Thame.net

Author: Sonja Francis

  • 07/11/11…..Council’s mineral extraction targets are too hight, say campaigners

    OXFORDSHIRE County Council?s targets for extracting minerals are unnecessarily high according to the local branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE).

    The Council has been consulting on its draft Minerals Planning Strategy, which sets out its plans for mineral extraction in the county until 2030.

    In its response to the consultation which closed on October 31, CPRE Oxfordshire has called on the County to look again at the amount of sand and gravel to be extracted.

    Arnold Grayson, CPRE?s local minerals consultant, says: ?The Council is currently proposing a figure of 1.2 million tonnes a year. We think this could come down by around a third, to 870,000 tonnes.

    ?Changes in building design and construction methods mean that less sand and gravel is now needed by the construction industry. There is also a greater supply of marine sand and gravel and recycled material available.

    ?In addition, we are asking the Council to investigate the possibility of bringing in materials by rail, such as china clay sand from Cornwall.?

    Helen Marshall, Director of CPRE Oxfordshire, says: ?These figures are important because they translate directly into holes in the ground and trucks on the roads.

    ?The communities of West Oxfordshire have suffered from the effects of extensive mineral extraction for years, and the County is now looking to open up new sites in other Districts. Anything we can do to reduce these figures to a more realistic level will help take the pressure of the countryside and local people.?

    MORE INFORMATION:

    CPRE Oxfordshire promotes the beauty, tranquillity and diversity of rural Oxfordshire by encouraging the sustainable use of land and other natural resources in town and country. Established in 1931, the charity is this year celebrating its 80th anniversary. We are part of the national CPRE charity. For more information see: LINK

    The County Council is responsible for minerals and waste planning in Oxfordshire and is preparing a new plan for where mineral working and waste facilities should be located. This consultation document is the Council’s draft plan for minerals to 2030. It includes a strategy and policies for sand and gravel, soft sand and crushed rock extraction. The draft plan also sets out the Council’s proposed policies on provision for secondary and recycled aggregates, aggregate rail depots, safeguarding of mineral resources and infrastructure and restoration of mineral workings. For further details see:
    LINK

    SOURCE: Press Release

  • 07/11/11….Walking the dogs leads to new business !

    TWO Oxfordshire women have launched a new business after a chance meeting while out walking their dogs in Thame.

    The inspiration for the name of Sheila Goggs and Natalie Tate’s business, handmade, English stone dogs, came from the names of their dogs, Harry and Hunter.

    “We fell in love with these stone dogs as soon as we saw them,” said Sheila. “Although we had come across other high quality animal statues, they all came with an expensive price tag. We saw a gap in the market to offer quality workmanship at an affordable
    price which we’ve managed to achieve by keeping overheads as low as possible, operating as a web based
    business and from home based offices.”

    “We are very happy for people to come and view our products, but have avoided paying for premises to keep the purchase price down for our customers,” explained Natalie.

    Harry & Hunter have already sold several pairs of their Stone Dogs across the UK, with customers from Southend to Edinburgh, but are keen to establish themselves more as a local company.

    Visit LINK or call 07966 136941 Natalie or 07716017342 Sheila.

  • 04/11/11….Thame Show cancelled !

    THE annual Thame Show planned for July 2012, has been cancelled after it made a loss in 2011, and because of concerns over a clash with the London Olympics and the Queen’s Diaomond Jubilee celebrations.

    The news came in a letter to members and Directors from the Chairman of The Oxfordshire County and Thame Show, Martin Hector.

    Although the show made a small profit in 2010 of

  • 03/11/11….Golf club employee denies beheading

    A 34 year-old accused of murdering a colleague at The Oxfordshire Golf Club near Thame, has pleaded ‘Not Guilty.’

    Jonathan Limani, 34, a waiter at the golf club, is charged with the murder of Restaurant Manager, Chris Varian in August last year (2010).

    Mr Limani was remanded in custody to Broadmoor Hospital after speaking only to confirm his name and enter a plea of ‘Not Guilty’ when he appeared before Judge Anthony King at Oxford Crown Court today,

    Judge King told Limani that he will remain in custody until March 21, 2012 or until the beginning of his trial, fixed for March 19, 2012 – whichever is the earlier date.

    A post-mortem examination found Mr Varian, from Stone in Buckinghamshire, died from stab wounds to the neck following the attack on August 21 last year.

    PHOTO: Chris Varian

  • 03/11/11….Flag consultation ‘will not be a vote’ says council

    FOLLOWING a row among town councillors about which flag should be flown from the second pole on Thame town hall, the council has announced that its promised consultation will not be binding on the council’s decision.

    At a meeting of the council’s Policy and Resources committee, a draft survey sheet to be made available to local people to have their say about which flag should be flown as a default alongside the Union flag, was rejected.

    Apart from grammatical errors, including the question: “What flag should be flown outside the Town Hall?” the sheet included boxes urging people to enter a tick and “cast your vote.” But the Chair of the committee, Cllr Mike Dyer, said that the survey was not to be a referendum but that its results would be taken into consideration by the Working Group to be formed to come up with a policy.

    The options so far are; the flag of St George, the flag of the European Union or a town flag. But councillors at the meeting wanted other options to be considered including a third flag pole and no flag poles at all!

    At a previous meeting the council had agreed that the second flag pole should be used for special occasions and to honour official visitors to the town so, for example, flying the Armed Forces flag on Armed Forces Day, or the French flag when we have visitors from our twin town of Montesson.

    A series of acrimonious letters in the local press from councillors was mentioned by Cllr Peter Lambert, who said that the row was embarrassing and that it was regrettable that so much time had been spent discussing the issue and that “the bunch of adults around this table seem unable to agree which flags should be flown from the town hall!”

  • 02/11/11…..Offenders brought to justice, Antisocial behaviour in Cuttlerbrook & new PCSO for Thame

    LATEST Crime news update for Thame – SOURCE: Press Release; Here is the latest Thame neighbourhood update from Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) Lucy Thorne, PCSO Diane Jackson, PCSO Chris Hollis and PCSO Richard Howard.

    Anti-social behaviour (ASB) Info

    The most common way we can deal with incidents of ASB is by issuing ASB warning letters, acceptable behaviour contracts (ABC?s), anti-social behaviour orders (ASBO?s), Section 27 orders ? direction to leave locality, and Section 59 orders – contracts issued for using a vehicle in an anti-social manner.

    No Section 59 orders have been issued this month.

    One ABC has been re-issued to a young boy by PCSO Lucy Thorne.

    One young person under the age of 18 was issued a warning letter from the ASB team following an incident where they were drinking in a park.

    We have received reports of ASB in the Cuttlebrook, where young people are gathering creating noise nuisance. This area is on our patrol plan and will be monitored regularly.

    Two Youth Restorative Disposals (YRDs) have been issued by PCSO Lucy Thorne to two young boys who committed Criminal Damage.

    Offenders brought to justice

    In October, 18 offenders have been brought to justice for the following:

    One x Assault Occasioning Actual Bodily Harm
    Two x Murder
    Seven x Shoplifting
    One x Possession of Firearms offences
    One x Theft from vehicle
    One x Theft or Unauthorised Taking of Motor Vehicle
    One x Drug Possession- Excluding Cannabis
    One x Criminal Damage
    One x GBH
    One x Criminal Damage to vehicle
    One x Assault without injury
    Crime Mapping

    The Home Office national crime mapping website gives the public access to street-level crime information as well as information on their Neighbourhood Policing Teams, Neighbourhood Priorities and Events – details of Have Your Say and other neighbourhood activities. Log on to www.police.uk, type in your local postcode or neighbourhood name and then click on ?Find out more?.

    Priorities

    Our Local Priority for Thame is ASB. As stated above, we conduct high visibility patrols in and around the town, engaging with members of the public, listening to local people?s community concerns/issues. Where problems are brought to our attention, we conduct home visits with parents present, issue warning letters and work with offenders to encourage them to move forward.

    Partnership Activity

    We continue to work with our partners, ensuring that we liaise on a regular basis with the schools on our sector, who we have good rapports with. PCSO Lucy Thorne has been working closely with the schools over the past month to ensure that contact details are up to date and promoting Education Watch and Caretaker Watch within the schools.

    We conduct monthly site inspections with Soha, South Vale Housing and Sovereign Housing, tackling low level neighbourhood disputes.

    We continue to engage regularly with the local Town Council, picking up any local concerns people raise and events which are taking place over coming months.

    Pubwatch meetings continue to be held every two months and Country Watch meetings are held quarterly.

    Non-partnership Activity

    We would like to introduce PCSO Richard Howard to the team, who joined us in early October. He is an additional PCSO for the town, working alongside PCSO Diane Jackson, PCSO Lucy Thorne and PCSO Chris Hollis.

    Following reports of safety issues at Gas Alley and Ludsden Grove when parents are walking children to and from school, PCSO Lucy Thorne has been liaising with the Town Council and South Oxfordshire District Council (SODC)/ Highways to organise a joint site visit. The area is on our patrol plan and PCSOs are patrolling this area at key times to deal with any illegally parked vehicles and conduct high visibility patrols.

    During October, we have seen a rise in the number of thefts of catalytic converters from vehicles. We have been engaging with businesses and industrial parks and offering suitable crime reduction advice. However, we ask that members of the public are vigilant and should anybody see suspicious activity, please call Thames Valley Police on 0845 8 505 505 to report it.

    Planned Activity:

    We have participated in the following operations during October:

    Maginot – this operation continues to run, tackling travelling criminals entering and leaving our area.

    Due to an increase in thefts from vehicles in the Thame area and surrounding villages, we have been deploying the Automated Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) device at dedicated times and providing a highly visible police presence aimed at deterring and preventing offences taking place, offering reassurance and assisting in the capture and prosecution of offenders.

    ANPR is a powerful tool that can help prevent crime by identifying flagged vehicles.

    Benefits of ANPR

    ANPR identifies suspect vehicles that may not normally attract police attention.
    Unlicensed or uninsured vehicles are likely to be seized on the spot by ANPR equipped officers.
    It can be used to gather intelligence on known criminals, and for running pro-active operations using dedicated Roads Policing intercept teams.
    ANPR cameras are not safety cameras – they are not used by Thames Valley Police to catch speeding or otherwise law abiding motorists. ANPR cameras are not used to generate money for the Government or other agencies.

    Magpie – This operation involves checking parked vehicles in local car parks for valuables left on display.

    Mangrove – this is running initially for eight weeks as a result of fuel thefts from heavy goods vehicles over recent weeks in our local area. This operation involves us carrying out static patrols in key areas at key times in marked vehicles.

    Moonlight- this operation will be running continuously and is working to protect the night time economy of Thame Town centre by preventing and detecting ASB/violent assaults and managing licensed premises. PCSOs are working with police officers to conduct high visibility patrols in the town centre and liaising with the pubs, carrying out licence checks.

    Good News Stories

    PCSO THORNE has identified a further two offenders for Criminal Damage. At this time, YRDs are being issued.

    Please be aware, from 14 November 2011 callers will be able to use the new national non-emergency number 101 to call Thames Valley Police. 101 will replace the 0845 8 505 505 non-emergency number but both numbers will run side by side until the end of March.

    Community Messaging:

    This free service provides information to subscribers about crime and police activity in their area via phone or email. It also includes information on what we and our partner services are doing to bring offenders to justice or combat anti-social behaviour, and information on opportunities for local residents to raise concerns with their local policing teams. More information can be obtained via our website, and you can sign up here too: http://www.tvpcommunitymessaging.org/rmwebportal/startup.aspx

    Have Your Say online

    You can now send non-emergency messages to us using the online form that is available on the Thames Valley Police website. A number of people have already sent their concerns using this method. For you to do that please follow the link: http://www.thamesvalley.police.uk/yournh/yournh-about-nh-pol/yournh-tvp-pol-area-n235-hys. Please allow some time for us to get back to you as we do check our mail box only at certain times of the day.

    There is also the opportunity to attend Have Your Say meetings in person. Upcoming Have Your Say meetings are:-

    Tuesday 29 November 2011 from 11am ? 1pm at Thame Town Hall, High Street, Thame with PCSO Diane Jackson
    These meetings are an ideal opportunity for local residents to speak to their local police officers and PCSO?s about any local issues, no appointment is necessary just turn up and speak to your local officers. Further meetings will be publicised locally and on the force website at www.thamesvalley.police.uk

    If you want any advice or would like to contact the neighbourhood team you can call us on the police non emergency number 0845 8 505505 or email ThameNHPT@thamesvalley.pnn.police.uk. Please note this email address cannot be used to contact Thames Valley Police to report crimes or for any urgent matters. Alternatively you can visit the force website at www.thamesvalley.police.uk to view information on your neighbourhood.

    UPDATES for Chinnor, Towersey and surrounding villages
    http://www.thamesvalley.police.uk/pub-pg-nh-upds-N141?id=197449

  • 02/11/11..Road deaths to be commemorated at special service in Thame

    PEOPLE who have lost family members and friends in road collisions in Thames Valley will commemorate their lives at a multi-faith service to be held in Thame.

    The service, organised by Thames Valley Police, will be held on Sunday 20 November at St Mary the Virgin Church in Thame at 3.00pm.

    The memorial service is an opportunity for the emergency services to come together with members of the public who have lost loved ones to remember those that have died on the region?s roads, or in road collisions elsewhere.

    Police officers, fire and rescue workers, paramedics, ambulance technicians and hospital staff will lead readings and prayers from different religions during the service. Family members will be invited to take part in an act of commemoration during the service.

    The service will be led by David Wilbraham, Force chaplain of Thames Valley Police. The Bishop of Reading, The Rt. Revd Andrew Proud, will lead the Act of Commemoration.

    Chief Constable Sara Thornton said: ?The Road Death Memorial Service is always very moving but I know that it also provides a great comfort for those family and friends who have lost loved ones in road traffic collisions.

    ?We have always held the service in Thame Parish Church, which is a lovely old and peaceful building where the bereaved can spend some special time treasuring memories and finding the strength to move forward. The service brings together all the emergency services and many families from across the area and it is our way in Thames Valley of marking the United Nations Day of Remembrance.?

    Supt Chris Brown, head of Roads Policing, said: ?The Road Death Memorial Service is held on the third Sunday of November each year in recognition of the tragic loss of life on our roads as part of the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims .

    ?In 2010 (Jan ? Dec), 96 people were killed on the roads of Thames Valley and the effect of these collisions is felt by many hundreds of people. We aim to offer support to the families of those who have been killed and we organise this service to mark this very important day.?

    Force chaplain, David Wilbraham, said: ?The third Sunday of November is set aside by the United Nations as a special day of remembrance for victims of road death.

    ?However, while clearly a global issue, the death of someone on the roads is intensely personal and impacts greatly on their families and friends. This service provides a safe, supportive place for those affected to come together to remember and commemorate their individual loss.

    ?For some, this service has become an annual event, we welcome them and extend the invitation to others whose lives have been affected by death on the roads to join us.?

    This is the sixth year that the service has taken place, and it is believed to be the only service of its kind in the UK organised by a police force.

    Everyone is welcome to attend the event, and can reserve a space by contacting Elizabeth Richardson on 01189 231802 or, alternatively, email Elizabeth Richardson.

    SOURCE: Press Release

  • 02/11/11….Christmas cards for good causes on sale in Thame

    CARDS for Good Causes will be holding its Christmas card shop at Christchurch in Upper High Street, Thame, from November 15 to December 3, from 10am to 4pm.

    Cards for Good Causes Ltd (CFGC) pays the participating charities (or their trading subsidiaries) at least 75p in every pound from their card sales, less the VAT payable on the amount retained by CFGC. The retained amount covers CFGC’s costs of running the temporary charity Christmas card shops. In addition to these costs, the participants have to pay for the production and distribution of their cards.

    For details of shops nationwide, call 01264 361 555 or shop online at www.cardsforcharity.co.uk

  • 02/11/11…Thame Hockey Club’s Men’s seconds climb the league

    THAME Hockey Club’s Mens 2s beat Newbury and Thatcham 4s away 2-1 (half time score 2-1). The first goal was scored by Will Hawthorne, the second by David Bruggink.

    The visiting side conceeded a goal 15 minutes into the first half but didn’t let their opponents get the better of them. An impressive run by Howard brought the ball to the top of the D where it was picked up by Hawthorne who wasted no time in slamming home an equaliser.

    A second goal came soon after by Bruggink assisted by Gould (MOM) and the half time score of 2-1 was then held to the end of the game giving Thame Mens 2s their third succesive win, and moving them up to third in the league.

    http://www.thamehockey.co.uk/

  • 02/11/11…..Thame neighbours battle over amenity land

    A piece of amenity land in the Lenthall Green area of Thame may be sold off as gardens after neighbours claimed it encourages anti-social behaviour.

    But other neighbours dispute this claim and say that the small secluded area that backs onto Langdale Road is used by dog walkers and younger, supervised children playing. Other neighbours fear that if the parcel of land is sold off, there would be the potential for more residential noise, particularly in the summer. Other neighbours say that they have not been made aware of any recent applications to change the use of the land and others fear that the planting of trees in any new gardens may lead to loss of light.

    At a meeting of Thame Town Council’s Policy and Resources committee last night, Mr Peter Harris, of Langdale Road, spoke to councillors on behalf of four other neighbouring residents who wish to pay the