Category: More News

THE Mayor of Thame welcomed a group of budding young councillors to the town hall this morning, and discovered for himself just what it is about the town that makes it so special for the very young members of his community.

A group of Year two pupils from Barley Hill Primary School have been working hard with their teachers to research, design and make leaflets all about Thame, including the history of some of its buildings, its restaurants, pubs and shops, the variety of  indoor and outdoor activities to take part in such as, they suggested,  ‘its many nice parks’  – in fact, all the things that might encourage people to come to Thame.

As they sat up to a long table in the Council Chamber with the Mayor at the Head, as in a council meeting, the Mayor, Peter Lambert, chatted with the group about what they had discovered about Thame’s history and asked each of them to tell him where their own favourite place in Thame was. Although the answers ranged from drinking a smoothie in Time Out, walking their dog on the Phoenix Trail, walking in Cuttlebrook, eating fish and chips in the Memorial Gardens where there are “pretty fish”, and the library (which they discovered used to be a toy shop), resoundingly the most favourite place among the group was Wally’s toy shop!

Richard, aged 7, described Wally’s as “an awesome place, where you can buy all the toys you want, including Top Trumps!” Another pupil impressed Mrs Boyle, their teacher, and the Mayor with his use of colourful adjectives, describing the toy shop as selling “fabulous, extraordinary toys.”

The children were keen to find out what you have to do to become the Mayor of Thame, and learned why only one councillor is allowed to speak at once (so that the note taker – or Minute Clerk – can write down what is said). Cllr Lambert explained how he uses his gavel to keep order, though was eager to point out that he has never had to use it during his year in office!

The highlight of the visit for the children was, without the doubt, when each in turn was given the Mayor’s Golden chain of office to try on.

The Mayor concluded the visit by thanking the children for coming, and praised them for their hard work and enthusiasm, and for their excellent behaviour in the Council Chamber, and gave each a special ‘Thame’ pen to take away with them.

MORE pictures from the Barley Hill visit to meet the Mayor HERE

AMENDMENTS 25/04/14 – Lighting story removed as it has now come to light (sorry!) that there was no actual ‘switch on’ after-all, and some additional information has been added to the Archaeological study of Elms Park:

THAME ARTIST’S HOLOGRAPHIC TEXTILES ON SHOW

AN award winning Thame textile artist will be among several exhibitors at Saturday’s Artists and Makers Fair at Thame Town Hall.

Sophie Court recently won a prestigious award at the British Craft Trade Show is held in Harrogate, the longest running trade fair in the UK. She was the proud winner of the Attire Accessories Magazine, Best Fashion Accessory Award in the New Comers section, competing with 75 emerging artists. The judges were particularly impressed with Sophie’s new childrens collection and the use of holographic material. They also mentioned that as Sophie’s pieces were reversible, this was an innovative idea which stood out to them.

DRIVING BAN FOR DRINK-DRIVER
A Thame woman has been banned from driving for 18 months, after admitting drink-driving in Churchill Crescent, Thame.

 

 

Olivia Parsons, 21, of Michaelis Road, Thame, admitted committing the offence on November 9, 2013. She was found to have 158 micrograms of alcohol in 100ml of blood, which is above the legal limit of 80 micrograms. As well as the driving ban, Ms Parsons was fined £200, ordered to pay a £20 victim surcharge, and £85 costs.

HISTORICAL ELMS PARK
A local historian and resident of Thame, Phil Williams, has been given permission by Thame Town Council to carryout a ‘non invasive’, archeological survey of Elms Park.

The use of the site goes back thousands of years, long before it was officially opened to the public by Hedley Purser (son of Leonard Purser, who gifted the land to the town for use as a recreational area) on June 9, 1951 at a ‘Grand Fete’ as part of Thame’s Festival of Britain celebrations.

The town council has stated: “Mr Williams has commissioned a company to carry out a magnetometry survey that will reveal whether the prehistoric archaeology found at Church Farm and Cornmarket is also present in Elms Park. The survey will not involve any digging or soil disturbance; instead a small team will traverse the park taking readings in one-metre wide strips on the surface of the area.

“It is believed there is reasonable chance that the survey will reveal archaeology, and will be a valuable contribution to the understanding of the archaeological heritage of the park and of Thame as a whole. “

The findings of the survey could have implications for any future planning application for development on the adjoining land, known as The Elms, which is one of the sites designated for development in the Thame Neighbourhood Plan.

POT HOLES
FOLLOWING an announcement from the Department for Transport of a pot of extra Government funding – enough to fix more than three million potholes, County Council Leader, Ian Hudspeth, has revealed that Oxfordshire will be bidding for some of the cash.

Successful local authorities will sign a Pothole Pledge as a condition of the funding, setting out the number of potholes they will have repaired by March 2015.

Thame’s MP, John Howell, has welcomed the news and said: ““This is a great opportunity to improve the roads in the Henley constituency and deal with the blight of potholes. Oxfordshire County Council has made a substantial bid for money which I support.”

SOLUTION IN SIGHT FOR THE LEA PARK ‘MAZE’

RESIDENTS of Lea Park in Thame, especially those who have moved into the area recently, will soon be able to find their way more easily by foot, using the notorious maze of alley ways and foot paths that criss-cross the housing development.

21st Century Thame, the town Partnership, is hoping that the new signage they are planning to point the way to the town centre, the Health Centre and other popular places in the town, will encourage people to walk or cycle instead of using their cars – a healthier option for both people and the environment, and reducing the number of cars for which parking places have to be provided.

The Working Group responsible for the project are hoping local people will help them come up with suitable names for the paths and cut-throughs to give them an identity on the various routes through Lea Park. The Partnership is currently talking to Oxfordshire County Council about funding and other monies will come out of the so-called ‘Section 106’ contributions that developers of new housing sites have to contribute to local infrastructure.

LEAKY MUSEUM
THAME museum, which first opened in 2007, converted from the old Thame Court House, is currently causing some concerns to the Trustees, after water was found to be leaking through the roof into the main gallery and library.

An inspection of the roof is to be carried out to establish the source of the leak and the town council is looking into costings for chimney capping and improvements to lighting and humidity control, recommendations made after a recent Health Check at the museum.

 

TWO Thame allotment plot holders are opening their garden to the public, as part of the Open Garden scheme, to raise funds for Stones Close Allotments.

 

 

 

Lesley Winward and Wendy Reid’s garden, at 10, Hamilton Road, Thame, will be open on May 25th, between 2 – 5pm. The charge will be just a £1, and there will be plants, tea and cake for sale.

Kate White, the current Chair of the Stones Close Allotment Management Committee, said: “We have a healthy list for those wanting plots due to the management committee being strict on the requirement to keep plots tidy or hand them back for re allocation. During the year we fund-raise for local schools, support the firework display at Lord Williams’s School , donate to Remembrance Sunday and the Mayor’s charities.

“All of this is made possible by generous plot holders like Lesley and Wendy, who step in when fund raising opportunities arise.”

THE annual spectacle of  swathes of beautiful bluebells in the Chilterns has arrived early this year and the woods are becoming covered with carpets of blue, and the next couple of weekends are the best time to get out and enjoy them.

This year the bluebells are slightly early because of the warm sunny weather of  recent weeks. In the next few days many local woods will turn into a sea of blue, so get out there and make the most of them – they will be at their peak for the next two weeks. Half of the world’s bluebell woods are found in the UK so this is a spectacle that is very special to this country.

Some of the best bluebell woods in the Chilterns are:

· Wendover Woods, near Wendover
· Adams Wood, near Lane End
· Bradenham Woods, near High Wycombe
· Ashridge Estate, near Berkhamsted
· Cowleaze Woods, near Watlington
· Ipsden Heath, near Henley-on-Thames

It’s a fantastic time of year to make the most of our beautiful local countryside and enjoy all the signs of spring. You can find lots of information on the best places to see bluebells in the Chilterns, plus details of walks and bike rides, at www.chilternsaonb.org

A professional economist who has worked for HM Treasury, has been  selected as the Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for the Henley Constituency which includes Thame.  Sam Juthani, 26, was selected at a recent meeting of the Henley Labour Party in Benson.

With degrees from Oxford University and Barcelona School of Graduate Studies, Sam Juthani has previously worked at HM Treasury where his responsibilities included tackling child poverty, the Eurozone crisis and Budget coordination. He currently works in Oxford as a professional Economist.

Sam is a school and college governor in the constituency and is a keen runner, cricketer and chocolatier in his spare time.

After his election, Sam Juthani said:  “Henley is a fantastic constituency. I am proud and excited to be standing for the Labour Party here and will work across the seat to spread our positive vision for South Oxfordshire. I will stand up for the ordinary people of Thame and support vital public services that are suffering from Government cuts.”

Thame’s current Member of Parliament is Conservative, John Howell, who replaced Boris Johnson as MP when he became the Mayor of London.

THE first new, large-scale house building in Thame, since the publication of its Neighbourhood Plan, is likely to begin in the not-to-distant future, following the news that a detailed planning application for 79 homes, including affordable housing, is likely to be submitted very soon.

News of the progress of the proposed development, on the Western side of what is known as Site C in the Thame Neighbourhood Plan (the area closest to Thame Park Road), was given at a recent meeting between Thame Town Council and the various Residents Associations, to discuss the TNP Draft Monitoring and Delivery Report 2013-14.

The council reported that: “It is anticipated that the balance of housing (108 dwellings), on the eastern part of Site C, will be submitted, in outline, as part of the same planning application.” If approved, this part of the site is likely to then be sold on before being developed.

Housing Development on land at Lord Williams’s Lower school

REFERRING to the allocation in the TNP for 135 homes at Lord Williams’s Lower School, the council reported that the school is currently assessing feasibility plans but is not yet ready to go out to consultation. It is, however, “fully committed” said the council, to involving all the relevant Residents’ Associations in discussions, once the plans are available.

Land at The Elms

THIS ‘controversial site’ has, reported the council, been the subject of many meetings and discussions between the council, the developer, Rectory Homes, and English Heritage. 

“At this stage, there is nothing on the table about the final numbers,” the council reported, “or where on the site the proposed houses will go. (The TNP allows for a maximum of 45 homes, whereas English Heritage is calling for no more than 35, and none to interrupt the view South from the main house, The Elms.)

The Clerk said that as the plan comes forward, it will be discussed in public at a full council meeting, and that if planning permission was granted, there would need to be detailed public consultation about any proposed associated changes to the public open space next door, Elms Park, itself.

Later in the meeting, Barry Yates, Chair of the Oxford Road Residents Association, was concerned about possible traffic problems in Nelson Street, should development take place at The Elms. The Clerk, Helen Stewart, said that a Transport assessment would have to be part of any planning application, and that so far, no objection had been made by Oxfordshire County Council.

The town council stated that it will publish in full, the details of the Thame Neighbourhood Plan Monitoring and Delivery Report 2013-14, in the near future.