Foodbank in Hurstpierpoint expands during cost-of-living crisis

Hurstpierpoint Foodbank have re-opened their collection service, as demand increases due to the cost-of-living crisis. As well as the Friday delivery option, that was initiated during the covid lockdowns, for a trial period users will again be able to collect food in person from Court Bushes Community Hub, Willow Way.

The Foodbank will be open for collections from Court Bushes from 10am – 12pm every Thursday. The Melting Pot Café is also open at this time so free tea, coffee and cake are available as well as cup-a-soup and toast. The Foodbank distributes food through a referral system and provides enough food for a family for three days. Alternatively, people can come down to Court Bushes on a Thursday morning and talk to foodbank staff directly. Staff understand that reaching out for help in this way can be difficult and aim to treat users with discretion and kindness.
Additionally, a new partnership between the owners of Gibson greengrocers and the Foodbank is now giving those using the Foodbank access to fresh fruit and vegetables during the trial period. A voucher will be provided by the Foodbank to be used in the shop on Hurstpierpoint High Street.

Food parcels can also be requested through the following partner agencies:
• St Lawrence C of E Primary School 01273 833229
• Hurstpierpoint Pre-School, Trinity Road, 01273 834144
• Holy Trinity Church
• Hurstpierpoint & Sayers Common Parish Council Trinity Road, 01273 833264, Open Monday – Friday 9:30am -1:30pm
• Mid Sussex Health Centre 01273 834388, Open Monday – Friday 8:30am - 6:00pm
• Housing Benefit Team (MSDC) • Community Mental Health Team
• Social Services

Families can contact Hurstpierpoint Foodbank (hurstfb@gmail.com) or Burgess Hill Foodbank (foodbankburgesshill@gmail.com) if they need food.

Gibsons of Hurst is still trading

Gibsons trades again
When Hurst residents Jordan and Leila saw the news on Hurst Hub before Christmas that Gibsons was closing, they thought they ‘couldn’t let in happen’ and sprang into action. After one meeting with Paul Gibson, they took over the business and have seen steady trade ever since. “It all happened very quickly,” said Leila, “and the support from the village has been amazing.” Her father was the gardener to the Bishop of Exeter, so providing produce runs in her family.

Jordan has run a landscape gardening business for 20 years and with three young children they felt the time was right for a new challenge. Jordan’s experience will not be wasted, as they hope to be able to sell perennials from the shop in due course. “We hope to make some changes, but we are not reinventing the wheel; we will carry on selling fresh, local produce,” commented Leila. They have already installed a card-reader, which 90% of customers are taking advantage of, are open six days a week and they will be supporting the local food bank with a gift card scheme. One customer told Hurst Life: “I think it’s amazing what they’ve done for the community by keeping the shop open and I hope they make a success of it.”

Hurst Village Cinema - February's showtimes

Brain and Charles - Hurst Village Cinema

By Mike Thatcher

Another busy month with three films and a NT Live to screen.

We kick off on Thursday 9th Feburary at 8pm with Petite Maman (PG). From the Director of Portrait of a Lady on Fire, this concise film will be sure to have you discussing it in the aisle or on the High Street as the credits rise. When her grandmother dies, Nelly returns to her mother’s childhood home to clear the contents. Here she discovers a den being made in the woods by a girl her own age. The fact that she is played by her real-life sibling and obvious twin, adds mystery to the story. It is beautifully paced and straightforwardly presented, in fact so much so, you may think you have missed something at the end. A tender tale of childhood grief, memory and connection with an interesting soundtrack, it will have you discussing it long after the event.

Then we screen Othello on Thursday 23rd at 7pm, an extraordinary new production of Shakespeare’s most enduring tragedy, directed by Clint Dyer with a cast that includes Giles Terera (Hamilton), Rosy McEwean (The Alienist) and Paul Hilton (The Inheritance). She’s a bright, headstrong daughter of a senator; elevated by her status but stifled by its expectations. He’s refugee of slavery; having risen to the top of a white world, he finds love across racial lines has a cost.

We continue with Limbo (PG) on Friday 24th at 8pm. This wry and poignant observation of the refugee experience is set on a fictional remote Scottish island where a group of new arrivals await the results of their asylum claims. It centres on Omar, a young Syrian musician who is burdened by his grandfather’s oud (musical instrument), which he has carried all the way from his homeland. It sounds like a hard watch, but it is actually rather humorous in an empathic way, acknowledging the bleakness of their existence and filmed in the ragged and beautiful west coast of Scotland.

Finally, we present Brian and Charles (PG) on Sunday 26th at 3pm which follows Brian, a lonely inventor in rural Wales, who spends his days building quirky, unconventional contraptions that seldom work. Undeterred by his lack of success, Brian attempts his biggest project yet. Three days, a washing machine, and various spare parts later, he’s invented Charles, an artificially intelligent robot who learns English from a dictionary and has an obsession with cabbages. Halfdocumentary, half parable it’s the perfect tonic for a February Sunday afternoon.

Hurstpierpoint & Sayers Common Parish Council February 2023

Food Bank News

Hurstpierpoint Food Bank has decided to trial reopening at Court Bushes Community Hub for foodbank collections for three3 months from 12th 2 January 2023. This is in response to increased need for food help during the current cost of living crisis. The Food Bank will be open for collections from 10am-12pm every Thursday morning, alongside the Melting Pot Café, for those requiring a food parcel. Referrals should be gained from the usual agencies (for further details see the food bank website https://burgesshillfoodbank.org.uk or ask at the Melting Pot.) The Food Bank will also continue to make deliveries on Fridays, for those unable to come to Court Bushes. To support this initiative, the Food Bank will need additional volunteers to staff the collection point. If you feel you could spare two hours every Thursday, then please reach out to hurstfb@gmail.com Donations of food can be left in the collection point inside the Hurstpierpoint Co-op.

Walnut Tree Field Tree Planting

This was due to take place in Hurst Meadows in December but the prolonged cold spell resulted in the soil being frozen, so planting was delayed until the New Year. 840 native tree whips have now been planted by the Parish Council. These whips were purchased from the Woodland Trust with the kind assistance of a grant from the Hurstpierpoint Society, who also donated funding to care for the trees over the next few years as they become established. This will include watering during dry spells as this on-going maintenance is crucial. Around the country it was really sad to see so many newly planted trees die last sSummer, due to lack of water. The Parish Council, for example, had to step in to water the trees planted by Vistry in Edgerley Meadow, as these too would have been lost in the drought. At the moment it is looking like most of them have survived but we will get a better picture in the sSpring when the new growth begins.

To read the full council newsletter, please click on the images or pick up a copy of February’s Hurst Life.

A new Walk & Talk group launches this January 2023 in Hurst

Alec Stevens, a sports coach at the college, is setting up a free Walk & Talk group on Wednesday mornings, open to anyone. His wish is to provide an opportunity for people to escape their daily grind, meet other like-minded people and perhaps feel empowered to open up to each other, or him, about whatever difficulties they are facing. “There is of course no pressure to say anything at all,” said Alec, “but based on my own experiences, I am fully aware of the short and long-term benefits. Not everyone needs therapy or coaching - sometimes all it takes is some fresh air, an open mind and good people.” Alec lived and worked in London for 17 years, but after overcoming a personal hurdle, he decided that a complete change was needed in his life - so he went for a walk. After reading The Salt Path by Raynor Winn, he chose to take some time over the summer to hike the 630 miles of the South West Coast Path in aid of Millimetres 2 Mountains Foundation. “The simple act of walking opened my mind up to so many possibilities and allowed me time to consider my own journey. The aim is, once a week, a group of like-minded individuals simply go for a walk and have a chat, perhaps ending up in a coffee house or pub afterwards.” He is now training as a Life Coach with The Happiness Explorer.

The group will meet on Wednesday 11th January at 9am and then every following Wednesday.

Further information sites will be added soon.

Hurst Village Cinema's January programme (2023)

By Mike Thatcher

Season’s greetings to you all from the team, we hope that you get your fill of Christmas films over the holidays. ‘Arthur Christmas’ seems to have become the traditional watch in our household; there’s no accounting for taste. Members should have already received the new programme and it is available to see online and around the village.

We start on Thursday 12th January at 8pm with The Farewell (PG). This gentle and touching Japanese f ilm opens with the caption: ‘Based on an actual lie,’ and illustrates how different cultures approach mortality and grief. A headstrong Chinese-American student Billie (played brilliantly by Awkafina) returns to China after her grandmother is given a terminal diagnosis. An impromptu wedding is arranged so that the family can gather together to see her one more time. Despite the strong themes, it is a warm and often funny family portrayal, with a dynamite performance from Zhao Shuzhen as the spirited grandmother.

NT live returns on Thursday 26th at 7pm with The Crucible (12A) by Arthur Miller.
A witch hunt is beginning in Arthur Miller’s captivating parable of power with Erin Doherty (The Crown) and Brendan Cowell (Yerma).

Then the simply amazing My Life as a Courgette (PG) on Friday 27th January at 8pm. Despite being just over an hour, this moving stop-frame animation certainly does not leave you feeling short-changed. Told from the perspective of the children in an orphanage, its strength is that it is not childlike in any way. After his mother’s death, Courgette is befriended by a police officer, who with his new friends help him adjust to live in the orphanage. So much emotion is transmitted through the big eyes of all the characters in this wonderful, funny and sad film, I can’t recommend it highly enough.

We finish with Operation Mincemeat (12A) on Sunday 29th January at 3pm. In 1943, two British intelligence officers concoct Operation Mincemeat, dropping a corpse with false papers off the coast of Spain, hoping to fool Nazi spies into believing the Allied forces were planning to attack by way of Greece rather than Sicily.

Hurst Village Cinema's January programme (2023)

Hurstpierpoint & Sayers Common Parish Council January newsletter - 2023

January 2023 Meeting Schedule
Please check the Parish Council notice boards or our website to confirm the meeting location. Members of the public are welcome to attend, and all meetings commence at 7.30pm.

5th Jan - Planning & Environment Committee
12th Jan - Community Engagement Committee
19th Jan - Finance & Governance Committee
26th Jan - Full Council

For the full newsletter please click on the pictures here or pick up a copy of January’s Hurst Life.

Hurst Players bring Treasure Island in pantomime

By Anne Hopper

It’s almost panto time! Not quite yet, but at the end of December and into January 2023, the Hurst Players will present a very homegrown version of the classic tale Treasure Island. Loosely based on the famous novel by Robert Louis Stevenson (actually hanging by a thread!) it will be a traditional panto – a rollicking tale of buccaneers and buried treasure, written by Bob Sampson and directed by Richard Coney.

We’ll have Long John Silver and his band of renegades – a traditional Pantomime Dame – yes, really - and a Fairy Mermaid plus our variation on some of the characters from the book: Squire Trelawney, Billy Bones, Blind Pugh – now renamed Blind Poo - this is a panto! And not forgetting our hero ‘Jim Lad’ Hawkins.

Tickets - £11 for adults £8 for children under 12 will shortly be available online from hurstplayers.org.uk – and from December, in person at the Theatre Box Office on Saturday mornings.

Hurst Village Cinema's Autumn schedule

By Mike Thatcher

With the Festival films behind us it is time to welcome in our Autumn programme, with three very different films, as well as an offering from the National Theatre.

We start on 6th October at 7pm with the NT Live presentation of Jack Absolute flies again, a new comedy by Richard Bean (One Man, Two Guvnors) and Oliver Chris based on Sheridan’s The Rivals. After an aerial dog fight, Pilot Officer Jack Absolute flies home to win the heart of his old flame, Lydia Languish. Back on British soil, Jack’s advances soon turn to anarchy when the young heiress demands to be loved on her own, very particular, terms. Featuring a cast including Caroline Quentin, Laurie Davidson, Natalie Simpson and Kelvin Fletcher.

Then on Friday 14th October we screen Border (15) at 8pm. An unusual and captivating film from Sweden which defies categorising. Customs officer Tina is known for her extraordinary sense of smell. It’s almost as if she can sniff out the guilt on anyone hiding something. But when Vore, a suspicious looking man, walks past her, her abilities are challenged for the first time ever. Even worse, she feels a strange attraction to him.

On Friday 28th October at 8pm we show Nocturnal Animals (15), the acclaimed thriller by Tom Ford. Amazing performances from Amy Adams, Jake Gyllenhaal, Laura Linney, Michael Shannon and Arnie Hammer play out this dark and tense thriller. Includes a scene at the beginning of the film which was the reason Manon vetoed showing it six years ago!

Finally, on Sunday 30th October at 3pm The Duke hits our screen. In 1961, Kempton Bunton, a 60-year-old taxi driver stole Goya’s portrait of the Duke of Wellington from the National Gallery in London. Kempton sent ransom notes saying that he would return the painting on condition that the government invested more in care for the elderly – he had long campaigned for pensioners to receive free television. What happened next became the stuff of legend. Charming and uplifting comedy starring Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren. For tickets and further information www.hurstfilms.com

Begin your zero-waste journey at Scrapless in Burgess Hill

Two years ago, an outlet for sustainable living was created in Burgess Hill and has since seen thousands of forward-thinking, planet-loving individuals come through the door on their zero-waste journey. As the store approaches its second birthday later this month, founder Meg is keen to spread the word and encourage more people across Mid Sussex to shop Scrapless. Mid Sussex’s first low-waste refill shop, also comes with an online store offering both ‘click+collect’ and a home delivery service.

Regular customer, Sarah, says: “There is such a great range of products available, I am able to do the bulk of my shop at Scrapless, saving money on many items and not adding heaps of plastic to landfill waste!” Scrapless offers customers over 300 products in packaging-free refill options: for both food and cleaning. The edible range includes (mostly organic) food cupboard staples (such as pasta, rice, pulses and grains, and more), two freezers full of loose fruit and veg as well as bake-at-home pastries, sweet treats and snacks, and twice-weekly fresh bread and pastries! Check out the full range, inc. household supplies, online at www.scrapless.co.uk.

As a Community Interest Company, the team is on a mission to provide the people of Mid Sussex with convenient solutions to save waste and money, but also to support other local businesses too. The store stocks a selection of locally made products many of which are great gift ideas to treat yourself or your loved ones whilst supporting local makers. Once you start shopping without buying new packaging each time, you realise how much of your supermarket shop goes towards the product’s container! For example, by shopping zero-waste, you can buy 40g of Paprika for 52p, a whopping 72% cheaper than from the local supermarket. You most likely already own suitable containers for everything you use, so why not simply refill those, and save the extra costs. One regular customer always opts for Scrapless refill options when trying out new recipes: “It’s great to be able to just buy what you need for a recipe that you haven’t made before. Refilling means that I can take a recipe with me and just buy one tablespoon of spice or 100g of butter beans. If the kids love it, then I can stock up properly next time, knowing that I haven’t wasted anything, and saved money!”

The team understand it can be a little daunting trying out a new way of shopping… especially when we are used to doing things a certain way. But, shopping at Scrapless is really simple: Pop into the store and buy what you need. We encourage you to bring your own containers (such as jars, bottles etc) or use the paper bags provided in-store. If you’re bringing things in to use, you just weigh them first so that you only pay for what you top up!

We’ll happily show you the ropes and give you a hand with your shop. The most important thing to remember is that you don’t need to start big. Perhaps pick one or two staples from the food cupboard that you get through a lot of, or the cleaning products running low, and make the decision to refill next time round! The famous Anne Marie Bonneau quote, says it all: “We don’t need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly. We need millions of people doing it imperfectly.” The same goes for shopping at Scrapless. Visit us in-store at 25-27 The Martlets, Burgess Hill, RH15 9NN or online at www.scrapless.co.uk. Follow the Scrapless journey online via Instagram or Facebook @scraplessrefills. We look forward to seeing you soon.

Hurst Parish Council newsletter - October 2022

Happy to Chat Bench at the Health Centre
Are you a friendly, positive person who is happy to chat to people you don’t know? If so, please look out for our “Happy to Chat” benches with the green and yellow signs and spare a moment. You could really make a difference to somebody’s day just by being kind and approachable.

Hurst Meadows
Being amongst nature and walking in green spaces surrounded by trees can be helpful to lift our spirits. The lovely Hurst Meadows is a tranquil and safe place to walk. If you haven’t discovered Hurst Meadows yet, then an easily accessible footpath leads down the slope opposite the Health Centre into Fifteen Acre Field


To read Hurstpierpoint & Sayers Common Parish Council’s October 2022 newsletter please grab your copy of October’s Hurst Life or click to enlarge the pictures provided.

Hurstpierpoint Society celebrates 60 years

September 2022’s issue of Hurst Life has eight wonderful pages dedicated to the Hurstpierpoint Society’s amazing 60 year anniversary!
Below is the start of an in-depth look at the society’s history, Hurst’s history, the society’s founder and much more. To read the whole piece by Lyn Williams, Julia Kirby, and Christopher Maidment, turn to page 21.

Welcome to this commemorative snapshot to celebrate the Diamond Anniversary of The Hurstpierpoint Society. The Society was founded in 1962, and has developed over the past 60 years to ensure the retention of the fabric and legacy of heritage passed onto us, continues to be maintained and enhanced to the benefit of residents; past, present, and future.

“Hurst being the Anglo Saxon for a ‘clearing in the forest’, (a uniquely Sussex and Kent term of many places formed in the Forest of Anderida. See right).”

Click to enlarge Forest of Anderida

Hurstpierpoint Open Gardens success this June 2022

By Prue Heron

Hurstpierpoint Open Gardens was another resounding success - maybe even more so because it had been absent for two years and visitors were keen to get back into the swing and enjoy this popular event. The sun came out just in time for the opening in the afternoon and the village was absolutely packed with visitors carrying locally-grown plant bargains from the plant stall and scrutinising their programmes to decide on the best route. Freeman Brothers, our sponsors, provided a chauffeured limo and Cycling Without Age was kept busy pedalling two trishaws to give lifts to weary walkers.

The generous contributors to this wonderful event are too many to mention here individually, but include: local businesses who displayed flyers, donated raffle prizes and plants; the stallholders who helped attract even more visitors with their variety of offerings and gave donations; the talented bakers who produced some amazing cakes; all the visitors who attended and made the event buzz and, of course, the hard-working and lovely gardeners and their helpers who prepared their gardens and then gave a warm welcome to everyone on the day.

And now the most important part - together, in 2022, Hurstpierpoint Open Gardens’ participants raised a massive, much-needed £7,215 for our local St. Peter and St. James’ Hospice! Thank you to everyone involved. For more photos and individual thanks - visit our website www.hurstpierpointopengardens.co.uk or Facebook page Hurstpierpoint Open Gardens. See you next year! Don’t forget to let us know if you would like to open your garden in 2023, please contact Jo Kaddish on 07743 596068.

News from Hurst cricket club

By Rob Sawyer

It’s been a funny old start to the cricket season; the hoped-for return to pre-Covid cricket has not quite arrived, with most teams choosing not to provide the traditional cricket tea, a shame in our opinion, but something of an inevitably.

Young Oscar Harman has again been among the wickets. Another year older, his ability to put some serious revs on a cricket ball has improved further and your correspondent can confirm, keeping wicket to Oscar borders on the dangerous; once the ball pitches it is anyone’s guess what happens next. Happily, the batters are as clueless as the wicket keeper.

George Fisher bagged five wickets and three catches against a touring side from Essex, a game played in a superb spirit on and off the field. They brought quite a few supporters with them, most of whom started drinking at 10.30am and kept an impressive pace throughout the day, introducing a new concoction to most of us in the shape of Prosecco and Orange J20.

However, the most impressive performance of the year thus far came from 2nd XI Captain Tony Andrews who destroyed opponents Lewis Priory in a one person batting blitzkrieg, scoring an impressive 148 not out. It would have meant less had we not won the game, but victory was duly achieved with the evergreen Neil Crickmore taking four wickets.

The latest round of matches brought some lovely weather but a mixed bag of results; The 2nd XI beat Lingfield so convincingly they turned up en masse to watch the start of the 3rd XI Innings at Ardingly, a game that unfortunately ended in defeat but featured some great performances from youngsters Oli Thatcher, Diarmuid Ganpatsingh, Ed Warner and JoJo Swift who scored an impressive 24 not out.

When my brother-in-law Chris Wright arrived from Australia, he thought he was coming for a restful time in the English summer; instead, he was press ganged into action, registered as an overseas player with Hurst CC and charmed everyone with his Aussie wit, positive attitude and extraordinary beer drinking abilities. Oh, and he scored some runs and took some wickets despite not picking up a bat for over ten years! He is now back in Australia, nursing a pulled hamstring and loved every minute of his brief time with Hurst CC. Here he is about to open the batting for the 3rd XI with your Hurst Life cricket correspondent.

Hurstpierpoint & Sayers Common Parish Newsletter - July 2022

The Annual Parish Meeting predates today’s cycle of accessible Parish Council meetings, and is an ancient custom designed for those on the parish electoral roll to discuss parish affairs. It must be held between 1st March and 1st June and not be before 6pm.

Previously, the forum has taken place in the Village Centre, but in 2020 it was cancelled due to the Coronavirus Pandemic and was replaced by an Annual Report published on the Parish Council’s website. Last year, anticipating further COVID-19 induced uncertainty around meetings, the Parish Council published its Annual Report, but also embraced technology and held a very successful meeting via a webinar on 18th May 2021.

This year, we were determined to hold it in person and to showcase the facilities at the Court Bushes Community Hub; what we had planned to do in 2020. The theme was ‘Working Together for our Community’. Parish Council matters were truncated and the majority of the evening was given over to pitches from local groups, both as stands and as one minute or ‘elevator’ pitches, and speakers such as the Headteacher of St Lawrence School, Hurst Rethink, Mid Sussex Ukraine Support Group and Age UK. About 85 attended, which was well up on previous meetings and, as a number commented, there was a real buzz in the room. It was evident that much networking took place across the community. Sustenance was provided in the form of teas, coffees, soft drinks and some excellent cake from the team that run the Melting Pot Café at the same location on Thursday mornings.

All could leave with a copy of the Parish Council report, a free sustainable support local Hurst bag, and leaflets/offers from local groups and traders. We would welcome any feedback via office@hurstpierpoint-pc.gov.uk about the event, and what we should aim to do next time.

Hurst i wear opens on High Street

The High Street welcomed a new shop last month as Hurst i wear opened its doors to customers. Owner Lin O’Hara, a former Hurst resident, is delighted to be able to finally set up a shop on our High Street. “We used to live in Hurst and always wanted a shop here but then found the one in Cuckfield and so moved there.”

Both Lin and her partner Natalie have been in the optics trade for many years and Natalie will continue to run the shop in Cuckfield, where their lab is located. Hurst i wear do not do sight tests, with customers just bringing their prescriptions into the shop. Lin has already noticed the change from her other shop: “This is much busier than Cuckfield, especially in the mornings. It’s a nice High Street, with so many people looking in and waving and smiling. People introduced themselves as we were renovating and other traders came in and introduced themselves, which we didn’t experience elsewhere.” The opening Saturday was very busy and Lin was particularly pleased that no one asked about sight tests, indicating that the customers already understood the concept of the shop. She looks forward to being a presence on the High Street for many years to come: “It’s a nice little village, you do have something of everything here. There’s a lot going on, and with the Hurst Hub everyone is interacting with everyone else.”

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