04/03/12 Tickets for the "withnail and i" event in september are already sold out ! organisers are trying to find another date to enable more people to visit this iconic location for what promises to be an amazing event,details can be found on e-mail address below.
03/08/12 The cult film "withnail and i" is going to be screened at a special event in september at sleddale hall which was the setting for uncle montys cottage in the film ,for more info and ticket details visit -  http://picniccinema.co.uk/picniccinema/events/withnail-i/
01/08/12 The total warrior event this coming weekend is expected to attract around 4ooo competitors so expect a lot of traffic congestion and very busy pubs ! more info on - http://www.totalwarrior.co.uk/
06/07/12 I am pleased to announce that cumbria county council have informed me that there will be no changes to the 106/107 bus service through shap other than from the beginning of september there will be a change of operators of the daytime service with Reay's Coaches of Wigton taking on the journeys currently provided by Stagecoach and Kirkby Lonsdale Coaches taking on the journeys provided by Apollo 8.Fares will remain the same and the evening service will continue to be operated (erratically)by grand prix coaches
05/07/12 It now turns out that eden district council have been telling porkies and that the real reason the green garden waste bins were not collected is due to a contract dispute ,why not tell the truth for once eden ??They also add that people wanting to get rid of garden waste should take it to penrith or kirkby stephen recycling centres,how much does the chief executive get for spouting rubbish like that? The people of shap get little in the way of services off eden district council yet we pay higher rates than residents of penrith who get flower beds planted and maintained, road sweeping ,dog and community wardens  etc, in shap we do not see community wardens and their main job of emptying the dog bins has now been fobbed off to the poor dustbin men .
03/07/12 Eden district council rolled out its new doorstep recycling scheme in shap this week  or at least it was supposed to but residents who left their green bins out as requested are annoyed that they were not collected,when contacted eden d c put the problem down to staff sickness ,we now have to wait another fortnight to see if the council contractors will turn up next time.
23/06/12 The annual three rings of shap takes place this weekend and looks to be a very wet one.
15/06/12 New pictures added to photo gallery pages
27/05/12 Shap swimming pool opens its doors for the season at 4pm on 30th may  so expect rain !!
26/05/12 Once again people in the village are receiving what look like collection bags for charity through their doors by a firm called clothes4those in need ,i would like to stress that this is not a charity but a commercial enterprise from carlisle ,you would be far better donating your old clothes to age concern or another reputable charity.
25/05/12       the temperature in shap reached a very nice 27.1 yesterday ,for latest weather go to  -  http://www.shapweather.co.uk/cumulus/index.htm
16/05/12 - Plans are well underway to celebrate the jubilee in shap with a bit of a do in the memorial park ,further details will be published shortly.
10/05/12
Traffic through shap is very heavy due to a serious accident on the M6 motorway between junctions 38 and 39, as per usual when motorway traffic is diverted through the village almost every vehicle is doing motorway speeds in a 30 mph zone but no police in sight as usual.

23/04/12
St Georges day,a petition has been launched to make St Georges day a bank holiday and the petition  can be found here - https://submissions.epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/1255/signature/new
22/04/12
An update to Eden district councils granting of license to increase capacity at kendal calling, in a response to a query as to why the people of Shap were not consulted on this matter a spokesman said -That the applicant had to advertise the application in local press and this was done in the herald on the 25th feb,also by posting notices around the site .    So unless you had a trip to lowther park or buy the herald you do not find out until too late ,the spokesman also said - "Although there was no legal requirement for them to do so, the applicants also held a public meeting in Penrith Cricket Club on 23 February so that local people with any concerns may attend and discuss the application, I believe that this was advertised in the local press and was reasonably well attended".again no notice was put up in shap.
So basically the people of Shap do not matter as far as E.D.C are concerned and despite being told of the large amount of traffic  refuse to do anything, but the spokesman did add that-
"If you do encounter any traffic problems which are caused during the event I would ask that you contact in the first instance Cumbria Police to make them aware of the problems and secondly email Eden District Council Licensing Team with details of the problem so that appropriate measure can be developed by the event management."
stable door and horse bolted come to mind and if the police response to complaints to traffic problems is anything like it is at the moment we will still be waiting for action in 2022.
21/04/12
The met office has a new page for latest weather for shap ,it can be found on - http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/observations/shap?tab=map&map=WeatherCode

17/04/12 
Bus fares have been increased on the Penrith to Kendal 106 route by Cumbria county council ,new fares will be shown on the getting to Shap page of the website.
07/04/12 New videos added to the railway page of website showing steam trains climbing shap ,like this one - http://youtu.be/49Bm3crr4Eo
06/04/12 The police have again failed to respond to yet more residents complaints about vehicles obstructing pavements which is causing people with pushchairs ,mobility scooters etc having to take to the busy A6 road at great danger to themselves,the police attitude is that it is anybody's problem but theirs,we will see who takes the blame when someone is killed or seriously injured due to the lack of action.
05/04/12 Eden distict council have decided to allow the nearby kendal calling festival to increase capacity at next years event to almost 20,000,it is no suprise to residents of shap that once again eden district council have not consulted the people of shap when it comes to something which has a large impact on the village.Shap bears the brunt of the 1000's of vehicles which head to and from the festival each year but did eden consider the people of shap when making their decision,as usual they did not ,they should try living next to the A6 on the sunday night of the festival when from midnight onwards a constant stream of traffic passes through the village on route to the M6 and the journey home,not to mention the huge amounts of litter deposited from passing vehicles which blights the verges and pavements of shap and district,Eden have been asked for a response to these concerns and i will report on here with an update if a reply is forthcoming.
The full application for increase in capacity can be viewed from the link on this page-  http://www.eden.gov.uk/democracy/meetings/committee-meeting-agenda-and-minutes/agenda-and-minutes-2012/licensing-committee/lic-agenda-4apr12/

02/04/12 Shap's new sewage works is due to be officially opened this month which has led to much conjecture in the village as to how exactly you open a sewage works ,does the vip get to use a golden loo ? And who is the most suitable person in the village to have such an honour?A few names have been put forward with one or two stand out candidates !

24/03/12 The total warrior event returns to shap this year on the 4th and 5th of august ,over 2000 people are expected to take part . several videos of last years event can be found on you tube ,like this one -  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mf07kFLFbEI&feature=related
15/03/12 A war of words has broken out in the village between villagers who are sick of  people allowing their dogs to foul the streets and park and dog owners who don't see what the problem is ,in a letter displayed in the memorial park one dog owner openly admits to her dog not being on a lead and her dog fouling the football field (the only fouls on the football field should be carried out by shap players !!) The ball is now in the councils court ,as this admission clearly breaks council rules ,will something be done ? do not hold your breath !!
14/03/12 Following a number of complaints about vehicles parking on pavements in shap the police have responded by saying it is not their problem it is the councils ,the following paragraphs were taken from cumbria county councils website - 

""Inconsiderate parking on, or partially on, pavements causes real problems for the blind, the disabled and people with wheelchairs or pushchairs. Furthermore, vehicles parked in this way cost us thousands of pounds every year due to the damage caused to footway surfaces and grass verges. We have an obligation to keep footways and verges safe for pedestrians and so this unnecessary damage places an extra burden on the maintenance budgets.

Pavement parking often results in insufficient room for pedestrians, especially those with wheelchairs or pushchairs. People have no option but to step into the road to walk past the obstructing vehicle. Obviously, this places them in danger. Furthermore, when a vehicle moves off the pavement it can leave behind damaged surfaces such as broken flags, which are also a danger to pedestrians.

If there are yellow lines on the edge of the road next to the pavement then enforcement action can be taken. This is because the restrictions apply to the whole of the highway – from the centre of the road to the back of the pavement. Alternatively the police can take action if the pavement is obstructed and pedestrians cannot get past without walking in the road. This applies whether there are yellow lines or not.""
I have highlighted the last passage which clearly states that the police can take action but do not expect anything to happen as the police cannot be bothered .(until someone is injured !!)
The following is Eden district councils advice -
""You need to know the location of the obstructed pavement, the name of the street or postcode, then telephone Cumbria Highways Hotline on 0845 6096609 to report the problem"".
If the pavement is blocked by a vehicle you need to telephone the Police on 0845 3300247.
Again it's over to the police



13/03/12 People may have noticed an appeal in the way of a plastic bag dropping through the doors of shap which says WE URGENTLY NEED CLOTHING  it takes the form of many similar appeals from the likes of the great north air ambulance etc but i would like to point out that the company -clothes4those in need limited  NOT a charity it is a commercial company who profit from the items you put in this bag and leave on your doorstep so before filling their bag think about donating your clothes to a worthwhile charity instead not a company that passes itself off in the vein of a charity.
12/03/12 New links added for many pages including Shap weather ,the site - http://www.shapweather.co.uk/cumulus/ updates every 5 minutes and also tells you other vital information such as the phase of the moon ? (it's a waning gibbous if you are interested!) it also tells you record weather  info for the last 2 years such as the following -
Highest Rain Rate 64.7 mm/hr at 16:12 on 08 July 2011
Highest Hourly Rainfall 12.0 mm at 23:24 on 07 May 2011
Highest Daily Rainfall 46.8 mm on 15 January 2011
Highest Monthly Rainfall 204.6 mm July 2010
Longest Dry Period 12 Days to 18 April 2010
Longest Wet Period 27 Days to 17 December 2011

Is Shap home to the worlds most intelligent dogs ? Eden district council must think so  as they have two signs warning of no dogs allowed in the childrens play area ,one at human height and one at doggy height !!

26/02/12 eden animal rescue  at hardendale is in desperate need of funds and any one who can help can contact them at - admin@edenanimalrescue.org.uk  . they are also running a recycling scheme for unwanted jewellery ,for more info go to - http://www.edenanimalrescue.org.uk/raise-funds-for-our-charity

12/02/12 Traffic chaos hit shap today as the m6 motorway northbound was closed and all traffic diverted through shap ,with vehicles still doing motorway speeds and refusing to stop for zebra crossing it is a wonder no one was killed in the village,police were conspicuous by their absence.
10/02/12 According to police figures 121 people were prosecuted for speeding through the village last year, a detection rate of  less than 0.01% but still better than nothing.
02/02/12 Temperatures got down to a chilly - 9.2 c last night and tonight is expected to be colder, more info  at -   http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/nw/shap_latest_weather.html  
01/02/12 The crown inn pub in shap has reopened under new ownership ,more details about opening hours will be published on the eating and drinking page of website
 31/01/12 A new look for the website ,any comments welcome
06/01/12 Bus services have started erratically in the new year with some buses not turning up at all  and others running up to 25 minutes late,any complaints should be directed towards cumbria county council, also the late buses have now changed times and new timetable can be found on getting to shap page.
05/01/12 - The new year has started with severe gales in Shap ,gusts of 68mph were recorded on the 3rd of January in the shap area and gusts of 86mph were recorded last night . for latest shap weather visit  - http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/nw/shap_latest_weather.html 
january 1st 2012  HAPPY NEW YEAR 

A lot of great old pictures have been added to the website like the one below of church street -check out the photo galleries for more

Here is a little story that needs to be told ,
the streets of shap are not paved with gold,
the reality is they are covered in far worse,
the village of shap has been hit by a curse,

The curse of dog owners who's pets leave a mess,
and the curse of our councils who could not care less,
what a first impression for visitors to shap,
the streets and park all covered in crap,

And think of the children who carry it home ,
ingrained in their feet, and clothes as they roam,
and of the mothers pushing prams down the street,
then trailing it through the house, oh what a treat!

This poem is for the people who's voices aren't heard.
and addressed to dog owners who don't give a turd,
the people are saying we've had enough,
if you end up in court well  that's just tough