Parish Council Meeting: Thursday 2 December

The next Parish Council meeting will be held on Thursday 2 December at 8pm in the village hall. This will follow a detailed risk assessment to ensure everyone’s safety. Any member of the public who would like to raise an issue to be discussed at this meeting should contact the Clerk.

Numbers who can attend this meeting are limited so any member of the public who particularly needs to speak to the Parish Council must register with the Clerk prior to the meeting and be prepared to follow the safety measures which are in place. Contact details are: Lisa Lathane, Clerk to the Parish Council:

Carols near The Christmas Tree on The Green, Sunday 5 December 6.00pm

The Preston Trust committee invite you all to come along to this village event. You may have noticed that a decorated Christmas tree is already in position, outside The Red Lion.

Ray and Jo have once again kindly agreed to prepare the mulled wine and mince pies, the juice and nibbles.(Including some “free from” alternatives for those with allergies) The winners from the JMI School’s Christmas Competition will switch on the tree lights at c. 6.10pm. A group of five outstanding instrumentalists, led by Richard Cole, will then accompany us all to sing five lovely familiar carols. Carol sheets will be available to help us remember the words! For those of you who prefer technology the carols will be available to download onto your phones or to access from the Village website www.prestonvillageherts.com/christmas-carols

Those of you who would like to will also have the opportunity to buy tickets for the raffle to be drawn at the Film Show on the 8th of January.

Rather than crowding too many people into The Red Lion, the Preston Trust will provide several gazebos on the pub side of The Green, if the weather looks to be wet and chilly.

Thus, wrap up warm, bring your torches and phones, and come along to join in, please. This is always a simple enjoyable way to start the Christmas season. We look forward to seeing you there!

St Martin’s Church and All Saints’ Church Services

Team Vicar of St Paul’s Walden with Preston:

A Letter From Our Team Vicar

St Martin’s Church 120 Club Draw 2020/2021

The winners in the November draw in the 2021/22 120 Club (£30 each) were:

No. 71 Mr & Mrs R Bowden
No. 103 Mrs W Woods

Neighbourhood Watch

Clearing of Twigs and Leaves

The Parish Council and the Preston Trust would like to ask for your assistance with a further clearing of twigs and leaves on The Green and around the Pond, on SATURDAY, 4 DECEMBER at 10.00am until c. 12.00 noon. This will help rain and sunlight to reach and strengthen the grass sward.

Please bring your own rakes,or if you have any spare, you don’t mind others using,those too. Could anyone with a leaf blower tool come and help us, please? Or could you loan us the tool, please?

We will have bags and buckets to collect up the twigs and leaves, as previously.

We will look forward to seeing some of you on the 4th, please!

Hitchin Foodbank Shortages

Thank you for your continued support, all donations are welcome; the following items are the most urgently needed due to recent strong demand:

UHT Milk Longlife [not skimmed]; Juice Longlife; Jam/Marmalade; Dried Potatoes; Dried Milk; Sponge Puddings.

Please ensure items are undamaged and in date. Donations can be deposited in the blue box in the garage at Lychgate House, Church Lane, or at Waitrose and Sainsbury’s.

For more information please visit letchworth.foodbank.org.uk

It’s A Wonderfull Life

On 8 January A Treat To Welcome the New Year !

The Preston Trust committee can now confirm that this new event will take place in St. Martins church in Church Lane on Saturday, 8 January from 4.00pm until c. 7.00pm. All of you, of all ages, are warmly invited, and admission is free!

You will be welcomed with teatime refreshments, then at c. 4.20pm the showing of the delightful film “Its a Wonderful Life” will start.The film lasts for 2 hours and 10 minutes, but, half way through, we will pause for a further snack and a comfort break for those who may want one. After the second half of the film, there will be the opportunity to play a short simple enjoyable game, with a small monetary prize.

This event will obviously be subject to any Covid 19 restrictions which may apply on that date.

The churchyard path will be lit, the church will be warm, and the new facilities there of a kitchenette and a toilet will be available and in good order. The church can accommodate about 80 people.

In the event of the film being changed we will let you know the new film straight away.

To enable us to provide refreshments, and to comply with any restrictions that may be in place please reserve your seat by contacting

Please SAVE THE DATE in your new 2022 diary and calendar, and come along to start the New Year with fellowship and good cheer!

~ Although this film has been chosen for you, sometime in the future we would like to try giving a list of films and showing the one which most parishioners pick.~

The Preston Trust New Year Raffle

The Draw of The Raffle with five special  prizes will be at the Film Show on Saturday 8 January.

Any offers of a raffle prize,including items which can be combined with others to make up hampers,will be much appreciated. Please contact Jo –

or pop a note through her door at 23 Chequers Lane.As well as being on sale at the Christmas Tree Light Switch On and at the Film Show,tickets will be included in the January Newsletter for those who wish to take part in the raffle, along with instructions of what to do with them.

COVID-19 and the Newsletter

Producing our Parish Newsletter is a community initiative. Between us, we have taken steps to protect both the volunteers who produce and deliver as well as our readers. We have reduced the number of people involved in production – Howard edited the newsletter and e-mailed it as a Word file for printing; Rae and Wal printed, folded and sorted into delivery rounds this month; then distributed, contact free to the volunteers who deliver.