I APOLOGISE for the fact that there was no West Malvern news in the Malvern Gazette last week; we sadly suffered from a breakdown in electronic communications.

Comic Relief Day proved a great success at St James’ School. The costumes, catwalk and cakes were amazing, and I gather socks were danced off in the sponsored dance. Then, in addition to all the fun, they managed to raise over £1,000 – well done to all you young ones.

The West Malvern Community Market will be back in May by popular demand. The first market will be at 3.15pm on May 13 in the Hall of St James C of E Primary on West Malvern Road. It is completely free to both sellers and buys - just turn up on the day. Only hand-made or hand-grown items can be sold and, it’s also worth noting that, if you are selling baked products or jam you may need a licence from the Council. People can contact Emma Philpott on 07711 396742 for any further information.

The West Malvern British Legion is launching celebrations for its 65th anniversary by holding a live music night on Saturday, April 9. A four-piece band from Birmingham called Good Times will be playing and there will also be a free buffet. The evening starts at 8pm and entry is free – so, an opportunity for a good night out this weekend.

If you are worried about traffic speeds through the village, or any other traffic matters, and would like to voice your opinion, then there will be an opportunity to do so at the Annual Parish Meeting on Monda, April 11. The meeting is at 7pm in the village hall and the speaker will be Rod Reynolds from the Safer Roads Partnership – they are responsible for the deployment of speed camera vans and other traffic calming measures. Data on vehicle speeds throughout the Parish has been collected over the last few months and the results will be available at the meeting. I’m reminded of a non West Malvern acquaintance of mine who once asked if Mathon Road was that slip road! – I’m not sure if he saw Croft Bank or the West Malvern Road as the motorway! Anyway, it will be useful to see if any new ideas are put forward Easter is now on the horizon with local events, family get-togethers and for the lucky ones, a holiday to look forward to, and I also wanted to remind everyone about the special Church services. Firstly however, is the Annual Church Meeting on Sunday, April 10 at 10.30am during Morning Worship. On Palm Sunday and Maunday Thursday there are morning services, while on Good Friday there is the Last Hour at the cross, with Reverend N Menon, at 2pm, and a special service on the Stations of the Cross at 7pm. There will be a family service with Communion on Easter Sunday at 10.30am and again Holy Communion using the Book of Common Prayer at 6.30pm in the evening.

At the WI meeting this coming Thursday, April 14, Bransford-based sculptor Caro Sweet will talk about her recent sculpture - Indiana Visionary - an 8.5 ft high solid cast iron sculpture which she created in America in just three weeks. In addition there will be an Easter Raffle – the main prize being a very large, edible rabbit donated by Colston Bakery.