Author: Sonja Francis

AS the number of drivers arrested by Thames Valley Police during the first 12 days of this year?s drink-drive campaign continues to rise, the officer leading the operation is warning drivers that if they drink and drive they will be arrested.

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Those who provide positive breath tests or who refuse or fail to provide a breath sample when requested, face the prospect of a prison sentence of up to six months as well as losing their driving licence for at least 12 months.

Insp Colin Clark, said: ?Our targeted road checks will continue up to and over the Christmas and New Year period, so the message is simple – if you drive under the influence of drink or drugs, expect to face the consequences.

?So far we have arrested a total of 117 people for drink driving, which is a 21 per cent increase compared with the same period last year.

?As this is expected to be the busiest weekend for pre-Christmas parties we are continuing to warn party-goers to think before they drive in the morning after a big night out during the festive season.

?We would also like to make it clear that having an extra drink at the pub at lunch can still take you over the limit and have an effect on the driving of even the most experienced drivers.

Supporting this year?s campaign, double Le Mans-winning, Aston Martin racing driver, Darren Turner proved how alcohol affected his driving performance when he took to the track in a Base Performance Simulator after drinking alcohol.

After completing the Monaco circuit whilst over the legal alcohol limit, Darren said: ?That run was really scary. As a racing driver you are always thinking one step ahead and I think I was about three steps behind. I assumed my performance would drop off a bit but not that much. I couldn?t even put a lap together and I actually found it really scary.

?Usually if you make a mistake you deal with it and re-focus but I found that if I made one mistake it overloaded my brain. I also got really annoyed with people talking in the room and that was strange as normally I wouldn?t even notice that.

?I?m surprised at the deterioration,? he continued. ?I would be terrified to drive a real car when I feel like this. I wouldn?t be happy even going 10mph.?

Insp Colin Clark added: ?If Darren had been on the road every little mistake could have resulted in a collision with another vehicle, cyclist or pedestrian, and he didn?t even have to deal with normal road hazards as he was all alone on a race track.

?The simulator provides a protected environment to demonstrate the effects of alcohol and it has been very interesting to show that you can be the best driver in the world but you are never going to win when you take on alcohol.

?If you are going out and know you will be drinking, organise alternative transport or a designated driver to ensure everyone is able to enjoy the festive period safely.?

The highest reading recorded during this year?s campaign so far has been 138mg of alcohol per 100ml of breath, nearly four times over the legal limit of 35mg. This reading was recorded in Earley, near Reading, and a 49-year-old woman has subsequenlty been charged with the offence.

Out of the 117 arrests, 59 per cent (69 people) have been charged with the offence, 26 per cent (30 people) have been bailed and 15 per cent (18 people) have been released without charge.

PLEASE support Rotary Club of Thame’s local charity collection in front of Waitrose, Thame, on Saturday, December 18, on behalf of Thame & District Day Centre, Thame Young Carers, Citizens Advice Bureau, Safari and Other Local Charities.

See details on www.thame.rotaryweb.org

NOTE: Christmas gifts made by the Thame Wombles (Safari) are currently on sale in the Information Centre in Thame Town Hall. Seasonal goodies such as soaps, knitted articles and children?s sweets are individually priced and the money raised will go towards paying wages to the Wombles (adults with learning difficulties).

THIS was the message to the Thame and District Day Centre at its annual Christmas party held this afternoon at The Oxfordshire, near Thame.

After thanking the staff and the volunteers for all their work througout the year, Brenda Prosser, Chair of Centre’s Trustees, also thanked those who had made donations which pay for activities to make a visit to the centre a special day.

WHAT ABOUT THE FUTURE?

Turning to the sustainability of the Day Centre, which has seemed very precarious over the last few months, Brenda went on: “Things are changing,” she said: ?and we will now have to stand on our own two feet, and we will survive!

?Our contract and grant has been through Social Services who have been very supportive. But things are changing,? she said. ?This time last year we didn?t know whether we would still have our accommodation nor indeed whether the hospital would still be there. Now we have been assured that we are part of the plans for the hospital but we still do not know what is happening with Oxfordshire and funding. We won?t have the same level of grant, and so need to think about where we will get funding from. We are going to apply to the Lottery Fund but so are a lot of other charities who need money. No longer can we rely on the ?Lady Bountifuls? of the past but we do have to say to ?The Big Society? that we need some money!”

A STRESSFUL TIME AHEAD

?It is going to be a very stressful time, and Thame has always been generous,” she continued. “But we will only get through it if we have the support of the community. The Day Centre has been here for 25 years and I am sure it will endure.?

SERIOUS STUFF OVER, LET’S CELEBRATE!

The Christmas lunch and the speeches over, Day Centre members, staff, volunteers and guests were entertained by The Gang Busters, who stirred the singing and dancing spirit of young and old alike to join in enthusiastically to numbers from the fifties and sixties, including ?Rocking around the Christmas Tree,? ‘Apache,’ Beatles? songs and ?It?s a Wonderful World.?

?Daisy, Daisy? and war-time songs it seems, are not what gets this generation of Thame?s senior citizens animated. As was clear from an almost unanimous chorus of ?Oggie, Oggie, Oggie!? getting out of your home and socialising with others at great places like the Thame and District Day Centre, is what keeps our older folks from deteriorating and improves the quality of their lives beyond measurement by accountants.

On one front, the Day Centre has received good news. Its rent to the Buckinghamshire Hospitals Trust, will be just over

DOZENS of large brightly-painted rhino sculptures will be a feature visitor attraction for Oxfordshire in 2011. Local company, About the Place Ltd, is working in partnership with Wild in Art – the UK leader in mass participation public art events and related community and education activities – to bring the project to Oxfordshire and give it a new twist.

Called Woa! Rhino, the project aims to create a high profile visitor trail, drive footfall to towns, tourism and hospitality venues, offer a valuable marketing opportunity to business, link local artists, companies and schools, and raise money for charity. There?s more at www.woa-rhino.org.uk and you can follow the project on twitter @woa_rhino

The rhino sculptures, created by Wild in Art?s Creative Director Chris Wilkinson, are 1.6m long, 1.5m tall and weigh in at 40kg. Through countywide network, OTCN, businesses and organisations are being invited to boost their profile and strengthen community links by sponsoring a rhino. Local artists have the opportunity to submit designs for sponsors to consider. A trail is created to encourage people to get around the county to see the different rhinos in place. And after eight weeks on show, the rhinos are collected together and auctioned off, for the benefit of one local and one animal charity. Primary schools can participate by adopting a mini rhino which they get to paint and send out in public. These are then returned to their school owners at the end of the event.

Cities like Liverpool, Norwich and Chester have run similar events but Woa! Rhino is the first to draw the trail into a county setting. Wild in Art?s Charlie Langhorne says: ?We are delighted to be working with the Woa! Rhino team on this exciting initiative. Our previous events, while raising a lot of smiles, also contribute significantly to the local economy.

“Participants and partners of our previous events have seen increases in footfall by anything up to 26% while turnover increased by 14%. We are very much looking forward to working with all partners and stakeholders to ensure that Woa! Rhino is a huge success.?

Oliver O?Dell, founder of About the Place Ltd, says: ?Our county has so much to offer that we wanted to take the trail beyond any one particular city, town or attraction. This means more opportunities to play a part than would normally be the case, and a bigger, more inclusive project.?

The Woa! Rhino team is working with the new destination management organisation, Visit Oxfordshire, to tie in with its work on promoting the county as a visitor attraction. Shadow Visit Oxfordshire Chairman and CEO of Blenheim Palace, John Hoy, says: ?This is an exciting project for Oxfordshire going into 2011 and one that has proven to be highly successful in other locations. Anything which drives visitor business around the county should be both applauded and embraced; and Visit Oxfordshire will look forward to working with the Woa! Rhino team to ensure its success.?

Two charities, Tusk Trust (www.tusk.org) and ROSY, Respite Nursing for Oxfordshire?s Sick Youngsters (www.rosy.org.uk), will be beneficiaries of the end-of-project auction. ROSY founder, Lady Rotherwick, says: ?ROSY are delighted to be involved with Woa! Rhino. It is a great initiative that brings joy to all who see the rhinos, interest and education to participating schools, much-needed funds to charities like ROSY, and increased footfall to all those places where the rhinos are sited.?

Cotswold Wildlife Park owner, Reggie Heyworth, a patron of the trust says: ?Tusk Trust is providing crucial support to rhino conservation projects in Africa, such as funding ranger patrols in Namibia, Kenya and Tanzania for the protection of threatened black rhino populations. There has been a serious surge in rhino poaching during 2009 and 2010, so this initiative could not come at a better time to raise awareness of the plight of rhinos and funds for their future.?

Oxfordshire Artweeks is closely involved with the project as the skill of artists is such a critical part of the success of the trail. Executive Director, Esther Browning, says: ?Oxfordshire has wealth of creative talent and it is great to see businesses supporting accessible art in their own communities, associating their brand with the quality and originality of local artists. The rhino trail will provide an exciting safari through the county?s historic market towns, introducing many new people to the contemporary artists and craftspeople working in Oxfordshire, and benefitting both the county?s traders and artists.?

Pictured: Members of the team behind Woa! Rhino Oxfordshire: Esther Browning (Oxfordshire Artweeks), Oliver O?Dell (About the Place), Iain Nicholson (OTCN), Lady Rotherwick (Cornbury Park & ROSY), Charlie Langhorne (Wild in Art), Susi Golding (Visit Oxfordshire)