Newbury Weekly News

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Thursday, May 11, 2017
THATCHAM
Keeping in touch
Have you got a story?
Contact our Thatcham
reporter JOHN HERRING, on
(01635) 886633, or email:
john.herring@
Twitter @johnh_nwn
NewsupdatesfromThatchamare now
to
newburytoday.co.ukand selectthe districtpages
Motorcyclist hurt in crash
A MOTORCYCLIST was taken to hospital
following a collision in Thatcham on Sunday.
The rider was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospi-
tal with leg injuries after being involved in a colli-
sion with a car in Westfield Crescent at 7.30pm.
A spokesman for the South Central Ambulance
Service said that the injuries were not believed to
be serious.
Neighbourhood
police in merger
THATCHAM’s policing team is
to merge with Newbury in a
bid to cover the town more
effectively.
Thatcham currently has one
neighbourhood inspector, one
sergeant, two Pcs and two Pcsos.
In contrast, Newbury town
centre has an inspector, a
sergeant, two Pcs and six Pcsos.
But the two towns are to pool
their manpower from June in
order to cover a greater area.
The announcement was made
at the annual town meeting last
month by Thatcham neighbour-
hood sergeant Llian Spinks.
She said that the combined
team would result in two
sergeants, four Pcs and nine
Pscos covering the two towns.
“By having a bigger team, it
gives more flexibility,” she said,
adding that having a small team
in Thatcham meant that officers
could be pulled away from the
Broadway if an incident
occurred elsewhere in the town.
“Hopefully it will give us a bit
more coverage,” Sgt Spinks said.
“You will still have familiar
faces in the community and
attending community events.”
Speaking after the event, Sgt
Spinks said that the force was
restructuring to become more
effective following a reduction in
government funding and the
number of officers being cut.
She added that changes to the
neighbourhood policing teams
were because of the introduction
of a new problem-solving team.
“Officers on the problem-solv-
ing team have come from neigh-
bourhood so it means the local
geographical teams are a bit
smaller and hence the Thatcham
and Newbury merger,” Sgt
Spinks said.
“By having two teams covering
Newbury and Thatcham it will
hopefully mean there will be
more times that officers are
about in Thatcham.”
Sgt Spinks said that as the
Thatcham team was on the same
shift pattern there was little
police presence on their days off.
She said the new system would
allow one Pc and two Pcsos from
Newbury and Thatcham to focus
on the town.
“The new structure will
require more flexibility and the
officer will have to deal with the
demands for the day which could
mean all officers are dealing with
a job in Newbury but it also
means if there is an issue in
Thatcham there will be more offi-
cers available to come to
Thatcham.”
And Sgt Spinks said that
longer term issues, such as police
efforts to tackle anti-social
behaviour in Thatcham, would
be able to call on assistance from
Thatcham team combines withNewburyfor ‘more coverage’
Primary pupils to sing with Cold Ash Brass
STAGE and screen themes and
the voices of Thatcham
schoolchildren will ring out at
St Mary’s Church this week-
end.
Cold Ash Brass will be hosting
their spring concert at 7pm on
Saturday, featuring the White-
lands Park Primary School Choir
under the baton of Jess Watson.
Entrance for adults costs £7.50
and £2.50 for children, which
includes an interval drink.
For more information visit
email
or follow @ColdAshBrass on
Facebook and Twitter.
Walk around lakes
for dementia cause
TAKE a walk around Thatcham Lakes and join
in activities to help raise awareness of demen-
tia next week.
The Nature Discovery Centre will be holding
activities between 10.30am and noon on Thursday,
May 18, including taking a walk around the lakes.
Then, between 2pm and 4pm, an afternoon tea
will be held at the Frank Hutchings Community
Hall in Bradley Moore Square with board games,
music and reminiscence opportunities.
The event marks the finale in a week of activities
to mark Dementia Awareness Week by West Berk-
shire Council and other agencies.
Plea for funds to keep
memory café running
A PLEA for funds has been
issued to help people with
dementia in Thatcham.
The Nature Memories Café
has been running at the
Nature Discovery Centre
since January, offering relax-
ing social and creative activi-
ties
After a successful 10-week
trial, the Berkshire, Bucking-
hamshire and Oxfordshire
Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) has
secured funding to keep the
café open for the next 18
months.
But the trust says it needs
more funding to keep it going
long-term.
Centre ranger at the Nature
Discovery Centre Becky
O’Melia said: “The Nature
Memories Café is a lifeline for
people living with dementia,
and their friends and family
members who come along as
well.
“Because we received fund-
ing from Thatcham Town
Council, West Berkshire
Council and Alpkit we were
able to run the café sessions
earlier free of charge.
“Keeping these sessions
free for anyone to attend
means that everyone gains
the benefits of spending time
in nature, as well as the social
interaction that the café
offers.”
BBOWT’s ambition is to
keep the project going for two
years and needs to raise £5,440
to achieve the goal.
People wishing to donate
can visit www.wildcrowd.
org/campaigns/detail/46/
help-people-living-with-
dementia-connect-to-nature
The dementia-friendly
project is run by BBOWT in
collaboration with the demen-
tia-friendly communities
project officer at West Berk-
shire Council.
“People who have come to
the café sessions say that they
are a lifeline,” Mrs O’Melia
said. “The opportunity to
spend time in a relaxing envi-
ronment with others who
truly understand what
they’re going through is
vital, not just for the wellbe-
ing of their loved ones living
with dementia but also for
their own wellbeing.”
Work on second Tull Way flood basin set to start
WORK on Thatcham’s
second flood shield will
begin next week.
A large earth embankment
will be created to the north of
Tull Way to retain flood water
and hold excess water, which
it will then release at a rate
with which local drains can
cope.
The £1.2m flood alleviation
scheme is funded by a
Government grant through
the Environment Agency and
contributions from West
Berkshire Council and
Thatcham Town Council.
The basin is the second of
four to be constructed around
the town to prevent a repeat
of the 2007 floods.
More than 1,000 properties
were affected after three
months of rain fell on the
town in 24 hours.
Projects manager at West
Berkshire Council Jon
Winstanley said: “We are
looking forward to delivering
this important flood defence
scheme for Thatcham and
will be working closely with
all parties concerned to
ensure that the works cause
as little inconvenience as
possible.”
The construction work will
be carried out by Jackson
Civil Engineering, super-
vised by West Berkshire
Council.
Work will start on Monday,
May 15, and is scheduled for
completion by the end of
October 2017.
Normal working hours for
the project will be from
7.30am until 5pm, Monday to
Friday.
A temporary speed restric-
tion of 30mph will be in place
along Tull Way between the
A4 and Bowling Green Road
to allow for safe working.
There will also be off-peak
lane closures on Tull Way to
allow for construction of the
site access.
The footpath from Tull Way
to Cold Ash, which passes
through the site, will be
closed during the construc-
tion period and an alternative
route will be via Ashmore
Green Road.
A basin at the bottom of
Cold Ash Hill was constructed
in 2014 and two more are
planned at Floral Way and
south east of the town.
Centre ranger BeckyO’Melia nddementia-friendly community programme officer SueButterworth atthe
NatureMemoriesCafé Ref:03-2017C
14a Tuesday Market Place, King’s Lynn, Norfolk, PE30 1JN
Visit or phone us on 01553 661 500.
Bob Green
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