Cuckfield Life magazine print production on pause - 14th April 2020

By David Tingley, editor

With the continued pressure on businesses during this time of the Coronavirus pandemic, it is with much regret that we have taken the decision to temporarily halt the printing and distribution of Cuckfield Life magazines. 

Whilst we would dearly love to continue to bring residents news, information and features as we have done for the last ten years - in reality we are a small business, just like many of our advertisers, and we cannot sustain ‘normal service’ while our income continues to fall. 

However this is short term - and when this is all over, myself and the rest of the team will be raring to go; business as usual. So, watch this space and please bear with us. We’ve already had lots of supportive reactions to the news from our amazing advertisers, which we are grateful for. We hope you, our readers, also understand. 

‘We’ll be back!’ 

Watch this space and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, if you don’t already. 

Local volunteer force springs to life

By Jacqueline Elmore

What began as a small community support group, the Haywards Heath Covid-19 Mutual Aid Group, has now more than 650 volunteers who have registered and are offering their services to all areas around Haywards Heath, Lindfield, Cuckfield and beyond.

Redwan Chowdhury, who last month posted a simple message on Facebook asking people if they required any help during this period of isolation, has since been inundated with messages of support from people in the local area. “Last week alone we received 760 calls from people either requiring support, offering to help or just calling to say thank you. Up to today I think we helped over 200 households either with their shopping, emergency supplies or prescription deliveries. Mostly we’re providing support to people in the local area but we did do a run over to Saltdean the other day to someone who needed urgent help.”

In addition, Haywards Heath Town Council, Cuckfield and Lindfield Parish Councils have now helped to distribute 12,000 ‘COVID-19 Mutual Aid UK’ leaflets in the local area to cover 60,000 people to let them know that there is support out there for anyone who is feeling isolated during this difficult time.

Redwan continued: “Despite the generosity that has been offered, there is still so much more that can be done to help. Whether that is volunteering or donating we want to help as many people as we can. For instance, we are trying to reopen The Trussell Trust Food Bank in Haywards Heath to try and gather as much funding as possible to help those who do not have any other means of support right now.”

Redwan and some of the other organisers - Barbara King (Cuckfield), Amie Cheverst (Bolnore Village), Jo Lee (Rocky Lane), Rosie Lewis (Lindfield), Lee Goodeve and Kirsty Roo (Haywards Heath) – who were very much involved in helping to kick start the Haywards Heath COVID 19 Mutual Aid Group have been overwhelmed by the kindness offered by local people.

“We never expected the amount of support and generosity that has been extended to us over the last few weeks. Thank you for stepping up and coming together as a community. We really can do beautiful things by working together. Please pass the message on, and keep the positivity and resourcefulness flowing!”

The Support phone line is: 01444 635002 or email: HaywardsNeedHelp@gmail.com.

Volunteers please get in touch via: haywardsvolunteers@gmail.com or search Facebook for more information. Financial donations can be made here.

Year of the Vegan

By Jacqueline Elmore

Last month saw record numbers signing up to Veganuary – a lifestyle challenge where non-vegans commit to trying to live on a plant-based diet for the entire month of January – and in 2020 there are more vegans in the UK than ever before (not just in January!).

In 2018 there were 600,000 vegans living in Great Britain alone. According to the Vegan Society the number of British vegans will grow further still with pollsters claiming that 2.9 million people will be vegan within the next twelve months. Some evidence suggests that being vegan can result in a healthier lifestyle and there are also compelling arguments with regards to environmental impact, animal welfare and ethics; it seems that these are just some of the reasons why people are trying to give up meat and remove animal products from their diet.

For Ian Hills and Lorraine Roach, who have lived in Cuckfield for over ten years, becoming vegan was a simple choice.

“The reason we both decided to cut animal products out of our diets was down to health and that alone,” Ian explained. “With so much variety and so many different types of good quality plant based food there is simply no need for us to eat meat anymore and to be honest we’re healthier and happier because of it.”

Ian and Lorraine have both lost parents to cancer. When Lorraine’s mum was first diagnosed with the disease, efforts were made to help change her diet in the hope that these lifestyle changes would result in a longer life.

“Everything that she ate from that point on was organic and she steered clear of processed food. She was given six months to live but ended up living for three years,”

Lorraine said. “That was a real turning point for us. Part of the reason we no longer eat animal products is because of what happened to our parents. Being vegan and living ‘compassionately’ suits us better.”

[Full article published in the February 2020 issue of Cuckfield Life]