Groby Juniors Under 8’S are flying high GROBY JUNIORS held their annual football tournament and after a fantastic day of football, the 2 under 8’s football teams were victorious in their respective groups. It was a great day in the sunshine and all of the Groby coaches passed their thanks onto the other teams players, supporters and coaches who supported and cheered on their teams in the spirit that junior football should be played. In the finals the Trojans battled back from 2 nil down against GNG Tigers to earn a draw, and then claim the victory with a nail biting penalty shoot out, whilst the Spartans final was an end to end battle against Coalville Town but neither team could break the deadlock, so again resulted in a penalty shoot out where the Spartans were victorious. Steve D, Phil, Andy, Nathan, Steve H and Ben would like to thank all of the players for amazing effort and attitude, and also the supporters for cheering on the teams throughout the day. Looking forward to more of the same next Season, Well Done all.
Vacancy 16-17 year old person required to work in the Cafe at Sevenoaks Garden Centre, weekends only. For more information please telephone 01530 249815.
Happy Birthday Ma’am From Everyone At The Nottingham
STAFF at The Nottingham had royally prepared to help Her Majesty the Queen celebrate her 90th birthday. Building society and estate agency colleagues in Groby had join 56 other branches across nine counties in holding a tea party on Friday 10 June. Customers who turned 90 in the month of June had been invited to the events, which included themed bunting, flags and cardboard crowns as well as free refreshments. The Nottingham’s Head of Branch network Gary Womersley said: “We wanted to play our part in helping Her Majesty celebrate such a milestone birthday. “The Queen is very close to the hearts of many of our customers and we had a cup of tea, sandwich and a scone with them to raise a cup to Britain’s longest serving monarch.” Head of Estate Agency Su Snaith added: “As one of the country’s largest estate agencies, we are extremely passionate about helping people get their own ‘little palaces’ so these events are extremely fitting.
The Music of ABBA & The Beatles
Last chance to get your tickets for Groby Sings Performance dates: Saturday 25th June 7.30pm and Sunday 26th June 3.00pm in the Sports Hall at Groby Community College. Tickets are now on sale from Chaplin’s Butchers, Groby or any choir member at a price of only £5, the same as last year. Tickets are already selling well so get yours as soon as possible and it will be Money, Money, Money well spent on an afternoon or evening of fantastic entertainment. Don’t miss out on our latest fun production, we promise you’ll go home with a smile on your face! Enquiries to: Helen Hayes 07867 963328 or Ruth Matthews 07759 395072 (not to the College, please).
NEXT ISSUE OUT: Saturday 13th August - Advert/Articles needed by 30th July
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
De Montfort Show Review
Jolly Tots
Childcare Groby
Ofsted registered. Care from 6 weeks to 12 years Affordable and flexible childcare
The Johnny Cash Roadshow featuring Clive John I FIRST MET Clive John when I ran the Linford Rose Country Music Club at Newtown Linford, and was a feature writer for the international country music magazine Country Music Round-Up.
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Thursday June 30 Catherine Crompton’s Diary ~ Mr Stephen Flinders ~ Thursday July 28 From Golden Gate to Glitter Gulch ~ Mr Simon Coates ~ Thursday August 25 Elizabeth Woodville ~ Mrs Sally Henshaw ~ Meetings are held at Groby Village Hall Starting at 7.30pm. For Further Details Contact Hon. Secretary Mr. P. Castell Tel. 0116 287 9842 e-mail:- groby.villagesociety@tiscali. co.uk Non Members are Welcome
We met up at the Buxton Country Music Festival where singer/ songwriter Clive John was appearing. I remember writing at the time that I thought he could do justice to Johnny Cash songs. However time moved on, and I gave up the club, and stopped writing for the magazine. Just before last Christmas my daughter Angie said to me “You know Clive John dad, don’t you?” She told me that he was playing the part of Johnny Cash in the Johnny Cash Road Show at the De Montfort Hall on the 20th May 2016. I exchanged emails and phone calls with Clive over the past couple of months, and we got tickets for the show. I have always been wary of ‘tribute’ bands, but at the outset I knew that this was going to be right. Clive was supported by Amanda Stone as June Carter, and Hannah Dallas and Louise Anne Masters as the Carter Sisters. His backing was the Spirit Band with Nick Davis on Lead Guitar, Martin Bentley on Double bass, electric bass and backing vocals, and Darren Bazzoni on Drums and backing
Pictured (l-r): Nick Davis Lead Guitar, Louise Anne Masters and Hannah Dallas (Carter Sisters), Ernie, Clive John (Johnny Cash) and Amanda Stone (June Carter)
vocals. Three of the finest musicians I have ever seen. The show covered Johnny Cash songs from the early 1950s to 2002. Opening with Folsom Prison and Cry, Cry, Cry we continued with old favourites, A Boy Named Sue, Orange Blossom Special, Walk The Line, and a nice duet with ‘June’ singing Jackson. I really enjoyed their versions of Forty Shades of Green and Peace In The Valley. The show closed with the whole audience singing along with Ring of Fire, and the final number, The Next Time We’re In Town. This was very apt because Johnny Cash often used it to close his shows. With the show in its ninth year of touring Britain and the continent, it will be some time before they are back at the De Montfort Hall, but it is a highly polished show, highly recommended, and not to be missed.
Ernie Twells
I’m a really good listener, as long as we’re talking about me.
ON 5TH MAY we had our beloved tortoise Fred taken from our garden and wondered if you could put a note in the next issue of the Spotlight. We are heartbroken, we hoping some one can reunite us. Totally devastated, we woke up on the morning of 6th May to find that someone had been in to our garden and stolen Fred my Beloved tortoise. (Large one in the photo.) Please can you check your gardens in case he has been discarded (especially on the sports field) and escaped to shelter in your garden, and keep your ears out if anyone is offering him for sale. Telephone me on 07908 640732 or email me at jaywillott@aol.com Many thanks
Justina Willott
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Groby Allotment Society News
De Montfort Hall News
71 bands now confirmed for Simon Says… 2016 THE FULL line up of 71 bands has now been confirmed for Simon Says… 2016 by organisers De Montfort Hall, The Donkey, Firebug and The Musician. 34 bands will be playing Simon Says… for the first time from headliners The Wonder Stuff and Ferocious Dog to gypsy-swing band The Gadjos, self-styled champions of ‘vague’ pop, Lacura and doom metal band Mage, all of whom hail from Leicester. 2016 newbies also include ‘nu soul grungers’ Not My Good Arm, a catalogue of classic tunes from The Moonlights, guitar-lead Jesuscarfish, and melodramatic DIY guitar-pop from Kermes. Alongside the bands will be the giant sound of EAGA, choir of the Emmanu’-EL Apostolic Gospel Academy, spoken word performances from Jess Green and stage compere Hibword, and a multi-performer tribute to David Bowie. Simon Says… will once again be a stage for new talent via the BBC Introducing programme which was established in 2007 to support unsigned, undiscovered and under the radar musicians. Performers, James Cherry, Martin Luke Brown, Ash Mammal, and Michael Kurtz have been selected to play at Simon Says… by BBC Radio Leicester’s Dean Jackson. Leicester-boy James Cherry, 22, started writing songs when he was 13 and released his debut EP last year. His track Cry Myself to Sleep was picked up by Dean Jackson via BBC Introducing and went on to be played by Huw Stephens and Annie Mac on Radio 1. Simon Says… 2016 is on 23 and 24 July and tickets are on sale now. Weekend tickets at special advance purchase prices, cost £30 for adults, £20 for students, £10 for under 16s and £7.50 for under 10s. Under-5s get in free but still need to book a ticket. To book or for more information contact De Montfort Hall on 0116 233 3111 or visit: www.demontforthall.co.uk www.simonsaysleicester.com
Book Spot - Psychological Thrillers Between You and Me by Lisa Hall They say every marriage has its secrets. But no one sees what happens behind closed doors.And sometimes those doors should never be opened… Sal and Charlie are married. They love each other. But they aren’t happy. Sal cannot leave, no matter what Charlie does – no matter how much it hurts.
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens. She’s even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses. ‘Jess and Jason’, she calls them. Their life – as she sees it – is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy. And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she’s only watched from afar. Now they’ll see; she’s much more than just the girl on the train…
When She Was Bad By Tammy Cohen You see the people you work with every day. But what can’t you see? Amira, Sarah, Paula, Ewan and Charlie have worked together for years - they know how each one likes their coffee, whose love life is a mess, whose children keep them up at night. But their comfortable routine life is suddenly shattered when an aggressive new boss walks in .... Now, there’s something chilling in the air. Who secretly hates everyone? Who is tortured by their past? Who is capable of murder?
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“Life With A Lottie” By Jane Marston AT LAST the season is in full swing – planting and sowing are going at a pace. Our plot is almost set out now and the boss is already thinking of follow on planting – broad beans, peas, salad stuff etc. We have enjoyed the first of our salad crops from our trug in the garden and have also planted up follow up seeds here. We have mostly run out of our store of root veg now (end of May) and I am sorry to say it is lovely to buy bags of CLEAN veg from the shops! I will quickly get fed up with not having a ready supply in the garage to pick at, or ask the boss ‘what are you bringing home today?’ This is the time of year I experiment with veg that we do not grow on the plot and decide whether it’s time to try something new – someone did ask me the other day if we had grown ginger before – we have tried it once but nothing came through so we have not tried again. We have planted some little globe carrots to see what happens – I will report later in the season, you never know you might see them at the village show! The greenhouse is now all set with the tomatoes – every year the boss says we will not grow so many next year, but of course we always do. We like the little yellow sweet toms for our salads, ‘normal’ tomatoes for general use and I like a beefsteak tomato for cooking and sauces – let’s hope for a bumper crop. The boss and I were not present at the last bacon buttie morning and I am pleased to say the rest of the gang had a record attendance (is there a message there ...). It was a lovely day and I am informed that they even ran out of chairs. Let’s hope the next one is as popular. Don’t forget the bacon buttie mornings are on the first Sunday morning of the month on the Ratby Road site from 10am – 12pm everyone is welcome. We are always happy to show people around the plots if you are interested. I have just listened to a news report that states that potatoes are not good for you! Well we had some baby new potatoes the other day that were a delight and I cannot imagine going for many days without a ‘roasty’ or some form of potato so this is one bit of news I will ignore completely.
RECIPE OF THE MONTH Rhubarb Marmalade An unusual but tangy way to use up rhubarb… • • • • • •
4lb Rhubarb 2 lemons (grated rind only) 2 Oranges (rind and juice) ½ inch ginger (grated) ½ pint liquid – orange juice made up with water. 5lb of jam making sugar
Wash and trim the rhubarb and cut into 1 inch lengths. Put into a preserving pan together with the liquid, ginger and grated lemon rind and bring to the boil and simmer for around 10 minutes. Add the sugar and boil rapidly until setting point has been reached. Leave to settle for around 10 minutes, then ladle into sterilised jars and seal immediately. Will make approximately 6 lb. Tip: To test for setting point, spoon a little marmalade onto a cold plate after boiling for 5 mins. If it wrinkles when pushed with the tip of your finger, setting point has been reached. If not continue to boil.
Based on how he reacts, you’d think my dog’s entire family was killed by pizza delivery guys.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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Gym equipment donated to hospital SURPLUS gym equipment from Hinckley’s old leisure centre has now been donated to the outpatient physiotherapy department at Hinckley and District Hospital by the Borough Council.
Trying out the gym equipment are (l-r): Melanie Sweetland (MSK Clinical Team Lead at Hinckley Hospital), Cllrs Amanda Wright and Kevin Morrell, and Sam Andrews.
The equipment consists of two rowing machines, two exercise bikes, medicine balls, steps, mats and weights and will help to rehabilitate patients referred to the department by GPs and consultants. The donation was made possible thanks to the assistance of the Borough Council’s Deputy Leader, Kevin Morrell, who said: “I had a chance meeting with Sam Andrews, a physiotherapist at the hospital, where I was extolling the virtues of the new leisure centre in Hinckley. This led me to follow up on her comments regarding the old gym equipment. “A few emails and a discussion with Cllr Amanda Wright (the council’s Executive Member responsible for Culture and Leisure) and the results are evident. We are delighted to have helped to secure this great result.” Sam added: “The equipment will help us enormously to improve the care and treatment we could previously offer to patients.”
My life is an open book. But it’s very poorly written and I die in the end.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Elizabeth Woodville News
Premier League School’s Tournament
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Diary Date for Animal Lovers: Redgate Dog Show on Sunday 14th August
The show goes on!
IT MAY seem strange because, as you have probably heard, for financial reasons we can no longer take in dogs at Redgate for re-homing – we are still holding our annual Dog Show and Open Day on the second Sunday each August!
TUESDAY May 17th 2016 will be a date that will live long in the memory of Elizabeth Woodville Primary School. It was the day that our school football team represented the mighty Leicester City Football Club at the annual Premier League Schools Tournament. The event was held at Goodison Park, home of Everton Football Club. Our heroic team had previously won two tournaments at the LCFC Academy to progress to the finals. Having travelled up the day before and getting a good night’s sleep in a very posh hotel, courtesy of LCFC, the players and staff were well rested in preparation for their big day. Our school were drawn against some very tricky teams including; Liverpool, Swansea, West Brom and Aston Villa. We got off to a solid start against Villa, drawing 1-1. A goal from our Mahrez-esque winger, Will Alves, gave us the lead but unfortunately Villa pulled a goal back with the last kick of the game. In our second game we came up against eventual tournament winners, Swansea City. Our team performed brilliantly, however a single goal from Swansea was enough to give them a narrow victory. Captain Jim Hollingworth was the stand out player for our school in the Swansea game with some excellent defensive work and effort. During a much-needed fixture break, we had the honour of entering the Everton FC home dressing room where we got to see the Premier League trophy which had be transported to the ground after the LCFC open top bus parade. (See picture below.) Our next fixture was a must win game against West Bromwich Albion, which was refereed by Premier League official, Andre Marriner. Three quick fire goals from Will Alves gave us a convincing 3-0 victory. Liverpool awaited us in our final game, the winner of which would finish runners up in the group. In true Leicester fashion, we dominated the game with some fast-paced counter-attacking and secured a victory thanks to a goal from Theo Coats. The day was an amazing experience for the children, teachers and parents and will be something that everyone involved can be immensely proud of their efforts.
This year, the big day for the Markfield sanctuary is Sunday 14th August, and, as usual there will be lots to do, whether you are bringing a dog or not. We open for dog registrations at 10.30am and have three marvellous judges and an agility trainer signed up to run the competitions. There will also be all the side shows and activities you would expect , including the Bowmen of Bosworth with their ‘Have-a-go Archery’, a Coconut Shy, giant Bouncy Castle, Slide and Trampolines, Carousel, Pony Rides, Test your Strength, Birds of Prey display, Candy Floss machine, AND the amazing Sambando Drummers who have to be heard to be believed. The fabulous Tunnel MicroBrewery will also be setting up near the barbecue, selling their delicious artisan beers. There will also be live music, hot and cold food, cupcakes and ices fresh from the van! Please make a date in your diary today – and please come along and support us on 14th August. This is our main fundraiser of the year and, as you will have realised if you read our regular articles, running a sanctuary and re-homing centre is a bit like painting the Forth Bridge! *And don’t forget, for the 14th August only – the entrance for everyone is via Billa Barra Lane (postcode: LE67 9PD). Looking forward to seeing you there. If you would like to know more about the Open Day, or about the work of the sanctuary (founded 30 years ago), please feel free to call me, Jo, on: 01530 230 455.
Jo Leadbetter
Redgate Trustee and Fundraiser Charity Registration Number: 1036506
When a man says ‘fine’ he means the battle is over. When a woman says ‘fine’ the war is just beginning.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Report says LeicesterBurton service is unaffordable REINTRODUCING Leicester-Burton passenger trains would cost up to £175 million, plus up to £4 million per year to run, a county council report says. Leicestershire County Council says it would be unable to attract Government funding for the line, as it is poor value for money under Department for Transport criteria and there’s no realistic prospect that Network Rail or HS2 would fund it. The report says revamping the 45 mph freight line to take passenger trains would cost up to £175 million, depending on the speed, frequency and number of stations. It would also need either annual subsidy of up to £4 million, or major housebuilding, to generate sufficient numbers of passengers. According to the report, the route also cannot be justified in economic terms, generating £340,000 of economic benefit per year for an investment in excess of £100million. The report, commissioned by the county council and North West Leicestershire District Council, says: • The current 45 mph freight line, which has some 20 mph sections, would cost up to £175 million to revamp to passenger train standards, depending on the number of stations, whether there was an hourly or half-hourly service and whether the speed limit was 45 mph or 75 mph. • To attract enough passengers to operate the service without subsidy, the 60,000 households along the line would have to increase by up to an additional 206,000 houses, depending on the level of service. At present, there are no proposals for this level of house building along the route. • Under the Department for Transport’s business case terms, all the options tested would represent very poor value for money and therefore unable to attract Government funding. Councillor Peter Osborne, Leicestershire County Council cabinet member for transport, said: “I support the idea of getting more people off the roads and onto trains – but this report shows that revamping the Leicester-Burton line for passenger services represents very poor value for money. “Under our current circumstances, the council cannot afford it and we can’t see anyone else funding it, either.”
Have you paid £24.50 for a £2 bus fare? Norman Griffiths discovers more rail fare madness READERS seemed to like the Spotlight article on how to save money on train fares on a trip to London. The main saving is achieved by travelling from Rugby station instead of Leicester. The lowest return fare from Rugby to Euston is £12 per person, or £8 with a railcard, and savings of up to £123 per couple were found depending on the time of day and how long in advance the ticket was booked. Moneysavingexpert.com has for a long time suggested that travellers check all the legal ways of reducing the cost of rail travel, though departing from an alternative station doesn’t seem to be be one of them. The site advocates checking out whether there are split ticketing savings for the journey you want to take. Split ticketing doesn’t seem to yield significant savings on the route to London but the picture changes when travelling north. Split ticketing means that instead of buying a through ticket from, for example, Leicester to Durham with a change of train at Derby, you check to see what the cost would be by buying separate tickets for each part of the journey. In this example tickets could be bought from Leicester to Derby, and Derby to Durham. Advance booking for early August gave a through fare with a change at Derby of £48.50. Buying separate tickets reduced this cost to £38.40, £4.50 to Derby then £33.90 to Durham. That’s a saving of £20.20 per couple using exactly the same trains. But there’s more! The train passes through York on its journey from Derby to Durham. By splitting the ticketing at York instead of Derby the savings are even greater, as the fare to York is £16.70 and the fare from York £7.10, a total of £23.80. That’s a saving per couple of a whopping £49.40, though as you have separate tickets you might have to change seats. However, there’s another advantage of splitting at York – as you have a separate ticket you can alight from the train
and spend some time in York to see the sights, if you wish. Train enthusiasts can access the National Rail Museum direct from York station. It’s a crazy pricing system that makes customers jump through hoops to get the lowest prices and some travellers may think that even an extra £50 in their pocket doesn’t make the work involved worthwhile.
Is this England’s most expensive bus fare? Here’s more food for thought. Have you booked a through ticket to travel by train to Luton Airport from Leicester? If you have, take a check how much you have paid. Here’s an example based on travel at the end of July, but remember that prices change as more tickets are sold. When checked, the through ticket on the 6.32 from Leicester cost £41 single, and that includes the short £2 bus journey from Parkway station to the airport. The fare can be paid on the bus if you only buy a train ticket to Luton Airport Parkway. A single train ticket from Leicester to Parkway on the same train was priced at just £14.50, so the when the bus fare is included the total is £16.50, not £41. By buying a through ticket, a £2 bus fare is costing £24.50. Such a huge difference couldn’t go unchallenged, so East Midland Trains were asked for an explanation. “We have looked into it and can confirm this is an anomaly in the national system,” explained Andrew Commons PR & Communications Manager. “It is absolutely not a price or issue created by East Midlands Trains. We have now raised it with our colleagues and it will be fixed shortly.” He was asked whether he had a contact at the ‘national system’ who might be able to provide an explanation but added “I am afraid I do not unfortunately. However, it really was just a bizarre anomaly in the system - I doubt they would have an explanation
either.” It took nearly 2 weeks for the anomaly to be corrected and the price reduced.
Get a refund if you’ve overpaid SO HERE’S something else to consider when booking train tickets – there may be ‘bizarre anomalies’ in the system which mean you can pay way in excess of the true fare for your journey if you don’t query it. Some readers may prefer to use the words mistake or error rather than anomaly, and in the case of Luton Airport, thanks to the Spotlight, anyone who has overpaid will get redress and a refund if they contact East Midlands Trains. If you have problems email contact@ grobyonline.tk for help.
Different routes to the same destination? IF YOU are flexible when you travel there’s another way to save on fares. An example is the journey from Leicester to Leeds. At the end of July, for example, trains are every half hour but Leeds is served by several train operators. Prices quoted between 10am and noon ranged from £20.10 via Derby, £43.60 via Sheffield, to £63.60 via Peterborough. The fastest journey is also the cheapest and the longest journey the most expensive. If they don’t have a Railcard discount, a couple can save up to £86.20 one way by choosing carefully which train they travel on. That’s money in your pocket and not the train companies’.
Do you have a tale to tell about rail fare madness? If so, please send it to: contact@grobyonline.tk and share it with other readers.
Coffee Morning in Groby for RNLI Charity THE ROYAL NATIONAL LIFEBOAT INSTITUTION Charity is to benefit from the proceeds of a Coffee Morning that is being held at 8 Wallace Drive, Groby on Sat 16th July. Come and enjoy a coffee, cake and a chat between 10am and 1 o’clock. There will be a raffle and more, as well as Karen’s Krafts for sale. The RNLI is the charity that saves lives at sea.They provide, on call, a 24-hour lifeboat search and rescue service around the UK and Ireland, and a seasonal lifeguard service.With their lifeboats, lifeguards, safety advice and flood rescue, they are committed to saving lives. For more information visit the website at: www.rnli.org
Attended a surprise party at work this afternoon. Fred was really surprised he was retiring.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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My son asked me what it’s like to be a parent so I woke him up at 3 a.m. to let him know that I couldn’t sleep.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
County Councillor’s Report Proposed Reduction in A50 speed limit Bradgate Hill, Groby RESIDENTS will be aware that I have been campaigning to get the speed reduced on this section of the A50 since I was elected 3 years ago. I have engaged the help of two local MPs - Ed Argar and David Tredinnick. Leicestershire County Council has just held a consultation with residents which ended on the 10th June, on two options. Residents were asked for their thoughts on introducing a reduced speed limit along the A50 from the Glenfield Hospital to the Field Head roundabout. Both of the options would see all current lengths of 50mph changed to 40mph and gaps in the central reservation closed. The proposals were: Option A – Reducing the existing 50mph speed limit from Glenfield Hospital to the Field Head roundabout to 40mph, introducing a 40mph section of the northbound carriageway at its junction with Markfield Road and closing seven gaps in the central reservation, leaving the sections near the Scania depot and Groby Parks Farm open. Option B - Reducing the existing 50mph speed limits from Glenfield Hospital to the Field Head roundabout to 40mph and closing nine turning gaps along the central reservation. Officers will now go through the responses and I will keep residents fully updated.
When the over-65s don’t want to stop
Who wants to retire? Not the half million over65s who are currently still in work because they are enjoying it, or who have branched out into ‘dream jobs’ such as gardening or becoming an author. Apparently this rise in ‘grey collar workers’ is down to the baby boomer generation having remained healthier for longer than their predecessors. A survey for LV, the pension provider, has found that the most common occupations for the over-65s still in work and enjoying it was administration, farming, gardening, professional writing and being a lollipop man or woman.
A winning design fit for our Queen I WOULD like to congratulate Danniella Howard, aged 10, a pupil from the Elizabeth Woodville Primary School in Groby, after winning a competition run by Leicestershire Schools Food
Service (a traded service part of LCC.) to design an official Birthday Card to mark Her Majesty the Queens 90th Birthday. The card will be signed by the leader of the County Council and sent to her Majesty on behalf of the children and the young people of Leicestershire. I’m delighted that Daniella’s design was chosen from the many thousands of entries. Congratulations to the staff and pupils in the school. You’ve done Groby proud
Council Tax Scam PLEASE BE aware that two local residents have had calls from a very pleasant young man. He rings and says that their house is one council tax band above where it should be. There is a refund of £200 for each past year overpaid. The forms for the rebate and new band are available from HBBC but this man can do it all for £68. He then goes on to ask for bank details.
Temporary Closure Notice, Markfield Road, Ratby LEICESTERSHIRE County Council Highways have given permission for Markfield Road, Ratby to be closed between Cow Lane and the Motorway Bridge from the 20th June for up to 3 days to allow BT to carry out underground works to cabling. Diversions will be put in place. For all enquiries please contact Highways on 0116 3050001.
Advance Notice Of A Temporary Road Closure Groby Road, Ratby Sunday 10th July 2016. PLEASE BE aware that County Highways are putting in place a Temporary Traffic Regulation Order (TTRO) it is to be made for the following location: Groby Road, Ratby. The purpose of the TTRO is to facilitate carriageway patching works. The TTRO will incorporate a temporary road closure, and a ‘No Waiting At Anytime’ order. These works are programmed for Sunday
10th July 2016, for 1 day. I will update residents of any changes.
Fly Tipping Layby opposite Groby Community College RESIDENTS will be aware that I have covered this in at least two of my articles recently and I agree with Cllr Cartwright’s comments in last month’s issue that it’s not only a blight on the area but comes with a cost to us the rate payers. He will also know that I had already arranged removals of the 3 incidents of tipping recently and I had arranged for officers to put covert CCTV in place and signage in order catch offenders and prosecute them where possible. It also serves to deter them. I must also commend the neighbourhood wardens for their swift response to my requests to move the fly tipping materials and put the cameras in place the same day I requested them. I would ask residents to report any incidents they witness. Please do not hesitate to give me a call I will deal with it immediately.
Groby Library becomes a Community Library I WOULD LIKE to congratulate Janet Bishop and all the volunteers and all the people involved in working towards and finally taking over the running of Groby Library from the County Council. This is a valuable asset to Groby. I know that all through the process Groby Parish Council has backed the project. I would also like to thank them for their funding and also the support they offered. I am always here to give support as your local County Councillor in any way that I can.
Planning Application Lady Jane Grey Primary School 16/00424/FUL LADY JANE GREY Primary School have submitted the above planning application to officers at Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. They are seeking to replace an existing mobile classroom with new modular classrooms.
Holiday soothies FOR DEALING with motion sickness, ginger capsules are your new friend. Available from any health store, they do a wonderful job in calming upset tummies. For fever or frayed tempers, take some camomile tea bags with you. Camomile tea doesn’t just calm your nerves; cooled down, the tea also soothes sunburn. For banning mosquitoes & insomnia, take some essential oil of lavender. Mosquitoes hate the smell, so if you put a few drops around your pillow you can keep them at bay – and help yourself drift off to sleep.
Airline just told my girlfriend she has too much baggage & they’ve only known her a couple of minutes.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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from Ozzy O’shea
Tel 0116 2394336 or 07808 585825
Email: ozzyoshea@hotmail.com I have spoken with officers and told them I fully support this application. New classrooms will be of benefit to the learning environment of the children and will be a great improvement to the school.
Launch of Stop Smoking Services Consultation THE COUNTY council has just launched a consultation on proposals to change the stop smoking service. At present, local stop smoking services are commissioned by the
county council’s public health team and delivered by provider Quit 51 through face-to-face support at GP surgeries and community pharmacies. However, only five per cent of the 17 per cent of people who smoke in Leicestershire currently access the stop smoking service. The proposals outlined in the consultation reflect that the ways in which smokers want to quit and access services are changing. The proposals would also contribute to savings of more than £3.6 million within public health by 2018. The proposals would mean: • Helping people to quit on their own; • Launching a telephone ‘quitline’ offering advice and support; • Targeting specific groups, such as pregnant women and children in care, with face-toface support; • Providing specialist training and support to professionals working with vulnerable groups; The consultation runs until Monday, 27 June and is available at: www.leicestershire.gov.uk/stop_ smoking_consultation with a report going to Cabinet in July.
Hundreds of newspapers and magazines are available in digital library FOR THE first time, users of Leicestershire’s libraries have access to over 5,000 UK and worldwide digital newspapers and magazines. Available via the new PressReader service, readers will have free access to digital copies of worldwide publications such as The Guardian, Daily Mail, Dainik Bhaskar, Gazeta Wyborcza and The Washington Post. These publications join thousands of titles already available digitally to all Leicestershire library members. Since January 2015, the number of eAudiobooks borrowed through the libraries has risen by 172 per cent, and there’s been a 24 per cent increase in eMagazine downloads. Councillor Richard Blunt, Leicestershire County Council’s cabinet member for libraries, said “Our new eNewspaper service has joined our enhanced digital offer to provide a wider range of titles that are available 24/7 to all of the communities we serve. “We believe members will find the service to be a valuable addition to our digital library and that the new worldwide newspaper and magazine titles reflect Leicestershire’s diversity”. Titles are available through the PressReader websiteOpens another website in new window or app providing a range of features including instant translation of up to 18 different languages and an audio narration tool, which allows customers to listen to their favourite publications. In addition, an improved user experience is on offer for library members, with a new version of existing digital services to provide readers with access to eBooks, eAudiobooks and eMagazines. eBooks will now be available from BorrowBox, allowing access to both eBooks and eAudiobooks from a computer, tablet or smart phone. With new and improved access to these digital services, the county council is continuing to provide access to a wide range of digital titles available anytime from anywhere, allowing users to take Leicestershire’s digital library with them wherever they go.
Apple ID/ICloud Phishing Scam FRAUDSTERS are sending phishing texts and e-mail messages to members of the public, claiming to be from Apple. The messages typically state that the recipient’s iCloud or iTunes account is out of date and that they need to follow a link to avoid account suspension. Once the link has been followed, victims are prompted for personal information, such as their bank account details. Protect Yourself: • Don’t open web links contained in unsolicited texts or e-mails. • Never provide your personal information to a third party from an unsolicited communication. • If you have provided personal information and you are concerned that your identity may be compromised consider Cifas Protection Registration which can be found here: https://www.cifas. org.uk/protective_registration_form. • If you receive what you believe to be a phishing message purporting to be from Apple, report it to reportphishing@apple.com I would like to thank you all for your continued support and remind you that should you need my help or advice, I always pride myself on making myself available to residents. Remember I am only a phone call or email away.
Ozzy O’shea Working for you Cllr Ozzy O’shea Tel 0116 2394336 or 07808585825 Email: ozzyoshea@hotmail.com
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Dogs are probably really excited about dog sledding before they find out what it actually is.
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I want to push all your buttons. Starting with mute.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Goodbye PC Ian Wardle Norman Griffiths finds out why he’ll be leaving the local beat
A POLICEMAN walking the streets of Groby will have made many residents think they had stepped into a time warp and been transported back to the 20th century. Sadly they had not been given a new lease of life, they had just seen the proactive approach to policing practised by PC Ian Wardle. And just as his work in the village was starting to yield results the news comes that he is being moved on. come as no surprise to most readers. Is that really a good deal for tax PC Wardle has been one of four The use of tools like the Crime payers?” officers based at Market Bosworth. Harm Index enables forces to focus This neighbourhood covers a large So what do the Police on areas where the crimes are of a rural area that includes over 50 say about it? more serious nature and could lead villages including Ratby, Groby, to a reduction of resources in areas Markfield, Newbold Verdon, A SPOKESPERSON said where crimes don’t score highly on Desford, Kirkby Mallory, Barlestone that staffing on the beats the scale, even if the lives of residents and Twycross, and also the large changes to meet the are made miserable. market town of Market Bosworth demands, risks and threats and several tourist attractions that There is no reason for residents in communities, which bring many visitors to the area. Ian not to welcome such focussing of can mean moving officers who had has specific responsibility resources but what many want is for Groby, Ratby and Markfield is around if there is more of a more money spent on policing. What not being replaced and his duties they get is a £56 billion high speed need for them on another will have to be picked up as best rail line which they may not be able beat. they can by the remaining 3 officers to access easily or has fares they Alongside this, the number of at Market Bosworth. won’t be able to afford. officers on each beat can be Local beat officers try to attend affected by things such as staff How does all this local parish meetings and divide promotions, sickness, pregnancies affect Groby? their time between villages. They etc. so we have to re-deploy support and value Neighbourhood LOCALLY the implication of the staff allocated to each Watch schemes in the area and Neighbourhood Policing Area the changes that are being encourage residents to become (NPA) accordingly. made is that resources need involved, something that was high “We are, like other forces, trying to be rebalanced between the on his agenda. The force attended out using the Cambridge Harm various ‘beats’ and with no the Annual Parish Meeting in May Index in our decision making,“ increase to overall numbers and encouraged residents to report she explained, “however this is this on this occasion is at all crimes instead of shrugging alongside common sense and their shoulders and believing that the expense of the 50+ professional judgement. Issues nothing will happen. Reporting villages served from Market such as anti social behaviour do crime, they were told, assists the Bosworth. not have a ‘sentence’, however police in using the statistics in tackling issues of ASB are still high Despite being urged to report all identifying hot spots and focussing on our agenda as it is an issue that incidences of crime residents will the best use of resources. can cause residents a great deal of now wonder whether that advice distress and concern. is based on an outdated version New ideas about of resource allocation. If that When making a decision about allocating resources vandalised car or smashed fence is how to deploy the officers within the It’s hard to argue with this, at the bottom end of the harm index NPA, along with the Cambridge Harm in terms of sentencing then it will but residents may be less Index, we look at things such as: not figure highly when the index is happy, however logical it • The level of crime in the area used to allocate resources between such as burglary, robbery, might seem, with the use of areas. On the other hand if every and theft of and from motor other new analytical tools one counts even in a small way vehicles and in particular The Crime towards an aggregate it perhaps is • Anti social behaviour in the Harm Index(CHI). an increased incentive to report all area The basis of the CHI is that when incidents, and the way in which this • Vulnerable people living in allocating resources it is not enough mapping is being done should be the area to simply do it by reference to made clear to residents. • Cases of concern that require the number of crimes in an area. The call may be ‘Long live a multi-agency approach The seriousness of the crimes Community Policing’ but some (eg. Involvement from the should also be taken into account. believe ‘Community policing R.I.P’ council ) A research team at Cambridge may be more appropriate. “In my University looked at ways of • Number of offenders living in opinion,” said Councillor Peter assessing relative seriousness and that area Batty, “rather than a genuine suggested that the starting point • Political concerns commitment to Neighbourhood should be the National Sentencing Policing, we are being sold short by • Historical issues Guidelines and the number of the Leicestershire Force which is • Emerging issues days in prison for each offence decimating Neighbourhood Policing The decision to move PC Wardle type. It requires the exclusion of Resources to fund other priorities was done taking all of these factors proactively detected, previously closer to home. Our Council Tax for in to account.” unreported offences. Although in the Police precept was increased at a She added that if the situation the past Home Secretaries have rate above inflation last year and we should change, with the Bosworth tended to argue that boots on the are paying ever more for the service beat requiring additional support ground doesn’t prevent crime the and year on year we are getting less in the future, the force would researchers concluded that the for our money. It was not so long ago look at redeploying officers there greater the time police and PCSOs Groby, Ratby and Markfield each had either temporarily, or permanently, spend patrolling high-crime places, their own dedicated Neighbourhood depending on the need. the lower the crime rate. This will Beat Officer and PCSO.
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Ready meals are now okay
FRIENDS coming for supper, and you’re not sure what to serve? Well, the good news is that now you can reach for the ready meal and not disgrace yourself. According to a recent survey, it is now ‘socially okay’ to offer guests a ready meal when you are pushed for time. Apparently the only time it is still NOT okay to serve ready meals is when the people coming are your in-laws…. they still expect a home-cooked meal. The survey was conducted for Waitrose.
What is your experience of serving ready food? What would YOUR in-laws think? Drop us a line and let us know.
Stay-cations WE LIVE in an era of freshly coined if slightly odd abstract nouns. We all got to know ‘Brexit’ (Britishexit) but next month we shall also experience, I suspect, ‘Stay-cation’ – staying in Britain for your vacation. Terrorism is one powerful incentive to Stay-cate, but so is cost, and all the hassle of international travel. Why not, people think, simply get in the car or book the train and visit some part of our lovely island that we’ve never been to before? If you haven’t seen the Highlands of Scotland, or the beautiful west coast of Wales or the Boston Stump or the Helston River or the Jurassic coast, then why not make that this year’s holiday adventure? There are, of course, two sides to the argument. For my generation, going ‘abroad’ was a wonderful adventure. Good heavens, they actually spoke a different language, and they ate exotic things like pizza, croque monsieur and paella, washed down with unbelievably cheap red wine. Just getting on the ferry was an adventure, let alone shopping in a foreign supermarket. And there’s also the Unique Selling Point, sunshine. Balance up the arguments, and it still comes down to Stay-cation or Go-cation. Those who ‘stay’ will come home astonished at the beauty and diversity of our island home. Those who go will parade their tans for a few weeks and scoff at our fears of delays and terrorism. Whichever you choose – or even if you simply stay-cate at home and sit in the garden – do something different. Autumn is only round the corner.
The most important life skill I have learned is when to stop asking questions.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Tim Lenton remembers the creator of Peter Rabbit…
Miss Beatrix Potter – 150 years on HELEN Beatrix Potter, whose illustrated children’s books have sold in their millions, was born 150 years ago in Kensington. Her family were Unitarians, and the Potters never sent their daughter to school. As a result she had few friends as a child and was reticent in company, though a sharp observer of both people and nature. She was remarkably talented in words and drawing, as well as in natural science, but she was a disappointment to her mother, who had hoped for a more conventional daughter. However she was always close to her governess, Annie Moore, and her illustrated letters to Moore’s children, particularly her son Noel, were the basis of the animal books. The first to be published, in 1902 (after a private printing of 250 the previous year), was The Tale of Peter Rabbit, and others followed quickly. Today The Complete Tales of Beatrix Potter (23 in all) are available as a downloadable, digital audiobook. The success of Potter’s books – she was also a shrewd businesswoman – enabled her to buy land in the Lake District, where she eventually lived with her husband William Heelis until her death in 1943 – being credited among other things with helping to save the traditional Herdwick sheep from extinction. She left her land, including 15 farms and 4000 acres, to the National Trust, and it is as much her legacy as the stories. Her home, Hill Top Farm, at Near Sawrey, is preserved in accordance with her wishes and open to the public.
Cabinet to discuss developer contributions DISTRICT councils are being urged to ensure developers pay fair share for county services. The call came after it emerged the county council has not received more than £650,000 which it requested to be paid towards local education. Over the past two years, the county council has secured £36 million in relation to 100 developments, to fund public services. Under a rule called section 106, developers are usually obliged to contribute towards roads, schools and other public services that may be required due to the construction of new housing and developments. District councils decide most development applications and the amount that developers should pay. Some developers call for section 106 payments to be reduced or waived, in order to make the development more cost-effective. The county council is now encouraging districts to do more to ensure county services are paid for, to provide the range of services which new communities need and to reduce the strain on neighbouring communities. The report also recommends that any significant planning decisions made by the districts which don’t reflect the advice of the highways authority on road and transport implications should be relayed back to cabinet. Councillor Richard Blunt (PICTURED), cabinet member for planning, said: “I want to work with district councils to ensure that public services receive the funding that they are due from developers. “Without that funding, we can’t provide the roads, schools and other services that are needed when new housing and developments are built.” The cabinet will discuss the report when it meets at 11am on Friday, 17 June.
BOOK SPOT Elon Musk: How the Billionaire CEO of SpaceX and Tesla is Shaping our Future by Ashlee Vance South African born Elon Musk is the renowned entrepreneur and innovator behind PayPal, SpaceX, Tesla, and SolarCity. Musk wants to save our planet; he wants to send citizens into space, to form a colony on Mars; he wants to make money while doing these things; and he wants us all to know about it. He is the real-life inspiration for the Iron Man series of films starring Robert Downey Junior. The personal tale of Musk’s life comes with all the trappings one associates with a great, drama-filled story. He was a freakishly bright kid who was bullied brutally at school, and abused by his father. In the midst of these rough conditions, and the violence of apartheid South Africa, Musk still thrived academically and attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he paid his own way through school by turning his house into a club and throwing massive parties. He started a pair of huge dot-com successes, including PayPal, which eBay acquired for $1.5 billion in 2002. Musk was forced out as CEO and so began his lost years in which he decided to go it alone and baffled friends by investing his fortune in rockets and electric cars. Meanwhile Musk’s marriage disintegrated as his technological obsessions took over his life ... Elon Musk is the Steve Jobs of the present and the future, and for the past twelve months, he has been shadowed by tech reporter, Ashlee Vance. Elon Musk: How the Billionaire CEO of Spacex and Tesla is Shaping our Future is an important, exciting and intelligent account of the real-life Iron Man.
When you said we should go for drinks, I didn’t know you meant together.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Church bulletin bloopers
Elizabeth Woodville News
• The preacher for Sunday next will be found hanging on the notice board in the porch. • Churchyard maintenance is becoming increasingly difficult, so it will be appreciated if parishioners cut the grass around their own graves. • Due to the Rector’s illness, Wednesday’s healing services will be discontinued until further notice. • Bertha Belch, a missionary from Africa, will be speaking tonight at Calvary Methodist. Come hear Bertha Belch all the way from Africa. • The eighth-graders will be presenting Shakespeare’s Hamlet in the church basement on Friday at 7 p.m. The congregation is invited to attend this tragedy. • The choir invites any member of the congregation who enjoys sinning to join the choir. • The church will host an evening of fine dining, superb entertainment, and gracious hostility. • The eighth-graders will be presenting Shakespeare’s Hamlet in the church basement on Friday at 7 p.m. The congregation is invited to attend this tragedy. • Irving Benson and Jessie Carter were married on October 24 in the church. So ends a friendship that began in their school days. • Tuesday at 4PM there will be an ice cream social. All ladies giving milk will please come early.
Rice Bowl Final 2016 ELIZABETH Woodville Primary School’s Year 6 football team achieved something that no other team from the school have ever achieved … playing at the King Power Stadium in the final of the Rice Bowl. The Rice Bowl tournament has been going for over 80 years, and in its history our school have never made it past the second round. Our tremendous team, represented our school (in our amazing new football kit!) in the final against Badgerbrook Primary. Cheered on by approximately 500 people, our boys and girls performed brilliantly, narrowly losing 1-0. We didn’t deserve to lose the game and if it wasn’t for some goalkeeping heroics from Badgerbrook’s keeper, we would have lifted the trophy. Well done to our team for being the most successful Year 6 football team in our history.
Workshop with Drew Sumner ON THURSDAY 19th May our Year 5 and 6 children had a visit from local illustrator, Drew Sumner (The children all agreed that Drew is a great name for an illustrator). Drew came into school to inspire our budding artists to become illustrators. He spoke about what an illustrator does and how he became one. During the workshop, Drew explained the process he goes through when illustrating a children’s book. He demonstrated how to use characterisation, viewpoint and mood to create powerful illustrations. Following the workshop, the children returned to their classrooms to work on illustrating their own stories. Drew then spent time in classrooms giving children advice on their own illustrations.
Just tell me when and where, and I’ll be there 20 minutes late.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Lady Jane Grey School News LJG wins £300,000
WE WORK tirelessly to improve the learning environment at LJG. During the course of the last three years we have secured funding for various energy efficient schemes that, in the long term, save the school money that can be spent on other resources. Our drive to be green has taken on a whole new dimension. We submitted a bid to the EFA Capital Improvement Fund to replace the run down mobile classrooms with the most energy efficient school building, ‘Schoolhaus’. For more information on this award winning design please go to http://www. ukenergypartners.co.uk/schoolhaus/. The building will cost over £300,000 and is fully funded. A great effort by all involved.
Marconi Cup
ON THURSDAY 19th May, Lady Jane Grey A team took part in the historic Marconi Cup held at Martinshaw Primary School. Opening the tournament was Lady Jane Grey, playing a very strong Kirby Muxloe team. The first 10 minute half was well contested and very close, with both teams ending the half at 0-0. Unfortunately Kirby Muxloe took the lead through a well worked counter attack. Unfazed by going one down, Lady Jane Grey came back with a barrage of attacks with Max Knight’s intricate passing and Joseph Harwood weaving runs down the wing. This then led to an equaliser by Max Knight which came from a strong run from Francis Walker who then unselfishly set the ball up for Max to smash into the top corner (what a goal). Kirby Muxloe then came back to try and take the lead once more but great defensive work from Josh Jordon and Jacob Boam made sure the score line stayed at 1-1 and that it did. That then put the team in a good position for the next game, where Lady Jane Grey would play the hosts Martinshaw. Once again this match was very close with both teams creating great chances. The first half of this match also ended 0-0 which was mostly down to the hard tackling of Alvin Lo and the Kasper Schmeichel-like saves from Jacob Hines-Den. It looked like Lady Jane Grey had held on to an important point until a powerful cross came in and a Martinshaw player got on the end of it to put the game 1-0 in Martinshaw’s favour. This then created a scenario with Lady Jane Grey, going into the last group game needing a win to take us into the final. With the opposition being Elizabeth Woodville. Unlike the other games with Lady Jane Grey dominating much of the match, a though ball Danny Drinkwater would be proud of was played by Owen Beange to Dieu Bombande, who dribbled past two players and placed his shot at the bottom corner, unfortunately the Elizabeth Woodville keeper was equal to the shot and pulled off an amazing save, meaning the game ended 0-0 and left Lady Jane Grey finishing 3rd in the group, two points off the final.
Despite not coming home with any silverware this time, the squad put in a performance that both the team and the school can be proud of both on and off of the pitch. I would like to thank all the parents that supported the team with a special mention to Mr Jordon for his efforts. With tournament experience under our belt this has now put us in good stead for upcoming fixtures. (Report from Mr Josephs)
Thrills and Spills on Year 4’s Annual Residential
Martinshaw Cup
Upon arrival, the children eagerly unpacked, before joining the year 4s from Elizabeth Woodville and being greeted by their wonderful group leaders, Callum and Dave. They soon faced a range of thrilling challenges: including the mountainous rock-climbing wall; a wonderful problem-solving course; the lightningfast zip-wire; raft building; and the awe-inspiring leap of faith. During the first funfilled evening, the children collected their sweets and gathered around an open campfire overlooking the gorgeous lake. Following some entertaining tales from our group leaders, we engaged in a wonderful group singalong – marking a lovely end to an exciting first day away. After an activitypacked second day, the children dressed up in their finest evening clothes and danced the night away at the PGL disco. Throughout the trip our children showed great courage by facing their fears and daring to attempt challenges they never thought they would: such as the leap of faith, for example, which involved climbing a forty foot wobbly totem pole before leaping off the top onto a nearby trapeze bar! The Lady Jane Grey staff would like to say a massive thank you to our children for their maturity, courtesy, determination and mutual support during their fantastic 3 days away. They have made the school very proud!
WITH THE football leagues complete, the football calendar has moved to the traditional cup tournaments of the summer term. Traditionally, Lady Jane Grey have always saved their best performances for the cups, winning the Benny Clinton Cup in Newbold Verdon and the Marconi Cup in recent years. The Marconi Cup is actually two tournaments. The Martinshaw cup runs alongside it for children in the B team. For the Martinshaw Cup tournament Lady Jane Grey were able to field our strongest team in recent years. We started off by watching Martinshaw beat Elizabeth Woodville 1-0, thanks to a far post strike by one of their excellent girls. Lady Jane Grey were next up against Martinshaw and saw out a 0-0 draw with chances for both sides. This meant a draw was enough to see the team through. However, Elizabeth Woodville were disqualified, as it turned out they fielded a team with A team players in a match best remembered for the quality of Lewis Jones’ goal. So it was that Lady Jane Grey proceeded to the final where they were to face Martinshaw again. Martinshaw scored with the same player at the far post as they had against Elizabeth Woodville. Lady Jane Grey were desperate for an equaliser and with a minute to go the whole team went up for a corner. A brilliant ball was put into the box and Jake Marston was able to put it away to force extra-time. At that point Lady Jane Grey were looking the more likely to win; the team had the wind in their sails after the last minute goal. Martinshaw’s keeper was playing fantastically well snuffing out every chance of a winning goal. In the end it was an own-goal that settled the final. Some of the Lady Jane Grey players went over to commiserate with the Martinshaw defender. It shows good spirit that the children recognised it wasn’t the best way to win the game. So Lady Jane Grey have now got their name engraved on the Martinshaw cup. It is now on to the Benny Clinton Cup for the season finale. Here is a picture of the team!
Our excited year 4 children recently waved goodbye to their parents and embarked upon an adventurous residential trip to Caythorpe Court in Lincolnshire.
LJG’s Summer Fair raised over £1100 for their HSA
LJG’S ANNUAL summer fair organised by their HSA (Home School Association) was a wonderful success. The Alice in Wonderland theme was amazing from Tea Party stalls to an appearance by the Queen of Hearts herself! The HSA raised over £1,100 on the day that will go towards resources for the children. Thank you to all the parents, carers, students and staff for their donations in time and gifts in making this event a success.
To be honest, I thought all this was a dream, so I stopped paying my bills a year ago.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
LOCAL VILLAGE WRITERS’ GROUP
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Letter from Uncle Eustace
On war between parishes The Rectory St James the Least of All My dear Nephew Darren So, now you have enjoyed your first Summer Fete, don’t say I didn’t warn you. It may be small consolation, but remember that they only happen once a year - although in your case, you still have another 40 to endure before retirement. I negotiated our own last week. As usual, the band from our neighbouring parish of St. Eusebius played. There has been much bad blood in the past between our two villages. The trouble started on the day that St. James the Least of All never told St. Eusebius that the Vikings were coming up the river. We may have long since buried the hatchet, but both sides remember where they put it. Tension between the two communities down the centuries has moved on from occasional slaughter to something a little more refined. Just as I began my opening speech to crown the Rose Queen, the band struck up with the National Anthem. When the hog roast started, they played “smoke gets in your eyes” and when it came to the necessary music for the maypole dancing, they all disappeared into the beer tent. With great Christian charity, we shall bide our time. In September we have the annual football match between the two churches’ Servers. Last year, in addition to winning the match, the St. James’ boys sent three of their side off with concussion. Naturally, I visited them in hospital. Miss Prendergast, as always, played Gypsy Rose Lee. If the tall, dark, dear lady tells me one more time that I am about to find romance with a tall dark lady, while she flutters her eyelashes at me, I swear I shall throttle her with a bell rope. Besides, I already have a beautiful dark lady in my life - and my Labrador is devoted to me. The only real hiccough came when I bought 12 packets of fudge from Mrs Masheder to present to our choirboys. Yet again, she had misread salt for sugar in the recipe. After I presented the packets at Mattins the following day, a formal complaint was rapidly made by a parent to the police that the Rector was attempting to poison their son. But as I explained to the officer, if I had intended to poison anyone, I would have done it far more discreetly - and infinitely more efficiently. I toy with that possibility for Mrs Masheder before next year’s Fete. Your loving uncle,
OUR WRITING Group meet on the first and third Wednesdays of the month in Kirby Muxloe. We are a small, friendly group of people, from Kirby Muxloe and surrounding villages, who all enjoy writing in one form or another. Reading out our work to members, as we sit around the table, proves to be very productive in inspiring lively conversation about subjects raised, as well as the content of the writing. We offer critique, if requested, but more importantly encouragement for members to simply enjoy the process of the written word. We do not offer lessons in grammar! We share information relating to competitions and further education, for anyone interested, and offer a theme, or subject, as inspiration to write about for the next meeting. Your initial visit is free and then we charge £3 per visit. A half-yearly subscription will be offered which equates to £2 per visit. These fees cover the charge of room hire. So whether your preference is creative writing, poetry, writing memoire or whatever, if you would like to visit us, to sit in on our meeting and have a coffee, please contact Derek by email: mcgauley5948@yahoo.co.uk or call David tel. 07552 107 461 or Gail 0116 2390241
Eustace
No worries
A 102 year-old lady was asked if she had any worries about the future, and replied: “Not since I got my eldest son into an old people’s home.’
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When wearing a bikini, women reveal 90 % of their body... men are so polite they only look at the covered parts.
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How clean is your car? Really? IF YOUR car is only mildly messy – be very proud of yourself! For a recent survey has found that a quarter of us motorists have NEVER actually cleaned our car, despite eating and drinking behind the wheel. If you have a sensitive stomach, you may not wish to know the following: • 39 per cent of us have not cleaned our car inside or out in the past six months. • Yet 76 per cent of us regularly eat and drink while driving. 19 per cent of us also regularly transport pets, and 12 per cent of us light cigarettes while behind the wheel. So, does a car littered with stale encrusted food, ash, pet hairs and all sorts of indeterminate rubbish embarrass us in front of other people? You bet it does. And we think up all sorts of ways to keep people out of our mess: When asked to give someone a lift somewhere, 28 per cent of us claim to have run out of petrol; 39 per cent of us claim to be heading in a different direction; nine per cent of us claim that the car is not even ours, and 14 per cent of us claim to be drunk. And finally - ten per cent of us are now so revolted by the condition of our own car, that we have switched to public transport, or getting a lift off someone else!
One time I brought my kids to work with me and now my boss is way more tolerant of my drinking.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Groby Gardening Society News Talk on Poisonous plants THURSDAY May 12th saw a hall full of members welcome Richard Woods to talk about “Poisonous Plants”. Richard and his wife run a small nursery called Whispering Trees in Aston-on-Trent. They specialise in lilies, chillies and unusual plants as well as well-loved more common ones. The nursery is not open to the public, but Richard welcomes visits from groups with a prior appointment. Some years ago, Richard and his wife became disenchanted with their life style and decided to give up their jobs. Instead, they embarked upon a career in plants; hence the nursery and their appearance at plant fairs and on the garden talks circuit. His talk was hinged upon the seasons and he introduced numerous poisonous plants as they appeared in the gardening calendar. Although the list was too long to detail here, some general features of these plants became apparent. One large section was comprised of those which, upon ingesting them, caused various stomach troubles including vomiting and a feeling of nausea. Some of these, in serious poisoning, would lead to death. Daffodil and tulip bulbs, lords and ladies and hellebores came into this section. Richard reported that one supermarket had been advised not to display its daffodil bulbs near its vegetable section! Another group included foxgloves, snakeshead fritillaries, lillies of the valley and bluebells. Here, the toxin, digitoxin, can have a catastrophic action on the heart. A slow or irregular heart beat can progress to a collapse due to low blood pressure. Another group of plants have sap which is a skin irritant and euphorbias were especially highlighted. A mention was made of monkshood which is a common perennial plant with attractive flowers found in many cottage gardens. These are deceptive as the plant can be lethal. A clue is in some of its alternative names, viz wolf ’s bane, leopard’s bane, women’s bane, devil’s helmet and queen of all poisons. Every part of the plant is poisonous and marked symptoms may appear almost immediately one is affected and usually not later than one hour. Large doses produce death almost instantaneously. The initial signs are gastrointestinal, including
Ricinus communis, castor oil plant nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. The main causes of death are paralysis of the heart or of the respiratory centre. If all of this is scary, it is worth mentioning that the roots, which are the most poisonous part, would have to be ingested for the most dire outcome. Although the leaves are less poisonous, the toxins can be absorbed through the skin, especially if there is an open wound. Fortunately, cases of such poisoning are very rare. There were numerous anecdotes in the talk and, apparently in rural communities of long ago, unwanted pregnancies were treated with the crushed seeds of aquilia plants. This is not recommended as the remedy can be fatal for the pregnant. As an aside, it is interesting that in most folktales a woman who uses a herbal remedy which proves efficacious is referred to as being wise, whereas a remedy which results in harm is almost always administered by a witch! Some readers will remember the 1978 murder of Georgi Markov. He was killed on a London street by a micro-engineered pellet fired into his leg by a modified umbrella. The pellet was laced with ricin, a deadly poison obtained from the castor oil plant. Ricin can be extracted from the crushed seeds and makes this plant dangerous. In the fenced poison garden at Alnwick castle, where visitors are not allowed in without a guide, there is a castor oil plant held within a secure cage. Perhaps this may be a little over the top, but it does highlight its potential danger. Lastly, a mention was made of the plant that has caused millions of deaths world wide, without itself being very toxic. This is nicotiana rustica, the tobacco plant. As well as containing the addictive nicotine, the smoke
contains over 4000 different chemical compounds, many of which have now been confirmed as carcinogenic. If alarming, it is worth noting, before donning protective suits, goggles and gloves, that such poisoning as outlined is very, very rare. One commentator records only one death, due to hemlock poisoning, during a 20 year period. Such deaths are so rare that most countries keep no records. In fact, there is greater danger from household cleaning products and cosmetics.
The Village Show –Aug 20th SCHEDULES are available from the library and are on the Spotlight web site. In this you will find that exhibits in the container section are now limited to pots of a maximum of 9” diameter.
Digitalis, Foxglove
Future Meetings •
August 11th - “Flowers of St. Paul” Rosemary Hughes • September 8th - “Herbs” (with plants and books) Lynn Tann-Watson If you like the sound of what we get up to, why not come along to a meeting and try us out. You will be most welcome. Our monthly meetings are held at 7.30pm on the second Thursday of the month in the United Reformed Church rooms on Chapel Hill. Details about membership and the events programme can be obtained from Eric Atherton. (Tel. No. 01162876637) or E mail e.atherton637@btinternet.com
Alvar Johnson
Change of date Please note that the October trip to Batsford has been changed to Friday 14th. (Signing board available at meetings)
Trips, outings and events planned for 2016 July 14th/15th/16th (Thurs, Fri, Sat) - Three day trip to Norwich area 1. August 20th (Saturday) - The Village Show 2. October 14th (Friday) - A day trip to Batsford Arboretum 3. November 16th (Wed) Social meal at The Stamford
I don’t like how funerals are usually at 9 or 10 AM. I’m not a mourning person.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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Can you make time to vote for Aynsley Lister? Norman Griffiths finds a June 30th deadline
VOTING IS now open for the 2016 British Blues Awards and there’s another chance to support home grown talent, Aynsley Lister. There are two reasons you may want to vote for him.
Access improvements
Village Hall car park to close for up to two weeks AN IMPROVED access to the library side of the Groby Village Hall has now received planning permission from the Borough Council. The construction of a ramp and safety railings will greatly improve the accessibility of the Hall for disabled visitors as well as mums with buggies etc. In order to comply with Health and Safety regulations and ensure public safety the Village hall car park will be CLOSED from Sunday 17th of July for up to 2 weeks.
Groby Village Hall Management Committee
You may have heard and loved his music and scratched your head wondering how a small Leicestershire village has produced a talent that has been acknowledged and respected within the music industry on the one hand, whilst on the other is probably an unfamiliar name to the public at large. If you need evidence of the recognition of his talent you need look no further than the results of the British Blues Awards. In 2014 he won the “Songwriter of the Year” award, winning the “Best Song Award” for “Home,” from the album of the same name (runner up in the “Best Album” category). He was runner up as vocalist in 2015, but winning the “Guitarist of the Year” category was perhaps the icing on the cake for Aynsley. His ‘Home’ album in 2014 is widely regarded as his best and it marks a critical point in his artistic development. This may not be the blues as you know it if you have in mind the American blues giants or even the bands of the 1960’s revival. This is blues music that stands at the interface with mainstream rock and seamlessly blends the genres. If you need convincing about the quality of the offering you can listen to his music at www.aynsleylister. co.uk. When he was “the boy next door” he was described as the new Eric Clapton, but such comparisons are superfluous as his music and songwriting have matured and developed. If you’ve never heard of the guy check out his music and consider another reason to vote for him. He’s worked hard to get where he is and he’s part of our community, so why not give him your support. After all many contestants on those TV talent shows have been supported by votes from their home towns. Voting ends on June 30th, rather earlier than in previous years. Ainsley has been nominated in the “Vocalist and “Guitarist of the Year”categories and you can vote on www.britishbluesawards.co.uk/vote. htm Aynsley hasn’t had an album release since the success of “Home” and so both fans and music critics will be looking forward to “Eyes Wide Open” due out this summer, though there’s not an opportunity to hear the new tracks live in Leicester until the next Musician gig currently planned for December. The band is, however, having a launch party at Bistro Live in Nottingham on Thursday 4th August. Admission is £27.50 but does include a freshly prepared three-course meal at 8pm. The food gets an excellent 4.5 out of 5 rating on Trip Advisor. The band will be on stage at 10pm with a mixture of fan favourites along with the brand new material. Sounds like something old, something new, something blues. A one-stop professional & reliable service
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Martinshaw School News Year 2 : ‘A Celebration of Work’ Year 2, along with guests year 6, post sats, were invited to ‘More’ restaurant on London Road, Leicester. Not only to test the food, but to be given a demonstration of how the food from around the world is prepared. They visited the kitchen, the spice store and preparation area, where the smell of the various exotic spices was almost overwhelming. Then the washing up area, I denoted a distinct lack of enthusiasm for that part of the kitchen. Now the cooking demonstration and a ‘don’t try this at home’ moment. Flames leapt into the air as the extremely skillful Chef showed how to prepare noodles. Finally the sampling, as everyone tucked into food from, China, India, Italy etc. Not an empty plate in sight as, brimming with new knowledge, the young people returned to school to prepare their own efforts to tickle their families taste buds. Parents and carers were invited into year 2’s classroom to sample food from Iceland, Italy, China and Cyprus, all prepared in the schools new kitchen. And the verdict, ‘Fantastic’.
AT TESCO in Leicester on Bradgate Mall, Carly Hurst was surprised by a flash mob of holiday makers who presented her with a holiday to Gran Canaria. The prize was part of the Unexpected Holiday in Bagging Area competition being run jointly by Tesco and Walkers. Carly plans to take her boyfriend and their friends saying, “I’ve never been to Gran Canaria before and I’m in real need of a tan so this is the best surprise ever!” Walkers have been surprising customers across the country by giving out the free trips to people at checkouts who have brought packs of Spell & Go promotional crisps in its stores across the country. This also included six online deliveries. Walkers Spell and Go is where people collect letters with packs of crisps to be in with a chance of winning one of 20,000 holidays.
Marconi Cup After a couple of years absence, the Marconi Cup finally returned to Martinshaw Primary School after a sporting but nevertheless keenly fought tournament. The ‘A’ team final between Martinshaw and Kirby Muxloe literally went down to the wire. Kirby Muxloe scored first before Martinshaw drew level and then a magnificent save by goalkeeper Oli Brown, followed by a looping, long range strike, by Jack Shaw, into the top corner of the net, just as the referee was about to blow his whistle and send the game into extra time. The game ended with a win for Martinshaw. The ‘B’ team, however, suffered a similar fate to Kirby Muxloe, losing their own final in the Martinshaw cup, by a last minute, tragic own goal.
Bikeability Year 6 Along with some staff and parents, members of year 6 set off from school to the Curve theatre and back as, along with other schools, part of this year’s Bikeability venture. To be honest, the mere thought of it causes me to break out in a cold sweat. Anyway, the ride was completed successfully and safely. I am led to believe that one or two of the, shall we say, senior riders, had the odd twinge the following morning, but all are looking forward to next year. As an added bonus, the school received a surprise email from a group of road workers who had observed the riders, complimenting them on their good manners and general behaviour.
Owen Lawrence
Holiday surprise for Carly at Tesco!
Markfield Surgery and Patient Participation Group (PPG) news PPG Awareness Week will have taken place by now as this year it ran from Monday June 6th to Friday June 10th. Those of you who have had occasion to use the Surgery during this time will hopefully have seen members of the PPG in the surgery waiting room and have been able to chat to them. We will give a full account of the week in our next article. The PPG were hoping to set up a ‘Walking for Health’ group in Markfield which would organise walks lasting about an hour on a regular basis. Walking is simple, free and one of the easiest ways to get more active, lose weight and become healthier. It is ideal for people of all ages and fitness levels. Regular walking has been shown to reduce the risk of chronic illnesses, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, asthma, stroke and some cancers ( see the NHS ‘Choices’ website http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/gettingstarted-guides/Pages/getting-started-walking.aspx for more information). Unfortunately we do not have enough walk leaders to make this viable in Markfield at present. However, there are other ‘Walking for Health’ groups in the area; for example, Groby has a very active ‘Walking for Health’ group which meets weekly. Other groups that run in the Hinckley and Bosworth area can be found on the ‘Walking for Health’ website www. walking for health.org.uk/walkfinder/lets-walk-hinckley-and -bosworth. If you do feel that walking is for you and you have any medical condition, it is recommended that you check with your doctor before you start. The PPG and the Surgery are interested to find out how useful patients find the information displays around the wall of the waiting room. Some people are keen to read them as they wait, others prefer to look at the television screen and read the information shown there. Topics covered in the wall displays include information for carers, ways to develop a Healthy lifestyle, prescription and appointment information and details of Medical and other staff and hours of opening. Some display boards are changed periodically to give information about current health initiatives, for example to promote the Flu vaccine programme in the autumn. It does take time to prepare and display all this information and it would be good to have feedback on how useful you as patients find it. Perhaps you could ask yourself how much information you can recall from your last visit? Did you find what you were looking for? How can we make it more useful? Do let us know directly or via the Surgery. Markfield Medical Centre is also offering a new service for patients who use Hearing Aids. Replacement batteries are now available at the surgery. Patients who require new batteries will need to bring along their card issued from Hearing Services and a battery will be provided.
If God is watching us, the least we can do is be entertaining.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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SYKES JEWELLERS Tel - 0116 236 2510 8 Bradgate Road, Anstey, LE7 7AA www.sykesjewellers.co.uk I lost my job at the bank on my very first day. A woman asked me to check her balance, so I pushed her over.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Spotlight Small Ads • Free on collection - smoked glass and chrome TV/console table. 42 inches wide. excellent condition. Tel: 0116 232 0935.
• Wilson Golf Clubs - left hand, 3-W, 8 irons, new grips, few woods and bag. Price: £30. Tel: 0116 231 2227
• For sale: right-hand man’s golf clubs. Price: £30 Tel: 01530 243778.
• Two beaded car seat covers. Price: £5 • Yantra Mat - ancient stress-relief system. Price: £5 • Donnay full set of golf clubs, plus bag. Price: £15 • Petron full set of golf clubs plus bag and trolley. Price: £35 • Gold standard light - 2 lights, ideal for close work - call for price Tel: 0116 287 6759.
• Antique Victorian Nursing Chair on castors, pink upholstery, v.g.c. Price: £100 o.n.o. • Antique mahogany side table, circular with tripod legs. V.g.c. Price: £75 Tel: 0116 239 3430. • Scotts Easygreen lawn feed rotary spreader. Ideal to help keeping the lawn fed and free from weeds. Price: £10. Tel: 0116 287 0739. • For Sale - Pair of modern beige fabric sofas, two seater 170cm long, three seater 210cm long, good condition, buyer to collect. Price: £100 the pair. Tel: 0116 222 9133. • In-ear headphones, brand new unopened, made for children 7+ with volume limiter and reusable stickers. Price: £3 • Bag of clean polystyrene packing peanuts. Free. • Black and decker Dust Buster Auto car vacuum cleaner. Plugs into car’s 12 volt supply. Boxed, good working condition. Plus Dirt devil heated ice scraper and torch key ring, also plugs into car. Price: £5 • Canon EOS300 film camera with Canon 28-90mm Ultrasonic lens. With instruction book and Tamrac 5516 holster style bag. Excellent condition, smoke/pet free home. Price: £20 Email: louisadesouza@yahoo.com • For Sale: 10” Circular Bench Saw and stand, B and Q make, single phase, 240 volt, in good condition. Price: £60 o.n.o. • Also, Planer Thicknesser, Machine Mart make, single phase, 240 volt, 8” capacity, in good condition. Price: £55 ono. Tel: 0116 287 7356
• Green carpet piece: 4’ x 6’6”. • Small cupboard door, new, 27” x 26” • Ladies bowls wear, full waterproofs, shoes size 4, brown & white, full uniform. • Men’s waterproofs and knitwear. Reasonable offers invited. Can be viewed. Tel: 0116 287 6332 Teak fire surround - in perfect condition. Unmarked, complete with electric fire, black, coal effect. Price: £45 Tel: 01509 561728 • Karcher K2.36m high pressure water washer, plus attachments. 1400 watts, bar max 110, new, boxed and unused. Price: £50. Tel: 0116 287 5973.
IF YOU HAVE any household items which you’d like to advertise FREE in the Spotlight, please SEND DETAILS by post or email sorry, we can’t take them over the phone. Our postal address is Spotlight Small Ads, PO Box 8, Markfield, Leics. LE67 9ZT or you can email details to: info@ grobyspotlight.co.uk. Please put ‘Small Ads’ in the subject line.
COMMUNITY PROJECTS IN LEICESTERSHIRE NEED YOUR VOTE JOHN STORER Charnwood Window Upgrade Programme and Leicester Nirvana Football Development in Leicestershire have been announced as finalists in the 2016 Jewson Building Better Communities competition. After beating 1,800 nominated projects they’ve made it to this stage, and now need your help to secure a share of the £250,000 prize fund. John Storer Charnwood and Leicester Nirvana Football Development are calling on members of the local community to get behind the projects and cast their vote on the Jewson Facebook page. Winners will be awarded building materials from Jewson to help transform buildings up and down the UK into warm, inviting and efficient spaces for the whole community to enjoy. This year, applicants had the choice to nominate a project for either the main prize of a £150,000 transformation, using the Saint-Gobain ‘My Comfort’ building principles, or a share of a £100,000 regional prize fund, where they could ask for anything from £500 to £10,000 to spend on building materials. People have until 19th June to vote for their local project. Votes can be cast via the Jewson Facebook page at www.facebook.com/jewsonuk. David Fenton, Marketing Director at Jewson, said: “Supporting the communities where we live and work is so important to us, and hearing the heart-warming tales of some of last year’s projects motivated us to do even more to help boost community spirit up and down the UK. “By more than doubling the prize fund to a quarter of a million pounds, we’re giving people the chance to transform the community projects and initiatives that are close to their hearts. Now people have the opportunity to vote online via Facebook for their favourite causes, and make a difference to local communities.”
Sandwiches in decline
WHEN DID you last have a sandwich for lunch? It seems that sandwiches are in severe decline across the UK, as workers choose instead to buy prepared food at lunchtime. One reason may be that people are avoiding carbohydrates in an effort to watch their weight. In any case, sales of loaves of bread in supermarkets were down 50 million last year. Kantar World-panel, the market analysts, report that the bread industry lost £138.3 million, “as more shoppers opt for food to go.”
Have you found a good alternative to sandwiches for lunch? Do let us know.
When I die I’m going to donate my body to science. That’s the only way I’ll ever get into medical school.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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HAT a wonderful day we had in and around Warwick this month.
I must acknowledge that the majority of people we came across were volunteers, guiding, making the teas etc and two or three with guide dogs. A very tiring but a great day out, highly recommended.
Lord Leycester Hospital We began with a visit to the Lord Leycester (I have spelt this correctly, in ye olde days they spelt it both ways) Hospital. Lots of people said they had been by it in the middle of Warwick but nobody appeared to have been in. The Hospital (the original meaning of hospital was a place of refuge) was founded by Robert Earl of Leycester. A “favourite” of Queen Elizabeth I who gave him estates and property. He had a desire to find homes for his old and disabled soldiers and when visiting Warwick thought this was the place. However he died without an heir and his estate passed to his sister Mary, wife of Sir Henry Sidney. The patronage of the Hospital has been with the family ever since, the present patron being Viscount De L’Isle. The original walls and foundations are around the late 1300s. In 1450 the Guild Hall was built, a beautiful place (we had a cuppa in there of course). Our guide was The Master, Lt Col Gerald Lesinski, a retired officer of the Armed Forces, a wonderful and humorous man. He introduced himself as The Master but said his wife refused to be called The Mistress, that’s how he began. We all fell for him in a big way! There are now only about 8 retired servicemen (they are expecting their first lady shortly living there), and they are referred to as The Brethren. They come from all three services. Every day the Master and Brethren gather daily for worship, following a very specific set of words Robert Dudley when he established the Hospital. Much of the chapel furnishings are Victorian, with a window over the door by William Morris. Outside is the small Brethren’s Kitchen and beyond that a lovely secluded small knot garden and a passage leading to the Master’s Garden, a delightful garden area ringed with hedges,
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Resolutions meeting
planted by the wife of a former Master. This has been on the TV in the BBC’s Gardener’s World. We can all recommend a visit if you are in that area. By the way the Hospital has had plenty of filming done there, it is so historical. Pride and Prejudice, Tom Jones, Moll Flanders are just a few of the many films and TV dramas shot there. The Master conducted our tour throughout, a very knowledgeable man and gave us a good laugh.
Guide Dogs After lunch we boarded the coach and made our way to the National Guide Dogs Breeding Centre, not far from Warwick. Again another wonderful visit. Split into two groups we were taken around the modern buildings, in all it took obout 2½ hours. The Centre is where the dogs are mated (we didn’t see that, even they like a bit of privacy) but is mainly for the breeding of the pups. Actually only a very few of
the puppies are born there. Mostly the bitches are fostered out in private homes and give birth there but should there be complications they are brought into the Centre. Of course there were loads of oohs and aahs, the pups were cuddly and adorable, just like the Andrex adverts. We were not allowed near them, either looking over at them or viewing through glass. When old enough at about 8 weeks they go to foster parents, coming back around 3 months for examination. Of course there is the usual medical check but also temperament, most important. They are classed between 1 – 4. 1 being rather shy, timid, reserved etc. 4 being over the top, too full of life, so 2 and 3 make the ideal guide dog. The rejected ones are given to other charities were possible or go to private homes. Near the end of our tour, we were “blinded” and sent through a short tunnel which had differing flooring and walls. This was for us to get some idea of what it is to be completely blind, a very educational experience. We finished up with home made cake and a cuppa. This visit was completely free but of course donations were very welcome as it entirely depends on private money, nothing coming from the Government.
At our last meeting we discussed ‘Resolutions’ which are proposed by individual WI members, debated at both local and national level and, if approved, will inform WI campaigns in the near future. Unusually there were two resolutions to debate. They are: 1. Avoid food waste, address food poverty. ‘The WI calls on all supermarkets to sign up to a voluntary agreement to avoid food waste, thereby passing surplus food on to charities thus helping to address the issue of increasing food poverty in the UK.’ 2. Appropriate care in hospitals for people with dementia. ‘We call upon HM Government and the NHS to provide facilities to enable carers to stay with people with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia that have been admitted into hospital.’ There followed a lively discussion which included debate over the actual meaning of the second resolution and contributions from members, many of whom were informed by personal experience. Following the discussion we held a vote and our representative will express our view at the National AGM which is to be held in Brighton in June. There followed a beetle drive – a departure from a well informed and intelligent debate to friendly rivalry.
Luncheon Club Some went to one of our favourite venues for our luncheon club, Ashfields. Every few weeks we have our luncheon club, this was at Ashfields, always an excellent venue.
June Meeting At June’s meeting Ruth Green, a very experience WI speaker, will tell us how to prepare our craft and cooking for judging at our Annual Show which we hold annually in the Village Hall,
Margaret
Country Craft Fair
at Sevenoaks Garden Centre Nursery, Groby Lane, Newtown Linford, Leics. LE6 0NG June 18th/19th • 10am to 4pm I should clean mirrors for a living. It’s a profession I see myself in.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Groby Post Office Re-Opens!
‘Worlds Apart’ - Exhibition & Sale Groby Village Hall (Coffee Bar Room) Saturday 25th June - 9.30am to 12.30pm Mike Pratt is putting on a display of his striking and highly original images during the morning of Saturday 25th June at Groby Village Hall. Come along and view his ‘kaleidoscopic 360 degree’ images, each one compiled from up to one hundred individual photographs.
Cutting the ribbon to re-open the Groby Post Office is centenarian Motiben Mashru, who is the grandmother of new postmistress Ila Mashru.
Fellas Following Footpaths - April to September Instead of the winter Film & Food for Fellas for the lighter evenings the Fellas will be going outdoors and Following Footpaths around Groby. Meeting on the first Thursday of each month at 7.00pm in the URC car park we wall walk out of Groby and back via a different route. We will be walking for 60-90 minutes on at times muddy/rough paths – so walking boots and possibly waterproofs required. If the route takes us by a local pub we will stop for a drink. All Fellas welcome – just turn up and join in. Suitable for all ages takes place on the first Thursday of each month from April – September starting at 7pm from the United Reformed Church car park.
Newbold Verdon Jazz Club WASHINGTON Whirligig’s website states that. “The band has been carefully assembled by Dave to create a new, vibrant and energetic sound for jazz fans”and on Friday, June 3rd they demonstrated that to be true. They gave us a great entertaining evening of traditional jazz. The band led by David Hepworth on reeds, his wife Liz on double bass, Wil Robinson on trumpet, Andy Bramall on banjo and guitar and Rob Cotterell on drums played a selection of tunes previously recorded by the well known Alex Welsh. NEXT MONTH sees Richard Leach’s Clubhouse 6 entertaining us on July 1st at Newbold Verdon Social Club. Admission £9. Doors open at 7.00pm for 8.00pm start. Do come along and join us for another good night of jazz. Further details from Kelvin 01455 822824 or Pauline 0116 286 5496.
It’s good to share! If you enjoy reading Groby & Field Head Spotlight, please pass it on to a friend or relative after you’ve finished with it. Thanks!
I can sympathize with batteries. I never get included in anything either.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
National Trust Leicester Association
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Foxes Never Quit
Kedleston Hall features in new Tarzan film
THE FOXEE Singers are 25 Leicester artistes who got together to record a song to celebrate LCFC’s fairytale season.
THE NEW Warner Bros film “The Legend of Tarzan” will be released on 8th July. Kedleston Hall, the NT property near Derby, was used during the filming as Greystoke Manor, the ancestral home of John Clayton who became known as Tarzan. Filming took place in the grand Marble Hall and in many other rooms throughout the property. There are also many dramatic shots of the exterior of the Hall, some of which have been enhanced by visual effects. In addition a number of NT volunteers were also involved in the production. Kedleston Hall was built in 1765, during the reign of George III, by Sir Nathaniel Curzon who later became the 1st Lord Scarsdale. Sir Nathaniel had inherited the estate in 1758 at the age of 32 and almost immediately tore down his grandfather’s house and moved the nearby village to make way for a palatial new mansion set in idyllic parkland. Curzon finally chose Robert Adam as the architect for his grand house and also to design the furniture and landscape the parkland. The central section of the house contains the Marble Hall, the Saloon, the Music Room, the Library, the Drawing Room and the State Bedroom. This central section was never designed to be “lived in” by the family but was only used for entertaining and displaying the family collections of paintings, furniture, silverware etc. The family lived in two large wings either side if the central block. Today the Hall is considered to be the best surviving example of Robert Adam’s work as the building contains most of the original furniture. After the 1st Lord Scarsdale the family reverted to the quiet life of country landowners. There was however one exception, George Nathaniel, Marquess Curzon. He had a glittering political career and served as Viceroy of India (1899 – 1905) and as Foreign Secretary (1919 – 1924). He established The Indian Museum at Kedleston which is still open as part of the house today. Kedleston Hall is open each week from Saturday to Thursday, 12.00 noon to 5.00pm until 30th October. For details of the Leicester Association and its Talks Service for other organisations please call 0116 2229133.
Alan Tyler, Publicity Officer
The song was called Foxes Never Quit ( Glory Glory Leicester City ) and it reached no 6 in the official reggae iTunes download chart and no 2 in the official amazon download chart, all proceeds going to Prostrate Cancer UK. It was played quite a few times on BBC Radio Leicester and was the featured record on Herdle White’s reggae show on BBC Radio Leicester. The song was written by Peter Ballard and recorded at Leighton Morrell’s studio in Enderby for Bullmark Records. The artistes involved were:Leighton Morrell, Billy Maxwell,Laura Elson, Johny Pallett, Rachel Ball, Andy Brown, Micky Vagas, Lee Jaimes, Dee Quimby, Monty Martell, Sarah Simms, Suzie Lee Scott, Paul Ravel, Paula Swan Sully, Martin Harvey, Karen West, Dean James, Jay Lavelle, Marc Swingler, Lee Jobber, The Heatwaves and The Glitter Sisters,
Billy Maxwell
Every Saturday morning 10.00am—12.30pm
Weekly events for children and young people For 6’s to 14’s on Mon evenings, at 6.00pm or 7.45pm;
for 15-18’s on Wed evenings at 7.30pm; for 15-18’s on Fri at 7.30pm. We meet at the United Reformed Church
Catch
All of these activites, along with our work in schools, are provided by the two churches in Groby under the group name EXTEND.
Fair Cuppa:
fairtrade refreshments in fairly traded mugs! Every Thursday, 10.30—12noon Pop in, meet friends and make new ones!
For further information please see websites and church magazines St. Philip and St. James www.bradgateteam.org.uk Revd. Louise Corke 231 3090 United Reformed Church www.grobyurc.com Revd Sue McKenzie 232 1733 Youth Worker Ruth Cross 07759 087804 Children and Families Worker John Fryer 07540 957926
I beat a black belt at karate. My next challenger is a green sock.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Borough Councillors’ Monthly Report Groby Parish Council New Chairman & Vice Chairman ON MONDAY 23rd May a new Chairman, Brian Rigby and Vice Chairman, Rick Gunn were elected to the respective positions at the Groby Parish Council Annual General Meeting. Ted and I congratulate both Brian and Rick in their new positions and wish them the best of success.
Bosworth Borough Council AGM - Mayor Making ON TUESDAY 17th May the Annual General Meeting of Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council took place. Congratulations to Cllr Richard Allen who will be the Mayor of the Borough for the Civic Year 2016 – 2017. The Leader of the Borough Council is Cllr Mike Hall with Cllr Kevin Morrell as Deputy Leader. Martin and Ted’s Committee Positions are as Follows: Planning Committee: Cllr Ted Hollick – Cllr Martin Cartwright Substitute Licensing Committee: Cllr Martin Cartwright – Cllr Ted Hollick Substitute Licensing Regulatory Committee: Cllr Martin Cartwright – Cllr Ted Hollick Substitute Ethical Governance & Personnel Committee: Cllr Martin Cartwright – Cllr Ted Hollick Substitute Appeals Panel: Cllr Martin Cartwright & Cllr Ted Hollick Highways Forum: Cllr Martin Cartwright – Cllr Ted Hollick Substitute One or both of us will be at each of these meetings to ensure Groby’s representation is made.
Markfield Road Development – Groby Allotments GROBY ALLOTMENT Society had serious concerns over the condition of the boundary wall between the allotments and the development site at 30 Markfield Road. The condition of the wall was such that the Allotment Society believed their members were at significant risk of injury as a result. Concerns were raised with me by the Groby Allotment Society on Saturday 21st May about the condition and therefore Heath & Safety Risk of the wall. The builder
Martin Cartwright Call: 0116 287 4500 Mobile: 078 50 70 70 50 E-mail: hbbc@appliancehome. co.uk Write: Maverick House, 10 Pine Tree Avenue Groby, LE6 0EQ
Ted Hollick Call: 0116 287 5955 Mobile: 07962 373983 E-mail: ted.hollick@tesco.net Write: 7 Shaw Wood Close, Groby, LE6 0FY
had cleared the plot behind 30 Markfield Road for the start of the development to take place. These works had removed substantial vegetation from the boundary and exposed issues to the wall that were not evident beforehand. I reported this to Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council Head of planning and building control. Within an hour an inspection had been made by a structural engineer working for HBBC and concluded the wall was not in imminent danger and therefore not a Health & Safety Risk. If it had been then the appropriate action would have been taken. Being aware that due to the swift action of the Borough Council the Allotment Society had not had the opportunity to meet the officer that made this judgement or ask questions as to how and why he had come to this opinion, a comprehensive site meeting was arranged for Wednesday 23rd May. The issues with the wall were identified, discussed, and questions asked by all parties present were answered, not only regarding the wall in question but all the surrounding walls of the allotments. Whilst the condition of the walls will not improve over time without remedial works, all that can be done now is to monitor the situation and request a further inspection when required if any further deteriation of the wall is spotted. In a separate issue, when the development takes place this could cause further weakening of the wall. Building Control at HBBC are well aware of the issues and if the Borough Council are responsible for delivering the building control element of the planning process all the relevant officers are fully aware of the issues and will monitor the issue accordingly. I would like to thank all the officers
of HBBC as well as the members of the Allotment Society for a positive site meeting that addressed all the concerns. The swift action (within an hour) of officers of the council to establish if there was a risk is very commendable.
Children & Young People Exams MANY CHILDREN and young people by the time you read this will have completed their exams. Thousands of hours of studying go into those exams and now the anxious wait for the results. Parents, grandparents, relatives and loved ones are very proud of their efforts. Ted and I wish everyone involved in exams recently the result they hoped for and the ability to choose their preferred career choices.
Budding Young Entrepreneurs Urged to Set Out Their Stall BUDDING young entrepreneurs, who have got a business idea and just need a platform to sell it from, are being encouraged to try a stall on Hinckley market as part of the launch of the new Sunday market. The Borough Council, working in partnership with the Hinckley BID, is keen to attract young traders aged 14 to 25 to take part in this exciting new venture. Young people will be offered the chance to trade alongside the more established market traders. Young traders who wish to hire a stall to sell their goods will pay just £10. Sunday markets will be held on every fourth Sunday between May and September, from 10am – 2pm. Market officers from Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council will guide potential traders through the process of becoming a stall holder, including helping with public liability insurance.
Young entrepreneurs who get a taste for market trading from the experience and would like to become a regular market trader will also receive follow up support from the team. Under 16s will require supervision from a parent or guardian. Any young people who would like to take part are encouraged to contact the market team at the Borough Council on 07979 882785 (Dean) or by email at culture@ hinckley-bosworth.gov.uk
Hinckley’s new Leisure Centre Now Open SHARRON DAVIES MBE officially opened the new £15m Hinckley Leisure Centre on Thursday 9th June 2016. Hinckley’s new state-of-the-art leisure centre opened its doors to all users for the first time on Tuesday 3 May 2016. The new, environmentally-friendly leisure centre features: • An eight court sports hall • An enhanced state-of-the-art gym, • Cafe and soft adventure play facility • An eight lane, 25 metre main pool • A learner pool with moveable floor • A separate splash pad wet play area ideal for young families • A sauna and steam room • Dance studios • Viewing gallery The area around the new leisure centre is also being landscaped and a clear, grassed play area suitable for school and community use is being formed on the site. All opening hours and telephone numbers for the new Leisure Centre are unchanged. For further information please contact Hinckley Leisure Centre (01455) 610011 or visit www.hinckleyleisurecentre.org At the same time, Mount Road Car Park will become the new Leisure Centre Car Park from Sunday 1 May. The entrance to the car park will move from Mount Road to St Mary’s Road (via Station Road). The new Leisure Centre Car Park will become a short stay pay-anddisplay car park, which is open to the general public as well as Leisure Centre users.
Free Swimming for 60+ THERE WILL be the opportunity for members of the public 60+ to access free lane swimming at 4 public sessions per week. These are varied daytime, evening and weekend sessions and include the following:-
My wife told me I’m not allowed to impersonate a flamingo anymore. I had to put my foot down.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Tuesdays Thursdays Fridays Sundays
14:30 – 15:50 15:00 – 15:50 20:00 – 21:00 09:00 – 10:00 07:00 – 09:00
Free Swimming for under 8’s ALL UNDER 8’s will have access to free swimming when accompanied by one full paying adult. This applies to all public swimming sessions excluding Splash sessions.
Free Swimming for disabled ALL DISABLED users can access swimming for free at all public swimming sessions. I apologize for the wrong information on the free swimming in last month’s Spotlight. I published the information as I had it at the time in good faith and this was incorrect. Sorry for any inconvenience caused.
There is no July edition of the Spotlight. Ted and I thank the Spotlight for giving us the opportunity to keep residents informed of issues through our column. We hope readers have a great summer holiday. Our Borough council report will be back with our next article in mid August 2016 and in the meantime urge residents to contact us if there is anything we can help them with. We Are Here To Help You Should you have any comments or problems you would like us to mention in our articles please get in touch. Please remember if we can ever be of service to you or your family please do not hesitate to contact us, our details are listed above. Kind regards
Martin Cartwright & Ted Hollick
I ‘selfie’, therefore I am Do you take selfies? Do you take more and more selfies? And – more? Be careful – there is a growing worldwide addiction to this seemingly playful trend. And it can be dangerous. On the very practical side – literally dangerous. Last year more people worldwide were killed taking selfies than in shark attacks. “People are forgetting there’s a cliff behind them, or getting squashed by trains,” says one psychologist who has researched the phenomenon. One Japanese tourist in search of the perfect selfie jumped the barrier at Niagara Falls – with fatal consequences. Even if you don’t kill yourself posing for a selfie, beware what this growing trend may be doing to your mind. Such obsession with your own image is familiar in toddlers and teens, but should have a lesser grip on us as we grow older. As the average millennial is now expected to take 25,700 selfies in his or her lifetime, Elsa Godart, a French psychoanalyst and philosopher warns that society is in danger of developing ‘teen brain’. She warns that, far from selfies giving us a stronger sense of our own identities, they will only serve to increase our insecurities about how we appear to others. ‘What may look like straight-forward narcissism can often be… a craving for reassurance that you can only ever get from ‘likes’. But you’re chasing the dragon, because far from calming any neuroses down, posting another selfie will only amplify them.” Put another way, if you crave ‘likes’, you can never get enough of them. She goes on to say that “it becomes worrying when the illusory virtual self you’re selling is more appealing that the real self. So you can Photoshop yourself into your ideal and of course that illusion is so perfect that nobody wants real life any more… although selfies can be anodyne and fun, there is a real danger of us losing our connection to and consciousness of the world around us… Elsa Godart’s book, Je Selfie Donc Je Suis is published by Ablin Michel.
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Grobylinx - local contacts at your fingertips ARE YOU one of those folk who loads your mobile phone with every number that you think you might need? Perhaps you limit your contacts to relatives and friends.
Whichever group you are in you may find a new service on www. grobyonline.tk useful. Called Grobylinx it’s a short directory of important local numbers together with links to the related websites. The odd spelling has been chosen to ensure that a Google search goes straight to it. The page has been designed to be mobile and tablet friendly and has been tested out on the main makes to ensure there are no display problems. So if you are out and about and need to check the number of doctors or dentists in the Groby, Glenfield or Anstey areas they are right at your fingertips. So are all the Groby village schools, the library, the Village Hall booking contact and the post office. The parish, borough and county council details are there as well. And there’s no need to scratch your head trying to remember which days the Waste and Recycling Site is open at Coalville as you’ll find those details, too. There’s nothing worse than taking a chance and finding the gate locked. Of course there’s lots more you may want to look for. But there’s no point in re-inventing the wheel as Mike Pratt’s website www.groby.org. uk has an extensive range of local information and contacts, and in 2002 won a Sunday Times Award as an outstanding community website. So to complete the picture Grobylinx also acts as a gateway to groby.org and details of local clubs,societies and churches as well as the comprehensive history archive and photo gallery. There are contact details for dozens of activities listed on groby.org.uk from Aerobics to Yoga and everything in between. It just needs Zumba and it would be a true A to Z of Groby. The site is also an essential destination if you want to research the history of Groby as it hosts a diverse range of articles and features about the village, more than you ever imagined. To cap it all there’s a huge photo gallery to browse through. And you can access all this either directly or by clicking through from Grobylinx. If you want to read the Spotlight online there’s a link, as well as a short cut to stories about Groby in the Leicester Mercury. A Word compatible document can be downloaded with all the links if you want a look up something when you are not online and you can customise this for your own purposes with those numbers that are important to you but aren’t in your phone contacts list. You may, for example, want to add the number of your plumber but may not want to put it in your contacts list. To find Grobylinx just Google it or go to www.grobyonline.tk. Over time organisations change their phone numbers or weblinks, so if you spot any just email contact@grobyonline.tk and they’ll be updated. You can also use this email address if you think there’s other essential local information that should be included.
Norman Griffiths
I bought the world’s worst thesaurus yesterday. Not only is it terrible, it’s terrible.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
Fast food until midnight and a new role for Wilson and Sons? Norman Griffiths looks at changes coming to Ratby Road THERE ARE changes proposed for the Ratby Road shops which will mean a new takeaway in the premises formerly occupied by Barclays Bank and a new look at Wilson and Sons newsagents. Hinckley and Bosworth Planning Department is considering an application for a change of use of the former bank from financial and professional services to a fast food takeaway. The bank closed after damage to the premises as the result of the theft of the cash dispenser. The applicant, Mr Von Archer of Culsom UK Ltd, has proposed daily opening hours of 9am to midnight, except for Sundays and Bank Holidays when the takeaway would not open until noon. An initial report by the Council’s Environmental Services section expresses concerns that residential premises may be affected by noise and odour. It recommends limits on the opening hours and use of the ventilation flue which would include restricting the opening hours to 11pm on Monday to Thursday, 11.30pm on Friday and Saturday and 10pm on Sunday. In addition it says that if there is subsequently a change of operator that would result in a higher level of grease or odour details of ventilation should be submitted and if any mitigation is required details of the proposed scheme should be submitted for approval. This new fast food option would
increase the choice for residents locally. Currently they are restricted in the evening to eating in the Stamford Arms or Groby Club, or buying takeaways at the fish and chip shop or the Chinese takeaway, although additional takeaway options may also become available in the currently unoccupied part of the former Budgens supermarket.
Wilson’s Convenience Store Next door at Wilson and Sons Newsagents there are also major changes proposed, which will see the village newsagent converted into a Mace convenience store. Mace is part of Costcutter Supermarkets Group which is a predominantly franchise business with over 2,500 convenience stores, trading under Costcutter, Mace, kwiksave and Supershop, throughout the UK. There are now over 50,000 convenience stores in the UK employing more than 407,000 people. Wilson and Sons has been the main local newsagent for as long as most villagers can remember. With supermarkets selling newspapers a slowly shrinking newsprint market is being divided between more outlets and this is inevitably at the expense of the traditional newsagent. However, supermarkets do not offer a daily home delivery service, something which gives young people work
experience and an income. A spokesperson for Wilson and Sons confirmed that the change will not affect the delivery service for morning papers and the Leicester Mercury, so hopefully there’ll be jobs for the paper boys and girls for years to come. With supermarkets selling newspapers and magazines it is hardly surprising that newsagents are looking at ways of protecting their businesses including the sale of groceries, beer and wine. The updated store will have longer proposed opening hours of 6am to 9pm daily including Sundays and Bank Holidays. As part of the re-fit of the shop, it is proposed to replace the existing shopfront. This will include the repositioning of the entrance door in accordance with the new layout of fitments within the shop, together with the addition of a new polyester powder coated aluminium roller shutter for security, in a colour to be agreed. There are planning applications being considered by the Borough Council and readers can register their support for the changes or make comments on the Hinckley and Bosworth website. Just Google the application reference shown below and follow the link. • •
Takeaway - 16/00271/cou Wilson and Sons - 16/00355/ ADV
Into the jungle again at Martinshaw School Should the cry be, ‘Once more unto the breach.........’. No, it’s hardly Shakespeare’s Henry V as Martinshaw’s Early Years Foundation Class prepared for their own venture into the jungle. It was more, ‘I am the King of the Jungle, yeah..........’ Rudyard Kipling’s Mogli. Under the leadership of explorer in-chief Miss McKain, they took on the mantle of wriggly and creepy crawly collectors from their older, bigger but not necessarily wiser contemporaries in year 2 and entered Martinshaw woods. Gone was the fetid crocodile infested swamps after the short dry spell, but let’s face it, if there is mud to be found EYFS will find it, along with beetles, worms, wood lice and the good old slug, all dealt with and studied with much intent. I heard a group of girls discussing ‘Metamorphosis’, so I thought I’d be the big know all grown up and asked, naively as it turned out, what does that mean then, to be met by a chorus of three quoting, what I assumed was a word perfect dictionary definition. So still trying to be clever I said,’ Spell it then’, using phonics, after all they are only 4/5 years old. Again in a chorus M-E-T-A-M......... I then saw that some boys had found a very interesting slug which of course I urgently needed to inspect !!!! On the way back to school, the children holding hands, in two’s of course, with the adults walking close to the road side next to the kerb I needed to step into the highway because of an obstruction, to be immediately met by a finger wagging admonishment with the words ‘Mr Lawrence, don’t you realise it’s dangerous to step into the road’, from, you’ve guessed it, my three little scientists. Sometimes, I feel really old!! And what do you do when you get back from the jungle? You go into the ‘Mud Pie Kitchen’, recently bought by the MSA to relax and knock up a few pies before home time.
Owen Lawrence
Groby & Field Head Spotlight PO Box 8, Markfield, Leics. LE67 9ZT
Telephone 01530-
244069
Email us at: info@ grobyspotlight.co.uk Visit the website at www.grobyspotlight.co.uk 3,500 copies distributed 11 times a year (no issue in July) to homes and businesses in Groby, Field Head and The Brantings. Compiled and published in the Parish of Groby & Field Head. Printed in Ellistown by Norwood Press. The Spotlight is a monthly compilation of articles, press releases, events, general items of interest and news items submitted to us by local residents, groups, associations, sports clubs and local authorities. The opinions expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the Spotlight Production Team. The inclusion of any group or organisation in this publication does not necessarily imply a recommendation of its aims, methods or policies. Groby & Field Head Spotlight cannot be held responsible for the information disclosed by advertisements, all of which are accepted in good faith. Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of information in this magazine, but no liability can be accepted for loss or inconvenience caused as a result of error or omission. Groby & Field Head Spotlight reserves the right to amend, shorten or refuse to publish articles and/or advertisements submitted for publication. All contents © Groby & Field Head Spotlight. None of the articles contained in this magazine are to be reproduced in any way without first obtaining written consent from Groby & Field Head Spotlight.
NEXT ISSUE OUT ON: 13th August DEADLINE: 30th July
I’m really pleased with my new fridge magnet. So far I’ve got eight fridges.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
My doctor asked if I drink to excess. I told him I’ll drink to anything.
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Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
MAGICIANS Wordsearch
6/7/2016
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If you can spot the names of 12 FAMOUS MAGIC ACTS in this issue’s Wordsearch Solutions for aDistricts Free Resources puzzle, you could win yourself meal and a drink. This month we are offering a tasty prize of: A Main Course for Two, plus A Bottle of House Wine at The FieldHead Hotel.
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To go into the draw, all you have to do is find - and mark a line through - the names of 12 MAGIC ACTS. These can run vertically, horizontally or diagonally (and backwards!). Send your entry to: YOU CAN DO MAGIC, Groby & Field Head Spotlight, PO Box 8, H N T R P G Q O I L B S B D D D S Markfield, Leics. LE67 9ZT to arrive by Friday 15th July 2016. Remember to include your name and address. The first all-correct A W X E G E Q S S V Z Z B A L N W entry drawn out of the Editor’s fez will win the prize. R O P M G N N R L J P Z V E D X T Good luck! Here are the twelve MAGIC ACTS you have to find:
R R I F C Z I N B N B I I A R I O Y B R S O J T N A C D F V O D H M H N D B J U K F N N R I I W K N M O E S I E G F R I E D A N D R O Y U R H J A T Y X P B H T V V W C C D R E K K X O P E T E G E D X I O I E W V R N O R V H H O U L T A O N D T Q K C G O M A N Y D O L Q P I K C V D L F I P M T L G U D E E G X K I A P A U L D A N I E L S R F T V S P B H S D H I U U C W N W K A T Q G G K J H K B D Y B T J V D X Y S C J B K E A S W T O M R F E N I A L B D I V A D Q W R E I M DAVIDBERGLAS DAVIDBLAINE DAVIDCOPPERFIELD DAVIDNIXON DERRENBROWN DOUGHENNING DYNAMO HARRYHOUDINI PAULDANIELS PENNANDTELLER SIEGFRIEDANDROY TOMMYCOOPER
HARRY HOUDINI • DAVID COPPERFIELD • DAVID BLAINE PENN AND TELLER • DYNAMO • DOUG HENNING DERREN BROWN • PAUL DANIELS • DAVID BERGLAS TOMMY COOPER • DAVID NIXON • SIEGFRIED AND ROY Name: ................................................................................................. Address: ................................................................................................ .................................................................Postcode: .............................
Last Issue’s Wordsearch Winner The winner of last issue’s Wordsearch competition was: FRANK PALFREYMAN of Elsalene Drive, Groby Congratulations! Your prize will be with you soon.
Groby Spartans under-12s win Division 8 League
Created by Puzzlemaker at DiscoveryEducation.com
WE ARE proud to congratulate the Groby Spartans under 12’s team on winning the Division 8 League. This was done with fair play, hard work, plenty of team spirit and lots of fun. The players have been fantastic all year making them one of the best teams to watch and coach. They fully deserve all the accolades with their superb attitude and most pleasingly the help and support they give to each other.
There’s no issue of Spotlight in July due to holidays. See you again in August! Why do girls always get mad when I try to read their shirts? It’s not my fault I’m blind.
Groby & Field Head Spotlight • MID-JUNE 2016 • Tel: 01530 244069 • Email: info@grobyspotlight.co.uk
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Grobyonline with Norman Griffiths
Free Windows 10 deadline approaches
BY THE time the next Spotlight drops through your letterbox in August the deadline for a free upgrade to the Windows 10 computer operating system from Windows 7 and 8/8.1 will have passed. If Microsoft keeps to its word upgrades will then cost around £80. Nearly half of desktop computers are still running Windows 7 and 13% Windows 8 or 8.1. Windows XP still has 10% of the market. Only 15% of users have taken advantage of the free upgrade to make the switch to Windows 10, and some of them will have done it accidentally or had a download thrust upon them by Microsoft. So if you are still using one of the ‘legacy’ operating systems what should you do? If you are a Windows 7 or 8/8.1 user and are quite happy with it and don’t want any new bells and whistles there’s an argument for doing nothing until the support period and security updates ends. By that time you are likely to be in the market for a new device. Microsoft has decided not to support these versions if they are running on the latest computers and recommends Windows 10, so if you are in the market for a new PC now make sure you ask the right questions. To try and help readers who have to decided what to do within the next month we thought it would be useful to ask for advice from an expert. If you’ve read any of the Windows for Dummies series of books you’ll be familiar with the name of the author, Windows expert Woody Leonhard. He also runs a website called www.askwoody.com which is a blog for Windows users. It’s packed with useful information for those who want more control over their system and downloads than Microsoft would like you to have. So we Asked Woody for advice on what to do. “My best advice right now is to wait,” he replied. “We’ll know a whole lot more about the next version of Win10 - the so called Anniversary Update by the middle of July. Keep watching AskWoody.com for a final word. “Folks need to understand that Win10 is quite different from Win7 and Win8.1 -- not just the interface, which is a little different. The fact is that Win10 gives you very little control over being updated (as “Get Windows 10” victims will understand, as the advertising campaign was forced onto PCs without user consent) and it snoops more than its predecessors. Neither of those is horrible, but they’re important points to understand if you want to see the whole picture.” His advice is to always install essential security updates but let the dust settle before installing the rest and let everyone else have the problems. So what do you do? You’ll find users locally who have upgraded to Windows 10 without any problems and some who have have found that an older PC or laptop has been given a new lease of life. But there are other users who rue the day that Microsoft upgraded them through the back door without them understanding the consequences or they asked for the upgrade thinking it was the right thing to do. Local computer expert Sadhana Stokes of Groby Computers (telephone : 0116 2870 610) has spent time helping some of these ‘victims’ of Windows 10 upgrades that have gone wrong and recommends sticking with Windows 7 or Windows 8 (or 8.1). Microsoft has used routine updates to these operating systems to push the free upgrade, but if you are left with a computer with problems that need professional attention your upgrade may not be as free as you thought. Once the free offer date has passed Microsoft has said it will stop nagging users to upgrade, though Sadhana warns “that’s probably the time when they start asking for your credit card details.”
Keeping safe online Anti ransomware tool IF THERE’S one thing most users dread it’s accidentally downloading a ransomware program which encrypts your files and demands a payment to unlock them. The good news that the anti-virus company Bitdefender has developed a new “vaccine” tool you can use to reduce the risk. The company website explains that it can protect against known and possible future versions of the CTB-Locker, Locky and TeslaCrypt crypto ransomware families by exploiting flaws in their spreading methods. “The new tool is an outgrowth of the Cryptowall vaccine program, in a
way,” Chief Security Strategist Catalin Cosoi explained. “We had been looking at ways to prevent this ransomware from encrypting files even on computers that were not protected by Bitdefender antivirus and we realized we could extend the idea.” If you understand all that please let us know. However, don’t worry if you don’t as it’s easy to download and install. Just Google “bitdefender crypto vaccine,” click through to the website then follow the red link.
Who’s stolen your personal details? ANOTHER frustration is when a website you trusted allows your personal information to be stolen. There’s good news, of a sort, here as well. The Moneysaving expert website is drawing attention to a quick, free and easy way to see if you’re at risk from a number of recent data breaches. The HaveIBeenPwned? website allows anyone to check if their accounts have been compromised. To check if your account’s been hacked just go to “https:// haveibeenpwned.com/” and enter your email address. It will tell you if your account’s been hacked and if there’s a problem it will show a list of breaches with some background information on the hack, plus what data was compromised – eg, email address, password, date of birth, etc. The moneysavingexpert has checked the site out and says it’s well known by industry experts – the head of Government-backed online safety resource Get Safe Online says it’s a “stark reminder to many” of the need to protect yourself online. It’s been featured by the BBC and praised by leading technical sites. Just remember that it’s impossible for the website to tell you everywhere you may have had data stolen from, so you still need to be vigilant.
Tomorrow I am going to open the time capsule I buried as a kid. I can’t wait to see how big my puppy got.
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