Welcome to

Brightwell-cum-Sotwell WI

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For the latest news on our new Village Store click on the logo above.

Brightwell cum Sotwell WI member Viv Moll and her husband Steve are beekeepers in the village. They produce local Oxfordshire and Berkshire honey from their own hives as well as hand crafted candles and beeswax polish. (And it's all available at The Village Stores).  Steve is also a recommended WI speaker for Oxfordshire and may be booked for his wide ranging and entertaining talk “The Incredible World of the Honeybee”. www.brightwellbees.co.uk

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Brightwell Vineyard produces award-winning, quality English wines which frequently win medals at National and International competitions. Available from The Village Stores

Morsbagss

Recycle your old curtains / pillow cases / duvet covers / clothes and make some eco-friendly shopping bags.

Viv came across an article about these bags in in her quilt magazine this month - she says, "There is a great little website: www.morsbags.com and if you click on the how to animation, it is so simple. In the magazine it said you can make one in 20 mins, I think that is probably a bit ambitious but I guess if you cut several out at once you can make them fairly quickly. I just think they look great. You can see some made up on the flicker link on the page."

Click here to download the instructions to make a bag

The ACWW is the largest international organization for rural women with 360 member societies in 70 countries - the National Federation of WIs being one of them. It offers support, friendship and practical help by funding development projects in many countries. It concentrates on water supply, food production, health and nutrition, education and training and entrepreneurial skills. ACWW also has consultative status at the United Nations.

 

In Oxfordshire we have just raised nearly £4000 to fund a project in Kenya concerned with eventual elimination of female genital mutilation.

 

We are now fund raising for two projects – one in Kenya and one in Uganda to provide clean drinking water. It will mean that women and children don’t have to spend many hours a day collecting water in buckets that crush their spines. With education it will help prevent cholera, dysentery, typhoid and diarrhea and the occurence of tape, round and hookworms. With a ready supply of water they will be able to grow better crops, sell them, improve their standard of living and send their children to school.

 

Find out more at: www.acww.org.uk

Natural History Museum: using the postcode plants database.

Try this fantastic resource and discover the native plants and other wildlife where you live. By simply typing in the first half of your postcode, you cam obtain tailor-made lists of local plants, many of which are both hospitable to wildlife and suitable for gardens.

 

Cultivated plants are essential to human survival. Now too, they are becoming crucial to wildlife. By growing plants that offer food and shelter to animals, you can make a real contribution to conservation in your local area, while also providing arenas for fascinating and rewarding observations, even in the heart of the city.

 

Go to http://www.nhm.ac.uk/interactive. Other links include Exploring Biodiversity, Country Cures, Bat Sounds and lots more.

If you're being plagued by unwanted or nuisance phone calls then click on the link on the left. This will take you to the Telephone Preference Service where you can register your telephone number and put a stop to most of those calls.

Click on the image of the Wallingford Corn Exchange to see what's on.

We are not alone

 

Why not have a look at some other WI websites - it's great to see what other groups are doing and could give us some new ideas - click on the links below:

 

Kingston Bagpuize with Southmoor WI

 

Walton Manor WI - Oxford

Reduce - Re-use - Recycle

The following website has a great selection of waste bins which can help you separate and store your rubbish for recycling: http://www.homerecycling.co.uk

Click on the Wallingford Museum logo to visit their website and find out more about opening times, exhibitions, etc.

And if you click on the village picture, or the WI logo, at the top of our web-pages that will take you to the Brightwell-cum-Sotwell and National WI websites respectively, but you already knew that - didn't you?

Contact us

If you have any comments, photos or suggestions for our website please send us an email with details by clicking on the envelope on the left.