Christmas at Farfield Mill  - 
  As you can see we have a lot going on at Farfield Mill in the run up to Christmas with festive events, music and demonstrations organised for every weekend before Christmas, so please take the opportunity to be part of these festive activities.  Come along and make your Christmas shopping an enjoyable experience in the great festive atmosphere amongst the fantastic work of our resident and non resident artists.
  We will be open for late night shopping on the evening of Friday 15^th December between 6 and 8pm and due to popular demand, the Tea Room will be holding another Candlelit supper on this evening.  Please phone Neil or Andrea on 20368 to book a table.

Year 8 French Trip November
  On 7^th November at 5.30am a group of bleary-eyed Settlebeck students and staff set off for Le Touquet, France.  34 students spent five memorable days together, practicing their French, visiting famous places, making pancakes, writing diaries etc. etc.
  Great fun was had by all!
  Here is what the students thought:
  The French trip was really good.  When we went to Paris we went up the Eiffel Tower.  That was really good because we went up some stairs and I went up to the first floor (about 400 steps).  By the time we got there our time was up. 
  That night we tried snails.  You should have seen the look on people's faces.  It was so funny.  Hannah Reynolds ate 25 snails.  How gross.  I had one. 
Stuart Raw
  The things that I most enjoyed about France were bowling, the food and going up the Eiffel Tower.
  Bowling was good because I won (and I like winning). 
  The food was my favourite thing because we ate snails.  I didn't like them but I had them so I could say I had eaten snails.  The French bread was really nice and on Friday we made a croissant and got a free one and a pain au chocolat. 
  I loved going up the Eiffel Tower because it was really high and if you looked up it looked like you were wobbling.
  Overall, France was a really fun thing to do.  It was good to see the sights of Paris and I hope I come again.
Joe Clare
  The hotel was really nice.  We stayed in Hippotel.  The meals were really nice as well and I tried a lot of things that I never thought I would.  I achieved a lot in France because I ate snails but not as much as Hannah who ate 25 of them.
  I also did French café experience where I spoke French to order a drink and I asked for the bill.  My favourite part of the French trip was going to Paris because we did a lot that day including a tour of Paris. After lunch we went on a River Seine cruise and got dropped off at the Musée D'orsay and we went to look at the impressionist paintings.  We also went to a war cemetery, went shopping, went bowling and tried snails, which were all really fun.
  Au revoir
Lizzie Farrell
  On Tuesday, 7^th November my class set off to France at 5.25am.  We drove to Dover then we got on the ferry.  It was ace!  We got to France at 4.00pm and to the hotel at 6.30pm.  I really liked the  Nausicaa Aquarium in Bologne.  Paris was ace!  We went to the Eiffel Tower, up to the second floor.  It was cool.  We went to the cemetery to see if any of our family was in the First World War.  We went bowling and to a disco and also to a chocolate factory and a bakery.
Tiffany Seward
  France was an opportunity to try new foods, speak another language and visit a different country.  I really enjoyed this trip. 
  Some of the best things we did were visiting Paris.  Although we only spent a day there we managed to pack loads of activities into it!
  Eating snails was fun.  Nobody wanted to try them, but me and Ella got stuck right in!  She ate 13 but I beat her because I had 25!
Hannah Reynolds
  I thoroughly enjoyed the French trip from the Port of Calais to the awe-inspiring Arc de Triomphe.  Although I will probably forget most of these amazing places, there are some memories I will hold dear for the rest of my days.  The most memorable of these will be going up to the second level of the Eiffel Tower (OK we took the lift!).  One thing I noticed was the fact it was full of pigeons!  Another event was when I made my first crepe.  Let's say it didn't go according to plan.  Luckily my second crepe was successful.  All in all I have found the trip exciting and entertaining and I would recommend sending your child there.
Toby Atkinson
  The trip to France was great.  I enjoyed every bit of it.  The aquarium was fabulous. 
  All the buildings in France were gorgeous.  The rooms were really nice.  The mint drink was weirdly nice.  Bowling was fun.  My favourite bit was the Eiffel Tower but we only went to the second floor.  In the aquarium we could stroke some rays and starfish.               
Hannah Turner-Lant

I was hoping that I would not need to mention bridges at all in my column this month but the slowness and what appears to be dishonesty of Cumbria County Council and combined with the rapidly deteriorating nature of even more bridges around Sedbergh and Dent is beginning to make the situation farcical. If you know of any other bridges that may be becoming unsafe and want the Council to start work on them before they fall down then please let me know sooner rather than later. Given the Council's speed of action on the other bridges I think that we should aim to book in any maintenance a good six months in advance. Actually you could cheer me up by sending me some photos of any bridges around Sedbergh that are in a sound condition just to reassure me that there are some.
  I am putting as much pressure on the Council as I can to bring the situation under control and ensure that people can drive across the rivers and becks of this part of the world without worrying that their car will disappear over the edge.
  One thing that is cheering me up is the news around Baliol School, the situation looks to be resolving itself positively for all concerned, as I write nothing is finally confirmed but I am extremely hopeful and am doing all that I can to ensure that things do work out.
  When you read this the single farm payments cheques should be hitting farmer's bank accounts. The Government has promised to that the speed of payment this year will be much better than it was last year. To be honest it would be hard for it to be any worse but I am not holding my breath. It would help me great deal in the monitoring of the situation and putting pressure on the Government if farmers could let me know when and if they receive their payment. If any readers are a farmer or know of farmers who do not read Lookaround (shame on them) then please could you keep me informed of your personal situation? I can use this information to put pressure on The Rural Payment Agency and Defra to sort things out.
  Finally, if, like me, you have been upset by the behaviour of the local health trusts in reaching their decision over the future of Westmorland General Hospital after what was clearly not a proper consultation with the public. Then please do write to both the trusts and the Parliamentary and Health Ombudsman in Londonto to make an formal complaint. The key thing is that you need to complain about the process not the outcome. If you need any help you can get details of what you should do from my office.
  You can reach us on this or any other issues you have by writing to Tim Farron MP, Yard 2, Stricklandgate, Kendal LA9 4ND or by emailing me at tim@timfarron.co.uk Thanks for your support Tim Farron MP
  (This is November's Report which we were unable to include last month. Ed)