We have been asked to alert our Herts Group membership to the current position at the national HPS Office in Evesham.

• It would be extremely helpful if members could avoid phoning the office for the next few weeks unless the need really is urgent.

• Enquiries can be emailed to admin@hardy-plant.org.uk and will normally receive a reply the same day, if within office hours.

As you may already know, National HPS has a very small staff, and there have been issues with illness and bereavement over recent months.  There have also been difficulties with the IT systems, including a couple of days when access was impossible. Those problems have now been resolved but there remains a significant backlog of membership renewals to be dealt with.

• If you have renewed your national membership by post, please be assured that all post has been opened and all cheques etc are being kept safe, but it will take a while longer for these to be processed and appear on your bank statements.

• If you still need to renew your membership, please use the online facility or the postal form from the last newsletter.

For the next couple of weeks the seed orders will be prioritised, ready for the Shropshire team to pick out the seeds and get them posted to you. If you haven’t ordered your seed yet, please do so as soon as possible, again using the online or printed form.

The final date for receipt of seed orders is 10th January.

Please be assured that we are doing all we can to get the office running smoothly again as soon as possible. Thank you for your patience.

Wishing you all a very Happy New Gardening Year

Judi Deakin

Honorary Secretary