Somerleyton

Parish council - The annual meeting of the Ashby, Herringfleet and Somerleyton Parish Council took place on Thursday, May14. Simon Phillips, who served as chairman for 11 years, stepped down and was thanked for his hard work and presented with gift tokens. Carol Pike, who has acted as parish clerk for eight and a half years, also retired from her post. She too was warmly thanked and presented with flowers. John Shreeve was elected chairman, while the election of vice-chairman was carried over to the next meeting. The parish council is still seeking to fill the post of clerk. The various committees and representatives were reviewed and reorganised as necessary. There had been a large capital expenditure on Christmas lights and electricity without the agreement of the full council and this was queried. The new chairman explained that this had been an emergency measure taken the last minute and would not happen again. This meeting was followed immediately by the annual parish meeting. As police representatives were not in attendance the crime report was read out by councillor Paul Ashdown who was able to state that in April no crimes had been reported in any of the three parishes. Representatives for the various charities and village associations then read their reports and answered questions. The annual village barn dance takes place tomorrow in the barn at Waveney Grange farm from 7p.m. The Somerleyton Open Gardens event takes place on Sunday, June 14 from 12noon to 5pm, admission �3, with under 14's free. Tickets and maps will be available from Somerleyton Village Hall on the day. Refreshments and plants will be on sale. Proceeds are to go to the Ashby, Somerleyton and Herringfleet Churches. The Somerleyton school fete, with a Victorian theme, takes place on Saturday, June 20. The full minutes for both these meetings, together with the reports from the charities and associations, can be found on www.onesuffolk.co.uk/parishcouncils. The next meeting will be held on Thursday, July 2 at 7.15pm in the village hall.

Post office - Following their success at regional level, congratulations are due to Lynne Homer and the rest of the staff at Somerleyton post office for winning a national award for customer service and innovation. The branch has been crowned the best community post office in the UK. The shop was praised for expanding its services to include stocking local produce, an internet cafe and providing transport for elderly customers. Staff at the post office travelled to London to receive the People's Post Office award from BBC TV presenter Kate Silverton. Interviewed for BBC TV's Look East, sub-postmistress Lynne Homer, said: 'We believe in old-fashioned family values and our friendly staff always ensure every customer receives a trusted, honest and valued service that is synonymous with the post office. We are the real hub of this small rural community and our services extend beyond the post office counter offering.'

Church services - On Sunday a service of matins will be held at 9.30am in St Margaret's Church, Herringfleet.