Welcome to the grass e-route for the South East, brought to you by Regional Director Michelle Nudds. This month, buy tickets to the Goodwood Race Day (and donate a bottle!) buy your shooting badge, support your hunt, Shop for the Countryside and some diary dates.
- Goodwood racing lunch, 10th September
- Donate a bottle Cash in the attic
- Shooting badges & update
- Support your local hunt
- Shop for the countryside
- Dates for the diary
Goodwood racing lunch - 10th September
Sponsored by S|E|B Merchant Bank
Saturday 10th September 2011 is the date for your diary this year for the annual Countryside Alliance Goodwood racing lunch. Join us for a Champagne reception in the Charlton Boxes overlooking the horse walk and the home straight, followed by luncheon, an auction, racing, a hound parade and then afternoon tea.
Lunch & Richmond badge inclusive of car park, race card and afternoon tea are available at a special rate of £80 per person. Reduced rates for Goodwood members and tables of ten.
Please contact me on 01903 884179 or email on michelle-nudds@countryside-alliance.org - Look forward to hearing from you soon as numbers limited.
Donate a bottle
Once again we are asking for donations of bottles for the bottle stall at Goodwood on Saturday 10th September. Please do consider dropping a bottle off at Bucks County Show or the Edenbridge & Oxted show, or alternatively contact me on michelle-nudds@countryside-alliance.org or telephone 01903 884179 to find out your nearest collection point.
Any kind of alcohol is welcomed; I am sure most of us have a bottle or two that we could donate, which will all help to raise funds for the campaigning work that goes on to maintain our countryside activities.
If you would like to volunteer to help at Goodwood then please do give me a call.
Cash in the attic
Have you got cash in the attic? Last year the Countryside Alliance held memorabilia auctions around the country to raise vital funds to maintain the vitality of its campaigns and to keep up political pressure.
The auction in the South East proved extremely successful and we would therefore like to hold another one early in 2012. So there could well be "Cash in your Attic", sat there gathering dust and if there is, why not have a sort out and donate those items to the Countryside Alliance.
Whether it's an old hunting coat, painting, fishing reel, cartridge belt, tack, rugs, books or more, the Alliance would like to collect any items old or new for its south east 2012 auction.
All you have to do is contact me on michelle-nudds@countryside-alliance.org or 01903 884179. Details of auction date to follow.
Shooting badges & update
The ever popular Countryside Alliance shooting badges are now on sale for the 2011/12 season. Click here to buy. The distinctive cartridge-shaped metal badges - silver this year - have long been the most visible way for shooters to support the Countryside Alliance campaign for shooting. Badges and shoot packs which include sweep stake cards & a collection box are available - email Shooting Campaign manager David Taylor on cfs@countryside-alliance.org for further information.
The Countryside Alliance's shooting campaign is the shooters' voice. We work tirelessly to promote and protect the interests of shooting enthusiasts and in buying your new season badge you can wear a clear message of your support for our work. We have a huge amount to do and the support of everyone who buys a Countryside Alliance badge enables us to make your voice heard in Parliament, the media and beyond. Remember that all funds raised through these badges are ploughed straight back into promoting and defending your sport. Visit our website's shooting page to find out about current issues and what the Alliance is working on for shooting:
- Costal Access & Sporting rights
- Game to Eat
- National Shooting Survey
- Glorious 12th
Support your local hunt
The Hunting Act 2004 came into force at midnight on 17th February 2005. Ours and yours relentless campaigning has guaranteed that the Hunting Act is now widely acknowledged to be bad law. It is no accident that many political commentators, Chief Constables, senior civil servants and a majority of the public have taken this view. The Countryside Alliance has worked tirelessly to expose the law for what it is:
- The Hunting Act is not a welfare measure
- Thousands of hours of police and court time have been wasted, costing taxpayers millions of pounds.
- Innocent hunt staff continue to be harassed by animal rights vigilantes, sometimes with tragic consequences
- The Act is essentially illiberal and its passage brought shame on the parliamentary process
Thanks to our determined efforts when working with hunts that have been targeted, there have been only a handful of successful convictions. However, it cannot be right that a large section of law-abiding citizens continue to live in constant fear of malicious prosecutions.
All of our campaigning has ensured the Conservative Party remains firmly committed to repeal and the Coalition Agreement includes a commitment to a free vote in this Parliament. However, the current make up of the Coalition-led Parliament and its current political priorities trying to ensure the country's financial stability and safety means we must be patient and plan for our moment in a political landscape that changes by the day.
But we must all keep showing our support, whether that be at shows when our hunts are parading, supporting a local or regional fundraising event, making the case for repeal at the pub or keeping your local MP aware of views and your support. Every little helps!
You can download the Case for Repeal here. Never miss an opportunity to communicate it!
Shop for the countryside
In the current economic climate charities have to be ever-more resourceful, and The Countryside Alliance Foundation is no different. We have been working hard to create new ways for our supporters to raise money for us, but without asking for you to put your hand into your pocket again.
We are delighted to introduce you to Shop for the Countryside, an ingenious way for you to help us raise money - at no cost to you. Partnering with Give as you Live, thousands of online shops including John Lewis, Boden, and Marks & Spencer have signed up to donate a percentage of each online purchase you make to the Countryside Alliance Foundation, at no cost to you.
Simply visit www.shopforthecountryside.com which will allow thousands of other online shops to donate to us as well.
Please remember to Shop for the Countryside next time you book a train ticket, renew your car insurance or book a well-deserved holiday. During these difficult times we remain as committed as ever to the mission of The Countryside Alliance Foundation, and I thank you in advance for helping us to raise money to continue our work.
Dates for the diary
- 28th/29th Aug - Edenbridge & Oxted Show, Lingfield, Surrey. www.edenbridge-show.co.uk for further info.
- 1st Sept - Bucks County Show, Buckinghamshire - CA team attending
- 1st Sept - the 7th annual Countryside Alliance Awards open to nominations on our website, so please put your valued local businesses forward.
- 8th-11th Sept - Blenheim Palace International Horse Trails, Oxfordshire - visit our CA stand No. 103
- 10th Sept - Goodwood Racing Lunch, Goodwood, West Sussex
- 11th Sept - Hampshire Country Sports Day, Alresford, Hampshire - visit my colleague Alison Hawes on stand and meet celebrated cook and author Clarissa Dickson Wright
- 25th Sept - Loseley Country Fair, Loseley, Surrey 25th Sept - Silver Fox Challenge, Henley on Thames, Oxon - CA trailer attending 2nd/3rd Oct - Autumn Game & Country Fair, Ardingly, Sussex www.seas.org.uk
If you would like your event listed - send date, location and contact details for the event to me at michelle-nudds@countryside-alliance.org | 
