On Saturday 6th September I spent the day visiting events on opposite sides of the City, both of which were outdoors in glorious Autumn weather conditions..
In the morning, accompanied by my wife Kelsie, I visited Winchester Science Centre, where we were given the opportunity to spend time with their Young Steering Group, who’re now instrumental in guiding the strategy of the centre.
The children ranging from 6 to 13 were doing some field work in the land that was gifted to the centre by their neighbour Arqiva about two years ago.
This included using grids to analyse the plants within a 50cm square area, using nets to capture and record insects, spiders, etc. and checking under carefully positioned “mats” where lizards and snakes hide whilst they warm up under the sun.
The Steering Group has been running for a couple of years now, and it is amazing how knowledgeable the children are. It was a real pleasure to spend time with them.
In the afternoon, following a prior request from the organising team, I attended the Littleton & Harestock Show.
This started with a free ride to the show on one of King Alfred Buses fleet of antique vehicles, which just happened to stop about 100 yards from my house. it involved a leisurely ride through Harestock, Weeke, Teg Down and eventually Littleton. It was amazing how well the bus coped with the steep roads in Teg Down.
At the show, the organisers had very kindly given me a role at one of the entry gates, where I could sit down and rest my knee. It was such a pleasure getting to talk to the members of the public, particularly when they were heading home. Clearly they had all been having a really good time, with one member of the choir who’d sung at the show, saying it was “the best village show she’d ever been to”!
Finally, I would like to thank fellow member Derek O’Neill and prospective member Samir Chekini who also helped out at the show!
