March is the time that caring beekeepers start to worry, and wish that the spring warmth and the spring flowers would get a move on! It is the dangerous month, when any mistakes made at the close of last season when the bees were put to bed show up, and new mistakes can be made that will adversely affect both the colony and the honey crop in the season just starting!
  This is because the colony is getting back into gear, the queen has started to lay eggs to produce new workers to replace the old 'winter' worker bees that are dying off. A healthy colony in June may have 50,000 workers buzzing away, but at the end of February/start of March the total will have fallen to 15,000 or less. These 'old ladies' have to get out and find sufficient fresh pollen to feed the hungry new grubs, even if there is still sufficient honey left in the hive from last summer, or the beekeeper has fed additional sugar syrup or sugar fondant at a time when they could reach it from their tight cluster around the queen.
  If the beekeeper or the weather, or both, have been mean to the bees, this is the time that a colony can die from starvation - a tragic sight indeed. Which is why we carefully feed them in September, and keep checking the weight of the hives through the winter by 'hefting' them, to re-assure ourselves they will not go short of food for themselves or the new brood. 
  Beekeepers' spirits rise on the occasional lovely warmish, windless, sunny winter day, when the sun shines on the front of the hives and warms them, and the bees pour out in large numbers to relieve themselves. All is well. They don't stay out long, but for a few minutes the sound of buzzing makes spring seem a little nearer! Then the beekeeper must resist the temptation to take a little look inside, or start to 'spring feed' too soon, or the hive could become congested with the queen short of room to lay - a well-known reason for the colony to decide to swarm, although they won't do so until May. You see why this is the time of the year for worrying.  It is easy to do too little or too much!
  Sedbergh beekeepers will be at the 10^th Sedbergh Spring Show on April 1^st, with our organisation stand in the St John Ambulance rooms in Bainbridge Road, and our mead, honey, and beeswax products competing in the Home Produce Section in the People's Hall. If you would like to learn more about bees and honey, come along and ask as many questions as you like!                                                                      Malcolm Fraser-Urquhart

  There was a lively atmosphere and excellent attendance at the February meeting. Lots of Membership participation during the business meeting when reports of various activities were given. As one of those who had been to the consultative meeting in January, Dorte -lis Powell briefly talked through the resolutions that Cumbria Westmorland had chosen.
  Our public affairs committee members are keeping their finger on the pulse on our behalf and their spokesman, Stella Bannister sought our approval to challenge the local supermarkets regarding the excessive amount of packaging used in some cases. The membership also agreed to give their consent to the NFWI letter lobbying Ruth Kelly( Education Secretary) about the reduction in funding for some evening classes.
  Pat Allen gave further details concerning the increase in Subscriptions next year when one outcome will be that every member in the country will receive a copy of the magazine WI Life seven times a year replacing Home and Country.
  Our speaker for the evening was David Watt giving a power point presentation on Mountain Rescue Search and Rescue Dogs. David's dedication and sense of commitment came through as we began to appreciate the work needed to put a dog through the training. David was accompanied by his dogs Dynamite and Flash, wearing their distinctive yellow coats and trying to be inconspicuous at the back of the hall until it was their turn to give a demonstration of finding a body and then mixing socially. They were in danger of stealing the show! The dogs provide a rewarding partnership with their owners and with the amazing team work are an invaluable asset increasing the likelihood of a find whenever there is the need to hunt for missing people.
  Catherine Sugden's photograph of her collie rounding up the ducks won the competition, and one of our visitors John Hind, won the raffle.
  At the next meting on 8th March our speaker will be Martin Lewes talking about "Local radio in Cumbria and Digital TV." New members and visitors always welcome.

  Without travelling too far, Killington Parish Hall committee organised another indoor Race Night at The Head, Middleton, - thanks to our hosts David & Elizabeth Martin who not only provided the venue but also a very tasty supper.  Attendance was not as good as last time with only about 40 tickets sold, but this did not prevent it being a sociable and successful (for some!) night for the punters.
  The aims were primarily to provide an entertaining evening but at the same time to raise funds towards the surfacing of the surrounds of the Parish Hall.
  Videos of UK and US horse races were hired for the evening and the races were sponsored by local businesses,
Gary Allan Welding & Fabrication,
Richard Kirkby Ltd., Accountants,
Ian Dawson, Sedbergh Dental Practice,
Colin Parker, Hay & Straw Merchant,
Gillian Rowlinson, All Occasions Florists, Killington,
Andrew & Anne Newbold, Killington Marquees Ltd.,
C. & C. Johnson, Sedbergh Post Office,
Sedbergh & District Lookaround.
  The horses and jockeys in the first seven races were 'sold' and named, mainly before the night.  In each race the video was run up to the start of the race with a commentary describing recent performance of the horses, the punters then decided which horses they fancied and bought Tote tickets of their choice.  The video was then continued - to much rowdy cheering from the audience.  The winning 'owner' was presented with the Sponsor's prize, the winning 'jockey' with a bottle of Bubbly, and the winning  Tote tickets were paid out with a share of the pot.  The owners and jockeys of the eighth race were drawn from the losing Tote tickets in the other races and the last race was an Auction Race with a prize of a Meal for Two at The Head and a bottle of Scotch for the jockey.  The horses for this race were ably auctioned by "Rowly" and the jockeys again drawn from the purchasers of losing tote tickets.
  An excellent evening was had by all, and, despite the somewhat disappointing attendance this year, an appreciable sum was raised for the Hall surrounds.  The Committee thanks all those who attended and supported this event in various ways - especially our sponsors, the 'owners' and the 'jockeys' and particularly David and Elizabeth Martin for hosting it.

  As I wrote in my last column parking appears to becoming a bit of an issue in Sedbergh at the moment. The new resident's parking scheme does not appear to be particularly geared towards making life for the people in Sedbergh any easier and certainly at lot more expensive.
  However, the District Council at the moment do not appear to share the belief that there is a parking problem in Sedbergh. The letter I have received from them basically denies that there is any problem with parking in the town and says that if people do have an issue then they are most welcome to purchase a year long parking voucher from South Lakeland District Council at the cost of £270 just like anyone else in the district.
  One of the problems is that parking is a major source of revenue for the District Council (in fact it is their largest source of revenue after the money that they receive from us as council tax and inland revenue tax payers). This means that they have to balance two competing objectives. On the one hand they want to support businesses in the area, to do this they need to provide easy access to parking so that businesses can attract the customers that they need. On the other hand they want to generate as much money as possible from this parking. I fear that we are seeing the challenges that this conflict brings very clearly in their response to my letter. They say that, whilst not ruling out the possibility of
providing more parking, they doubt that it will happen because it is unlikely to generate a reasonable return on the council's investment. Particularly if the parking that is being provided is free or low cost as people who have contacted me seem to want.
  This is just another example of what I mean when I talk about joined up Government, or the absence of it in this case. There are so many examples of different parts of Government working to different objectives and as a result nothing ever really happening. The current issues with the Westmorland General Hospital is another case in point, on the one hand the Secretary of State for Health says that she wants to bring health care closer to the people who need it and yet on the other, the current budgetary regime means that the movement is in exactly the opposite direction as the drive for efficiency leads to bigger and more centralised hospitals.
  I could come up with a dozen similar examples on issues ranging from Post Offices to housing.
  One of my roles in recent months on several issues has been to get everyone from the different sides to sit down and work out what they want to happen. So far we have been fairly successful, let's see if we can achieve something good in Sedbergh.
  You can reach me on this or any other issue at Tim Farron MP, Yard 2, Stricklandgate, Kendal LA9 4ND or by email at tim@timfarron.co.uk.
  Thanks for your support.                                                                                                                                                                               Tim Farron MP

Year 11 Interview Day - 2^nd February
  Interview Day was held for our Year 11 on 2^nd February.  We were each interviewed by people from the local community who were involved in businesses, schools and colleges so it actually felt like a real interview as they knew the questions to ask and they knew how to set the mood in the room.  They debriefed us and gave us ideas on how to improve our interview techniques as well as giving us positive comments and encouragement. 
  We all agreed that everyone benefited from the interviews as we got a real taster of a situation that we will be facing in the next few months and years ahead.  The whole day helped us a great deal and, with the help from our various teachers at Settlebeck and advisers such as Ann Catterson, we were able to do well in our interviews.  On behalf of Year 11 I would like to say thank you to all the people who made the day possible.  We really appreciate the time spent on providing us with such a valuable experience.
  Andrew Postlethwaite
  People from local businesses such as MK Conversions, Michael Mudd Engineering, Picture Palace, Lyon Equipment and Farfield Arts and Heritage Centre, teachers from sixth forms at Sedbergh School, Queen Elizabeth School, Queen Katherine School and Kirkbie Kendal School and representatives from Lancaster & Morecambe College, Connexions and Settlebeck Governors made up the panel of Interviewers on 2^nd February.  We were all nervous before the start, our first experience of formal interviews!  We each had a 20 - 30 minute interview followed by a debriefing.  Despite the nerves, I think we all impressed our interviewers and there was a really positive atmosphere.
  I am glad we were all given the chance to take part in the day; it built everyone's confidence and now we know how to improve and what to expect in a real interview.
Rosie Wood
  Thank you to all the interviewers and also the guides for the day; Ed Bannister, Emma Teal, Melissa Barnes and Oliver Wales.  Thanks also to Steve and Alison Mansfield and staff at the Bull Hotel for their excellent hospitality and catering and to Year 10 caterers; chefs, Adam Littlewood, James Thompson and Jenny Lamb and refreshment helpers Katie Metcalfe, Jennifer Farrell and Grace Hunter.
Judith Walsh

"Very rewarding.  It gave me a clear idea of what a real interview is like."
"It has given me much more confidence."
"Very helpful.  It's given us ideas on how to improve."
"A brilliant experience, a great opportunity from which to learn."
"A good way to learn how to prepare and get through an interview and to listen to the debriefing."
"Very good experience; positive feedback really helped me."
"Very worthwhile, an experience which will stand us in good stead for the future."
Comments from Laurence Hanson Diamond, Emma Mason, Will Metcalfe, Andrew Britton, Josie Hopps and Caroline Lamb.

"All took it seriously, dressed smartly and clearly tried their best."
"For a first interview, students dealt well with the pressure."
"The students came across as responsible, likeable individuals who had prepared themselves well."
"Strong candidates who handled the formal situation with considerable maturity."
"I would be happy to come in to school to work with Year 11 in Business Studies sessions to help them develop job applications, CVs, letters of application and expanding ideas on business research from the point of view of a local employer."
  Contributions from Chris Hattam, Pauline Marshall, Stuart Manger, David Wilson, Mike Clark and Ed Cullen