People on the Electoral Roll for all three churches can vote at the upcoming APCM (Annual Parish Church Meeting) on Sunday, 3rd May, 9:30 for Harpsden and Sunday, 31st May for Shiplake and Dunsden. The benefit of for being on the Electoral Roll is it allows you a vote in church. There was a full revision of the Electoral Roll last year, 2025, and so we are ONLY looking at new members of the congregation or people who missed out last year.HarpsdenI will be in church on Sunday, 19th April if you would like a form or to talk to me. If you have any questions and would like to e-mail me please do: frostandfrost@btopenworld.com. The following Sunday is a Benefice service at Shiplake and then it is the APCM at St Margaret’s. Please join us.James Frost – Electoral Roll Officer for St Margaret’sShiplake and DunsdenForms are available at the back of each church for anyone wishing to join the electoral roll. There are also forms for anyone wishing to join the PCC for the first time or have been a member for three years - in which case you must apply again. Please hand the forms to a warden or Revd Jane or Revd Pam.Shiplake is in need of a Churchwarden and we'd love to hear from anyone who might be willing to help.Email the Benefice Office for more information, thank you.
We now have a new address for our benefice website: www.achurchnearyou.com/Shiplake-Dunsden-HarpsdenAlthough anyone who types that in will actually be automatically redirected to (these) our current pages https://www.achurchnearyou.com/benefice/27-442AP/ (so that address can still be used too) but the new address is much clearer and easier to share and remember. If there is anything you want to see on the website, or anything you spot that is out of date, please do let me know by email on webeditor.sdh@gmail.comIf you used them before, you may have noticed that the old Facebook page and website are no longer being maintained - we are looking into trying to close them down to avoid confusion, so please check if there's any content on there that you would like a copy of by the end of April, or anything you want me to put on the current website, the addresses are:Facebook https://www.facebook.com/shiplakedunsdenharpsdenOld website https://www.shiplakedunsdenharpsden.org.uk/index_php.html Many thanks and best wishesVic Email: webeditor.sdh@gmail.com
Shiplake residents can expect long-awaited improvements to Church Lane, following confirmation that the road has been included in Oxfordshire County Council’s resurfacing programme for the 2026–27 financial year. The road has been heavily affected by potholes and surface water during periods of rain, has been a persistent concern for our local community. The Parish Council, alongside local residents, the Church and Shiplake College, has campaigned for several years to secure repairs. Our efforts have now been rewarded with the inclusion of Church Lane in the council’s forward works plan. Leigh Rawlins, our local county councillor, has played a key role in advocating for the project during the most recent round of road scheme planning. Church Lane now appears on Oxfordshire County Council’s official map of scheduled works for 2026–27, although a confirmed start date has yet to be announced. Further updates will be provided as more details on the timing and scope of the resurfacing become available Chris Penrose, Chair, Shiplake Parish Council
