EXETER Cathedral Choir have confirmed that they will visit Sandford to sing a special “Choral Evensong” as part of the lead up to the June weekend of Parish Celebrations for the 90th birthday of the Queen.

This will take place, at St Swithun’s Church on the evening of Sunday, May 22 (Trinity Sunday) with a Royal theme to include one of the Coronation anthems.

The next event coming up is the Queens 90th Birthday Quiz which will be held on Friday, April 8 at 7.30pm in the Parish Hall. This will be a general knowledge quiz with a cost of £2 per head. Teams of four to six people are invited and a prize will be awarded to the winning team.

Letters are being sent to Parish Organisations inviting them to enter a team. There will be a bar, refreshments and a raffle.

Judging took place at Sandford School this week to chose the winning piece of art work which will become the cover of a birthday card to be sent to the Queen for her 90th birthday, on April 21, on behalf of the school and the Parish. The art work will be also used as the cover for a celebrations programme of events to be circulated in the parish.

Plans are proceeding well for the weekend of June 11 and 12. On the morning of Saturday, June 11 there will be a Treasure Hunt followed at 12 noon with the opening of the Sandford Royal Street Market in and around Church Street (Parish Hall if wet).

There will be street entertainment, a street organ has been booked and lunches and teas will be served.

Parish Organisations have been invited to take a stall to raise funds for themselves. Anyone interested in a commercial pitch (£10) should contact the parish clerk Malcolm Vallance on telephone 01363 772769.

On the Saturday evening there will be a Celebration Ceilidh at the Parish Hall.

On Sunday, June 12 there will be a Celebration Service at St Swithun’s Church. This will be followed by a bring and share lunch with a special table being reserved for 90-year-old parishioners.

The next planning meeting will take place at Sandford Congregational Church Hall on April 6 at 7.30pm.

Finally, chairman Shuana Waller, would like to extend her thanks, on behalf of Sandford Parish Council to all who turned out for the “Clean for the Queen” event. Special thanks to Costa Coffee and Waitrose for supplying cleaning materials and litter pickers which will be used in further Litter Picks.

MJV