Dear Editor

19th April 2025 | Letters

Happy Birthday – April 1978 to April 2025

On this, the Kibworth & District Chronicle`s 47th birthday, congratulations to the many volunteers who give endless hours to ensure this growing publication is still welcomed in so much of south east Leicestershire. And, importantly, still popular with local advertisers, especially after the Covid set back. I doubted it could survive without reductions and was delighted expansions proved me wrong. Writing in the 201st issue (April 1998) our then MP Edward (now Lord ) Garnier KC stated “I have no doubt……that the Chronicle will still be going strong well into the next century. “

Chronicles past

Five years ago  when Covid struck, the Chronicle was inevitably much affected; notably three issues of 2000 never being issued. But it was a situation that exemplified how every cloud has a silver lining. For from the restrictions on public gatherings arose the exciting development of Chronicle online, www.kibworthchronicle.com . With archived copies now available at the touch of a button in our own homes whilst still maintaining paper copies to 30 settlements.

However there was one less encouraging trend post Covid, namely the trickle of ‘Dear Editor’ letters almost grinding to a halt. Encouragingly, ‘Dear Editors’ are now on the up….35 published since April 2024. Of course, this number would have been maybe doubled decades ago. Indeed I believe not much short of a quarter of one issue was letters! But this was before the 24/7 sharing of opinions via social media presented an instant alternative. However I suggest that the 35 ‘Dear Editors’  of the last year are most encouraging, as the opinions of readers seem to me to be way up there among the distinctive benefits offered by community newspapers.

Chronicles present

This freedom, to express ourselves – within the law – and agree to amicably disagree with others, has been a must in the Chronicle`s forty seven years. Several readers will recall, (among many, many others), the lively letters of Betty Ward, the detail in articles from Brian Porteous , the alert observations of “Watchman” Peter Knott, those “keep smiling” letters from Bud Stevens, the distinctive, accounts of Parish Council reporter Richard Green, Revd. Fred Dawson`s input into the `Collared` column, the artistic wit of Corral Sutherland, tasty reviews of local menus in Roger Whiteway`s ‘Eating Out’, and those countless, challenging observations of the irrepressible David Stone, not to mention correspondence from ‘A Cow BSE’ and ‘Barking Mad’. Agree with them or not, they gave us examples of engagement in community to be encouraged.

At a time when one wonders to what extent Parish Councils / Meetings are restricted by District Councils as to what they can enact, District Councils similarly restricted by County Councils, and County Councils by H.M. Government (at a time when the local government system is itself under review) we are still able, unlike in some places, to make constructive criticism, offer alternative views, and challenge decisions.

Enjoyable as they are, community newspapers which simply outline what`s going to happen and then later purely report what did happen are (in this age of instant news technology) not enriching the communities they serve as much as those who practice the advice once quoted by a member of the original Chronicle team, happily still living in Kibworth –that “a spoon that doesn`t stir gets rusty”. As editors can only print what they receive, let`s continue to make sure they receive enough opinions, views, and suggestions, supportive or questioning, to keep that spoon amicably well-oiled and gently stirring.

Chronicle’s future

But, the question can justifiably arise,——- if the first quarter of this century has contained village plans, local plans, district plans, parish plans, reports on plans, revision of plans, refreshment of plans, reviews of plans, rewritten plans, scrutiny of plans, consultation on plans, public meetings on plans, inspectors inspecting plans, questionnaires on plans, focus groups on plans, land available for development plans, developers` plans, local authority plans, regional plans, central government plans, then new plans, fresh plans and “off we go again” plans, and we’re still tackling the same problems as in the year 2000 though often to a larger degree and at greater public expense.

Then the question “what`s the point  of writing a Dear Editor letter?” is a very valid one with which I fully sympathise. My answer is simply because (unlike in some parts of the world) we can. We have a right to write, – and I believe it`s right that we write — for silence can be interpreted as assent. (Psalm 45 v.1b) To adapt from Julie Andrew`s lyrics in ‘Mary Poppins’:- 

“ A spoonful of letters helps the Chronicle go round , in a thought provoking way.” – So please write on!

Happy Easter,

Roger Garratt