Otford Parish Council and the Otford Society are joining forces on Thursday 2nd June to lay on a village-wide celebration of Her Majesty the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. The village barbecue will be on The Green from 12 noon to 4pm. It will be our big community event of the year and everyone is welcome. Enjoy a perfectly cooked, carved slice straight off the hog roast or choose from the sizzling barbecue.   A drinks tent serving Kentish ales and Otford cider is being run by the Rising Sun. There will be a stall selling soft drinks and cakes, and an ice cream stand. Three village churches are involved in the day, with stalls of locally made craft items and children's entertainment.  Miss Vintage, known to many for her popular annual appearances at the Otford Village Fete, will be singing songs from the era of the Queen’s accession. And the Kent based  'bluesabilly' band Move over DaLi will be sure to keep your toes tapping!  It’s going to be a really fun lunchtime for all the family. There are no restrictions on the number of people who can attend this free event. However in order to plan the catering and ensure that nobody is disappointed on the day we are selling advance meal vouchers to guarantee lunch. These can be obtained from the Parish Office and the following Otford businesses: Yvonne’s, Otford Dry Cleaners, Mille Fleurs, Denise Thompson Designer Florist, Mermaid Dreams, Sally’s Cake Emporium, Pond View Café and Bill Skinner. They cost £1 and will entitle the bearer to £2 off the cost of any hog roast or barbecue meal.  Note that the vouchers cannot be used on other food or drinks stands. Bring rugs and chairs and settle down to enjoy your picnic. This is Otford’s Great Village Jubilee Barbecue. It will be a memorable event for the whole family.

Be sure to come and visit our stand at the Otford Village Fete on May 28th – we’ll be opposite the entrance so you can’t miss us! It’s an opportunity to find out what we do, meet some of the Committee and sign up for our mailing list. We will once again be running the ever-popular Wheel of Fortune, with great prizes for both young and old.

All Otford residents are invited to our AGM at 7pm on Thursday May 26th in the Memorial Hall Clubroom. The meeting will include refreshments and a talk on the way ahead for Otford by Roger Gough, Leader of Kent County Council and member for Sevenoaks North and Darent Valley. Come and have your say about the issues that concern you and hear our plans for the year ahead. Full Details

This beautiful poster, already on display at Otford Station, is one of six that have been designed by artist, Kit Boyd, for the Darent Valley Community Rail Partnership.  The new group, part of a network of similar partnerships across the country, aims to create links between local communities and rail services in the area.  It covers all the stations between Swanley and Sevenoaks. We are now working on a plan to identify what improvements are possible at Otford Station and how they can be implemented. We already have some exciting ideas, but we are looking for more residents to come forward and help us transform Otford Station into a really welcoming place. The Otford Society has resolved to give the partnership its full support and is offering to coordinate volunteers. If you are interested in getting involved, please contact dvcrp@otfordsociety.org.uk For more information on the art of Kit Boyd, including details of alternative versions of the Otford poster, visit www.kitboyd.com

Did you know that not mowing your lawn for a month can create a tenfold increase in nectar available to bees and other pollinators?  Between 1980 and 2013, every square kilometre in the UK lost an average of 11 species of bee and hoverfly. Well it’s up to us to make a difference. Leaving longer between cuts or even leaving a patch in your garden to grow beautiful wildflowers will make such a difference and help bring back the bees. So take up the challenge and leave the lawn mower in the shed for May and watch the beautiful wildlife thrive in your own garden. Find out more at: www.gardensillustrated.com or www.plantlife.org.uk.

Once again we are organising a family trail around the village at Easter. From today Otford will be overrun with rabbits, and they are laying their eggs all over the village - in shop windows along the High Street and at the Parade. Also in the trees and verges of the footpath that runs past the Palace. How many rabbits and eggs can you count? Children under 10 will be able to claim a small prize by reporting how many they’ve spotted to Fine & Country or Mille Fleurs in the High Street and Ibbett Mosely in the Parade. Look out for the posters! Note that the Pond is not part of the trail, so don't cross over there! The event will run until April 26th. NOTE: Like all the family activities we organise over the spring and summer, our Easter trail is completely free. If you haven't yet supported the work of the Otford Society, you can make a donation here. And if you have already, Thank You!

We very much regret that due to high rates of Covid locally, including among members of the Otford Society organising committee, we are once again having to postpone our much anticipated Race Night on April 1st. A new date in September will be announced in due course.

We hope to see lots of you at the Otford Society’s Race Night in the Memorial Hall on Friday 1st April. Doors open at 6:45pm and entry will be £5 per person, payable on the night. It promises to be great fun, with the first of eight races starting at 7:15pm and the chance to take home some winnings if the horse you back comes in first. There will be a cash bar with a good supply of wine, beer and soft drinks and snacks on offer. Why not get a party together for a convivial evening of horse racing, chatter and cheering? Your support will help fund our work in the village for the rest of 2022. The bookies are looking for extra helpers on the night; if you can volunteer your services please email patty@otfordsociety.org.uk (and of course you’ll get in for free!).

We want to acknowledge publicly some of those many individuals who give so much to our village. To this end, the Otford Society is asking for nominations from residents. It might be a neighbour, a local business, or even someone who until now was a complete stranger – anyone who’s gone that extra mile to support our community over the past year. Send your nominations to communitystars@otfordsociety.org.uk by the end of March and remember to include their name and, in 750 words or less, why you’re putting them forward.  We’ll be announcing the winner at our Annual General Meeting on 26th May as well as, with their consent, publicising their story in the local press and on social media. And don’t be discouraged if your nominee doesn’t get the award first time around, as we plan to repeat this every quarter from now on.

Happy New Year! When the Society was re-launched in September 2020 we decided that everyone in Otford would automatically be a member. We hope you feel we have done our bit for the community over the last twelve months: Christmas trees and lights to be enjoyed by all; fun-filled Otford Adventures for the very young over the summer months; the Easter chick-chase and Christmas elf jokes; our family friendly ‘Picnic at the Palace’; and the elegant late summer garden party. We’ve supported local campaigns to the benefit of our village and kept a watching brief on planned developments. And we’ve involved a whole new community of residents through social media and our website. We can only build on this work in 2022 if we have an assured income to cover our outgoings.  Now we need your support. A minimum contribution of £10 from every household in Otford will enable the Otford Society to continue its work in the community for the whole year.  DONATE NOW