Stratford sub Castle Village Website
Salisbury, Wiltshire UK

Last time I reported my first hearing of the year, it was a St George's Day, but this year it is 4 days earlier. Lying in bed this morning - there it was, the other side of the river, but loud-and-clear and repeated several batches of 3-or-4 calls. Spring is here! Richard Death Ed: The Common Cuckoo ( Cuculus canorus) is famously heard but rarely seen. So we must be content to use a library image to illustrate this newspost - unless one of our readers is fortunate enough to

Now that the groundwater has drained away and the paths have dried out along the walking route from Stratford sub Ca stle to Five Rivers Leisure Centre through the eastern part of the Avon Valley Nature Reserve, the route is walkable without wellingtons! Some of the scrub-land has been cleared by volunteers from the Salisbury Wildlife Group who manage the Reserve, leaving open areas where swathes of bluebells and cowslips are in flower. Using the material from the clearance

WE’RE BACK ……….for another season of Cafés on the first Sunday of the month from May to September , with all the proceeds being donated to a different charity each month. Located in the Reading Room, Stratford Road SP1 3LL  (opposite St Lawrence Church) where there is ample free parking, plus disability access and facilities. We have seating indoors as well as outdoors in our garden area, weather permitting. ( Sorry, dogs only allowed in the garden, where we have water and t

Some photos of the runners on their route through Stratford sub Castle are here : A reminder that the competitors will be running through Stratford sub Castle. Some local roads will be closed - details on the map below, provided by the race organisers. Original Newspost 22 February The letter below has been sent to the village website by the City of Salisbury Athletics and Running Club for public circulation. It concerns local road closures on Sunday 12 April 2026. Note tha

Regular News - The latest applications for the Salisbury St Francis & Stratford Ward have been downloaded from the Wiltshire Council website and are available to view in the Local Information section of the village website: Local Information - Planning applications   The search date was 10 April 2026 These applications are from just outside our ward and may be of interest to local residents: (1) Old Sarum Airfield see this webpage . (2) A proposal by Wiltshire Council f

Reminder - you have until 17 April to make your views known. Original newspost 26 March Wiltshire Council is inviting residents to give Feedback on the changes that have been announced to waste and recycling services. The changes are being made to improve sustainability and provide value for money. Here’s what’s coming: More recycling at home: Weekly food waste collections and fortnightly plastic bag and wrapping collections. Less general waste: With more recycling, house

Waters Road was re-opened to traffic earlier today, Wednesday 1 April. Note: There are still some signs indicating that there is a road closure but these refer to Fairfield Road. This brings to an end the extra traffic using the Diversion route through Stratford sub Castle leading to Phillips Lane, around the Beehive roundabout and southwards down Castle Road. The R12 bus had its own diversionary route via Victoria Road and will now resume its normal route via Waters Road.

Dates for your diary - News from RIchard Death I will be leading two free Guided Nature Walks this summer. Saturday 6 June: Devenish Nature Reserve, Little Durnford. Starts 2pm, expected to last approx 2 hrs. Includes steep climb up approx 90 steps. Meet in Reserve carpark off Beech Walk SP4 6AJ What3Words valley.regard.constants Image Google Maps Monday 29 June: Avon Valley Nature Reserve close to 5 Rivers Leisure Centre. Starts at 2pm, expected to last approx 2 hrs. More-o

The next Garden Club   meeting will be on Thursday 30 April at 7.30 pm in the Reading Room, Stratford Road, Stratford sub Castle SP1 3LP. Our speaker is Ruth Kerr and her talk is entitled “A wander without wellies”. Using a presentation of images and sounds, she will take us for a verbal walk along old routes in the UK, exploring their heritage and some of the flora and fauna living in our countryside. This will include a nature table display of skulls, feathers & taxidermy.

The South Mobile Library visit to Stratford sub Castle due to take place tomorrow, Wednesday 25 March, has been CANCELLED. The next scheduled visit of the mobile library to Stratford sub Castle is Wednesday 8 April (Route M week 3).

These images were taken this morning near Castle Keep by Lesley Brown who has kindly agreed to share them with the village website. Are they Roe deer or Muntjac? How to distinquish Roe deer and Muntjac Source Cairngorm Reindeer ( text & images below ) Roe The dainty roe deer is another of our native deer species, and perhaps the one you are most likely to spot in woodland and gardens right across the UK, with some individuals becoming incredibly tame due to living in close

If you use this route to access the Castle Hill Country Park, Ford, or further afield, note that it will be closed for resurfacing from Monday 30 March to Thursday 2 April. Expect delays along Castle Road on 30 & 31 March as there will be temporary two-way traffic lights on Castle Road to provide safe access for maintenance vehiciles.

Salisbury Reds and Wiltshire Council launched 30 brand-new electric buses at Salisbury Market Place today, Friday 20 March. As passengers board one of the double deckers in The Stonehenge Tour livery they pass a photo of Old Sarum. KMOC   Original Newspost from 14 March Join Us to Celebrate the Arrival of Our New Electric Buses We’re excited to invite the community to join us in celebrating this major investment by Salisbury Reds and Wiltshire Council. On Friday 20 March, we

The Stratford Guild's next talk 'Worldwide Forensics - Travels of a Forensic Dentist' will be presented by Dr John Sinclair Robson in the Reading Room, Stratford Road SP1 3LL on Wednesday 8 April at 7.30 pm. Dr John is a consultant forensic dentist and as such is one of the most experienced in the world - travelling widely both investigating and lecturing in forensic dentistry, forensic science and true crime. He has been part of the training program for post graduate forens

Image: Richard Death 12 March 2026 Little Egrets first bred in the UK in 1996 on Brownsea Island but they have extended their range and we have hosted a pair in Stratford for many years. However, I was amazed to see a small flock of 9 Little Egrets on Thursday 12 March. One or two Egrets are no longer a surprise, but 9 was totally unexpected. Has anyone else seen this number? As soon as I realised what I was seeing I dashed to get my camera and tried to hurry gently (?) to av

Update released by National Highways on 12 March (the day after the lights at Castle Roundabout were reinstated) ..... More details https://nationalhighways.co.uk/our-roads/south-west/a36-salisbury-corridor Earlier News from 11 March. There are now working Traffic lights at Castle Roundabout. At 2.45 pm traffic was backed up Castle Road beyond the junction with Stratford Road and northwards into the distance. Stationary traffic across this junction was delaying traffic exi

March 11th 2026 “Script to Screen: A Costume Design Journey”, Speaker: Val Greathead We were given an entertaining introduction to the life of a costume designer, mainly in the TV industry, by our speaker this month. Val Greathead’s interest in costume design started at a young age. While in the Brownies she was given the lead role as Winnie the Pooh and decided to make her own outfit using the stuffing from the family’s cushions. She was not flavour of the month at home afte

In addition to the diversion whilst Waters Road is closed, Salisbury Reds has alerted passengers to a further diversion due to the closure of Wyndham Road. Details below. So don't worry that you may have got on the wrong bus, just trust the driver!

Updated 8:42am on 9 March 2026 "Groundwater levels in the Salisbury Plain are beginning to recede. Levels are still high, flooding of fields and roads is still possible. Levels remain reactive to further rainfall. Where groundwater is near the surface, intense rainfall will lead to surface water flooding. We are closely monitoring the situation. Residents are advised to prepare property resilience measures and ensure that pumps are working where they have been installed . Thi

UPDATE On the BBC website  (but not yet on Wiltshire Council's site) is a news report dated 5 March that the appeal against allowing 315 new houses to be built on the Old Sarum Airfield site was dismissed: "Plans to build hundreds of homes on a former World War One airfield have moved a step closer to reality, after the High Court rejected a challenge by Wiltshire Council. The council argued the circumstances surrounding the development of Old Sarum, near Salisbury, had chang

This work has now been completed and the cones and traffic lights have been taken away by Wessex Water. Today cones were placed near to the Reading Room on Stratford Road to advise 'No Waiting' in this area. Tomorrow - Friday 6 March - WessexWater has permission to install ltemporary traffic lights, whilst work is undertaken. Source: One Network