Bulletin
To download your copy of the latest Bulletin click here.
WhatsApp - changes to terms and conditions
WhatsApp have now extended the deadline for acceptance of their
new terms and conditions to the 15th May, following a
substantial exodus of users to alternative services. To help you
make an informed choice about your options, here are links to
articles outlining how you might be affected. From the
Independent newspaper read this, and this. From Techradar, this sets out some of the changes,
Techcrunch has this, and from the BBC there is this. The FT has this to say. A comparison of what
information different messaging apps collect from you is shown here.

Update: This change now happens on the 15th May 2021 (not
8th Feb.) according to a WhatsApp blogpost.
In a blogpost, WhatsApp said that
its practice of sharing some user data with Facebook was not
new. In addition, Facebook told Reuters news agency: “Like
other companies, Facebook has had to make changes to respond
to Brexit and will be transferring legal responsibilities and
obligations for UK users from Facebook Ireland to Facebook
Inc.”. The jurisdiction switch from the EU to the US
inevitably involves a radical downgrading in legal protection
for data and privacy.
A free, secure and private alternative to WhatsApp is Signal,
co-founded by WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton. It is one of the
primary alternatives to WhatsApp and is widely available.
West Bershire Council.
Like many other Local Authorities across the country, we are
facing a difficult January with significantly increased volumes of
waste after Christmas and a number of collection crews
self-isolating. This has unfortunately impacted parts of our waste
collection services meaning we have made the difficult decision to
temporarily suspend garden and food waste collections to
prioritise rubbish and recycling.
The garden and food waste collection service will be suspended
from Monday 18 January until Friday 29 January 2021.
We are asking residents whose garden waste is due for collection
during this time to not put their green bin out until the service
can be resumed again.
History Group
The Inkpen History Group has a new home at
history.inkpenvillage.co.uk.
The site contains photos, maps and a wide variety of documents. If
you have items, whatever the condition, that you think will be
relevant to the group, please contact them at
historygroup@inkpenvillage.co.uk
Email and Phone Scams
There are always people out to exploit the vulnerable, especially
at times where peoples attention is diverted to other matters of
harm. A number of Covid19 related phishing emails have been
reported to Action Fraud. These emails and texts attempt to trick
you into opening malicious attachments which could lead to
fraudsters stealing your personal information, logins, passwords,
or banking details. If you get emails that you aren't sure about,
or unknown people phone you or knock on your door, ignore it and
please seek advice - go to
ActionFraud.
If you are using electronic devices that don't have up-to-date
virus protection, please get it fixed - if in doubt, talk to one
of the helper listed on the
News page. A range of current scams, including
track and trace scams, is listed on the
News page.
You might receive a call, text or email offering the COVID-19
vaccine. If you’re asked to provide payment or bank details,
please don’t respond – it’s a scam. The NHS will never ask you for
payment, bank account details, passwords or passcodes.
St. Michael's Lockdown Arrangements.
• there will be no services at St Michael's until further notice
• the church will only be open for private prayer and meditation
on
Sunday and
Wednesday each week from
10am to
4pm. For the other five days it will be locked.
• there will be one Zoom service in the Benefice group each week.
You can see how to join it by going to:
https://www.walburybeaconbenefice.org.uk and
clicking on the Services tab on the main page of the site (third
tab along near the top of the page), or by clicking on
https://www.walburybeaconbenefice.org.uk/services/
or typing it into your browser.
Gerald Atkinson. Churchwarden.
Going for a walk
If you want a breath of fresh air and some exercise, check out the
Inkpen
walks,
but keep your distance from others, that's at least 6 feet apart
in old money. If you feel that you should wear a face mask when
outdoors, then checkout the design given on the
News page.
Also on the news page this month there are a number of
updates including from the Inkpen Primary School and pre-school,
from the Playing field trust and Village Hall, and there's this
months Police Report .
Climate change issues are taking hold and Inkpen's role in
this will be discussed at the Parish Council and the IMPFT
meetings. Climate issues haven't gone away and don't deserve a
lesser priority even now. Climate change IS a pandemic just as
much as COVID 19 is.
United Nations
reports over the last
decade have warned that the world must turn towards healthy plant
based diets if climate change is to be stopped. Tree planting is a
brilliant solution to tackle climate change and protect
biodiversity, but the wrong tree in the wrong place can do more
harm than good, say experts at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. The
rules include
protecting existing woodland first and
involving locals.