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Cyclists Gear Up to Help Make sure you can vote on 5 May Mend a Broken Heart Figures published by the Office of National Statistics recently show that there are 78,906 people registered to vote in Cheltenham.
Bike ride fundraiser helps British Heart Foundation (BHF) save lives Cyclists from all over Gloucestershire are putting their hearts into pedal power in time for the 21st Cotswold Bike Ride set for Sunday 15th May 2011 to help raise vital funds for the British Heart Foundation (BHF) – the nation’s heart charity. The event, organised by volunteers from the BHF’s Cheltenham Fundraising Committee, is asking cyclists of all ages to help save and improve the lives of heart patients by jumping in the saddle for this 40 mile bike ride around the Cotswolds. The bike ride starts and ends in Bishops Cleeve, and travels through picturesque countryside and the villages of Brockhampton, Temple Guiting and Gotherington. All money raised from the event will support the BHF in its fight against heart and circulatory disease.
Local volunteer and Chairman of the BHF’s Cheltenham Fundraising Branch, Steve Syer says: “I am a heart transplant patient myself and I might not still be here without the help of the BHF’s pioneering research work. It’s important to raise awareness about the charity and the vital work that they do. “This is the 50th anniversary year for the BHF, and the 21st year of the Cotswold Bike Ride. In that time we have raised almost £600,000 to help BHF research into heart disease. Although I can’t physically participate in the bike ride, I urge you to join other cyclists professional and amateur - in signing up for the Bike Ride on 15th May. Taking part in events like this, helps the BHF continue to save lives every day. Your sponsorship will make a big difference in helping beat heart disease for good” To help us in saving lives, please do your best to support raise a minimum of £50 sponsorship for this event. For
more information, call Steve Syer on 01452 555892, email cotswoldsbikeride@blueyonder.co.uk or visit www.bhf.org.uk/cotswolds2011. If you don’t feel up to taking on the bike ride, perhaps you would like to join the merry band of volunteers who marshall the route and provide refreshments to the cyclists along the route – any volunteers would be made most welcome – please contact Steve Syer for more information. The BHF can only continue because you support our lifesaving work. If you would like to find out more about organising your own fundraising event for the BHF, or are interested in volunteering, please call your Fundraising & Volunteer Manager Rachel Davis on 07879 440415 or email davisr@bhf.org.uk today. Keep working with us and we will beat heart disease – for good. For more information about the BHF’s work, visit bhf.org.uk.
Andrew North, chief executive at Cheltenham Borough Council is reminding residents that they may need to act now if they are to have their say at the UK referendum on the voting system to the UK Parliament taking place on Thursday 5 May. He said: “Anyone who has moved house in the past few months needs to register with their new address to avoid missing out on their vote.’’ Residents can request a registration form by calling Cheltenham electoral registration office or by printing off a registration form from www.aboutmyvote.co.uk.
Adrian Greenfrom the Electoral Commission, the independent elections watchdog, added: “Residents may also be planning to be away on 5 May, given the extra Bank Holiday for the Royal Wedding. So it’s worth applying now to vote by post or proxy if that will suit your plans. You can print off the forms from www.aboutmyvote.co.uk. It just takes a few minutes, and then you are all set for 5 May.” For more information and to check your details on the electoral register are correct call 01242 264132, email elections@cheltenham.gov.uk, visit or write to: Cheltenham electoral registration office, Cheltenham Borough Council, Municipal Offices, Cheltenham GL50 9SA
Buyers Beware Ahead of Olympic Ticket Sales
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ith less than one week to go until the ticketing process for the Olympic Games opens, Police are giving ticket buyers new advice to make sure it’s the criminals who miss out. The rise in the use of the internet to purchase tickets and accommodation packages online, coupled with the huge expected demand, gives criminals new opportunities to sell non-existent tickets and steal personal and credit card details to use in other crimes. Over 8 million tickets will be made available for the Olympic Games and a further 2 million for the Paralympics. The ticket process for the Olympic Games opens on 15 March and runs until 26 April. By taking some simple steps anyone buying a ticket can keep help prevent them becoming a victim. Crime Reduction Officer for Gloucestershire Police, Paul Francis, said: “The 2012 Games will be one of the biggest sporting events this country has ever hosted, with nearly 11m tickets available for events right across the country. “Criminals will be looking for ways to con and steal, either through selling fake tickets or setting up professional looking sites which may look honest, but could leave you a victim. “There is some easy-to-follow advice which will help keep you safe and
ensure you can enjoy the Games next year.” If you’re buying a ticket for the Games: * The London 2012 ticket application process opens on the 15 March and you have until 26 April to apply for tickets through LOCOG as tickets are not allocated on a first come first served basis. * The only way to apply for a ticket in the UK is at www.tickets.london2012.com. This is London 2012’s official site. You can also get a postal application from any Lloyds TSB branch, or from any public library in Northern Ireland. Don’t buy a ticket from an unauthorised website or tout. You risk being scammed, and not getting the ticket you wanted and paid for. * If you get a ticket for an event you can’t attend, you can return your ticket to get a refund through the London 2012 official ticket exchange. Your ticket will then be officially resold. Details of this will be announced in due course. * There are only three official providers for Games Breaks and Hospitality Packages in the UK - these are: Thomas Cook -
www.thomascooklondon2012.com Prestige Travel www.prestigeticketing.london2012.com Jet Set Travel - www.jetsetsports.com * Other websites or companies will not be authorised to sell you a ticket as part of a package in the UK. Always check the terms and conditions to see exactly what you are being sold; * Outside of the UK London 2012 tickets are sold through the country’s National Olympic Committee, or their authorised retailer. * If you find tickets for sale before the 15th March 2011 or available from any unauthorised source at anytime, don’t buy them. They are not genuine. Report it to your local police, or London 2012 via brandprotection@london2012.com
Recycling and waste collection changes Weekly food waste collections begin ew weekly food waste collections start in Cheltenham next week, on Monday 4 April 2011. The other main change that local residents will see to their service from this date is alternate weekly collections of non-recyclable waste. The alternate weekly kerbside recycling collections will remain the same. Crews at Cheltenham Borough Council have been busy delivering over 50,000 kitchen waste caddies around the borough, along with detailed information leaflets of how the scheme will operate. To help promote the changes and answer questions from local residents, a series of road shows have been running around the town throughout February and March – and will continue into early April. Canvassers have been visiting households to explain the new recycling and waste service; and a play featuring child-friendly characters has toured around the borough’s primary schools
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encouraging youngsters to make sure their parents take full advantage of the new food waste collection service. Waste minimisation and recycling are some of the council’s highest priorities, and the council has signed up to recycling targets of 50 per cent by 2015. Councillor Roger Whyborn, cabinet member for sustainability said: “The new weekly food waste collections will make a huge difference in reducing the amount of refuse that until now we have had to send to landfill. "We think that everyone will quickly get used to the changes and that we can work together to reuse and recycle more and more of our waste. It really is easy to make a positive impact on the environment by simply separating out our waste." People who have not yet signed up to the new brown bin garden waste service can do so at any time, and
residents can still take their garden waste to the council’s recycling centre on the Swindon Road. For more information on any of the council’s recycling facilities call 01242 264244 or visit www.cheltenham.gov.uk/waste
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