Category: More News

THE latest celebrities to be announced for Thame Food Festival, on September 27, are celebrity bakers Edd Kimber and John Whaite, who will be teaming up to do a fabulous double act as well as interviews and a book signing. Local food writer and broadcaster Sophie Grigson will also be taking part in cookery demonstrations, as well as counterparts from the town.

The event, a landmark in the food calendar, is set to be a veritable foodies paradise with a fantastic line-up of local and artisan products to try and to buy, as well as celebrity and local chefs and hands-on food talks and workshops for food lovers of all ages.

Planning for this year’s festival is already well advanced and once again the entire town centre will be closed to make way for the amazing array of food and drink producers, street food and live entertainment that will line the streets on the day.

Once again there will be a pop-up pub, The Thatch & The James Figg, serving locally brewed ales and refreshing ciders, and an all-new pop-up book shop, The Book House, where visitors can pick up all the latest cookery cooks with some signed by the authors themselves. There will also be traditional London Routemaster buses ferrying visitors into town from the nearby park and ride.

“It’s just six months to go until we celebrate all that is great about good local and artisan produce and we can’t wait for the day to come,” says festival patron, TV chef and writer Lotte Duncan. “We’re got some thrilling demos planned on stage as well as workshops to educate and entertain, not to mention over 150 stalls laden with incredible locally produced goodies and tempting street food to match.

“Plus in between now and September, we’re also got some exclusive events taking place in the stunning surroundings of Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, thanks to our wonderful friends and supporters there,” she added.

“As well as enjoying Champagne afternoon tea in the elegant surroundings of the newly extended La Belle Epoque private dining room on Monday, June 2 – and being among the first guests to gain a sneak preview of this glorious new setting – we’re also offering you the chance to spend a day at the unique Raymond Blanc Cookery School on Monday, September 22, where you’ll have the ultimate cookery experience.

“Much, much more will be announced over the coming weeks so keep an eye on our web site www.thamefoodfestival.co.uk, where you can also sign up for news of forthcoming events, these exclusive festival offers and all the activities taking place on the day. And make sure you keep tSeptember 27 free. See you in Thame!”

A Royal Mail worker who lives in Thame, has been jailed for fraud after he stole cash from the accounts of two different people, one of whom was a blind man.

Damon Alvey, aged 45, had previously pleaded guilty at Oxford Crown Court to one count of theft of a mail bag and four counts of fraud. He was jailed for 10 months.

The court heard how Alvey was working at a Banbury sorting office where he targeted mail he thought contained bank cards and pin numbers. It was these items of mail that he then used to withdraw cash from his two victims’ accounts.

Darren Blythe, who is registered blind, had £3,133 stolen from two accounts between August and October 2013, one of which was used to pay for Mr Blythe’s support worker and recreational activities.

When police raided Alvey’s house they found mail belonging to 15 victims as well as mail that had been shredded.

Alvey’s defence lawyer, Timothy Greaves, told the court that at the time of the offences his client was in ” a bad place” and had fallen into debt and into a drinking habit after the break up of a relationship.

THAME residents’ representatives are very worried that additional new housing could be foisted on Thame, following the publication of new Strategic Housing Market Assessment (SHMA) figures.

The concerns came to light at a meeting between Thame Town Council and Residents Assoication leaders, to review how delivery of the Thame Neighbourhood Plan was progressing. Part of that report included SHMA housing numbers, recently published for Oxfordshire, indicating that land for an additional 6,750 new homes in South Oxfordshire will be needed between now and 2031, over and above those already planned for to 2026.

It is not clear how many of these additional new homes will be allocated to Thame. That will depend on how SODC decides to distribute them across the four main towns, Didcot, Wallingford, Henley and Thame, or, as Jake Collinge suggested at the meeting: “They come up with something novel, like new towns!”

Thame Town Council has asked the Minister, Nick Boles whether ‘windfall sites’, that is those not planned for but which come forward for planning permission during the period eg ‘in-fill’ on private land, may be counted in Thame’s allocation. But he has so far not responded.

Nick Shott, representing the Chiltern Vale Residents Association, said: “This could mean an additional 2000 homes for Thame, which could turn the neighbour planning process into a joke! We took a long time and a lot of effort devising the Neighbourhood Plan and selling it to the people of Thame and I don’t know what people are now going to think.

“It seems to me this is something that favours Developers and not the local people.”

Charles Boundy, from the Priest End Residents Association was concerned about the effect on roads, parking and the general quality of life on the town and feared that South Oxfordshire District Council would “dump the houses where they liked.”

Bob Austin, who represents the Towersey Road Residents Association, said: “We all know that we need more housing but it’s got to be manageable. Roundhead Drive for instance has become a permanent car park. We must make sure our voices are heard.”

Cllr Mike Dyer said that he thought there was “no need to panic” and that it was too early to judge what the impact the need for additional houses would have on the Thame Neighbourhood Plan, citing the fact that through the TNP, Thame has sites allocated for development, which have the force of law behind them, whereas the other towns do not.

Cllr Helena Fickling said: “Everyone needs to keep nagging Oxfordshire County Council. They are the people that control much of the infrastructure that we require.”

The Clerk, Helen Stewart said: “All we can do is make strong representation to Government and fight for ‘windfalls’ to be included in our allocation. I can assure you that Thame Town Council will continue to fight to restrict the number of developments in Thame.”

The Mayor, Peter Lambert, assured everyone at the meeting: “We are all batting for Thame!”

Ed. MORE from the Thame Neighbourhood Plan Monitoriing & Delivery Report 2013-2014, tomorrow.

SOMEWHAT timely, just weeks after village properties were  flooded during the recent rainstorms, generally accepted to be partly a consequence of man-made climate change, the people of  Towersey are being asked to consider a Solar Farm on the outskirts of the village.

Luminous Energy and Belectric are proposing to build a Solar Farm at Stonepits, in Windmill Road, Towersey, and are holding a ‘Community information evening’ before submitting a planning application, to hear the views of local people and to respond to any issues they may have about the proposal.

The event will be held at Towersey Memorial Hall, in Chinnor Road, Towersey, on Wednesday, April 23, 2014, from 4pm to 8pm.

THE Rotary clubs of Thame and Haddenham & District will be hosting a “Know Your Blood Pressure” event at the Co-operative Supermarket, High Street in Thame on Saturday, April 5, to help raise awareness of the link between high blood pressure and stroke across the UK. The event will be taking place between 10 am and 2 pm, offering the public a free blood pressure monitoring service with information and advice on stroke related health issues.

The two Rotary Clubs are joining scores of clubs across the UK as part of the “Know Your Blood Pressure Campaign” in partnership with The Stroke Association and the Ambulance Service. It is estimated that every year there are approximately 152,000 strokes in the UK. That’s one stroke every five minutes. Most people affected are over 65, but anyone can have a stroke, including children and even babies.

Thame Rotarian, Tyrell Gillman, the event organiser said: “The Know Your Blood Pressure campaign has been supported by Rotary for over a decade. We took nearly 43,000 blood pressure readings all over UK last year and nearly 7,000 people we saw were advised to take action. These events can play a big role in reducing strokes across the country. It’s clear from our work that high blood pressure is far more common than you would think.”

Joe Korner, Director of External Affairs at the Stroke Association said: “High blood pressure does not present any symptoms and many people have no idea their health may be at risk. We estimate up to half of strokes could be prevented if people took steps to control it through diet, exercise or medication.”

“This year we are hoping to test at least 50,000 people all over the country. We hope to see many people from the Thame area at our event; it’s a simple and straightforward way to find out more about reducing your risk of having a stroke.”

To find out more about the campaign, please visit the Thame and Haddenham & District Rotary Clubs websites: www.thame.rotaryweb.org and www.haddenham-rotary.org.uk

THE bidding is about to open for local groups to apply for help with funding from Thame Town Council.

Thame Town Council’s Grants Scheme reopens on April 1, which, the council says, aims to: “…. fund projects which address the needs, aspirations and issues of the people in our community.”

The council is inviting local charitable organisations who are working for the benefit of Thame, to apply for funding to support projects that aim to: “.. develop skills, improve health, revitalise the local environment and enable people to become more active citizens.”

Who can apply? Any community or not-for-profit group working for the benefit of the people of Thame. Other terms and conditions apply and these can be viewed on the council’s website: www.thametowncouncil.gov.uk. Application forms will be available from April 1, from the town hall or an electronic version can be downloaded at www.thametowncouncil.gov.uk.

The deadline for applications is 5pm on Wednesday, April 30. Further information or for assistance in completing the application is available by calling 01844 212833.

THAME schools and are this month (April, 2014) being asked to host a variety of fundraising activities in aid of charity.

The British Institute for Brain Injured Children, or bibic, which helps children with conditions affecting their social, communication and learning abilities, is encouraging schools and colleges to fundraise for its cause.

Geoff Cummins, Chief Executive for the Westcountry-based national charity, bibic, explained: “We know schools and colleges often raise money for charity so we’re asking them to consider bibic when choosing who to donate to.

“There are lots of great, fun ways a school can raise money for us. They could host a non-uniform day or a themed fancy dress day or why not host a summer fete? Pupils could also take part in sponsored walks, runs or swims.

“One of our favourite ideas and one we think lots of pupils would enjoy too, is a pupils versus teachers sports match.”

bibic is a registered charity that receives no government funding and relies on support and donations to provide the life-changing help needed by many children and their families.

It helps children and young people aged from six months to 18-years-old with conditions affecting their development and learning abilities, to achieve their potential for a happier and more fulfilled life. These include developmental conditions such as Autism, Cerebral palsy, Down’s syndrome, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia and brain injury.

Geoff added: “We have a great fundraising team here who are always happy to help with ideas and anything a school or college needs. Any schools or colleges interested in raising money for us should call our fundraising team on 01458 252339 or email us on fundraising@bibic.org.uk.”

The charity, which is based in Somerset, has a national assessment centre located at Langport. Its therapists work closely with families to create a therapy programme, which provides them with the skills and strategies to support their child or children.

Any school which would like to support bibic’s work and wishes to make a £5 donation to the charity, can text IDS02 £5 to 70070 or for a £10 donation text KIDS02 £10 to 70070.

For more information, visit www.bibic.org.uk, follow the charity on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bibic_charity 

OXFORDSHIRE Community and Voluntary Action (OCVA) has appointed and trained six volunteer Community Ambassadors who are now operating around the county, including one for Thame.

Community Ambassadors support charities and community groups in their area to do more good work. They enable others to volunteer, help local charities to access funding and build a supportive network in their town.

, Community Ambassador for Thame, Tanya Berman, said: “My local charities and community groups are looking for ways to raise funds and find more volunteers, as well as make contact with other organisations near them. Since I know and care about Thame, I can give information and advice, as well as signposting them to relevant support services.”

Individuals who are looking for volunteering opportunities can also get in touch with Tanya and she will help them to find the perfect local volunteering role for them.