In the Village
Cerne Abbas Historical Society Special Projects Fund
The mission of the Historical Society is to inform, to bring like minded people together and to build up and exchange information in an accessible and entertaining way. To do this effectively we have constantly to increase our knowledge of the area. A major gap in this regard concerns the precise location of the Abbey which gave the village its name. We know it was out there on Beevor and Simsay but everything else is educated guesswork. We are embarking on a joint venture with Archaeologists from Bournemouth University to investigate the site using scientific techniques to build a clearer picture of what lies beneath. We are aiming to discover "hot-spots" - areas of particular interest - which can be probed further with ground penetrating radar. Henry Digby has given his blessing and the work will start sometime over the Summer. We hope to involve students, villagers and the village school. At the end of the project there will be a fully documented report which will be the subject of a talk at the Society. Additionally, we hope to have the key findings on a weather proof board at the site to inform and attract visitors. The estimated cost of the survey is £4,000 and we hope that the "Open Gardeners" will support this important survey which will increase our knowledge of our home village and we hope attract interest from outside. We will also be drawing on Society funds and seeking help from other sources to finance the project but support from Open Gardens will be the most important source.
John Paterson, 4.12.11
Outside the Village
Julia's House
Julia's House is Dorset's only hospice dedicated to children with life-limiting conditions. The majority of the children we care for are unlikely to live beyond the age of 18.
Complementing the work of the Julia's House Community Team, which consists of 80 Nurses and Carers who travel the county, the children's hospice provides life-changing support for families both in their own homes and in the hospice itself. In 2010, we provided 17,388 hours of care for Dorset’s children comprising 8,600 in the hospice, with a record 8,800 hours being offered in the community - up from 8,400 in 2009.
Receiving only approximately three per cent of our funding from the Government, Julia's House relies on the Dorset community to help raise the remainder of our required income. In 2011, we estimate that it will cost nearly £2.8m to continue to provide our vital services.
In 2011 Julia's House aims to:
Open the hospice for 24-hour care at weekends. This will give families a real break from the pressures of caring for a seriously ill child.
Offer round-the-clock care in the hospice when a child needs care at the end of their life. This involves NHS doctors working with our nurses
Increase the hours of care we provide in children's own homes
Provide more complementary and music therapy services
Run more social events for the children's mums, dads, brothers and sisters, to relieve the pressure of their daily lives
Ask parents how we can improve our services
Extracted from website, 26.11.11