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Vale confirms 2018/19 budget

on Thu, 15/02/2018 - 7:52pm

On Wednesday 14 February Vale of White Horse District Council agreed its 2018/19 budget, including £750,000 over the next three years for a new flagship team to improve the look of public areas across the Vale and deliver an attractive district that residents and businesses can be proud of.

More than £200,000 is being made available in grants to support community projects, such as improvements to village halls, community festivals and for charities which provide services for vulnerable people. 

With the growing number of electrical vehicles on the road £20,000 will go towards a feasibility study into the possibility of providing charging points at district council locations, while £60,000 over the next two years will be used to explore the options for the existing Wantage Leisure Centre once the new leisure facility is open at Mably Way.

Thanks to careful financial management, council tax for the services provided by the Vale will be set at £126.69 for the year for a Band D property.  This represents just a £5 increase on last year.

Cllr Robert Sharp, Cabinet Member for Finance at Vale of White Horse District Council, said: “In this year’s budget we have allocated substantial funding for a new team to help us address the environment issues such as tackling fly-tipping, removing graffiti, grass cutting and street cleansing, as well to looking at how we can better cater for the increase in electric vehicles in the district.”

“Our services represent excellent value for money and we will continue to put the needs of our residents first.”

Cllr Matthew Barber, Leader of Vale of White Horse District Council, said: “Our new action team will work alongside town and parish councils to ensure that everyone can benefit from the beautiful environment we are blessed with in the Vale. We are proud of our district and we want to ensure that residents and visitors are proud of the places they live and visit as well.”

From an article on the Vale's website - see the original <here>.

PopUp Business School aims to start over 50 new businesses in Didcot

on Mon, 12/02/2018 - 8:02pm

Start-up training company, PopUp Business School aims to start over 50 new businesses in Didcot.  

The PopUp Business School will be popping up for a week at The Orchard Shopping Centre in March and are inviting aspiring entrepreneurs to attend the sessions to learn how to start or grown their own business. 

The school is working in partnership with and are co-funded by Hammerson Plc (owners of the shopping centre), Soha Housing, South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils and The European Social Fund. 

The week-long, free workshop, which starts on Monday 19 March at The Orchard Shopping Centre, will teach local residents from around the South Oxfordshire area everything they need to know from; how to start a business without any money, how to generate sales from social media to making a website without any technical skills.  

Councillor John Cotton, Leader of South Oxfordshire District Council, said, “We are enthusiastic partners in this innovative project.  The PopUp school is part of our ongoing commitment to help new and existing businesses in and round Didcot Garden Town and Science Vale to grow and succeed.”

Soha’s Chief Exec Richard Peacock said, “I’m really proud that Soha is a community based social business. This is a great step forward for our Launchpad project, which has already supported many local people to gain valuable experience and skills.”  

Since 2011, PopUp Business School has been travelling around the United Kingdom teaching aspiring entrepreneurs how to start their own businesses. However, unlike other enterprise support companies their advice is the polar opposite of the status quo. They don’t believe in business plans, financial projections or loans. Instead they get their stu-dents starting off with sales and proving a demand in their businesses first.  

To find out more and to sign up to the free workshop, visit:-

From an article on the VWDC website; see the original <here>.

St John the Baptist Kingston Lisle - Restoration Update No.21

on Mon, 12/02/2018 - 7:15pm

News from St John the Baptist Kingston Lisle

Dear Kingston Lisle Church Supporter

Please find attached our 21st restoration update, as we make tangible progress towards the installation of our new pipe organ - the final stage of our £430,000 restoration of the 12th Century church of St John the Baptist Kingston Lisle. After four years of back and forth with the diocesan organ advisor and various organ builders, the PCC last week commissioned final designs which are due any day. We aim to present these to the church authorities in March and to install the organ in the summer. The instrument is a Walker organ taken from a church in London, and it is being fully overhauled, modernised and recased to fit sympathetically into the small space (and budget) available. We have less than £7,000 to raise towards the £28,000 cost, and once our faculty is in place we’ll apply for specialist grant funding to help close this gap.

Please also see a link to the Taylor Review into sustaining England’s 16,000 churches and cathedrals, published after our last update in December. We were honoured to be asked to present our project to the committee responsible for this review, which included senior figures from the Church of England, the Department of Culture, the National Lottery and the National Trust, chaired by Sir Bernard Taylor.

With many thanks again for your support
Arthur & Angus
Churchwardens

Neighbourhood Police Update - February 2018

on Fri, 09/02/2018 - 5:52pm

Here is the latest Faringdon neighbourhood update from PCSO Howard Pack.

Priorities

Hare coursing, and other rural crime, continues to be a priority for the Faringdon Neighbourhood Team. We have conducted regular patrols throughout our Policing area which has dissuaded more than one group of offenders from starting or continuing their illegal activities.
A big thank you to stakeholders in the rural community for promptly reporting any suspicious activity.

Anti-Social behaviour (ASB) in Shrivenham has been reduced as a result of patrols and stop checks on potential offenders. Recently there have been several lots of road works in Stanford in the Vale where it appears offenders have moved cones or road signs into the middle of the road or on resident’s driveways causing potential hazards.

Please can we ask you to report any ASB that occurs in Faringdon or the surrounding villages by calling 101 or 999 if a crime is being committed, we rely on the community to let us know what is happening in their area.

Witness appeals following two shop burglaries in our area

• Between 11pm Sunday 14/01/2018 and 5:45am on Monday 15/01/2018 at Co-Op, Majors Road, Watchfield. Offender(s) have broken into the premises and have stolen all the cigarettes. Crime reference no: 43180014087.
• At 2:36am Saturday 27/01/2018 at the One-Stop Community Stores, High Street, Shrivenham. Offender(s) have broken into the premises, the smoke alarm has gone off and they have immediately left empty handed. Crime reference no: 43180027689.

If you have any information about the above please call 101 and report it quoting the reference number.

Crime prevention advice

On 23/01/2018 I took part in a Fraud Prevention event at Lloyds/TSB in Wantage giving advice to customers, so please can I pass on the following to Faringdon residents;

Fraud and identity theft

Understanding how to keep your personal details and identity safe is one of the best ways to prevent yourself from falling victim to fraud or identity theft. Be cautious of anyone asking for your personal or financial details. Your bank, the police and other reputable companies will never ask for this type of information over email or the phone. To protect yourself:

• never give personal details to anyone who contacts you unexpectedly
• don’t carry documents or bank cards unless you need them
• always shred unwanted documents such as bills, bank statements and even mail
• keep personal documents in a secure place
• report lost or stolen bank cards and personal documents immediately
• check bank statements as soon as they arrive and always report any unusual activity
• always keep your card in sight when paying at a shop or restaurant
• don't respond to unsolicited phone calls or emails

Online

If you shop, bank or use your card online, it’s important to take a few simple steps to make sure your details are protected. To help keep your details secure:

• create a strong password and use different ones for different accounts
• only enter card details on secure websites, look for the padlock icon in the address bar
• check the address starts with ‘https://’, the letter ‘s’ means it's secure
• make sure all devices have up-to-date anti-virus software and a firewall installed
• always use the latest version of your web browser and regularly check for updates
• never respond to suspicious emails asking for personal information

Community engagement

Where possible, one of the Faringdon Neighbourhood team attends the Wednesday morning Cake Café at the Pump House, Swan Lane, Faringdon 9.30-11.30am. Please come along and have a chat to us about any local conerns.

PCSO Howard Pack

After 10 years as a PCSO in Wantage I felt it was time for a fresh challenge so I successfully applied for a vacancy at Faringdon and started my new role 1st February 2018. Prior to Joining the Wantage Neighbourhood Policing Team I was based at Slough for two years and before that I had 12 years policing experience in Kent.

I’m looking forward to meeting the residents of the Faringdon area and am happy talk over the problems that concern you, especially if there is a cup of tea involved!

TVP South and Vale Twitter

Please remember the best place to find out what the Faringdon Neighbourhood team are up to is always on Twitter: @TVPSouthandVale (opens new window) and using the #Faringdon.

Thames Valley Alert

Receive free local crime alerts and crime prevention advice by registering at www.thamesvalleyalert.co.uk (opens new window) today. This allows anyone who signs up to choose what updates they receive and how they would like to receive it. A new option includes receiving information via text but more traditional landline and email messages are still available. You can also filter the updates you receive by specifying the priority level of the messages you receive.

Contact us

If you want any advice or would like to contact the neighbourhood team you can call us on the police non emergency number 101 (or 01865-841148 if 101 doesn't work for you) but if your call is an emergency then dial 999.   You can also contact us via email: - [email protected] please note this email address cannot be used to contact Thames Valley Police to report crimes or for any urgent matters. To view information on your neighbourhood team visit the Thames Valley Police website at: www.thamesvalley.police.uk.The Thames Valley Police Twitter account is kept up to date with what we are up to; please follow us @TVPSouthandVale. (opens new window)

To report local problems such as graffiti, fly tipping, pot holes and

broken street lights please visit

www.fixmystreet.com

Find out more here:-

Ed Vaizey MP - Parish News, February 2018

on Fri, 09/02/2018 - 5:44pm

After over 80 hours of debate and over 500 amendments and new clauses, the European Union Withdrawal Bill is now through the House of Commons and has passed the first stage in the House of Lords.

I submitted an amendment to the bill requiring Ministers to publish a plan on our future relationship with Euratom, the European nuclear Energy authority. I was very pleased that my amendment had the most signatures of all amendments submitted and that as a result the government have agreed to publish a plan with quarterly updates.

Earlier this month I attended a meeting in Parliament on rail in Oxfordshire.  It was a useful gathering of all the key stakeholders – Great Western, Chiltern, Network Rail, local councils and MPs.  

First, the good news. We have a fantastic station in Didcot which provides excellent links to London, Swindon and Oxford. Didcot Parkway has gone from strength to strength over the last few years. A station revamp, completed in 2014, made the station safer for users and a bigger taxi rank, bus stop and cycle rack were just some of the improvements. Work on the station shows no sign of slowing down with an enclosed cycle rack in the works and the construction of a new multi-storey car park. Electrification of the line out of London has now almost reached Didcot, cutting journey times on the fastest trains to 39 minutes. Great Western Railway’s new, electric Intercity Express trains are being rolled out and will increase capacity by over 24% (648 vs 522 seats), something that any commuter to London will tell you is sorely needed. The driver training programme for the new trains has also been accelerated.

There is more to do though. It has been a long-standing ambition of mine to open a station near Wantage. There has been progress on this front recently. I have linked with other MPs to propose an East-West line which could include new stations in Wantage, Corsham and Royal Wootton Bassett. This would be an extension to the planned link between Cambridge and Oxford and would help link Bristol, Swindon and Oxford. There are obstacles to be overcome in the development of this proposal. The line between Didcot and Oxford particularly is almost at full capacity and we will need to think carefully about how to move forward with this.  It will still take many years to make happen, not least as we will have to build extra track.

This month I have received 318 items of correspondence (emails and letters) from constituents. Subjects raised with me included the NHS, fireworks and post-Brexit trade.

With regard to fireworks, they are only sold for home use during the traditional firework periods of Bonfire Night, New Year's Eve, Chinese New Year and Diwali. Suppliers who wish to sell fireworks outside the traditional periods must comply with stringent conditions before being granted a licence by their local licensing authority. This means the availability and use of fireworks outside the traditional periods has been greatly reduced. The government also has strict regulations on the level of noise they can produce.news

Ed Vaizey MP

Please feel free to contact me if you have any pressing issues that you would like help with.  Either myself or one of my team will get back to you as soon as possible and do what we can to assist. You can contact me on any matter at the House of Commons, SW1A 0AA, [email protected] or 020 7219 6350. Email is the quickest and most reliable way to get in touch, as I keep a very close eye on my emails and can reply very quickly.   Details of my activities in Parliament can be read on my website, https://www.vaizey.com. I also send out occasional general interest emails about developments in the Wantage and Didcot Constituency. If you would like to be added to the distribution list, please complete the online form at http://bit.ly/EdVaizeyMP.

 

Flight Ticket Fraud

on Thu, 08/02/2018 - 6:07pm

Fraudsters are attempting to entice victims who are looking for cheap flights abroad.

Victims have reported booking tickets via websites or a “popular” ticket broker, only to discover that after payment via bank transfer or electronic wire transfer, the tickets/booking references received are counterfeit. In some cases, all communications between the company or broker and the victim have been severed.

Fraudsters are targeting individuals who are seeking to travel to African nations and the Middle East, particularly those wishing to travel in time for popular public and religious holidays. 

Prevention Advice:

  • Pay safe: Be cautious if you're asked to pay directly into a private individual’s bank account. Paying by direct bank transfer is like paying by cash – the money is very difficult to trace and is not refundable. Wherever possible, pay by credit card or a debit card.
  • Conduct research on any company you’re considering purchasing tickets from; for example, are there any negative reviews or forum posts by previous customers online? Don’t just rely on one review - do a thorough online search to check the company’s credentials.
  • Check any company website thoroughly; does it look professional? Are there any spelling mistakes or irregularities? There should be a valid landline phone number and a full postal address so that the company can be contacted. Avoid using the site if there is only a PO Box address and mobile phone number, as it could be difficult to get in touch after you buy tickets. PO Box addresses and mobile phone numbers are easy to change and difficult to trace.
  • Be aware that purchasing tickets from a third party, particularly when initial contact has been made via a social media platform can be incredibly risky.
  • If tickets to your intended destination appear cheaper than any other vendor, always consider this; if it looks too good to be true, it probably is!
  • Look for the logo: Check whether the company is a member of a recognised trade body such as ABTA or ATOL. You can verify membership of ABTA online, at www.abta.com.
  • If you have been affected by this, or any other type of fraud, report it to Action Fraud by calling 0300 123 2040, or visiting www.actionfraud.police.uk.

From a Fraud Alert received 7/2/18

£8 million for new Wantage North East link road

on Tue, 06/02/2018 - 3:23pm

Wantage is set to receive nearly £8 million to provide an easy route from Mably Way to the Reading Road, east of the town. 

The Wantage Eastern Link Road will connect the A338 to the A417 to avoid people travelling going through the town or along Charlton Village Road and passing the local primary school.  

The total cost of building the road is expected to be around £15 million with the remainder of the money coming from developer contributions and other funding pots.  

The Vale of White Horse District Council, Oxfordshire County Council and housing developers worked together to submit a bid late last year to request funds for new infrastructure in readiness for the new housing.  

Housing Secretary Sajid Javid and Chancellor Philip Hammond announced yesterday that the joint bid was successful and Wantage will receive the money to support new homes being built at Crab Hill, adjacent to the new road, and Wellington Gate, on Grove Airfield site. 

Councillor Matthew Barber, Leader of the Vale of White Horse District Council said, “We welcome the funding for the new link road.  This route is an important part of our plan to help bring new homes to the Vale over the next 20 years.” 

County Councillor Ian Hudspeth, Leader of Oxfordshire County Council, said, “This is fantastic news for Wantage and Oxfordshire.  The funding will ensure infrastructure is provided at the early stage of development and provides better transport links between new housing and areas of employment.” 

Other schemes in the county to receive funding were for a new tunnel under the railway in Bicester and regeneration plans for Blackbird Leys, Osney Mead and the Oxford Northern Gateway.   

The county council is responsible for building and maintain roads throughout the county and plan to hope to start on the Wantage link road in 2019.  

Image features the Wantage Eastern Link Road and the planned 1,500 homes at the Crab Hill development.

From a news item on the WHDC website; see the original <here>.

Celebrate Valentine’s in style at The Greyhound, Letcombe Regis

on Sat, 27/01/2018 - 12:32pm

Celebrate Valentine’s in style with a romantic 3-course dinner accompanied by a specially selected wine to match each course.

Wednesday 14th February 6-9pm £35 per person, or £50 including wine selection. 

The Greyhound, Letcombe Regis (click)

 

The dangers of our rural roads: THINK! Brake before the bend, not on it

on Thu, 25/01/2018 - 9:12pm

Oxfordshire County Council’s Fire & Rescue Service is supporting the national “Rural Roads” Campaign.

It’s a way to highlight risks, as 60% of fatal casualties on Oxfordshire occurred on country roads (2016 data). These often have sharp bends and blind bends which can hide unexpected hazards.

If a driver loses control or attempts a dangerous overtake, a 50mph head-on collision results in impact speed of 100mph. Or, if a driver/rider loses control and leaves the carriageway they can then hit fences, walls or other solid, immovable objects like trees (rather than ‘road’ furniture like metal barriers and signs, which are designed to bend/absorb some of the impact energy).

What’s the advice from Oxfordshire Fire & Rescue Road Safety?

If we are on an unfamiliar road, we need to ask ourselves:

  • Can I see far enough ahead?
  • Can I stop in the distance I can see?
  • Do I know how sharp that bend is, what’s the camber?
  • Does the road have hidden hollow/dip, where a vehicle may be hidden?
  • Is there a junction I can’t see/or be seen by others?
  • Is this an appropriate speed, given the road environment, weather and visibility?
  • How I’m feeling today? (tiredness can kill)

Even when we are familiar with the road, it changes every time we drive it.

  • Is the road wet/icy, does it have mud, spillages on it today?
  • What’s round that bend today?
  • Could there be a broken-down vehicle I can’t see?
  • A cyclist?
  • A pedestrian (perhaps wearing dark clothing or drunk)?
  • A horse and rider?
  • Farm machinery or tractor on the move?
  • An animal in the road?
  • Perhaps even a previous crash/recovery going on?

Andy Ford, Road Safety Team Leader at Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service said: “Oxfordshire is a beautiful place to live and we are fortunate to be surrounded by open countryside much of the time when driving. Many of us feel safe when we are on a rural road but it is often a deadly mix of long straight runs, where we can pick up speed, punctuated by sharp bends. If you aren’t familiar with the road, it’s safer to drive to what you can see and brake before the bend, not on it. If the road is familiar to you, ask yourself what might different today, what’s round that bend this time?”

What about other roads?

Compared to rural roads, motorways and dual carriageways still remain the safest roads to travel, largely because they don’t have complicated junctions (crossroads, roundabouts) and vehicles aren’t usually sharing space with vulnerable road users, such as pedestrians/cyclists. Most collisions are nose to tail – with impact speeds estimated at 15-20mph.

In urban environments, vehicle occupants are more likely to be slightly injured in a road traffic collision. Unsurprisingly, the majority of serious or fatal injuries to pedestrians and cyclists are in a built-up environment.

Over 95% of all road casualties are as a result of human error and very often have more than one contributory factor. You may drive a little too fast for a road you know well but this time the road is wet, or the driver has had an alcoholic drink or are taking that telephone call, or perhaps not concentrating properly because they are angry or tired. We might get away with one risky behaviour on a regular basis but if we add in other risks, the likelihood of being in a road traffic collision increases significantly.

So be aware on rural roads. Stay in control and give yourself time to react because you never know what’s around the corner. THINK! Brake before the bend, not on it.

Further information:-

From an article on the OCC website. See the original <here>.

Star Inn - Valentines meal and Mother's Day

on Thu, 25/01/2018 - 3:05pm

Wednesday 14th February - Cupid is in the House!

  • We only have a few tables left for a romantic Valentines meal on 14th February.
  • Serving a set meal, 2 or 3 courses for a loving £25 or £30.
  • Call to book your table and hear about the menu. 

Sunday 11th March - Mums are the Best!

  • We are now taking bookings for Mother's Day: Sunday 11th March
  • Spoil your mum with a delicious 2 or 3 course meal on her special day. 
  • Call to book your table and hear about the menu. 

Contact details:

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