particularly younger adults, to help neighbours who are restricted by limited mobility and ‘self-isolation’ requirements, and to those who are ‘key workers’. This altruistic generosity is very welcome, and offers the prospect of communities emerging eventually from this dangerous period both stronger and more cohesive.

Volunteers have come forward in a number of villages in the BACBS area. In Beckley, volunteers have initiated a #Viralkindness group which is offering both practical help and support to neighbours, for example shopping, DIY, errands and telephone conversations. It will use both named individuals and the BACBS Good Neighbour Scheme phone as a first point of contact for general enquiries. The group is preparing a leaflet, describing sources of help and resources, that they will distribute throughout the village. Other villages will no doubt devise their own versions of this initiative.

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We are all in this together

This is a difficult and challenging time for us all, young and older alike. Enforced self-isolation, enforced home working, closed schools, challenged businesses, health threatened - never have we needed our communities so significantly. We’ve heard of some great community initiatives, including #Viralkindness (above) and the 11am daily ‘Covid Coffee’ outdoor meetings introduced in lower Church Street, Beckley.

At BACBS, we will play our part in supporting our community, and will be delighted to collaborate with others to ensure we come through this as best we can. So do come forward with your suggestions and initiatives – we would love to hear from you: please contact info@bacbs.org or mike.jd.hobbs@gmail.com.

We walk apart, but we stand together.

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