The Welney Website
The "Welney News" past & present
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How it started
During 1997, over 200 household in the parish were asked to complete a questionnaire as part of a "Parish Appraisal". One question was whether people wanted a village newsletter, and another, would they be prepared to help produce one.Three quarters of the households said they would like one, and a quarter offered assistance. So, one of the appraisal team, Charlotte Cox, arranged an open meeting in the Parish Hall on 26th June 1997 to progress the idea.
Disappointingly, only eight parishioners attended (none of whom were indigenous Welney people). Four - Karen Fleming, Helen Barry, Tim Bennett and Margaret Levesley formed a steering committee.
Later, with the addition of Carol Green, they became the first editorial team and produced a pilot edition, distributed free to every household. It was widely acclaimed, and has been followed ever since with bi-monthly issues, starting with No 1 in Oct 1997. In 2011, thirteen years later, two of the original team are still involved.
Helen Barry, an ex-BBC producer living at Welney Hotel on Bedford Bank West, was the first editor and within just a few months, in January 1998, The Welney News had been voted best parish magazine in Norfolk in a competition run by BBC Radio Norfolk, winning a desk-top publishing software suite. (The BBC connection was pure co-incidence - Helen and the committee had no idea about the competition until Roger Giles brought it to their attention.)
Since Helen's resignation through il-health at the end of 1999 (and her later tragic death in 2001) WN has had a number of editors or temporary 'stand-ins', all of whom continued to produce high-class magazines.
In early 2011 Rachel Brown moved away from Welney and Derek Levesley became a temporary editor to keep the magazine alive until a new permanent editor could be found. Peter Arnold took up the challenge and a committee was formed. At Peter Arnold's request, a PDF version of his second issue, number 82, was posted on this website. Unfortunately Mr Arnold apparently acted without the authority of the committee who ordered the removal of the PDF version. Peter Arnold resigned as a result of the committee's decision.
| issues | from/to | editor |
| pilot & 1-13 | Aug 97 - Nov 99 | Helen Barry |
| 14 | Dec 99 | Carol Green |
| 15 - 20 | Feb 00 - Feb 01 | Richard Gren |
| 21 | Apr 01 | Helen Barry |
| 22 | Aug 01 | Karen Fleming |
| 23 -25 | Oct 01 - Mar 02 | Carol Green |
| 26 - 32 | Apr 02 - Mar 03 | Karen Fleming & committee |
| 33 - 44 | Jun 03 - May 05 | Jenny Stevens |
| 45 - 78 | Jun 05 - Jan 11 | Rachel Brown |
| 79 - 80 | Feb 11 - May 11 | Derek Levesley |
| 81-82 | Jun 11 - Sep 11 | Peter Arnold |
| 83 | Oct 11 | Derek Levesley |
| excerpts from early issues of Welney News in PDF format |
| Editorial from Pilot issue |
| The second editorial |
The "Welney News" today
It's still a great community newsletter, full of news and reports on just about every aspect of Welney - the new Youth Club, the WI, the Friendship Club, Church services, the School, and the Parish Council, to name just a few.There's an events diary, puzzles & competitions, Readers Write, even a "Victor Meldrew" column with a penetrating, sometimes sad, often amusing, view of Welney and the shortcomings of the few who try to run things, and the many that don't seem to care.
| Editor from issue 83: Derek &/or the committee ? |
If you wish to place an advert, at very attractive rates, please contact Derek Levesley on 610609.
| on-line issues of Welney News in PDF format |
| No 82, Aug-Sept 2011 |