The webmaster
is back part time and will do his best to catch up. Many thanks
for your good wishes and special thanks to Jim Crease for keeping
the Forum under control in my absence
Chippy Swifts U10’s – Magnificent in defeat!
This week we lost 2-0
away to Stonesfield Strikers. On paper, the match should have
been an easy win for Stonesfield. They have won every match this
season, are League Champions without completing all their
matches and beat the Swifts 13 2 on our last get together!Far from it.
The Swifts
dominated possession from kick off and proved to be an attacking
force stronger than Darth Vader! Sweeping cross field balls from
Jacques Sauvagnagues to Josh Wilson and James “Jam” Little on
both wings resulted in darting runs into the box. Alas the
strength of Stonesfield is in their defence which was tougher
than a Cadburys Curly Wurly!A counter attack from Stonesfield
late in the first half resulted in a rasping shot bouncing off
the Swifts goalpost and the ball possibly dribbling over the
Chippy line. I say possibly because the referee was unsure if
the entire ball had crossed the line! To the result came our
gallant goalkeeper Pablo Fyfe who promptly advised the referee
it had!
The second half saw some fantastic
darting runs into the Stonesfield penalty area from Harry Mincer
ably supported by Ellen Williams-Sharkey. Alas, the Stonesfield
defence stood firm!Late in the game,
another Stonesfield counter attack resulted in a second goal
despite the excellent defensive efforts of Jonathan Fowler and
Harry “Hassle” Clarke.A magnificent
performance by the Swifts.
Chipping Norton Town
Swifts U10 Squad Harry “Hassle”
Clarke, Jonathan Fowler, Pablo Fyfe, James “Jam” Little, Harry
Mincer, James Pashley, Jacques Sauvagnagues, Ellen
Williams-Sharkey, Josh Wilson
Scarlietta working
on her debut album
A
FORMER Chipping Norton School pupil has hopes of being the next
Lady Gaga. Laura Duckworth — whose stage name is Scarlletta — is
working on her debut album, which is due to be released in the
summer. She now wants to gather support for her entry into the
Live and Unsigned national competition, which will be held on
Sunday, March 28. The 20-year-old said: “It has come on quite
fast, as now I am working on the material for my album in a
studio every week, and I play once a week at a live venue.”
Miss Duckworth, whose mother, Barbara
Duckworth, still lives in Chipping Norton, is staying in London
to be near the studio where she is recording her album. She
hopes to return to Oxfordshire shortly to play gigs in her home
town. Miss Duckworth, who likens her music to Lady Gaga and the
Ting Tings, said: “When I was quite young, I was always doing
talent shows. I can remember putting on a big ballroom dress and
dancing and singing to Madonna — it’s something I have always
wanted to do. A lot of people have said, you can’t do it,
there’s no way. That drives me on to prove that they are wrong.
You
can do anything that you want, just as long as you work hard — I
just want to prove myself.” For more information, visit
myspace.com/scarlletta
Chippy couple lead campaign in memory of daughter
A
HEARTBROKEN Chipping Norton couple are spearheading a campaign to
raise awareness of the heart condition that claimed the life of
their two-year-old daughter. Hugh and Jane Malcahey are helping
launch the campaign in memory of their daughter Madelinewho died of Sudden Cardiac Death (SCD) in December 2000.
The Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) charity is launching the
campaign to highlight statistics showing that 12 young people in
southern England die every week of SCD.
CRY was founded in May 1995 to raise
awareness of SCD, an umbrella term for several heart conditions
affecting healthy people which, if untreated, can result in death.
No cause is found in about one in 20 cases, even after
post-mortem. This is then called Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome
(SADS). Experts fear many cases are wrongly recorded as asthma,
epilepsy or drowning.
Mr and Mrs Malcahey took Madeline to
hospital, where doctors treated her for what they thought was
asthma. She died hours later. It was later discovered she died
because her heart muscles had thickened, a condition that can lead
to SCD in youngsters. Mr Malcahey consequently became a CRY
supporter and is now the charity’s chairman. He enlisted the
support of West Oxfordshire MP and Conservative Party leader David
Cameron. Mr Malcahey will speak at the Four Pillars Hotel, Witney,
on Friday next week to unveil a postcard featuring photographs of
12 youngsters – including Madeline – who have died because of
previously undetected heart conditions.
CRY’s supporters will distribute hundreds
of copies of this postcard to people across southern England.
Alison Cox, CRY’s founder, said: “As the recorded incidence of
sudden cardiac death rises, it is time to re-launch this powerful
campaign to help emphasise the importance of screening and the
fact that so many of these tragic cases affecting fit and healthy
young people could have been prevented. Eighty per cent of the
young people who die from these tragedies have had no symptoms and
it is only through screening that the condition can be
identified.”
Lido goes green to
save money
The
trustees of an outdoor swimming pool in Oxfordshire are hoping
green technology will help secure its future. Cash raised through
fundraising and grants, totalling £140,000, has been invested in
Chipping Norton Lido to buy equipment such as solar panels. Energy
from a ground source pump will use warmth from the soil to heat
the pool. Organisers said the technology would save around £5,000
a year, lowering running costs. The pool, which was opened in
1970, survived potential closure when a new leisure centre opened
in 2002. Campaigners then formed a company to manage the lido.
Ever since, supporters have been fundraising to keep the facility
open.
Happy Days Vanessa
Picture by Graham Beacham
Last night (23rd
February) at the Town Council meeting Mayor Mike Dixon thanked
our popular Town Clerk for all her hard work, wished her a happy
maternity leave, reminded her to come back to work in a year's
time and then presented her with a small token of the Council's
appreciation. Vanessa leaves with warmest good wishes from us
all and we anxiously await developments!! We just hope we will
be able to manage in her absence.
Controversial
Plans for the New Youth centre
Last night at the Town
Council a row broke out about the plans for the new £1m Youth
Centre - which - amazingly - still seems to be on the cards
despite all the cuts which the County Council are making to
their budgets. Readers may remember that the County were
very fast on their feet last year in applying for a grant from
Central Government. This was a sort of "special offer". to
councils....put together two or more of your social services on
a single site (preferably a school) and there's big money
available. In record short time the County produced a very smart
proposal for Chippy linking Youth Services with Adult Learning.
They used as evidence of local support the offer which the
Town Council had already made to contribute the proceeds of
selling Greystones (estimated at £200,000) towards a new Youth
Centre. The County Council succeeded in getting a £800,000
grant. Wow! Thats the best thing that's happened to the town for
quite a while. An absolutely brilliant bit of fast thinking by
the County - superbly executed. They haven't been thanked enough
yet. Mind you there is an incredibly demanding timetable. The
building has to be commissioned by July 2011 - which means you
have to start building by May 2010 at the latest. Detailed
architectural plans were briefed urgently last Autumn and the
Town have been pressing to see them. The Town set about the
complicated job of preparing Greystones for sale and have been
under pressure from the County to guarantee when the money would
be available. Meanwhile the County announced a swingeing Cost
saving programme and for a time it looked doubtful whether the
Youth Budget would find the money to actually operate the
Chippy Youth Centre - once it had been built. Hilary Biles and
Louise Chapman fought like tigers to keep the Youth centre in
the plans and for the moment it looks as if they have succeeded.
But there is plenty of sniping going on from some of the senior
officers at County Hall and one in particular seems to have
decided that there is no way Chipping Norton will be able to
raise £200,000 and that the County will be left to pick up the
tab so they better drop the whole scheme. In the middle of all
these dirty politics the Youth Service have been struggling on
to try and complete the planning for the Centre itself. The last
thing they need is more unhelpful criticisms. A couple of weeks
ago three councillors were shown the plans for the first time
and were mightily impressed. They left excited that the prospect
of a bright new state of the art Centre was so close. However
they made it clear that as a condition of the town's
contribution they needed to be sure that proper consultation
would take place with the Youth themselves and the organisations
using the Centre. The County officers promised that such a
consultation would begin soon. The whole situation is still a
bit delicate - what is essential is that the Town maintains an
enthusiastic support for building the new centre. It could still
so easily be lost.
Its never been clear in Chippy who actually
does talk for the Youth of the town. There are usually a number
of competing factions on any issue - never agreeing. One body
that has always considered itself authoritative is the
Management Committee of the present Youth centre. It contains a
heavy representation of middle-aged teachers and ex-teachers
like ex-Mayor Don Davidson, ex-Mayor Jo Graves and ex-Mayor Rob
Evans. What they know about what the youth of today are thinking
is anybody's guess. Unfortunately the present Youth centre
is not much of an advertisement for their committee. Starting
completely afresh is one of the main attractions of the new
project. Perhaps the committee knows it is about to become one
of the casualties of a major re-organisation and is feeling
slightly defensive. Anyway the Committee reckons it should have
been consulted about the design and planning of the new centre
and is angry that it hasn't happened before now. They clearly
intend to go down fighting.
Last week they saw
the plans for the new building for the first time. They were
very put out that nobody from the Youth Service came to the
meeting to explain things. This prompted a number of postings in
the Forum by Tym Soper the Committee Chairman. "Seen
the revised plans tonight, I really hope someone who knows what
they are talking about gets to have a say. The plans are full of
design faults. There’s an awful lot of design over substance.
Showed some young people who were
really not impressed. Why is the youth centre committee and the
young people of chippy being ignored on this project"
" the people who have been part of the process so far don't
seem to know what they are doing" "a
badly designed building". At the Town Council meeting last night Rob
Evans and Jo Graves expressed similar dissatisfactions. Rob
reported that the Committee had written to the Youth Service
demanding a proper meeting at which its views should be
considered. A little bird tells me that they were actually
delegated to ask the Town Council why the Management
Committee had not been invited to attend the meeting between the
Town Council and the County and to make their protest strongly
felt. Councillor Alcock suggested that this kind of
dismissive strong negative criticism was a pretty sure way of
finally burying this project. After all - he suggested - the
people that had briefed and drawn up the plans for the Centre
were not exactly amateurs at their job. Councillor Graves heaped
scorn on the idea that the people who had designed half a dozen
Oxfordshire Youth centres (including the new £2.5m one in
Banbury) deserved any attention. "Experts" she said " are
usually wrong. We know that from experience". "So what
exactly is it that you are not happy with?" Councillor Alcock
recklessly pressed on into the jaws of the snarling Management
Committee members. "I saw the plans and they looked to me like a
very agreeable layout of a coffee bar and chill-out area, some
offices and a huge activities room - with direct access out on
to a barbecue area and the school playing fields.
Completely separate entrance. Most of what we had asked for as
far as I could see". Contemptuous snorts from Committee Members
Graves and Evans. "Well come on "- Councillor Alcock ploughed on
- "tell me what is the terrible design fault that has led
the Management Committee to get so hot and bothered and threaten
to march on County Hall? What is it that is leading you to
jeopardise this whole undertaking because of your conviction
that County officers have screwed it all up" He might have
added - "What is it that the key power brokers on youth issues
in the town have decided to take up as a major concern and fight
about to the death"
Now dear reader if
you have followed me this far you may have already developed a
theory of your own about what could possibly have led Rob Evans
to be mounting a kamikaze attack against the plans for our new
Youth Centre. It surely couldn't be party political spite. This
isn't a left wingers revenge against the wicked Tory-led OCC?
Is it perhaps some act of loyalty to old friends at County Hall
who Rob worked with when he was the county councillor. None of
these. Councillor Evans assures us there is a solid basis for
the Management Committee's strong objections to the plans. Hear
this. Hold on to your hats. I could scarcely credit what I was
hearing last night.
The new building has
a pitched roof. The Management Committee is of the view that
given the new craze among "yoof" for extreme sports of all kinds
that there is a serious risk that the town teenagers will
clamber up on the roof of the proposed Youth Centre and indulge
in some very hazardous skateboarding. They are shocked
that this has not been considered by the County Council
architects and feel that it is only their own closeness to the
habits of wayward Chippy youth which has enabled them to
highlight this potentially disastrous design flaw in the £1m
building. They demand to be heard. I think they are going batty.
Oh and there is one more crucial thing - according to the
Management Committee. Youth Club members must have loos of their
own. It is quite unacceptable for them to share loos with
adults. What on earth is that all about then? I would have
pleaded with the Committee to keep their objections quiet but
its too late - they have already written to the Youth Service.
Lets hope they think its all a bad joke.
ROCK
band Status Quo have said they are looking forward to their first
festival
appearance in Oxfordshire. The band, fronted by veteran rockers
Francis Rossi and Rick Parfitt, have been unveiled as a headline
act at this year’s Cropredy Festival, which takes place near
Banbury in August. Fairport Convention organises the festival and
its founder Simon Nicol, who
lives in Chipping Norton, said: “This is arguably our best line-up
ever. People consider Fairport Convention a folk-rock band, but
this shows we are not just banging a drum for traditional music.
“We have a gift of a festival for all ages and all music-lovers –
and it’s all about variety and excellence. Status Quo have been
voted the best festival act ever, and getting them is a real coup.
The festival is all about smiling and having a good time, and I
can’t wait to see people’s faces when the Quo come on stage.”
For the love of
Harry
Lizzie Pickering
of Lyneham lost her son Harry 13 years ago.
Blonde, beautiful and bright as a button, two-year-oldHarry was suffering from
the rare genetic disease Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA).Locally, it was Helen House children’s hospice in East
Oxford which offered the Pickerings comfort, support, refuge and
occasional respite from the 24-hour-a-day responsibility of caring
for their chronically sick child. With the addition five years ago
of a dedicated unit for teenagers and young people, it is now
called Helen & Douglas House, and Lizzie is happy to be giving
something back to the charity which provided her family with a
lifeline. After years of voluntarily fundraising for the charity,
she is now working part-time as their events fundraiser. She used
to work in TV and video production for Channel 4, and Hugo works
in web-related marketing, so they have been able to draw on their
skills and contacts.
Their
good friends, TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson and his wife, Francie,
who live near Chipping Norton, have been incredibly supportive.
“Eight years ago, Francie suggested that we organise an event
together, and that I should choose which charity we supported. I
immediately suggested Helen House. We held a power boating day
with Honda, and raised £40,000. We were over the moon!” The next
year the Clarksons supported another big fundraiser, a karting day
with the backing of Audi, and this brought in a magnificent
£150,000. “Jeremy and Francie have been amazing to Helen and
Douglas House, they have been responsible for bringing in £1m over
the years. They have been our friends for years, since Harry was
born. Their three children are exactly the same ages as our three.
Lizzie added: “They are key to so much
for Helen and Douglas House - they have introduced us to all sorts
of ways to raise money, and brought in high-profile supporters.
When I read bad things about Jeremy in the media I just want to
stand up and shout what an amazing man he is and that he is all
heart when it comes to children.”
Very
popular, and a big fundraiser, is the annual comedy show Childish
Things, co-organised by Lizzie at Oxford’s New Theatre.(Lizzie
is pictured right with comediam Sean Lock) “We
have attracted performers like Jimmy Carr, Jo Brand, Bill Bailey
and Patrick Kielty in the past, and we are sold out months in
advance,” said Lizzie. “It’s a wonderful event. This year, we have
Rob Bryden taking part. Both he and Jimmy Carr have been to Helen
& Douglas to look round and meet the children and this kind of
support is so important to us.”
TWO
master thatchers from Oxfordshire attempted to teach their craft
to three novices for a new TV series . Matt Williams and Dave
Bragg, of Rumpelstiltskin Thatching claim
to be the only people in the county who thatch in the traditional
Oxfordshire style. Their reputation among heritage experts led to
an appearance on BBC2 TV show Mastercrafts, presented by Monty
Don, in which volunteers have a go at learning traditional crafts.
Mr Williams said they worked on an 800-year-old West Oxfordshire
house for the programme. He said: “It takes four or five years to
learn thatching, and six weeks is only enough to give someone a
taste, but it does mean that people can see how difficult it is.”
A few years ago, they took on
Chipping Norton school-leaver Tom Cummins for a four-year
apprenticeship. He qualifies next month as the first thatcher
trained predominantly in long straw for about 40 years.
Designer Chic at Helen & Douglas House Shop
The
fashion show at Chipping Norton Town Hall was the idea of Angie
Gaydon, manager of the Helen & Douglas House store in Chipping
Norton. Noticing a trend for more and more designer donations, she
decided to stock-pile a number of outfits over the course of
several months to showcase in one fashion extravaganza.
Twenty-five volunteers took to the catwalk each modelling four
outfits. Outfits were presented in four choreographed sections
including casual, evening and office wear before climaxing with a
wedding party — complete with bride and groom.
The event raised £1,400 with the
most expensive item — a velvet collared tweed race coat — going
for £75. The whole idea of the show was to raise the profile of
the Helen & Douglas House store which boasts at least half a dozen
aristocratic ladies on its books as regular donators. Designer
labels span the alphabet with recent items sold including a
Vivienne Westwood skirt and vintage Yves Saint Laurent dress. Tory
Bramwellfrom Kingham, is typical of a
new breed of savvy charity shoppers who have wised up to the
opportunity of bagging a designer purchase at a good price at the
local charity store. She recently snapped up a pair of Sass & Bide
jeans, becoming the talk of the playground at Kingham Primary
School.
Tory’s friend Kate Rudge, from
Chadlington, confessed she bought an amazing pair of black and
white zebra pumps from the Helen & Douglas House store and it
seemed Martyn Forgrave, from Kingham, also on the school run, was
quite a connoisseur. He said: “I have quite an extensive wardrobe
of ‘retro chic’, ie secondhand, clothing. They include my
Aquascutum cover coat, DAKS country suit, Holland & Holland tweed
jacket, Hermes ties, Barlows shooting coat, and even a pair of
rather natty Russell & Bromley suede shoes — in fact I could do
the whole country rig look!”
Orpheus Down
Under is at The Theatre, Chipping Norton,
on Saturday, February
27. Box office: 01608 642350. With
the London Olympics looming on the horizon, it’s perhaps
appropriate that a new production of Offenbach’s Orpheus in the
Underworld should have a distinctly sporty theme. Rebranded as
Orpheus Down Under, this offering from Unexpected Opera sees
1970s Britain collide with mythological gods and goddesses, as a
couple on the verge of divorce get caught up in the rivalry of
the newly-formed ‘Team Olympus’.But,
insists artistic director Lynn Binstock, the re-telling loses
none of the character and spirit of the original, and it has
greater relevance for modern audiences. “It still follows the
traditional story, and even though we have some additional
dialogue, it very much follows the nature of the dialogue and,
indeed, the lyrics of the songs,” she says. “We believe it’s
true to the nature of the original in terms of the satire, the
wit, the elegance. It was essentially the French version of
vaudeville, and it was at the time very racy and very
contemporary.We’ve had a lot of
first-timers come to our shows who have written to us and said
how surprised they were.” The element of surprise will be very
much to the fore in Orpheus Down Under, as some of the original
characters morph into budding sports stars. So John Styx becomes
a snooker player, for example, while Cupid is an archer, Apollo
a cyclist and Mercury a runner.
The show also incorporates a completely
unexpected element – a stand-up routine, performed by the
company’s resident comedian. “With him we’ve evolved a tradition
of a bit of stand-up and audience participation,” Lynn says. “So
we have a surprise audience participation moment in Orpheus.
That’s an example of the kind of non-operatic traditions that we
segue into our shows to make something unconventional and
unexpected.”
In case that sounds a step too far from the
traditional view of opera, Lynn is keen to emphasise that the
production is of the highest standard, while not being afraid to
have a bit of fun. “I think we have the quality of singing and
performance, we’ve shaken off the fustiness and dragged it into
a very refreshing and unexpected
revivification, so that it feels mischievous and down to earth,
and current,
while
retaining parts of the satire. I think it will surprise regular
opera-goers and people new to opera, and give them a good time.”
February Lido
lottery
Tickets sold: 158 Total prize fund: £237
1st prize: £118.50 Sheena
Blundell (no 46)
2nd prize: £71.10 Rolie
Clarke (no 69)
3rd
prize: £47.40 Josephine Graves (no 5)
The lottery is open to anyone over the age of 18 years and
raises funds to support Chipping Norton Lido.
To find out more, visit
www.chippylido.co.uk or pick up a leaflet from
Jaffe & Neale.
Car thief arrested
after automatic number plate recognition system activates
15th
February A MAN received a
nine-month suspended jail term, a night-time curfew and was
ordered to pay £1,000 court costs when he was convicted after
Chipping Norton police arrested him for stealing a car in early
January. Police stopped him north of Chipping Norton after the
car’s automatic number plate recognition system activated.
Officers also found £9,000-worth of cannabis plants in his
garage.
Distinguished Local Son Dies in California
Geoffrey Burbidge, an English physicist who
became a towering figure in astronomy by helping to explain how
people and everything else are made of stardust, died in
San Diego. He was 84A large man
with an even larger voice, Dr. Burbidge was one of the last
surviving giants of the postwar era of astronomy, when big
telescopes were sprouting on mountain peaks in the Southwest and
peeling back the sky, revealing a universe more diverse and
violent than anybody had dreamed: radio galaxies and quasars
erupting with gargantuan amounts of energy, pulsars and black
holes pinpricking the cosmos, and lacy chains of galaxies
rushing endlessly away into eternity. As the director of Kitt
Peak National Observatory in Arizona, Dr. Burbidge pushed to
open big telescopes to a larger community of astronomers. As a
senior astronomer at the university in San Diego, he was, to the
consternation of most of his colleagues, a witty and acerbic
critic of the Big Bang theory.
Geoffrey Ronald Burbidge was born in 1925
in Chipping Norton in England, in the Cotswolds hills halfway
between Oxford and Stratford-on-Avon. His father, Leslie, was a
builder. His mother, Evelyn, was a milliner. He was an only
child and the first of his family to progress beyond grammar
school. He attended the University of Bristol intending to
study history, but on discovering he could stay in college
longer if he enrolled in physics, he did, and found he liked it.
He furthered his studies at University College, London, from
which he received a Ph.D. in theoretical physics in 1951.from The New York Times
Read the full obituary.
'We need new
jobs as well as homes in Chippy'
12
February 2010 PLANS
to build 400 new homes in Chipping Norton are promising but
there needs to be more jobs to stop it becoming a "dormitory
town", according to councillors.West
Oxfordshire District Council is proposing the new homes for the
north of Chipping Norton with half located in the London Road
area.There are also plans for a third
primary school in the town as well as space for new businesses.
Sites for 400 homes have been identified or either built
in the town since April 2006 while another 400 have been
proposed for the next 15 years.
According to West Oxfordshire District Council, 200 people are
on a waiting list for affordable housing in Chipping Norton.
Town councillor Gerry Alcock said: "We do need affordable
housing and have to accept the need to grow.My concerns are more to do with work – there's no point
having the houses if you do not have the employment as well.To go with houses we must have more jobs.We have got to get good businesses to come to Chipping
Norton to set up organisations and help that happen."
Mr Alcock also expressed concerns about whether extra residents
in the town would mean the need for further shopping facilities.
"More houses on the northern
side of town will mean more people coming into the centre of
town.I would think with that we would need some satellite
shopping set up to cater for the new houses.The town itself cannot contain this geographical spread."West Oxfordshire District Council said it had sought
space for business development in the plans and added there were
new employment opportunities on the remainder of land at the
former Parker Knoll site.
Chipping Norton ex-mayor Gina Burrows
said she thought further housing was inevitable and that
shopping facilities would be adequate to cover the new homes,
with Co-op already deciding to expand its High Street store by
50 per cent.No further shopping developments would need to take
place, she added.I want the town
centre to stay alive and people to come in to shop," Mrs Burrows
said."In terms of new housing we have
not got many empty homes so further houses are needed. We need
to accept the town does need further growth."
Mrs Burrows added the development of the town was a hot topic
locally.The new homes for Chipping Norton are part of the
Government's aims for growth of 7,300 houses in west Oxfordshire
from 2006 to 2026.It says 40 per cent of these should be
affordable housing. Of this, 2,500 dwellings have already been
built while planning consent has been granted for a further
1,600 homes.This leaves the locations of at least 3,200 new
homes to be identified throughout the rest of west Oxfordshire.
The plans for the further development in Chipping Norton will be
available for viewing at the Guildhall in the town. Planning
officers will be on hand at Chipping Norton Town Hall on
Wednesday, February 24, from 11am to 6pm to answer questions.People have until March 22 to comment on West Oxfordshire
District Council's planning strategy and make their opinions on
new houses known.
Emma plans to
be real-life Wally
HOSPITAL
play specialist Emma Soper is planning to wear stripes in this
year’s
OX5 Run so she looks like the elusive character in Where’s
Wally — the popular children’s books. Mrs Soper, 29, from Chipping
Norton, has worked at Oxford Children’s Hospital for the past
four-and-a-half years. As a play specialist, her job is to
reassure youngsters before they undergo operations or other
complex medical procedures. Mrs Soper said it would be the first
time she had taken part in the five-mile
OX5 Run, which raises funds for the hospital on the John
Radcliffe site in Headington.
This year’s race, in the grounds of Blenheim
Palace, Woodstock, takes place on Sunday, April 18. Mrs Soper
said: “I’ll be taking part in the run because I’m aware of just
how important the race is for raising funds for new toys and
equipment for the hospital. I’m trying to persuade as many fellow
members of staff as possible to take part because the OX5 is one
of the hospital’s biggest annual fundraisers. Of her job, she
said:“We try to explain to children at
an appropriate level what will happen when they undergo surgery,
but we also try to provide lots of play and enjoyment. We heavily
rely on funds from the public to buy the toys and equipment we
need, and without their help we would be really stuck. I would
like to buy lots of new books because they are a great way of
distracting the children. I’m trying to encourage my friends to
dress up in stripey tops like the character in the book. My
husband Lee and I have started a slow and steady training
programme to build up stamina and I am trying to contact as many
runners as possible on the staff to get them to take part.”
Organisers are hoping 1,000 runners will take
part in April’s run to raise the biggest total so far — £65,000.
To sign up for the run, call 01865 743444, email campaign@orh.nhs.uk
or go to charitablefunds.nhs.uk
Conman ordered
to repay victim
A
ROGUE trader who drove an 86-year-old woman to a bank so she could
withdraw £1,400 to pay him for work he had not carried out, has
been ordered to pay her compensation. Steven Davies, 26, was
sentenced on Friday at Oxford Magistrates’ Court after being found
guilty in December of two offences under the Fraud Act and three
offences under the Business Names Act. Davies was employed by the
pensioner in 2008, to wash the windows of her home in Alexandra
Road, West Oxford.
Davies told the woman
her guttering needed replacing, and she was driven to a bank to
withdraw money. Davies, of Stroud, Gloucestershire, and
previously of Burford Road, Chipping Norton, gave her
paperwork falsely stating the guttering had been replaced. He
later returned and told her that her window frames needed
repairing and painting. She paid him a further £800. The work was
not finished. Davies also worked on a property in Kingston Road,
North Oxford, during which the roof was damaged. He agreed to
repair it, but never did.
He was sentenced to 12 months for each fraud
charge, to run concurrently, suspended for 12 months. He also
received a 12-month supervision order, a three-month curfew, and
was ordered to pay £930 compensation to his 86-year-old victim.
Car without road tax clamped
today in Walterbush Road
Is this our new friendly community warden in
action?
Thanks to nosy neighbour
Newshound for the pic
Sixth formers
Join the Town Hall Project Team
Tom Lodge
and Ruth Jones
inspect the Town Hall Steps with Cllr Keith Greenwell
Councillor Keith Greenwell is the Leader of
the special Town Council Project Group just beginning the long
process of restoring the Town
Hall to its former glory. Apart from
other councillors the group includes outside surveyors, the
Listed Buildings Officer from WODC and English Heritage.
The first phase of the refurbishment involves removing the steps
and making the foundations of the building watertight. This work
should begin in June and will be
completed by Christmas requiring road closures on Topside and
part of the car park being fenced off to form a site compound.
All in all this is pretty complex project for
a town our size.
Keith thought this might be a great
opportunity for a couple of CNS sixth formers with an interest
in architecture and civil engineering to join the project group
and get some first hand experience. He
approached Simon Duffy,Headmaster of
CN school and asked if the school would like to participate in
the restoration project. There was a lot of
interest and Mr Duffy eventually nominated
Ruth Jones, from Stanford St Martin and Tom Lodge of Burford
Road.Both are year 12 students
and aspire to have careers in architecture and town planning.
Ruth was attracted to take part because she believes her
involvement in a major project on a historic building will help
with her application for University. Tom was excited by the
complexity of the management of the work involving so many
different organisations with differing requirements and
priorities.
Tom and Ruth
will attend council meetings concerning the project and will be
an integral part of the organisation supervising the work and
making the decisions. Tom and Ruth have agreed to record the
process and keep a diary that will form part of the record of
the progress of the work and most importantly their thoughts and
involvement, which will become part of the history of this fine
listed building.This diarywill be presented to the Chipping Norton Museum .
Simon Duffy, Headmaster CN School was delighted
to have two of his outstanding
sixth formers working on the project.Let'shope
this will be the start of the school
and Town Council working together on other
town-improvement projects.
Thanks to Glyn Watkins for the
pics. Any media representatives interested in more
background
to this story are welcome to ring Keith Greenwell
07899 703555
keithgreenwell@btinternet.com
Hook
Norton gets £500,000 to go green.
Lovely jubbly
HOOK Norton last
night looked set to become one of the greenest communities in
the UK after the village was given £500,000 towards projects
aimed at slashing its energy use. Villagers set up Low Carbon
Hook Norton in February 2008 and this week it was named as one
of 22 projects across England to receive a share of £10m. The
funding, from the Government’s Low Carbon Community Challenge,
will be used to fund a range of measures to reduce the village’s
carbon footprint.
At the centre of the project is Hook Norton
Church of England Primary School. Solar panels will be installed
on the roof and used to power classroom equipment and two
community electric pool cars, which will be based at the school
and available for anyone in the village to use. The school will
also install a ground source heat pump – a piece of equipment
that extracts heat from the ground and uses it to heat
classrooms. Hook Norton Brewery will be the base for a biodiesel
pump, which will allow members of the community to fill their
cars with biodiesel converted from chip fat oil. And some of the
money will provide interest-free loans so people can insulate
their lofts and install solar panels.
ACTING TOWN CLERK APPOINTED
As
everyone must know by now our esteemed Town Clerk Vanessa is
taking a year off to have a baby. Whether she comes back or not
probably depends on how much she enjoys being a Mum again!! So
the hunt has been on to find somebody to stand in. Not an easy
task. Ideally somebody who knows the town and has some knowledge
of Town Council work!! Step forward the ideal candidate -
ex-Mayor Graham Beacham.
Graham was an Independent Chippy Town
Councillor for many years and he is also the Chairman of Spelsbury
Parish Council. He is in his late forties and has five children. He was born in the town and spent many years
working at Parker Knoll as a Tapestry Storeman. He is an
active sportsman and is a leading member of the Chippy Cricket
Club where he has performed many roles - including President.
He
has also served as Chairman of Wychwood District Scout
Council. Until he left
the Chipping Norton Town Council three years ago Graham was
Chairman of the Recreation Committee - so that knowledge is
going to be specially useful as we negotiate the many issue
around the sale of Greystones and the new Youth centre over the
coming year. In 2008 he started and organised the Town Council
Sports Awards which have been a big success. We are absolutely
sure he will do a great job for us and we wish him all the best.
Graham will be starting his position this coming Monday morning
(8th Feb).
Monday morning on Over Norton
Hill
Thanks
to Jane Hancox
for the pic
Some Highlights from the Music Festival
Friday 5th March 7pm -
Chipping Norton School
Sunday 7th March
- Chastleton House
Sunday 14th March
-
Chipping Norton Town Hall
Youth
Jazz Band Challenge
A prize of £250 donated by Chipping Norton Rotary Club for the
winning band, and the opportunity to be featured in Chippy Jazz
day in September 2010. With the high standard of jazz playing in
this area this will be an evening of foot-tapping and
excitement.
Historical music played
on authentic instruments by specialist musicians in period
costume including the hurdy gurdy! A perfect way to spend a
Sunday afternoon in this magnificent setting with log fire and
pleasant company.
Jacqui
Dankworth & Charlie Wood
Jacqui
Dankworth comes to Chipping Norton in an extremely rare duo
performance with Memphis-born Hammond organ/piano vocalist
Charlie Wood, in one of the debut performances of their joint
project celebrating the legendary 1961 duo collaboration between
Ray Charles and Betty Carter.
Tickets£2.50 available on the door
Entry free to Friends.
Tickets £12.50 (no
concessions) including wine and canapés
Tickets
£15
Tickets
available now from Jaffé & Neale,(01608)
641033
BIG EXPANSION PLANS AT THE CO-OP
EXCLUSIVE!
An executive from the Co-Op
and their architects arranged the first showing of future plans
for their store to a group of councillors on Wednesday morning.
The Co-Op have now bought options on the Burgage Plots land at the
back of all the shops down as far as the Mews development -
including Burtons, Smiths, and Cheltenham and Gloucester. This is
the land which Chase Homes were planning to develop as flats last
year before they went bust. In broad terms the Co-op will
submit an application in February/March to extend their store back
into the existing Car Park. Loading access will be dramatically
improved. The store size will increase from 1000 sq ms to
1620 sq ms. There will be a much wider range of products and
there will be an on-site bakery. A much-extended car park (145
spaces compared with the existing 85) will be built behind the
other shops - all of which will have their own access and private
parking spaces. (34 - in addition to the 145 above) This car park
will have a new access from Albion Street which will be completely
separate from the entrance for delivery vehicles which will be in
Cattle Market. The Co-Op are going to organise an opportunity for
everybody to see the plans in about a fortnight. They have
discussed things with WODC who seem to be supportive and with the
County who apparently like the new access arrangements but want
some money to rebuild the road. English Heritage are having a lot
to say about the design of the new store (after all this is a
conservation area). Its good to know that the Co-Op intend - as
far as they can - to maintain the line of the old burgage plots
throughout the site. Exciting times folks!!
If the Tories get in they will keep
the Chippy Hospital Nurses in the NHS
One more reason to vote for Dave!
EXCLUSIVE!
As readers of this site will know
the local PCT are using some new government guidelines as a reason
why they say they cannot honour a three year-old promise which
they made to the town that the hospital nurses would be able to
continue working in the NHS. A PCT representative has recently
been to the hospital and told the nurses that decision time is
here - they either transfer to the Orders of St John or there is
no other option available. Some other PCT managers say they are
still trying to find ways round the new guidelines. Surprise,
Surprise - it all comes down to money. Well we are now assured by
our well-connected County Councillor (Hilary Biles writing in the
Forum) that she has been absolutely guaranteed by Central Office
and the future Prime Minister himself that the regulations under
which these new guidelines have been issued will be abolished as
soon as Dave gets his feet under the Cabinet Room table. So the
Chippy nurses only have to hang on for a couple of months now and
their worries will be over. Or perhaps the PCT managers should
start making their own calculations right away about which side
they need to start buttering their bread!! Why wait till May?
Is Chunky wavering??
EXCLUSIVE! Some of us are very
keen that Chunky Townley should stand for re-election in the
District Council election in May. He has been saying very firmly
that he has had enough. Chippy would lose a powerful voice in
Witney if he really does stand down. Chunky is also a very
effective Chairman of the Hospital Action Group and it was in
that capacity last Friday that Chunky was suggesting to our MP
that it would be really great if he could call in at Chippy
Hospital and re-assure the nurses that everybody was still
working on ways to allow them to remain within the NHS when the
new hospital opens (see the story above). Dave readily agreed.
Chunky was very very grateful. (Unfortunately when Dave turned
up the next morning at Chippy hospital he wasn't allowed in
because of the current ban on visitors to prevent the spread of
a bug but that's another story). "One other thing Chunky - said
Dave. I hear you are thinking of not standing for the District
Council. I really hope that's not true." Nice move Dave. Having
just done Councillor Townley the most enormous favour what on
earth could he say? He could only say what any of us would have
said in that situation "I'm still thinking about it David ". So
is this a chink in Chunk's armour we have all been hoping for?
We should all be telling him that he needs to stand again - for
all our sakes. Dave has done his bit, Now what it needs is for
Barry Norton to tell Chunky that the Chairmanship of the
Environment Committee and a place in the Cabinet are waiting for
him. If Chunky stands the Chippy First Group will not put up
their own candidate but promise to support the Vote Townley
campaign. And chippingnorton.net will be renamed
chunkytownley.net for the duration. Can't say fairer than that.
Lido celebrates 40th Anniversary -
Your Photos wanted!
Jo Johnson writes:
The Lido first opened its doors in 1970 (I
should know - I was the first one to jump in!) We shall be
celebrating the anniversary throughout the year with all
manner of events so, watch this space. Since we took over we
have taken loads of photos but have virtually no photographic
evidence of much before 2004 and nothing of the original
opening.
We want to create a display of photos of the Lido throughout
the 70s, 80s and 90s. If you have old photos of your family
and friends at The Lido, or indeed of any fundraising events,
carnival floats etc. please e-mail us at
events@chippylido.co.uk and we can arrange to have
them scanned and returned to you.
From
The New Statesman 15th january: David Cameron
stood in front of a vast map of the world at Chatham House this
morning. And in his new vision, he will be at the centre of it.
The Tory leader outlined plans to set up a National Security
Council, lopping bits off the MoD, Foreign Office and DfFID
budgets to create a joint, "joined-up" approach that would
include a "war cabinet" for Afghanistan.The Tory leader did a speed tour round his other
priorities -- cybersecurity, civil liberties and social
cohesion. But he didn't stick around. After responding vaguely
to questions about Conservative engagement with the EU and the
future of the Met Cameron departed to address the Women's
Institute in Chipping Norton. You're late for the Women's
Institute "at your peril", he quipped, to much mirth from the
gathered suits.
Alice lands
top honour
Alice
Powell added another string to her bow
when striking gold at Europe’s leading racing car show,
Autosport International. Powell scooped the coveted BWRDC
GoldStars Award – presented to her by the legendary Sir Stirling
Moss.
In front of a huge crowd surrounding the
British Women’s Racing Drivers Club (BWRDC) stand, the Formula
Renault driver stepped forward to accept the prestigious honour,
awarded on merit to a junior member who has shown the capability
of and aspires to become a professional driver. Already spotted
as a rising star of the future, Powell, who lives in Chipping
Norton and attends Cotswold School, near Cheltenham, said: ”When
I heard my name read out, I thought ‘Wow’! And to have Stirling
Moss present the award it’s just fantastic.”
Alice says: “It’s a real honour to get
recognition. Few women have made it in motorsport and no one has
made a real impact in F1 – that is my ambition. I think the time
is right, if a girl is out there doing well then more women
would watch Formula 1 – it would definitely make it more
exciting.I’d like to be a role model
for girls entering motor sport. A successful woman in motor
sport would be a true ambassador for the sport and women wanting
to enter it and do well. I am breaking new ground and would like
to do for motor sport what Ellen MacArthur has done for
sailing.”
Sir Stirling says: “I really am pleased that
ladies are showing up so well now and so competent in racing,
that we can look forward to some really important things and I
think anything that can help towards that is a good thing. My
sister (the late Pat Moss-Carlsson) was a really terrific driver
and there have been other ones too, but I don’t believe they
ever received the opportunities that maybe we get as men.”It
doesn’t take great strength to drive a car it just takes balance
and if you discover a woman who is good, you will often find
they are exceptionally good. There’s no reason why a lady
shouldn’t be as good as a man! “
A statement from Chunky Townley
Chairman of the Hospital Action Group
‘The Hospital Action Group has always believed that if the
highest care standards are to be maintained in the town hospital
it is essential that the hospital facilities (including
Intermediate Care Beds) should be staffed by NHS nurses. We
believe that this is the only way of ensuring that the highest
quality staff are employed, that continuous training in the
latest techniques is maintained and that a fulfilling career
structure is guaranteed (including long term pay and pensions)
so that motivation of nurses will remain high. This seems to us
to be particularly important where the private partner in this
enterprise (Orders of St John) has little experience of running
hospital services.
The Chipping Norton and District Hospital Action Group has grave
concerns that the nurses employed to staff the 14 Intermediate
Care beds in the new hospital may not now be employed by the NHS.
This concern follows a PCT briefing given to the nurses during
November in which they were told they would have to TUPE
transfer and be employed by the Orders of St John.
There was a public consultation which started in 2004 following
which the Oxfordshire Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny
Committee, in 2007, stipulated that Intermediate Care Bed Nurses
must be employed by the NHS for a period of at least three years
after the new hospital opens following which there would be an
open review. The Hospital Action Group and WODC are to be
involved in setting the terms of the end of three year review.
In addition the Hospital Action Group was given repeated
assurances that nurses staffing the Intermediate Care Beds would
not be asked to work in the Care Home and Care Home nurses would
not be employed on the Intermediate Care Beds.
The people in this community made it very clear, during the
consultation, that they wished to see NHS staff retained on the
hospital beds and a clear distinction between those Intermediate
Care Beds and the Nursing Home maintained.
The Hospital Action Group will campaign strongly to see that the
2007 commitment is honoured and that the division between
Intermediate Care Bed staff and Care Home staff is clear and not
compromised in any way.
The Hospital Action Group is already in contact with David
Cameron and the PCT in an effort to get the 2007 agreement
reconfirmed.
Unless the PCT is able to give a written undertaking that this
will be the case the Hospital Action Group will be organising a
campaign which will include a public meeting so that people in
the community can express their views.
Hospital Action Group members feel that for the PCT to attempt
these changes at this late stage in the project makes a mockery
of the whole consultation process.
The Hospital Action Group is determined to do all it can to
ensure the continuation of the NHS staffing of the Intermediate
Care Beds in the New Chipping Norton and District War Memorial
Hospital. This is what the people were promised during and after
the public consultation.’
Man escapes
jail despite discovery of cannabis factory
A MAN who “self-medicated” with £50 worth of
cannabis a week has escaped jail after more than £9,000 of the
Class B plants were found in his garage. At Oxford Crown Court,
Edwin McPartland, 50, pleaded guilty to allowing his premises to
be used for the cultivation of cannabis.
Police searched his address at The Beeches, in
Chipping Norton, on April 29 and found almost 200 plants.
McPartland told the court he suffered chronic fatigue, arthritis
and systemic lupus, and used £50 of cannabis a week as “a form
of self-medication”. His barrister said McPartland naively
allowed other men, whom he was scared of, to run the operation
in his garage in return for some cannabis for personal use. She
said: “He was not somebody who was in any way, shape or form the
mastermind of this operation.”
Judge Patrick Eccles said: “I accept it was
other people who had put a deal of pressure on you.” McPartland
was given a nine-month jail term, suspended for a year, a
three-month night-time curfew and ordered to pay costs of
£1,000.
New Parking Wardens arrive - only six months
late!!
On
25th January 2010 West Oxfordshire District Council
takes over the management of on-street parking from the Police.A new team of civil enforcement officers, called
Community Wardens, will control parking both on the street and
in council-managed car parks across the district. Wearing
distinctive green uniforms and high-visibility jackets, the new
Community Wardens will carry out regular patrols on foot
throughout the District. They will: - help improve parking problems caused
by illegal and inconsiderate parking, which will help
- -- keep roads safe and traffic
moving freely - provide advice to motorists and
residents, linking the public with council services
penalise those that flout the law by issuing Penalty Charge
Notices.
All car parks in West Oxfordshire will remain free and there are
currently no plans to introduce any on-street pay and display or
residents parking areas (Controlled Parking Zones).
In addition to managing parking the new community wardens will
act as the ‘eyes and ears’ of the Council, reporting
environmental issues such as littering, dog-fouling and
graffiti. They will also work closely with neighbourhood Police
teams.
I have, though, enjoyed stopping and offering lifts to
the sorts of local people
who normally loathe 4x4s. And been very amused by one pinch-faced old
rambler who declined.
“No, thanks. I’m enjoying the exercise,” she said, as she fell flat on
her face.
Jeremy Clarkson in his Sunday
Times article today (17th Jan). Who could he have been talking about?
Our New Year
walk alongChipping Norton
Railway Line
Celine Johnson
set off over the holiday break with her dad and some friends
to see what remains of the old railway line from Chippy to
Kingham - with the help of a map and some old pictures.
There's still quite a lot to see!
The entrance to the tunnel from
Rollright
And as it is now
You cant get into the tunnel but
from thegate you can see the
Stalactites. They are very impressive Inside
its looks very wet.
This shows the crossing at
Churchill
The middle section of the house
still looks the same.
This bridge is still in use,
it's by The Mill in Kingham
Pictured; Grace, Hope and Celine
-
following the line of the trackbed
This is where the trains went
left to Chipping Norton Juntion and right to Stow on the Wold
And somewhere here
is the spot where
the lines branched.Mark &
Megan Walters and Gary Greese
check the map
Chipping Norton Junction
as it was.
Now Kingham Station.
The Platforms started around
here somewhere I guess?
Unfortunately the
Station Canteen was shut!
Its a lovely flat walk why not try it ? Celine
.....that was the
year that was..... A few
highlights picked out of a hectic Chippy
2009
JAN The new MUGA quickly proves its value,
Football in the frost! Dreary miserable start to the year -
lightened only by a superb Nortonians production of Old King
Cole....and the opening of Wild Thyme. - a great addition to the
town's restaurant scene
FEB
Snow blankets the town
and brings everything to a standstill for several days. Widescale
criticism of the Council's gritting efforts and calls for more
grit bins. Still the town looks super and there are lots of lovely
photos.
MARCH The Mayor resigns complaining about
various goings-on, The Deputy Mayor is scandalously passed over
and the leftie New Street gang vote for Mike Dixon - not
apparently realising he's a lifelong Tory!! They vote for another
Tory as Deputy. Chippy First - the biggest group is ignored.
Crazy and completely undemocratic..
APRIL
At last work begins on the London Road site. Only
the Care Home so far. The Hospital is promised soon. Successful
Charity Curry Night at the Town Hall. Work begins on the Town Hall
steps. Geoff Gafford walks from Lands End to John o' Groats
MAY
Sue Bartholomew is congratulated by Chunky
Townley after the Town Council election. Floogie and Honor are
also elected. Hilary is re-elected to the County Council in a
landslide. Fun Run at the Lido. Dave justifies
charging wisteria cutting to expenses at Public meeting
JUNE The "Chain Gang" - The new Mayor and the
new Deputy Leader of Oxfordshire County Council Hilary Biles - at
the first celebration of Armed Forces Day on 27th June
....Brilliantly successful Beer Festival at the Rugby Club
JULY Sainsburys opens successfully with much
fanfare. Summer brings a spate of broken shop windows and minor
break-ins. Hugely successful Lido Auction. Jeremy raises £14,000.
A massive crane in the Market Square rescues heavy
equipment stuck in the tarmac!
AUG Eve Coles is on crutches but still
campaigns for the re-instatement of a Parking Warden. Since
Christine's departure Topside has become Parking Chaos. WODC qsk
the town what they want to see on the castle view site. That's
consultation for you. Half a day in the middle of August! Any
Questions comes to town
SEPT An imaginative protest
at Mr Clarksons house highlighting his eco-unfriendly attitudes!
New book "Chipping Norton through Time" goes on sale. Emma's Day
returns to the Lido. Another brilliant Jazz day.
OCT
The Post office is rescued by
the Co-Op who move a new manager and staff in to continue an
indispensable service. That was a close one. For goodness sake
show your appreciation while you can. "les Miserables" at the
school is voted a hit by Ken Norman.
NOV Memorable Remembrance Day
superbly organised by the British legion with a presentation
Ceremony to the ATC in the Town Hall Town Council holds an Open
day and achieves lowest attendance ever for a Town Hall event.
Sean Green, Alice Powell, Jack Taylor and Harry Mincer win the
Sports Awards
DEC
The hunt tradition brightens
up the Town Centre. The Xmas trees are in place. Late Night
Shopping went off well with live music. There is a covering of
snow. The town looks beautiful.
Happy New Year everyone
Queen
honoursChadlington Primary School
helper
A
WOMAN who has helped thousands of school children to read, sew
and rear animals during a career spanning more than 40 years has
been made a MBE in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours list. Jean
Heath, 72, started helping at Chadlington Primary School, near
Chipping Norton, when her eldest son Steven started there in the
late 1960s. Four decades on, Mrs Heath, of Church Road,
continues to help on a voluntary basis because she “loves every
single minute there”. Her MBE for services to the school was
revealed last night in the New Year Honours list. Mother-of-four
Mrs Heath, who has lived in the village with husband Peter since
1961, said she was “gobsmacked” when she received the letter.
She said: “I have not told anybody because I thought it was a
prank. My brother is a real one for wind-ups, so I did have my
suspicions. I couldn’t believe it when I opened the letter. Now
it has sunk in a bit I do feel very honoured to have been
singled out.” Mrs Heath started as a volunteer, before taking on
a paid role 20 years ago. When she reached 70 the school could
no longer pay her — so she once again became a volunteer. She
said: “I love the school and everything about it.”
Oxfordshire's
gentry are excited by the prospect of having The X Factor's
Simon Cowell as a neighbour, having heard he has expressed
interest in the £42million, 2000-acre Kiddington Hall estate.
But might his arrival put out the nose of another TV grandee,
Top Gear's Jeremy Clarkson? Neighbours say he has been adding
acres to his Oxfordshire home and is sometimes described by
local socialites as 'the blue-jeaned Adonis of the Chipping
Norton smart set'.
Conservative
Party leader David Cameron has taken part in the fourth Great
Brook Run in the village of Chadlington on Sunday. Runners on
the one-mile (1.6km) cross-country course have to tackle
freezing water and pass through a tunnel. Mr Cameron said: "The
main thing is to complete the run, survive and to get home to
have lunch." He finished the course in about 15 minutes, while
the winner made it in 8.5 minutes. Mr Cameron added: "I enjoyed
it. It's for charity and it's a good thing to do, it brings
everyone together, it's a nice day out, 'ish'. It's called a
brook, but it is more like a river and it is quite cold in
there." The race started at the Tite Inn and wound its way
through muddy fields before finishing back
at
the pub. Mr Cameron was met by his wife Samantha after the run,
when he and the other competitors were given a medal for taking
part.
Playbus
celebrates surprise Lottery windfall
AN
UNEXPECTED windfall means hundreds of disabled children and
adults will soon benefit from a new £140,000 sensory bus – just
a month after their dreams were dashed. Four weeks ago bosses of
the Oxfordshire Playbus thought hopes of a new vehicle had
crashed when they lost a public vote for £50,000 after being
featured on ITV’s People’s Millions show.
'It came completely out of
the blue when they phoned us to say it was their 15th birthday
and we were one of 15 projects to get money'Playbus manager Tym Soper
But
their plans are back on track after the Big Lottery Fund stepped
in to give them the final £50,000 they needed, as part of the
National Lottery’s 15th anniversary celebrations. The Playbus
project’s 30-year-old single-decker sensory bus broke down more
than a year ago and is beyond repair, leaving dozens of severely
disabled children unable to benefit. The project can now buy a
new lorry and convert it into a sensory space with fibre-optic
and UV lights. It should be on the road by April. Playbus
manager Tym Soper of Chipping Norton (seen
celebrating on the left) said: “We were devastated
after the vote, and full of doom and gloom about the possibility
of getting a new bus. It came completely out of the blue when
they phoned us to say it was their 15th birthday and we were one
of 15 projects to get money. Four hundred disabled children and
adults in Oxfordshire every year enjoyed using our old sensory
bus. This award has enabled us to give birth to a new era of
sensory support in the county.”
Playbus bosses decided to buy a
lorry instead of a coach so that if the vehicle suffers
expensive mechanical failures in future, the sensory equipment
can just be hooked up to another cab. Mr
Soper said they would now investigate the latest technology in
sensory vehicles to ensure the lorry was equipped with the best
gadgets their money could buy. It will continue to feature old
favourites such as a dark room, bubble tube and a room where
lights change in response to movement from heads, fingers or
eyelids. Among the groups set to benefit from the new vehicle
are young children with disabilites, teenagers with behavioural
problems and adults with Alzheimer’s and dementia.
Alison Rowe, the Big Lottery
Fund’s head for the South East, said: “I am delighted
Oxfordshire Playbus has been selected to receive one of our
awards marking 15 years of Lottery support for good causes. The
project has worked really hard to ensure wide-ranging support
and involvement of the whole community and is a perfect example
of how lottery money has been making a huge difference to
communities since 1994.”
Paul Nolans
10th Fancy Dress Pub Crawl
Paul Nolan arranged his 10th Pub crawl on the
27th December
With around 80 people in fancy dress,
the pubs were full of locals having fun
Thanks to Joe Johnson who took the
pictures
Boxing Day in West Street
Stephen Lambert,
Chairman of the Council of Hunting Associations,
said over 5,000 people had welcomed his local hunt, the Heythrop, in
Chipping Norton. Well that's
pushing it a bit but there were certainly a lot of people about! ED
With thanks to Richard Sloman for
the picture
Now a definite go-ahead is in
place for the new Hospital building there is one piece of
crucial business that must be sorted out about the staffing
arrangements. Two years ago there was an absolutely solemn and
binding commitment made by the NHS that if the nurses at the
hospital did not want to transfer to the employment of the
Orders of St John (the new private operators of the Care Home
and the Intermediate Care Beds in the hospital) they could
retain their employment in the NHS and be seconded over to OSJ. This was
agreed in writing at several meetings and not least minuted by
the Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee which acts as
the health watchdog for Oxfordshire. After three years there
would be a comprehensive review. All evidence would be made
public and local organisations would be invited to participate.
The local Hospital Action Group felt specially strongly that in
order to maintain standards and continue to be able to recruit
top quality nurses the NHS connection was vital. It was only
after the undertaking about secondment that the Hospital Action
Group finally felt able to endorse the PCT’s plans. So we have
all been gobsmacked to hear that representatives of the PCT have
visited the hospital and told the nurses that it is now decision
time. They must either switch their employment to the OSJ or
leave. The nurses understandably are distraught. This is the
most incredible bit of dishonest backtracking it is possible to
imagine. It is inconceivable that the PCT could have
deliberately hoodwinked the Hospital Action Group and the
Overview and Scrutiny Committee. Unless the previous commitment
is clearly restated we are set to lose a lot of nurses from the
present hospital payroll which will be a disastrous start for the
new hospital when it opens next year. Watch out for a Public
meeting on this issue. Chunky Townley, Clive Hill and the Vicar
are marshalling the troops. We will need everyone’s support………….The
Phone Co-Op are wanting to renew their option to lease the
derelict bit of ground down next to Travis Perkins from the
Field Reeves as a site for a new Head Office. In their proposal
they say that WODC would like them to vacate their existing
offices on the Elmsfield Estate for use as Starter Units. This
is strange because Starter Units is one of the things that are
supposed to be built on the Parker Knoll Employment site. WODC
have been telling us work is due to begin as soon as market
demand picks up. It sounds as if WODC may have given up hope of
this ever happening – otherwise why try and commandeer the Phone
Co-Op’s offices? Which is added support for a strong new rumour
around town that Sainsbury’s are now trying to buy the London
Road site………Here's what I wrote here three years ago......I
remember vividly Will Barton of WODC telling Councillor Grantham
and me that we should stop raising objections about the layout
of the Parker Knoll site because he had several companies
actually knocking on his door waiting for the Industrial units
that were to be built and our behaviour was jeopardising that.
That was a year ago and there is still no sign of these
companies. Ever been had? The boss of the Phone Co-Op said he
had been asked by the Planners to consider the Parker Knoll
Employment site for his new office. But the site has now been
sold on by Wimpey and WODC could (or would) not tell him who the
new owner was. The boss of CETA Insurance (another company
considering a move) apparently went into shock when he heard the
asking price for land at Parker Knoll. Here's my bet. The 5
acres of "employment" land at Parker Knoll will stay
undeveloped. In a few years time the owners (whoever they are)
will say they have been unable to find any interest for
industrial units and apply for permission for retail use (ie
Tesco or Asda)..............WODC also seem to have given up on the idea of
Starter Units at Greystones. Their Planning Application this
week talks about change of use to Storage with Provision for
waste bins and employment of thirty people. Sounds just like a
replacement for Dean Pit to some of us. That’s all we need. It
will make selling Greystones House a virtual impossibility. We
need urgent clarification. Jobs for Chipping Norton is
absolutely nowhere on WODC’s priority list ………..Apparently the
block booking for Moslem prayers in the Town Hall every Friday
includes this week so the Town Hall Keeper will be having to
interrupt his Christmas Day to open up the place for them. I
hope he’s getting “time and a half!”……It seems the Rugby Club
will not be happy until they have completely colonised the
Greystones site. The Town Council – out of the goodness of their
hearts – said the Rugby Club could use a field for practice
(without paying any rent) if they cut the grass. Not satisfied
with this the Club have now started clearing and levelling
another large piece of adjacent ground – without so much as a by
your leave. Even this wouldn’t be so bad if one of the big
cheeses at the club was not going around town and saying to
whoever will listen that he doesn’t understand why the Town
Council charge the Rugby Club such low rents and they would be
perfectly willing to pay more. Be careful what you wish for is
all I can say to the gentleman in question…………My Daily Telegraph
tells me this Christmas Eve that David Cameron has returned to
Witney for the holiday, where he is thinking deep strategic
thoughts and preparing for government. There is even a picture
of him in a sombre reflective mood walking alongside some gloomy
canal (is that really in Witney?) – presumably to emphasise his
familiarity with the gritty side of modern life. Except
yesterday he wasn’t mooching along a seedy canal in Witney. He
was spotted in the posh Daylesford Farm Shop buying overpriced
provisions and quite clearly not worrying about anything of
concern to the ordinary bloke. And just to provide a bit of
glitzy celebrity atmosphere Kate Winslet was in the restaurant
tucking in to some seasonal nosh. The “Man of the people” image
needs some more work Dave! Try popping in to the Chippy Co-Op
when you are next in town………... I hope everyone has started
thinking about the way our lives will change from next May. From
then on when the Prime Minister wants to show a visiting
President what real life in impoverished Britain is all about he
will probably be bringing them to Chipping Norton High Street.
(More shop closures by then !) We will presumably all receive
orders from local HQ about the times we will be required to
shuffle around the streets chewing a straw and visiting the
Charity Shops and looking appropriately yokel-like. There will
probably be a short course in forelock-tugging at the Adult
Learning Centre. Word has it that Sarah is getting her mayoral
chain specially burnished in anticipation of pulling a pint for Barack Obama at the Blue some time next year ………….But of course
our own local politics in 2010 will be more about the appalling
news that Chunky Townley has decided that one four-year term as
a District Councillor is enough for him. He is not planning to
stand again next year Not surprising I suppose since it must get
tiresome being treated like a poor relation country cousin by
the nobs in Witney. Indeed one Cabinet member was recently heard
to express the view that Chipping Norton was just too much
trouble and West Oxfordshire would be much better off if Chippy
was handed over to Cherwell District. If any of you get to talk
to Chunky over the next few weeks try and persuade him to stay
on. However, the local Tories have already started to make
their arrangements for a new candidate and word on the street is
that they have asked local builder Pete Woodward to be their new
candidate and he has accepted ……….. It was very noticeable that
every town councillor turned up for the Council meeting this
week – even people not seen for ages like new Tory councillors
Ms Honor Stobart and Ms Hilary Williams . Seems all that is
required to get a full house is the bribe of a glass of wine and
a sausage roll. Perhaps the Mayor should make this offer a
permanent arrangement. At least everyone was there to hear the
Tory Deputy Mayor Chris Butterworth deny that he had ever asked
for the Town Precept to be raised by 25%. This was just a
vicious rumour. More likely the party hierarchy had fingered his
collar and told him to shut up. Tory party policy this year is
that local government should be cut, cut, cut ...……. Soon Castle
View Care Home and the old Hospital will be demolished. Slap in
the centre of town will be a fabulous new building site – a
developers dream. The owners – the NHS and the County Council –
will be out to make as much money as they can. It is absolutely
essential that the local Planners (WODC) represent the town’s
interests and get really tough about this land and lay down some
clear planning guidelines and demand big Section 106 commitments
from the developer. We absolutely must NOT end up with several
huge blocks of one-bedroomed flats – which is probably the most
profitable option. First indications are not encouraging. WODC
held an exhibition about the site several months ago and asked
for residents comments. One of the Planners came to town this
month to report on the results. They got 80 completed
questionnaires and seem to be regarding this as some kind of
legitimate consultation exercise. It is no such thing. A sample
of 80 responses with no kind of quotas is absolutely
meaningless. They seem to have concluded that legitimate
development could consist of shops or houses or flats or
community facilities but the mix will be left to the developer.
Crazy. The glorious sightlines from London Road as you drive
down into the town don’t have to be preserved. Indeed it will
perfectly OK for the developers to build three storey houses all
the way along the road frontage from The Oxford House pub down
to the Freemasons Hall on Over Norton Road. Disaster.
Provision of a multi-story car park to relieve some of the
congestion along Spring Street is not on the cards. The
“survey” suggests people in the town think there are enough
shops and restaurants already in Chipping Norton so the Planners
aren’t looking for any more of those – but that’s really up to
the developers. It is completely unclear exactly what the local
planners are bringing to the party in terms of imagination or
ideas. The town really must start taking a serous interest in
this site or we will find ourselves being lumbered with a
profit-driven monstrosity (rather like the plan that was
submitted last year for the Burgage Plots and mercifully was not
progressed when the developer went bust). Its time for a
politically-interested and community-minded architect like our
very own Alex Corfield to start leading a protest movement with
some development ideas of our own……….A Very Happy Christmas to all readers
of chippingnorton.net. Any day now the new town website –
masterminded by Gina Burrows and Hilary Williams will be up and
running so you won’t have to put up with all this biased rubbish
much longer. But be careful what you wish for.
Stone Quarry in Lidstone causing protests
Residents of Lidstone are up in arms about a
proposal being submitted to the County Planners to open a
commercial quarry at Stone Farm in the village. Clearly their
worries are about noise, dust pollution, lights after dark, damage
to the landscape etc We wish them well with their battle. However
there is one aspect to the proposal which is of interest to us in
Chippy. How do you fancy ten fully-laden 32-tonne trucks a day
trundling past the school and down through the town. Well that's
what it seems we will be getting if this proposal is approved.....
"Access
to the site will be provided along a temporary haulage track from
theChalford Green to Lidstone local
road.......Four axle heavy goods vehicles
with aladen weight of 32 tonnes
will leave the site via the haulage track and turnright onto the Chalford Green to Lidstone local road. From
here, they willtravel along the B4026,
before joining theA44, at
Chipping Norton. Vehicles will not
travel through Lidstone village .......it
is likely that material will be removed offsite and delivered to a customer in line with demand over
intermittentperiods. For example, 10
vehicle loads per day over 3-5 working days,followed by a period with no vehicle movements".
Thee last thing we need along
Horsefair are ten extra vehicle loads a day with loaded lorries
and ten return trips. If this doesn't sound like the best idea you
have heard this year send an e-mail with your comments to the
Planning Officer before Jan 4th
mary.thompson@oxfordshire.gov.uk
Tony
Cripps, 57, was riding in the bucket of a JCB to collect the crop
to make lemonade for Lady Carole Bamford.
Daylesford Organic farm in Kington,
Gloucestershire, supplies the Daylesford Organic shop – known as
''the Harvey Nichols of the Cotswolds'' – where celebrities
including Liz Hurley and Kate Winslet buy their groceries
Prosecutor Ian Dixey told Gloucester
Crown Court there was a ''relaxed culture'' in which employees
rode in the bucket to carry out their work. The digger was also
driven by a colleague – Gareth Trueman – with no formal training
in its operation.
Mr Cripps, of Chipping Norton,
Oxfordshire, had been employed at Daylesford for just two months
before his death in June 2007. Sentencing the business, Judge
William Hart said there was a ''old fashioned, traditional and
relaxed approach'' on the farm – which does not make profit. But
he noted that ''by modern standards'' it had not carried out
adequate risk assessments.
The judge said he accepted that
the business is 'of great social benefit in its community" and is
run on philanthropic lines rather than for profit. It assists
local schools and social groups, he said.
"It is a small business but with
the advantage of financial backing beyond that of most. Turning a
profit has not been its priority. It is not run for purely
commercial reasons.
"The real objective of it is
farming excellence."
The judge said he was 'optimistic
if not wholly persuaded that Daylesford have done all they can to
prevent anything like this happening again.' He fined the
Daylesford Organic Farms Limited £65,000 with £27,500 costs after
it pleaded guilty to an offence under the Health and Safety at
Work Act. Mr Dixey told the court that on the day of the tragedy
the kitchens at Daylesford had asked market gardeners to go out
picking elderflowers for the first time at the express wish of
Lady Bamford.
After lunch, following a morning
of picking, the gardeners were driving across the field to find a
new area of elderflowers when Mr Cripps, a married former pub
manager, fell out of the bucket backwards and was crushed by the
front offside wheel of the machine, Mr Dixey said.
"He was one of a team of market
gardeners who had been asked by the kitchen staff to gather
elderflowers from the hedgerows to make elderflower lemonade for
Lady Bamford.
"This was the first time they had
been asked to gather elderflowers from the farm and no one gave
any consideration as to how it should be done safely and
efficiently and therefore an unsafe method of working developed."
The workmen had been standing on the Groundhog roof and the bucket
to do their picking earlier in the day, he said.
Adrian Darbishire, defending said
that since the tragedy, there had been a "culture of constant
vigilance and awareness" at the farm to improve standards.
"This was a farm which was set up
to achieve very high standards in everything it did and it is a
matter of regret it did not achieve those standards in health and
safety."
Speaking on behalf of Mr Cripps'
family, solicitor Stuart Henderson, said: "This was a particularly
horrific workplace accident, which tragically took the life of a
much loved member of the local Chipping Norton community. It is
clear to us that this accident was totally avoidable and could and
should have been prevented if proper safety procedures had been
followed by his employers.
The Daylesford Organic shop, near
Stow-on-the-Wold, specialises in vegetables, fresh from the
Bamfords' own kitchen gardens, award-winning handmade cheeses and
fresh meat from the couple's organic Staffordshire estate.
Today’s league tables rank English
primary schools on performance in English, maths and science
tests taken by 11-year-olds. It shows the percentage of pupils
gaining Level 4 - the standard expected for their age group - in
each core subject. Schools are ranked by their aggregate score,
which is the cumulative percentage of children reaching the
required level in the three subjects. See the full Oxfordshire
league table here:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/leaguetables/6690359/Primary-league-tables-Key-Stage-2-results-for-2009.html
Wanted for a
scam which conned two Oxfordshire pensioners out of a staggering
£830,000
THIS
is Scott Mitchell – wanted in connection with a scam which
conned two Oxfordshire pensioners out of a staggering £830,000.
Police have asked
for help trace the 39-year-old who has avoided capture
for the past five months. Detectives said Mitchell was wanted in
connection with a scam on an 83-year-old man in Woodstock who
handed out more than half a million pounds from his savings for
minor roofing repairs. A trading standards surveyor has reviewed
all the work carried out at the house and estimated the total
value to be a mere £10,000.
Police also want to speak to
Mitchell in connection with a similar scam on an 84-year-old
woman in North Oxford. The pensioner, who now lives in a care
home, paid out about £330,000 for minor repairs to her house.
Police have been searching for Mitchell since July. But
despite at least five house searches across Oxfordshire and
Leicester, he has not be found.
He is believed to have close
ties to The Beeches caravan site, near Chipping Norton, and
also uses the aliases Scott Jackson and Scott Wilson.
Det Insp Simon Morton, of
Oxford CID, said: “We have released a photo of a man we would
like to speak to in connection with two large cases of fraud,
which we believe may be the largest of their kind in Oxfordshire
on vulnerable and elderly victims. We believe that Scott
Mitchell could still be in the Oxfordshire area, although he
does have connections in Leicester. Mitchell also uses the names
Scott Jackson and Scott Wilson. We wish to speak to him and urge
him to come forward. If you recognise the photograph, or know
where he is living, where he slept last night, or where we can
find him, then contact police immediately as it is vital we
speak to him.”
Anyone with information about Mitchell’s whereabouts should
contact police immediately on 08458 505505 or speak anonymously
to Crimestoppers on 0800 555111
Brigid's poem reveals barriers
dyslexics face
Reading
is a twisting turning path
With lots of obstacles I must pass
Why does it have to be so hard
To even read my birthday card
Words are like leaves on a steady breeze
Scattering all around me
But here comes the deadly mist
That I must read my spelling list
Brigid Davidson, 11, from Chipping Nortonwon first place in Charley Boorman’s Poetry Competition,
organised by Dyslexia Action . Children aged four to 14 were
asked to write about what reading meant to them, and the first
words of the poem had to be, Reading is... About 200 children entered the competition. Brigidsaid: “I found it really difficult to write the poem and
didn’t think I stood a chance. It was a real shock when the
competition people rang to say I’d won. It was really exciting.”
Dyslexia Action president Mr Boorman said: “The standard of the
entries was excellent and the competition was tough. However,
being dyslexic I could really identify with Brigid’s poem. She
has done exceptionally well and I am sure her family must be
very proud of her.” Judge Brough Girling said: “Judging
something like this is terribly difficult, and these poems were
no exception. However, I was looking in particular for poems
where the personality of the writer comes through — where they
are writing what they really feel about reading, and not merely
what they think a poem
about
reading should be like. On this criteria Brigid, who obviously
finds reading difficult, is my clear winner.”
Closing down all
the Youth Centres in the county. Crazy
More rumours
are beginning to filter out about the cuts which the County
Council is planning to make in its budget for next year. We are
at that awful stage when a whole range of things are being
considered but nothing is decided yet. Amazingly it seems that
officers of the council have included in their list of potential
cost savings the idea of closing down all the Youth Centres in
the county....... If this happens - and there is a very real
chance that it could - it will be a disaster. It is a totally
crazy notion. Its time Mr Keith Mitchell - the Leader of OCC -
started talking in earnest to some of his younger, more in-touch
Cabinet Members.
The problem of anti-social behaviour - particularly in city centres and in
our market towns - is something we are all familiar with. I do
sometimes wonder whether Mr Mitchell - who lives out in one of
the posher villages - understands just how disruptive and
distressing such behaviour can be - particularly to older
residents. All the experts seem to agree that as youth
unemployment grows over the next few years this problem of
anti-social behaviour will get much worse. As a society we are
in danger of creating a generation of disadvantaged young people
who feel badly let down and resentful....lousy home life, no
jobs, few opportunities, no affordable leisure facilities. The
effects of such a lost generation will continue to be felt for
years and years. Youth Centres at present represent the best way
of creating environments and activities which stand a chance of
drawing in those kids who are not naturally clubbable or
self-motivating. In these very insecure times it is precisely
now that our vulnerable youth need more support and
encouragement. Pulling the rug from under them would be a really
stupid thing to do. Its not the kids who have created the
economic mess the country is in.
In Chippy
young people have been clamouring for a decent Youth Centre and
better facilities for a long time. The present set-up
which does an excellent job is a grotty building in the wrong
place understaffed and not open frequently enough. The kids in
the town have been promised better facilities often enough and
let down as many times. Only recently the government offered a
grant of £800,000 for a completely new facility. The Town
Council agreed to sell Greystones House and raise £200,000 as a
further contribution. The County Council agreed to come up with
the necessary budget for opening the new Centre four days a
week. All this is now under threat. The County says it can't
afford the running costs so it is ready to hand the government
grant back. Have you ever heard anything so daft? But not only
would the kids be denied the new Youth Centre - even the
inadequate old one will be closed.
Just a few
weeks to get organised, and get the banners made. I hope the
Chippy Youth Centre has already started a petition and will make
contact with others to do the same. The madness needs to stop.
Literary look at
Chipping Norton past and present
A
history group has published a book about Chipping Norton’s past
and present. Chipping Norton Through Time has gone on sale after
three months of hard work by members of the town’s Local History
Society. The group was asked by Amberley Publishing to gather
100 photos from the town’s past, then take pictures of the same
landmarks or areas today.
Brenda Morris, of Walterbush Road, helped to
create the book. She said: “The town has changed quite a lot,
not always to the good, and a lot of the streets have changed
completely.” Three other members of the society took part in the
process of compiling the book – Pauline Watkins, Alan Watkins,
and Elizabeth Whitaker. The society was formed more than 30
years ago, with the aim of opening a museum, which was achieved
in 1985. The society has previously published four other books,
including Around Chipping Norton in Old Photographs. Chipping
Norton Through Time is available at local bookshops,
priced
£12.99.
19th November 2009
MEET THE 2009 SPORTS AWARDS WINNERS
Front row left to right:Alice PowellMayors
Award - Motor Racing ,
Sean Green 18 & over Award - Football
,Harry Mincer
Under 11 Award - Football,Chris Dyer Junior Team Award -Golf
Captain
and Jack Taylor 11-17 Award -
Cricket.Back row
: rest of Chippy Junior Golf Squad
left to right:Imogen Vessey,Jordan Tew,Richard Whiston,Mikey Roberts,Charles Rose& George Kay.Absent
Claire Reynolds
HIGHLY COMMENDED
DANNY PHILLIPS
– GOLF NICOLE HOWLETT – GOLF
HARRY LEWIS FOOTBALL/HOCKEY/CROSS COUNTRY/CRICKET KITTY
WRIGHT - TRAMPOLINING
COREY NEWTON – GYMNASTICS BEN CHAPMAN – SWIMMING
STUART FERGUSON – ATHLETICS
MEGAN WOOD – KAYAKING
TOM BUTLER – KITESURFING NEIL HANCOCK
– BOWLS
GRAHAM BOX – BOWLS DANIEL
BOX – BOWLS
BRIAN KAY- MANAGER CHIPPY GOLF JUNIOR TEAM
BRITISH LEGION ORGANISE A
MOVING REMEMBRANCE SUNDAY
Mike Howes
of the British Legion writes: On the 8th November
St Marys Church was
filled to bursting as ever, with British Legion
representatives, the ATC The Army Cadets, Scouts, Guides,
Brownies and local councillors and other organisation
representatives along with pleasing support from the general
public.What was also very
evident was the increased numbers of people who watched the
"march past" and the parade, lining Horsefair and Top side.
Ian
Barnett of the British Legion Club making a presentation in the
Town Hall to the ATC and the Army Cadets. Looking on are:
Colour Sgt. Clare Watts; Commanding
Officer Chipping Norton Army Cadet Force and Major Pete
Broome, Area Commander in the Oxfordshire Army Cadet Force
Flight Lt. Richard Hogan, Officer Commanding 136 Squadron Air
Training Corps
Ian Barnett spoke on behalf of the British
Legion Club in the Town Hall "We
have just attended a moving and solemn memorial service in our
lovely church and seen our wreaths and tributes placed at
Chipping Norton's Roll of Honour and have prayed that no more
names will be added to those there or on any of the Memorials up
and down our land.To help ensure that
however, our nation needs a young, dedicated, trained cadre of
potential servicemen and women. Whilst we hope that their
sacrifice will never be called upon, we greatly value their
enthusiastic participation in Cadet
Forces up and down the land, and particularly, here in Chipping
Norton.
Many of you here today will of
course recall the old British Legion Club in West Street.
When this was disposed of, thanks to the dedicated efforts of
many in the Club, some funds from the sale were retained here in
Chipping Norton. These funds were invested and the interest
has enabled us to make payments from time to time, in accordance
with the rules of the Club that surplus monies should be given
to service organisations in the spirit of The Royal British
Legion.It is very important to
understand that any monies spent from that Fund are entirely
separate from the monies raised by our Royal British Legion
Poppy Day Appeal. That money goes directly to the British Legion
Head Office in its entirety.
The officials
of the Chipping Norton British Legion Club decided at their last
meeting that a grant should be made to each of our two local
Cadet Forces in recognition of their dedication and enthusiasm
and hard work, for which there is very little reward.
Can I briefly
tell you about
some of their achievements over the last 12 months or so
:
First the
Chipping Norton Army Cadet force.
Cadet Sabin is
the Tri Services National Champion at clay shooting for 2008
2 cadets from
the detachment represented the Battalion at the Cadet Skill at
Arms meeting and were in the team that won the Junior Clay shoot
6 cadets are
doing a Bronze Duke of Edinburgh award and 1 LCPL Is doing his
gold D of E.
4 Gold medals
and 4 Silver medals were won at Battalion athletics
The detachment
won the Padres Trophy for work done in the community.
The detachment
also won the Milne Shield for detachment recruiting
Colour Sgt
Clare Watts got top detachment commander for Calais Company for
the second year in a row. She was then awarded the top award in
Oxfordshire Battalion, having been an instructor for nearly 8
years and a Detachment commander for just as long. She was
awarded the Silver Bayonet as the best detachment commander of
the battalion and she has passed her King George 6 Course at
Frimley Park and re-qualified in her Short Range Course.
A GREAT SET OF
ACHIEVEMENTS FOR OUR ACF AND A GREAT RECORD FOR THEIR OFFICER
COMMANDING
Now the 136 (Chipping Norton) Squadron Air Training Corp In the
last 12 months..............
Cadets flew
over 100 flying sorties
A prestigious
Flying Scholarship was gained by Flight Sgt Joel Rillie who won
his CADET PILOT WINGS
4 Gliding
Scholarships culminated in solo flight awards
20 attended the
Royal International Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford with 750 other
cadets, with three 136 Sqn cadets winning best new cadets
awards and Flight Sgt Joel Rillie winning the coveted Best
Overall Cadet trophy
12 cadets
gained marksmanship awards
The Squadron
came 3rd out of 27 squadrons in the Thames Valley Wing drill
competition.
8 cadets
enrolled in Bronze Duke of Edinburgh award scheme gaining 4
Silver and 1 Gold awards.
The
Squadron won 10 Sports Wing “Blues” inAthletics, Swimming, Football and
Rugby, along with a clutch of medals at the Wing inter-squadron
athletics competition.
In the
Community cadets again completed THE SAM TAYLOR MEMORIAL WALK a
17 mile route across the Cotswolds in memory of an ex-cadet who
was tragically killed in car accident, raising sponsorship
monies for TRBL and the Squadron.
Four cadets
also took on a 30 mile stretcher carry in aid of Help for
Heroes.
136 also
assisted with collecting for the RAF Association Wings Appeal
and this year’s Poppy Appeal.
6 cadets
enrolled in the BTec diploma in public service - equal to 4
GCSEs.
During Staff
training Flight Lieutenant RICHARD HOGAN (OC) passed his Weapon
Instructor course. Flying Officer TONY SAMMS (Squadron
Training Officer) passed his Heart Start Instructor course.
Sergeant CATHERINE WARNER (Squadron Adjutant) graduated from her
senior NCO course at RAF College Cranwell. Civilian Instructor
KERRY LIDINGTON passed an Expedition First Aid Course and her
Radio Communication Instructor Course.
And finally
Tomorrow morning 9 cadets from 136 Squadron; Warrant Officer
Graham Coles and the Squadron Padre, The Reverend Wing Commander
(ret’d) Bernard Rumbold, leave to visit the battlefields of
the SOMME which will include a Parade at the British War Grave
in Achiet Le Grand where many aviators of the Royal Flying Corps
and the fledgling Royal Air Force were laid to rest.
We can all be
very proud of an excellent record for our 136 Squadron which was
first formed in 1938 as an Air Defence Cadet Corps
Therefore, on behalf of the
British Legion Club Ltd and Chipping Norton Branch of The Royal
British Legion it gives me very great pleasure to present a
cheque for £1,000 to each of our local Cadet Forces.
On the 11th
November at 11am a small crowd gathered at the war memorial in
London Road for a short Armistice Day service and the
laying of wreaths by the Mayor and representatives of the
British Legion. Below the Hon. Sec.
of the Womens Branch Betty Hicks
is laying her wreath. Legionnaire Flagbearer Holland (right)
looks on (he complained to me only today that his picture had
never appeared on chippingnorton.net....so there you go Mr
Holland. Fame at last!!)
Many thanks to Ian Barrett and Mike
Howes for the excellent pictures
CONGRATULATIONS
TO THE UNDER 12s
Chipping Norton's Under 12s rugby team brought
home their first piece ofsilverware
of the season following their success as runners-up inthe London Welsh rugby festival.According to head coach Jim Hopcroft, the team played
some of theirbest-ever rugby at the
tournament which took place in Richmond. They remained undefeated in all their matches.
Enstone Primary
Schoolrated ‘outstanding’
Under
Ofsted’s new, tougher inspection framework, Enstone Primary
Schoolhas been rated ‘outstanding’
- the highest rating. Leadership, pupils’ behaviour
and the school’s creative curriculum were all praised.
Headteacher Lindsay Daulton said
she was “absolutely over the moon” as the school was rated only
‘good’ in its last report. She said: “We have worked really,
really hard to move the school from good to outstanding. We
really feel every child matters and you’ve got to provide for
every child and develop their potential in whatever way you can.
I firmly believe a happy child is a successful child.” The
school has 18 after-school clubs, in everything from dodgeball
to knitting.
Of the parents of the 94
children at the school, 59 responded to an Ofsted questionnaire.
All said their children enjoyed school, felt safe there,
teaching was good and was preparing their children for the
future.
There are three nurseries, 22
primaries, four secondaries and five special schools rated as
outstanding in Oxfordshire out of 290 state schools.
When chippingnorton.net started six years ago we summarised the main
worries people had about the town in 13 questions. We promised we would go
on nagging until we got answers. We have answers to only six so
far!!!!!
The following questions have been answered
Q What is happening to our
hospital? When does building start?
A
Building
began in July 2009. Opening in 2010
Three cheers and thanks to the Hospital Action Group Q
Why is the Youth Club only open two nights a week?
A A deal has just
been done in 2009 with OCC whereby the Town Council contribute £200,000
towards a new £1m Youth Centre which will be open five nights a week -
including the weekend Well done to everyone - particularly
Councillor Biles
Q
When do we get an Action Plan for the Horsefair Air Quality Management
Area ?
A We have one involving HGV speed limits and lorry routes. Q
When do we get some pedestrian crossings at the East End of the town?
A There are two now. We still need one across Albion Street Take another bow
Councillor Biles
Q
When will the flower and shrub borders in our town start getting a bit
of TLC?
A
A local company Toparius kindly
offered to look after the beds in the town centre this year They are
doing a fantastic job. Thanks to them from us all.
Q What is the Partnership for?
A The
Partnership turned out to be for nothing. It spent a packet and folded
having achieved nothing What a waste of everyone's time
The following
questions have still not been answered after six years .... Unbelievable
really
Q When do we
start getting the promised help in creating new local jobs to replace the 4OO
lost at Parker Knoll?
Q
When do we get a regular foot patrol by Police on Fridays and Saturdays
around midnight in the Town Centre? Q
When will a proper ambulance be positioned in Chippy as promised?
Q
When will the proposals for a
Minor Injuries Unit be published? Q
Why isn't there a disco for teenagers in the Town Hall every month?
Q
When is 15 minute parking along Topside going to be officially
sanctioned? Q
Why can't we have a Visitor Information Centre ?
New Era for Chippy Post Office
THE
future of Chipping Norton’s post office has been secured.
Customers feared for the future of the service when the
sub-postmistress announced she was retiring – and no-one could
be found to take over. But the Midcounties Co-op — which has a
supermarket just doors away — has stepped in to safeguard the
High Street branch. It has kept on the two members of staff, and
plans to recruit two more.
New manager Linda Allinson said: “We are still trading from
the same office and the staff have stayed with us, so it has all
stayed the same. “All the services, such as foreign currency,
are still here. It has been very positive. People have been very
friendly and I think they have looked forward to it. We are up
and running with no big bangs.”
Sue Berry, district manager of the Co-op’s post office group,
said: “This will ensure an important service is retained in the
same location which people are used to. We have long experience
of running post offices and operate 85 across our trading area.
We believe in supporting our local communities and meeting the
needs of our members and customers.”
Post Office spokesman Sue Dakin said they were delighted the
Co-op had stepped in.
The takeover at Chipping Norton comes 16 months after the
Post Office shut 22 of its 188 county branches as part of a
nationwide cost-cutting measure.
Council job cuts
could prompt strike
THOUSANDS
of Oxfordshire council workers could walk out on strike over
plans to cut 500 jobs. Trade union officials issued the warning
after it was revealed 50 computer experts may be the first to go
from Oxfordshire County Council within the next year. Social
services, trading standards, libraries and museums could all be
affected if the 3,000 members of public service trade union
Unison – one-in-four of the council’s non-teaching staff – vote
for strike action.
In July, the council warned 10
per cent of the council’s 5,000 non-frontline positions – 500 –
would be cut to save £90m over the next five years. Mark Fysh,
the county council’s Unison branch secretary, said: “Let me make
this clear — we want to negotiate with the council and avert
strike action. But if it is unwilling to negotiate, or there are
widespread redundancies, we will ballot our members over
industrial action, which is in line with the branch’s rules.
This could mean up to 3,000 people walking out.
Mrs Brooks claims victory for Chipping Norton set
Whatever
they may say, Gordon Brown and his cohorts are deeply upset that
The Sun should have dumped them in such a way. They believe it
is a victory for the Chipping Norton set, which may soon be
running the country.
Readers may recall how this column
celebrated the marriage between Rebekah Wade, then editor of The
Sun, and Charlie Brooks, while drawing attention to the
emergence of the Chipping Norton set. They share a house near
the beautiful Cotswold town. Rebekah has since restyled herself
Rebekah Brooks, and been promoted to chief executive of News
International, the most powerful national newspaper group in
Britain.
Some observers have assumed that
the ditching of New Labour was orchestrated by The Sun's new
editor, Dominic Mohan. Don't believe it. Certainly he was
perfectly happy with the decision, but it was sanctioned by
James Murdoch, chairman of News International, and Rebekah.
Another key figure is the PR fixer Matthew Freud. If Rebekah is
queen of the Chipping Norton set, Mr Freud, her near neighbour,
is its king.
An honorary member of the Chipping
Norton set is Mr Freud's close friend David Cameron, whose
Witney constituency covers Chipping Norton. Mr Cameron has a
very pleasant country house near Charlbury, also in his
constituency. There is much tooing and froing. At Rebekah's
wedding Mr Cameron greeted Mr Freud – such is their intimacy –
by meeting hands with a "high fives".
The Chipping Norton set is not
particularly horsy, despite the membership of the very horsy
Charlie Brooks. It is a state of mind reaching beyond the
relatively narrow geographical confines of Chipping Norton, and
includes figures such as James Murdoch. Its forty-something
members tend to be right-wing rather than Tory, and are commonly
déclassé. They love money and networking, and revere the dark
arts of PR. And Gordon Brown does not like them.
Snippets from the
Council Meeting
Last night
(19th October) there was a Town Council meeting. The Vicar
attended the meeting and outlined some of the new building and
restoration work going on in the church. New rooms and
facilities are being created in the bell tower and the chancel.
In the space created by the removal of the old organ the superb
alabaster tomb which has been fully exposed for the first time
in a century will be restored and form the centrepiece of a
wonderful collection of old monuments from the church which have
been obscured - or even left outside. The programme goes on for
several years and will eventually involve a new floor for the
body of the church. Wow! that will take some fundraising. The
County Councillor Hilary Biles told us that she had met with the
local Police Inspector Rory Freeman. He emphasised that
Chipping Norton still had two PCSOs and two Neighbourhood
officers on duty 24 hours a day. He had given instructions to
the local police that it was their job to sort out parking
problems in the town until the new Community Wardens are
appointed next February. Hilary also reported that she had been
successful in persuading the WODC Cabinet to agree to lift the
covenant which they hold on Greystones House. This should allow
the building to be sold for substantially more money - proceeds
from the Sale are going towards the new Youth Centre. Everything
now looks set to start marketing the building. Many thanks to
Hilary for her efforts on this and to the WODC Cabinet for their agreement.
But probably most of all to Andrew Tucker - the Director of
Planning - who has steered our request through so skilfully and
has been really keen to help. District Councillor Coles reported that she had attended a
meeting of the WODC Environment Committee and had been told that
the signposting of HGVs away from Chipping Norton was now
complete. About time too! They had also discussed Dean Pit.
Councillor Graves interjected with the latest news from the waste
disposal front. She had been
rung up by Lord Chadlington (no less) that very afternoon and
told that the application by OCC to its own Planning Committee
earlier in the day to extend the licence of Dean Pit for a
further five years had been rejected and the extension reduced
to two years and that the OCC must show that it has considered
viable alternatives before any further extension will be
granted. It was reassuring to hear that WODC had stated clearly
that Dean Pit would not be allowed to close until an alternative
was open. (Watch out Enstone!) The Town Council heard that
three of its recommendations from the last meeting on local
planning applications had been simply ignored by the WODC
Planning Committee. (situation normal) Gina Burrows
announced that there is to be a Town Hall Open Day at which
members of the Council will be in attendance to answer
residents' questions and users of the Town Hall will be
displaying the work of their organisations. To be held on a
Wednesday because the Town Hall is fully booked on Saturdays
through to the end of the year. NOVEMBER 25th is the day. Then
out of the blue we were informed that the Town Clerk was going
to have a baby, next May. Well blow me. We all fell off our
chairs and broke into applause. Good for you Vanessa.
Congratulations. We will think about how we will cope later! We
were told that Chippy Jazz Day has raised £5,500 - an
unbelievable effort by the Rotary. Half the proceeds going to
the Air Ambulance. Grants to Local Voluntary Bodies were
announced - ranging from £3,000 to the Lido down to £60 to
Vitalise. (Some of us had to ask what Vitalise is. A
Witney-based charity apparently which arranges respite trips for
carers.) It was good to see £500 going to the new Skater Hockey
Club which was only formed this year - based at the new MUGA.
Money worries took up the rest of the meeting. We have
been granted £100,000 by WODC towards Town Hall repairs and
refurbishment but it all depends on £80,000 matched funding. We
are £30,000 short and we have to come up with the goods by the
end of the year or the whole deal is back in the melting pot.
Who is to decide? Can we raise the £30K? Who will conjure up the
readies? Is this the responsibility of the Mayor? The Finance
Committee? or the Town Hall Committee? or the new Friends of the
Town Hall? A bureaucratic muddle. Hilary (who is the Cabinet
Member in charge of this grant funding) made it clear that she
wanted one person to talk to at the Town Council. Would the
Council please decide who this was to be - and quickly?
Grants were being cut back at this very moment and unless the
Town Council got its skates on they would lose out. Your
correspondent slunk into the corner and adjusted his dunce's cap
- as he always does after a wigging from Hilary. There is to be
a meeting later this week to sort it all out.
Going, going.....!!
Your webmaster went for a walk
with his camera round Batsford Park on Sunday afternoon
and thought the Acers were something quite out of this world.
Don't miss them.
A restaurant that celebrates local
produce.
Wild
Thyme is the brainchild of Nick Pullen and his partner Sally
Daniel (pictured below) who finally
turned a dream into reality when
they moved to Chipping Norton and opened their restaurant last
December. Nick, a professional chef for more than 20 years,
explained why the premises they found in Chipping Norton are so
special: “We don’t come from Oxfordshire. Sally is from Essex
and I come from Portsmouth, but we knew that the place we were
looking for had to be somewhere really rural, like Chipping
Norton. It’s such a beautiful little market town, and as it’s
surrounded by farmers, cheese makers and other food producers,
it offers everything we wanted.
“We had this image of running a
restaurant where local farmers knocked on the back door holding
a brace of freshly shot pheasants and where freshly harvested
vegetables were readily available.”
Although
no one has turned up with a couple of pheasants yet, the couple
are confident that they really have found the right place to
open their first business. The restaurant occupies a Grade
II-listed building with enough space for a well-appointed
kitchen, three small inter-connecting dining areas and three
letting rooms upstairs.
Sally admitted that there were
moments when they wondered if they would be able to meet their
opening day deadline. She was still holding a wet paintbrush the
evening they were due to open – but by working together as a
team they got the work done.
Teamwork is probably the secret
of their success. This is a couple prepared to do most of the
jobs themselves, only calling on staff when they really have to.
The atmosphere they have
created by working together is relaxed and friendly. Regular
customers soon become friends and are called by their first
names rather than ‘Sir’ or ‘Madam’.
“We are not into instant food,
we aim to offer the meal experience and provide customers with a
chance to enjoy a leisurely meal,” Sally said. “Nick cooks
everything to order and customers seem to appreciate this.”
Another thing they like is the
fact that Sally and Nick really do go out of their way to fill
their plates with local produce. They spent some considerable
time before opening getting to know what was available locally.
Until last week, when he had to
start concentrating on his
GCSEs,
their eggs were supplied by 15-year-old Jack Wilkinson, who
rears his own laying-hens on his parents’ smallholding. Although
Jack lives several miles from Chipping Norton, he would arrive
every Saturday with trays of fresh eggs, which he had carried on
the local bus. Apparently, there were times when he would admit
that two eggs had broken when the bus took a sharp turn to the
left, but that made his delivery even more special.
They get their venison from
Wychwood Forest and their lamb from nearby Glyn Farm because it
is pasture fed. Their cheese comes from Windrush Valley, Rodger
Crudge and Blur bassist Alex James, who lives in Kingham.
Nick makes his own bread rolls,
and offers them flavoured with sunblush tomatoes, walnut and
prune and onion, which I can assure you are quite delicious.
The vegetables proved a real
problem at first. Then everything changed when the couple made
it known that they were looking for local produce. Nick said:
“Suddenly people began turning up with baskets of vegetables
from their gardens. One woman arrived the other day carrying a
basket of ripe plums. I was able to say thank you by giving her
a couple of plum tarts in exchange the next day.”
He went on to say that what he
and Sally love about Chippy is that it really was proving to be
everything they dreamed of.
‘It’s allowing us to live our
dream. The other day I went to the local butchers and asked if
they had any wood pigeons. The butcher shook his head and said
he didn’t have any at the moment, but that if I really wanted
some he supposed he could go out and shoot a few – and he did.
You can’t get more local than that,” said Nick. Although he
can’t get local fish, he does use a Cotswold company that
delivers fresh fish regularly.
For my lunch at Wild Thyme I
ordered Upton-smoked duck breast salad dressed with home-made
blackberry vinaigrette. It was delicious.
Ambulance Trust is “failing dismally”
Of
the 392 health trusts assessed in the Care Quality Commission’s
annual health check for 2008/09South
Central Ambulance Service NHS Trust ended up
in the bottom five per cent. Its
rating dropped from good to weak
In the past year, paramedics got
to 72.6 per cent of urgent calls within eight minutes, compared
to a Government target of 75 per cent.
The figure was more than a 10
percentage point drop on the last figures for Oxfordshire
Ambulance Trust – which preceded SCAS – in 2005/06, when 84 per
cent of the most series category A calls were reached. It also
failed in terms of management of heart attack and stroke
patients. A spokesman for the trust said since April 1, 74.8 per
cent of category A callers in Oxfordshire were reached in eight
minutes, an increase on the previous year.
SCAS chief executive Will
Hancock said: “The results have confirmed that we still have
work to do to improve services for local people in some areas.
“We have a robust action plan
in place and delivering this will be our primary focus over the
coming months, to ensure that our patients receive the high
standards of service they expect and deserve.”
But Dr Peter Skolar, a county
councillor and chairman of the joint health overview and
scrutiny committee, said the trust was “failing dismally”. We
knew when it went out of Oxfordshire it would get too big and
out of control. I would classify it as poor.”
How can we help the school improve its GCSE
results?
asks Councillor Greenwell
I
have been very concerned about the performance results from
Chippy School for the last year. Let me explain why. There is
one measure which is generally accepted as the most important
indicator of the all-round achievement of a school in preparing
its kids for working life... That measure is the percentage of
pupils taking GCSE who get five passes (including Maths and
English) with a grade between A and C . This standard
represents a minimum qualification to demonstrate to potential
employees or colleges that a secondary school pupil has mastered
the three “R”s. and also worked on a range of different
subjects. The County Council has set a target on this measure
for all its schools of 58%
Chippy School made excellent and sustained progress over a
period of several years and in 2007 achieved a score of 64% on
this important measure – which was significantly better than
other state secondary schools in the area. It is probably not
co-incidental that this success came at the same time as
decisions were taken to make substantial extra investment in the
school’s facilities. Expectations were that the school’s
progress would continue.
But suddenly and surprisingly in 2008 the school’s score on this
performance measure fell to 54% A huge drop - completely
unacceptable by any standard.
I raised my concerns publicly seeking some explanation for this
disappointing result and looking for reassurance about the
future. I was criticised by several members of the town council
for raising questions about this issue. Indeed one of them – a
school governor - said that because of my comments she had
refused to vote for me as Town Mayor. I was invited in May to
visit the school with a number of my councillor colleagues for a
discussion with the headmaster.
After my visit I wrote the following on this web-site news page;
“The teaching staff we met and watched were impressive. From my
perspective everyone appeared to be doing a good job, committed
to getting the best out of the kids they were teaching.
All this is great but it merely added to the puzzle: Why have
the GCSE exam results as measured by 5 A* - C including English
and Maths declined so sharply. A question we pursued again over
coffee with the head and a group of teachers. So could the
Headmaster provide some explanation? What we had seen impressed
us, so what is happening in Chippy? I saw committed teachers,
attentive pupils and much that was very, very good. I have no
immediate answer. It is a true enigma (if that's not a paradox).
But I hope that the Headmaster's confidence that this year’s
exam results will be much better is more than just fulfilled:
That the exam results exceed his expectations by miles.”
Yesterday (6th October) I visited the Headmaster
again to discuss this year's GCSE results: Last year’s 54% - far
from improving as the headmaster had predicted - has fallen
again to 53%!
Was there a reason? Why when results in almost every other
school in Oxfordshire were improving was Chipping Norton School
an exception? Was there anything we as a community could do to
help the pupils achieve better GCSE results? What about his next
OFSTED when exam results will be a more important element?
These were the questions I put to Mr. Duffy and to his Chairman
of Governors Dr Nigel Whitehead who was at the school on
Wednesday morning. But before reporting my meeting let me
comment on my overall impression of the school. Like on my last
visit I was impressed by the air of calmness and order that was
present and the new school uniforms have added greatly to the
feeling of corporate unity and identity – so only improvement
there!
I put my question directly to Mr Duffy, Why had the results not
improved, why had they got worse when elsewhere in Oxfordshire
and across the country in general they were getting better It
was very obvious that the Headmaster, the Chairman of Governors
and, I think from what was said, OCC are very concerned by the
Chipping Norton trend. There is certainly no complacency, but
there is no easy explanation either. The percentage of pupils
getting A*-C in Maths and A*-C in English language as separate
subjects is in the high sixties for both subjects but there was
a group of around 20 who achieved the required grade in one but
not the other. Investigations are continuing, maybe the
Contextualised Value added (CVA) analysis will throw some light
when it is ready in a couple of months time and show that
despite this years results this years pupils had done extremely
well when compared to their Key Stage Two performance. We will
await the result of this with keen anticipation because if this
is not the case the problem must lie within the school.
When I asked about how the community of Chipping Norton could
help there was a very positive feedback. Apparently there is a
direct and strong correlation between examination success and a
pupil’s participation in non academic school activities and
sports. Taking part in clubs and societies instead of spending
the time either seated in front of a computer screen playing
whatever, or as a TV couch potato makes a difference to school
performance. So I suggested that the new Youth Centre with a
broad range of activities that ought to attract a wider range of
the youth of the Town should have an impact on the academic
performance of the school! Only time will tell but if the
assumption is right then the contribution of Chipping Norton
Town Council towards the new youth centre will have been money
very well spent indeed.
The other aspect of making a success of the school that we
discussed centred on the local community and increasing the
inclusiveness of the Town. The need for more people to get
involved, how the Town Council might play a part and better
communication between CNTC and the school. To that end I have
asked the Mayor, and he has agreed, to invite the Headmaster to
come and make a presentation to the council with suggestions on
how to improve relationships and a greater contribution to a
better examination performance.
No answers but I left the meeting with a strong impression that
the subject of exam results is top of the agenda and staff,
governors, pupils and now hopefully the community of Chipping
Norton are all going to work to make things better.
Launch of campaign to save Town Hall
Chipping Norton Town Hall is looking for friends. This
venerable old building (built in 1842) is beginning to show its
age. Being a Listed Grade II* building, conservation work is
costly requiring specialist trades. Urgent work is required on
the front steps supporting the columns, The roof needs extensive
new lead, tiles and insulation. The interior badly needs
refurbishment The total cost of this work would take up the
entire Town Council precept (the Town Council’s share of your
Council Tax) for four years – an impossible burden for a small
town like ours to carry. We need to seek urgent help from
grant-giving bodies (like the National Lottery). Chances of
grants are best for a registered charity so we plan to set one
up - Friends of the Town Hall. Before we can register this
charity we are required to show that it has an income of £5000 a
year. So to get the ball rolling we are inviting people in the
town (after all it is our Town
Hall) to subscribe £10 a year to become a Friend. This income
together with proceeds from other fund raising events will give
us the basis to register our charity and then apply for major
grant money to help us safeguard the future of a lovely building
which has dominated our town centre for 167 years.
There will be lots of opportunities over the coming months
for you to sign up to become a Friend of the Town Hall. We beg
you to support the cause.
Police are failing
in their 999 pledge
POLICE
are failing to attend a quarter of emergency calls in the county
within time limits set out by the Government. In a pledge
launched in January, Thames Valley Police promised an officer
would attend emergencies in towns within 15 minutes and villages
in 20 minutes. But figures for April 1 to August 31 this year
show police in Oxfordshire reached an emergency within 15
minutes only 73.5 per cent of the time and within 20 minutes
83.4 per cent of the time.
A Home Office spokesman said:
“We expect Thames Valley, and all other forces, to meet all 10
pledge commitments wherever possible and to always explain to
the public why they could not in other cases.”
So everybody - see
if you can follow this explanation because I'm blowed if I can
-ED
Chief Supt Brendan O’Dowda,
right, the county’s most senior officer, said he was encouraged
by the response times. He said: “These are not time targets,
these are times we aim to get to the incident as part of the
pledge. I’m very pleased when I look at the percentages.All calls are risk assessed and if the police are outside
the time set out in the pledge it is often because the offender
is not at the scene, Chief Supt O’Dowda added. We aim to get
there as soon as possible but also aim to get there safely.
There will be occasions where we don’t get there within the time
but for all those times when we don’t hit the response times we
risk assess the incidents and we will make sure we are not
putting anybody at risk.”
Rogue trader
from Chippy jailed for six months
A
ROGUE trader has followed in his father’s footsteps and been put
behind bars for conning a pensioner with dementia in a doorstep
scam. Hugh Fury junior, 26, was jailed at Oxford Crown Court for
six months yesterday after calling at the 90-year-old’s home and
demanding £2,600 for work he claimed he had done on her drains.
No work had actually been carried out. The court heard the
father-of-two, of Old London Road, Chipping Norton, made his
victim fill buckets of water and pour them down the drains to
try to prove they were no longer blocked when he carried out the
doorstep scam in Carterton in September 2007. His father, Hughie
Fury Sr, 51, of the same address, was jailed for 40 weeks in
March after he conned an 81-year-old pensioner out of £1,200 in
a similar roofing scam in Wheatley.
Shaun Brunston, prosecuting, said police were
quickly alerted when the victim’s neighbour, Rosemarie Partlett,
became suspicious and asked her what work was being done at her
home. Other neighbours noted the registration number of Fury’s
Land Rover after becoming suspicious. Recorder Angela Morris
said: “You tried to scam this vulnerable lady, who at that stage
was 90 years old, out of £2,600. Had it not been for the good
work of neighbour Mrs Partlett, that money would quite clearly
have gone. Vulnerable people such as this woman are entitled to
be protected by the courts from those who target and take
advantage of them.”
Mr Brunston told the court two cheques were
made out Mr H Fury and Dean Fury, named in court as a cousin of
the defendant. They were paid into separate bank accounts, but
cancelled before the cash could clear. Fury’s name was found on
a partially completed cheque left in the victim’s chequebook, Mr
Brunston added. Barry Gilbert, defending, told the court Fury
had no previous convictions but was led astray and committed the
doorstep scam to generate cash to pay off substantial debts.
Fury wanted to admit his guilt but was advised to deny the
charge by his legal representation, Mr Gilbert added. He
admitted one count of fraud just before the trial was due to
start. Medical reports read to the court by the prosecution
revealed his now 92-year-old victim’s health issues, which
included dementia, worsened with the worry about appearing in
court.
The Oxford Mail is not naming Fury’s victim.
Climate change
activists dump manure on Jeremy Clarkson's lawn
Climate
change activists have dumped manure on Jeremy Clarkson's lawn in
protest at the Top Gear presenter's treatment of the
environment.
The seven activists, dressed as suffragettes, spread two bin-bag
loads of fresh horse dung outside the television presenter's
manor house in the affluent town of Chipping Norton in the
Cotswolds. The personal delivery was brought in by a van fuelled
by used chip-fat oil and accompanied by a banner bearing the
message ‘This is what you’re landing us in’. The
environmentalists, from direct action group Climate Rush, said
the stunt was in protest at Mr Clarkson's promotion of polluting
cars that will ultimately lead to global warming and "land us
all in [manure]" Tamsin Omond, a granddaughter of a baronet who
founded Climate Rush, insisted she was a fan of Top Gear – but
Mr Clarkson was taking an irresponsible attitude to climate
change by encouraging people to continue to drive cars that emit
emissions.
“I love Jeremy. I love fast
cars. I love progress," she said. "But I learnt some things and
those things terrify me. I learnt that climate change will make
my future unrecognisable. I know that I’ll not have the same
choices that Jeremy has now. If we keep on loving the
fossil-fuelled lifestyle then by the time I hit 49 the world
will be too busy coping with the
impact
of climate change to bother about how big an engine is possible.
I’m the biggest libertarian of them all – I’m dumping dung at
Clarkson’s gates so he might understand that his attitude will
land us all in [it].”
More goings-on over the Hospital.
Let me just
remind you all of the extraordinarily complicated financial
scheme that was set up to develop the new Care Home and
Community Health Facility (please note everyone that this is the
new name for the Hospital!). The site is owned freehold by the
County Council. A lease has been granted to the Oxfordshire Care
Partnership (who run all the county's care homes) one of whose
constituent partners the BPHA (Bedfordshire Pilgrims Housing
Association) raises all the capital and develops the site. OCP
will then rent the Hospital (oops sorry Community Health
Facility) to the Oxfordshire Primary Care Trust. OCP will
run the Care Home and get their money back on the whole deal in
the bed rates which they charge to the County Council.
This results in a "blizzard" of sub-leases and sub-subunderleases
which are completely impenetrable to the layman. All clear
so far??
Well at this
late stage the Bedfordshire Pilgrims Housing Association who are
raising all the money are asking, what happens if the PCT
pull out of this scheme after their hospital is built and leave
us with all the development costs? We wouldn't do that says the
PCT. We promise we will honour the deal. "But - says a report
published this week by the OCC - the Bedfordshire Pilgrims
Housing Association
(BPHA)
and its funders are nervous about relying on this assurance from
the PCT and would not wish to have to enforce it by taking legal
action for breach of covenant/contract (considering this to be
at odds with its charitable status and objects)". (report
http://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/content/public/Resources/hlpdownloads/CA/CA150909-12.doc)
And
so next
Tuesday the County Council Cabinet are being asked to provide a
financial guarantee to BPHA (the developers of the hospital and
Care Home) that if the Primary Care Trust back out of the whole
scheme then the County will divi up the money to compensate the
developer's costs and the County will then reclaim the money
from the PCT. There's no real risk in this the Cabinet are
advised, because ownership of the hospital building would revert
to the County Council as freeholder "allowing alternative use"
(like a library perhaps?).
Which leaves
us all wondering why the Pilgrim Housing Association seem
worried the PCT may pull out. Why are they so reluctant to trust
the PCT to pay up - if they do pull out?. What do they know that we don't? Is this
what has been holding things up? Did the County Council have to
provide a guarantee to unblock a negotiating log jam? Will the
County approve these extraordinarily unusual arrangements at
their meeting next Tuesday?
It was instructive to re-visit the last report to
the Cabinet in March 2007 reporting progress with the scheme.
Its pretty clear that these reports have been completely
worthless.In
2007 a completion date of April 2009 was being quoted. Moreover
the report said...."The ‘Building Completed’
date of April 2009 refers to the whole project. The care home
will be built as the first phase and should be completed and
ready for occupation by October 2008".
So that's at least two years late already and counting....
How many of you know this beautiful house?
Its still there
but much the worse for wear. Its owned by the Town. It was
bought for £20,000 by public subscription back in 1977 along
with a lot of land now leased to the Rugby Club, the Bowls Club
and the Rifle Club. But the house is now used by nobody - its
not safe. Recent tenants have let it get into a truly
disgraceful state. The County Council don't want it as a Youth
Centre. The District Council don't seem to want it either. It
would probably cost £250,000 to fix the roof, floors, electrics
etc. It would make an absolutely stunning community centre. But
is this a project the town would get behind? Any one
prepared to have a go? Lets discuss it in the Forum.
CCTV effectiveness
is questioned in Police Report
At the
moment West Oxfordshire District Council are trying tp persuade
the Town Council to commit to spending £16,000 a year for
five years for four CCTV cameras in the town centre. The Town
Council says it doesn't have the money. A number of town
councillors believe that CCTV in a town like Chippy would be a
waste of time because there would be no police response to petty
crime observed on a screen miles away in a central control room
in Witney. What is needed are more frequent police patrols.
An
internal report released by the Metropolitan Police under
Freedom of Information laws disclosed “For every 1,000
cameras in London, less than one crime is solved per year.”
The report, written by
Detective Chief Inspector Mick Neville, who runs the
Metropolitan Police’s Visual Images Identifications and
Detections Office, found that the public “have a high
expectation of CCTV and are frequently told they are
captured on camera 300 times per day”. Public confidence was
dented when the police often stated there was no CCTV
working when a crime has been committed, it said. Under a
section headlined “Strategic Issues”, the report said:
“Potential change of Government - the Conservatives are not
CCTV friendly - we need to start showing that we are
targeting serious crime.” Earlier this year separate
research commissioned by the Home Office suggested that the
cameras had done virtually nothing to cut crime, but were
most effective in preventing vehicle crimes in car parks.
A report by a House of
Lords committee also said that £500million was spent on new
cameras in the 10 years to 2006, money which could have been
spent on street lighting or neighbourhood crime prevention
initiatives. Britain has 1 per cent of the world’s
population but around 20 per cent of its CCTV cameras -
which works out as the equivalent of one for every 14
people.
David Davis MP, the former
shadow Home Secretary, said “CCTV leads to massive
expense and minimum effectiveness. It creates a huge
intrusion on privacy, yet provides little or no improvement
in security. The Metropolitan Police has been
extraordinarily slow to act to deal with the ineffectiveness
of CCTV, something true both in London and across the
country. A combination of overdependence on CCTV and
ineffective use of the cameras means that this money
could have been much better spent on more police officers."
Anita Coles, policy officer
for campaigning group Liberty, said: “CCTV has cost millions
and yet as it’s not properly regulated there is little
evidence of targeted and effective use. In these hard
times our money would be better spent on proven methods of
crime prevention such as better street lighting and more
police on the beat.”
Eamonn Butler, the director
of think tank the Adam Smith Institute, said: “It is obvious
that the boom in CCTV cameras is not making us the slightest
bit safer. There is no evidence that it saves us from gun or
knife crime,.Nor are cameras much
good in getting convictions. Evidence from them is only
allowed in court if the images are securely stored and
handled, so that there is no possibility that they have been
tampered with.”
The Home Office defended
the use of CCTV, with a spokesman saying cameras could "help
communities feel safer".
The Great Chippy Parking Cock-up
MOTORISTS
in “gridlocked” Chipping Norton are enjoying a parking
“free-for-all” after the town has been left without traffic
wardens for the summer. Residents claimed cars were clogging up
‘no parking’ areas in the town centre since their local police
traffic warden resigned at the beginning of June. Police will
not replace the traffic warden, because West Oxfordshire
District Council is taking over enforcement from them in
October. And until that time, motorists are taking advantage of
the free-for-all parking without fear of being prosecuted.
Neighbourhood officers and police community support officers
were desperately trying to fill the gap, but were unable to
devote themselves fully to enforcing parking, a spokesman said.
Town councillor Gerry Alcock
said word had spread, and the town was now gridlocked.
He said: “It’s a free-for-all.
I’m not exaggerating, but throughout the whole of the town
centre, nobody enforces any parking. Everyone knows this now.
Motorists are parking wherever they like. West Street is
becoming impassable at points. “It is quite a weird feeling,
because people are now at the point where they are saying ‘if
only we had a traffic warden’.” Off-road
car parks are not enforced, because they are all free of charge.
Mr Alcock added: “This must be a cock-up, because if not, it
must be money-saving. I feel sorry for the PCSOs, because they
have other things to do, and can’t be carrying out parking
control every minute of the day.”
Sgt
Mark Smith, of Chipping Norton police, promised that his
officers would be increasing their presence in the town to issue
parking tickets. He added: “However, there are times when we get
called to emergencies, and we have to respond. But we are making
a concerted effort, whenever possible to help manage the
situation, issuing parking tickets to those who violate the
restrictions and advising motorists where and when they can park
in the town.”
A spokesman for West
Oxfordshire District Council said it was scheduled to take over
civil parking enforcement in October. She added: “Until that
time, it remains the responsibility of Thames Valley Police. The
change in circumstances has to go through an Act of Parliament,
known as a Statutory Instrument, and until this is finalised,
the council has no enforcement power.” The council said it was
recruiting six new wardens to cover parking enforcement in West
Oxfordshire.
The
webmaster adds: Pictured left are Town Councillors Gerry Alcock,
Glyn Watkins and a convalescent Eve Coles. They went to complain
to the Inspector about the parking situation but didn't get
anywhere. They were invited to attend the Neighbourhood Action
Group! At the Town Council this week The Police Liaison
Councillor Mayoress Sarah Wilkes was asked to follow up and see
if she could get anyone in the local Police to take the problem
seriously. We are not holding our breath. Meanwhile the chaos
continues.
And now the yobs
are even stealing from the Almshouses
From Cicely Maunder Chairman
of Chipping Norton Welfare Charities.
Sometime during the night of
Friday 14th August thieves stole a stone bird bath and pots
from outside our Alms Houses.They
went to the trouble of first tipping out the soil and plants
presumably because they were too heavy to carry.The ladies in the Alms Houses do a wonderful job at
their own expense to make a lovely display of flowers each
year, much enjoyed by local residents and the many tourists
who visit and photograph our lovely old houses.
Perhaps if they read this or you
know who they are, the thieves would like to return the goods
they stole. This has caused the residents great distress.Maybe the outside of the Alms Houses won't look so good
in future unless these pots can be replaced.
Did anyone see or hear anything?
They must have had a vehicle in Church street to carry out
this audacious theft. There is a security light outside which
is on all night. In this case it obviously helped the thieves.Anyone wishing to donate any nice stone pots to enable
the show to go on, please get in touch!
Johnny Canuck writes:
I recall, with fond memories, the two picture
houses that Chippy once enjoyed. In wartime Chippy, the pictures
for us kids was a really big deal. In fact, it was the only form
of entertainment available. There was no pop radio, television,
computer games, iPods, or MP3s. The Saturday matinee at the New
Cinema was always an exciting time, especially the pea-shooter
wars between the proles in the three-penny seats and those in
the four-penny seats. The latter being slightly higher gave you
a tactical battle advantage, for you were able to shoot down on
the proles. Was this a class war? Our weapons were pea-shooters
made from long hollow reeds that grew by the railway tracks. The
ammo was the hips that grew in abundance, so you could fill your
pockets with them. As soon as the lights went down, it was a
little 'Alamein' for kids. When the staff have had enough, they
turned the lights up and called for a ceasefire. Then we sat
back and enjoyed the films. Mine was always the newsreels, for
it allowed me to see the activities of our forces around the
world. Aldults never discussed the war with us (even our
teachers), for it was still a society where children were to be
seen and not heard. The Picture House at the Odd Fellows' Hall
featured creepy movies that were big hits with the lads.
However, walking back home the length of the town and beyond
wasn't fun, for Chippy was totally blacked out. There was not a
house light to be seen. It was especially scary following a
horror flick featuring Charlie Chan, Boris Karloff, or Bela
Legosi. The Picture House was the favourite for the lads in the
forces and their girlfriends, for behind the last row of seats
there were two dimly-lit 'snugs'. The couples were often
oblivious to the screen and gave us boys a glimpse of an adult
world that lay in the future. Thank
you for giving me the opportunity to recall these childhood
memories.
Who
says a smaller cinema today wouldn't be viable??
A
Chippy manhas just
walked 146 miles to raise money for the Hearing Dogs for
Deaf People charity. Anthony
Sabin, 85, who lives in Great Rollright and
who is himself deaf, has walked
from Stratford-upon-Avon to The Globe Theatre in London,
along a route known as Shakespeare’s
Way Walk.
The walkwas
launched on July 19 in Stratford
by Patrick Stewart, and finished
on August 8, when Anthony was welcomed
on stage by the team at The Globe
after they completed a matinee
performance of Romeo and Juliet. Anthony
said: “Unfortunately my dog Branson, who is quite old,
has gone a bit lame and so I have had
Brock, a black Labrador, as a stand-in. However, Branson
made an appearance for the final
stretch.” In the last seven years, Antony & Branson have kept
themselves busy (and numerous others too!) planning their
sponsored walks and keeping fit. In their three previous walks,
they have walked nearly 500 miles raising over £35,000 and have
been able to sponsor seven dogs for seven other deaf
people. Their target for this walk is to double what they have
raised so far with another £35,000. As well as raising money for
Hearing Dogs for Deaf People, they will also be raising money
for a new loop system for the RSC.
He added: “Being deaf is very challenging. Having my beloved
Branson looking out for me has made such a fantastic difference.
We get huge amounts of pleasure raising money for Hearing Dogs
so that other deaf people can benefit too — and it also keeps us
fit.”
'Inspiring' fight
to walk again after horrific injuries by
Tom Shepherd
A
PENSIONER who lost his leg and half his hand in a horrific
tractor accident — and later picked up a superbug infection —
has started to walk again in an “inspirational” recovery.
A year ago today, Alastair
McKnight, 65, was driving a tractor and mower on the Great Tew
Estate, near Chipping Norton, when a rear wheel struck something
and sent him flying from his seat. As the tractor pinned him to
the ground, the mower severed his left leg almost clean off
above the knee and tore into his hand. The father-of-one was
airlifted to the John Radcliffe Hospital where he spent two
months recovering after undergoing life-saving surgery. Today,
he is able to walk again.
He said: “I was as helpless as
a newborn baby when I first came round after the operation. I
had broken both arms, the back of my left hand was chopped out
and the elbow was smashed. All I had was one leg and an arm in a
splint — I could n’t feed or wash myself and I couldn’t go to
the toilet.” In March, Mr McKnight, of Cross Leys, Chipping
Norton, returned to hospital for another operation on his left
hand, which had to be reconstructed after the accident using the
skin, bones and tendons from his amputated foot. He later
contracted MRSA, which left him bedridden for nearly a month,
but it only proved to be a minor setback.
Fitted with a hi-tech
prosthetic leg and following months of physiotherapy and
rehabilitation, Mr McKnight is now able to walk again, albeit
slowly. He said: “I’ve moved on considerably. I can walk on two
sticks and I have got a new car. I used to have a manual, now I
have an automatic. The only adaptation is a spinner on the
steering wheel. It’s easy to get frustrated, but I think I am
making good progress. The danger is you take your impatience out
on the people who are helping you. All you do is go with the
flow — you have to accept what you can and can’t do. My goal is
simply to become more independent.”
Mr McKnight said he had been
inspired by Reach for the Sky, the story of RAF pilot Sir
Douglas Bader, who served in the Second World War despite losing
both legs in an air crash in 1931. He said: “I read the book
when I was a child and then a friend brought it to me in
hospital and of course I read it again. In those days, they were
making false legs out of sheets of tin, fitted with bolts and
buckles. He’s a very inspirational figure to me.”
John Radcliffe nurse Karen
Russell described Mr McKnight’s ongoing recovery as “an
inspiration”. She said: “Alastair was
a lovely patient and we are all delighted he is making such
great progress. I’m sure his amazing positive attitude has
helped him with his recovery.”
5 cans, 3 bottles and 7 broken bottles. Last
nights party at the shelter on the common.
Complaints came
thick and fast this morning. (23rd July) Mums with toddlers found the
playground in an unusable state. It was completely unsafe. Bits
of glass were strewn everywhere. Councillor Eve Coles went down
there and spent TWO HOURS cleaning it up. Sincere thanks to her.
The mindless yobs involved just don't realise or care that the
momentary pleasure in smashing a bottle is likely to ruin the
pleasure of lots of youngsters using the playground and
cause real hassle for somebody cleaning it up. Probably they're
under the influence anyway. There aren't many mugs like Eve.
Together with fellow councillors Eve put a huge amount of
effort into getting the money to re-furbish the playground and
build the MUGA and shelter. This is what the kids have been
saying for years they wanted......and now within a couple of
months of it opening some of them seem so intent on trashing it
so its seems perfectly possible the whole place will have to be
closed down. How bloody stupid can things get.
These
drinkers are under age. They are getting somebody to sell them
beer or persuading an older person to buy it for them. They are
then walking though town - probably in a gang - carrying the
booze down to the rec. Somebody must see some of this. Probably
in this town somebody will know who they are. Once the party has
started its too late. Damage will certainly be done. We have to
encourage a situation where people warn the Police before the
party starts so that something can be done to prevent harm
happening. "Grassing people up" is not pleasant but neither is
letting a crowd of yobs ruin things for everyone else by
covering a kids playground with broken glass. They really do
deserve everything thats coming to them. And if nobody is
prepared to try and bring any community pressure to bear then
there really is no point whatsoever in moaning about the
consequences.
Chippy makes it into the New York Times -
again!
From an article
published in the NYT on 18th July 2009 entitled... "Going
Back in Time in Old England, Sip by Sip"
To take a measure of the current state of the
traditional English pub — or whatever is left of it — I decided
this spring to revisit a corner of the northeast Cotswolds where
I misspent my youth, an area littered with picturesque towns and
villages, and studded — as I remembered it — with lovely pubs.
What, I wondered, has happened to them?
Chipping Norton, about
20 miles northwest of Oxford, is a classic Cotswold market town,
faced in gorgeous stone, its market square tilted down the side
of a hill, with, in the bottom of the dale it overlooks, a
splendid old wool mill famous for its massively tall chimney.
The town’s liveliest and best-known pub is the Chequers, a chain
of small rooms dense with conviviality.
But the pub I’m here for is one that ought to be a dying
breed.Just up the hill from the
main square is the Red Lion. It’s a real old market-town pub:
just one small main room, and one old geezer on a bench (the
night I visited) sipping slowly on pint after pint, a fire
gently hissing away, and a lively and lissom barmaid joking
with a couple of young men at the bar. And nothing on offer but
drink. (At lunchtime you might be lucky enough to get a cheese
roll.) This is a pub that has made no compromise with the times.
The brown linoleum floor, the mix of tables, the darts board,
the Aunt Sally at the back (a peculiarly delightful game played
only in Oxfordshire and three neighbouring shires, involving
wooden battens, a clay pot and a lot of tipsy near-misses) —
this place can hardly have changed since the ’70s, or even the
’50s. The creed might be: If the beer’s kept well, the pub is
delivering itself of its chief charge.
This one limps on, surviving on big turnouts on market days
in the town square just 50 yards away, and on the fact that it’s
one of four dozen pubs owned by Hook Norton Brewery. I suppose
the brewery can afford the odd sleeper.
J Callow
writes,,,,,,,,I was
at the Rugby Club Beer Festival, it
was great. Man Make Fire are the best local band I've
heard in a long time.Thought you
might like to put a face to the name, also have attached a
couple of otherphotos of people
enjoying the evening.Guest beers
were pretty good too.
Mine's bigger than yours Hilary!
This splendid pic is by Glyn
Watkins
Hilary Biles is
now Vice-Chairman of Oxfordshire County Council and has a chain
of her own. It had its first outing with her in Chippy on
Saturday Night at the Armed Forces Day Celebration at the Crown
& Cushion (see below). Mayor Mike was delighted to find
that when it came to chain size there was no contest!!
Discretion and taste, importance - thats something different!
Honouring the Armed Services
Well over a hundred people
attended the Armed Forces Day Celebration at
the Crown & Cusion last Saturday night and were welcomed
by a guard of honour formed by Donald Branson and Malcolm
Holland from the British Legion. Guests
of honour wereMary Bradford widow of Norman Bradford who as many know was a
great supporter of the Royal British Legion for many years and
was fondly remembered and George
Colbourn who escaped from Poland
during the last war.An amusing story
was told by Neville Edwards about how
George escaped by hiding in a lorry.Little did he know that the lorry was
carrying Nazi Gold, hardly the safest place to be.
It was
marvellous to see all the service men and women
there - past and present.
The County was represented by the Vice Lord Lieutenant Malcolm
Cochrane and the Vice- Chairman Hilary Biles. The district
was represented by
Councillor
Patrick McHugh and The Mayor and Mayoress led
a group of Town Councillors
- Jo Graves, Martin Jarratt & Glyn
WatkinsMr Cochrane gave an
address in which he spoke of the many service
charities for the services and how honoured he was to be
present. Toasts
followed to the Queen and the Armed Services. The evening was a
great success and
will surely become a regular event
on the Chippy Calendar. Thanks to Neville Edwards, Mike Howes,
Ian Barnett and other members of the British Legion for
organising the evening so beautifully.
The
Mayoress, Mayor, Lord Lieutenant,
Neville Edwards (British Legion), Mary
Bradford & George Colbourn.
Neville Edwards and a mystery
guest! Dr Bruce Parker & George Colbourn
Sam Weston
(Royal Engineers) & Geoff Thompson (Kings Royal Hussars)Kate Briggs & Sam Weston.
Vice Lord Lieutenant of Oxon
Malcolm Cochrane and Donald Branson and will
somebody help us with the name of this cheerful veteran!!
HOP
ABOARD THE CHIPPY TUBE! Councillor
Glyn Watkins has designed a brilliant new town map.
No prizes for guessing what inspired it!
See the full-size version on the Information Board in the Market Square Download a print quality pdf of the map HERE
Something
to sell? Offering a job? Announcing an event?
Place your own ad in
CHIPPY CLASSIFIEDS It's free!
There's been a major clearout of this Front
Page.
The following stories are now in the Archives
Visits since Midday 27th
April 2008 Only includes visits to this page.
People only visiting the Forum or the Tourism Pages are not included.
Doubling the figure below will roughly account for those visits
A
FORMER Chipping Norton School pupil has hopes of being the next
Lady Gaga. Laura Duckworth — whose stage name is Scarlletta — is
working on her debut album, which is due to be released in the
summer. She now wants to gather support for her entry into the
Live and Unsigned national competition, which will be held on
Sunday, March 28. The 20-year-old said: “It has come on quite
fast, as now I am working on the material for my album in a
studio every week, and I play once a week at a live venue.”
A
HEARTBROKEN Chipping Norton couple are spearheading a campaign to
raise awareness of the heart condition that claimed the life of
their two-year-old daughter. Hugh and Jane Malcahey are helping
launch the campaign in memory of their daughter Madeline
The
trustees of an outdoor swimming pool in Oxfordshire are hoping
green technology will help secure its future. Cash raised through
fundraising and grants, totalling £140,000, has been invested in
Chipping Norton Lido to buy equipment such as solar panels. Energy
from a ground source pump will use warmth from the soil to heat
the pool. Organisers said the technology would save around £5,000
a year, lowering running costs. The pool, which was opened in
1970, survived potential closure when a new leisure centre opened
in 2002. Campaigners then formed a company to manage the lido.
Ever since, supporters have been fundraising to keep the facility
open. 
festival
appearance in Oxfordshire. The band, fronted by veteran rockers
Francis Rossi and Rick Parfitt, have been unveiled as a headline
act at this year’s Cropredy Festival, which takes place near
Banbury in August. Fairport Convention organises the festival and
its founder Simon Nicol, who
lives in Chipping Norton, said: “This is arguably our best line-up
ever. People consider Fairport Convention a folk-rock band, but
this shows we are not just banging a drum for traditional music.
“We have a gift of a festival for all ages and all music-lovers –
and it’s all about variety and excellence. Status Quo have been
voted the best festival act ever, and getting them is a real coup.
The festival is all about smiling and having a good time, and I
can’t wait to see people’s faces when the Quo come on stage.”
Very
popular, and a big fundraiser, is the annual comedy show Childish
Things, co-organised by Lizzie at Oxford’s New Theatre.
With
the London Olympics looming on the horizon, it’s perhaps
appropriate that a new production of Offenbach’s Orpheus in the
Underworld should have a distinctly sporty theme. Rebranded as
Orpheus Down Under, this offering from Unexpected Opera sees
1970s Britain collide with mythological gods and goddesses, as a
couple on the verge of divorce get caught up in the rivalry of
the newly-formed ‘Team Olympus’.
12
February 2010 
Alice
Powell added another s
Oxfordshire's
gentry are excited by the prospect of having The X Factor's
Simon Cowell as a neighbour, having heard he has expressed
interest in the £42million, 2000-acre Kiddington Hall estate.
But might his arrival put out the nose of another TV grandee,
Top Gear's Jeremy Clarkson? Neighbours say he has been adding
acres to his Oxfordshire home and is sometimes described by
local socialites as 'the blue-jeaned Adonis of the Chipping
Norton smart set'. 
Conservative
Party leader David Cameron has taken part in the fourth Great
Brook Run in the village of Chadlington on Sunday. Runners on
the one-mile (1.6km) cross-country course have to tackle
freezing water and pass through a tunnel. Mr Cameron said: "The
main thing is to complete the run, survive and to get home to
have lunch." He finished the course in about 15 minutes, while
the winner made it in 8.5 minutes. Mr Cameron added: "I enjoyed
it. It's for charity and it's a good thing to do, it brings
everyone together, it's a nice day out, 'ish'. It's called a
brook, but it is more like a river and it is quite cold in
there." The race started at the Tite Inn and wound its way
through muddy fields before finishing back
But
their plans are back on track after the Big Lottery Fund stepped
in to give them the final £50,000 they needed, as part of the
National Lottery’s 15th anniversary celebrations. The Playbus
project’s 30-year-old single-decker sensory bus broke down more
than a year ago and is beyond repair, leaving dozens of severely
disabled children unable to benefit. The project can now buy a
new lorry and convert it into a sensory space with fibre-optic
and UV lights. It should be on the road by April. Playbus
manager Tym Soper 
Now a definite go-ahead is in
place for the new Hospital building there is one piece of
crucial business that must be sorted out about the staffing
arrangements. Two years ago there was an absolutely solemn and
binding commitment made by the NHS that if the nurses at the
hospital did not want to transfer to the employment of the
Orders of St John (the new private operators of the Care Home
and the Intermediate Care Beds in the hospital) they could
retain their employment in the NHS and be seconded over to OSJ. This was
agreed in writing at several meetings and not least minuted by
the Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee which acts as
the health watchdog for Oxfordshire. After three years there
would be a comprehensive review. All evidence would be made
public and local organisations would be invited to participate.
The local Hospital Action Group felt specially strongly that in
order to maintain standards and continue to be able to recruit
top quality nurses the NHS connection was vital. It was only
after the undertaking about secondment that the Hospital Action
Group finally felt able to endorse the PCT’s plans. So we have
all been gobsmacked to hear that representatives of the PCT have
visited the hospital and told the nurses that it is now decision
time. They must either switch their employment to the OSJ or
leave. The nurses understandably are distraught. This is the
most incredible bit of dishonest backtracking it is possible to
imagine. It is inconceivable that the PCT could have
deliberately hoodwinked the Hospital Action Group and the
Overview and Scrutiny Committee. Unless the previous commitment
is clearly restated we are set to lose a lot of nurses from the
present hospital payroll which will be a disastrous start for the
new hospital when it opens next year. Watch out for a Public
meeting on this issue. Chunky Townley, Clive Hill and the Vicar
are marshalling the troops. We will need everyone’s support………….The
Phone Co-Op are wanting to renew their option to lease the
derelict bit of ground down next to Travis Perkins from the
Field Reeves as a site for a new Head Office. In their proposal
they say that WODC would like them to vacate their existing
offices on the Elmsfield Estate for use as Starter Units. This
is strange because Starter Units is one of the things that are
supposed to be built on the Parker Knoll Employment site. WODC
have been telling us work is due to begin as soon as market
demand picks up. It sounds as if WODC may have given up hope of
this ever happening – otherwise why try and commandeer the Phone
Co-Op’s offices? Which is added support for a strong new rumour
around town that Sainsbury’s are now trying to buy the London
Road site………Here's what I wrote here three years ago......
Reading
is a twisting turning path
about
reading should be like. On this criteria Brigid, who obviously
finds reading difficult, is my clear winner.” 
A
history group has published a book about Chipping Norton’s past
and present. Chipping Norton Through Time has gone on sale after
three months of hard work by members of the town’s Local History
Society. The group was asked by Amberley Publishing to gather
100 photos from the town’s past, then take pictures of the same
landmarks or areas today.
THE
future of Chipping Norton’s post office has been secured.
Customers feared for the future of the service when the
sub-postmistress announced she was retiring – and no-one could
be found to take over. But the Midcounties Co-op — which has a
supermarket just doors away — has stepped in to safeguard the
High Street branch. It has kept on the two members of staff, and
plans to recruit two more.
Whatever
they may say, Gordon Brown and his cohorts are deeply upset that
The Sun should have dumped them in such a way. They believe it
is a victory for the Chipping Norton set, which may soon be
running the country. 
Although
no one has turned up with a couple of pheasants yet, the couple
are confident that they really have found the right place to
open their first business. The restaurant occupies a Grade
II-listed building with enough space for a well-appointed
kitchen, three small inter-connecting dining areas and three
letting rooms upstairs. 
I
have been very concerned about the performance results from
Chippy School for the last year. Let me explain why. There is
one measure which is generally accepted as the most important
indicator of the all-round achievement of a school in preparing
its kids for working life... That measure is the percentage of
pupils taking GCSE who get five passes (including Maths and
English) with a grade between A and C . This standard
represents a minimum qualification to demonstrate to potential
employees or colleges that a secondary school pupil has mastered
the three “R”s. and also worked on a range of different
subjects. The County Council has set a target on this measure
for all its schools of 58% 
A
ROGUE trader has followed in his father’s footsteps and been put
behind bars for conning a pensioner with dementia in a doorstep
scam. Hugh Fury junior, 26, was jailed at Oxford Crown Court for
six months yesterday after calling at the 90-year-old’s home and
demanding £2,600 for work he claimed he had done on her drains.
No work had actually been carried out. The court heard the
father-of-two, of Old London Road, Chipping Norton, made his
victim fill buckets of water and pour them down the drains to
try to prove they were no longer blocked when he carried out the
doorstep scam in Carterton in September 2007. His father, Hughie
Fury Sr, 51, of the same address, was jailed for 40 weeks in
March after he conned an 81-year-old pensioner out of £1,200 in
a similar roofing scam in Wheatley.
Climate
change activists have dumped manure on Jeremy Clarkson's lawn in
protest at the Top Gear presenter's treatment of the
environment.
An
internal report released by the Metropolitan Police under
Freedom of Information laws disclosed “For every 1,000
cameras in London, less than one crime is solved per year.”
Sgt
Mark Smith, of Chipping Norton police, promised that his
officers would be increasing their presence in the town to issue
parking tickets. He added: “However, there are times when we get
called to emergencies, and we have to respond. But we are making
a concerted effort, whenever possible to help manage the
situation, issuing parking tickets to those who violate the
restrictions and advising motorists where and when they can park
in the town.” 
A
