Postponement of December 2020 Willow Days - Fri 27 Nov

A copy of the email sent out to those due to attend a December Willow Day. Sarah X

I hope that you, your family and friends are continuing to keep well.

Firstly – this really is definitely not the email I ever wished to be sending you!

Following the governments latest announcement of the tier system coming into effect on the 2nd December I have now made the decision to postpone all my December Willow Days including ours.

West Somerset, (the home of our venue Coates English Willow), has been placed in tier 2.  I had really hoped that it would have been tier 1.  Having scoured the government documentation this morning, as far as I can work out, our Willow Day seems to fall into a ‘grey area’ in terms of us being in a workplace setting (i.e. mine) but not providing you with a ‘formal’ education experience.

However, as far as I can tell, if you would like me to make our Willow Day into a once in a life time one woman indoor willow spectacular performance than we could go ahead! Joking aside, this is about all our safety as well as the fact that some of you have now been placed in tier 3 and would be unable to travel.

I do realise that many of you, having already had our Willow Day postponed from the Spring / Summer, were really looking forward to our day together – I was too!  Having throughout September and October successfully taught within the Covid-19 guidelines, not only my own Willow Days at Coates English Willow, but basketmaking workshops for many other South West organisations, this latest measure has come as a real blow.  However, I am determined that as soon as it is possible to teach you, I will be.

Having in mid November released my January – May 2021 Willow Days nearly all of these dates are now fully booked and have waiting lists.  This is partly because I had a high number of gift voucher recipients combined with all those lovely people who had been already postponed from November.  I’m therefore unable to offer you a place/s on any of these dates.

What I am going to do is now organise 4 extra Willow Day dates in the late Spring / early Summer 2021, (hopefully keeping your workshop to the same day of the week) and prioritise you for these dates.  I really do hope that you are amenable to this.  If however you would now like a refund please do let me know.

For more information on how I have survived so far this year, and how determined I am to continue to teach and make in this incredible heritage craft form that I love, you are more than welcome to read my news articles at www.sarahlebreton.co.uk/news  Many of you, with your willingness to postpone our Willow Day together, both previously and now, have already in effect saved my livelihood and I am incredibly grateful, all your support means the world to me.

As soon as I’ve got the new dates I will be back in contact with you.

Meanwhile if you have any questions please do email or call me on 07905 342091.

With best wishes,

Sarah