Melton based local food producer, Paul Jones of Soyfoods, can been seen here in this short film clip discussing the health and environmental benefits of his organic bread.
http://www.soyfoods.co.uk/news.php
Soyfoods have catered at a number of LRP events and the quality of the food has always been a talking point.
Soyfoods will be attending the following local events where you be able to sample a wide range of their delicious produce, including organic pizza:

• Whetstone Pastures Farm Open Day, Sunday 7th June and Sunday 2nd August
• Melton Country Fair, Sunday 28th June
• Music in the Yard, The Stable Yard, Cotesbach, nr. Lutterworth, Saturday 12th July

Viewers of Channel 4’s hit show The Secret Millionaire will now be able to play a part in helping local community groups secure much-needed funding through the Big Lottery Fund’s new Secret Millionaire Fund.

Big Lottery Fund and The Secret Millionaire have teamed up to give viewers of the programme a chance to act on the charitable inspiration fuelled by the show. Lottery funding worth £1 million has been lined up to give away in grants across the UK of up to £10,000 from the Fund.

People can visit www.channel4.com/secretmillionaire to find out if their community group is eligible to apply, or they can even nominate a local good cause who could benefit from the funding. Groups can then download a straightforward application form and apply to BIG’s Secret Millionaire Fund.

Successful applicants may then be selected for filming by Channel 4 and appear on the website or TV programme. Visitors to the website can also showcase their favourite local cause on an interactive map of the UK and get involved by donating time or money.

The Secret Millionaire Fund will support projects that give people better chances in life, build stronger communities, improve rural and urban environments or promote healthier and more active people and communities.

Enjoy the chance to come and buy a selection of locally produced fresh and tasty food direct from the farmer and producer at Birstall Village Hall on Birstall Road, LE4 4DH on Saturday 30th May from 10am to 1pm.

There will be a wide range of food to sample and purchase, including meat, poultry, farmed trout, eggs, cheeses, pies, cakes and more.

Entrance is FREE and light refreshments will also be available. Parking is available at the nearby School Lane playing fields which is only a short walk away.

Rural communities are the focus of Sport England's first themed funding round.
The £10 million fund aims to support projects that tackle the barriers to, and unearth new opportunities for, getting people in rural areas playing and enjoying more sport.
Sport England is looking forward to receiving bids to the Rural Communities Themed Round from a wide range of our partners - from local authorities to sports clubs and smaller community groups.
Rural communities have been chosen for the first round because they face particular barriers to participating in sport, such as a reduced choice of sports available and transport issues.
The latest Active People Survey shows that two thirds of the local councils with the lowest sports participation rates are in rural areas.
A detailed application prospectus for this round is available on the Sport England website http://funding.sportengland.org/funding/funding_programmes/rural_communities1.aspx and there is a three-month window for outline applications.

For further information please e-mail Sport England's local Funding Advisor l.goddard@lboro.ac.uk or ring: 01509 226767.

Kirby Muxloe Parish Plan group held a hugely successful community fayre at the weekend. The event was held to advertise the impending questionnaire that will be delivered to every household within the village over the next few weeks. A huge scale map of the village was also on display. The map, which the local primary school children had helped make, was used to invite residents to add their ideas and comments about their community.

Residents also found out about a number of local village groups, as the parish plan committee had invited a number of local clubs and societies; these included the badminton club, the scout group, the Women’s Institute and many more. The synergy choir were also on hand to perform a variety of songs and local businesses offered raffle prizes.

Jessica Grudings, the Blaby Community Development Officer, said; ‘The event was very well attended, the parish plan group should be extremely proud of themselves for putting on such a successful morning for local residents. I hope it will encourage people to get involved with the parish plan, either by filling in the questionnaire or coming along to future meetings.’

For further information please e-mail: jgrudgings@ruralcc.org.uk or ring: 0116 268 9708.

Produced by the RCC and LCC this report
http://www.oakleaves.org.uk/uploads/3549e8345418c62571807184.pdf gives an overview of the Parish Plan activity over the last twelve months. It includes summaries of the issues raised with nine new Parish Plans published this year.
The report has been arranged to reflect the Local Area Agreement (LAA) themes, reflecting local or national targets. For people not aware of local government procedures, these targets may seem unfamiliar. However, this format will enable partners to quickly see all initiatives identified from the Community – led consultations that are being undertaken, enable them to see where they may target some of their efforts and work in partnership with the community to provide sustainable services.
The report also includes a summary of the outcomes achieved in twenty nine other Leicestershire communities who have been engaged in the Parish Plan process since 2005.
The Parish Plan action plans and full reports from which they are derived, are available by e-mailing dcook@ruralcc.org.uk alternatively ring Diana on 0116 2689706.

Sustain UK will be holding a Seminar on Local Food Policy on Wednesday 22nd April 2009 between 11.00am and 4pm at Leicester's Dawn Centre on Conduit Street (near the train station).

The day will include several short presentations about projects in the area along with discussion around local policy on food from around the country. There are a limited number of spaces available so please contact Sallie Hooper (details below) to book a place and your dietary requirements asap.

For further information e-mail sallie.hooper@leicestershirefoodlinks.org.uk or ring: 01509 881386.

Leicestershire First; a new charity set up in Summer 2008 to encourage leadership, excellence and citizenship, is looking to find unsung heroes it wants to honour. Each winner will receive £3,000 to donate to a charity of their choice in Leicestershire.
The deadline for completed applications for the next round of Awards is 29th April 2009. Please follow this link to download a nomination form http://www.leicestershirefirst.org.uk/?page=application_form
The latest round of Awards will be made in the following categories:

• Courage - For exceptionally brave behaviour in helping others, while risking personal life and safety, thus being a role model and encouraging others to similar action.
• Achievement in the Arts & Music - For an exceptional contribution to achievement through the arts, be it through visual or performing arts, music or artistic development in general.

Previous Award winners include, teacher Helen Collins, for her inspirational use of music. She has formed a choir of schoolboys and led them on a journey to the stage of the Royal Albert Hall and into the living rooms of the nation in the TV series The Choir. Helen has chosen to donate the price money to the oncology unit at the Leicester Royal Infirmary and a campaign to fund a music therapist at a children’s hospice in Loughborough.

Leicestershire First aims to build, support and sustain commitment to a more cohesive community within the City and County. Leicestershire First aims to promote shared values, strengthen intercultural links and bring communities together through recognition and celebration of Leicestershire’s achievements, while emphasizing the importance of social and community giving.

For further information please visit http://www.leicestershirefirst.org.uk/?page=home or e-mail info@leicestershirefirst.org.uk alternatively ring 0116 249 5330.

The Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire, Jennifer, Lady Gretton, was in North West Leicestershire earlier today to officially open the new Diseworth Heritage Centre.

The Heritage Centre is in the village's former Baptist Church on Lady Gate which had been unused for worship since 2000 when it was extensively damaged in flooding. The Church, a grade 2 listed building, which was built in 1752 and is one of the earliest Baptist Churches in Leicestershire.

(pictured, Lady Gretton officially opens the Heritage Centre)

Thanks to the tireless work of the, volunteer led, Diseworth Heritage Trust grants totaling £630,000 have been secured to purchase the Church and all the renovations, including flood proofing! Funding has been provided through a number of partners, including, the Heritage Lottery Fund, East Midlands Airport, Leicestershire County Council and the LRP through its Vibrant Villages scheme.

The Heritage Centre, which is open to the public, has a main hall, complete with museum cases, which will be used for conferences, talks and exhibitions. In addition, the former vestry now has a meeting space and kitchen while on the first floor, the former schoolroom, is a fully equipped IT suite with wireless reception. The only part of the building which is ‘new build’ is the entrance reception and toilets.

For further information please contact the Diseworth Heritage Trust on 01332 853647 or e-mail: martin.hening@zen.co.uk

This month's Rural Digest http://www.oakleaves.org.uk/uploads/3549d5cf433f602926637278.pdf is now available to download and includes:

• The Government's response to the Matthew Talor review
• Parliamentary debate from February 2009 on the rural economy
• A scoping study by the Commission for Rural Communities - Working in 21st Rural England
• Defra's Farm Business Survey