WeyBay WI

What’s not to love? A trip through the beautiful Dorset countryside on a glorious summer day, followed by a meet-up with friends for a guided tour of the recently renovated Georgian gem The Sherborne.

Formerly a substantial country estate and later a school, Sherborne House had fallen into disrepair. Now wonderfully restored and reimagined as The Sherborne, it houses an art gallery, café, and restaurant. A true highlight is the magnificent staircase, featuring a mural by Sir James Thornhill, as well as the exhibitions that bring fresh perspectives with each visit.

A heartfelt thank you to WeyBay WI for arranging this outing—many members commented that it was an experience they wouldn’t have thought to try on their own. The WI always aims to offer something for everyone, and this visit was truly a gem.

Looking forward to the annual summer party and a couple of new groups - a new book club and a craft club. Details will be sent out to members.

June’s walk on Portland starting from Portland Heights through the sculpture park, a visit to St George’s church and coffee stop at whitestones all organised by Judy Carr.

WeyBay WI held its annual meeting on Tuesday, April 15, 2025. The outgoing committee was commended for a highly successful year, and a new committee was elected. With summer on its way and the town preparing for an influx of tourists, WeyBay anticipates an active year filled with events and guest speakers and continuing to be part of the larger county and national WI community.

Recently, Tim Stevens from Wessex Water delivered an unexpectedly engaging and informative presentation on how we get our water supply, and Paul Scriven, Head Gardener at Carey’s Secret Garden in Wareham told the members the history of the garden and shared his expertise.

WeyBay members enjoyed an evening at Boots getting advice and sampling the makeup and skin products.

We couldn’t resist sharing these photos of the magnificent owls that visited WeyBay’s monthly meeting!

Sharandys, a voluntary bird rescue organization now based at Vurlands Animal Farm, has been rescuing wild birds of prey for over 20 years. In addition to their rescue work, they also visit care homes and community groups like ours to help educate people about these incredible birds.

Plans for the upcoming months include the annual bike ride, a coffee morning, a walk for all members, a Boots beauty evening, and a trip to Sherborne House. In addition, events highlighted by the Dorset Federation include visits to Portsmouth and the Spinnaker Tower, watercolour painting session, canoeing, fossil hunting, a colour inspiration morning, and a trip to Athelhampton House. These activities should provide something of interest to every taste.

Event details are communicated to members via email.

It’s been a busy start to the WeyBay year.

At the January meeting Richard Balson from RH Balson and Sons Butchers, in Bridport. RJ Balson and Sons is amazingly the oldest family butcher in the UK established in 1515. Henry VIII was still married to his first wife! Richard talked about the long history of his family butchers’ shop and how it has changed since the 16th century. In those days farmers brought their animals to the town, and they were slaughtered and sold in the open-air market on the same day. It is a very different marketplace today and the shop has had to change with the times and adjust to modern tastes and shopping habits. In 2015 the shop celebrated its impressive milestone of 500 years and Richard enjoyed a year of television interviews and awards! The talk was lively, informative and full of amusing anecdotes. He rounded off with a busy Q&A session. The WeyBay members in the audience are all planning a visit to his shop to stock up on the selection of eighteen different sausages and other meats to support this unique shop. Richard is donating his fee to Cancer Research which is a very personal cause to him and his wife.

Photo, Richard Balson with WeyBay President Sheila Vogwell.

Minutes of all meetings are available in the Meetings pages and photos of events published in the Gallery

Also this month, several members attended a Colours Workshop at the Dorset WI offices, Poundbury. They enjoyed a morning finding out how to pick the colour and style that best suits them best. It’s good to join in the County organised events and meet WI members from other clubs.

Thank you to WI members who donated various craft items as requested by NFWI to support Women’s Prisons. The suggestion came from a new member Tracy Christie after reading the article in WI Life. Items were gathered at the January meeting and packed to send to NFWI London Office by the Secretary Tracy Chevis and President Sheila Vogwell

Our other groups continue as well, with the Walking Group meeting monthly. Each month, a different member of this group organizes a walk on a date, time, and venue that works for them, offering variety. Generally, these walks are 3-4 miles long and last 2-3 hours, often including a tea/coffee stop. The Lunch Club and the Book Clubs remain popular, and members will receive emails from the committee with updates about these groups and other workshops that will be organized throughout the year. WeyBay looks forward to a busy year ahead.

ANNIVERSARY ALBUM

The celebrations for the ten-year anniversary of WeyBay WI in April 2020 were suddenly and very disappointingly put on hold (it is still hoped to have some celebrations in 2021) but it was decided to put together the memories of the first ten years into a photo book. What a lot of memories and a lot of work to put them together into a coherent format to reflect the diverse activities, and the fun that everyone had. The photo book is now published and will be available to see when the WI is able to have its next meeting. But reminiscing over the past years has reminded us again of how important WeyBay has become for so many members and the certainly that it will continue to provide this support to members again as we come out of the pandemic.

Photo shows the original poster in March 2010 inviting everyone to come to the first meeting and a memory of the first venue at The Clipper in St Thomas St.

PRIVACY NOTICE

Your privacy is important to WeyBay WI. This privacy notice provides information about the personal information that we collect and the ways in which we use it.

When do we collect personal information about you?

We will collect personal information from you when you join or communicate with us by any means.

What happens to your personal information?

a. Contact details will be input into the NFWI Members Communication System (MCS) which is password protected.

b. We will also hold details of current members for administration and communication purposes.

c. For non members we will only capture the minimum amount of information that we need in relation to your visit or enquiry.

Who will hold the information?

Information will be held securely by designated person/s, usually an Officer, who requires it for administration purposes. Electronic files will be password protected and paper copies will be held securely.

How do we use your personal information?

There are legitimate reasons to hold personal information for running the WI, to comply with legal obligations or to carry out a contract to which you are a party. For any other purposes we will request your consent.

Do we share your personal information?

We will not sell, rent or lease your personal details to a third party but reserve the right to disclose personal information for legal or regulatory obligations or proceedings and for auditing purposes.

How long do we keep your personal information?

We will erase your personal information immediately when you cease to be a member, hold office, your enquiry is complete or you wish to withdraw your consent, other than for that held for administrative and financial purposes.

What are your personal rights?

You are entitled to ask us to see your personal information, correct it or have it deleted. You have the right to be forgotten. You can also ask us to restrict how we use it.

What about personal details on websites?

We will not use your personal information on our website or within any form of social media, without your consent, but we will not be responsible for the privacy practices of the the web or content of linked websites.

Who do I contact about personal information that has been collected?

Firstly contact our WI Secretary and/or DFWI Federation Secretary about your concern. If they cannot resolve it you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commission’s Office at www.ico.org.uk/concerns

Our contact email: reception-dfwi@uwclub.net