SATURDAY, March 9, 7.30pm, St Mary?s Church, Thame. Thame Chamber Choir’s concert – The Greatest Genius? Britten? Byrd? Parry? Elgar? Thame Chamber Choir presents the case for each and the audience chooses the winner and thereby their encore!
Tickets
FOLLOWING the Examination meeting for the Thame Neighbourhood Plan on February 19, and to record this historic occasion in Planning history, ThameNews.Net has been publishing notes from the meeting in instalments. However, before continuing, after a communication from a member of the public who was at the meeting, I should like to point out that, due to a family commitment, I was not present at the meeting for the first three speakers and so did not take notes of their representations.
I apologise if, by this omission, a misleading impression was given, that the meeting only covered those landowners/agents/developers who wished to see more development than the numbers allocated, on site F, (203 homes).
In fact, it has been pointed out to me that during the early part of the meeting:
(A) Lucy Murfett spoke on behalf of South Oxfordshire District Council, who fully supported the Neighbourhood Plan, and confirmed that SODC were content that the Plan met the required ?Basic Conditions?.
(B) David Broadley, for Aylesbury Vale District Council spoke about his council?s view about the unsuitability of site F, to house 203, let alone the 281 dwellings allocated (if the reserve contingency happens). He cited harmful landscape and visual impact on the countryside to the North of the A418, and expressed concern that the TNP did not include an assessment of any improvements that would have to be made to the roundabout at the junction with the A418/B3011/A4129 which would be impacted by future development.
(C) A representative of Hallum Land Management Ltd spoke against the choice of sites C and D for allocated houses in preference to site B. His view was that sites C and D did not meet the ?Basic Conditions? with regard to promoting sustainable travel as they are not served by buses, and that their deliverability depended too much on the provision of infrastructure off-site from uncertain amounts of funding from Section 106 contributions.
FOR INFORMATION: All the written representations that the Examination questioning was based upon can be read in full on SODC?s website HERE
Thame Neighbourhood Plan – Agenda item 4 (V) Shopping ? The Cattlemarket
Today’s notes refer to the part of the agenda devoted to the section on Working and Shopping, and in particular, the Cattlemarket site in North Street. Mr Bob Williams, who said that he spoke on behalf of the Thame Farmers Auction Mart and those in the wider, rural community, was the next speaker.
The Examiner, Mr McGurk, asked Mr Williams why the TNP?s policy on the Cattlemarket Site did not, in his view, meet the ?Basic Conditions? and why he considered a food supermarket would. He (Mr Williams) replied that the Cattlemarket needed to relocate to the Thame show ground to preserve both the market and the show. He said that over 12 years, it had become clear (to him) that a food supermarket was the only viable solution to get the cash needed for the move. He maintained that the TNP proposal for the Cattlemarket site did not meet the ?qualitative nor the quantitative? retail needs of the town and that no proper retail assessment or retail sustainability assessment had been made.
Mr Williams said of retail work for the Core Strategy, that it ?had not been properly tested and was therefore unreliable.?
Mr McGurk then asked Lucy Murfett of SODC if any requirement before 2016 (the Core Strategy period) was envisaged for anything beyond 3,000 sq ft of retail on this site. She replied that there was not, since Woolworths had become a Sainsbury store and fulfilled some of the requirement. She added that the plan aimed to attract larger chains for ?comparison? shopping (i.e. non-food items such as clothes, books and electrical goods).
Returning to Mr Williams, the Examiner asked him: ?In your view plans for the site do not meet the ?Basic Conditions? but that a supermarket would. Is there anything else you want to point out? Mr Williams replied: ?It is strange that Sainsbury?s own survey showed 43% tended to support a supermarket on that site, and that the Thame Neighbourhood Plan suggested overwhelming support for mixed use.?
The next speaker was Sue Rowlands of Tibbalds, speaking on behalf of the town council. She was asked by the Examiner to say why it was her view that the proposal for the Cattlemarket site does meet the ?Basic Conditions? and that a supermarket on the site would not. She replied: ?The plan is required to deliver what has been identified by the Core Strategy which is for ?comparison? goods rather than convenience. Also, on the matter of sustainability of the town centre, retail provision should ?be diverse and reflect the character of the town centre?.
?Thame is a real market town which is attractive as a tourist centre so we have to identify sites for ?comparative? shopping,? she added. Ms Rowlands concluded that the Cattlemarket was a key site and said that the town council was studying the role of a community facility as part of a viable development on that site.
TOMORROW: Mr Paul Earley?s presentation on ?The Choice of the Preferred Option? for housing development ? Agenda item 5.
PHOTO: Mr Bob Williams, an advocate for a supermarket on the Cattlemarket site in Thame.
ARTS WEEK 2013 at John Hampden School, in Thame, last week, was a fairy tale! The whole school went all ?far, far away in a time long ago?, when dragons roamed the Earth and princesses and knights were commonplace!
The fairy tale theme saw the school hall become an Arthurian castle, populated by fire breathing monsters and evil little goblins, intent on stealing princesses and first borne away! The castle walls were encircled with sharp, thorny bushes which knights on white horses must fight their way through to free the damsels in distress, aided by clever fairies and the feisty princesses themselves, with their inventive use of their crowning glory as a means to escape!
John Hampden School’s Arts Co-ordinators, J.E.Nichols and Clare Field(Arts Co-ordinators) take up the story: “Yet again John Hampden has seen an army of parents, grandparents, governors, guardians, teachers and teaching assistants old and new, volunteer to support the children in their fairy tale artwork – over sixty of them helping to bring our ideas to life!
“Our PTA saved the day with a generous donation of funds to enable the school to ‘pull out all the stops’ and provide a wealth of artistic experiences for the children to enjoy! These ranged from the now obligatory, enormous sculptures that Mr.Eyre helps the children to create, to mosaic shields, flying fairies, giant recycled knights in shining armour, pretty princess hats and the inevitable swords and shields that all well-armed knights are adorned with!
“The staff also set the children the challenge of identifying whose coat of arms is whose, in ?The Honourable Coat of Arms Quiz?, with an arty prize for the winning entry!
“The week proved ?a dream come true? with the happy ending of a Fair-trade Arts Caf
MUSIC in the Park 2013 ? Thame?s fantastic family music festival is back! Put Sunday, May 12, in your diaries now! With a generous variety of music and dance on offer, there?s sure to be something for all tastes. The event will feature two main stages with live music and dance, and an acoustic stage.
Have fun dancing the day away or chill out with a leisurely picnic. Of course, there will also be all the usual goodies you?d expect at a festival, including tasty real ales, a wide variety of delicious foods, fun activities for children and adults, and beautiful arts and crafts.
The music programme will once again feature a wealth of local talent including Muttz Knuttz, Little Bill?s Big Band, Stone Cold Broke and Bootlegger. Already confirmed for this year from further afield, is ‘Hats off to Led Zeppelin’, the tribute act that wowed visitors last year, as well as the Dung Beatles – you guessed it, a Beatles tribute act.
Headlining will be Oxfordshire-based, Bolt From The Blue, who will thrill visitors with their high-energy show packed with soul and R&B classics. The line-up includes Thame’s very own Vic Winslade (Fore Golf shop, Buttermarket, Thame) on Alto/Tenor Saxophone.
Last year?s Music in the Park attracted some 3,500 visitors and raised more than
THE woman who died in a tragic house fire in Thame yesterday, has been named.
She was 62 year-old, mother-of-three, Christine Fullwood. Initial suspicions are that the fire was started by a cigarette but a full investigation into the blaze is on-going.
It is understood that the family’s two cats also died in the blaze, at Greenway, in Thame.
FOR those who could not make the public Examination meeting for the Thame Neighbourhood Plan, and to record this historic occasion in Planning history, ThameNews.Net has been publishing notes from the meeting in instalments. Today’s section is the part of the agenda devoted to the section on new employment land.
AT the start of the afternoon session of the Examination on Tuesday (19/02), the Examiner, Mr Nigel McGurk, reiterated that Neighbour Plans were a new way of planning, introduced by the Localism Act, which provided communities with the power to set priorities for local planning. ?Examinations are not forums for debates,? he explained, ?but are for the Examiner to obtain further clarification that the ?Basic Conditions? are being met by the plan and that it has regard to National planning policy, as well as being in accord with the general terms of the Core Strategy.?
He added that NPs must contribute to a community?s sustainability and Human Rights.
Mr McGurk then called Mr Murfitt, from SODC to the table. Mr Murfitt said that unemployment in Thame was 3.4%, half the national average, and that 34% of people work away from Thame. ?We want more people to work in Thame,? he said, and explained that three hectares of employment land was needed in the town. The Plan is for Use Classes type B1 and B2-type business he explained, but that this was not meant to restrict Class A1.
The next speaker was Mr Charles Castle, for the Castle Trust, whose representation was about Employment Land, Non-Allocated Site 16. The Examiner asked Mr Castle why his view was that Site B (allocated in the plan FOR Employment land) does not meet the ?Basic Conditions? but that his land, to the North West of Thame, does, and why?. Mr Castle replied that Sustainability requirements place special emphasis on transport and that his site offered excellent access to main roads, including the M40, and good bus services. He said that there was good scope for a Park and Ride facility and that there was an agreement with Oxfordshire County Council that if site F was developed, extra buses would be provided.
The Examiner asked him again why the Allocated site did not meet the Basic Conditions for employment. Mr Castle replied that it would pull heavy traffic movements into the area, particularly to the Ring Road, which he said currently only carries light traffic. He said that British Oxygen and the Thame Industrial estate were put there as a means of getting the Ring Road completed. Therefore, it was his view that, now that it was completed, there was no need for further development.
Mr Castle then said that since the NP (Neighbourhood Plan) programme had been put in place, his Trust had been approached by a national company (which he said he could not name) that needs five hectares of land.
Mr Castle was followed by Mr Mark Stitch, for Barton Wilmore/Stoford (pictured), promoting site B for employment land. He was asked to tell the Examiner why this site met the ?Basic Conditions?. Mr Stitch replied that his camp believed the site satisfied National policy and advice regarding Sustainable development. ?We consider that the site can deliver the employment, economy, social and environmental role needed by the local planning authority to meet the needs of the local area,? he said, concluding: ?We want to be on the site as soon as possible to meet market demand.?
Mr Sitch added that in his view, site B exploited alternative modes of transport; buses, pedestrian and cycling via the Phoenix Trail, to large, residential areas of the town, and that it lent itself for employment as it was not of high landscape value. He felt that a good business case had been made for site B, and that it had local support in that 63% of respondents supported the site for new employment. ?We have the opportunity to create employment and economic benefit to the town from a site that has links to existing employment areas,? he said. He concluded: ?Site F would encourage out-commuting, whereas our site B, would discourage it.?
Referring to the fact that part of site B is in the ?Blast Zone? of the British Oxygen works, the Examiner asked Mr Stitch if there were any Health & Safety issues that might impact on the site. Mr Stitch replied that there were not. One third of the proposed development is in the middle of the zone, he explained, but it would be compatible with the site?s use for employment, according to the HSE?s (Health and Safety Executive) response.
The Examiner then asked Mr Stitch about the reference to Warehousing in his representation, and if he considered the plan would be met equally by warehousing, as it would by Office and Hightec industries. Mr Stitch replied that a full range of uses had been tested and consulted upon and referred to the evidence in the NP.
Sue Rowlands, speaking for Thame Town Council, was asked by Mr McGurk why TTC considerrf that the planned principle uses of B1 and B2 for that site met the ?Basic Conditions?. ?We want to encourage the high quality, high Tech jobs that Thame is known for,? she replied. ?But we do not want to exclude B8.?
COMING SOON ? speakers: Shopping and The Cattlemarket ?Mr Bob Williams (For Thame Farmers Auction Mart) and Sue Rowlands, Tibbalds (For Thame Town Council)
NEXT week heralds the arrival of Acupuncture Awareness Week (February 25 to March 3, 2013), and this year the focus is on sleep. Research commissioned by the British Acupuncture Council reveals that two thirds of people in the UK are getting less than the recommended eight hours of sleep a night. More concerning is that 1 in 3 cannot sleep most days or would say they suffer insomnia.
Over half surveyed said they had no energy or felt drained the next day if they didn?t get good sleep the night before. And 1 in 2 people feel it affects their mood, losing their sense of humour or snapping at family and friends.
Thame-based acupuncturist, Rhiannon Griffiths, sees this in her patients. ?Lack of sleep has a massive impact on day-to-day functioning,? she said, ?and on so many levels ? physically, it can lower the immune system and create lethargy or exhaustion; and emotionally, troubled sleepers may be more susceptible to stress, anxiety, depression or feeling low.?
This can create a vicious cycle, with statistics showing the top causes for sleep disturbances being worries about money, family, relationships and work, needing the toilet or feeling too hot.
?In Chinese Medicine, night corresponds to Yin,? Rhiannon explains. ?This is the dark, quiet, cool, calm energy. If it is abundant, there is rest, a settling down of the mind, ready for sleep. If there are deficiencies or imbalances within the body, this process is interrupted and sleep issues occur.?
The study also revealed that a fifth of people resort to taking sleeping pills or drinking alcohol to help them sleep, which can make sleep worse long term. In contrast, acupuncture focuses on treating the root cause reason, by harmonising internal energy, known as Qi. Ultra fine needles are inserted into specific points on the body, to address imbalances causing dysfunction.
Despite this, statistics show that 1 in 5 would consider acupuncture for sleep only as a last resort, and a quarter of those polled didn?t realise acupuncture could help with sleep issues.
Rhiannon is not surprised by these figures. ?Perception and lack of information about acupuncture is still one of the barriers in people coming for treatment,? she said. ?From a scientific perspective, acupuncture is known to calm the nervous system and increase endorphin production, which is why most patients find treatment so relaxing ? many fall asleep whilst the needles are in!?
?Whether you have trouble falling asleep at night, or drift off quickly only to wake up in the early hours, if your worries keep you awake, or you just lack energy on getting up, acupuncture can offer some help.?
Rhiannon is offering one lucky person the chance to WIN their first three treatments, worth over
At 3:25pm yesterday (20/02, Oxfordshire County Council Fire and Rescue Service were called to a house fire in Greenway, Thame in which a female occupant sadly lost her life.
Fire appliances from Thame, Wheatley and Slade attended the incident and on arrival were confronted with a fire in the living room of the property and heavy smoke throughout.
Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus quickly extinguished the fire and located the occupant but were unfortunately unable to save them.
The cause of the fire is not yet known and a joint investigation by Oxfordshire County Council Fire and Rescue Service and Thames Valley Police is ongoing.
Visit www.365alive.co.uk for fire safety advice. If you have a fire safety question please call the free phone community safety helpline on 08000 325 999 or email: community.safety@oxfordshire.gov.uk
FOLLOWING on from yesterday’s first report from the historic, first-ever, Examination in Public of a Neighbourhood Plan, here in Thame, the next item on the agenda was the proposed site at Lord Williams’s school, should it move to be amalgamated with the Upper school.
Bob Austin, representing the Thame East Residents Association was next to be call by the Examiner, Mr Nigel McGurk. Mr Austin told the Examiner: ?No one had taken the trouble to talk to us for nine months. Then the Neighbourhood Plan came to our rescue enabling us to form a view and respond to the needs of Thame as a whole. In the end we accepted that, given the situation in Thame and the threat of windfalls, we had to accept a compromise on the number of houses on the proposed Lord Williams?s School site. Allowances had been made for green space (which at the moment is mainly in the South and West of Thame) but if the school did move and windfalls did occur, there would be 775, plus as many more houses as would fit on the site.?
The Examiner said that a number of concerns had been raised around detail of the site. He asked Mr Austin: ?Are you satisfied that the planned approach to the site satisfies the protection of outlook and privacy (of existing residents)? Mr Austin replied that the right ?placing? and density of the houses would allow for some satisfaction on that front and that his association would appreciate a lower number of houses because there would then be a more acceptable level of green space. ?There is very little in the Lea Park area and to the East of the town,? he added.
The last speaker before a promised short break after two hours, was Sue Rowlands of Tibbalds, representing the town council. She was asked by the Examiner if she was satisfied that the planned approach to the school site satisfied existing residents. Ms Rowlands replied that she was satisfied, and that the plan provided an opportunity to bring new public amenity space to that part of Thame, and that they (the council) would look at density matching the existing development. She added that this was one of the possible sites for a new community centre.
The Examiner then asked Ms Rowlands why she was of the opinion that all the sites meet with the ?Basic Conditions?. She replied that the Neighbourhood plan process ensured that all the options had been tested for sustainability etc, tested against the Core Strategy and against the Consultation Vision of November 2011. It accorded with local people?s wishes she maintained, which is why site B had been rejected. She felt that all the options accorded with local and national planning policy, and with the NPPF (National Planning Policy Framework) requirements around viability, deliverability etc.
TOMORROW: Working and Shopping, Choice of ?preferred option? (for housing development) and Getting Around.
PHOTO: Mr Nigel McGurk, the Examiner in charge of Tuesday’s public Examination of the town’s Neighbourhood Plan. He will publish is Statement by the end of the month.
Dear Editor, What worries me in this discussion about the numbers that a Community Centre should provide for, is that a plan for a completely different use of the site would slip through in a routine way. And so, no Community Centre at all. I think everyone should keep their eyes on the target, which they have stated to be … a Community Centre.
Norman Brand