Recent shed break-ins

As you may be aware there were a number of sheds and out buildings broken into this week. It appears that garden tools and machinery are the main items being targeted.

At the recent meeting with Matthew Barber, the Police and Crime Commissioner for TVP, the advice was to mark any equipment with a suitable marker with your name and address. It may not stop the burglaries but it will make it easier for stolen goods to be returned if found and make the resale of them more difficult. Another good way to prove your ownership of any items would be to make sure that the equipment is registered with the manufacturer for warranty.

Security measures are also important but it is evident that locks etc are not a deterrent to a determined burglar using angle grinders and bolt cutters to gain entry.

It may seem futile, but please report any incident to the police. They probably won’t be able to do too much to alleviate the problem but they definitely won’t if they don’t know about it.

The parish council is looking into setting up a village WhatsApp group so in the future incidents such as these can be communicated quickly around the village.

Liza Hopkinson’s funeral

The funeral of Liza Hopkinson will take place at St. Etheldreda’s Church on Thursday 4th December at 12 noon. All are welcome – no mourning attire as Liza liked life to be colourful. There will be drinks and nibbles in the Red Lion afterwards.

No flowers please, but donations to Green Pastures Nursing Home can be made in Church or via https://elizabethlizahopkinson.muchloved.com/

Christmas Presents for the Sunshine Centre

The Ironstone Benefice of eight churches has once again offered to provide Christmas presents for children who use The Sunshine  Centre in Banbury.

Each parish has been asked to give presents for a certain age group and Horley has been asked to buy presents for the age group 0 to 2 years old.  

If you feel you can help this year, please donate toys/gifts which are NEW and cost up to £10. 

Please wrap your gift(s), label with the age group and where necessary indicate whether the gift is suitable for a girl or boy.  Wrapped gifts should be left by the font in the church. They will be collected regularly and then delivered to the Sunshine Centre in good time for Christmas.

The appeal is already underway and runs until Sunday 7th December.  Thank you so much for your generosity.

Note: The Sunshine Centre was created to act as a hub for a range of family and childcare support services for the community in Bretch Hill and the surrounding area. It provides childcare for children from 3 months to 5 years, organises classes and courses for families in the community, and hosts a range of baby and toddler groups. It also partners with other organisations such as the NHS to provide weekly antenatal clinics.

Thank you from the staff and children of The Sunshine Centre.

Reminder: Horley Christmas Market this Saturday (29th November)

Don’t miss Horley’s Candlelit Christmas Market in St Etheldreda’s Church on

Saturday 29th November from 4-6pm.

Lots of Christmassy stalls and games and a fabulous hamper raffle.

Crime Prevention and Neighbourhood Watch Evening – 24 Nov

A date for your diary!

In view of the spate of break-ins recently, Horley Parish Council have arranged for a presentation/meeting with the Police and Crime Commission.

This will take place as follows:

Venue: The Old School Rooms, Church Lane, (next to the Church) Horley OX15 6BJ

Date: 24 November 2025

Time: 7.30pm to 9.30pm.

This meeting is open to ALL and is an opportunity to discuss concerns/remedies with the Police.

David Beck

Horley (Oxfordshire) Parish Clerk

Horley Christmas Market – Saturday 29th November

Don’t miss Horley’s Candlelit Christmas Market in St Etheldreda’s Church on

Saturday 29th November from 4-6pm.

Lots of Christmassy stalls and games and a fabulous hamper raffle.

It’s time to sign up for this year’s Village Lottery

The Village Lottery is a major source of funding for the Michael Hardinge Trust, which provides educational support to children and young people in the village as well as maintaining the Old School Hall as an important village asset. 

The new lottery year starts on Saturday 8th November. If you played in 2024/25 we will be in touch with you shortly, but if you didn’t, it’s not too late to join in this year – see below for details:

Coffee Morning for Breast Cancer Now – Thank You

Thank you to everyone who came along to the coffee morning last Saturday – we raised £562.50 for Breast Cancer Now!