Trek Sahara
To the right there is a poster requesting support for a trek across the Sahara desert by Hariette, mum of Jasmine, a pupil at St Mary;s Winkfield school, who tragically died of a brain tumour last year. Please sponsor the trek, which is in aid of Brain Tumour Research
Invitation to the APCM
The APCM this year will take place on 30 April this year at 7:30pm in St Peter's church, Cranbourne. More details can be found by pressing the teal button above labelled [APCM Invitation].
Widening distribution
The PCC and Parish Magazine Editor are planning to widen the paper distribution of the Magazine, not only to extend the magazine's outreach but also to engage paid advertising. The plan is to publish bimonthly, on the web and in print. This is a change to what we did prior to lock-down, when we had 10 issues per annum: eight monthly editions and a two month edition at Christmas and in the holiday season.
A bimonthly edition will lessen the strain on the distribution arrangements, although it will cause greater intensity of the actual editorial work, which always focuses on the week before publications, since, by experience over many years, articles for the mag always come in at the last minute - and often later.
It is the benefit of distribution of many paper copies that is the key to the new arrangements, and bimonthly will help a lot in the practical volunteering needed.
We will be reliant on volunteers to help with a number of roles, distribution being the main one. This will entail having a team of delivery volunteers who will take on the job of distributing a number of magazines to houses typically in their immediate area. This will be a regular commitment for volunteers, although from time to time we understand that special action will be needed if a distributor is temporarily unable to handle the job. Distributors are the key volunteers needed, and even if you are only able to deliver magazines within your road then that would be a great help. Please contact Hilary Atkinson - hilary.atkinson@live.co.uk for further information.
The magazine content will be extended from its current form, not only by the inclusion of paid advertising but also by having new article sources; some such contributors will regularly and reliably cover ongoing activities that are interesting and important within the parish. So we will need volunteers who will provide such articles, and seek out and inspire contributors.
The editorial function has the responsibility of constructing the magazine from many component parts, putting each edition together in a practical and attractive format. This is a monthly challenge (but going bimonthly) for the editor and his team that entails a few days of really intensive effort, in order to meet a solid production deadline. At present this is taken on by a single editor, but it would be very useful to have a sub-editor who would help in the intricate process, with the objective of taking on the full editorial role when his/her skills were established, so that the present editor can retire! This job is managerial, imaginative and skilled, and onerous in having responsibility for the success of each issue, while following editorial policies and requirement passed down from the PCC, in editing incoming articles sensitively, in identifying in what area in each issue new articles are requited, and filling in gaps in the coverage of the magazine when an article is needed but otherwise unavailable. All this needs to be jig-sawed into a fixed physical format for printing, and this requires technical skills in using Word, the Microsoft word-processing system, with good knowledge of its many features. Much of this can be learned by experience on the job.
Extending the editorial team is this way is key to enable the sustainability of the magazine, and this includes taking part in engaging and contacting local groups to encourage them to inform and advertise within the magazine. Do speak to Anthony Hodson on 01344 483347 or email him at aeh@xdotd.co.uk for further information.
Invitation for articles
The Winkfield Parish Mag is almost entirely based on articles written by local people, about local events, or generally, that, are of interest to other local people. All contributions are welcomed – particularly about what involves you so much that that you would like to share it!
The essentials are that all articles must be complete in the context, immediate, so that people can relate to it, interesting, particularly in the first few words, accurate and kind. See also the [Parish Mag editorial policy] by using the button above.
Please do not submit published articles(whatever their source), because of copyright issues, or articles that can be accessed by a link on the web. What we need is original articles, based on your knowledge and experience. If an external article has inspired you, it is OK to write about it, with full attribution, and verbatim quotes should be between quote marks.
Please do not submit articles that do not fit normal A5 page standards - reformatting is frankly a 'pain' for the editors: if you must do so, please provide A5-formatted Word text that will work without much extra effort on the part of the editors.
We will normally publish interesting articles that follow the guidelines, but the editors always reserve the right to correct, curtail or delay submissions. We are always ready to give guidance and advice. Write by email to the editors, Mr and Mrs Anthony Hodson at info@fosmw.com and always put ‘parish mag’ somewhere in the Subject field for any message to do with the Winkfield Parish Mag (AKA ‘the parish mag’).
Production of the Parish Mag
Articles or other text for publication are welcome from anybody; they may be on church or other subjects (which are lightly limited by the published Editorial Policy).
Click the button above to see the Parish Mag Editorial Policy - last saved 14/1/19, Articles (etc.) should normally be kept to less than 400 words, except after consultation with the editors, who also reserve the standard editorial right to adjust, re-punctuate and if necessary cut text, without losing the intent of the article.
Authors will be able to review changes in the 'draft for comment' that is circulated before finalising the artwork.
The editors invite submission of comments by email, and reserve the right to publish, or not publish, this material.
The deadline for articles in each magazine is normally the 10th of each month in which the magazine is prepared for the following month. However, during the pandemic, the deadlines are amended (see below).
Frequency of the Parish Mag
The plan is that the Winkfield Parish Mag will change name and front cover to more clearly represent all three churches. It will for now continue to be published monthly with contributions of plans, news and articles from all the congregations. There may be small adjustments to the editorial policy.
May 2025 Parish Mag deadlines
The May 2025 edition of the Winkfield Parish Mag will be published according to the current plan, online, with a few printed copies, as usual.
These are the key production dates for the May 2025 edition:
- Deadline for submitted material for the May 2025 Parish Mag: Saturday 2 April or as soon as possible after this
- No material will be included if it arrives after 12noon Tuesday 5 April, except by arrangement
- Publication of draft for comment: Wednesday pm 6 April
- Deadline for comments and corrections: 12noon Saturday 9 April
- Publication of magazine on the Web: Sunday 10 April
- Low quantity printing of magazine: Monday 11 April
- Availability of a small number of paper copies: Sunday 17 April
You can contact the editors using the address, telephone number or email address below.
Ownership and Management of the Parish Mag
The Winkfield Parish Mag belongs to and supports the Winkfield Parish directly, and is managed by the PCC. It is not a publication of the Friends of St Mary's Winkfield, although the Friends sponsor the Parish Mag by hosting the online Winkfield Parish Mag on their own webpage www.fosmw.com/parishmag/ .
The Friends also publish related advertising, on their own webpage www.fosmw.com/parishmag/advertisers.html - the Friends do not receive funding for this, and all paid advertising revenues go into the PCC account without involving the Friends.
The management of the Parish News, of advertising and revenue from advertising is the responsibility of the PCC, and not of the editors, nor of the Friends. It is the PCC that is responsible for setting advertising rates, and for recovering resulting revenue.
The Parish Mag is also accessible from the Parish website
