Wow, we have done it! We have opened our BIGGER and BETTER Community Shop and Café (see centre spread). A big thank you to everyone involved in making this building project such a success and to everyone who attended our opening event on Saturday 7 September. I am sure you will agree it was a fantastic occasion, and a big thank you to Adam Henson who did the honours and cut the ribbon for us.
With the new, bigger and better café we will be serving some new and delicious homemade, very local cakes made by our super volunteers, Louise and Valerie. These cakes will be seasonal to reflect the flavours and seasons of our year. So why not pop into the café and try some of our yummy cakes!
With blackberries still in the hedges, and apples, pears & figs falling from the trees, these delicious fruits make us aware that autumn is fast approaching. Why not savour the moment and make some jams, jellies, cakes and crumbles, with all jam and baking ingredients you’ll need from our shop.
Coming in the next few days will be winter squashes, curly kale, and purple sprouting broccoli. These are a perfect accompaniment to making a hot and delicious tasty homemade soup or even a hearty stew to put in the oven to aid the colder days upon us.
If you are new to Bledington you may not know that we have a daily delivery of fresh bread, milk, fruit, and vegetables. These deliveries all come from local suppliers. Four days a week we also receive a delivery of freshmeats, including sausages, chicken fillets and mince beef. If you need anything extra, then please do contact the shop.
I am so proud to announce we’ve been nominated for a Best Community Organisation Award in the North Cotswolds Awards. Voting is easy. Just go to northcotswoldsawards.co.uk and in the voting section select the Community Organisation award category. Voting closes at the end of October so please support us and vote now!
As we move forward to darker evenings and cosy nights by the fire, we will be changing our opening hours. From the last Sunday in October our opening hours will remain 9.00am-5.00pm Monday-Saturday, but on Sundays we will close at 2.00pm. Shop early on Sunday to avoid disappointment.
As always, I am incredibly grateful to all my amazing volunteers who very generously give up their time to help and support me in the shop. Whether it be stacking shelves, serving customers, or washing aprons,every little bit of help is always gratefully appreciated!
If you would like to get involved, please do contact me. You can pop into the shop, email me on manager@bledingtonshop.com or telephone me 01608 659977. I look forward to you joining our team.
