COMMUNITY LIBRARY - Fownhope’s new community library at Faulkner House will be officially launched on Wednesday, when two long-standing residents, Mary Ramage and Margaret Biggs, do the honours at 1.30pm.

The library is another example of a village community taking the initiative to provide a much-wanted local facility. The parish council convened a public meeting in January which elected a steering committee and secured a grant from the National Lottery’s Awards for All programme which has paid for much of the set-up costs including bookcases, stationery and some new books.

Herefordshire Housing has provided the venue. The county library service has given advice and loan of some books.

Herefordshire Council has made a grant towards the cost of laptops. Fownhope Parish Council pays the rent and insurance.

More than 70 local residents have donated over 4000 books, maps, DVDs and CDs, and another 25 take turns to man the library.

The library already has a hundred members and is open every Wednesday from 2 till 4pm and has plans for a second session, subject to demand. Refreshments are available making the library a good place to meet up with friends for tea or coffee. A book circle will meet here monthly and there will be laptops with internet access and opportunities to help people make sense of their computer and the web! Membership of Fownhope Library is free and is open to anybody who lives or works in Fownhope or neighbouring parishes.

OPEN GARDEN EVENT - Fownhope garden club members open gardens for charity on Sunday, 2-6pm. Come to Fownhope Memorial Hall to collect your list of ten gardens for £5 per adult and stop a while for tea and cakes and plant stall, raffle etc, all for village charities.