A giant, chocolate Easter egg, raffled around the town, including at a Thame pub quiz night, has raised over £165 for Thame Lions Club’s charities.
The winning ticket was bought by Margaret Wainwright at last Wednesday’s regular quiz night, at The Cross Keys, in Thame.
MANY areas around Thame have signed up for Thame Tidy Day, and the organisers are hoping that many more will take part in this annual event to spruce up our town. So, What can YOU do to get involved? Get a group of friends or neighbours, or may be some family members – the kids will love it! Or members of your club or group, and pick an area not yet covered (see list below) that you think could do with a tidy up, that’s litter picking, cutting back shrubs, tidying up verges, cleaning signs etc, and register your interest with the Tidy Thame Co-ordinator, Sue Martin-Downhill via suedownhill@gmail.com. Those already involved include:
AND/OR – PRINT off a Thame Tidy poster and display it somewhere prominent to let others know what’s going on and how to get involved.
Some rubbish bags, litter pickers will be supplied if you need them. Just bring along your own tools if you can, a reasonably good pair of gloves and YOURSELF! There’ll be tea/ coffee and a meet-up from 2pm onwards at Racquets Fitness Centre in the Cattlemarket.
So, put April 19th in your diary, and let’s all pull together to smarten up Thame and show some civic pride for our town. There are more details and on the Thame Tidy facebook page here: LINK
THE Mayor of Thame, Jeannette Matelot Green, ‘cued off’ last night (31/03) to set the balls in motion for the Thame Skatepark Snooker Tournament, held at Thame Snooker Club.
The aim of the tournament was to raise much-needed funds towards new equipment for a complete refurbishment of the popular Thame Skatepark, which is coming to the end of its useful life.
The four semifinalists, shown with Mayor, Andrew Posey, Ben Mauby, Sam Misseldine and Robert Sellwood, will battle it out for the Trophy at the final, to be held tomorrow (Thursday).
The Mayor commented: “It was like walking into another world when I climbed up the steps to the snooker hall. A dozen tables all lit up ready for thirty players lining up the snooker balls and chalking their cues and whatever they do before a match.
seans_choice_crendon_beds”I couldn’t help chuckling as all the oldies, including Cllrs Mike Dyer and Peter Lambert, ‘took early baths’ and the youngsters
filled the semi-final spots. I can’t wait for the Semis and the Final on Thursday evening. Come along and support them – they did the Skate Park proud. ”
Follow and support Thame Skatepark on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/thamesp/
EXPLORATORY ground works have begun at Thame United’s ground, Meadow Park View, by a fracking company, looking for shale gas beneath the ground.
The appearance overnight of earth-moving machinery at the site came as a complete surprise to sharp-eyed local businessman, Justin Shardlow, as he drove into town for work this morning, from his home in Haddenham.
Justin told Thame.Net: “I was so surprised that I stopped my car and went over and asked the Site Manager what was going on. When he told me, I asked him how far the drilling was likely to extend. He told me that, as far he was aware, it wouldn’t go further than under part of Lea Park.
Justin added: “I’d heard that the government was going ‘all out’ for fracking, and that homeowners will no longer be individually notified of plans to drill under their homes, but I would’ve expected to have seen some sort of consultation take place locally before any fracking was started.
“I wonder how many people living on Lea Park are aware of what’s likely to happen under their homes? It’s bound to affect house prices!”
Frank West, Director of the Thame Football Partnership said: “It’s very difficult keeping our financial heads above water in the lower leagues and the Board decided that this fracking operation would bring some much needed income to football in Thame. The contractors have promised to re-instate the land after exploratory drilling and the money they’re paying us will help improve facilities at Meadow View. It’s a win-win situation.”
Neither the out-going Town Clerk, Helen Stewart, nor the in-coming Clerk, Graham Hunt, who takes over from her today, April 1, was available for comment this morning. But an obviously shocked Mayor of Thame, Jeannette Matelot Green, said: “This most certainly was not part of the Neighbourhood Plan. Have no doubt I will be contacting the ‘powers that be’ straight away to put a stop to this. I’m fracking furious!”
A QUIZ hosted by a Thame fitness centre has raised £260, in aid of a charity that supports people affected by Child Bereavement.
Nigel Pattison, a Personal Trainer at Racquets Fitness Centre, was inspired to set himself a series of challenges to support Child Bereavement UK, after seeing how the four children of Alex Wood, a local man who suffered severe brain injury in a rugby accident, cope without him.
“Whilst Alex’s children were not suffering bereavement, they suffered the loss of the father they knew,” explained Nigel. “It made me wonder just how does a child cope with bereavement? At such a young age this is not what they are supposed to cope with! They only cope and grow with the love and strength of the family and network of friends around them. The Woods have a fantastic family around them, however not everybody does!”
Nigel loves a challenge and raising money for charities, and sets himself several every year. His latest four challenges, all to raise money for Child Bereavement UK, will be tackled over four consecutive week-ends. Just 22 days! Starting on April 26, and finishing on the May 17.
They start with running the London Marathon, followed by a 150 mile Coast-to-Coast bike ride in one day! Then Nigel and his teams will tackle the Fred Whitton cycling route covering 112 miles and 12,000 ft of climbing in the Lake District. The final challenge will be The Three Peaks Challenge in under 24 hours.
Nigel will have the support of two teams for both the C2C and The Three Peaks Challenge; Natalie Babington, Doug Struthers, Andrew Stansfield, Nick Mauger, Tom White, Natalie Littler, Sue Martin-Downhill, Louise Roffa and Ellen Gipp.
Child Bereavement UK supports families and educates professionals when a baby or child of any age dies or is dying, or when a child is facing bereavement. Every year the charity trains over 4000 professionals, helping them to better understand and meet the needs of grieving families.
To support and contribute to Nigel’s challenges, visit Just Giving at: https://www.justgiving.com/Nigel-Pattison/
A revised planning application for a housing development on Land at The Elms, Upper High Street. Thame, will be considered by the Thame Town Council at a special meeting of the full council, on April 7, 2015, starting at 6.30 pm in the Town Hall Upper Chamber.
The documentation relating to the original application can be found on the South Oxfordshire District Council website by clicking here. http://tiny.cc/benbwx and the amended plans here: http://tiny.cc/a9mbwx Full details of the associated plans for Elms Park itself, including amendments, can be viewed here: http://tiny.cc/mgnbwx
Anyone wishing to speak at the meeting, must apply to the the Town Clerk, in writing, before 5pm, the day before the meeting.
THAMES Valley Police is appealing for information following a robbery in which the victim had chilli thrown in his eyes.
At 7pm on Monday (23/3) two men arrived at the victim’s home in Towersey Drive, Thame, to view a silver Apple Macbook that the victim, a 40-year-old man, was selling on Gumtree. While one of the men was viewing the laptop, the other man threw liquid into the face of the victim which caused a burning sensation to the victims eyes. He was also hit around the head during the incident. While the victim was distracted, the two men grabbed the Macbook and ran out of the house.
The victim received treatment at the Stoke Mandeville Hospital. The liquid was later identified as a fizzy soft drink mixed with chilli powder.
The two offenders were white, in their twenties and wore jeans and bomber jackets.
DS Peter Scott, of Didcot Local CID, said: “We’d like to reassure the public that incidents such as these are very rare, and there have been no similar reported incidents.
“The victim was selling his belongings through an online site, and we’d encourage people who are interested in doing this to meet up with your potential buyer in a public place where lots of people will be around, tell people where and when you are meeting the buyer, and to leave if you feel uncomfortable at any time.
“Get Safe Online and Action Fraud both provide really good advice for safe online selling and buying on their websites – www.getsafeonline.org and www.actionfraud.police.uk”
If you have any information please contact the Thames Valley Police Enquiry Centre on 101.
If you don’t want to speak directly to the police you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at www.crimestoppers-uk.org No personal details are taken, information is not traced or recorded and you will not go to court.
COUNTY Council workmen are currently at the scene in Parliament Road, Thame, where a tree has been blown down in today’s high winds.
Fortunately, cars normally parked beneath the tree were not there at the time the tree fell down, and no one was injured.
SINCE the formation of the ‘Thame Centre First’ group, to fight a proposed supermarket on the outskirts of the town, a group of local people who support the development has met with Tesco representatives to devise their own strategy to ensure that their voices are heard too.
The group held a private meeting at Thame Town Hall on Tuesday (24/03) with two representatives of Tesco, Tesco Consultant, Mark Harrison, and the company’s Group Commercial Corporate Affairs Manager, Fflur Sheppard.
Around 20 people attended the privately arranged meeting designed, as stated at the meeting, to help Tesco present the ‘best case’ for the supermarket, to politicians and the public.
During a general discussion, it was suggested by one lady, who said she had lived her whole life in Thame, that in her opinion the protestestors against the proposed store were ‘in the minority but had the loudest voices’. She felt, she added. that a lot of people were for the store but that they were ‘apathetic’ about saying so.
There was a lot of discussion about the lack of parking provision in the town centre, a lack of certain shops such as children’s clothing and somewhere to buy mobile phones. Other views expressed around the table included that a number of people from surrounding villages would use such a store. Others disagreed with the Thame Centre First group’s view that the proposed store would damage the High Street, and thought in fact that it would attract people to Thame. Some were of the view that the proposed store would be convenient for particularly older people living at that end of town, particularly as the Arriva 123 local bus was due to be scrapped.
The Tesco representative said that Tesco’s own research had shown that over 50% of shopping by local people was done outside Thame, and that Waitrose was ‘doing more business than it planned for’. About the proposed plans themselves, he said that the store would sell around 70% food and that the rest would be include such things as books, and that the store would offer a ‘Click and collect’ service for anything ordered from Tesco on-line.
Some discussion took place around the Tesco promise of generating 200 local jobs, some of those at the meeting, refuting the official figures that Thame has a very low unemployment rate. From their own experience of grandchildren etc, one or two said that many of the jobs were Agency jobs, so-called ‘Zero hours’ contracts or part-time jobs which they felt gave a false impression of the employment situation in the town.
Eventually the meeting was asked to suggest ways of getting more support for the proposed supermarket and which parts of Thame such support might be found. A petition was suggested but decided against, and instead it was suggested that a standard letter of support would be produced in conjunction with, paid for and with help to distribute from, Tesco.
Tesco’s planning application is expected to go in to the planning authorithy, South Oxfordshire District Council, sometime in April, and they expect a decision by late Summer or early Autumn.
NB Neither representative from Tesco responded in time to a request to comment on the meeting.
Anyone who would like to know more or get involved with the Tesco supporters’ group, can visit the facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Say-Yes-to-an-out-of-town-Tesco-store-In-Thame/371463593034373
PEOPLE living in Chinnor, Henton, Wainhill, Emmington and Chinnor Hill are preparing their own Neighbourhood Plan. The Chinnor Neighbourhood Plan will shape the future of the parish in areas like housing growth and design, community facilities, economy, infrastructure, environment, and heritage.
The Neighbourhood Plan will continue the work carried out by South Oxfordshire District Council and Chinnor Parish Council on the South Oxfordshire Local Plan 2031. There will be a referendum on the Chinnor Neighbourhood Plan, which if adopted by a majority of those voting, will replace Chinnor’s Parish Plan which was issued in 2005.
Following Chinnor Parish Council’s decision to set out the boundaries of a neighbourhood plan, a group of over twenty volunteers have formed Chinnor Neighbourhood Plan Steering Group. The Group elected Tim Samwell as Chairman, Bob Dobbs as Vice-Chairman, Peter Brook as Secretary and Andrew Henderson as Treasurer. It is estimated that the preparation of the Neighbourhood Plan will take 24 months of work by the community.
Marius Ciortan, spokesman for Chinnor Neighbourhood Plan Steering Group, said: “We are at an early stage when we want to make sure that our community will support us in preparing the neighbourhood plan. We are looking for more volunteers from Chinnor, Henton, Wainhill, Emmington and Chinnor Hill who could help shape our Neighbourhood Plan, with various activities from helping with the distribution of leaflets to drafting sections of the plan, or dissemination of the information collected from local residents.”
Marius added: “We also would like to hear what your views on doing the neighbourhood plan are, and which local issues you would like to be addressed. We have set up a Facebook page where residents can share their ideas on local issues like housing, road infrastructure, local facilities, and so on: https://www.facebook.com/ChinnorNeighbourhoodPlan