UPDATE: The road has now been re-opened. RYCOTE Lane (A329) has had to be closed for today, following the appearance of a large, potentially dangerous dip in the road that appeared by Faroll’s yard.
An Oxfordshire County Council Highways spokesman said that they expect to be able to re-open the road later this evening. In the meantime, a short diversion to Tiddington is in place.
PUPILS of John Hampden School, Thame, were very excited to meet an albino python, a tarantula, chameleons and a skunk, when they welcomed Amate Animalia, the Oxfordshire based exotic pet rescue charity, to a special assembly as part of the school’s Science Week.
The focus of the school’s Science Week this year was Habitats, and other special-themed assemblies included a Scientist parent’s talk about the variation of habitats across the globe, and a volunteer from Thame’s Cuttlebrook Nature Reserve who told the children about which animals live in our own, special Thame habitat.
Pairs of children from each class made a model shoebox habitat based on a detailed habitat each pair had researched. These were all on display when John Hampden Primary School, the first Fairtrade School in Thame, held a Fairtrade Café on the Friday afternoon of Science Week.
Rachel Butler, Science Co-ordinator at John Hampden Primary School, said: “The perfect end to a fun week was to welcome our school community to share in the successes of another fun, engaging and inspiring Science Week.”
AS part of this year’s commemorations of the one hundredth anniversary of the beginning of the First World war, Thame’s Oxfam Book Shop is this week featuring a window display of donated books on the history of the First World war.
The shop’s manager, Dick Jennens said: “By marking this anniversary early we hope to generate additional income that will help Oxfam with its work in Syria and South Sudan, and to generate more donations of books to enable us to feature another display in July and August. We have a remarkable collection of books & DVDs on the history and poetry of the war, such as 1914 and other poems, by Rupert Brooke, Oct 1941 edition, £9.99.”
Some of the other books on desplay include: British War Dogs – their training and psychology, E.H.Richardson; Published in 1920, a rare account of the use of dogs in war. £75.00
Hushed up a German Headquarters, Le Queuex, 1917, £50.00. The startling disclosures made by a German officer, Otto von Heynitz, who was in the Military Attache with the Serbian army in the Balkan war.
Tannhauser Calendar for 1914, 8 illustrated plates by Willy Ponany, published by Liberty & Co, £50.00
Dick concluded: “We hope to raise additional income from the sale of these books to enable Oxfam to increase its work with the victims of poverty, injustice and suffering; particularly, to help ease the plight of the victims of today’s wars.
“One hundred years after the start of WW1 and 72 years after the birth of Oxfam in the middle of WW2, we are working to bring relief to the victims of the civil war in Syria.”
FIVE Branding Myths Busted – is the name of this month’s presentation, at The Late Breakfast, The Spread Eagle, Thame. Caroline Scotter Mainprize, of CSM Communication is the guest speaker.
The Late Breakfast runs from 9am – 10.30am on Thursday, May 15. The entry fee is £12 which includes light refreshments. To appear on the guest list, book via : http://bookitbee.com/e/pm5p5 by noon on the day before the event.
THE well-oiled machine that is Thame Tidy Day will be ‘kick started’ tomorrow morning (Saturday), when the team, lead by Sue Martin Downhill, will be out and about in the town putting up signs where the collection points for rubbish will be.
Volunteer numbers are growing but anyone who would like to help in anyway (suggestions coming up) can just turn up at Raquets in North Street (at the back of the Cattle Market carpark) any time after 9am Sunday, and you’ll be allocated a team or somewhere to work.
Lea Park residents will be working on both Saturday and Sunday on Lea Park, so call if you want to join them. They are graffiti cleaning along a public footpath from Overton Drive to Vane Road on Saturday, and cleaning up around a car park in Ormond Road on Sunday morning.
The local fire fighters and others will be in a Thame Service Station van driving around to pick up heavier objects on Sunday. Also on the Sunday, if you like DIY, then you can help the Cornerstone church group paint the old Long Crendon bridge. There will be a team clearing the weeds and dog dirt from the bridge too.
The fire service will start to clear large items of rubbish from the Phoenix Trail, along with the van from Thame Service Station, from 10am on Sunday.
ASM recycling vans will arrive for duty from 9am Sunday. They will be particularly looking to pick up metal that can be recycled.
Sue and the team would really like some people to turn up with gardening equipment, especially hedge trimmers and strimmers. Hoes too would be good for clearing weeds from path edges.
If you want to join in but don’t already know where to start, then please just turn up any time after 9am at Racquets.The following equipment can be loaned – you can call to organize a pick up on any day other than Sunday, otherwise on Sunday just turn up and we can supply :
· litter picker equipment
· hi-vis jackets
· trash, recycling and compost bags
· surgical gloves and more robust gloves
· Men at work signs
Tea and coffee will be provided free to all workers, all day at Raquets.
Sue had this message for all the local businesses and organisations who are contributing people and muscle to Thame Tidy Day: “I’d like to thank MP printers and Block 9 for their help in producing some signs and the leaflets, and for Paddy of Cornerstone church for designing the leaflet. Also Thame Town Council for sorting out the gloves, ‘men at work’ signs and Biffa for the equipment and hopefully for the collection of the rubbish.
Finally, please take plenty of photos of the piles of litter and other trash, and send them back to me. See you there!”
Follow Thame Tidy Day 2014 on Facebook: HERE You can contact Sue and team via Facebook too.
* MORE stringent enforcement of parking restrictions in Thame’s Streets, rarely inforced since the retirement of Traffic Warden, Peggy Long, is likely to happen within about 18 months, when Civil Parking Enforcement (CPE) will be introduced into the town.
CPE permits local authorities to take over the enforcement of on-street, as well as off-street car parking regulations from the police. In return they are allowed to keep the proceeds and parking offences cease to be criminal offences. Local authorities adopting CPE usually employ contractors to run their scheme. see: LINK to previous news report
* GET kitted up with gloves, sturdy shoes and a roll of bin bags and prepare to take to the streets of Thame on Sunday as part of the annual Tidy Thame Day. Sue Martin-Downhill, who has taken over the reigns of Thame4Business is organising the event this year, and is recruiting everyone to get out and do their bit. There’s still time to register your interest, and to suggest areas in the town that are in need of a tidy. Email tidythame@gmail.com
More information on the Thame Tidy Day 2014 Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/thametidyup2014
* THE allotments site next to the graveyard at St Mary’s Church, Thame, is looking unlikely to be suitable as an over-spill for the almost-full graveyard, as there are concerns that the depth necessary for graves may interfer with the site’s archaeology. In answer to a question raised at the Thame Town Meeting, the Clerk explained that negotiations were on-going with developers to try to find an alternative site. She said that finding a suitable site was proving to be challenging but that the council was continuing to look.
* THAME’S Christmas lights may be replaced, according to the Mayor, Peter Lambert. Speaking at the Thame Town Meeting on Tuesday (May 6) he reported that a contract to replace them, including what he called ‘the blue and orange kebab lights’, is going out to tender.
* THE newly made raised flower beds near the entrance to Elms Park are being raided by plant thieves. They’ve even used wire cutters to cut through security wiring.
* THE work to repair Thame’s town hall is likely to take longer than planned after the discovery that the clock tower requires more work than envisaged. The £195,000 rennovation work, being carried out by local company, Stoneworld, includes window frames, gutters and stonework. The work is being paid for with a Public Works loan to Thame Town Council, repayable over 15 years.
* THIS year’s Town Awards are officially open.There are six categories to choose from:Young Achiever – someone up to the age of 18 who excels in a particular skill or discipline, Sporting Achievement – someone of any age who has shown great dedication to their sport, Voluntary Individual or Organisation – an individual or group that has worked tirelessly for the good of our community, Lifetime Achievement (can be awarded posthumously) – someone of any age who has made a significant contribution to our community over an extended period of time, Person of Courage – someone of any age who has overcome adversity or is facing everyday life challenge, and Service with a Smile – a business or individual that consistently provides a faultless and friendly service.
Either fill in the online form at http://www.thametowncouncil.gov.uk/images/Online_Form.doc, or pop into one of the following locations and fill in a voting slip and pop it in the ballot box: Thame Information Centre, Cross Keys, Racquets, Thame Leisure Centre, Thame Community Hospital, the Library, Time Out and Rumsey’s.
* THE town council is planning to lauch a ‘Good Neighbours’ scheme, in conjunction with Toogle, the website to access caring services local to Thame.
* A NEW Community notice board is to be installed soon in Lea Park, near the new, tarmac path in Parliament Road.
* THAME’S grassed areas may not be cut quite so often, once South Oxfordshire District Council reduces it funding to Thame Town Council next year, to maintain those areas belonging to SODC.
* THE Community Charge for Thame residents is to increase by 6p per week, for a typical Band D home, from April.
* THE town council wants to hear from local residents about their ideas for helping the council save public money. Contact the Clerk on 01844 212833.
* THE Developer, Birmingham-based Stoford, have had to relocate badgers and bats before it can submit a planning application to build 100,000 sq ft and 49,000 sq ft respectively of warehouse and production facilities, on Site B, in the Thame Neighbourhood Plan. SEE LINK
* IN answer to a question raised at the Thame Town Meeting, it was stated that Thame’s recently launched Credit Union has 37 members so far and that the council was trying to encourage more people to take membership, particularly Community Groups who could use it for their finances. The council is also encouraging local businesses to take out Corporate Membership so that their employees could join and have contributions taken from their payrolls.
CATTLE Market Car Park will be resurfaced on 19 May 2014. The work is expected to take two weeks, subject to the weather
IF you or your organisation can help in any way, Sue would love to hear from you via email: Suedownhill@gmail.com
She also needs local people to suggest places around Thame that need tidying up.
We Kick off at 9:00am meeting initially at Racquets fitness centre to divide the troops and allocate jobs.
See u there 🙂
BOUYED up by the warm and sunny Bank Holiday weather, a record 5,400 people soaked up the day-long entertainment, good food, real ales and various craft stalls at Thame’s fourth Music in the Park on Sunday, May 4.
The quality and diversity of music and dance on offer hit new heights as the crowd danced along or simply chilled out with a picnic. When people finally departed after an energetic set from headliners Skasouls UK, had brought everyone to their feet, they were already asking: “When’s the next one?”
Nigel Champken-Woods, Chairman of the Music in the Park Organising Committee, said: “It was a fun-filled day of great family entertainment. We got fantastic feedback from the public. One of the nicest comments was from someone who said, ‘Thank you – you have given Thame its day out!’ ”
The organisers are still calculating total income and costs, but it is likely that this year’s event will have raised somewhere in the order of £9,000 to help fund further improvements to Elms Park. The new lighting in the park has been partly paid for by money raised from previous years’ Music In The Park events.
To keep up-to-date with news of next year’s event, see the website: www.musicinthepark.org.uk or Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/MusicInTheParkThame.
NOTE: Music in the Park will benefit the Friends of Elms Park, a community group that aims to improve and maintain the Park for the benefit of the community and visitors. More information on the history of Elms Park can be found at: http://www.musicinthepark.org.uk/elmsparkhistory.php
Follow Music in the Park on social media: Twitter: @MusicInThePark, and “Like” Music in the Park on Facebook: www.facebook.com/MusicInTheParkThame
More pictures from Music In the Park HERE from Sonja Francis, and even more HERE from Nick White
THE retiring Mayor of Thame, Cllr Peter Lambert, in delivering a report of his year in office, has spoken of the joys and the difficulties of being a town councillor, and issued a challenge to the council’s critics.
Speaking at the annual Thame Town Meeting on Tuesday (May 6), he told the packed hall: “It has been suggested that in the world of politics brown envelopes change hands. I don’t do politics and I must admit I thought the same thing before becoming a member of this council. I have since learned that all the councillors give up their free time to make a difference. We come from all walks of life, are only human and cannot please everyone all of the time. We try to do the right thing but it’s not always easy when, for instance, the Government keeps changing the legislation! If you feel we are not doing what you want think we should be doing, then step up to the plate yourselves. “
He concluded: For my part, it’s been an absolute honour to be Mayor of this town with its incredible community spirit. Thank you everyone for what has been such an amazing, rewarding and unforgettable year.”
After summing up with the highlights of his year – including getting ‘gunked’ by hundreds of children at Thame Show, of being dubbed ‘the Singing Mayor’ after so memorably leading the singing at the Senior Citizens’ Christmas party, of opening the new Health Centre in April, extended to accommodate Thame’s growing population, and of meeting musical legend, Tony Hadley at last weekend’s phenomenally successful Music In The Park, the Mayor revealed that he had raised a total of £7,000 for his chosen two charities.
He presented a cheque for £3,500 each to Pat Shepherd, the Chair of Thame Players, who are raising funds to extend and improve the theatre in Nelson Street, and to Michelle Diffey, Founder of Safari, a charity which supports young adults with learning difficulties.
The spirited enthusiasm of Safari members in the audience livened up the proceedings of this normally formal occasion, especially when one of their members, David, thanked the Mayor and presented him with a picture of the group with a special thank-you message.
Cllr Lambert concluded with a rallying call to others in the audience to put themselves forward for election to the town council next year, May 2015, adding: “If I can do it, anyone can.”
A new Mayor of Thame will be elected by fellow town councillors at the Council’s AGM next Tuesday, May 13, 2014.