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August 2022 August 2022
OVER THE HILL Cost of Living Crisis

Life is worrying for many people right now and many people haven’t asked for
help before. It’s important to act early to prevent smaller problems turning into
As I write this, we are experiencing a heat wave, some thing I can’t remember bigger ones. Dorset Council are working with Dorset Citizen’s Advice Bureau
before in all my eighty years. I can’t say that I am enjoying it one bit. . (CAB) to offer advice and support on: money, debt and benefits; access to food;
housing; support for children; mental health and wellbeing; energy, water, phone
However it must be a boon and broadband costs; employment; general help and other issues.
to the farmers who are
currently harvesting their We are supporting the CAB, please contact your local office to find out more
cereal crops. It will cause about their outreach services. Also, you can read about the overall government
crops to ripen earlier and support for the cost of living on GOV.UK.
need far less drying.
Although I have no idea If you want any information on the following please ring Peter
how it is going to effect
yields. It is ideal weather for  Solar panels on the roof of Durlston Castle
hay making but again I am
not sure how the grass will  End of Year Financial position
yield or regrow after being  Coombe House Special School
mown. Most of our gardens
are being watered regularly  SPAM Emails from Dorset Council
and I am wondering how long it will before we are told that because of the
shortage of water supplies this must stop. Certainly this has been the case in the  Dorset Council Housing Single Point of Contact (SPOC)
past and I am sure that this is the driest year for a very long time.
The one great benefit this year is the wonderful foliage we have on our trees. The Surgery
oaks in particular have tremendous leaf cover, while other bigger trees such as
the beech, sycamore, horse chestnut, sweet chestnut and even the ash have We are back to holding face to face meetings. However, we would also be more
tremendous leaf coverings, Ash die back would appear to have been stopped than delighted to talk to you on the telephone or via Zoom. Please ring or email
this year or at least considerably reduced, with wonderful foliage displays on us with some details so that we can prepare ourselves. Peter’s email address is
many trees. This of course is because they are very deep rooted and can reach peterwharf@hotmail.com telephone 07986 600799 and Laura’s is
cllrlaura.miller@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk telephone 07814 569563
water that is not available to smaller plants and their foliage does not allow the
sunlight to penetrate the soil around them. Peter Wharf & Laura Miller, Dorset Councillors for West Purbeck
There could be a serious food shortage this winter here in the UK and throughout
the world because of a poor harvest. Here in the UK the increase in the
population due to more immigrants, the world trade disruption because of the
Russian/Ukraine war have all got a part to play in our food supplies.

However it is not all bad, there are numerous flowering plants, especially roses
which have been watered, which are resplendent in their shapes and colours to
cheer us up.

When we think of the need to produce more food, we must think about all the
rewilding projects that are taking place, also the creation of more woodland on
what could potential be farmland, if not for arable use for grazing animals. We
must make more use of our moorland, some of which can be restored to conifer

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